After so many days of effort, Evan Chu could finally smile. But even now, he couldn’t afford the slightest bit of carelessness—if he failed at this crucial moment, all his work would be wasted.
He said, "You should know that fusing souls is bound to be painful. I’m worried you might not be able to handle it—if you suddenly stop halfway, you’ll end up killing me, and then we’re both finished. So think it through carefully."
"Why do you talk so much nonsense? I’m a seven-clawed golden dragon, way above you. If I couldn’t even handle a little pain, how could I ever be the emperor of the Dragon Clan? Relax. As long as you can hold out, I’ll be just fine." The little golden dragon scoffed.
Evan Chu replied right away, "Fine, let’s get started. Just don’t disgrace the Dragon Clan’s honor, or I’ll lose all respect for you!"
With that, Evan slowly moved his divine sense closer to the little golden dragon’s soul. The instant he touched it, a stabbing pain shot through his mind—it felt just like when he’d split his soul before, and the sensation was absolutely miserable.
"Linfeng, you don’t need to do the soul fusion yourself—the little golden dragon can handle it. All you have to do is endure the pain. For him, it’s really no big deal," Sword Spirit Luna said just then.
"Seriously? So I’m the one who has to suffer all this pain? That’s just not fair," Evan said, speechless.
"The little golden dragon is so young, he can’t possibly endure it. So you’re the only one who has to face this pain. I believe you can do it. You’ll need a lot of Chaos Dragon Force during the fusion, so be prepared—maybe Selena can help you when the time comes," Luna added.
Evan didn’t say anything more. He released all his soul power and let the little golden dragon take over the fusion. The dragon seemed to know exactly what to do—its body started to glow with golden light, then wrapped Evan’s soul power tightly inside.
Finally, the little golden dragon’s body vanished, but inside Evan’s mind appeared a golden, cocoon-like thing spinning nonstop. Evan was already in so much pain that he kept rolling on the ground, while Selena, watching nearby, was worried sick.
"Selena, right now you don’t need to worry about Linfeng. The pain he’s feeling is normal when fusing with the little golden dragon’s soul. Soon his body will start recovering, and when he’s fully healed, it’ll be your turn to help him—you’d better be ready!" Luna sent this message to Selena.
Selena nodded and said, "I understand. I won’t let you down, Sister Luna." She couldn’t help but blush as she spoke.
By now, Evan was in so much pain he’d lost all reason, flying around the huge Frostbane Secret Chamber—except his flying was really just crashing into the walls, with loud thuds echoing through the room.
"Linfeng, use your Chaos Dragon Force to support the soul cocoon in your mind. As soon as it breaks open, you’ll have succeeded. Hang in there—I know you can do it," Luna urged Evan, who was barely conscious.
Even though Evan had lost his senses, his subconscious was still clear. He slowly circulated Chaos Dragon Force into his mind and began channeling it into the soul cocoon.
Evan noticed that once Chaos Dragon Force was injected into the soul cocoon, the pain in his body eased up a lot—at least now he could bear it, and his consciousness started to return to normal.
He kept pouring Chaos Dragon Force into his mind, minute after minute. His internal reserves dwindled, but the pain kept fading, becoming easier to endure.
He saw the soul cocoon spinning wildly in his mind, and then cracks started to appear on it—a clear sign of success, so he redoubled his efforts.
Bang! A crisp sound echoed in his mind—the golden soul cocoon shattered completely. Inside was a tiny, miniature figure that looked just like Evan, and right now it was smiling.
The sight nearly scared Evan out of his wits—he’d never heard of anything so bizarre. That tiny Evan held a golden energy in its hand; with a wave, the golden power instantly flooded Evan’s whole body, making him shine with dazzling light.
The golden light instantly lit up the whole chamber. Selena stared in shock—she saw Evan’s body shrinking, as if he was slowly returning to his human form.
At that moment, Evan was completely unaware of his physical changes—his attention was fixed on the tiny figure that looked just like him.
After releasing the golden energy, the little Evan seemed utterly drained. He slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep, leaving Evan totally baffled.
"What’s going on? Why is there another me in my mind? Luna, hurry and come out!" Evan called out anxiously.
"Congratulations, Linfeng, you’ve broken through. That’s your Nascent Soul—or you could call it your second life. As long as the Nascent Soul survives, you can’t truly die. Now you’re fully fused with the little golden dragon. Once your Nascent Soul awakens, you’ll understand much more," Luna explained.
"Nascent Soul? What’s that? I’ve never heard of it before. Luna, how do you know all this? Did Frostbane and the others have one too?" Evan asked in confusion.
"It doesn’t belong to this world. The Ninefold Stellar Transformation you practice isn’t from here either—it’s not a martial technique, but a true cultivation art. There’s a lot I can’t explain all at once, but just know it’s only good for you," Luna replied.
At this moment, Evan’s earlier suspicions were confirmed—Luna really wasn’t from this world. He couldn’t help but wonder which world she came from; he truly wanted to know.
Evan glanced at his body and saw it was slowly returning to normal. Overjoyed, he called out to Selena nearby, "Sel, I did it! Did you see? I’m finally back to normal!"
"Linfeng, you really scared us. I hope nothing like this ever happens again—it was terrifying!" Selena said helplessly.
Just as Evan was about to reply, he suddenly felt weak all over. His legs gave out and he collapsed, and Selena rushed forward to catch him.
"Linfeng, what’s wrong? Why are you like this?" Selena asked anxiously.
"I’m exhausted—all my Chaos Dragon Force is used up, and the energy backlash hit me hard. Sel, you’re the only one who can help me now," Evan said.
"How am I supposed to help you?" Selena was so flustered she’d forgotten everything Luna told her.
"I need you right now..." (To be continued tonight)