Nascent Soul Formation

With a soft thump, the sphere flashed once and transformed into a five-colored mist roughly ten yards in diameter. It shot downward, vanishing into the stone mountain in the blink of an eye. At the same time, the surrounding phenomena—wind, rain, thunder, lightning—vanished without a trace, and everything returned to normal.

The cultivators nearby stared blankly at one another, none of them knowing what to do.

Then, from within the stone mountain, a sound like a dragon's roar rose up, piercing the clouds. The very heavens seemed to shift in response. Above the mountain, a colossal, human-shaped silhouette of light appeared, standing over three hundred feet tall.

This silhouette shimmered with four-colored spiritual light. Its limbs were thick and astonishingly large. The light around its face was so intense that no one present could make out a single feature. They only felt that this figure radiated an overwhelming majesty that made it impossible to look directly at it. What unsettled them even more was that when the silhouette gave a slight nod, two beams of frigid light swept over the crowd. Everywhere those beams passed, people found themselves holding their breath.

Thuds rang out in succession. Some cultivators felt a weight pressing down on them like Mount Tai, forcing them to one knee, unable to rise.

A few of the more advanced cultivators managed to stay standing, but their knees trembled and veins bulged on their foreheads. It was clearly a tremendous effort.

Just as these cultivators were inwardly panicking and silently cursing their luck, the giant figure seemed to smile. Its body suddenly scattered into countless specks of starlight and dispersed into nothing.

Everyone present was left utterly dumbfounded.

…

Inside the quiet chamber of the small stone mountain, Han Li sat cross-legged with his eyes shut tight. Above the crown of his head, a miniature infant about an inch tall was crawling and playing among the strands of his hair.

This infant was pale and delicate, its body enveloped in azure light. Its features were identical to Han Li’s, but its face was full of excited, delighted smiles—a stark contrast to Han Li’s usual silent, reticent demeanor.

Beneath the infant, Han Li’s physical body had a healthy, rosy complexion and a serene expression, as though he were fast asleep.

After a while, the infant seemed to grow tired of playing. It yawned, and with a flash of azure light, it dove through the crown of Han Li’s head and into his body.

Han Li’s expression shifted slightly. His eyelids trembled, and he finally opened his eyes. They were clear, bright, and held a warm, restrained luster.

The newly awakened Han Li did not immediately rise. Instead, he wore a complex expression—a mixture of strangeness and barely concealed ecstasy.

He raised one hand, turning it over in front of his eyes to examine it repeatedly. Then, he lifted his other hand and touched the top of his own head, his face showing utter incredulity.

It took the space of a full incense-burning session for the excitement on Han Li’s face to gradually fade away and his normal composure to return.

He surveyed the quiet chamber, stretched his limbs, and finally rose to his feet. With a flick of his finger, a beam of azure light struck the stone door.

The door shone once with a spectral light and then rose silently.

“Congratulations, Master, on forming your Nascent Soul!”

Silvermoon had transformed into the appearance of a beautiful, voluptuous young woman. She had been waiting outside the chamber. As soon as she saw Han Li emerge, she immediately bowed her head in respectful greeting. The formality of her address and deferential tone caught Han Li slightly off guard.

“Master? It seems that Fellow Daoist Silvermoon is only now truly acknowledging me. But that’s only natural. Your original cultivation was no lower than mine. If I had failed to form a Nascent Soul, how could you have sincerely accepted me?” Han Li rubbed his chin and spoke with a deliberately casual air.

“You are quite right, Master. Now that you have formed your Nascent Soul, you have naturally stepped into the ranks of this realm’s most supreme cultivators. Your lifespan has been extended to over a thousand years. With you being merely two hundred years old, as long as you encounter a bit more fortune and opportunity, I firmly believe that reaching the Spirit Transformation stage is not an impossible hope.” Silvermoon’s beautiful face was utterly serious as she spoke.

“Talking about Spirit Transformation right now is far too distant for me. I don’t know how many Nascent Soul cultivators are stuck at the early stage, unable to advance an inch. Don’t set your expectations too high.” Han Li shook his head slightly and replied impassively.

“I have quite a bit of confidence in you, Master.” Silvermoon’s cherry-red lips parted into a radiant smile, making her appear especially alluring and tempting.

Han Li only showed a noncommittal expression.

…

Outside the stone mountain, the earlier cultivators had been joined by those who had arrived later, gathering a crowd of over a thousand people.

They floated in the air around the mountain on their artifacts, murmuring among themselves.

Given their limited experience and knowledge, they had no idea what the phenomena they had just witnessed signified. They could only make wild guesses. Even so, what had just happened stirred a restless excitement in them.

Many had also taken note of the spirit medicine garden in front of the stone mountain that was under Han Li’s responsibility. Some had already broken through its restrictions to check inside.

