Refining medicine can't save Doupo!

Chapter 655 The Birth of the Extraordinary Spiritual Artifact - Jiang Lin!
Originally, the Soul Craftsman wanted to tamper with the Blood Sacrifice Emperor Array, but now he thinks it's better to wait.
However, after mentally calculating the speed of certain events, the Soul Craftsman said to Jiang Lin and Ling Jiu, "According to historical patterns, after the energy tide reaches its climax, a golden age of cultivation will appear, countless people's cultivation bottlenecks will be broken, and countless geniuses will emerge."

"These are relatively ordinary geniuses. For true prodigies of the era, with the support of various opportunities, their cultivation speed can advance by leaps and bounds. I don't know exactly how much you have obtained, but I can only say that at the current pace, you may only have ten to fifteen years left." This was the Soul Craftsman's prediction of the Soul Clan's plan to advance to the Emperor level. At the latest, the Soul Emperor would begin to take action in fifteen years.

Why does it take so long? Because the Blood Sacrifice Emperor Array needs time to be refined.

As the saying goes, "A skilled craftsman must first have the right tools."

At present, the Spirit Race is still focusing on the Stone Race for 'weapon forging'. Once the Blood Sacrifice Emperor Array is completed, it will be time for the Soul Emperor to reap the rewards.

"Ten years? So fast? It's already started?" Ling Jiu's eyes flashed upon hearing this. She had actually heard about the Spirit Clan's plan, so she was quite surprised to hear the Soul Craftsman's hint.

“Understood.” Jiang Lin’s eyes flickered slightly. He sorted out what he currently possessed and realized that as long as he didn’t have that kind of ‘saintly persona,’ he could basically just focus on developing his character quietly and not worry about anything else.

Just like Soul Craftsman, although Soul Craftsman was not very willing to believe that Jiang Lin could become an Emperor within twenty years, it would be very good if Jiang Lin could break through to Dou Sheng if the time was delayed a bit.

"Alright, I won't say anything more. If you need any help, feel free to contact me. I need to go back for a while. Try to come to Zhongzhou when you have time. There are many things you need here." Seeing that he had said enough, the Soul Craftsman no longer hesitated, broke through space, and disappeared in an instant.

"Hehe, I think those of us who do scientific research are all a little bit abnormal in the head." Ling Jiu watched the Soul Craftsman leave as if he were running away, and couldn't help but reveal a smile with a hint of sarcasm.

As someone who has been through it all, Ling Jiu can naturally understand the complex feelings of a Soul Craftsman who doesn't know how to face Jiang Lin.

Because if Xiao Xuan suddenly saw the Xuanji that Ling Jiu had created for him, he would definitely panic and his mind would go blank.
"Actually, it's not so bad. At most, it's just the helplessness of the weak." Jiang Lin stared in the direction the Soul Craftsman had left for a long time before finally letting out a slow sigh.

He gradually came to understand the Soul Craftsman's mindset. The Soul Craftsman's talent and ability were exceptionally high, even at the peak of the Nine-Star Dou Zun realm, he could suppress a Half-Saint. Moreover, after completing his seclusion, due to his perfect soul and powerful foundation, he directly skipped the Half-Saint stage and broke through from the Nine-Star Dou Zun to the One-Star Dou Sheng.

However, even a one-star Dou Sheng is far too weak compared to those immortal monsters who are nine-star Dou Sheng.
Sometimes, being weak isn't a big deal, but a weak Soul Crafter might possess a level of understanding far exceeding that of a Nine-Star Dou Sheng. In that case, the Soul Crafter's weakness becomes their original sin.

Jiang Lin could actually empathize with this.

“Well, that’s one way to put it. If the things the Soul Craftsman did had been exposed, he wouldn’t be alive now.” Ling Jiu glanced at Jiang Lin beside her and finally couldn’t help but smile silently.

What did the Soul Craftsmen do?
When Xiao Xuan became emperor, the Soul Craftsman secretly provided him with a great deal of assistance. The Soul Craftsman even knew where Xiao Xuan was currently hiding.
Sometimes, wisdom is a curse, at least for Soul Crafters.

While others could easily break through to the Nine-Star Dou Zun and become Dou Sheng, the Soul Craftsman was trapped in a bottleneck called obsession because he could not see the road ahead, and could not break through for thousands of years.

“The Soul Craftsman must have talked to the Spirit Emperor about something back then, which ultimately led to a huge change in the Soul Craftsman’s thinking,” Ling Jiu sighed softly.

More than two thousand years ago, after Soul Craftsman and Xiao Xuan left the Ancient Sea Secret Realm, Xiao Xuan became the core imperial son of the Xiao Clan, while Soul Craftsman began his own 'Way of Soul Weapons'. Until Soul Craftsman encountered his own bottleneck, and Xiao Xuan also encountered his own bottleneck, the two hit it off and secretly joined forces with the Lei Clan to have Lei Dong, a participant in that year's Ancient Sea Trial, take a fragment of an Emperor Cauldron out.

