The Steward Demonic Emperor

Chapter 671: Three Conditions

Proofreader: Papatonks

“The formation of the soul usually only happens once, in the Ethereal Stage, the culmination of one’s spirit.”

Seeing Zhuo Fan staring intently at the jade slip, Danqing Shen nodded and explained. “However, Zhuo Fan, we are different. We’ve reached the culmination in the Radiant Stage and formed our souls. This way, we can form our soul once again.”

Zhuo Fan turned solemn, listening to his every word. Danqing Shen’s eyes were hard as he warned. “But this chance has some conditions. One of them is that the second soul forming has to be far stronger than the first, or the first soul would interfere and would make it harder.”

“That’s easy since it’s obvious. Since I formed my soul in the Radiant Stage, my spirit would be stronger when I reached the Ethereal Stage.”

Zhuo Fan spoke like it was obvious. Danqing Shen smiled and shook his head, “Ha-ha-ha, to others, that might be the case, but it will pose a challenge for you.”

“Why do you say that?” Zhuo Fan raised an eyebrow in doubt.

Danqing Shen’s eyes shone as he continued, “This is related to the second condition of the twin soul– No mountain is higher. Since the second soul has to expend your spirit, it must be stronger than the first soul so that it can suppress it and form. Otherwise, it’s a failure.”

“That… I… see…”

Zhuo Fan’s brow shook, already understanding what he was saying. Heaven dragon soul was world energy taking form, one of the best a soul could ever become. So what could possibly be stronger than a heaven dragon soul? 

Danqing Shen saw through his worry and sighed, “Alas, you did not meet me earlier. Or, having seen how alike we are, I would have warned you when forming your first soul. Just like how I formed the sword soul first, then the heaven dragon soul to suppress it and accomplish the Twin Soul Art.”

“Uhm, senior, that’s just hindsight. I refuse to believe that if you were presented with the chance to form the heaven dragon soul the first time, you would first wait for the sword soul. I bet you didn’t even know twin soul was possible.” Zhuo Fan rolled his eyes.

Ugh!

Danqing Shen’s heart jerked, but he nodded, “True. When I formed the sword soul, I had no chance of forming the heaven dragon soul first. However, it was this that gave me insight on how to achieve the twin soul of today.”

“What if I form a second heaven dragon soul?” Zhuo Fan’s eyes lit up.

Since the second soul had a hard time surpassing the first, making them equal was better. 

[I’ll just have to scour the world for some ten more earth dragon souls. How hard could it be?]

However, Danqing Shen shook his head. “Boy, you know full well that a mountain ain’t big enough for two tigers. If a man formed a twin soul of the same type, it would be a true toil. That is why a person can’t have two beast souls. If you want them to coexist, they have to be different. When you try to form another heaven dragon soul, your first one won’t just sit still. It will fight for its turf and will make sure you fail.”

“Which takes us to the third condition, harmony. Take your room, for instance. You’d be annoyed if someone waltzed in yet wouldn’t even bat an eye when an ant slipped in. Why is that? Because you don’t see it as a threat to your interests. It is like you consider this room yours, and the ant will also see it as their nest. You live in harmony despite sharing the same room.”

“I see. In other words, the heaven dragon soul sees your sword soul as nothing more than a prop. Heaven dragon soul is a reptile at the core, so the two have no conflict of interests, resulting in harmony.” Zhuo Fan’s eyes lit up.

Danqing Shen nodded, “That’s exactly it, child. While the spirit is unique, the soul is a twin one, resting within it in harmony. As for how to achieve this, it’s all written down in that art. Do your best and read it carefully. This is as far as I’m going to help you, ha-ha-ha…”

“But senior, while I can understand all the other stuff, how am I going to form a soul stronger than the heaven dragon soul? Please enlighten me, senior!” Zhuo Fan pondered for a moment, then cupped his hands.

Danqing Shen shook his head, “I have no solution either. It’s all down to luck, ha-ha-ha…”

Danqing Shen turned around and was gone. He ran away. “In any case, I returned the favor and freed myself of this tie. Your success will now solely rest on your shoulders. I’m powerless anyway, ha-ha-ha…”

“Wait, senior…”

Zhuo Fan hastily said, but he no longer sensed the old man around.

