Celestial Star City, Villa No. 1 in the Mountain and River District.
A girl in a white nightgown was having a video call with an elderly man.
"Yu Yan, don't be stubborn. The cultivation resources here cannot be compared to those in Celestial Star City. You should hurry back and not waste your talent," the old man said sternly.
"Grandfather, I will rely on my own strength to enter the Cyan Dragon Beast Taming Academy. I want to walk the path my father once walked," the girl said determinedly.
The old man was momentarily stunned, then showed a look of pain.
After a moment of silence, the old man sighed, "Very well, I will wait for you in Cyan Dragon City. By the way, I recently acquired a Holy Light Elf as a gift for your eighteenth birthday."
Upon hearing this, the girl wanted to refuse, but seeing the hopeful expression on the old man's face, she nodded calmly.
The old man was overjoyed upon seeing this, and after asking about the girl's current situation, reluctantly ended the communication.
At this moment, a tall middle-aged man entered the girl's room.
"Second Uncle," the girl said softly when she saw the newcomer.
The man replied softly, "Yu Yan, are you still angry with your grandfather? It's not entirely his fault for what happened back then. After all, he had no choice in that situation. Sending off someone young while having grey hair, he is even more heartbroken than you."
The girl didn't respond but stared blankly out of the window, tears glistening in her eyes.
The middle-aged man sighed, turned, and gently closed the door as he left, worried about disturbing the girl.
After some time, the color returned to the girl's eyes. She looked in the direction of Cyan Dragon City, clenched her fists, and murmured, "What you achieved back then, I can also achieve, and I will do even better. By then, you will surely be proud of me."
Three days later, Chu Chen returned home straight from the Daoist School after work.
Tonight, both his parents were on duty, leaving him alone at home.
After having a few bites of a late-night snack, Chu Chen went back to his room. He first summoned Lei Yao, then took out a Star Power Pill and put it into its mouth, and finally took one himself before eagerly beginning his cultivation.
The urgency was because he was on the verge of a breakthrough.
After three days of cultivation, he could clearly feel that he was about to break through to the Fifth Rank Soul Pupil, and Lei Yao had also reached the critical point of breakthrough.
A quarter-hour later, Lei Yao suddenly let out a low growl, and the surrounding Star Power converged toward it like hundreds of rivers flowing into the sea, its aura continuously rising.
This state lasted only a few breaths before returning to calm.
In a meditative state, Chu Chen could clearly feel the change in Lei Yao's aura, bringing a hint of joy to his heart.
Just then, a surge of pure Soul Power emerged in Chu Chen's Soul Sea.
Overjoyed, Chu Chen realized this was the feedback from Lei Yao's breakthrough, coming at the perfect time during his critical breakthrough moment.
Without delay, Chu Chen focused his mind on refining this surge of Soul Power with all his strength.
Moments later, Chu Chen slowly opened his eyes, filled with joy.
He was now a Fifth Rank Beast Master.
Chu Chen took a piece of dried meat from the bedside table.
Lei Yao's nose twitched, eyes showing a longing expression.
Chu Chen, seeing this, laughed and said, "This is your reward for breaking through to the Fifth Rank Slave."
Upon hearing this, Lei Yao showed a happy expression, quickly reaching out its paw to catch the dried meat, stuffing it into its mouth and chewing slowly, a look of enjoyment on its simian face.
Chu Chen smiled, not paying much attention to Lei Yao savoring the dried meat, and closed his eyes again to consolidate his realm.
After a moment, Chu Chen slowly opened his eyes, and the previously restless aura had calmed down.
Feeling the fullness within his Soul Sea, the corners of Chu Chen's mouth curled into a smile.
Taking a deep breath, his expression turned solemn.
With a wave of his right hand, ten strands of Soul Threads appeared in his palm, obediently guided by his Soul Power.
The Soul Threads compressed two by two, then the five slightly thicker Soul Threads began to compress again, the whole process flowing smoothly as if practiced countless times.
The first Soul Line condensed extremely smoothly. Over the past few days, Chu Chen had practiced controlling his Soul Power even while eating, never letting his efforts go to waste.
With a good start, the speed of condensing Soul Lines quickened until he stopped after forming ten Soul Lines.
Looking at the ten Soul Lines floating in his left palm, Chu Chen's eyes were filled with joy.
He didn't waste any time and began to condense the Soul Seal with his Soul Power.
Recalling the memory in his mind, Chu Chen placed the ten Soul Lines in their respective positions and started connecting them together.
Carefully controlling his Soul Power, he was wary of ruining all his previous efforts.
After several attempts, Chu Chen's expression grew more solemn. The difficulty of merging two Soul Lines exceeded his expectations.
But this wasn't surprising. Previously, he only condensed Soul Threads, but now he needed to connect Soul Lines, which was an entirely different level of difficulty.
Taking several deep breaths, Chu Chen adjusted his mindset and attempted to connect the Soul Lines again.
Carefully controlling his Soul Power, connecting the two Soul Lines, beads of sweat had already appeared on his forehead.
The process lasted several minutes. Looking at the two connected Soul Lines, Chu Chen breathed a sigh of relief.
Now, he had only thirty percent of his Soul Power left in his Soul Sea, and maintaining the connected Soul Lines required diverting more Soul Power.
Realizing this, Chu Chen furrowed his brows deeper. He had underestimated the task, not expecting the most challenging part of forming a Soul Seal to be connecting Soul Lines.
Gritting his teeth, Chu Chen took the medicine bottle from the bedside table, removed the stopper, and popped two Star Power Pills into his mouth.
Thanks to the Star Power Pills, his Soul Power swiftly recovered.
However, the rapid recovery came at a cost. Chu Chen felt a burst of pain in his meridians; the abundant Star Power exceeded his capacity for refinement, leading to wastage.
Yet, Chu Chen had no time for concerns and quickly focused his mind on connecting the remaining Soul Lines.
As time passed, Chu Chen's state worsened, eyes reddened, face pale, the white sheets soaked with sweat, making him appear as if fished out of water.
Yet, nine Soul Lines floated in mid-air, and he was connecting the last one.
"Condense for me," Chu Chen roared.
As his shout rang out, the last Soul Line finally connected.
A buzzing sound emanated from the Soul Seal, then it seemed to be summoned, directly striking toward Chu Chen's brow.
The Soul Seal moved so fast that Chu Chen had no time to evade, disappearing into his brow.
Touching his brow, Chu Chen seemed to realize something, horror spread across his face, as he quickly grabbed the medicine bottle beside him and poured it into his mouth.
After swallowing the last pill from the bottle, his expression slightly calmed.
At this moment, the Soul Seal appeared above Chu Chen's Soul Sea, buzzing again, emitting a strong suction.
The remaining five percent of Soul Power in his Soul Sea was instantly absorbed by the Soul Seal.
Holding his head, Chu Chen let out a miserable cry, feeling as if his entire soul was being pulled out.
The intense pain knocked him unconscious.