Spirit Pagoda (1)

Chapter 37 — Spirit Pagoda (1)

"Nai An, have you seen Na'er?" Tang Wulin questioned desperately.

I nodded as a reply.

Tang Wulin's expression brightened, but I didn't plan on giving him false hope.

"Your sister has already left, but she gave me a letter intended for you."

I saw his expression turning dark and confused, but I handed him the letter I stored in my spatial ring.

"I guess you'll understand why she left after reading the letter."

Those were my simple thoughts.

"I see, thank you…"

Tang Wulin quietly received the letter with increasing confusion.

His heart somehow felt extremely heavy and stuffy.

I silently watched him leaving to read the letter.

Na'er left.

I'm certain he would get sad and heartbroken after reading the letter.

It was the same for his parents.

I understand the pain of parting away with your loved ones.

A sigh unknowingly escaped from my mouth.

Nonetheless, I still have to head out for my goal.

Soon enough, I'll get my revenge.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

But what comes after that…?

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

To graduate from the spirit master class of elementary academy, it was required to have the first soul ring and must complete the entire course.

My family once dreamed of seeing me graduating from the academy.

And I swore to graduate at the top of my class to make them happy.

Whether it was ordinary or spirit master class.

But that dream was impossible now.

However, I still decided to keep my promise.

I was always the top one student of the spirit master class for the entire academy course.

And my first soul ring was the only missing requirement to graduate.

Now, I'm about to buy myself a suitable spirit soul for my spirit heart.

As for money to buy the best, It was a concept I now didn't need to worry about.

My current situation couldn't compare back then.

The harsh times where I had to eat anything to survive—like snakes, rats, cockroaches, grass, and many kinds of rotten gooey foods from trash.

A fate where I had to endure not only overwhelming disgust, but also terribly starvation and stomach pains.

Maybe that was why I had a psychological condition where I couldn't waste food placed before me.

Even my trauma of eating couldn't hold back this problem.

And I also frequently have the urge to earn a lot of money.

As a form of security.

To not suffer from such a situation again.

I was really different from back then.

Nai An was not a naive and weak boy, but an ugly and impure soul that bore resemblance to those beasts.

No, I was even worse, a monster who always craved blood.

Killing.

A sin that caused me to feel extreme pleasure.

It was slowly intoxicating my being.

The addicting sensation of growing stronger as I killed and absorbed their lifeforce for more power.

It was said that with greater power comes a greater price.

And I found it true.

To the point I was scared of being consumed by my power eventually.

Maybe that's why…

I helped to create Red Rose to help unfortunate people who were suffering like me.

To help myself.

Not only that, I even gave my money to charities and gave samples of my blood for better medicines.

As if a form of repentance to practice self-control.

No, it was purely out of twisted self-satisfaction.

Yet I knew.

There was no more stopping once I entered this world.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Ning Shui previously gave me a private bank account that contained all of my wealth.

And it still held a lot of personal money from my blacksmith jobs.

At Glorybound City's Spirit Pagoda, I learned that there were 73 ten year white spirit souls and 11 hundred year yellow spirit souls to choose from.

The price of a white spirit soul was seventy thousand dollars, while yellow spirit souls were one million dollars. The random spirit soul selection was thirty thousand dollars, since the spirit soul from the selection was random.

The prices of spirit souls were generally the same throughout every branch of Spirit Pagoda.

I closely appraised the available spirit souls there offered, but I couldn't find a spirit soul that suited me.

There was a strict requirement I set.

—Compatibility Rate.

Apart from those with a high age, I wanted a spirit soul with a high compatibility rate with my spirit heart.

Since I didn't find them here, I thought of getting my first spirit soul from somewhere else.

As for the random draw, I didn't try it as I knew my luck was terrible from the very start.

Therefore, I left Glorybound City to head to the nearby major city.

The Heaven Dou City.

I booked a soul train that headed towards Heaven Dou City.

After rapid technological advancements, it now took less time to travel between cities by using soul transportations that provided major convenience.

After traveling for a few hours while passing across mesmerizing land sights, the soul train finally arrived at the train station of Heaven Dou City.

Fortunately, the soul train didn't get hijacked by Dark Spirit Masters.

These hijacking incidents from Dark Spirit Masters were on the news lately.

I unboarded from the soul train while feeling comfortable throughout the whole journey.

My next destination was the Spirit Pagoda of Heaven Dou City.

As I walked across the streets, I noticed that there weren't many skyscrapers, but only tall ancient buildings and ancient forests entering my perception.

The entire city was beautiful and mysterious.

If my family were here with me, I wonder how they would react?

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

After I arrived at Spirit Pagoda, I noticed it looked more grand and bigger than the branch from Glorybound City.

As I entered inside it, I was immediately bombarded with the gaze of many people.

I could feel the employees of Spirit Pagoda glancing at me interestedly.

It seems I appear wealthy to them since I wore l luxurious clothings given by the Tailor Guild.

There were other customers aside from me.

All of them were Soul Masters.

"Troublesome," I muttered dully upon seeing the busy counters with long waiting lines.

Since I had no choice, I could only patiently line up on one of the counters.

Fortunately, Spirit Pagoda had excellent customer service that was fast and efficient.

