Chapter 40 Grandmaster of the Soul Path

The old man who had been watering the vegetable garden within the formation realm appeared within the Hall of Myriad Laws, accompanied by a gust of gentle metaphysical wind. No longer wearing coarse linen garments, he was now arrayed in a deep green Daoist robe, adorned with meticulously arranged golden runes that emitted a faint, resplendent glow, imparting an air of supreme nobility.

This person was none other than the Third Elder, Yinhua.

Thus far, six of the nine highest-ranking Mountain Elders of the Southern Heaven Array Sect had arrived.

Aside from the Second Elder, the other four all rose to their feet.

The meeting of six supreme powerhouses stirred countless ripples of spiritual power, with the Qi of the Great Dao flowing among them, bathing the entire Hall of Myriad Laws in a brilliant golden radiance that was ethereal and dreamlike.

Yaoyu’s expression turned somewhat unsightly. She looked at the Third Elder expressionlessly, her words tinged with a biting chill: "Senior Brother, do you intend to snatch people away from your junior sister?"

Yinhua glanced at her, his face as calm as an ancient, waveless well. With a gentle lift of his hand, he stopped Nan Ming and Luo Qinghe, who were about to step forward to mediate. His aged voice reached the ears of everyone present, causing their complexions to change drastically.

"This girl’s spiritual roots are damaged, and her achievements in this lifetime will be limited. According to my observation, she will perish within three years at most."

Spiritual roots were the foundation of cultivation. Everyone seated here was an peerless genius who traversed the ages, naturally possessing the most powerful and purest spiritual roots within them; hence, they were intimately aware of the consequences of damaged spiritual roots.

Yaoyu abruptly stood up, her brows furrowed in disbelief: "Has Senior Brother observed carefully? Although damaged spiritual roots are difficult to heal, it is not an entirely dead end. I know of a fourth-tier spiritual treasure—the Primordial Life Jade Marrow—which can heal spiritual roots."

Yinhua’s expression remained calm, though a sigh echoed from the depths of his tone: "Junior Sister, I have no intention of deceiving you. But her spiritual roots are severely damaged, practically having been forcibly excised by someone. Her cultivation in this lifetime will likely remain forever halted at the first realm, with no possibility of further growth."

Upon hearing this, Chi Mei felt a fire of indignation ignite between his brows: "Excision of spiritual roots? Isn't that cutting off someone's path of cultivation? Truly despicable!"

Yuntian Ce looked somewhat doubtful, pondering aloud: "Such cruel and vicious acts have not been heard of on the continent for several centuries. How could they suddenly reappear?"

Luo Qinghe also wore a solemn expression: "For many years, various sects have poured their efforts into the borderlands between the two races. Coupled with the withered states of the scholarly, martial, and soul paths, winds and rains have unwittingly multiplied in the mortal world."

Nan Ming’s heart was likewise filled with reluctance. Although his earlier words carried a hint of banter toward Qinglan, he had actually been eagerly anticipating the young girl's joining—within the Array Sect, female cultivators were already scarce, and in their generation, Yaoyu was the only one holding down the fort.

He let out a cold snort and indignantly declared, "Those aristocratic families enjoy boundless mortal offerings, yet what on earth are they doing?!"

Yaoyu did not join their conversation. Her expression was unsightly as she kept her gaze fixed solely on the girl within the magic mirror, her gentle face filled with an indescribable heartache. "How could it come to this..."

Seeing this, Yuntian Ce could not help but sigh: "For such a genius to enter our Array Sect, alas... it is truly a pity."

Especially as they watched Qinglan remain undaunted in the face of danger and still call upon everyone to pull together, showing far more leadership potential than Youqing, a sense of regret arose within them all the more.

Nan Ming was in low spirits because of Qinglan's situation, and seeing Youqing deserting in the face of battle now, his expression turned cold as he sternly rebuked, "Does he think he can become a personal disciple this way? What sheer delusion!"

The expressions of the other elders were hardly pleasant either, particularly the Fourth Elder, Chi Mei, who raged: "In my life, I detest treacherous villains the most. This bastard had better not enter the Array Sect; my Profound-Convergence Pass has no room for cowards who flee in the face of battle!"

Shortly after this, Qinglan took matters entirely into her own hands. The initial fusion of the moonseed brought forth a surge of soul power that permeated the entire array realm. Although this fluctuation was formless and traceless, it could not be hidden from the master of this array realm.

The Third Elder, Yinhua, abruptly stood up, his aged face filled with shock—this was the fluctuation of soul arts!

