In the Soul Prison, it was either a murky gray or a blood-red expanse.
The sky there seemed perpetually shrouded in a haze.
The sky above Myriad Law City, at least, was blue.
Li Shuang's constantly taut nerves finally relaxed.
During her two years in the Soul Prison, she had been on high alert every single second.
Even so.
She had been in dangerous situations several times. The most perilous was when she was chased for a thousand miles by a soul beast equivalent to the Integration stage. She fled for half a month before finally shaking off the soul beast.
If not for the Heaven and Earth Smelting Furnace, a miraculous item that allowed her to exchange for treasures at any time and keep herself in optimal condition.
Over the years, she would have died countless times.
But even with the assistance of the Heaven and Earth Smelting Furnace, after two years, whenever she recalled those perilous moments, she still couldn't help but feel her hair stand on end.
It wasn't until she entered Myriad Law City that Li Shuang felt completely at ease.
Within Myriad Law City, there were rules set by the City Lord, prohibiting anyone from fighting inside the city.
Only here was it absolutely safe.
Although these two years were arduous, Li Shuang's gains were also immense.
Six months after entering the Soul Prison.
On an ordinary night, she successfully transformed her Golden Core into a Nascent Soul.
She had gone through this process once before, so doing it again was naturally effortless.
Compared to the Nascent Soul she cultivated the first time, her Nascent Soul this time, after re-cultivation, also showed some subtle changes.
In her Dantian.
Her Nascent Soul floated quietly there.
And in the Nascent Soul's hand, there was a lotus seed.
This lotus seed seemed to be the one she used for her Foundation Establishment, but upon closer inspection, it wasn't entirely identical.
Li Shuang had already tested it in battle.
The lotus seed in the Nascent Soul's hand was currently in its primary state, and its effect was: restoration.
This lotus seed would store spiritual energy, and once she was injured, the lotus seed would repair her injuries.
The healing effect was quite astonishing.
A large part of the reason Li Shuang was able to escape unharmed from the soul beasts' pursuits time and again was her current abnormal self-healing ability.
With the Grand Forgetfulness Art combined with the lotus seed, as long as she had a breath left, she could quickly recover.
Li Shuang felt that even if her Dantian were truly shattered, she could probably repair it herself.
The appearance of this lotus seed, she didn't know if it was due to her Foundation Establishment wondrous item or her Supreme Ice Spirit Root.
Li Shuang recalled the scene she once saw when her spirit root evolved.
A giant split chaos, and a green lotus grew within it.
She seemed...
Destined to be connected with the green lotus.
The Nascent Soul stage was not the end.
After two years, Li Shuang had just broken through to the Soul Transformation stage last month.
This was because she deliberately slowed down, refining her foundation to the extreme before choosing to break through.
If she had pursued spiritual energy enhancement at all costs during these two years, her cultivation might be even higher now.
But.
While improving strength was important, a stable foundation was equally crucial.
Now.
She had officially entered the Soul Transformation stage, and her foundation was rock-solid. Immediately after breaking through, the stability of her spiritual energy was in no way inferior to cultivators who had been in the Soul Transformation stage for several years or even decades.
Furthermore.
Her soul cultivation had made even greater progress.
In the Soul Prison, she tirelessly honed her soul day and night. Now, her soul cultivation had reached the peak of the Soul Transformation stage.
She was only one step away from the Integration stage.
But this one step.
Had stalled her for a full six months.
Six months ago, she was already at the peak of the Soul Transformation stage.
But for these six months, no matter how much she honed or how hard she tried, her soul remained completely still, showing no signs of breaking through.
Therefore.
After her spiritual energy realm broke through, Li Shuang unhesitatingly chose to return to Myriad Law City.
Firstly.
The Soul Golden Altar was about to open, and she needed to rest for a while to participate in this grand event in her best state.
Secondly.
Her progress had temporarily hit a bottleneck. Blind slaughter could no longer help her break through. So, she simply left the Soul Prison to seek other opportunities for breakthrough.
Li Shuang silently reviewed her experiences of the past two years in her mind.
Then.
She planned to exchange her points first, and then, challenge the three secret realms again!
As Li Shuang was pondering this, she looked up and was slightly taken aback.
Why was the area around the city wall so much livelier than before!
A huge golden榜 (list/ranking) was hanging, and almost half of Myriad Law City's population had gathered here, discussing something animatedly.
Li Shuang couldn't help but hesitate slightly.
Wait!
Why did she keep hearing people mention her name?
Had she been in the Soul Prison for too long, and was now experiencing auditory hallucinations?
Li Shuang followed the crowd, somewhat curiously walking over.
Along the way.
The discussions of the crowd had already given her a general idea.
Before the Soul Golden Altar opened, a golden榜 (list/ranking) had appeared, and on it were the names of all eligible individuals.
And she...
After two years of persistent effort, she had actually managed to rank exactly one hundredth!
Top one hundred!
Although the ranking of soul points might not necessarily reflect true strength.
But Li Shuang's eyes still sparkled.
In the Central Continent, masters were as numerous as clouds.
For a cultivator from the Southern Lan Continent like her to rank in the top one hundred here was already extremely rare.
Li Shuang suddenly felt a childish impulse, and she immediately returned her soul to her physical body.
Having not returned for two years, Li Shuang moved her body freely.
She wondered how the City Lord of Myriad Law City managed it.
Although they all entered Myriad Law City only with their souls, everything that happened in Myriad Law City would simultaneously affect their physical bodies.
Such a method of turning illusion into reality, where illusion is reality, perhaps even immortals could do no more?
Such a powerful being was not something the current Li Shuang could fathom.
She didn't dwell on it too much and turned to enter the Sword Dao Space.
Su Mu was lying bored by the lake, lazily fishing.
As soon as Li Shuang entered, he instinctively sat up straight, a hint of shock in his eyes.
Soul Realm: Peak Soul Transformation!
Spiritual Energy Realm: Early Soul Transformation!
How did Li Shuang achieve such an improvement in less than two years!
"Senior Su," Li Shuang said with a solemn expression.
A hint of worry arose in Su Mu's heart, and he softened his voice: "Did something happen?"
Could there be some hidden danger behind her cultivation improvement?
Li Shuang sighed.
Su Mu's heart also tightened.
"Senior, do you know about the Soul Golden Altar and the Soul Golden Ranking?" Li Shuang asked.
Su Mu quickly nodded: "Of course I do."
He suddenly understood why Li Shuang looked so dejected.
Su Mu quickly comforted her: "The Soul Golden Altar is indeed a rare opportunity. You've only had the Myriad Law Eye for a short time, so it's normal not to meet the standard yet. You are still young; cultivate for a few more decades, and you will surely make it onto that golden ranking and earn a qualification to participate in the grand event."
Li Shuang blinked.
"Senior Su, can only ninety-nine people participate in this Soul Golden Altar?"
Su Mu was stunned: "Not at all, anyone who meets the conditions can participate."
"Then I'm exactly one hundredth. Can I really not participate?" Li Shuang asked cautiously.
She also displayed the image of the golden ranking she had recorded with a recording stone.
Su Mu: "???"