The thousand-zhang giant above the clouds raised his finger and slowly pressed it down towards Yu Lian, who was smaller than an ant or dust below the clouds.
His finger turned into light and pressed down fiercely. In that colorless and formless light, which was so dazzling that even spiritual entities could not look directly at it, everything seemed to have nowhere to hide.
In the ocean of consciousness, when this light of judgment descended, all of his life and death would be exposed.
However, this was the world of the soul, the world of the spirit, the world where consciousness determined energy. As a materialist, he still couldn't understand how the material concept of the ocean of consciousness existed.
Perhaps it was some kind of Dirac sea in a quantum sense?
However, this was not important. At least, it was not important now.
What Yu Lian firmly believed was that actions should adhere to public order and good customs, but the will belonged to oneself. Everyone had the right to seek just actions based on their free will. This was both the meaning he had comprehended as a “Free Knight” in his previous life and also because in his life before that, someone else had taught him the same thing.
Before that light of judgment descended upon him, Yu Lian chanted in the language of the Enlightener deep within his soul: “Where my will lies, that is my world!”
The words left by the ancient Enlighteners carried the power of spiritual words in a mystical sense. However, this was not something ordinary people or low-ring spiritual energy users could utter with their vocal cords.
However, this was the Void Realm, the world of spiritual energy. This was the ocean of consciousness, a world constructed by “spirit” where even the physical body did not exist. If he had such a memory, he had the spirit, and thus the possibility of directly realizing these things.
“Soul judgment? Ring suppression? Consciousness domination?” Yu Lian looked up at the giant above the clouds, facing the light of judgment pressing down on him.
My will! No one, no self-proclaimed higher existence, has the right to judge!
In his consciousness, his spiritual entity also began to expand, supporting the light that covered him. It was like that lawless monkey, still standing proudly under the crushing pressure of the collapsing sky.
Then, the cold and sharp light of judgment began to dissipate, and behind the halo, surprise, astonishment, and obvious relief appeared, finally turning into ecstasy.
“Judgment confirmed! Immaculate Soul!” A voice vaguely sounded from behind the light, like a great bell.
Immediately after, a series of syllables, like demonic sounds, were directly injected into Yu Lian’s mind.
Fortunately, those syllables were very rhythmic and agile, and even being directly injected like this did not make one feel repulsed; instead, they were like ethereal immortal music, making one involuntarily intoxicated.
More importantly, Yu Lian had even heard those “immortal sounds” before…
As the light receded, Yu Lian quickly regained his senses from a momentary trance. He found that he had returned to the real world, still in the cemetery in the suburbs of Jin City. Feifei was still behind him, even maintaining the posture of being pulled behind him, with a hint of confusion still on her face.
Yu Lian quickly checked his Star Ring internally and barely managed not to laugh out loud on the spot.
Indeed, in the realm of spiritual energy users, the fastest way to level up was either to beat a high-level big shot or to be beaten by a big shot and not die.
However, “Uncle Wang’s” joy was much more evident than Yu Lian’s. The air of a master from a moment ago had once again vanished, replaced by undisguised delight, as if he had seen his child, who had always hovered around the passing line, get admitted to a top university.
“Little Yu Lian, how much of what I just told you did you remember?”
The other party’s thoughts and words were indeed a bit jumpy, but Yu Lian had already vaguely guessed his identity, and immediately recited a long string of words in a series of difficult-to-pronounce languages.
Feifei, standing nearby, listened in confusion and couldn't help but look at him with the expression one might give a child with schizophrenia.
“He actually memorized all of it! Both memory and spiritual power are top-notch! Such talent! Such aptitude!” The joy in Old Wang’s eyes became increasingly apparent; last time it was a top university, this time it was the very best.
Seeing how moved the man was, Yu Lian decided not to tell him that he had already memorized this set of “Spiritual Meridian Breathing Techniques” in his previous life and had been practicing it since his awakening in this life.
