Soul Emperor Awakening

"W-what! Look, that speck of light is floating to the Fourth Layer! Th-that’s way too fast! It hasn’t even been the time it takes for an incense stick to burn!"

"Good heavens, what on earth is happening? He just reached the Third Layer, and now he’s already on his way to the Fourth?"

"Don’t tell me something’s wrong with the Martial God Tower. How else could it be this easy?"

...

When the crowd saw the light on the Third Layer flicker, preparing to teleport to the Fourth Layer, the entire scene was thrown into an uproar! He took a whole day for the Second Layer, but the Third Layer took him less than the time for an incense stick to burn!

Anyone who had been to the Martial God Tower knew the Third Layer was much harder than the Second. But now, the time he spent on each was like the difference between heaven and earth. Lin Xuan had somehow reversed the difficulty, clearing the Third Layer even faster than the Second. It was simply unbelievable.

Tuo Zhanhong’s eyes went wide as he exclaimed, "Isn’t that speed a bit too much? I could understand it if he’d been in several times before, but this is his first time..."

He was truly, profoundly shaken. Initially, no one had thought much of Lin Xuan’s chances. But now, his performance was a harsh slap in the face that left them all speechless.

Anyone who suspected something was wrong with the Martial God Tower was a complete idiot. People would sooner believe the person making the claim was crazy than believe the tower itself was malfunctioning. The Martial God Tower had always been indestructible, never once showing any issues. A full-powered strike from a Core Formation Stage expert wouldn’t leave so much as a scratch!

In their eyes, the Martial God Tower was a top-tier Divine Artifact; it wouldn’t be damaged no matter how one tried to break it.

’What on earth happened in there?’ Tuo Zhanhong wished he could go inside and see what kind of ability Lin Xuan had used to clear the Third Layer with such ease.

Tuo Yunhai clenched his fists, his young face flushed with excitement. He knew Lin Xuan could do it!

Lin Xuan, inside the Martial God Tower, was oblivious to the shock outside. He couldn’t be bothered with it anyway. His only concern was whether he could break through to the Fifth Layer.

"Third Layer trial cleared. Preparing to ascend to the Fourth Layer!"

The familiar voice rang out, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had obliterated all three Staff Envoys with a single blow. If that didn’t count as a pass, it would have been simply outrageous.

As his body relaxed, a wave of fatigue washed over him. That last move had been a massive burst of power, consuming a great deal of his Spiritual Power. It felt like he had just crafted a Fourth or Fifth-Grade inscription, the drain was so significant. ’It’s an overwhelmingly powerful move, but the cost is a bit too high.’

’The Soul Martial Intent is powerful, but the cost is immense. Still, it’s worth it. Now that I’ve mastered Martial Intent, I feel like I can finally make good use of these souls.’ Lin Xuan was thrilled. This attack method was like having multiple clones; he could unleash even more Martial Intents whenever he wished.

The trade-off was that his Spiritual Power was consumed rapidly and wasn’t as easy to recover as Elemental Power. But every advantage came with a disadvantage; that was a given.

Normally, a person could only possess a single type of Martial Intent. The fact that Lin Xuan could wield several was simply incredible. He had sent the three Staff Envoys flying while just standing in place, perfectly demonstrating that his Martial Intent, much like that of a Martial God, could strike down enemies from a great distance.

Of course, this ability wasn’t invincible. Against an opponent with a vastly superior Cultivation, they could easily shatter his attacks. It was just like on the Second Layer, where he had to fight with all his might to break through the Martial Intent directed at him.

He hadn’t even had a chance to catch his breath when a brilliant light enveloped him, teleporting him to the Fourth Layer.

The moment he arrived on the Fourth Layer, he suddenly felt his body grow heavy. The abrupt change made his knees buckle, nearly forcing him to the ground. Fortunately, he reacted instantly, straightening his legs and forcing himself to stand upright, bearing the terrifying pressure.

’This pressure is immense,’ he thought. ’It’s at least two hundred thousand pounds of force...’

Under the immense weight, the Golden Dragon Bone in his body emitted a faint golden glow, releasing Dragon Power that eased the pressure on him considerably. If not for his recent breakthroughs in both his Cultivation and his physical body, he would have truly struggled to withstand two hundred thousand pounds of force.

Back in the Pressure Cyan Cloud Tower, he could only endure a maximum of one hundred twenty thousand pounds on his own. With the Golden Dragon King’s Soul Possession, he could reach one hundred fifty thousand. Now, he could withstand two hundred thousand pounds by himself. The breakthrough was massive, and this wasn’t even his limit.

He hadn’t even activated his Cloud Return Technique yet, which would increase his endurance even further.

He scanned his surroundings. The environment was unchanged, except that the number of Staff Envoys had increased from three to five. The Martial Intent they radiated was a notch stronger, but they still couldn’t project it outwards the way Lin Xuan could.

’If they could all project their Martial Intent, the difficulty would be far too high. How would anyone be able to fight through the later levels?’

"Fourth Layer trial. Defeat them to pass!" The familiar voice announced once more.

’Just defeating these statues again. It’s only an increase of two.’ Lin Xuan smiled calmly. ’For others, this would be a significant jump in difficulty, but for me, it’s nothing.’ Now that he had mastered his Martial Intent, he relished being outnumbered.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when the five Staff Envoys charged, their auras surging. Both their speed and power had increased dramatically; the difficulty was several times greater than the Third Layer’s!

"Soul Martial Intent!"

Lin Xuan snorted. The Soul Pearl in his body spun madly as the Fourth Layer Soul swiftly possessed him. In an instant, four streams of Martial Intent erupted from him. This time, the Godslaying Martial Intent and Lin Hua’s Staff Martial Intent were among them. Combined with Lin Xuan’s own Martial Intent, a total of five distinct Martial Intents materialized.

The five vast phantoms of Martial Intent filled the space above Lin Xuan’s head. They were expressionless, like five Martial Gods floating in the air, each possessing a different ability. For instance, even though both he and Lin Hua used a staff, Lin Xuan’s Martial Intent was imbued with the power of his own bloodline.

"Go!"

Lin Xuan let out a low roar. The five Martial Intents surged forward, the sheer force of their presence causing the very air to freeze. They then split up, each one targeting a different Staff Envoy and unleashing its most devastating attack, smashing down with incredible force.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The five strongest attacks of the Martial Intents exploded outward. The five Staff Envoys were sent flying with ease, their tough bodies deeply dented by the impacts. This once again showcased the monstrous nature of Lin Xuan’s Spiritual Power. Or rather, it showed his Spiritual Power finally being fully unleashed. It had been suppressed for far too long.

No matter how strong one’s Spiritual Power was, it was typically only useful for carving inscriptions or resisting Illusions. But now, Martial Intent provided the perfect medium to truly utilize the treasure trove that was his power.

With this Martial Intent, he was unstoppable!