While browsing the information about the Martial Soul Association, Ender came across an overview of two great clans.
One of them was called the Yao Ri Clan, with their martial soul symbolized by the Dong Huang Bell.
There were no specific details about it, only that it was an exceptionally powerful bell.
The other was the Ming Ye Clan, whose martial soul was symbolized by the Moonbow, a unique bow. Similarly, no detailed information was available about it.
"It seems information about these two clans is very scarce. Well, no need to care about them for now. If I end up fighting them in the future, I'll find out more then." Ender thought.
He continued holding a book, walking around aimlessly while glancing through its contents and observing his surroundings.
At that moment, he accidentally ran into Ye Qingyun. Remembering something, she asked:
"I still don't know your name."
Ender glanced at her briefly before replying:
"Ender."
He then lowered his head again, focusing on the book, as his attention was drawn to the information about this world. He was intrigued by the ranking system.
There were ten ranks, each divided into ten levels. To ascend to the next rank, one had to absorb a soul ring, which could be obtained by hunting soul beasts.
The first rank was Soul Initiate, the level of those who had just awakened their martial soul.
Level 10 was the maximum for this rank, representing the innate physical limit of the human body.
The higher the soul power at the time of awakening, the greater the innate talent.
Without a soul, one was considered talentless, and a martial soul that was too weak was deemed useless.
The ranks that followed were Soul Adept, Soul Practitioner, Soul Knight, Soul Master, Soul Lord, Soul King, Soul Emperor, Soul Saint, and Soul Divine.
However, Ye Qingyun's gaze suddenly froze as a thought crossed her mind:
"What was that look just now? This guy is not simple. But with such a huge power gap, he's still someone I can easily control in the palm of my hand."
At that moment, the Qingyun Sword appeared in her hand. She immediately pointed the tip of the sword toward Ender and demanded:
"Who are you?"
As the young lady of a prominent clan, she was kind-hearted but no fool.
Furthermore, when she carried Ender earlier, she had noticed that his body was very weak. This gave her the confidence to act without hesitation.
Ender, who had been engrossed in reading, froze for a moment, thinking:
"Damn it. In immortal body, my face doesn't show much emotion. It seems I accidentally made an expression that didn't match just now, and she noticed!"
But Ender still put on an innocent expression and said:
"Miss, I already told you I'm Ender."
However, Ye Qingyun didn't relent. Instead, her sword moved closer to his neck as she spoke coldly:
"I'm no fool. Your demeanor just now was very much like a leader. And not just an ordinary leader, but something entirely different in level. If you don't speak, I'll kill you."
Ender, who had served as a leader for centuries, was long accustomed to it.
Having achieved immortality, surpassing ordinary humans, his attitude naturally carried a distinct air.
It was just that his previous body had been entirely metallic, incapable of showing expressions, so others never noticed his emotions.
"Damn it, who the hell trained this girl? I let my guard down for one moment and she immediately picked up on it." Ender cursed inwardly.
Still, he decided not to continue lying, feeling that if he acted any further, his head might soon part ways with his body.
"Calm down, calm down. I'm telling you, I'm Ender. That's the truth. You're saying I used to be a leader? That's true too, but it's all in the past. If you want to ask me more, go ahead, but could you please put the sword down?" Ender said.
Yet his expression was oddly calm, showing not the slightest fear of death, which caused Ye Qingyun to frown.
Still, she withdrew her martial soul and said:
"What kind of leader is so weak?"
"You wouldn't understand even if I explained. I used to live in the mountains and had no idea about the outside world." Ender replied.
He wasn't lying. For the past few decades, he had been in the Himalayas scheming, only to be interrupted by some comrades who showed up and gave him a thorough beating.
Ye Qingyun furrowed her brows and said:
"I'll believe you for now. For the time being, you can follow me, but if you make any suspicious moves, I'll kill you."
"A leader in the mountains? Leading what, wild animals?" she thought mockingly.
With his frail body, she could break his bones with a single strike. How could such a person lead even soul beasts?
Ender was slightly surprised by her response and asked:
"What exactly did your clan teach you? I thought you were a good person at first."
"I'm a good person, but that doesn't mean I'm naive. To survive in this world, you have to be ready to set traps for everyone—your parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, anyone. Even if you don't want to, you must always have a plan to deal with the world. Otherwise, you might die without even knowing why." Ye Qingyun replied.
Hearing this, Ender was dumbfounded and thought:
"You people seriously have way too much time on your hands. Forget advancing science, you've mastered the art of scheming to that level."
"Can you help me awaken my martial soul? I've never known what a martial soul is since I was a kid." Ender asked.
Ye Qingyun looked at him and said:
"You're so old already, why bother cultivating? You don't have much time left. Even if you have good talent, you won't get far."
"Can't I be curious? Does it cost a lot to awaken?"
"No, it doesn't. If you want, I can help you. But you'll have to stay by my side as a steward afterward."
Though she said this, she was thinking to herself:
"I need to see what exactly you are. There's no way you're normal. Even my grandfather couldn't compare himself with the presence you have. And on top of that, you're shameless enough to pretend to be pitiful in front of me."
"Fine. A humble servant like me would gladly die for you." Ender said, bowing respectfully.
Ye Qingyun rolled her eyes in disdain and said:
"Cut it out. That attitude of yours is unbearable. Just throw it away, will you?"
"Ops, you're hard to please. Fine, if you don't like it, I won't do it." Ender replied, following her.
The two walked for a while until they reached a room. Ye Qingyun took out some strange stones and said:
"Stand still. I'll help you awaken your martial soul."
Ender had read about the martial soul awakening ritual before. While he didn't fully understand the principles behind it, he at least knew what to do.
As Ye Qingyun channeled her soul power, the six small stones began to revolve around him, activating some latent power within his body.
A gentle breeze came from an unknown source, causing her hair to flutter.
For a moment, she was startled and looked around, but there was nothing unusual in sight.
Meanwhile, Ender was overjoyed to the point of bursting. His lifelong dream had finally come true.
His martial soul was exactly the goal he had pursued for his entire life.
Of course, it's fake, the real one is absolutely never like this.