“Qiluo, Old Yu… did you see? This is your son!” He wiped his eyes while looking at the tombstone, then stepped forward, grabbed Yu Lian’s hand, and exclaimed, “Little Yu Lian, come with me to cultivate!”
“…“ No matter which path the other party took, Yu Lian felt that he definitely couldn’t shake off the hand of a Six Rings+ big shot, so he could only respond with a smile.
“No, you shouldn’t cultivate with me! You should cultivate with my teacher, that way we’ll be fellow disciples! I guarantee you’ll advance in one year, reach Three Rings in two years, and perhaps before you’re thirty, you’ll be at my level!”
“…So, you said you came specifically to find me, was it for this matter?” Yu Lian asked with a forced smile.
“…Sorry, Little Yu, Yu Lian! I was a bit too excited just now.” He took a deep breath, finally transforming that easily misinterpreted ecstasy into the benevolent smile of a kind elder.
“I guess you’ve completely forgotten me, so let me reintroduce myself. My name is Wang Jingyang, your parents’ good friend! I always lived next door to you. Of course, back then, I was cultivating and rarely at home, so your parents always helped me look after the house.”
Feifei’s grip seemed to tighten slightly; she must have heard that name before. Yu Lian, who had already had some suspicions, let out a long sigh of relief in his heart.
“As you can see, I am also a spiritual energy user,” he added.
However, he was not merely “a spiritual energy user” but a “Judge” of the Sixth Ring of the “Judgment” Star Ring, a top-tier transcendent in the spiritual energy domain who could already be called a “Saint.” His teachers were precisely those two “Human National Treasures” of the Blue Star Commonwealth.
Those two “Human National Treasures” of the Commonwealth were already quite old. By the time Yu Lian began his active life in his previous incarnation, they had already withdrawn from the historical stage, but this does not negate the enormous contributions they made to humanity’s mysticism and transcendent powers.
In later generations, even in the most tragic and sorrowful times, humanity never showed weakness in terms of transcendent power before the Alliance and the Empire. To a large extent, this was due to the disciples and grand-disciples of those two old masters who were still alive.
The two old masters had a total of seven direct “true disciples,” each of whom was a high-ring big shot. And Wang Jingyang was one of them.
“When your parents had their accident, I was with my teacher cultivating in the Spirit World… By the time I came out, you had already moved back to Earth. Fortunately, seeing that you were doing well, I never bothered you again.” He showed a look of guilt, then looked at the pavilions and terraces of Jin City down the mountain, seemingly reminiscing.
So, was that spiritual judgment just now to test my ability, my talent, or to test if I was truly myself? Yu Lian was still pondering this question when he heard the other party say: “I kept receiving reports from Colonel Chaimen and Major Nani, and only then did I realize that you have grown into such an outstanding young man. However, according to some reports, after you fell into a coma and awakened your spiritual energy, your performance was a bit too… well, exceptional, which is why this spiritual judgment was necessary.”
Feifei’s expression remained unchanged, but her hand nervously clutched Yu Lian’s sleeve.
Wang Jingyang looked at Yu Lian, who also showed no change in expression, and his face was full of relief, looking as if he was about to cry from emotion. This time, it had directly escalated to direct admission to a top university’s doctoral program with a full scholarship.
He pondered for a moment, then changed to a more formal address, saying: “Yu Lian, I apologize. Whether it’s from my position as an old friend of your parents, or from the position of this uniform I’m wearing, a judgment had to be made. You may not be aware of it yet, but in the concepts of spiritual energy and mysticism, such hidden dangers do exist.”
No, I am all too aware. Yu Lian thought, isn’t it just body possession and soul control that big shots do to nobodies? Of course, according to later memories, the conditions for this ability are actually very restrictive. After all, the concept and composition of the soul still hold too many unsolved mysteries, and the necessary connection between spirit and spiritual energy is a topic that existing mystics have researched for thousands of years without reaching a consensus.
