C1 Soul Returning!

Three hundred years later.

In the Aetherius continent of the Silvermoon Empire, within the city of Asvetaesi, lies the town of Thylethlume.

The night was deep and somber.

A chilling wind howled around the ancestral shrine of the Yu family, carrying with it a flurry of dead leaves.

"The soul has returned, the soul has returned!"

A gaunt old man in grey robes, shaking a copper bell, circled the shrine. Accompanied by the "ding-dong" of the bell, the elder occasionally let out a deep and eerie moan, like a malevolent spirit wailing from the netherworld.

At each corner of the shrine stood a Wraithbanner, the flags billowing in the wind. The painted ghosts on them snarled and clawed, as though they were desperate to escape and consume the living.

After some time, the old man ceased his pacing and gave a slight shake of his head to the Yu family patriarch, signaling his helplessness.

Yu Cen, the patriarch whose legs had been broken for many years, sat despondently in a wooden wheelchair. "Ning Ji, is it true that my grandson will never return?"

Ning Ji stowed the copper bell and glanced at the shrine, pausing before he spoke. "Upon birth, we are graced with three souls: the earthly soul, the mortal soul, and the heaven soul. The earthly soul harbors memories, the heaven soul unlocks wisdom, and the mortal soul governs the flesh and all actions and cultivation."

"Mr. Yu... is unlike others. I determined long ago that he was born solely with his mortal soul."

"For reasons unknown, his earthly soul and heaven soul have yet to manifest."

"For years, Mr. Yu has struggled to remember past events, lessons, and studies. This is due to the absence of his earthly soul, preventing the imprinting and convergence of his life experiences and memories."

"His confusion and erratic behavior stem from the unawakened heaven soul, leaving his intelligence in... chaos."

"Yet, while the earthly soul and heaven soul are significant, it is the mortal soul that is crucial to life and death. Also known as the lifesoul or dominant soul, as long as the mortal soul endures, one does not perish."

"Despite his confusion and loss of past knowledge, Mr. Yu has managed to live seventeen years, thanks to the resilience of his mortal soul."

"But now, the problem lies with the mortal soul!"

Each of Ning Ji's words pierced Yu Cen's heart like a sharp blade, inflicting unbearable pain and causing tears to stream down his aged face.

Since his son and daughter-in-law's misfortune and his legs were cruelly broken by the Chou family, Yu Cen had abandoned any hope of the Yu family regaining its former glory. His only wish was for his grandson, born with a defect, to father a child and ensure the family's continuation.

But now...

"Grandfather, since there's no hope of reviving Mr. Yu, it would be wise to address the subsequent matters soon."

An inappropriately somber voice abruptly filled the air. A diminutive elder glided into the courtyard, positioning himself directly in front of Yu Cen's wheelchair. After a slight bow, he looked down at Yu Cen and continued, "Grandfather, please accept my condolences. Nobody wished for any harm to come to Mr. Yu, but given the circumstances, it's best to make a decision for the Yu family's future without delay."

With the old man's arrival, the four Wraithbanners at the ancestral hall's corners, adorned with menacing and unruly ghost figures, seemed to transition from animate to inanimate, losing all desire to break free in an eerie calm.

Upon closer inspection, one could see the depicted creatures on the flags rapidly fading, as if their ink was being washed away by clear water.

"You!"

Ning Ji bellowed, ready to confront Yin Jue, but his aura became disrupted, and he felt four strange powers surge from the Wraithbanner he had crafted.

"Pfft!"

Overwhelmed, Ning Ji spat out a mouthful of blood. His vitality, energy, and spirit appeared to be shattered in an instant, leaving him pale and trembling.

"Brother Ning!"

Yu Cen, gripping his wheelchair with vein-bulging hands, roared, "Yin Jue, what have you done?!"

"Mr. Ning, you're merely a Golden Sanctum cultivator, using a damaged Wraithbanner to hastily construct an Invocation Circle. Did you truly believe you were aiding in the soul's return?" The short elder, Yin Jue, let out a cold snort and with a sweep of his sleeve declared, "If it's something I can't accomplish, what makes you think you can?"

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Four azure streaks of light, like cold lightning, shot out from his sleeves and pierced the Wraithbanners.

The flags suddenly shattered, releasing the imprisoned evil ghosts and spirits, which dissipated into smoke.

Exhausted, Ning Ji collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat. Blood trickled from the corners of his eyes and ears, making him look as ghastly as the specters once trapped in the flags.

"Grandfather, you've seen it yourself. Mr. Ning, whom you've invited, has insufficient cultivation. He couldn't withstand a single blow from me," Yin Jue sighed. "I've tried every possible method to save my son. If there were any hope left, why would I give up?"

"Young Master was killed by you!"

A young maid in purple emerged outside the courtyard, pointing at Yin Jue and accusing loudly, "I saw it with my own eyes. You were the one who killed the Young Master!"

"How dare you!" Yin Jue scolded.

A wisp of green flame emerged from his fingertips, exuding a chilling ice energy that quickly enveloped the maid's head, twisting and hovering.

The ice energy transformed into a green mist and enveloped her.