What Soul Craftsman didn't expect was that Lei Dong not only brought out the fragments of the Emperor Cauldron, but also took away the 'artificial spirit weapon' technology that Ling Jiu had compiled.

At that time, the Soul Craftsman did not pay much attention to the "Spirit Book" that Ling Jiu transmitted. Instead, he and Xiao Xuan tried to use the method of refining with different fires and successfully separated the source energy from the fire source crystal.

Xiao Xuan collected so many strange flames not only to enhance the Xiao clan's foundation, but also primarily to work with the Soul Craftsman to refine the Fire Source Crystal.

Both the Xiao Clan and the Soul Clan possess numerous legends related to the Ancient Emperor Tuoshe. Of course, even without these legends and secrets, with the Soul Craftsman's terrifying talent, he was eventually able to discover, after countless failures, how to use fused strange fire to refine the source energy within the fire source crystal.
The Fire Source Crystal was refined by the Ancient Emperor Tuoshe using fragments of the Imperial Cauldron, so it's not hard to imagine that the Soul Craftsman would have Xiao Xuan 'reverse-engineer' it.

After the Fire Source Crystal was refined, three things were dropped: the Source Crystal that Xiao Xuan needed, a wisp of spiritual fire left behind by the Soul Craftsman, and a fragment of the Emperor Cauldron that the Thunder Clan picked up but didn't know how to use.

However, in the end, Xiao Xuan, who had prepared so many methods, still failed.

Xiao Xuan's defeat was undoubtedly a huge blow to the Soul Crafters, to the point that some disheartened Soul Crafters left the Dou Qi Continent and went to the Cang Gu Sea to carry out 'field work,' which meant excavating ruins there.

The Soul Craftsman, initially disheartened by Xiao Xuan's defeat, unexpectedly unearthed some Emperor-level array ruins in the Canggu Sea. He then took on the role of the Soul Clan's representative in the Canggu Sea, excavating the remains of Emperor-level arrays. The Soul Craftsman realized that the revelation of these Emperor-level array ruins was not a random event, but rather likely influenced by Xiao Xuan's ascension to Emperor status, causing them to appear in the Dou Qi plane and be detected by the Spirit Clan scouts in the Canggu Sea.

Yes, the excavation of the Imperial Array in the Ancient Sea was a joint effort between the Soul Clan and the Spirit Clan.

It was during this period of excavation of the ruins of the imperial array of the Soul and Spirit races that the Soul Craftsman met Ling Yun'er of the Spirit race.
After getting to know Ling Yun'er, Soul Craftsman began to take seriously the "Spirit Book" that Ling Jiu had passed on to him years ago.
After hundreds of years of research, the Soul Craftsman was intimately familiar with the 'Mysterious Artifacts' in the "Spirit Book." However, the lonely and aloof Soul Craftsman harbored some resistance to the idea of ​​creating a new life with his bare hands. It wasn't until Ling Yun'er appeared that the Soul Craftsman felt a glimmer of hope for the future.
The Soul Craftsman initially thought Ling Yun'er would refuse, but he clearly underestimated the Spirit Clan's fervor for 'nurturing spiritual artifacts'. In the end, Ling Yun'er agreed to the Soul Craftsman's plan and actively followed him to study the "Spirit Book" that Ling Jiu had recompiled.

Unlike Ling Jiu's Xuanji, the Soul Craftsman, while giving his 'child' the best, also incorporated the wisp of spiritual fire from the fallen Fire Source Crystal into it.
Just as Soul Craftsman and Ling Yun'er were looking forward to the birth of a new 'extraordinary life', an accident occurred.
The talent of the 'Extraordinary Life' is too good. It directly and perfectly fused the Soul Clan Emperor Blood of the Soul Craftsman and the Spirit Clan Emperor Blood of Ling Yun'er. It was born with innate divine-grade Emperor Blood!

If it were an ordinary imperial clan, the appearance of such innate divine-grade imperial blood would be nothing more than a matter of hiding it away. For example, the Soul Clan didn't know that Jiang Lin possessed the Soul Clan's divine-grade imperial blood. However, the Spirit Clan's central array, upon witnessing Jiang Lin's birth, provided a clear picture of the situation!
The reason Jiang Lin outwardly displayed the bloodline of the Spirit Clan Emperor was because only the Spirit Clan had observed him, thus revealing only the Spirit Clan Emperor bloodline. If a Soul Clan elder were to examine Jiang Lin's former Emperor bloodline, they would certainly conclude that he was a 'Soul Clan Holy Son'.

The Spirit Clan's high command held extremely fervent and complex feelings regarding Jiang Lin's birth. They wanted to refine Jiang Lin into a form resembling the will of Heaven while his mind was still in a state of ignorance, making him a 'primordial spiritual artifact'.
Ling Yun'er naturally disagreed with these conditions. Thus, despite being only a high-level Dou Zong, she escaped from the heavily guarded Spirit Realm and made the difficult decision to strip Jiang Lin of his imperial blood.
For the Spirit Clan, that wisp of spiritual intelligence is the most precious thing. If Jiang Lin can survive cleverly at the cost of losing his imperial blood, then in Ling Yun'er's eyes, it is well worth it.

