Bathed in the golden light, Chu Qingyun felt a pleasant, comforting warmth spread throughout his body.
A second later, he seemed to sense something emerging from within him.
But when he looked closely, even reaching out to touch himself, he found nothing.
Chu Qingyun didn't think much of it, assuming it was a sensation everyone experienced.
Everyone stared without blinking, counting down silently in their hearts.
After thirty seconds, there was no change.
After forty-five seconds, still nothing.
Fifty seconds…
Fifty-five seconds…
The smiles on everyone's faces slowly faded.
Chu Qingyun's heart sank along with them.
'No Martial Soul? How could this be? Don't I have a Martial Soul?'
After a minute, the golden light dissipated. The space in front of Chu Qingyun remained empty.
Chu Qingyun had no Martial Soul!
An immense sense of loss flooded Chu Qingyun's heart. His face turned deathly pale, and he nearly fainted.
Even the Village Chief stood stunned on the Martial Soul Platform, at a loss for what to do.
As for Chu Qingyun's father, his face was even paler.
In the end, it was all for nothing…
"Ahem, perhaps the Soul Testing Crystal has run out of power. Let's swap it for a new one and try again."
The Village Chief ordered someone to fetch a new Soul Testing Crystal.
Although this was against the rules, no one objected.
It gave them a sliver of new hope.
Perhaps it really was a problem with the Soul Testing Crystal.
If Chu Family Village lost a genius just to save one Soul Testing Crystal, it would be a tremendous loss!
Soon, a new Soul Testing Crystal was brought over.
Three more tests yielded the same result: no reaction whatsoever.
Chu Qingyun's heart turned completely cold.
After the final test, the Village Chief let out a long sigh.
He gently patted Chu Qingyun's shoulder and said, "Qingyun, don't be sad. You've already worked very hard. No one will blame you."
Chu Qingyun's parents walked onto the Martial Soul Platform and led the devastated Chu Qingyun away.
The crowded onlookers voluntarily parted to make way for them.
"Sigh, to think he doesn't have a Martial Soul."
"That poor kid, Qingyun…"
"What a waste of a Soul Testing Crystal…"
Listening to the hushed whispers around him, Chu Qingyun felt an even greater sense of indignation!
He clenched his fists so tightly that his sharp nails dug deep into his palms, drawing trickles of blood.
After returning home, Chu Qingyun threw himself at the sandbag in the courtyard, punching it like a madman.
"Why?"
"Why?"
"Why!"
"Why don't I have a Martial Soul?! Heavens, are you toying with me!?"
His mother, Liu Lanfang, wanted to stop him, but Chu Xuan held her back.
"Lanfang, go make Qingyun something good to eat. Perhaps I've put too much pressure on him all these years."
Watching Chu Qingyun vent his frustrations, Chu Xuan's eyes filled with love and heartache.
He seemed to recall the moment twenty years ago when he, too, was found to have no Martial Soul—the resentment, the helplessness…
「The night was deep and still, the sky full of stars.」
For the first time ever, Chu Qingyun failed to complete his training regimen.
His hands were wrapped in thick bandages, reeking of medicinal ointment.
Chu Qingyun sat on his roof, gazing up at the sky, his heart a blank void.
The goal he had worked toward for five years had collapsed in a single day. Anyone in his position would find it impossible to accept.
And the memory of those disappointed or mocking gazes made Chu Qingyun's heart ache with sorrow.
"Qingyun, it's been a long time since I've had a proper talk with you, hasn't it?" At some point, Chu Xuan had also climbed onto the roof.
Without turning back, Chu Qingyun gave a slight nod.
"Back then, I was just like you. I didn't have a Martial Soul either."
"It was hard to accept at first, but after a while, I slowly got used to it."
"Perhaps we've put too much pressure on you all these years. Actually, being an ordinary person is quite nice—working from sunrise to sunset."
...
That night, Chu Xuan and Chu Qingyun talked for a long time.
Chu Qingyun felt a little bit better afterward.