And It was soon my turn.

The staff behind the counter was a pretty girl wearing the white standard uniform of Spirit Pagoda.

"Hi, welcome to Spirit Pagoda! How can I help you?"

"I want to get my first spirit soul."

"I see! Then I'll call another staff member to guide you, so please just wait for a minute!"

I nodded as I watched her call someone using a soul bell.

Ringg~~

A pleasant sound echoed.

After sounding the bell, a male staff member soon approached me.

"He will be your guide." The girl gestured to the man.

"I'll lead you now."

The man smiled brightly.

"Sure."

I followed behind the man who explained the procedures I needed to undergo before getting a spirit soul from them.

After using the soul elevator to reach higher floors, I was asked to fill and sign the consent form they handed me.

The form asked standard questions about my personal questions.

There was also an agreement wherein Spirit Pagoda wouldn't be held accountable should I fail to merge with a spirit soul.

After closely reading the terms and conditions, I soon signed the form.

The man read the contents of my consent form. He then gave it to another staff member.

"All finished, Nai An. We will now proceed with basic tests."

We went to another room.

A room that brimmed with technological apparatuses arranged neatly around inside.

The Spirit Master gestured for me to sit down in a metallic cabin.

"Do you know why we test spiritual power?"

I nodded my head.

"Then it seems like I don't need to explain too long!"

The realm of spiritual power was tested to determine the appropriate age of the spirit soul a soul master can absorb.

The stronger the spiritual power, the higher the age that can be absorbed.

Spiritual power was divided into realms that also determined the grades a soul master could absorb.

From low to high, the realms of spiritual power were divided into:

Spirit Origin.

Spirit Connection.

Spirit Sea.

Spirit Abyss.

Spirit Domain.

And the fabled Divine Origin.

A metallic helmet fell onto my head as I sat in the metallic capsule that felt cool to the skin. Metal arms then linked together to strap my head tightly.

"Please don't feel tense; just relax your entire self. You might feel a bit of vertigo, but that happens normally."

"Mnn," I replied expressionlessly.

A slight humming noise then arose as the helmet began to emit a soft white glow.

The man watched the soul transmitter screen begin to display data.

As numbers appeared, they jumped extremely fast without stopping..

As the helmet covered my head around the brain region, I could clearly feel electric signals stimulating my brain and spiritual power, causing it to be extremely active and flow to the helmet.

I planned on revealing a powerful potential.

However, I didn't want to reveal all of my true power.

It was important to have elements of surprise in case of unexpected problems.

The numbers didn't stop rising even though a minute had passed.

Fortunately, the numbers gradually stabilized.

When the man saw the final numbers, his expression changed to one of astonishment.

"Spiritual power of 1598…!? A devilish kid that's already at Spirit Sea Realm!"

These numbers were unprecedented in the entire history!

The man was trembling in shock—almost to the point of hyperventilating.

"Please wait a moment! I need to call the manager of this Spirit Pagoda!"

I narrowed my eyes while looking at his reaction.

Was it too high?

It was my first time my spiritual power got properly examined.

"I'm not worthy enough to serve you!"

The man hurriedly took out his soul communicator to contact the manager of the Spirit Pagoda.

I silently waited outside.

Spirit Sea Realm!

It meant that my spiritual power was already as wide as the sea.

I wonder how much would it be if I revealed my entire spiritual power…?

As I pondered, the man arrived with a woman who had plenty of gray hair yet still had a youthful face.

The old woman was tall, even taller and muscular than most men, proudly revealing her slender yet muscular physique.

She wore the standard uniform, but fashioned them to suit a martial artist, making her look unique.

What captured my interest, however, was her golden badge—signifying she held a high status within Spirit Pagoda.

The old woman approached me with visible interest.

As she stood before me like an overwhelming tower, the old woman stared down at me.

"You're Nai An, right?" She asked with a rough yet charming voice.

"Yes."

I nodded while silently appraising her.

This old woman.

She was extremely dangerous.

To the point my entire being was screaming from danger.

"I'm Shi Yeng."

Shi Yeng lightly smiled.

"The manager of this branch. I'm also in charge of performing experiments like new types of artificial spirit souls and artificial soul bones."

"Why bother telling me?"

"Your spiritual power is over 1000 despite still being a mere child! You also have an extremely rare body spirit, so you're like a special apple in my eyes."

Shi Yeng knew that information after reading my entire consent form.

"What do you plan?"

"I'll handle your tests from now on. If you agree, I will give your spirit heart a special present."

Shi Yeng grinned savagely as if she found a new toy to break.

A special gift?

I immediately realized it.

"A free highly compatible spirit soul for my spirit heart?"

Shi Yeng nodded.

"Correct."

There seemed nothing wrong about accepting her offer.

"I'll accept your gift."

It wasn't bad to save money.

…

Please support me on ko-fi.com/ishyawrites 🥺

I'm planning on updating 2-3 chapters a week once again. School is soon starting once again. It burns me out to upload everyday, especially when there's not really a benefit from this, and some people just being a jerk because they don't like this, but I really want to turn my childish imaginations into reality.

I will just revise and stack them so there will be steady supply. In the meantime, you can add suggestions for future plots.

And that's why—see you next week!