Wu Ling sat quietly in the meditation room. Traveling through the void had drained a great deal of his energy. Even though he already possessed two hundred-thousand-year Spirit Rings, this was the three-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Ring that would decide his Martial Soul True Form. It was better to be steady.
He took a deep breath, brought out the device that contained the crimson ring, and opened it. The vivid red Spirit Ring floated before him.
"Then let me see it," Wu Ling murmured. "My Martial Soul True Form."
He began absorbing the Spirit Ring.
Outside the room, Azure, Ember, and the others sensed the main body begin the absorption and started transmitting the Spirit Power they had cultivated during the past year back into him.
As time passed, all the clones returned one after another. Only Rose remained outside, still sorting through the soulcraft device data gathered from Mingde Hall and deciding what needed mass production and what needed to be taught.
Time continued to move second by second. Rose was still immersed in her work when a surge of power suddenly flowed into her body from the main body. The unexpected flood of energy filled her at once, making her shiver. Then she realized Wu Ling had finished absorbing his seventh Spirit Ring.
As if proving her conclusion, a vast pressure rolled out of the room a moment later and filled the entire barrier.
The servants who had been cleaning rolled their eyes back and fainted where they stood. Even Steward Li, just before losing consciousness, realized that the master of this residence had returned.
The pressure even pierced through the barrier, which was already somewhat behind the times. To ordinary people and weaker Spirit Masters, it only felt like an inexplicable chill. But to every Titled Sage in Spirit City, it was different. They all looked toward Wu Ling's residence at the same time, because they felt a threat within that pressure. More importantly, the threat did not come from the body. It came from the soul.
When they sensed the familiar presence mixed into that pressure, their vigilance gave way to surprise. As Titled Sages, they all knew their Saint had gone somewhere to cultivate. That pressure was probably coming from him now.
The Saint was the future of Spirit Hall. His strength foretold Spirit Hall's strength. Since the Saint's cultivation had advanced, congratulations were only proper.
"Prepare congratulatory gifts and send them to the Saint's residence. Congratulate him on his breakthrough!"
Of course, that response only appeared in the homes of Ghost, Chrysanthemum, and a few elders who were close to Wu Ling. The worship elders also had good relationships with him, but the difference between the titles "worship elder" and "elder" said enough. As seniors, they could not quite bring themselves to send gifts to a junior, even an outstanding one. There was also the fact that they could tell Wu Ling had only broken through to the seventh-ring threshold. Had he broken through to Titled Sage, they would have sent gifts for the sake of their families if nothing else.
Inside the Supreme Pontiff's Palace, Bibi Dong stood up in surprise. "Ling'er, are you back?"
She was about to leave and find him, but when she looked down, she saw the mountain of documents before her. Her teeth pressed together slightly. She glanced once more toward Wu Ling's residence, then had no choice but to sit back down and continue reviewing the paperwork. This time, the speed of her hand grew faster and faster.
Back inside Wu Ling's residence, Rose opened her palm and sensed the energy flowing through her body.
"Spirit Master levels one, three, five, seven, and nine. Every two major tiers is a threshold, and the later thresholds are larger than the earlier ones. At level 10 one becomes a Spirit Master. At level 30 one can absorb a thousand-year ring. At level 50 one can absorb a ten-thousand-year ring. At level 70 one gains the Martial Soul True Form. At level 90 one can absorb a hundred-thousand-year ring and become a Titled Sage."
Rose murmured to herself, "Before this, the main body had already crossed every threshold except the Martial Soul True Form and Titled Sage. I just did not expect the Martial Soul True Form to be this powerful. Or is the main body simply different?"
With that question in mind, Rose pushed open the door.
Gold filled the room. It was a brilliant gold that carried warmth within its splendor. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all dyed by that radiance.
At the center of the room stood a mysterious, gorgeous, and sacred golden throne. Wu Ling sat upon it, his left fist propping up his cheek while the index finger of his right hand tapped lightly against the armrest.
"A throne?" Rose asked in confusion.
She had been organizing soulcraft materials outside, but part of her mind had still been guessing Wu Ling's Martial Soul True Form. An unchanged Unregistered Spirit Origin, a figurine of the Beast of Humanity Ritsuka, a Holy Grail for when all else failed, even Mash's shield had crossed her mind. Yet the answer was a throne.
Rose walked closer and studied it carefully. The moment she looked at the carvings on the throne, she was pulled into them. Battle, adventure, slaughter, struggle. For a moment, she felt as if she had witnessed the lives of countless brave warriors.
Immediately after, information flowed from Wu Ling's mind into hers.
"The Throne of Heroes," Rose said in surprise.
Then she paused. "Wait. If this is the Throne of Heroes, then does that make you the so-called King of Heroes?"
Wu Ling nodded silently. That was exactly what he had been thinking about. After all, the Throne of Heroes was not Valhalla.
Valhalla was the hall Odin created in Norse myth, the palace where the Valkyries brought the chosen dead. It had appeared in the profile materials for the Valkyrie game units.
The Throne of Heroes in the Type-Moon world was different. It was the place where those who made contracts with Alaya and heroes who died in legend were recorded, a location independent of the axis of time.
If a true King of Heroes could exist in relation to that Throne, then such a king would have to be someone recognized by Alaya or connected to it.
According to what Wu Ling understood about his Martial Soul True Form, there was another possibility: that he himself had become a manifestation of the Throne. But given Angra Mainyu's attitude toward him, that possibility was extremely low.
Rose understood what Wu Ling was thinking, but before considering distant matters, she wanted to know what this Throne could do.
"Main body, leave those questions for when you are stronger. For now, tell me what the Throne of Heroes can do. Really, you could have transmitted the information directly, but you had to keep me in suspense and make me ask."
Wu Ling's serious expression changed. He laughed twice and said, "I wanted to show off a little. I cannot show this off to outsiders. They would not understand. So I can only show it off to one of my own."