The next morning, while Chu Qingyun was chopping firewood at home, he saw many people running past his door, all heading toward the village entrance.
"De, what's wrong? Why is everyone in such a hurry?"
Chu Qingyun asked a man who was just passing by.
The man paused for a moment and said, "Meng and the others are back from the Yuan Stone Ore Vein. I heard there was trouble. Go take a look."
After speaking, De hurried off in a flash.
The so-called Yuan Stone Ore Vein was actually an abandoned mine.
The major powers in Qingshan City had already dug up most of the Primordial Stones, but the remaining scraps still attracted Martial Artists from the many nearby villages.
Chu Qingyun had no interest in this and didn't want to go out.
However, his mother, Liu Lanfang, insisted on dragging him out the door. "Qingyun, don't coop yourself up at home. Let's go take a look too."
At the village entrance, a large crowd had already gathered, forming circle after circle around several young Martial Artists.
"It's those people from Zhao Family Castle again! They've gone too far!"
"Sigh, what can you do? That Yuan Stone Ore Vein is a chaotic place."
"That boy Meng… what a pity…"
From the conversations around him, Chu Qingyun quickly pieced together what had happened.
The one in trouble was a Martial Artist named Chu Meng.
Several Martial Artists from their Chu Family Village had encountered people from Zhao Family Castle at the abandoned Yuan Stone Ore Vein. Chu Meng had been critically injured, and by the time he reached the village entrance, he had already breathed his last.
The surrounding villagers were all deeply saddened.
The death of a Martial Artist who possessed a Martial Soul was a significant loss for Chu Family Village.
Looking at the body in the center of the crowd, Chu Qingyun once again felt something emerge from his own body.
It was the same feeling as yesterday, in front of the Soul Testing Crystal!
'What's going on? It's happening again!'
A glint of light flashed in Chu Qingyun's eyes.
Yesterday, he had thought it was a hallucination, or a sensation that everyone experienced.
But for it to happen again today proved that it was definitely not a hallucination!
Chu Qingyun closed his eyes and focused, trying to perceive it. After a few breaths, he seemed to sense something in front of him.
'Could it be that I do have a Martial Soul? Is it just invisible?'
Excitement began to build in Chu Qingyun's heart.
The sensation grew stronger and stronger until, finally, Chu Qingyun was certain: there was definitely something invisible in front of him!
As the sensation intensified, his connection to that something grew tighter.
A minute later, Chu Qingyun's eyes snapped open.
He saw it!
Before him, a mass of chaotic gas floated in the air, without any specific form.
'What is this? Is this my Martial Soul?'
Though Chu Qingyun was puzzled, he was also overjoyed.
The thrill of recovering something thought lost was a feeling most people could never comprehend.
Chu Qingyun had the urge to tell everyone about this, but thankfully, his calm nature took over. He knew this was not the time or place.
Looking again at Chu Meng's body in the center of the crowd, Chu Qingyun's eyes widened in shock.
He saw a small, three-leaf vine grass swaying in the wind above Chu Meng's body!
'A Tier One Martial Soul, the Three-Star Vine!'
Chu Qingyun knew that was Chu Meng's Martial Soul.
Suddenly, he felt his own Martial Soul communicating a feeling of extreme desire to him.
His Martial Soul was craving that Three-star Vine Martial Soul!
It was common knowledge that a person's Martial Soul would disappear along with them after death.
Moreover, unless it was intentionally revealed, it was impossible for an ordinary person to see another's Martial Soul.
But now, Chu Qingyun could see Chu Meng's Martial Soul.
'All of this must be my own Martial Soul's doing!'
Chu Qingyun was plunged into deep confusion and hesitation.
In the end, he couldn't resist. He controlled his Martial Soul, sending it flying toward Chu Meng's Three-star Vine Martial Soul.
His chaotic Martial Soul enveloped the Three-star Vine Martial Soul, flew back, and quickly entered his body.
And Chu Qingyun received a message: "Devouring Martial Soul. Progress: 1%."
"My Martial Soul… it's actually devouring Chu Meng's Martial Soul!"