The eastern sky turns pale as daylight faintly emerges. Yan Yuchen, with the azure-toothed creature, silently returns home.
Having spent a sleepless night, Yan Yuchen feels not a hint of drowsiness. Instead, excitement fills his heart as he anticipates exploring the unknown.
Yan Yuchen locks the door behind him, retrieves ancient books from storage, and has the azure-toothed creature identify them. When they reach the third book, the creature speaks, "Young master, this 'Soul Cultivation Technique' seems to start with fundamental practices, but..."
"But what? Speak quickly," Yan Yuchen impatiently interrupts.
The creature hesitates, then says, "Young master, this technique is somewhat sinister. It's specifically for cultivating the soul. I've never heard of it before. It claims that by cultivating the soul to the Soul God stage, one gains immense powers, mastering extraordinary abilities and effortlessly practicing any martial arts."
Yan Yuchen is pleased, stores the other books, and places the 'Soul Cultivation Technique' on the table. He flips through it, having the creature translate and explain each page meticulously.
"Humans have three souls. After death, one ascends, one descends, and one wanders in the mortal realm. To become a god, one must cultivate the soul."
"The initial stages include the ethereal projection of the Yin Soul, the merging of the three souls in the second stage, followed by soul communication..."
"In the first stage of projection, focus on cultivating the Earthbound Soul. It embodies ugliness, representing hellish landscapes and repulsive aspects of the world. To refine it, witness all the ugliness in the world, experience darkness, punish evil, uphold goodness, and cleanse the Earthbound Soul."
"After refining the Earthbound Soul, one proceeds to cultivate the Celestial Soul. The Celestial Soul embodies desires, be it for wealth, women, status, or indulgence in worldly pleasures. Human desires are boundless, making this soul the most challenging."
"The last is the Mundane Soul, requiring the most sincere emotions for cultivation—family bonds, romantic love, and friendships are emotions. Humans are born with emotions and perish without them; the soul wanders the mortal realm due to attachments. The difficulty of this soul varies based on one's destiny and character..."
As the pages turn, the creature's explanations grow more excited. It has never heard of these concepts before, and if what the book says is true, its current form might be the so-called Mundane Soul.
Its other two souls, one enduring hardships in hell, the other succumbing to endless desires in the sky, might face dispersal if not freed.
"Master, it's dawn."
Pointing outside, the creature notices the sun is about to rise.
"Sunrise dispels darkness."
As a Yin Soul, the creature fears sunlight. If it doesn't leave the dim hiding place soon, its soul might perish, disappearing from the mortal realm.
"Alright, leave for now. Come back tonight. I might move today, and I'm not sure where I'll end up. Can you find me?"
Yan Yuchen closes the book, asking the creature.
The creature smiles, "Master, don't worry. Everyone has a distinct scent; I'll find you."
Yan Yuchen nods, "Go then."
The creature bows respectfully, then blurs and transforms into black smoke, drifting out the window, disappearing instantly.
"If I can cultivate my soul to project, I should be able to move through walls and clouds like the creature."
Yan Yuchen looks at the book in his hand, determination gleaming in his eyes.
As the morning sunlight streamed through the window, the sound of Yan Xiaoxi knocking and her impatient voice filled with hidden anger echoed outside, "Brother! It's time to get up!"
The door was locked, and her attempts to open it only fueled her annoyance. Stomping her foot, she exclaimed, "Humph, if you're brave enough, don't come out!"
Due to Yan Yuchen sneaking into her room last night, she was now very angry.
In the room, Yan Yuchen sat cross-legged on the bed, following the cultivation method from the ancient book, attempting to open his meridians slowly, hoping to awaken the Earthbound Soul within.
However, the time was too short, and there was no noticeable effect.
Hearing his younger sister's irate voice outside, he sighed and reluctantly got up.
As the two of them descended the stairs with their backpacks, Yan Xiaoxi immediately jumped up and grabbed his ear, a face full of anger, "Brother, tell me, why did you sneak into my room last night? What did you see that you shouldn't have?"
Yan Yuchen could only laugh wryly, letting her do as she pleased, thinking, indeed, he did see something he shouldn't have, but how could he tell her? Even if he did, she might not believe him.
"Nonsense, I went to bed early last night. How could I have gone to your room? Even if I did go, I would go openly. Why sneak around?"
He could only brazenly deny it.
Yan Xiaoxi snorted, "I saw it with my own eyes. Are you saying I saw it wrong? If you don't admit it, I'll tell Mom and Dad."
Yan Yuchen quickly said, "Maybe I sleepwalked. I really don't know."
"Pretending. Keep pretending."
Yan Xiaoxi sneered.
As they walked out of the neighborhood, seeing curious onlookers, Yan Xiaoxi let him go, saying with a pout, "Tonight, when we get home, I'll tell Dad. Let's see how he deals with you!"
Yan Yuchen forced a smile, about to say something conciliatory when his eyes flashed with a familiar figure emerging ominously from the ground beside the road.
It was a woman with a deathly pale complexion, blood-red eyes, and a sinister smile—the female ghost who intended to extract his yang energy in his dreams that night!
In broad daylight, under the brilliant sunshine, she dared to appear in the mortal realm. Judging by her shaky and faint appearance, it seemed she had suffered severe injuries that night.
She floated menacingly behind an elderly person about to cross the road, madness and a bloodthirsty gleam in her eyes. With a twist of her form, she turned into a red light that drilled into the old man's head.
On the busy road, traffic flowed steadily, but the old man's gaze started to appear somewhat trance-like.
"Some ghosts and monsters, in order to enhance their dark arts or heal injuries, often deceive mortals to cause death. Then, they can easily devour the soul that has just left the body..."
The words from Azure Tooth the previous night echoed in Yan Yuchen's mind.
Watching as the elderly man lifted his foot to move forward, a truck approaching showed no sign of slowing down. It wasn't a red light!
Yan Yuchen's face changed, forcefully pushing aside his little sister, who was still demanding an explanation, and rushed over. The old man had just taken a step when the truck rapidly approached, a mere two meters away!
The truck driver's face turned pale, but he was too late to react!
Just as the elderly man was about to be buried under the wheels, Yan Yuchen grabbed his arm and pulled him away. At that moment, the people waiting for the traffic next to them had just begun their horrified cries!
"Ssh—"
The truck continued for several meters before the driver, realizing what happened, slammed on the brakes.
The saved elderly man was dazed, seemingly not yet comprehending what had just occurred, standing in place, trembling.
The female ghost inside him, feeling Yan Yuchen's presence, was suddenly frightened and tried to escape in panic. However, a hand suddenly gripped her neck!
"A mere evil ghost dares to harm under the vast sky. Truly impatient with life!"
Yan Yuchen shouted in anger, a surge of heat flowing within him. With a "pop," he crushed the female ghost's soul, causing her to completely dissipate in the mortal realm!
At this moment, his consciousness trembled slightly, and the Earthbound Soul mentioned in the cultivation method seemed to show a trace of movement.
"So, to purify the Earthbound Soul, one must witness and rectify evil deeds. I just killed a malevolent ghost planning to harm people, and the Earthbound Soul responded. It seems the ancient book was indeed correct."
Yan Yuchen extinguished the female ghost, then turned and left.
The saved elderly man finally regained awareness, standing there with a face full of shock.
"Brother..."
Yan Xiaoxi witnessed the perilous scene clearly, but she couldn't believe that the swift figure, like the wind, was her frail brother.
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