Courtyard House: My Time Travel is a Bit Too Strong

As he was observing, Zhu Zhuqing spoke softly:

"This is where I've settled down in Soto."

"It's sandwiched between the commoner's area and the wealthy area, and it's only a few hundred steps away from the Spirit Hall."

After a brief pause, she looked up at Lin Quan, her voice soft yet clear:

"Brother Quan, Sister Jingjing—are you going to the Spirit Hall to awaken your spirits first, or do you have other plans?"

Before she finished speaking, Qiao Jingjing's gaze naturally turned to Lin Quan, quietly waiting for his reply.

Let's set aside whether Lin Quan and Qiao Jingjing actually have any martial souls hidden within their crystals!

Given their current ages, if they rashly go to the Spirit Hall to awaken their powers, they might run into being watched by some people with ulterior motives.

With this in mind, Lin Quan didn't rush to make a decision.

He met Zhu Zhuqing's gaze and spoke crisply and decisively:

"Besides going to the Spirit Hall, is there any other way... to make the Spirit appear on its own?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing made no attempt to hide anything.

She poured out everything she knew, completely and clearly.

While awakening one's martial soul through the Spirit Hall is the safest path, it is by no means the only way out.

Firstly, it relies on one's overwhelming cultivation to forcefully open the soul meridian, forcing the martial soul to break free from its cocoon—this is a move that only a true master would dare to attempt.

Secondly, he bought specially made awakening soul stones and set up a simple array in the house, using the ancient soul power sealed in the soul stones to activate the dormant soul core in his body.

Two paths, different routes but the same destination, both can pry open that door of martial spirit.

To put it simply, it boils down to two words: leveraging existing trends.

Either borrow the power of the strong, or borrow the power of the soul stone.

Even powerful clans that control a region, and even the Spirit Hall itself, usually use the latter – activated by Soul Stones, which is stable, fast, and controllable.

The so-called difference is nothing more than a false sense of superiority in one's heart.

Upon hearing this, Lin Quan's gaze sharpened, striking directly at the crux of the matter:

"So, the real bottleneck is still the Soul Stone?"

Zhu Zhuqing opened her mouth, but was speechless for a moment.

That's indeed the case—the Soul Stone is the key to open the door.

Before she could finish speaking, Qiao Jingjing couldn't contain herself and blurted out, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's buy it!"

A flicker of eager anticipation flickered in her eyes, and her whole being tense up.

Lin Quan wanted to say something to stop him, but after a moment's thought, he nodded slightly.

He then turned to look at Zhu Zhuqing and said frankly, "Zhuqing, I'll do whatever you say from now on."

"Brother Quan, Sister Jingjing, come with me."

Zhu Zhuqing nodded, turned around, and led the two out of the room.

As soon as I stepped onto the street, the sounds of the market rushed towards me—peddlers carrying loads and shouting their wares, noblemen dressed in silk and satin, and old people squatting against the wall basking in the sun…

Lin Quan and Qiao Jingjing exchanged a glance, and at the same time, a sense of déjà vu, as if they had traveled through a thousand years, welled up in their hearts.

But after only a moment, Lin Quan frowned slightly.

He recalled the old days of the 1950s in his memory: although the people were thin and pale, and their clothes were patched on top of patch, their eyes shone brightly, full of the spirit to grit their teeth and move forward.

Looking at these people before me—their steps were slow, their eyes were vacant, and they were too lazy to even sigh, as if they were born to bow their heads and were destined to bear heavy burdens.

He sighed silently.

Then it dawned on me: In this world, there is no such thing as a peaceful and tranquil life.

Soul Masters sit high on the clouds, nobles stand like mountains, and ordinary people have to think twice before even looking up to catch their breath.

The only way out lies in one awakening—

If one possesses innate soul power, it is like a carp leaping over the dragon gate;

Without it, one can only bow down for generations, becoming fish on a chopping board.

"This is truly a fantastical version of class-based floor tiles..."