In moments, the maid was frozen solid, her once lively form now a tragic ice sculpture, her expression of anger and frustration eternally set.

"Yin Jue!"

Yu Cen pounded his wheelchair with both hands, attempting to rise but forgetting his legs were broken. Overcome with emotion, he tumbled to the ground as Ning Ji had, his forehead bloodied by the unforgiving stone, utterly disheveled.

Yin Jue, who had struck twice without moving from his spot, watched as Yu Cen fell at his feet.

"Grandfather," Yin Jue said, leaning down and dropping his pretense, his eyes cold and dark. "Your family's young lady married into the Yu family for reasons you're well aware of. Your family is beset with troubles from within and without, all of which my family's young lady has been resolving. Without her, the Yu family would have surely met its demise by now."

"Miss has tirelessly worked on behalf of the Yu family for half a year, yet you still refuse to surrender the requested items. While Miss may have the patience to wait, we do not."

In the depths of Yin Jue's eyes, two orbs of purple Spectre flames silently emerged.

Within these ghostly flames flickered tiny spell fragments, twinkling like distant stars with the power to ensnare souls and transmute hearts.

The rage in Yu Cen's gaze was snuffed out in an instant. He felt as though his forehead had been sliced by an icy blade, and a malevolent will was forcefully penetrating his brow.

"If you won't speak, then I shall extract the truth myself!"

With Yin Jue's fierce cry, a slender line of blood abruptly split open on Yu Cen's forehead!

His eyes rapidly filled with a crimson hue, as if they were on the verge of bursting.

"Elder Yin! Cease your actions!"

From outside the Yu family estate, a piercing and cold voice rang out, sharp as a phoenix's cry or an ice-cold sword, thrusting into the hearts of all present.

Birds of pure spiritual energy fluttered into the estate, their presence soothing and lively.

With a crack, the thick ice encasing the purple-clad maidservants shattered under the birds' pecking. One bird transformed into a stream of warmth, infusing her chest, aiding in the circulation of her vitality and the revival of her life force.

The other birds, in their flight, morphed into exquisite mystic runes, their divine light spilling over and dispersing spiritual energy throughout the courtyard.

A rune circle, designed to accumulate spiritual energy and ward off malevolence, swiftly materialized.

Both Ning Ji and Yu Cen felt an overwhelming sense of relief, as if they were immersed in the nurturing glow of countless treasures. Their weary spirits and wounded bodies began to mend.

Yin Jue bowed his head, exhaling a soft sigh. He withdrew his magic and, like a phantom of the night, drifted away.

"Grandfather Yu, I assure you that I will strictly discipline my servants. Please accept my condolences. Regarding the engagement, since Yu Yuan's soul has perished, I will inform my father so that we may meet soon and formally dissolve the agreement."

"Meanwhile, I will continue to devote my efforts to the Yu family, addressing any visible complications that arise."

The cold voice gradually faded into silence. The speaker had remained unseen from start to finish.

Moments later, as Yu Cen, Ning Ji, and the purple-clothed maidservant had largely recovered from their injuries, the enigmatic rune circle transformed into a flock of birds and dispersed into the distance.

"Grandfather, it was all Yin Jue's doing!" the purple-clothed maidservant and Ning Ji exclaimed indignantly as they helped Yu Cen back into his wheelchair. "That malicious old cur, Yin Jue, if he remains with the Yu family, he'll eventually bring death to us all!"

"Enough," Yu Cen said, his gaze lost as he looked toward the ancestral hall where his grandson lay. In a hollow whisper, he lamented, "Is my grandson truly gone forever?"

"Yin Jue was correct. My own cultivation level is too superficial, only at the Golden Sanctum. If there were a Lunar Spirit Realm warrior here, they might have been able to discern every detail in the young master's mind, maybe even employ a divine intervention to keep the young master's mortal soul from fading," Ning Ji said with a sense of resignation.

"Lunar Spirits! How many do we even have in the Silvermoon Empire? Such elusive beings, capable of traversing thousands of miles with a mere thought—how could my downtrodden Yu family ever hope to associate with them?" Yu Cen's eyes dulled, his voice tinged with despair. "Without my grandson, I'd rather destroy it all and let the Yu family perish than hand it over to them!"

"Mind your words; walls have ears," Ning Ji cautioned in a hushed tone, noticing Yu Cen's troubled expression and signaling the purple-clothed maidservant with a glance.

"Grandfather, you need to rest. The young master's breath is still present; he hasn't fully passed away. There may still be a sliver of hope. Don't lose heart," the maidservant insisted, quickly wheeling him away from the courtyard.

"Is there really any hope left?" Ning Ji murmured to himself after they had gone. "Tonight, he's unlikely to make it through." With a shake of his head, he walked away, his steps heavy with sorrow.

The courtyard slowly descended into a hush.

In the dead of night, the atmosphere above the ancestral hall of the old house abruptly shifted. Lightning streaked across the sky, thunder boomed, and the space itself seemed to warp and shudder!

Two brilliant fissures, crossing in an 'X' shape, ripped through the void. At the intersection of the 'X', a blinding radiance flared. Sequentially, two dim gray wraiths emerged and vanished into the Yu family's ancestral hall.

...