Chapter 4: The Sacred White Tiger
As Zhu Zhuqing's figure stepped out from the crowd, two gazes immediately fixed upon her. One came from Dai Mubai, the other from Dai Yao.
She walked into the center of the formation, and once again, a golden light shield rose.
As the golden light points were absorbed more and more, Elder Five grew increasingly astonished. He had been responsible for awakening soul spirits for many years and knew that the more light points absorbed, the stronger the soul spirit was.
At this moment, the number of light points Zhu Zhuqing absorbed had already reached the same level as the Black Panther soul spirit absorbed earlier, yet the absorption was still ongoing.
"This... it looks like she's about to awaken the soul spirit passed down in her family," Elder Five thought, quickly recalling Zhu Zhuqing's surname.
When the absorption of light points stopped, Zhu Zhuqing's form was revealed. A pair of cat ears appeared on each side of her head, a tail sprouted from her back, and her fingernails elongated like sharp blades. Every movement exuded the grace of a cat.
A long trail of black particles, reminiscent of a messenger from the underworld, followed her, and her eyes were as cold as ice—lifeless, yet strikingly beautiful.
"Indeed, the Netherworld Spirit Cat soul spirit," Elder Five realized.
"Now, let's test her innate soul power, child."
As she placed her hand on the crystal ball, it immediately erupted with brilliant light.
"Level nine soul power, extremely close to innate full soul power. Her talent surpasses even that of the three princes!" Elder Five marveled.
"Child, you must know the mission of your family. Every Zhu family woman who awakens the Netherworld Spirit Cat soul spirit will marry a Star Luo Prince who awakens the White Tiger soul spirit. Now, the only unmarried prince left is the third prince, Dai Mubai. Once the engagement is officially made tomorrow, you will become the Third Prince's consort."
"Mm." Zhu Zhuqing answered simply.
Dai Mubai immediately walked over to Zhu Zhuqing, trying to start a conversation, but since their engagement had not yet been formalized, he didn't dare act too familiar with her.
However, Zhu Zhuqing remained cold and distant.
"Next, Dai Yao."
A figure emerged from the back of the crowd. As soon as the children saw his appearance, they immediately started whispering.
"Did you hear? He's the Dai Yao who was banished to the Cold Palace."
"Dai Yao? He looks so shabby!"
"How could he possibly be a member of the Dai family?"
Hearing the mockery from the crowd, Dai Mubai laughed and said, "His mother was just a lowly concubine. What kind of good soul spirit could he possibly awaken?"
Dai Yao coldly glared at Dai Mubai. The repeated insults directed at him and his mother made his anger surge. But as he considered his current situation, he once again chose to endure.
"Are you ready?" Elder Five asked.
"Yes."
The formation shimmered, and light points flew out from the ground, gradually entering Dai Yao's body.
Warmth. That was Dai Yao's first sensation, like the warm sun on a winter day, basking his body in its glow.
The warm feeling penetrated deep into his body. He could clearly feel his mental world starting to fluctuate. A golden egg appeared, and soon after, under the guidance of the warm energy, the egg began to crack.
"Hmm, as expected?" Elder Five noticed that the light points Dai Yao was absorbing were similar to those absorbed by the Red Cat soul spirit, and he sighed, "Looks like it's just another ordinary soul spirit."
But then, something unexpected happened. Dai Yao, who had previously stopped absorbing light points, suddenly began absorbing them again at a rate far surpassing anyone else!
As the golden egg shattered, Dai Yao felt a sense of frustration. He could sense that his soul spirit was weak.
"Another ordinary life, just like my past life. Is there really no way to change my destiny?" he thought bitterly.
Suddenly, a floating green lotus emitted a ray of green light, which entered the golden egg. The cracks on the egg immediately began to heal, and as more golden light points were absorbed, the energy within the egg grew stronger!
Soon, the powerful energy caused his entire mental world to begin trembling.
"This is...?" Dai Yao's heart surged with ecstasy. For the first time in many years, he saw the green lotus in action, and it had immediately raised his soul spirit's quality several levels.
"What kind of soul spirit is this?" Elder Five's shock deepened as he watched. He realized that Dai Yao was now absorbing more light points than the White Tiger soul spirit could.
The White Tiger soul spirit was already one of the most powerful beast-type soul spirits on the continent, but what kind of soul spirit could possibly be stronger than it?
There was controversy over which was the strongest beast-type soul spirit in the world—some said it was the White Tiger, others the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon, and still others the Phoenix. But when it came to the strongest weapon-type soul spirit, there was no debate—it was the Haotian Hammer, the treasure of the world's number one sect.
"He's absorbing more light points than the Haotian Hammer soul spirit!" Elder Five's astonishment turned to shock.
Finally, the golden egg shattered. With a mighty roar of a tiger echoing through his mental world, a towering figure appeared.
It was a majestic, powerful white tiger, a beast fierce enough to fight a giant dragon.
The white tiger's body was snow-white, with no other color, except for four golden stripes forming the word "King" on its forehead. Its whiskers were white and sharp, like steel needles. Its limbs were muscular, exuding explosive power. Its fangs and claws were sharper than ordinary swords.
However, the most striking feature was not its size, but the white wings on its back.
"I remember now. In the original story, when the Seven Shrek Monsters attacked Jialing Pass, Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing's soul spirits fused to form this White Tiger. Is this the same image?"
"Tang San once said that their fused soul spirits had enough power to reach god-level strength. If this is the two-winged White Tiger, doesn't that mean it is indeed a god-level soul spirit?"
But even more shocking for Dai Yao, the two-winged White Tiger approached the green lotus, lay down on the ground, and seemed to bow in submission, like a little kitten.
The green lotus not only had the power to transform soul spirits, but even a god-level soul spirit had to submit to it.
"What is the Green Lotus?" Dai Yao wondered.
Before he could think further, his attention was drawn to the changes in his own body.
A blinding white light burst from his body. His bones cracked and popped, and his muscles instantly expanded, causing his ragged clothes to stretch. The air around him seemed to become agitated.
His golden hair turned white, and four golden lines appeared on his forehead in the shape of the character "King."
His hands grew larger, covered with white fur, and his fingers extended like claws, sharp and cold as daggers.
His body grew larger, although still smaller than the average person. In the state of his soul spirit manifesting, he appeared closer to a normal human size.
Behind him, a pair of white wings, each one meter long, appeared.
His transformation caused the onlooking children to gasp in awe, and they all felt a deep fear from within their souls. This fear was not of Dai Yao himself, but of their own soul spirits' instinctive fear of the top predator.
Even Dai Mubai, who possessed the White Tiger soul spirit, was struck by a sense of dread from Dai Yao's soul spirit. A cold sweat trickled down his face.
"What kind of soul spirit did this guy awaken?" Dai Mubai thought, his mind in chaos.
Zhu Zhuqing also turned around, her face filled with confusion. She could feel a sense of familiarity from Dai Yao's soul spirit. This sense of closeness was something she had felt before, but it had never been as intense as it was now.
Elder Five's face lit up with joy as he sensed the power of Dai Yao's soul spirit. Although this soul spirit had never appeared in their family's history, it was undoubtedly stronger than the White Tiger soul spirit!
As an elder of the family, there was nothing more important to him than the strength of his clan.
"Come, come, child! Quickly, let's test your innate soul power!" he called out eagerly.
(End of Chapter)
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