After entering the Awakening Chamber, everyone quietly stood in one corner, waiting for Yun Xian's Martial Soul awakening to begin.
"Xiao Xian, stand at the centre of the circle. I'll help you awaken," Yun Ming said gently, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
Yun Xian nodded firmly and walked to the middle of the circle, his steps slightly stiff. He hadn't felt nervous before, but now that the moment had arrived, a faint tension crept into his chest.
"Don't be so tense," Yun Ming said softly. "Relax your body and focus inward."
As he spoke, Yun Ming extended his right hand. Golden specks of light began to flow from his palm, spreading across the circle in intricate patterns. In the next instant, a transparent barrier rose, enclosing Yun Xian within a faintly glowing dome.
Inside the barrier, countless golden motes drifted toward Yun Xian and began to pour into his body at incredible speed—like a golden river rushing into a bottomless well. Yun Xian's eyes trembled slightly as a wave of warmth surged through him. A low groan of comfort escaped his lips, and he instinctively sank into the sensation.
Yun Ming, who was channelling his soul power, immediately noticed the change. His eyes brightened, and an unconscious smile tugged at his lips.
Seeing this, the others exchanged puzzled glances.
"What is it, Yun Ming?" Cai Yue'er asked curiously.
Yun Ming didn't answer directly. "Try sensing what's happening inside the barrier."
Though still confused, they followed his instruction—and a moment later, their expressions froze in astonishment.
Yun Xian's body was greedily absorbing the surrounding soul power at an unbelievable rate. That kind of resonance only occurred when someone awakened an exceptionally powerful martial soul.
"As expected of Xiao Xian," Cai Yue'er said with a bright smile.
"What else would you expect from the son of a monster?" Feng Wuyu chuckled. "Of course, he'd turn into a little monster himself."
"Indeed," Zhou Shi agreed with a nod.
Ya Li didn't say anything, but her face was already glowing with quiet pride and relief.
Everyone's gaze was fixed on the glowing barrier, anticipation flickering in their eyes. They all knew Yun Xian's lineage—the son of Yun Ming and Ya Li—so the outcome should've been obvious. And yet, a sliver of curiosity remained in their hearts.
Will he awaken the Angel of Hope… or the Atlas Spear?
The same thought crossed the minds of Cai Yue'er, Feng Wuyu, and Zhou Shi simultaneously.
...
...
Inside the cover, Yun Xian was completely absorbed in the warmth enveloping his body. The sensation of relief and comfort was intoxicating, yet amid it all, he forced himself to stay focused—searching for the spark that would reveal his Martial Soul.
Then, without warning, his consciousness was pulled away.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself standing in an endless expanse of white. The world around him was completely blank—no horizon, no sound, not even a shadow. Just endless light stretching in every direction.
"What… happened?" he murmured, spinning slowly in confusion. "How did I end up here? Where is this place?"
His voice echoed faintly through the empty void, swallowed by the light. No answer came. No movement. Nothing but silence.
A faint tremor ran through him. The warmth and comfort from before were gone, replaced by unease. For the first time, panic began to creep into his heart.
But as Yun Xian struggled to make sense of his surroundings, the endless whiteness before him began to change.
Far in the distance, the light seemed to dim—as though something was swallowing it whole. The whiteness receded, devoured by an expanding tide of shadow.
He swallowed hard, an uneasy chill crawling down his spine. Even so, he forced himself to look closer.
The moment his gaze fell upon the darkness, his breath caught in his throat.
It wasn't just darkness.
It was alive.
Countless twisted figures writhed within it—grotesque, inhuman shapes with eyes that gleamed like dying embers. They looked like the demons of hell themselves, clawing and writhing, trying to devour the last remnants of light.
And they were coming for him.
Fast.
A wave of pure terror seized him. His body moved before his mind could think—he turned and ran.
"W-What the hell is this place?!" he screamed, his voice echoing across the empty void. "Someone—please! Save me!"
But no one answered. The only sound was the furious rush of the horde behind him—their screeches growing louder, closer, relentless.