Ultimately, Jiang Lin was born in a state of extreme weakness.
Jiang Lin could actually understand the Soul Craftsman; the fewer people who knew about the 'Innate Spiritual Artifact,' the better. The Soul Craftsman himself didn't have the power to extricate Ling Yun'er from her predicament, nor could he use the power of the Soul Clan to help her.
In the end, the Soul Craftsman could only watch silently as Ling Yun'er was taken away by the Spirit Clan, as Ling Yun'er was imprisoned, as Ling Yun'er disappeared, and as Jiang Lin 'died'.
“Therefore, weakness is the original sin.” Jiang Lin took one last look at the vast world in the distance, then turned and walked towards the Holy Soul Hall, which had the air of a prestigious and righteous sect.

"Tsk tsk tsk," Ling Jiu shrugged upon seeing this, then took out her clothes and hat to disguise her appearance before quickly following Jiang Lin.

"Master Spirit Craftsman! It's so good to see you again!" Because Jiang Lin did not conceal his presence, and with his signature black robe with mysterious patterns, the elders of the Holy Soul Hall recognized him instantly.

"Master Spirit Craftsman. Hmm?? Master is indeed a master!" The space above the Holy Soul Hall slightly shattered, and an old man with gray hair, dressed in a white and gold robe and even more charlatan-like than a charlatan, walked out of the shattered space. He exuded the aura of a nine-star Dou Zong without any restraint. However, the moment he saw Jiang Lin, the white-robed old man's expression froze for a moment, then he was overjoyed and went to greet him with a flattering look.

"Two years have passed, and the master has actually reached the Dou Zong level!" The white-robed elder was naturally Protector Lu! Nowadays, as the Holy Soul Hall becomes more and more 'open and aboveboard' and its business becomes more and more 'disguised,' the Holy Soul Hall's group has become more and more respectable in their attire.
"Congratulations to Protector Lu for breaking through the bottleneck and becoming a Nine-Star Dou Zong." Jiang Lin, accompanied by Ling Jiu, nodded slightly to Protector Lu, who was running up to him.

Given that the Holy Soul Hall has revenue from soul taxes, and considering the Heavenly Thunder Soul Forging Weapon that Jiang Lin previously crafted for him, it's quite normal for Protector Lu to be able to break through to the Nine-Star Dou Zong realm.

Actually, not only did Protector Lu break through, but Protector Tie also broke through and is now a five-star Dou Zong. However, he is currently away on a business trip and Jiang Lin cannot see him.

"Master Lingjiang is truly amazing." Protector Lu praised Jiang Lin tirelessly. He could not sense Jiang Lin's current true realm, but from the fact that the other party could easily walk through space, Protector Lu could tell that Jiang Lin was now a Dou Zong.

This is why Jiang Lin hasn't released Xiao Yan and the others yet. He can conceal his presence from Protector Lu and the others, but it would be difficult for Xiao Yan and the others. With so many people around, rumors could spread, causing some trouble.

"Take me to see Venerable Qinghai." After exchanging a few brief pleasantries with Protector Lu, Jiang Lin went inside the Holy Soul Hall to meet Venerable Qinghai, who had just finished his seclusion. Hun Ke'er and the others were also with Venerable Qinghai, but he was rather 'simple and honest' and didn't inquire much about Jiang Lin and the others. He just played with the black-faced Yao Chen, who was being held like a balloon by Hun Ke'er, with a strange expression.

"You're lucky to be alive, and you still have such a sour face." Venerable Qinghai said this with a smile to the dark-faced Yao Chen, and then threw a few soul jade slips to Jiang Lin and the others.

"You can look at the intelligence on the Holy Soul Hall and the Black Corner Region over the past two years yourselves. I won't interfere with anything else." After saying that, Venerable Qinghai saw Jiang Lin, Hun Ke'er, and the others off.

"Where's that bastard Xiao Yan???" Yao Chen asked Jiang Lin with a dark face as soon as they left the Holy Soul Hall's territory.

"With Elder Yao's accusatory attitude, I dare not report him," Jiang Lin said with a smile, observing Yao Chen's reaction.

"That brat stole my Bone Spirit Cold Flame!" Yao Chen cursed.

As the master of the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, Yao Chen had long ago discovered that he had severed his connection with the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, but due to the special circumstances at the time, Yao Chen dared not say anything.

"It's alright, there are plenty more strange flames later." Jiang Lin smiled mysteriously at Yao Chen, then whispered, "Now is not the time to talk. Let's go back to Canaan Academy first. Our gains from this trip to the Ancient Sea have exceeded our expectations."

With that, Jiang Lin led Ling Jiu, Hun Ke'er, and Yao Chen, and quickly flew towards Canaan Academy.

(End of this chapter)