[Damn you, old coot, and your wretched favor! You gave me some Twin Soul Art and got me intrigued, only to leave me high and dry when it’s the hardest!]

[What now? I know this strange art is nearly impossible to train in, but now I’m so piqued I can’t let it go.]

[Damn ungrateful old geezer! You clearly used it to lure me! How am I supposed to form a soul stronger than that dragon soul? Your secret special art is useless to me!]

But then Zhuo Fan thought differently. [Danqing Shen wants the sacred weapon that I got before him. The map I drew for him will just lead him to nothing. So this isn’t a favor, but a practical joke.] 

So he no longer felt cheated. 

[It’s up to me to make the most of this. What matters is that I got away scot-free. There’s no point in worrying over it any longer.]

And so, Zhuo Fan’s hand flashed, and Blood Infant came out of his body and turned into that demonic sword he was now holding.

Looking at the pommel, he did find the word Atlas engraved on it. 

“Oh, Atlas Sword, I was in such a rush then that I had no time to find out your name. Now I see it really is what that old guy wants. I just hope he never comes back to me to get it, or I’m finished…” Zhuo Fan traced the blade as he said.

However, just then, the old voice of Danqing Shen sounded again, “By the way, boy, I don’t think you’ll ever get to hide your wound in battle. If the two exalted find out, you’ll be in trouble.”

“Uh, senior, you’re back…”

Startled, Zhuo Fan hurriedly stuck the sword in his gut, running his body through it, making him grimace as blood seeped. 

The longsword snickered and turned into Blood Infant before hiding in his body.

Glaring at his gut, Zhuo Fan crunched his teeth. 

[Is this guy blind? The old man is back, and yet it still delayed hiding. What if he found out?]

Fortunately, the wound this time was just skin deep.

So Zhuo Fan ignored his self-injury and replied, “Thank you for your concern, senior, but I have a brilliant plan.”

“Oh, that’s good. But just in case misfortune takes you, you had better not drag me in as well and just say what happened to you. Or else…”

Danqing Shen smiled coldly and sighed, “What a shame you got so many eyes on you. I would’ve nipped this trouble from the start just to keep a clear conscience, but it will only have the opposite effect right now…”

Zhuo Fan’s cheek twitched, and he rolled his eyes at the old guy’s whining. 

[This guy takes matters into his own hands. Thank god I’m a shower and everyone’s now interested in me. He won’t touch me, or it’ll make things worse.] 

Otherwise, if nobody discovered his secret, he’d be wiped off the face of this world.

Since the outside of his room was quiet, he figured the old guy had left. Zhuo Fan eased a breath and looked at the jade slip in his hand, “Humph, might as well hang on to it just in case. I’ll know more after I inspect it thoroughly.”

Zhuo Fan started reading the jade slip carefully. His face shook as he delved deeper. The more he read, the more excited he got. 

[Danqing Shen is a true genius to come up with such a mystical art.]

[Such a shame he’s from mortal domain and had a poor start. If he were from a sacred domain, he might reach Saint level…]

On the morrow, the arena was packed in minutes. All were pushing and rushing to get the best seat, excited for what would follow.

After all, this battle had great significance, that of the greatest underdog that ever lived fighting the strongest middle three sect, Sword God Sect. Sword God Sect was also recognized as one to be just under a superior three sect.

In other words, if Demon Scheming Sect won this challenge, they would threaten the positions of the superior three sects. Be it the national delegates or the other sect teams. All were here to watch history being made.

The chances were high that western lands’ status quo and sphere of interests would shift after this fight. One more reason why they should pay close attention.

“Qingcheng, the superior three sects are here as well. Look at how serious they are. They must feel threatened!” Shui Ruohua pointed at a few sects as she spoke in shock. “Tell me, do you really think Demon Scheming Sect threatens the superior three sects that had been unchanged for thousands of years?”

Chu Qingcheng had a radiant smile, “When he steps in, no one’s position is ever safe. I’ve seen it happen so many times it has become a common occurrence. The bigger and stronger they are, the more likely they are to be thrown down from their throne by him. It’s only natural to feel nervous, ha-ha-ha… “