Chapter 10 - Starry Dao Sky!

At the same time that Yu Yin was forging his soul blade, another series of events were taking place far, far away from him and even the Frigid Enigma Continent. In a place known as the Searing Star World, Yu Xiuying was currently sitting down in her guest living quarters sipping a cup of spirit tea. Yu Jingli was also with her, talking to her incessantly.

"Tch! Why did those old fogies have to have these stupid meetings? They make such a huge deal out nothing like this, harping on about some stupid fountain for nine hours! NINE HOURS! The worst thing is that we weren't even allowed to take part in the meeting, we were only invited to hear the damn conclusion! We had to watch the entire thing without saying anything for heaven's sake!! Next time they summon us, I'm just going to stay at the palace!"

Yu Xiuying looked at her and sighed.

"Our Yu Family is respected across all worlds and planes and it's a huge honour for the 5 star sects to invite us to attend their council! Even if it is tedious, we need to give some face to those old monsters. Their strength is something that even we wouldn't be able to defend against! Besides, nine hours isn't that long for us cultivators, as you fully well know."

Yu Jingli's anger wasn't appeased but she seemed to get the point.

"Fine! I'll put up with it, for now, just to keep them happy! But if they hold another pointless meeting like this again, I'll surely end up tearing my hair out!"

She sat down and sipped her spirit tea, still very visibly in a foul mood. At this point, a flicker of light appeared in Yu Xiuling's eyes as they began to glow with a golden hue. She let out a wide smile and let out a gentle laugh.

Yu Jingli narrowed her eyes at her.

"What are you laughing like that for? Can't you see I'm trying to drink my tea?"

Yu Xiuling chuckled at her.

"My augury just activated. It looks like my son is finally becoming a soul cultivator."

Yu Jingli spewed out the tea in her mouth before entering a coughing fit.

"*cough* *cough* What?! You're talking about Yin'er right? Him? A soul cultivator? Are you serious?!"

"Mn, we appeared in his soul abode as phantoms actually! He promised you he'd enter the [Awakened Soul] realm by the next time he saw you!"

Yu Jingli let out a joyous laughter, overjoyed by this news.

"I'd think so as well! That brat needs to cultivate properly else he'll let the family down."

She suddenly realised something, an excited expression on her face!

"Actually, there's no need for him to enter the [Awakened Soul] Stage before I see him! We'll just head back to the palace now and I'll train him up myself!"

Yu Jingli had a sinister grin on her face, laughing to herself as she thought of many ways to vigorously train Yu Yin's cultivation. Yu Xiuling chuckled at her childish behaviour before finishing her tea standing up.

"Well, I think we've stayed at this place long enough anyway."

She clicked her fingers, causing an attendant to swiftly arrive at her living quarters. He quickly knelt down when he entered the room, not daring to look at her!

"This servant greets the Matriarch and Grand Matriarch of the Yu Family."

Yu Xiuling nodded at him.

"Mn. Rise."

The attendant stood up and bowed, still not raising his head out of respect for the figures before him. Yu Xiuling smiled, satisfied with his actions.

"I want you to notify the five great sects immediately that we will be departing tomorrow, and I want you to thank them for their hospitality."

"As you wish exalted one"

The servant left instantly after he said these words to fulfil her commands. Yu Xiuling sat back down before glancing at Yu Jingli.

"Are you happy now?"

"Absolutely!"

She gazed out of her window, thinking about her only son. She couldn't help but smile as did.

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"Good luck Yin'er!"

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Back in his soul abode, Yu Yin's newly forged crescent blade shot towards his soul at an incredible speed, one that would be impossible to see with the naked eye! In less than a second, the blade stabbed into his soul, impaling the miniature version of Yu Yin inside! It opened its eyes in shock, bewildered by the situation it was in! It struggled as the crescent blade sank deeper and deeper inside it, melting into its body. The moment Yu Yin's soul opened its eyes, the tremors and the chiming bells stopped. All that was left was an eerie silence as the crescent blade continued merging with his soul. Once the blade had completely disappeared into the soul, it closed its eyes again, as if none of the events just now had ever occurred.

Just as Yu Yin was getting confused as to what to do, he suddenly felt a tug on his conscience, jerking him out of his soul abode. The next thing he knew, he was in the outside world back in the dark prison...but he wasn't in his body. He was floating in the air like a ghostly spectre, detached from his body completely. He looked around him to find his true body sat in the lotus position below him with Layla kneeling down in front of it, staring at him expectantly in an agitated fashion! It seemed as if she didn't notice the spectral Yu Yin above her at all! He was completely immersed in an out-of-body experience.

