After returning to the LI Mansion, Li Yun received news that Xu Xian had released her challenge, setting the date for a duel ten days from now. If the Li family emerged victorious, she would marry into the family.
Given Xu Xian's status within the Xu family, her marriage would essentially place the Xu family at the helm of the Xu family, a position of immense power.
The news stirred excitement among the younger generation of the Li family. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rise to the top, a chance to gain power and influence with a single victory. Despite the severe consequences of failure, the temptation of such rewards often clouded their judgment.
This challenge wasn't just a test of strength. It was Xu Xian's way of taking revenge on Li Yun, using the duel as bait to draw the Feng family into a trap and weaken them from within.
Li Yun lived in a secluded corner of the Li family estate. His residence consisted of a modest house with a small courtyard, where a few wooden poles stood, used for training. Apart from that, there was little else—barely anything that suggested the grandeur of the Li family.
"Today's been nothing but bad luck," Li Yun muttered to himself as he brushed the dust off his clothes. He entered the house, started a fire, and began preparing his medicinal brew.
The ingredients—a few rare herbs like the Insect-eater Flower, Five-leaf Green, and Quiet Water Grass—were added into the stone pot, one by one, each herb carefully selected for its specific medicinal properties.
After the concoction had been boiled, he drank it down in one go. The hot, bitter liquid burned his throat, its intensity like lava.
Li Yun gasped for breath as he placed the bowl down, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. The effects of the medicine began to take hold, coursing through his body.
"It should be working by now," Li Yun murmured, pulling a worn piece of leather from his robes.
The leather contained a record of an ancient technique called "Diamond Immortal." It had been years since the violent battle outside of Lian City that had left many dead. The city's people had searched for the bodies, and it was then that Li Yun had come across this technique, bought from an old beggar who had traveled from the far north.
While most people awakened their Heavenly Soul by the age of twelve, those who failed to do so by the age of fourteen were often dismissed as spiritually incapable. But the "Diamond Immortal" technique recorded a method of unlocking the Heavenly Soul late in life, offering Li Yun a new glimmer of hope.
The furnace glowed red as the nine stones inside were heated. Li Yun used tongs to remove the stones and pressed them fiercely against his chest, targeting specific acupoints.
A sharp pain shot through him as the stones seared into his skin, the searing heat almost unbearable. The burn of the stones blended with the heat of the medicinal brew, creating a potent combination of energy that surged toward his Soul Palace, deep inside his chest.
BOOM!
A violent force erupted, sending Li Yun tumbling backward, blood spilling from his mouth. The surge of energy had nearly torn his body apart.
But the pain wasn't over.
BOOM!
Another wave of pain hit him, followed by another and another. It felt as though his internal organs were being hammered, the relentless force pushing him to the brink of collapse.
Then, an odd sound echoed in his mind.
Li Yun's spirit shuddered, and he quickly focused, examining the Soul Palace within him.
Something was wrong.
His Soul Palace, which had always been a quiet, untouched space, suddenly trembled. A dark, swirling mass emerged from it, roaring as it surged toward the energy attacking the Soul Palace. It opened its massive mouth—like a black hole—and devoured the force attacking him. At that moment, a beam of light shot upward from the top of Li Yun's head, and a strange, malevolent soul pattern flashed within the light.
Li Yun's heart raced.
"What is this? A Heavenly Soul?"
Ignoring the excruciating pain, he looked deeper into his Soul Palace and saw the massive, broken space where the dark soul pattern had been released. The foreign energy faded away, and everything seemed to calm down.
"It's... my Heavenly Soul," Li Yun said with astonishment, taking a long time to recover. A sense of triumph flooded through him.
Eighteen years! Finally awakened!
He reached inside and focused on the form of his Heavenly Soul. It resembled a fierce lion, its body covered in shining scales with two enormous horns on its head. But the most striking feature was its wide, gaping mouth—stretching all the way to its armpits!
"Wait…" Li Yun frowned.
The Soul Palace had only just broken open, and this Heavenly Soul appeared to be newly born—so why did it lack the halo that typically accompanied a newly awakened soul?
Could it be that this Heavenly Soul is unique? He recalled reading about methods for detecting Heavenly Souls in ancient family texts.
Li Yun pressed certain acupoints, and instantly his Tianshun, the soul awakening technique, activated. His body arched, and spiritual energy began to flood his system, filling his thin, weak frame with an overwhelming power.
"So, this is soul power?" Li Yun marveled. "Incredible!"
Not wasting a moment, he injected some of his soul power back into his Heavenly Soul, probing it further.
A sudden realization struck.
"This isn't a newly born Heavenly Soul! It's... the same age as me! Could it have awakened the moment I was born?" Li Yun muttered in shock.
He rushed to his study, pulling out an old book on the Heavenly Souls of the continent. After flipping through the pages, he found no mention of a soul like his.
But then, on the last page, he saw a blurred image that made his heart stop.
The image was of his exact Heavenly Soul, the fierce lion, and beside it were two words: Gluttonous Beast.
"The Heavenly Soul requires blood to nourish it for ten years."
The simple message left him dumbfounded.
"It must be a Gluttonous Heavenly Soul, one that needs blood to sustain it for ten years... but where did my blood come from when I was born? How could I feed it?"
A bitter smile tugged at the corner of Li Yun's mouth. "I never imagined that my difficult past was caused by this very Heavenly Soul. It must have been dormant all this time, waiting to awaken. No wonder I struggled for so long."
He closed the book and sat cross-legged once more, his mind focused and determined. No matter what this Heavenly Soul was, now that it was awake, he could begin cultivating.
He stretched his focus to test the rank of his soul.
Li Yun focused his spirit and sank deep into his mind.
In an instant, the surroundings darkened, and small specks of light began to appear—each one representing his Heavenly Soul.
This was the Nine Heavens, a space that existed both in the sky and within his heart.
His Gluttonous Heavenly Soul shone brilliantly, standing out among the stars.
Li Yun froze. "The Fourth Heaven? My Heavenly Soul has reached the Fourth Heaven already?"
Most ordinary Heavenly Souls reached the First Heaven, with some rare individuals managing the Second or Third Heavens. But Fourth Heaven? That was unheard of.
"If this news gets out, the entire continent will be shaken."
Determined, Li Yun pushed his soul forward with all his might.
"Let's see how far this soul can go."
He gathered his strength, controlling the Gluttonous Heavenly Soul, and propelled it toward the Fifth Heaven.
BOOM!
The force of his soul slammed against the seal of the Fifth Heaven, causing the air to tremble with energy.
Li Yun's body shook as the soul struggled against the seal. Sweat dripped from his face, his strength tested to its limits.
But the Gluttonous Heavenly Soul persisted, pushing forward with more force, and the seal began to crack.
Li Yun smiled, his determination unwavering.
"This is it! I can do this!"