His breath came in ragged gasps as he ran, but no matter how fast he moved, the creatures closed in.
In that moment, Yun Xian's mind began to crumble. Despair flooded his thoughts.
No one can survive this… no one.
When the certainty of death becomes absolute, the will to resist fades. And as that truth settled into his heart, his legs faltered, and the darkness surged ever closer.
"You've given up already?"
A calm yet cold voice echoed behind him.
Yun Xian froze, eyes widening. Someone's here?!
He spun around instantly—but there was no one. Nothing but the endless white stretching behind him.
"Where are you looking?"
The voice came again, closer this time—yet it didn't seem to come from any direction at all. It reverberated inside him, as though the words were being whispered directly into his mind.
Panic rising, Yun Xian turned in circles, searching desperately.
"Who's there?!" he shouted. "Please—help me! I just want to get out of here! Please!"
For a moment, there was only silence. Then, the voice sighed softly, filled with disappointment.
"…It seems I made a mistake."
Yun Xian blinked, confused and terrified. "W-What do you mean? Who are you?"
The voice ignored his questions. Its tone grew heavier—no longer calm, but cold and distant, like a judgment being passed.
"I shouldn't have given you a second chance. To think that I placed my hope in you… a coward. What a waste."
The words struck Yun Xian like a thunderbolt. He stood frozen, disbelief and confusion flooding his mind.
And in that very instant—everything around him stopped.
The rushing darkness, the devouring horde, even the faint echo of his own breath—all of it froze in place, as if time itself had been paused.
Only the sound of that voice remained, echoing through the stillness.
"I thought giving you a second chance would make you stronger," the voice said, its tone filled with disappointment. "But seeing you like this… huh."
Yun Xian flinched. There was no anger in the voice—only deep, cutting disdain.
"Who was it," the voice continued, colder now, "that once swore so confidently—'In my next life, I'll help people, cure the sick, and save countless lives'? It wasn't me… it was you."
Each word struck like a hammer against his heart.
"But when the time came," the voice went on, sharper now, "you ran. Like a coward."
A heavy silence followed—then the voice erupted with a surge of emotion, echoing across the frozen void.
"Do you think you're the only one who's suffered? The only one haunted by fear? No! There were countless others—crying for help, praying that someone would save them. And you, the one who vowed to be that someone… turned your back and fled."
The voice paused. "Their cries filled the world, yet you couldn't hear them—because your own fear was louder."
Yun Xian's lips trembled, but no words came. His throat felt dry, his chest heavy. Every word the voice spoke pierced straight through him.
Because it was true.
Yes… he had been the one who made that vow. He had been the one who ran when the moment came.
Guilt rose like a tide within him, swallowing the fear, crushing the panic. His heart twisted painfully as the realization sank deeper.
He didn't even notice that everything around him—the frozen darkness, the lightless void—was part of his Martial Soul awakening. All he could feel was the weight of his own failure pressing down on his soul.
"But… there is still a chance," the voice said softly.
The words seemed to carry a strange power. At that very moment, a radiant light descended from above Yun Xian, bathing the endless white void in brilliance.
He instinctively looked up.
From within the light emerged a figure—graceful, divine, and shrouded in an aura of sacred power. Though her face was veiled by shimmering light, her silhouette was unmistakably that of a woman—elegant yet imposing. She was clad in resplendent armor that glowed faintly like forged starlight, and in her hand she held a sword so radiant that the mere sight of it made the encroaching darkness tremble.
The horde of creatures that had moments ago surged toward Yun Xian shrieked in terror, recoiling into the distance as though struck by invisible fire.
The figure hovered in the air, her presence majestic and untouchable. Then, slowly, she descended until she stood before Yun Xian, who had fallen to his knees in awe.
"There is still time," the voice said again—not from her lips, but from the very air around him. "If you truly wish to save others… to change the world… to atone for your countless sins—then accept it."
The divine figure extended her hand toward him, her light washing over his trembling form.
Yun Xian's heart pounded. He didn't hesitate. His hand rose instinctively to meet hers—yet before their fingers touched, the voice spoke once more, its tone solemn and absolute.
