"Practice this technique!" As soon as Yue Liqun expressed his willingness to follow orders, Lin Qian produced a pristine manual from his hand and tossed it to him.
Receiving the manual from Lin Qian, Yue Liqun immediately began to flip through it. After reading it, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed deeply before Lin Qian.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound of Yue Liqun's forehead striking the ground echoed loudly. Lin Qian did not stop him, calmly accepting Yue Liqun's humble act of gratitude. Giving him the Reset Crystal was akin to giving him a new life; it was only natural for Lin Qian to accept his subject's kneeling in thanks.
After skimming through the manual, Yue Liqun's experienced eyes immediately recognized how extraordinary the technique was. Even from a brief glance, he could tell that it was almost tailor-made for him.
Once he began practicing this technique, his strength would be unmatched by his previous self.
"I accept your gratitude. Once you're done kowtowing, start cultivating. I want to see what changes will occur," Lin Qian urged after Yue Liqun finished bowing.
According to the monitoring token's observations, the Reset Crystal had indeed caused a reset in Yue Liqun. However, the reset applied to everything external to his cultivation level, returning him to his most primitive state.
Unlike the Empire's military units and battle beasts, regular soul cultivators had unique characteristics due to various factors. These could be influenced by techniques, external resources, or even the environment in which they trained, causing soul cultivators to develop in different directions.
Using the Reset Crystal, Yue Liqun's cultivation level remained unchanged, but everything else returned to a blank slate. His soul power had no attributes and flowed calmly through his now ordinary meridians and dantian. His Martial Soul had also vanished.
Additionally, Yue Liqun's physical body returned to normal, shedding the effects of his past overeating and reverting to his original, naturally developed form.
He had discarded all past influences and started anew.
"It seems that just as in the game, cultivation levels are like levels that define the self," Lin Qian observed as Yue Liqun began his cultivation, sitting cross-legged before him. "Techniques, external aids, and environment are like attribute points, shaping a soul cultivator's unique traits."
Yue Liqun's cultivation level hadn't changed, but the defining characteristics of each stage were gone. According to Zhuge Ming's analysis, only by cultivating again would those characteristics be regained.
As Yue Liqun began to circulate the new technique, his dantian formed a long staff Martial Soul, identical to the one he had before using the Reset Crystal. This suggested that the awakened Martial Soul, unaffected by techniques, was innate and linked to one's bloodline.
With the technique in motion, Yue Liqun's body began to grow stronger, his muscles and bones infused with pure blood energy. Although his soul power attributes remained similar to before, its purity had greatly improved, all thanks to the technique crafted specifically for him by the Tian Gong Department.
During the process, Lin Qian even had Yue Liqun pause cultivation to soak in a Nirvana Flame Bath and other medicinal waters.
After a day and a night, Yue Liqun's aura became powerful, reaching its peak, far surpassing the strength his original cultivation level could offer.
Had Yue Liqun simply used the Purification Elixir, he would never have achieved such power.
When Yue Liqun finished cultivating and opened his eyes to look at Lin Qian, they were filled with deep gratitude. He knew his newfound strength was entirely due to the opportunity Lin Qian had given him.
Meanwhile, Lin Qian had gathered invaluable data.
Zhuge Ming had fully documented the effects of the Reset Crystal and what happened when cultivating afterward, including how it compared to previous cultivation efforts.
Using the Reset Crystal was akin to erasing much of a soul cultivator's past experiences and starting anew with better preparation, avoiding previous mistakes. As a result, cultivation remained unchanged, but the cultivator's strength increased exponentially—several times over, in fact.
Feeling the monumental changes within himself, Yue Liqun couldn't thank Lin Qian enough. This kind of rebirth left him at a loss for how to express his gratitude.
Remembering his actions from just a short time ago, Yue Liqun felt overwhelming shame, wishing he could disappear into the ground.
"It seems your strength is quite impressive," Lin Qian said, nodding approvingly at Yue Liqun. He beckoned to him with a wave. "Attack me. I want to see just how much your strength has improved."
"Your Majesty, I don't dare!" Yue Liqun immediately fell to his knees, trembling with fear.
Seeing this, Lin Qian couldn't help but laugh. He stepped forward, grabbing Yue Liqun by the arm and pulling him up. "What's wrong? Do you really think you could harm me?"
Yue Liqun's expression became awkward, clearly revealing that he had indeed thought so.
"You're worried about hurting me? That means you have a lot of confidence in your strength," Lin Qian remarked with amusement. He then gestured for Yue Liqun to come at him. "If you're worried about hurting me, that means you hold me in high regard. But thinking that you could hurt me now is just naïve."
It wasn't that Yue Liqun underestimated Lin Qian—he simply couldn't ignore the fact that his cultivation level was at the fifth level of the Awakening Realm, while his Emperor was only at the first level.
The transformation Lin Qian had granted him had left Yue Liqun reborn, his strength so great that he could hardly believe it himself.
If he were to injure Lin Qian, he would feel utterly unforgivable.
"But—" Yue Liqun began to protest, but Lin Qian's expression darkened.
"What's this? Has your strength increased so much that you're starting to disregard me?"
With Lin Qian's words, Yue Liqun dared not argue further. He could only follow orders and attack. "Then, Your Majesty, please be careful."
As soon as he spoke, Yue Liqun took a deep breath, and his body surged with blazing soul power as he charged toward Lin Qian.
But just as he reached Lin Qian, a sharp pain erupted in his abdomen. Looking down, he saw that Lin Qian's knee had struck his stomach.
The next moment, Yue Liqun felt an overwhelming force sweep through him. His arms and legs flailed as he was sent flying backward with a resounding crash.
"How is this possible?" Yue Liqun, who had been sent flying by a single knee strike, looked up in confusion at Lin Qian, who was gazing at him with a playful smile.