Soul Emperor Awakening

The Mysterious Fragrance Forest. Its name might sound pleasant, but it’s a place teeming with endless danger!

Lin Xuan had come to this very forest to hunt a specific Demon Beast: a giant bear at the Spirit Refining Stage. These bears weren’t considered exceptionally difficult; any Cultivator at the Spirit Refining Stage, as long as they weren’t too weak, could hunt one.

The reason Zhang Qi looked down on Lin Xuan was the massive gap between their abilities. While Demon Beasts could be a bit dim-witted, the giant bears had tough hides and thick flesh, making their defenses incredibly difficult to breach under normal circumstances. What’s more, these bears were always at the Spirit Refining Stage, almost never appearing at the Body Refining Stage. If a bear at the Eighth or Ninth Layer of the Spirit Refining Stage showed up, Lin Xuan wouldn’t even know what hit him.

For Lin Xuan, at only the Ninth Layer of Body Refining Stage, to choose this area was practically a death wish.

However, he hadn’t chosen this path himself. It was Qing Liuyun who had instructed him to do so.

"So this is the Mysterious Fragrance Forest. It has a peculiar fragrance..." It had taken Lin Xuan several days to travel here from the Yuanling Mountain Range; the place was quite remote.

Disciples of the Inner Hall could come and go as they pleased as long as they possessed an Identity Token. This token not only granted access to the Inner Hall itself but also to the Martial Techniques Pavilion within it. Lin Xuan wasn’t concerned about Martial Arts, though. With Qing Liuyun by his side, ’how could he possibly lack powerful Martial Techniques?’

Qing Liuyun had learned nearly all of the Martial Arts in Qingcheng Mansion. The most basic among them were at the Earth Level, and he even knew one or two Celestial Level Martial Arts. He was a walking treasure trove! Normally, most newcomers would dive headfirst into the Martial Techniques Pavilion to find suitable Martial Arts, or they would just focus on madly cultivating, not choose to go out hunting Demon Beasts.

Qing Liuyun’s perspective was different. Simply staying home to cultivate led to painfully slow progress. It was far better to gain some real combat experience. Once one’s Realm was stable, taking Elixir Pills wouldn’t cause any problems.

"This particular fragrance is from Celestial Cloud Honey, which the giant bears absolutely love," Qing Liuyun explained. "Qingcheng Mansion also needs this honey. It’s incredibly helpful for healing and is an indispensable ingredient for creating Healing Elixirs. It can be consumed or applied externally, making its dual-action healing effect outstanding. When it comes to Cultivation, however, it’s not much help."

"The main reason we came here is for the Celestial Cloud Honey. While it won’t help your Cultivation, its astonishing healing properties are perfect for you!" Qing Liuyun said.

"Senior, are you saying... you want me to get my hands on a large amount of this Celestial Cloud Honey and then pick fights with these giant bears?" Lin Xuan instantly grasped the implication.

"Exactly!" Qing Liuyun laughed. "Engage in extensive combat with the giant bears. When you get injured, consume the Celestial Cloud Honey or apply it externally! The Body Refining Stage is all about relentlessly tempering your body until it reaches its absolute limit! I want you to focus on this frantic Body Refining. You are absolutely forbidden from breaking through to the Spirit Refining Stage until you’ve reached a certain standard!"

Breaking through from the Body Refining Stage to the Spirit Refining Stage wasn’t actually that difficult. Once he reached the Peak of Body Refining Stage, he could do it quite easily with a Spirit-Breaking Pill. However, while he would technically break through, if his foundation wasn’t solid enough, he wouldn’t stand out among other Cultivators at the Spirit Refining Stage.

"So you mean I should stay here for two months?" Lin Xuan asked.

"Correct. We’ll head back in just under two months," Qing Liuyun said in a low voice. "I want you to have a single, explosive breakthrough and charge into the top fifty!"

Lin Xuan’s blood boiled with excitement at the thought. He nodded and said, "That’s exactly what I was thinking!" He wanted to charge into the top fifty with his very first showing, not wait half a year.

"The Mysterious Fragrance Forest isn’t that difficult. With me here, I guarantee you’ll find Celestial Cloud Honey with ease, and you won’t run into any overly powerful giant bears. We’ll take this one step at a time..." Qing Liuyun said.

...

「One month later.」

ROAR!

