Julia exhaled a long, turbid breath.The sharp, predatory purple glow in her eyes gradually dimmed, fading back into the calm violet of her everyday self.
A wry smile tugged at her lips.
'Renxue… your possession really lets me jump entire levels and fight beyond my realm.'
Because Julia was no ordinary Soul Master.She was a virtual persona, a consciousness woven directly by Qian Renxue after she had become a Sequence 4 : Manipulator.
She was not just a clone but another way for Qian Renxue to walk the world.
She had no need to guard herself like Eve who had against Rakshasa's intent.
Julia was Qian Renxue—just in another body.
That was why, at times, Renxue personally possessed her, descending through Julia like a god wearing a mortal shell.
And today's massacre had been one such moment.
-----
As the acting commander of the Angel Corps' active patrol division, Julia carried responsibilities far heavier than her rank suggested.
Her official rank was only Captain, yet Hua Zhang— the true commander of the Angel Corps— was personally grooming her to take his position.
Her duties were a mess of diplomacy, logistics, and frontline operations:Maintaining relations with Gengxin City, Frequently meeting Lou Gao, who was on the brink of another breakthrough in blacksmithing due to Renxue's new theories, Overseeing the continuous upgrade of Angel Corps equipment, Eliminating Evil Soul Masters who had multiplied during the chaos of the soul beast tide.
It was an endless workload, but Julia carried it without complaint.
She looked toward the rising sun.Its rays washed over her armor and face, painting her silhouette with golden brilliance.
Standing amidst the morning light, Julia resembled a Valkyrie descending onto a battlefield, a warrior forged from both holy radiance and cold steel.
She released her Martial Soul— the Radiant Sword—and the glowing soul rings merged back into her body, fading from sight.
Her martial soul was plain.Barely a mid-level sword martial soul, and her talent, truthfully, was not great.
The only reason she had reached Soul Sage was because—
Qian Renxue had forced her cultivation upward using faith energy, opening every bottleneck with large amount of energy.
Julia chuckled to herself as she remembered the last exchange of blows.
"That was a combination of thunder, fire, and light sword styles… all in one."Her eyes narrowed teasingly."Renxue… you stole another sword technique from Chen Dao or was it one of your own creations?"
The corner of her mouth curved.
Qian Renxue always did have sticky fingers when it came to sword techniques.
She lifted her head toward the shining horizon, expression darkening.
"The task you gave me this time is truly too difficult…" she whispered."Stopping Bibi Dong's encroachment from inside Spirit Hall… is not something a mere Captain can do easily."
Her voice was tired for the first time.
But she did not run from it.Because someone had to stand in Spirit Hall, quietly restraining the ambitions of the woman whose influence was spreading like poison.
Someone had to guard the Spirit Hall from being hollowed out from within.
And that someone was Julia.
The true reason she remained stationed here—was because Spirit Hall needed, loyal extension of Qian Renxue in the light.
Julia waited for some time until she finally heard a distant galloping noise—steady, hurried, and drawing closer through the forested path.
A few breaths later, the Angel Corps captain emerged with his mounted squad. The moment his eyes landed on the bodies strewn around Julia, his expression froze. For a heartbeat, he simply stared—then the shock faded into a grim understanding.
He had seen bloodshed before, but this… this was different. Clean cuts, fatal strikes, and an eerie silence hanging over the battlefield.
'This is the same brutality those Evil Soul Masters suffered back then… when Young Master Qian Renxue handled them.'
The memory made the captain's scalp tingle.
'Come to think of it… Captain Julia was introduced to the Angel Corps by Young Master. At that time, I was a Soul Emperor at rank 62 and she was just a young Soul Elder at rank 32. But in seven years I barely reached rank 69, while she…'
He swallowed.
'…she shot all the way to rank 75. Who wouldn't be afraid of someone like that?'
Julia stood quietly at the center of the clearing, her boots stained with dried blood, her sword already sheathed. She looked up toward the sky, where the sun was climbing lazily over the horizon, and said in a flat tone,
"You're very late."
The captain immediately straightened his back as if her gaze alone weighed a hundred kilograms.
"Commander, you… you ran off on your own. None of us could keep up."
He wanted to add something else, but thinking about how she blitzed across the field like a streak of silver light made him shut his mouth.
'Her martial soul is a sword. A sword! Since when do sword-type spirits move like agility-type assassins?!'
Still, he forced himself to speak again. "After you left, a letter arrived. From Pope Bibi Dong. She… requested—no, ordered—that you return to Spirit Hall immediately."
Julia clicked her tongue.
"Tch."
Her lips twitched in annoyance, the first genuine expression she showed since the battle ended.
'That woman again… Hard to handle from every angle. And why does she keep insisting on taking me as her disciple? Didn't I reject her enough times?'
Julia wasn't opposed to acknowledgement, power, or support—but she was not blind.
'If I become her disciple, every achievement I make will be half credited to her… and her influence inside Spirit Hall will grow even more. I'd be feeding the very power she wants to consolidate.'
She exhaled slowly and looked at the captain.
"Let's go."
---
Julia 's pic.