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Chapter 66: Divine Soldier? Demonic Soldier?
Chapter 66: Divine Soldier? Demonic Soldier?
[Name: Liu Yuan (Lin Yuan)]
[Identity: Overseer of the Myriad Worlds' Gate]
[Bound Talent: Heaven-Defying Comprehension]
[Current State: Consciousness Descended]
[Remaining Residence Time: One hundred and fifty-four years]
In the Eastern Palace, Lin Yuan glanced at the Myriad Worlds' Gate interface.
Unknowingly, six years had passed in this world.
These six years had been incredibly comfortable for Lin Yuan; he lacked nothing.
Due to Emperor Liu Shi's doting love, even if Lin Yuan asked for the stars in the sky, the emperor would probably consider it.
After a moment of thought, Lin Yuan left the Eastern Palace and headed towards the depths of the imperial palace, arriving at a wooden tower that was heavily guarded by imperial soldiers.
The tower looked ordinary, but its importance was evident from the number of guards patrolling the area.
Lin Yuan did not hesitate and strode towards the entrance. The guards immediately bowed respectfully as he passed by.
As the only heir to the current emperor, Lin Yuan had been crowned prince at the young age of five, an extremely rare occurrence in the history of the Great Yan Dynasty. Usually, even the firstborn son would only be considered for the position of crown prince after coming of age and undergoing the capping ceremony.
Even then, an emperor would still be wary of the power held by his heir. While a crown prince could stabilize the political situation, he would also inevitably draw away some of the emperor's authority.
Emperor Liu Shi, however, was indulgent towards Lin Yuan, and if it weren't for his young age, the emperor might have even considered letting him rule as a regent to gain experience in governing the empire.
Lin Yuan entered the wooden tower, a forbidden place in the Great Yan Dynasty. Within its confines were stored the most powerful cultivation techniques and esoteric arts of the empire, each one capable of inciting chaos and bloodshed if they fell into the wrong hands.
Years ago, Lin Yuan had requested permission from the emperor to enter this tower, and without a moment's hesitation, his request was granted. Firstly, because Lin Yuan was his son and the future emperor, so what harm could there be in letting him explore this place? Secondly, Emperor Liu Shi believed that Lin Yuan's curiosity had gotten the better of him, and at his young age, he wouldn't be able to understand the profound cultivation techniques and arts stored within. He expected that Lin Yuan would lose interest after playing around for a while.
Little did he know that in less than two years, Lin Yuan would master and even improve upon all the cultivation techniques and arts that had been gathered over the millennia by the Great Yan Dynasty.
"This World's Cultivation System"
Lin Yuan sat down in a random spot, his expression thoughtful as he considered the cultivation system of the Great Yan Dynasty, or rather, the Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Central Plains.
Essentially, their cultivation systems were all quite similar. Specifically, there were seven stages: refining the flesh, refining the tendons, refining the skin, refining the bones, refining the organs, refining the marrow, and finally, refining the blood.
The corresponding realms were: Wu Born, Wu Apprentice, Wu Warrior, Wu Master, Innate Wu Master, Great Grandmaster, and Wu Saint.
In simpler terms, 'Refining the Flesh' for Wu Born, 'Refining the Tendons' for Wu Apprentice, 'Refining the Skin' for Wu Warrior, 'Refining the Bones' for Wu Master, 'Refining the Organs' for Innate Wu Master, 'Refining the Marrow' for Great Grandmaster, and 'Refining the Blood' for Wu Saint.
According to Lin Yuan's estimation, the strongest 'Refining the Blood' Wu Saint would have their qi and blood fully integrated, which was equivalent to the second-tier extreme level in the main world.
However, Lin Yuan noticed something amiss. The cultivation system of the Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Central Plains focused solely on refining the physical body and enhancing one's qi and blood, with no mention of cultivating the soul or spirit.
It was odd because even in the first world Lin Yuan had traveled to, cultivators at the Grandmaster tier had begun to develop their 'spiritual power'. It didn't make sense that the 'Refining the Blood' Wu Saints, who were comparable to the second-tier extreme level, wouldn't cultivate their souls or spirits at all.
"Soldier Master," Lin Yuan muttered to himself.
The cultivation system from Wu Born to Wu Saint was just one path open to ordinary people. In this world, there existed another cultivation system—becoming a Soldier Master.