But aside from ordinary medicinal herbs, it was completely empty. Not a single person was there.

The woman surnamed Mu was among the crowd that had gathered. She had witnessed everything that had happened nearby, and an uncertain expression flickered across her face. She vaguely felt that this celestial omen seemed to have some connection to Han Li.

Just then, several streaks of light in different colors hurriedly flew over. As the light converged, five or six Core Formation cultivators with grave expressions appeared.

The leader was the same late-Core Formation old man surnamed Feng. His face was as dark as water. Beside him stood the old man in red robes, the stunning woman surnamed Song, and several other cultivators with unfamiliar faces.

“All disciples, listen well. Everything within ten li of this mountain is temporarily classified as forbidden ground. Anyone found lingering nearby will be considered in violation of sect rules and severely punished.” Seeing so many low-level disciples gathered here, the old man surnamed Hu raised an eyebrow and spoke with a biting coldness.

When these low-level Falling Cloud Sect disciples heard that their own sect’s grandmaster had issued such an order, they were filled with doubts but could only obey, each flying away on their artifacts. The area immediately cleared out.

“Niece Mu, remain here for a moment.” A Core Formation cultivator with an ordinary appearance suddenly transmitted a few words to old man Hu, then pointed at the medicine garden below. The old man’s expression shifted, and he called out to the woman, who had been about to leave as well.

“Disciple awaits the elder’s instructions!” The woman surnamed Mu was startled, but she quickly turned around and flew back to the group of Core Formation cultivators, her face showing deference.

“Niece Mu, I recall that this medicine garden is under your responsibility,” old man Feng said, his tone softening somewhat.

“Yes, Elder. It is managed by a Qi Condensation disciple of this peak named Han Li,” the coldly beautiful woman answered honestly.

“Qi Condensation? Where is this person now?”

“This… Disciple does not know. A few seniors have already entered the medicine garden to look. That disciple was not inside.” The woman surnamed Mu hesitated for a moment before replying.

“Han Li? Could he be the outer affairs disciple who ranked in the top ten at the Sword Trial Assembly over twenty years ago?” The old man in red robes was startled and asked in surprise.

“Elder Duan is correct. It is that same disciple.” Knowing that this elder had led the team during the Sword Trial Assembly, she was not surprised by his recognition.

“An outer affairs disciple placing in the top ten is indeed a bit unusual. Could that Nascent Soul-forming omen just now really have been caused by this man?” Old man Feng stared at the stone mountain and muttered to himself with a complex expression. The surrounding Core Formation cultivators all wore solemn looks.

The stunning woman surnamed Song had flickering eyes and remained silent.

Nascent Soul omen! Could it be that someone had just formed a Nascent Soul?

The others aside, the woman surnamed Mu could hardly believe her ears. Her face was filled with shock and bewilderment.

“Elder Brother Feng, given the strange phenomena we just witnessed, it seems that person has successfully formed his Nascent Soul. He is now a Nascent Soul cultivator. How should we deal with him?” the old man in red robes asked slowly.

“Although he is a newly advanced Nascent Soul cultivator, this is no longer a matter we can handle. I expect that the two grandmasters will soon come to deal with it personally. What we must do now is make absolutely sure not to provoke him. Ah! The two grandmasters have already arrived,” old man Feng said, having just made his decision, when his expression suddenly relaxed and he let out a soft cry of recognition.

The others felt their hearts ease. They quickly looked up.

A flash of light came from the horizon. Two rainbows, one white and one yellow, arrived in an instant and came to a halt before them.

Seeing this, old man Feng and the others immediately parted to stand on either side, expressions of respect on their faces.

“Leave this matter to the two of us. Go about your business. There is no need to stay here.” The silver-haired old man and the Lu-surnamed Nascent Soul cultivator appeared before the Core Formation cultivators and said casually.

Old man Feng and the others acknowledged the order and quickly left the vicinity of the stone mountain.

The woman surnamed Mu naturally dared not linger either. After bowing deeply to her two grandmasters, she hurriedly flew away on her artifact. But before she left, she could not help turning her head to glance back in the direction of the medicine garden.

“Could the person who formed the Nascent Soul really be that man, ‘Han Li’?” The moment she thought of Han Li, her mind was thrown into confusion, a look of utter bewilderment on her jade-like face.

…

Inside the cave dwelling, Han Li was in the main hall, talking casually with Silvermoon in her young-woman form, wearing a relaxed expression. Suddenly, an old, drawn-out voice came from outside.

“I am Cheng Tiankun of the Falling Cloud Sect. I offer my congratulations, Fellow Daoist, on forming your Nascent Soul. I wonder if this old man and his junior brother might be permitted to enter your dwelling for a chat.”