Chapter 79: Scarred Aba, Part 1
On the first day without Master, I missed him. On the second day without Master, I missed him.
A month without Master felt great. Three months without Master living the good life.
By the fifth month, I wanted to soar.
Without Ye Wen around to supervise his eight disciples directly, the students felt free to loosen up and even slack off. Though instructors were assigned to ensure they completed the tasks left by Ye Wen, eventually each of them started to embrace a level of carefree indulgence.
One disciple, Huo Quan, had developed a new fascination with the soul dueling arenas. Since the establishment of Tianxing Academy, the nearby cities of Hanhai and Canglan had become bustling centers for Soul Masters. What used to be a battle arena exclusive to sea based Soul Masters now opened its doors to a variety of Soul Masters, who eagerly signed up for a wider array of battle formats. So many suggestions had poured into the arena management that they expanded to accommodate all kinds of Soul Masters, no longer limiting duels to sea battles.
With his unique Body Martial Spirit, Huo Quan encountered few Soul Masters who could counter him effectively. Using his refined, self taught combat techniques and precise control over his body, he quickly rose to the rank of Gold Spirit Fighter. At fifteen, Huo Quan had reached level 49 and was on the cusp of breaking through to level 50 to become a Soul King.
Today, his opponent was a young Spirit Elder who had torn through Silver Spirit duels without a single loss to reach the Gold level. Unable to find a worthy match among his peers, the arena set him up with another undefeated contender Huo Quan.
But with Huo Quan just shy of becoming a Soul King, facing an opponent who might barely approach the strength of a Spirit Ancestor felt far from satisfying. The mismatch was no accident; rumors swirled that this Spirit Elder, a commoner, had dealt heavy losses to wealthy nobles who placed large bets against him. The arena organizers manipulated the odds to prevent those same nobles from profiting, setting up today's fight as a means to put the brash commoner in his place.
"Ugh, as Master said, these nobles are something else can't stand seeing a commoner Spirit Master succeed," Huo Quan thought to himself bitterly. Determined, he decided to go easy on his opponent, sparing him from the brutal display that would be expected in a fight so uneven.
Huo Quan and his opponent were set to battle in the standard dueling arena. He opted out of wearing the combat gear designed by Ye Wen, instead donning a black, form fitting silk shirt and snug shorts that emphasized his well defined physique. When he took the stage, the noblewomen in the audience couldn't contain their excitement, their eyes glued to his athletic form.
Slowly, Huo Quan's opponent the commoner Spirit Elder stepped onto the stage as well. His clothes were torn and ragged, full of holes, making him look more like a beggar than a Soul Master. Yet, it wasn't his attire that stood out most. The man's body was covered with countless scars, and a single thick scar ran from his right temple to the lower left side of his face, giving him an intense, unwavering gaze as he stared at Huo Quan.
"Prepare yourselves!" the referee shouted.
As Huo Quan instinctively activated his Martial Spirit, his body transformed, though he held back from summoning his spirit rings. Against an opponent a full realm lower in strength, he considered it an insult to himself and his Master's teachings to even think about using his spirit abilities.
"Second senior of Tianxing Academy, Huo Quan, level 49 assault type Battle Soul Master, Body Martial Spirit," the commoner Spirit Elder announced calmly.
Huo Quan frowned. He wasn't sure what his opponent was getting at, though his basic information was far from secret.
"I hope you're worth the slash!"
The Spirit Elder grinned, his eyes gleaming with an unsettling excitement. Suddenly, he activated his Martial Spirit a jagged, well worn blade.
Reveal Spirit Damaged Blade!
Yellow, yellow, purple.
From the moment the man had stepped onto the stage, Huo Quan felt a vague sense of unease, and now, seeing his opponent's spirit, he understood why. This Spirit Elder went by the stage name "Scar." Few knew his real name, but he was renowned for his unmatched winning streak among the Spirit Elders, wielding a broken, unadorned blade as his Martial Spirit. Despite being only level 38, he had gone undefeated, even at the Gold level. In fact, had there been any Spirit Elders capable of challenging him, he wouldn't have had to face a Spirit Master one realm above him today.
But it wasn't Scar's reputation or his blade that unnerved Huo Quan. His concern lay in Ye Wen's teachings about the concept of Spirit Origin.
In one of Ye Wen's lessons, he mentioned that a weapon spirit could achieve higher levels through two main paths. Currently, most mainstream theories on Spirit Origin were incomplete, lacking the full explanation for weapon spirit evolution. Ye Wen had warned that revealing the second path publicly would put one at risk of assassination by the Sect HaoTian.
The common path for a weapon spirit to evolve was through absorbing specific spirit rings over time, gradually transforming it into a high or even top level spirit weapon. Yet, without the addition of a 100,000 year spirit beast ring, this path would always fall short of producing a Super Martial Spirit. The only known examples of evolved weapon spirits with unique engravings belonged to the Dragon Staff twins among the Spirit Hall's elders.
But top tier weapon spirits like the Clear Sky Hammer, the Seven Kill Sword, and the Soul Breaking Spear followed a different path, achieving Super Martial Spirit status through relentless honing and unwavering resolve. The origins of these legendary spirits remain shrouded in mystery, but their wielders possess unique, powerful heritages.
For instance, the Clear Sky Hammer embodies the will of "Supremacy in Combat," the Seven Kill Sword radiates "Unparalleled Killing Intent," and the Soul Breaking Spear reflects a "Breathtaking Momentum." Each of these elite weapon spirits carries a unique lineage, driven by an ancestral legacy.
The cultivation method for this path, however, had become a closely guarded secret. Though Ye Wen knew of it, he withheld this information from his students for their safety, fully aware that it would bring mortal danger upon himself and his disciples if made public. Ye Wen had cautioned his students never to share this knowledge lightly.
(End of Chapter)
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