"But remember this vow. You promised to stand against despair, to protect those who cannot protect themselves. If you break that vow… this power will abandon you without hesitation."
For a brief moment, Yun Xian's hand trembled midair. Then, his gaze hardened.
"I will remember," he said firmly, his voice steady, his eyes blazing with determination.
Their hands met.
In that instant, the world around him erupted in light. Memories flashed before his eyes—his past life, his betrayal, his failures, his vow.
And amidst that flood of memories, Yun Xian finally remembered who he truly was.
As Yun Xian clasped the figure's outstretched hand, a faint curve formed beneath her luminous veil—an almost imperceptible smile. Though he couldn't see her face clearly, he felt her smile, gentle yet filled with something vast and ancient.
The moment their hands met, a surge of unimaginable power flooded into his body. His entire frame trembled violently; veins pulsed beneath his skin as light coursed through him like molten fire. The sensation was overwhelming—painful beyond words—yet Yun Xian gritted his teeth and endured it.
The torrent of energy grew fiercer, swelling within him until it felt as if his very body would burst apart.
Then—
Crack!
A sharp sound rang through the void, like the shattering of invisible chains.
Yun Xian's eyes snapped open.
At that instant, the golden barrier surrounding his body in the Awakening Chamber exploded outward with a deafening roar. Brilliant streams of light burst from within, filling the entire chamber in blinding radiance.
All at once, the light element in the air seemed to respond to his awakening. Countless motes of luminous energy converged toward him, swirling like a celestial storm. They merged together, forming an even larger sphere of divine brilliance that enveloped him completely—far grander and more intense than before.
Outside the barrier, the watching elders froze in shock.
A moment ago, they had been calmly discussing Yun Xian's awakening… and now this spectacle unfolded before their eyes.
"What in the world…?" Feng Wuyu muttered, eyes wide.
Even Yun Ming, who had maintained his composure until now, felt his heart tremble slightly as he looked at the dazzling cocoon of light that surrounded his son.
Something extraordinary—something unprecedented—was happening.
As the radiant energy converged, it began to take shape—slowly coalescing into a humanoid figure suspended above the ground.
A woman of pure light emerged, her entire form surrounded by a halo of golden brilliance. Waves of sacred aura radiated from her, filling the entire Awakening Chamber. The very air seemed to tremble under her divine presence.
For a moment, everyone instinctively felt the urge to kneel. The pressure emanating from the figure wasn't merely spiritual—it was divine, commanding reverence from the depths of one's soul.
Even though the elders present were all powerful Titled Douluo, they had to circulate their soul power to resist the oppressive sanctity. Yet, despite their strength, beads of sweat formed on their foreheads.
Ya Li, however, was struggling. Her knees bent slightly under the weight of the divine aura, her face pale as her breathing grew uneven.
Seeing this, Yun Ming immediately extended his hand, wrapping her in a gentle field of soul power. The moment his energy enveloped her, the crushing pressure eased, allowing her to breathe freely again.
The two of them turned their eyes toward the center—toward Yun Xian, who was still encased within the glowing golden sphere.
Then, the light intensified once more. The humanoid figure of divine radiance floated just above him, as if guarding or blessing him.
A moment later, the sphere trembled violently—then shattered like glass.
Boom!
Golden fragments of light scattered through the chamber like falling stars, and from within, Yun Xian slowly stepped out.
Everyone gasped.
His appearance had transformed completely. His once black hair—tinged faintly with hazel gold—was now pure, radiant gold, flowing freely in the gentle wind that swirled around him. Behind him, six majestic wings unfurled, each feather glowing with holy brilliance, casting divine light across the entire chamber.
A stunned silence followed. Then, the three elders spoke almost in unison, their voices trembling with disbelief and awe.
"Seraphim…?"
Feng Wuyu's eyes widened. "It is undoubtedly the Seraphim Martial Soul!"
The room fell utterly silent again—except for the faint hum of sacred power that now pulsed from Yun Xian's awakened form.