Soldier Masters could wield Divine Soldiers, and these soldiers were the most powerful 'existence' in this world. Each of the Thirty-Six Kingdoms possessed a Divine Soldier that served as the cornerstone of their nation's power.
The might of these Divine Soldiers was beyond what any human could hope to withstand. Even a mere wisp of their power, when channeled by a Soldier Master, could easily crush tens or even hundreds of Wu Saints.
"The strength of the emperor, Liu Shi, was excited far beyond that of Lin Yuan's innate talent and physical constitution when he was born.
Even with a strong foundation and body, one could only aspire to become a Refining Blood Wu Saint in the future.
And what is a Refining Blood Wu Saint compared to a 'Soldier Master'?
As long as the Great Yan Dynasty has a divine soldier, no matter how many Wu Saints there are, it won't affect the grand scheme of things."
Not everyone could become a Soldier Master, though. One had to gain the recognition of a Divine Soldier to attain such a position.
Moreover, Soldier Masters didn't tend to live long lives. Rarely did they survive beyond four decades.
This meant that the Central Plains' Thirty-Six Kingdoms always had to keep a pool of prospective Soldier Masters ready.
Even so, there were still occasions when there was a gap in succession. The Great Yan Dynasty was currently facing such a predicament.
However, with a divine soldier and the alliance between the Thirty-Six Kingdoms, there wouldn't be any problems in the short term.
"The power of a Soldier Master comes from the Divine Soldier," Lin Yuan mused. "Just a hint of its breath is enough to crush tens or even hundreds of Wu Saints. The strength of a Divine Soldier is at least third-tier, perhaps even close to fourth-tier."
With his discerning eye, Lin Yuan could tell that the so-called 'Soldier Masters' were merely puppets. The true power lay with the Divine Soldiers themselves.
Lin Yuan stood up and walked to the back of the wooden tower, where he pulled a tattered old book from a shelf. It contained snippets of information about the Divine Soldiers, one of the few sources of knowledge Lin Yuan had on the subject.
It was easy to ask Emperor Liu Shi about other matters, but when it came to the Divine Soldiers, he was extremely cautious, as if he didn't want his son to know about them just yet.
Lin Yuan slowly flipped through the book, even though he had already memorized its contents. It still stirred something within him.
"Each of the Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Central Plains has a Divine Soldier," he whispered. "On the surface, it seems like a peaceful world, but the number of living sacrifices each Divine Soldier demands is staggering."
"If their demands aren't met, the thirty-six Divine Soldiers will actively 'awaken' and seek out sacrifices. That would bring about a catastrophic loss of life."
"I wonder if they are truly divine or..." The last part of the book seemed to have been deliberately erased, but Lin Yuan could easily guess what had been written there.
"I wonder if they are truly divine or demonic soldiers," he finished.
Closing the book, Lin Yuan returned it to the shelf. The wooden tower housed countless tomes, perhaps millions. And since this particular book was hidden at the back, it was unlikely that anyone else would come across it.
Only Lin Yuan, with his heaven-defying comprehension, would have had the time to search for such books after mastering all the cultivation techniques and esoteric arts within the tower.
"Divine Soldiers," Lin Yuan frowned.
The tower held no records of the Divine Soldiers' origins, only that they seemed to be connected to the ancient times, tens of thousands of years ago. All the Divine Soldiers had been born during that era, but how they came to be and how they gained their current status remained a mystery.
Tens of thousands of years was an incredibly long time. In the main world, the advent of the interstellar age ensured that knowledge could be preserved through data, but in Lin Yuan's current world, wars and disasters could easily lead to the loss of historical records.
"This world..." Lin Yuan's expression turned strange.
The Divine Soldiers required living sacrifices, and the more robust their qi and blood, the better. The mainstream cultivation system in this world focused solely on refining the physical body and enhancing one's qi and blood, which was odd when considered in conjunction.
Taken separately, neither of these facts was unusual, but when combined, Lin Yuan could sense that there was something more at play.
"The people of this world have likely been herded by these so-called 'Divine Soldiers,'" he thought. "The Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Central Plains are nothing more than thirty-six pens, and all their people are livestock, waiting to be devoured by the Divine Soldiers."
Lin Yuan was almost certain that the cultivation system, from Wu Born to Wu Saint, was influenced by the Divine Soldiers; otherwise, it wouldn't be so 'abnormal.' (End of Chapter)
Chapter end
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