'It seems like this is the legendary "clarity of heaven and earth" I've heard of!'

He suddenly felt his mind become completely clear as the surrounding scenery changed. He now found himself in a starry sky, with hundreds and thousands of stars scattered about as far as the eye could see! Myriads of vibrant colours were decorating the space around him. Fragments of information entered his head, filling in the gaps and allowing him to gain an understanding about the current situation.

"Each of these starts represents a Dao, or rather, a path of power?... it seems that there are countless paths to reach the peak, none are above the other and all are strong in their own way…"

He looked around at all of them, overwhelmed by their sheer numbers. He saw all the wandering splotches of colours around him and wondered what they represented. It looked like a many-coloured mist, engulfing the boundless sky. More information entered his head as he gained the answers to his question.

"These....are the energies of heaven and earth? Apparently, they are the foundation for all the Daos that exist in this starry sky… So this heavenly energy is what allows us to cultivate in the first place?"

He put his forefinger on his chin as he contemplated the information flowing into his head.

"I wonder if there's a "Get-Rich" Dao...."

He looked around once more, looking for a get-rich Dao star. As he was searching for it, a different Dao star flashed by his vision in the corner of his eye. He turned around to investigate this particular star, and then he saw it. This star which had appeared to him possessed sharp jagged edges and a metallic grey colour. This star represented the Dao of Blades!

"So this is the Dao that I am to pursue..."

Yu Yin truly didn't want to pursue the Dao of blades, no matter how domineering and strong it was. But still, it was the path he had to walk, so he would cultivate it with his full effort. Just as he was about to experience a glimpse of enlightenment from this star, he felt another tugging force on his conscience as he felt himself returning to his dark prison. He could feel his body calling him as he was slowly pulled back in. Yu Yin suddenly remembered something. He looked around, searching the murky darkness which stretched in all directions.

"I must find an exit to this place!"

While he had this sudden clarity of heaven and earth, he couldn't waste it by just sitting around. Suddenly, a rim of light in the distance caught his eye, a rim of light that would otherwise be impossible to see. Yu Yin memorised the location of this light as he was sucked back into his!

His figure twitched as he returned to his true body. The first thing he noticed as he opened his eyes was that he could now constantly sense the energies of heaven and earth. He could also feel that he now had a sort of sixth sense which he could call upon whenever he wished.

'I guess that must be spirit sense!'

He also realised he could sense his soul abode inside him. Yu Yin had the feeling that if he so wished, he could enter and leave his soul abode whenever he wanted!

As soon as Layla saw him move she stood up in shock before putting a worried look on her face.

"Did you succeed?"

Yu Yin waved his hand in response, causing his large white crescent blade to appear in front of him. he caught it and gave it a swing, causing some nearby bones to break down into pieces.

"See for yourself, I've reached [Rousing Soul] [Stage 1]!"

Relief flooded through her when she saw his blade, but she quickly put on a stern face afterwards.

"You sure took your time in your soul abode, didn't you? Waiting until the very last moment to awaken your soul! What were you even doing in there? Birdwatching?"

She had an incredulous expression on her face as she said the last point, causing the corner of Yu Yin's mouth twitched.

'Typical of this woman, the first thing she does when she sees me is bloody complain!'

He clicked his tongue at her rudely and stood up to brush the dust off his robes.

"I can do what I want in my soul abode thank you very much! If I so happen to want to birdwatch in there, I'll do it!"

She rolled her eyes at his response watching him as he picked up both his Qilin horns and put them back in his backpack.

"So did you see the Dao stars?"

Yu Yin was shocked at her words but nodded his head afterwards.

"That's good to hear! Every cultivator sees that vision when they first awaken their soul, but they all get different understanding out of it. Although no matter how much you understood, it's alright as long as you saw it."

When Layla said this, Yu Yin recalled everything he experienced in the last hour. As he did so, he suddenly recalled his mother's words before she left him alone to start his cultivation.

"Layla, can I ask you a question?"

She turned to look at him, a little surprised.

"Mn, go on."

"What's a Dao Heart?"

Layla startled a little when she heard him say this, her surprised eyes gazing at him in confusion. She had a questioning look on her face before she shook her head and answered his question.

"A Dao Heart, so to say, is your reason to cultivate. It's what drives you along your path to power and could be said to be the foundation of your cultivation base. Where did you hear that term? I know for sure I didn’t tell it to you!”

Yu Yin didn’t answer Layla’s question. An enlightened look appeared on his face as he now knew what his mother meant by the words she had said before.

'So my Dao Heart is of value and idolisation huh?'