The Starry Sky and the Vast Sea

“If I left one day, would you miss me?” Na’er asked as she raised her head to look at Tang Wulin. Her petite face was even more fairy-like under the splendor of the moon and stars.

Tang Wulin dumbly asked, “Why? Are you going to leave?”

Na’er pouted, “I’m just asking if I leave.”

Tang Wulin replied, “You’re my little sister. Of course I would miss you. I would really, really miss you. Eh, have you grown a bit taller, Na’er? You’re nearly up to my nose now.”

“I’ll miss you too. I’ll really, really miss you.” Na’er gave an answer beside the point. Her large purple eyes seemed to contain a hazy layer of water.

Tang Wulin happily embraced her by her shoulders. “We’re together everyday, so we don’t have to miss each other. I’ve already talked it over with mom and dad. Once I’ve entered an intermediate academy, you’ll be coming with me to attend an academy in the same city. Big brother will always protect you.”

Silently, the radiance in Na’er’s eyes dimmed and she rested her head on Tang Wulin’s shoulder.

Early morning.

Tang Wulin got up especially early and ate a smaller breakfast than usual today. Seeing the eager shine in his son’s eyes, Tang Ziran couldn’t help but smile. “Aren’t you awfully impatient? There’s no need to be so eager. Even if we went early, the Spirit Pagoda wouldn’t be open.”

For Tang Wulin, today was a very special day. Today was the day he was going to buy a spirit soul.

“Dad, what kind of spirit soul do you think I’ll be able to buy?” Tang Wulin was only a nine year old child. He had been working his hardest all for this day, and now that the day had finally come, how could he possibly be calm?

Tang Ziran revealed a slight smile. “How would dad know? But no matter what kind of spirit soul you get, you’ll still be promoted from a Soul Scholar to a Soul Master. Then you’ll truly be a Soul Master. The gap between you and ordinary people will grow even larger.”

“Mn.” Tang Wulin excitedly nodded his head. However, he had overlooked something in his father’s tone.

As Na’er watched Tang Wulin impatiently pulling his father out of the home, her pretty eyes displayed a perplexed look. She knitted her eyebrows, as if deep in thought.

“Dad, walk a bit faster. Let’s hurry up.” Tang Wulin urged as he practically skipped ahead.

Tang Ziran couldn’t help but shake his head while the deepest depths of his eyes revealed his worries. Obtaining a suitable spirit soul couldn’t possibly be that easy! Just because he could buy one didn’t mean he was able to buy a suitable one.

The Spirit Pagoda’s reach spread throughout the continent. Not only was it present in the Douluo Continent, it was even able to spread to the other two continents several thousand years ago.

Ten thousand years ago, the remnants of the Heaven Dou Empire after its defeat at the hands of the Sun-Moon Empire had embarked on a voyage and had experienced many hardships and perils. In the end, they discovered a huge continent which also had some indigenous humans. However, their development couldn’t even compare with the Douluo Continent’s. They were conquered by the Heaven Dou remnants and the continent was named the Heaven Dou Continent.

On the Douluo Continent, the conflict between the Sun-Moon Empire and the Star Luo Empire was never ending. While the Sun-Moon Empire rapidly developed, the Star Luo Empire gradually declined. Instead, they chose to take a different route. The Star Luo Empire decided to invest in seafaring technology. Thanks to their research, they were able to discover another large continent which was followed by a quiet occupation shortly afterwards. With the whole continent taken, the Star Luo Empire migrated the whole empire over along with their many resources and named it the Star Luo Continent. Afterwards, the Star Luo Empire also changed to a federal system and became the Star Luo Federation.

The Sun-Moon Empire was able to unify the Douluo Continent and became the Sun-Moon Federation.

The Spirit Pagoda had a ten thousand year history. Due to their importance to Soul Masters and their groundbreaking research into artificial spirit souls, their status had risen dramatically to its current state. Throughout the three continents, they were the strongest power.

Glorybound City also had a Spirit Pagoda branch located in the heart of the city. It was a three layer pagoda. This was the lowest rank possible for a Spirit Pagoda branch. A mid-sized city would have a seven layer Spirit Pagoda branch. Major cities would have a thirteen layer Spirit Pagoda branch. However, the Spirit Pagoda Headquarters was situated in Shrek City. The headquarters had gone through many renovations over the years and it now had eighty layers. It was said to be the most magnificent building on the Douluo Continent.

In regards to Tang Wulin, the three layered pagoda in front of him was already a holy land. This Spirit Pagoda branch was the largest building in Glorybound City. Everybody knew where it was, but few had ever entered it.

When they arrived the Spirit Pagoda’s doors were already wide open, yet there weren’t too many people there. After all, this was a place for Soul Masters. With Glorybound City being as small as it was, there were simply too few Soul Masters.

After Tang Ziran brought his son into the Spirit Pagoda, Tang Wulin’s eyes constantly fluttered all about his surroundings. He was very curious about this fabled place.

The Spirit Pagoda was shaped like an octagon with three floors. The interior was very spacious and the marble floor carried the symbol of the Spirit Pagoda. Inside the huge hall, there was a circular door which led to an unknown location. There was a reception counter in the front with an ashen robed Soul Master seated behind it.

The Soul Master had already stood up by the time the two of them arrived in front of the counter and was inspecting Tang Ziran. “Hello, may I ask what you’re here for?”

Tang Ziran respectfully greeted, “Hello Lord Soul Master. I’ve brought my son to buy a spirit soul. His martial soul has reached the 10th rank.”

Once he heard this, the Soul Master’s enthusiastic expression clearly dampened a bit as Tang Ziran wasn’t a Soul Master.

“Do you have enough money?” He unenthusiastically asked.

Tang Wulin scrambled over. “Enough. I have enough.”

The Soul Master said, “What rank of spirit soul do you want to buy?”

Somewhat embarrassed, Tang Ziran answered, “Lord Soul Master, we’re not quite knowledgeable about these things. Could we possibly inconvenience you to explain this to us?”

The Soul Master impatiently said, “You don’t know about this yet you’ve still come? For such a small city like Glorybound City, the Spirit Pagoda only offers three types of spirit souls. Ten year white spirit souls, hundred year yellow spirit souls, and random spirit soul selection.

“There are 73 ten year white spirit souls and 11 hundred year yellow spirit souls to choose from. The price of a white spirit soul is seventy thousand coins, while yellow spirit souls are one million coins. Which one do you want to buy?”

Tang Wulin was stunned at his words and nearly lost his voice as he asked, “Lord Soul Master, aren’t spirit souls thirty thousand coins? How, how could it be…?”