There's a saying, when you gaze into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. Similarly, when you try to peer into and manipulate another's soul, you are also opening your own soul to them.
Big shots might easily control ordinary people, but when it comes to spiritual energy users, even sensitive individuals who haven't awakened yet, they have to be extremely careful to avoid backlash.
This was probably why Wang Jingyang was so confident in his “spiritual judgment.”
He had long ago established a soul fortress belonging to himself in the ocean of consciousness, and once Yu Lian’s spiritual body was pulled into the ocean of consciousness, it was equivalent to fighting on his home ground.
If Yu Lian’s soul was truly controlled by some unknown entity, even a top-tier Nine Rings master would absolutely not be able to hide even a single clue within his self-constructed soul fortress. Of course, considering that a Nine Rings master could not project their entire will onto a small First Ring, at most it would be a wisp of the opponent’s spiritual clone, and if well-prepared, they might even make the opponent suffer a great loss.
In the history of the transcendent domain, there have been precedents where a powerful being, having too much fun and projecting their will clones everywhere, was targeted and defeated one by one by opponents, suffering multiple spiritual traumas in a very short period of time and immediately perishing.
Wang Jingyang himself had once used such a method to force a Seven Rings master to flee beyond his level, and that master still dared not show his face. This was also the battle he was most proud of.
However, Wang Jingyang was very pleased. In the soul fortress he constructed, he saw a clean soul, a brave soul, a soul that, even under the pressure of his Six Rings judgment, was still unyieldingly resisting.
“Yu Lian, your parents would be proud of you!” he said with a face full of pride.
Yu Lian always felt that something was amiss, and he wasn’t entirely sure how he had passed the judgment just now, but since he had, it was naturally a joyous occasion.
“So, the reason you ‘coincidentally’ met me here, instead of visiting directly at home, was actually to complete this assessment in front of my parents?”
“Uh… that’s probably one of the reasons. And, I, haha, actually have a bit of a conflict with Rongxia Restaurant.” Wang Jingyang showed an embarrassed expression.
Is this guy excessively frank, or is he just acting out in front of me, his unique junior?
“Alright, I’m sorry, I scared you, Miss Li. Haha, that was just how spiritual energy users greet each other. I bear no ill will towards Yu Lian.”
“Since you are Yu’er’s elder, then just call me Fina.” Feifei smiled indifferently, then said to Yu Lian, “Since you two have business to discuss, I’ll excuse myself first…”
As soon as she spoke, she found her hand already clenched tightly by Yu Lian.
“A true man has nothing that cannot be shown to others, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Yes, your mother was just like that! Your father was even more carefree! But they were both such upright and honorable people, which is why I could become good friends with them.” Wang Jingyang continued to be pleased.
It seemed that now, no matter what Yu Lian did, he would be satisfied.
At this point, Wang Jingyang seemed to recall something else and muttered a low complaint: “…Damn it, if I hadn’t gone to cultivate back then and your grandfather hadn’t kicked me out, thinking I was an unreliable punk, I’d be making fun of your dad right now!”
The amount of information in that statement was so overwhelming that Yu Lian didn't know how to respond.
“Alright, let’s get back to the main topic. Now, I’ve put on this uniform and become an Imperial Guard.” He pointed to his collar insignia, saying in a tone that was either helpless or troubled: “With your intelligence, you must have guessed, right? Indeed, I am in charge of forming a unified spiritual energy user unit belonging to the Commonwealth Government. Now, this unit has been officially named the Blue Guards, or ‘Commonwealth Guardian.’ Everyone spent over half a year just picking a name, couldn’t find one that everyone agreed on, so we just had to choose the one that was least disliked.”
Based on the likes and my own aesthetic, Source Wave is great, I like it very much. If there are no objections, we'll use this. Thanks, Lyx-chan, here's a reward for you.