"Want to climb up? Without bloodline support and talent to back you up, you can't even get close to the threshold."

"What 'good-for-nothing turning over a new leaf' and 'no noble or lowly martial spirits'—it's all just pretty words to fool people."

"In this land, what you are born with is often what you are destined to be."

Lin Quan silently recited as he followed Zhu Zhuqing through the crowd.

Suddenly, Zhu Zhuqing noticed a pause in the path ahead. She stopped in front of an impressive shop and raised her hand to signal:

"Seven Treasures Shop, under the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile School."

"Everything that should be here should be complete."

Before she finished speaking, she had already stepped across the threshold.

The shop features gilded carved beams and jade countertops that gleam with a cold light.

Zhu Zhuqing went straight to the main counter, without beating around the bush, and asked loudly:

"Boss, do you have a set of awakening soul stones in stock?"

Lin Quan and Qiao Jingjing remained silent throughout, simply standing quietly to the side.

Soul Stones, while not rare treasures in this world, are certainly not cheap—

A set contains a total of one hundred Gold Soul Coins.

An ordinary family might not even be able to scrape together a fraction of the copper coins they earn in a lifetime.

But for those Soul Masters, one hundred gold Soul Coins is just the monthly allowance that those at level 30 and above receive.

As soon as Zhu Zhuqing announced what she wanted to buy, the shop owner didn't even lift his eyelids, only glancing briefly at Lin Quan and the other two.

Without exchanging any pleasantries, he turned and went into the inner room, and a moment later came out with an ebony box.

"A full set of Soul Stones, 100 Gold Soul Coins."

Zhu Zhuqing took the box and slammed the lid open—

Six fist-sized, jet-black stones lay silently on the soft cushion, gleaming with a deep, cold light. These were the very stones they sought: Soul Stones!

She picked up a coin between her fingers to examine it closely, confirming it was genuine, and then took out a gold soul coin to pay. The three of them turned and left, their steps swift and decisive.

Zhu Zhuqing stopped after walking quite a distance and turned to look at Lin Quan and Qiao Jingjing.

"Brother Quan, Sister Jingjing, shall we go back to the courtyard to test the awakening first, or take a stroll around the city along the way?"

Before the words were even finished, Qiao Jingjing interrupted, "No matter how exciting this place is, we can't go shopping; but our martial spirit can't wait!"

Her eyes shone brightly, her heart pounding in her chest—

After waiting for so long, the Soul Stone is finally in my hands, how can I sit still?

Try it sooner for peace of mind, try it later for more suffering!

Seeing this, Lin Quan simply nodded: "Now that we have everything, let's strike while the iron is hot and go back to try it out."

Zhu Zhuqing smiled and said nothing more. The three of them quickened their pace and headed straight for the small courtyard with blue bricks.

As soon as she stepped into the courtyard, Qiao Jingjing gripped her sleeves tightly and asked anxiously, "Sister Zhuqing, is there anything I can do for you?"

Lin Quan immediately chimed in, "From now on, it's all up to you."

Zhu Zhuqing didn't respond, but took a deep breath, her thoughts subtly shifting—

In an instant, the two claws shot out from the air, radiating a cold light and sharp edges!

Swish!Swish!Swish!

With fingers flying like knives, the ground cracked open, and six sharp engravings precisely interlocked, forming an array in the blink of an eye—a six-pointed star pattern appeared!

She bent down to pick up the stones and steadily embedded the six soul stones into the array's core.

As the array patterns began to glow faintly, she looked up at the two of them and asked in a clear voice, "Brother Quan, Sister Jingjing, who wants to go first?"

"I!"

Before Qiao Jingjing could finish speaking, she had already leaped into the center of the formation.

Zhu Zhuqing nodded, raised her palm, and a stream of condensed soul power shot out, piercing straight through the six stones!

hum-

The Soul Stone trembled suddenly, and its dark surface crackled with golden light, which instantly merged into a golden shield that completely enveloped Qiao Jingjing!

Golden light surged like a stream, seeping into her limbs and bones in strands—