Chapter 58: Ye Guyi (Part 1)
Ever since joining the Church of the Water God, Shi Meng's entire life trajectory had undergone an earth-shaking transformation. After beginning his training in the Mysterious Heaven Technique, he could clearly feel that his soul power was increasing at a pace far faster than ever before. At this rate, in half a year at most, he would break through to rank thirty and become a true Soul Elder.
Every time this crossed his mind, he couldn't help but be flooded with emotion. If he hadn't joined the Church of the Water God, with his pitiful single rank of soul power and his common Rock-Armored Lizard martial soul, breaking through to rank thirty would probably have taken him another year or two. To say nothing of the fact that his natural talent was mediocre to begin with, and because his family was poor, he had long since passed the optimal age for cultivation. His family still needed him to earn money to support them, and on ordinary days he could barely scrape together enough time to focus on training at all.
But now, everything is different. The Church of the Water God had not only imparted a cultivation technique that could accelerate his training, but the compensation they provided was also extremely generous. Most importantly—there were no arrogant nobles here, no profit-hungry merchants preying on the weak. Everyone treated one another as equals, and for the first time in his life, he felt what it was like to be respected.
Recently, the church had established a number of new departments. Even someone like him, who hadn't read many books, could join the Enforcement Department and earn compensation by completing various missions. Tasks like traveling to different villages to help children of the right age awaken their martial souls, handling the admission procedures for soul masters who wished to join, spreading the teachings of the Church of the Water God, and expanding the church's influence.
This work, though simple—at times even somewhat tedious—suited Shi Meng perfectly. Whenever he saw the anticipation and hope shining in the villagers' eyes, he would be reminded of his own childhood. If not for the kind stranger who had helped him awaken his martial soul back then, he would probably still be hammering iron in his village now, never even having stepped beyond its borders.
Now he could bring that same hope to these children, while also earning a decent income and honor within the church. It gave him a sense of fulfillment unlike anything he'd ever known.
"Esteemed Lord Soul Master, these are the children of our village who have turned six this year. Do you think... do any of them have a chance to become soul masters?" The old village chief, his back bent with age, asked with trembling deference. Behind him stood six children, every one of them staring with wide, curious eyes, gazing at Shi Meng with a mixture of nervousness and hope.
Shi Meng had long since grown accustomed to the village chiefs' awe. The villagers in these remote hamlets knew almost nothing about soul masters. The first time they witnessed him display his soul skills, many had thought a god had descended from the heavens. He smiled warmly and patiently explained, "Rest assured, Village Chief. Every child can awaken a martial soul. But to become a soul master, one must also possess soul power. For commoner children like ourselves, it's true that those born with soul power are rare—but among every thousand, there will always be one or two fortunate ones."
He paused, letting his gaze sweep across the children's young, innocent faces, and his voice softened even further. "Even if no one is found this year, our Church of the Water God will return next year, and the year after that, and the year after that! So long as the Church of the Water God exists, we will awaken the martial souls of every child who reaches the age of six. If the children are willing to come and study at the church, the resources and education we provide will be no less than those of any soul master academy. We will never allow a single child's talent to go to waste."
"And if they don't wish to join the church, we will still offer appropriate assistance. To stay or to leave—it is entirely their choice."
The old village chief bowed repeatedly. "Thank you, Lord Soul Master! Thank you, Lord Soul Master!"
"This is simply our duty," Shi Meng replied, his face alight with a warm smile. He brought out the awakening crystal and said gently to the children, "Come, children. Stand over here. I'll help you awaken your martial souls..."
After a busy round of work, it turned out that two of the six children actually possessed soul power. One had awakened a Lone Wolf martial soul; the other, a bizarrely shaped, enormous scythe.
"Wonderful!" Shi Meng was overjoyed. "After visiting so many villages, I've finally found two more children with soul power." He crouched down, meeting the two children's eyes at their level. "Would you be willing to join the Church of the Water God? Don't rush to answer—go home first and discuss it properly with your parents. Rest assured, once you become soul masters, you'll receive a monthly stipend. We will never shortchange you. Even if you don't become soul masters, if you're willing, you can still join the church. We welcome everyone!"
The old village chief hastily prompted them, "Children, hurry and thank the Lord Soul Master!"
The two soul-power-bearing children timidly said, "Thank you, Uncle."
"You must call him Lord Soul Master!" the village chief quickly corrected.
Shi Meng waved it off without concern. Though he was only twenty years old, years of constant travel made him look far more mature than his actual age. "It's fine. They're just children. Besides, soul masters are ordinary people too. Our Church of the Water God holds that all people are equal—no distinction between noble and lowly. Even if a soul master commits a crime, they are judged by the same laws as a commoner."
"There's no need to be so formal."
Amidst the village chief's repeated thanks, Shi Meng mounted his horse. "A deacon from the Church of the Water God will come to the village later. If the children are willing, they will be taken back to the main church to be nurtured and trained."
The crisp sound of horse hooves echoed along the country path. As Shi Meng rode forward, he mapped out the rest of his itinerary in his mind. Just then, a sudden rustling came from the thick underbrush beside the road. Fixing his eyes on the spot, he saw a boy of about twelve stumble out, his entire body streaked with bloodstains, his face pale as paper. It looked as though he might collapse at any moment.
Shi Meng's heart tightened. He was about to dismount and help when a sharp, urgent female voice rang out from behind: "Careful! Keep your distance from him! That's an evil soul master!"
The words had barely settled when the boy's expression twisted violently. A dense, cloying aura of blood erupted from his entire body in an instant. Two yellow and one purple soul rings rose beneath his feet, and the phantom of a blood-red rat superimposed itself over his frame. Its scarlet eyes fixed dead onto Shi Meng.
The boy's original martial soul had been nothing more than a scrawny rat, and his soul power was a pitiful half a rank—a thoroughly worthless martial soul by any measure. That was, until he stumbled upon the discovery that sucking blood could enhance his strength. Human blood, especially, yielded the best results. At first, he secretly drained the blood of livestock. Once he obtained his first soul ring, he began targeting those who had once bullied and humiliated him.
Yet his crimes were ultimately exposed. During the encirclement to capture him, he'd narrowly escaped. Relying on the evasion ability granted by his second soul skill, although he was gravely wounded, he'd managed to cling to his life. Upon sensing Shi Meng's aura, he'd immediately disguised himself as an injured youth, intending to launch a sudden ambush when Shi Meng's guard was down—after all, by his estimation, Shi Meng's strength was far below his own.
Seeing his ploy exposed, a murderous light flared in the boy's eyes. His figure shot toward Shi Meng like a streak of lightning, intent on draining this soul master's blood dry to heal his own wounds.
Shi Meng remained unshaken in the face of danger. His Rock-Armored Lizard martial soul instantly possessed him, and his two yellow soul rings blazed to life simultaneously. As a defense-type soul master, both of his soul skills were defensive in nature. Without a shred of hesitation, he activated them both at once. A heavy, thick layer of rock armor encased his entire body, gleaming with a steady, earthy ochre luster beneath the sunlight.
The boy lunged in the form of a crimson blur. His claws clashed violently with the rock armor, producing a piercing screech of grinding friction. Though the impact sent Shi Meng staggering back several paces, he had firmly withstood the blow. His gaze, calm and steady, locked onto the evil soul master before him. In his heart, he had already braced himself for a bitter, grueling fight.