To cultivate the soul path, one must possess a sectarian heritage and be imparted with a soul seed to open the door to cultivation.

However, a century ago, the Moon Sect of Ming Mountain, due to secretly practicing forbidden arts in an attempt to shake the foundations of the continent's spiritual energy, was struck down by nine heavens of profound thunder summoned jointly by the four Enforcers of Judgment—Wind-Walking, Rain-Falling, Thunder-Roaring, and Lightning-Dancing—from the Judgment Grounds. The sect was destroyed, and its members perished.

Since then, the soul path had withered across the world.

Yinhua knew very well that soul cultivators in the world were exceedingly rare. To his knowledge, only two masters of the soul path remained in existence.

One was Old Man Soul-Heart, who remained unwavering and persevered in preaching the Dao for centuries. After the destruction of the Moon Sect, he even spared no effort using his origin power to condense soul seeds, solely to ensure the heritage would not be severed.

Aside from him, there was only one remaining soul-path grandmaster in the entire continent.

Yinhua cast his gaze back toward the depths of the Thousand Array Mountains. He knew very well that the other party had been in closed-door seclusion and had not set foot in the mortal world for a century. Then... would that person be interested in this girl?

He flicked his fingers lightly, and invisibly, a tiny crack silently split open in the array realm, allowing Qinglan's soul power aura to seep out.

Within the Thousand Array Mountains, there stood a proud and peerless ice-blue peak. This mountain was entirely out of place among the surrounding ranges, appearing somewhat abrupt, as though it were an outsider.

Indeed, that was the case. Named the Uttermost Heaven, this mountain was originally an ordinary cold peak in the Northern Domain, yet it became extraordinary because of a pavilion built upon it. The Southern Heaven Domain Lord had even used supreme magical power to transport it across ten thousand miles from the Northern Domain to the Thousand Array Mountains.

Why?

Solely because a scripture-藏书楼 (library) was built upon this mountain. The books contained within were vast as smoke and clouds, encompassing nearly all the laws of the world, and legend had it that it even housed the Supreme Daoist Artifact ranked eleventh in the Heavenly Treasures Record—the Boundless Heavenly Book.

This pavilion was known as the Heavenly Book Pavilion, and its master was the Heavenly Book Elder.

Nangong, the sect master of the Array Sect, had personally traveled to the northern ice plains to invite the Heavenly Book Elder, speaking of the splendid scenery of the Southern Heaven and specially inviting him here to enjoy his twilight years.

The Heavenly Book Pavilion stood tall and majestic, divided into nine levels. The first five levels corresponded to the five major realms of cultivation, housing thousands of spiritual arts and Daoist laws as vast as a sea of stars.

The remaining four levels contained top-tier Daoist techniques meant for cultivators of the fifth realm.

The Heavenly Book Elder had an eccentric temperament and was the stingiest person alive. One must know that the Heavenly Book Pavilion was the culmination of his blood, sweat, and tears collected over a millennium. Usually, he bolted his doors tight like an iron rooster, and even his formerly closest friend, the previous Master Mo, had been kept at arm's length without ever being invited inside to take a look.

At this very moment, however, a woman in azure robes was quietly seated inside the pavilion.

The woman had delicate brows, deep eyes as profound as clear green pools, and wore attire devoid of excessive adornment, yet it failed to conceal her transcendent temperament.

She leaned lightly by the window, her demeanor poised and at ease. The setting sun cast a layer of golden radiance over her as she consulted a precious volume by the fading daylight.

The table beside the woman was clean and orderly, piled with a few old books, alongside a candle flame quietly burning away through the passage of time.

If reaching the fifth level of the Heavenly Book Pavilion already signified stepping into the ranks of the contemporary peak powerhouses, then what terrifying realm did the azure-robed woman on the seventh level inhabit?

Just at that moment, the soul-path aura emitted by Qinglan drifted like light smoke and thin mist, carried gently by the wind as it quietly permeated this secluded pavilion.

A cold and fragrant fluctuation of soul power diffused outward. The woman gently laid down her precious volume and slowly walked toward the window. Outside, clouds and mist swirled in a hazy blur, yet her gaze pierced through layers of obstruction to arrive outside the mountain gates. Amidst the gathering of monsters, she beheld that green-robed girl.

The setting sun was like blood, casting its lingering glow upon the young girl's shoulders, forming a scene of exquisite beauty.

The woman lightly raised an eyebrow, tasting the aura in the air: "Breaking illusions..."

"By the shores of Starfall Lake, the Moon-Embracing Immortal..."