Chapter 373: Heaven Realm

After Ye Xin Lan departed, Xiao Ming gave some instructions to the maid before hurriedly entering the secret room for seclusion.

Seated on a cushion, he took out the soul orb and suspended it gently in front of him. The orb emitted a soft and pure radiance, illuminating the dim chamber.

Xiao Ming gazed at the soul orb, took a deep breath, and extended his palm to touch it. Upon contact, he could feel the immense power of soul essence permeating the orb, warming his soul at his brow.

Poof!

Xiao Ming opened his mouth and spewed out a wisp of icy-white flames, the White Glazed Heart Flame. The flames floated beneath the soul orb, instantly engulfing it.

Although it was extracted from the simulator, it was based on the soul essence of the Hall of Souls, containing negative emotions and might even possess some Hall of Souls techniques. Therefore, it needed to be purified by the Heavenly Flame.

As the high temperature gradually penetrated, the soul orb began to simmer, and faint wisps of black gas emerged, dissipating into nothingness.

Observing the black gases, Xiao Ming raised an eyebrow. He sensed extremely weak mental fluctuations from them, whether it was a method from the Hall of Souls or impurities left by the soul essence, absorbing them into his soul would pose a considerable hidden danger.

Without much thought, Xiao Ming waved his sleeve, and the flames surged again, refining all the hidden black gases within the soul orb.

As the black gas dispersed, the soul orb became increasingly transparent and crystal-clear, appearing ethereal and illusory.

This refinement process lasted for half an hour before Xiao Ming slowly dissipated the flames, finally feeling relieved as he looked at the crystal-like and translucent soul orb floating before him.

With a hand seal, the power of his soul surged from his brow, forming a humanoid figure resembling Xiao Ming himself. It sat cross-legged in front of the soul orb, its mouth slightly open, emitting a suction force.

In response, the soul orb trembled slightly, and an extraordinarily pure soul essence power spread out, entwining around Xiao Ming's soul. It flowed into its mouth, nose, and every pore on its body, continuously merging with it.

As more and more soul essences were absorbed, a faintly intoxicated expression appeared on Xiao Ming's soul-formed face. Wrapped in the soul essence, he felt as if his soul was immersed in a warm light, akin to an unborn baby in its mother's womb.

Faintly shimmering crystal-like layers quietly appeared on the surface of his soul form, resembling substantial figures and exuding an extremely mystical aura.

Within the soul orb resided a terrifying soul essence power, condensed from an unknown number of soul bodies. Even Xiao Ming felt a sense of insignificance in the face of such vast soul essences.

Splish, splish!

As Xiao Ming absorbed more and more soul essences, invisible ripples emanated from him, gradually spreading out with him at the center. These invisible ripples pierced through the walls of the secret room, passed through the mansion, and expanded towards the surrounding residences.

Xiao Ming's mansion was situated within the inner circle of Holy Pill City, close to the headquarters of the Pill Tower. The neighboring residents were all high-tier alchemists who immediately detected the spreading soul fluctuations.

"Where is this soul fluctuation coming from?"

"Could it be that another Master Alchemist has broken through to the Spirit Realm? Wasn't there one a few days ago?"

"..."

Soon, these ripples reached the Pill Tower, and all the alchemists whose souls had not reached the Heaven Realm felt a soul pressure emanating from the depths of their souls. Startled, they turned their gazes in astonishment toward Xiao Ming's mansion.

Whose soul pressure was this?

At the top of the Pill Tower, Xuan Kong Zi, who was giving a lecture to Cao Ying, paused for a moment and walked to the window, looking downward.

"Master, this soul fluctuation can only belong to him..." Cao Ying approached him, her soft voice was filled with anticipation.

"That's right, it's Xiao Ming. Judging from the situation, his soul should be breaking through to the Heaven Realm!" Xuan Kong Zi stroked his graying beard, his tone filled with astonishment.

If he remembered correctly, it had only been about two years since Xiao Ming broke through to the Spirit Realm.

It was truly astonishing to reach the Heaven Realm at such a rapid pace, even with the help of the Spirit Nourishment Powder in between!

Cao Ying's eyes brightened upon hearing Xuan Kong Zi's confirmation. She had gotten to know Xiao Ming better over the past year, and she felt genuine joy for him. After all, she had witnessed firsthand the immense effort he put in to achieve his current status. Any envy she may have felt before had long been set aside.

As she anticipated their meeting again in a month, a dazzling smile that could captivate cities emerged on her lovely face.

Aside from Xuan Kong Zi and Cao Ying, the alchemists who were familiar with Xiao Ming also recognized that it was his soul undergoing a breakthrough. Envy filled their eyes one after another.

If only their souls could progress at such a rapid pace...

In reality, it was not entirely impossible. They could go try and destroy the branch halls of the Hall of Souls. However, the Hall of Souls was formidable, and not everyone could afford to provoke them. Besides, outsiders were unaware of the existence of soul essences within the Hall of Souls.

...

As time passed, the days of quiet cultivation continued. However, the soul fluctuations that had spread didn't disappear but instead gradually grew stronger, despite not expanding further.

After more than twenty days, a considerable number of alchemists had gathered in the area affected by the soul pressure.

For ordinary alchemists, there were very few methods to cultivate their souls. Under high-pressure circumstances, as the soul gradually adapted, its power would increase. Such opportunities were quite rare. That's why many alchemists gathered on the streets outside Xiao Ming's mansion to cultivate their souls.

No one interfered with these matters, and Xiao Ming remained unaware of the gathering outside while inside the secret room.

Two more days passed, and the diminishing soul pressure eventually dissipated. Many people looked disappointedly at Xiao Ming's mansion.

"It seems like it's coming to an end..." murmured someone among the disappointed crowd.

Meanwhile, inside the secret room, Xiao Ming sat in a cross-legged position, maintaining his focused state. Before him stood a figure with a translucent, crystalline appearance akin to flowing water.

"Hoo..."

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Ming's tightly sealed lips suddenly cracked open, unleashing a powerful suction force. The ethereal figure in front of him instantaneously transformed into a radiant stream of light, swiftly being drawn into his mouth.