Soul Land III: Man and Spear

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yes, I am not drunk or misspoke, you heard me loud and clear."

"But this soon? Didn't you said to wait atleast I am a Soul King?"

"That was the original plan before you decide to perform a miracle, now I've changed your development plan 7 times in total. Be grateful, i will take you to the Dept Hell now."

"Fine"

The sun was barely up when Mu Ye told him to speed up the process. Awaken Body Spirit and complete second Body Forging, the Marrow Cleansing realm.....What a load of bullshit, why the hurry.

Du Qianyao followed him through the mist-covered woods, saying nothing as they climbed the forest ridge behind Body Sect's core mountain. By breakfast time, they arrived at a secluded lake—a deep basin tucked away from any sight.

Mu Ye knelt by the edge and throw a boulder into the water. It sank quickly.

"This lake's depth is about 200 meters and pressure is about fifty times what you're used to. You'll be staying under it for forty-nine days, but this is not certain so come to when you feels like dying or you success."

Qianyao blinked. "I thought you'd be more concerned about me at least."

Mu Ye glanced at him. "You want a motivation speech? Fine. If you die, I'll just tell Zhen Hua you slipped on wet moss and break your neck."

"Noted," Qianyao said and started taking off his outer robe.

"Listen. This isn't just about enduring some pain. You're forcing your body to evolve, stimulate your blood flows, and force your body to tearing itself apart, adapt and evolve as fast as possible. Everything you do down there is on your own. Understand?"

Qianyao nodded. "Yes sir."

Mu Ye tossed a metal ring over. "Put that on. It's a protective tool. It'll help your movements under crushing pressure."

"Appreciate the bare minimum, Master."

Mu Ye snorted. "Get in."

Without hesitation, Qianyao jump into the lake.

The cold water was sharp but comfortable. As he dive deeper and slipped under the surface, he felt the pressure begin to push him—not just against his skin, but inside his bones and muscles.

He swam all the way down to the bottom and sit down shaking from all strong swirling underwater current and pitch black water.

Day 3

Everything ached.

Qianyao sat cross-legged on a stone slab Mu Ye had placed 200 meters down. His heart beats was slow. He wasn't meditating for breakthroughs, only to regulate his energy throughout the body.

His body vibrated constantly under the compression, muscles twitching. But his Life Heart Core slowly generates vitality, repairing him between micro-tears. His Soul Power dance steady around him.

Day 17

Mu Ye came down carrying an oxygen mask and floated next to him.

"You're holding up better than expected," he voice transmit, arms crossed. "You're not using a domain to cheat, are you?"

"Nope," Qianyao replied, voice muffled in the water bubble around him. "Just trying to be a fish."

Mu Ye clicked his tongue. "Ruheng nearly drowned on Day 12 when he first attempt this. You might be the only brat who can joke while taking a trial."

"I'm not in humor mood. Just bored and hurt badly."

Day 21

The pressure intensified again.

Qianyao's skin turned red from internal heat. The veins in his forearms throbbed as he stabilized his Soul Power.

He activated Gravity Domain inside the water—just a sliver. It folded the pressure back onto itself, giving him just enough wiggle room to shift and adjust his posture.

His Body Spirit trembled inside him. For the first time, it began responding to his strain. The light that slowly flowing through his body represented it pulsed, thicker and brighter.

Then... a pulse ran up his spine.

A warmth heat slowly gathers behind his skull, like a second sun slowly opening.

His body was heating up too fast and it feels like he was burning something inside him, until his second heart starts beating faster and faster.

A ocean vast amount of life force run rampant his cells and every parts of his body.

Day 25 – Surface

The water rippled.

Du Qianyao emerged without splashing. His eyes were tired.

Floating behind his head was a thin, bright golden halo—a perfect ring of soft light, rotating, just hovering quietly.

Mu Ye watched from a rock nearby.

"Is that it?" he asked, nodding at the ring.

Qianyao looked over. "Seems so."

"How you feeling?"

"Numb. Just a weird sense of warm on my head. Feels like my back is always heating up now."

Mu Ye smirked. "Congratulations. You've awakened your Body Spirit to Gold Rank. Ruheng done it when he turned sixteen. You've done it at eleven."

Qianyao stepped onto the rock next to him. His robes clung to his frame, soaked.

"what the good thing?" he asked.

Mu Ye shrugged. "That's mostly visual. Some people just glows like a lightbulb on their martial soul not like your at all. You got that." He squinted at it. "Looks like some Buddhist shit."

Qianyao looked at his reflection in the water.

The halo pulsed once and faded as he deactivated the Body Spirit.

Mu Ye explains, "Gold-ranked is the rarest and scariest rank of the Second Awakening. Sign is the light projection created will be golden. Such a soul master possesses great explosive power, but this will vary between different spirit masters depending on the strength of their Spirit. When they undergo their Second Awakening, their strength might even increase up to three times their normal standard. However, the stronger one's Second Awakening was, the greater one would be drained. At the Gold-ranked level, one's life power might be completely drained."

"Damn, so that's what happened? Is there any more downside to this?"

