Soul Emperor Awakening

As the crowd marveled at the battle, Cyan Cloud Peak had already rushed from the Elders’ seating area. He picked up Tong Yulong and, after a brief examination, glared at Lin Xuan with bloodshot eyes and roared, "You’re so ruthless! To think you shattered so many of Yulong’s bones! I’ll make you pay!"

"Pay? When your son was shattering other people’s bones, I don’t recall you standing up and saying anything," Lin Xuan snorted coldly, showing no fear.

Lin Xue held him tightly, her cold gaze fixed on Cyan Cloud Peak, waiting to see what he would do.

"Those pieces of trash, how can they possibly compare to my son!" A terrifying wave of Elemental Power surged from Cyan Cloud Peak’s palm. He was incandescent with rage, on the verge of losing his mind and striking Lin Xuan down.

"Second Elder, what is the meaning of this?" Qing Deyun floated over, his weighty voice pouring into Cyan Cloud Peak’s mind and jolting him out of his fury.

"Mansion Master..." Cyan Cloud Peak quickly reined in his anger. With Qing Deyun right there, he certainly wouldn’t be allowed to act. Besides, if he killed Lin Xuan in front of so many people, what face would the Qingcheng Mansion have left?

Following that logic, whenever an Elder’s son competed, anyone who dared to injure them would be lucky just to survive, let alone win a placing. And when an Elder’s son injured others, no one could possibly hold them accountable.

If word of this got out, the Qingcheng Mansion would be utterly disgraced. They might as well just give all their resources to the Elders’ children. Why bother holding the Core Hall competition at all? The positions of candidate Elders could just be filled by the current Elders’ own disciples or offspring; why go through this whole unnecessary exercise?

"Calm down. Take him back for treatment. It’s nothing too serious," Qing Deyun said placatingly. With Tong Yulong’s Golden Element Body, his recovery wouldn’t be slow. At most, he would be unconscious for a period of time; there were no other major issues.

"Yes, Mansion Master..." A venomous look flashed through Cyan Cloud Peak’s eyes before he vanished on the spot, carrying Tong Yulong. He had likely taken him for immediate treatment, leaving the rest of the proceedings to Qing Deyun.

Just then, Qing Piaoyun walked over, filled with excitement. "You really won! That power you used was simply Heaven-Defying! I can hardly believe it!"

Qing Piaoxue followed behind him. Seeing the two embracing, she no longer had anything to say. Instead, she found herself regarding Lin Xuan with a new level of admiration. ’Just being kind-hearted isn’t enough.’ To her, a partner also needed to possess sufficient talent; otherwise, she would have still tried to break them up.

The rest was a simple matter of announcements. Lin Xuan had unquestionably become the candidate for Grand Elder, Tong Yulong for Second Elder, and Qing Yiyi for Fourth Elder. The remaining positions were of no consequence, at least not to Lin Xuan.

Although many contestants were injured, the audience was thoroughly satisfied with the competition; it had been a true spectacle. After the representatives from the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion returned, they immediately designated Lin Xuan as a person of utmost importance. Consequently, Zi Yi’s own status soared to its Peak. With the backing of someone who could become the future Grand Elder—or even the Mansion Master—her position was sure to be anything but low.

The Core Hall competition came to an end, leaving a mix of joy, sorrow, and varied opinions in its wake. The expressions on the faces of the various Princes were all different, as were the feelings within the major families. But as for what they were all thinking, that was beyond the scope of Lin Xuan’s concerns.

Lin Xuan forced a smile and said, "Looks like I didn’t fail my mission... I took first place..." After such an intense battle, his spirit and Elemental Power were heavily depleted. He was also injured; just remaining conscious was pushing his limits.

The Seventh Layer Top Level Soul Fusion was no simple feat. Even without a battle, just activating it pushed him to his absolute limit, so it was already remarkable that he was still conscious.

Lying in Lin Xue’s arms, he felt a sense of peace. As he completely relaxed, a profound exhaustion washed over him. His eyelids grew heavy, and he slipped into unconsciousness, oblivious to his surroundings and the voices around him.

From the audience, Xu Qianlong watched him intently, an excited glint in his eyes, as if he had just discovered a priceless treasure.

After an unknown amount of time, Lin Xuan slowly began to stir. When he awoke, he found himself in a room with Liu Yue’Er and Lin Xue waiting by his side.

His body had now mostly recovered. Not only that, but his Cultivation had also improved—he had broken through from the Second Layer of the Essence Pill Stage to the Third Layer! As expected, battling an opponent at the same Level spurred exceptionally fast growth in one’s Cultivation. In any case, breakthroughs during the Essence Pill Stage were still relatively simple.

His physical injuries were completely healed. Feeling the surging Elemental Power within his body, he knew he must have been given some top-tier healing medicine; otherwise, he couldn’t possibly have recovered so quickly.

As the future candidate for Grand Elder, he was entitled to such treatment.

"Brother Lin, you’re awake!" Liu Yue’Er immediately noticed his movement. Lin Xue, beside her, also turned to look, her eyes filled with concern.

"I’m fine, don’t worry so much," Lin Xuan said. "I’m in much better shape than the others, so there’s no need to be anxious."

Lin Xuan sat up, feeling no discomfort in his body. He had been through a grueling battle, and his meridians had only sustained minor damage from the pressure of his soul; there were no other serious injuries. If he were like Tong Yulong, with numerous shattered bones, he certainly wouldn’t be getting up so soon.

"As long as you’re okay. Brother Lin, you’ve become really famous this time! Word of your victory is spreading all over Qingcheng Mansion, and everyone thinks you’re going to be the next Mansion Master. It’s such a huge honor! You have no idea, the way those people from the Huang Family look at us is completely different now. And the Eldest Prince, he left with the darkest look on his face." Lin Xue giggled, covering her mouth as she savored the memory of the spectators’ expressions around the Martial Arts Arena.

Lin Xuan’s victory was bound to affect the grand scheme of things. It would have been a miracle if the Eldest Prince’s faction was happy about it; only the Third Prince was truly delighted. As a result, practically no one would dare to make a move against the Lin Family anymore. Although Lin Xue hadn’t secured a placement, Lin Xuan had. Any outsider who wasn’t blind could see the deep relationship between them. Wasn’t that the same as the Lin Family gaining Lin Xuan’s protection?

Even if Lin Xuan wasn’t part of the Lin Family by blood, he was as good as one now. Of course, he had publicly declared his close ties to the Lin Family long ago, so few had dared to make a move against them for some time.

"Besides that, did anything else happen while I was unconscious?" Lin Xuan asked.

"There is one more rather important thing," Lin Xue said with delight. "The Great Emperor has summoned you! He said you are very powerful and wants to reward you! Now, it’ll be even more impossible for the other families to make a move against our Lin Family."

"A summons from the Great Emperor?" Lin Xuan’s brow furrowed for a moment before relaxing. ’If there’s a reward, I’ll gladly accept it.’ "In that case, I’ll go see the Great Emperor in a bit. My body’s pretty much recovered anyway."

"Brother Lin, I want to go too!" Liu Yue’Er piped up from the side.

"What for? The Great Emperor summoned me, not you," Lin Xuan said.

"That’s not it. I want to go to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion," Liu Yue’Er said.

Only then did Lin Xuan understand. Liu Yue’Er wanted to find Liu Xin. Just because Liu Yue’Er had managed to get in here didn’t mean Liu Xin could. He realized it must have been a long time since she had last gone to see her sister.