A giant bear at the First Layer of Spirit Refining Stage charged forward. Despite its massive frame, its speed wasn’t hindered. Instead, it swept toward Lin Xuan like a hurricane, an exceptionally conspicuous sight in the forest.

Lin Xuan stood fearless, his upper body bare and covered in scars—all of them looking like claw marks. A tapestry of old and new wounds, it was a testament to his achievements over the past month.

His aura was completely contained, gone was its previous outward projection. He was more reserved, more unfathomable. Facing the behemoth before him, he didn’t charge forward. Instead, he simply watched as the giant bear lunged.

Just as the giant bear’s paw was about to slash down, a red light glinted in his eyes. He shot his hand forward and caught the swiping paw, bare-handed.

BAM!

With its paw caught, the giant bear found it couldn’t move its arm. No matter how hard it struggled, it couldn’t break free from the human’s grip. Despite the immense difference in the size of their hands, it found itself bound by a terrifying force!

ROAR!

It roared in fury and swung its other paw, but by then Lin Xuan had already gripped its arm and executed a perfect shoulder throw, flinging the behemoth, which weighed well over two thousand pounds, through the air.

CRASH!

The giant bear slammed hard against a tree trunk, snapping the massive tree in half upon impact.

ROAR!

The bear scrambled back to its feet, unwilling to concede. Just as it was about to counter-attack, it felt a heavy impact on its chest. Looking down, it saw that Lin Xuan had already closed the distance and landed a heavy punch right on its sternum.

THUD!

The terrifying brute force struck its thick hide, the impact alone tearing a gash in the tough fur. The giant bear’s eyes rolled back into its head, and it crashed to the ground, all signs of life gone.

’To shatter the heart of a giant bear renowned for its Defense Power with just a single punch... just how much strength would that take?’

Lin Xuan took a deep breath, circulating his Elemental Power to recover his spent energy. The battle lust in his eyes slowly faded, and he returned to his normal state.

"’A month. I can finally take down a giant bear at the First Layer of the Spirit Refining Stage with my bare hands.’ Lin Xuan looked at his own solid muscles, thoroughly satisfied. ’My Cultivation has also reached the Peak of the Body Refining Stage. The lingering effects of that Dragon Blood Pill are truly incredible.’"

"Yes, your physical strength is about where it needs to be. To be able to kill a giant bear with your bare hands... no one would believe it if you told them," Qing Liuyun said, satisfied. "You’ve worked very hard this past month. Now, just gather a few more Spirit Medicines, and you can go back to take the Spirit-Breaking Pill... Someone’s coming!"

Lin Xuan quickly stashed the giant bear’s corpse into his Storage Pouch. At the same time, he pulled out a shirt and put it on, making himself look like an ordinary young man.

Sure enough, just as he finished, a group of people emerged from the forest. There were five of them in total. One was a young woman, and the others surrounded her, clearly marking her as the one they were assigned to protect.

"Who are you?" the lead guard demanded as he approached, his face etched with vigilance.

"Who I am is none of your business. Is the Mysterious Fragrance Forest your personal backyard or something? Do you have to question everyone who passes through?" Lin Xuan’s reply was cool and indifferent. Besides, given how aggressively the man had approached, how could he possibly have a good impression?

"Young Master, you misunderstand," the young woman said, approaching gracefully while signaling her guards to be silent. "It’s just that this is such a remote part of the deep mountains. We were simply curious to see someone else here. My name is Meng Hua, of the Liu Family. May I ask which sect the Young Master belongs to?"

She sized Lin Xuan up as she spoke. While the Mysterious Fragrance Forest wasn’t exceptionally dangerous, anyone who dared to venture here alone had to be capable. That being the case, she had no issue lowering her station to ask.

Liu Menghua’s reply was tactful. By introducing herself and her family, she immediately earned some goodwill from Lin Xuan.

"I am Lin Yunlong, a disciple of Qingcheng Mansion," Lin Xuan introduced himself openly.

"Qingcheng Mansion!" The guards all gasped. They knew the power that Qingcheng Mansion wielded. Anyone who could join it must have considerable talent. Their attitude toward him changed in an instant.

’The power of Qingcheng Mansion truly is immense,’ Lin Xuan sighed to himself. ’All other families are like passing clouds before it. I wonder what the young miss of the Liu Family is doing here?’

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