"None," Mu Ye confirmed. "But when it's on, that's a sign of full-body harmonization. Your cells, blood, bones, and meridians are now unified with the Martial Soul. You'll recover faster, fight better, and take more punches. Only Limit Douluo who understand their martial soul to the limits can achieved this"

Qianyao gave a small nod. "So Body Martial Souls are this special, as expects from martial soul recognized as gift of heaven."

Mu Ye stood. "You're allowed 2 weeks off and we will begin your second phrase training together with Ruheng, and you smell like a fish."

Qianyao smile and wrung out his sleeves. "By the way master, what about Senior Brother? Is he okay?"

Mu Ye turned without looking back. "Don't worry about him, i'd prepared everything he needs. Your is just a odd case."

"Oh and Zhen Hua will come for a visit too"

"Really? Wasn't he drowning in battle armor forging requests from major forces?"

"That guy use excuse of being injured during forging to take a break and decided to come here."

Qianyao nods, "As expected from my nominal teacher."

Mu Ye snorts, " Just slacking off, what good is that? Go go take a rest."

"Yes"

.

.

.

Late morning. Body Sect's inner mountain compound.

Mu Ye sat on the wooden chair on the east training hall gate, half-dozing with a bamboo fan in one hand. He'd been enjoying the peace after Qianyao's awakening—until a voice called out from the path.

"Still lazy as ever, Mu Ye."

Mu Ye force his eyes open.

Zhen Hua stood there in a T-shirt and a short summer pant wearing a flip flop, one arm holding a large case and a grin on his face.

Mu Ye sighed. "What now? Throw your back hammering a kitchen pan?"

"I got hit by a tribulation thunder," Zhen Hua said, walking up with a limp that looked only half genuine. "Heavenly Tribulation of a 4-Word Battle Armor for that War God Temple. Blasted me straight into a wall."

Mu Ye didn't even get up. "And that's why you dragged yourself all the way here instead of using a recovery hall in Heaven Dou?"

Zhen Hua smirked. "Is it so strange for a man to visit his brother once in a while?"

Du Qianyao emerged from the hallway with a Shan Yuan and Guang Long sitting on his shoulders. And a large dango plate in hands

"Uncle Master," he said, surprised. "You're here."

Zhen Hua's expression softened. "Brat. Heard you glowed like a small lightbulb the other week."

Qianyao gave a small nod. "More like a lamp. It's not that bright, Dango?"

Mu Ye grab one and eat, "Nothing wrong happens just same as usual."

Zhen Hua glanced at him. "Has he been slacking?"

"Not once," Mu Ye said.

Qianyao added, "You didn't come all the way here for small talk, did you?"

Zhen Hua's sling mysteriously vanished as he pulled a small box from his storage ring and held it out.

"This is called Vitality Jade. Rare stuff. It's soft in nature but stores life essence far better than most metals. Most blacksmiths can't even hit it into shape properly without cracking the structure."

Qianyao's eyes narrowed slightly. "You want me to forge it?"

Zhen Hua smiled. "I want you to forge your lifebound hammer using this."

Mu Ye folded his arms. "He's only eleven."

"He's a Rank 5 Craftsman who can infuse life into iron with an ordinary hammer. Stop pretending you didn't notice."

Qianyao looked at the jade, then at his own hands.

"Can I use the forge hall?"

Mu Ye pointed behind him. "It's not locked."

Zhen Hua followed Qianyao down the hall as the boy peeled off his upper robe and tied his hair up with a hair clip. The forge was already warm, coals still glowing from morning practice.

Zhen Hua stood back. "Let's begin."

Qianyao nodded. He took out his forging apron and set the Vitality Jade under a gentle flame. It was jade green with natural silver threads—nearly translucent. He adjusted the fire slowly, letting the jade adapt to heat.

Zhen Hua said nothing, but Mu Ye appeared at the door, watching silently.

Qianyao's movements were steady. He didn't rush. His soul power remained low—barely pulsing—but his Life Heart Core activated passively, threading subtle vitality into the hammer with every strike.

He used no exotic forging method.

Just breath.

Strike.

Compress.

Infuse.

The jade began to glow faintly, not from the fire, but from energy within. After half an hour, he shaped it into a clean, hammerhead with slight curvature and natural grip points.

He attached a short ironwood handle and infused the final shaping strike with both strength and life energy.

When he finished, the hammer vibrated slightly in his hand—alive.

Zhen Hua walked over and touched the cooled jade.

"…You didn't even inscribe anything," he said.

"I didn't need to," Qianyao replied. "It already remembers my rhythm."

Zhen Hua nodded once.

"Then that's your first lifebound tool."

Mu Ye scratched the back of his head. "And now he has a better hammer than most Craftsman."

Zhen Hua looked at Qianyao, serious now.

"You're eligible to take the Blacksmith Association's Secondary Certification anytime after your twelfth birthday. If you want, I'll schedule it."

Qianyao nodded. "I'll take it."

Zhen Hua smiled. "Good."

Then, with a sudden shift in tone, he added, "Also—I wasn't actually injured. I just missed bothering you two."

Mu Ye rolled his eyes. "I knew it."

Qianyao just laughed.