C2148 I will Awaken You!

Andrea and Yuv Qian were scanning their surroundings, prompted by Hamm's call.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Their souls' emanations spread like the surging tides caused by the ocean's roar.

At this moment, the two Great Demon Gods of the Devaputra Race had surprisingly turned their attention away from the battle between the Secular Bird Queen and Saka.

To them, Yu Yuan's presence and demeanor seemed to outweigh everything else.

"Yu Yuan, was it you who allowed the Secular Bird Queen to massacre the Devaputras of the Serene Starfield?"

Yuv Qian's demonic energy churned in the direction Hamm was surveying. His resonant demonic voice echoed through the silent realms, detonating among the Yin corpses of the alien warriors.

Many Yin corpses, in pursuit of Chen Qinghuang, were hit by his demonic energy, bursting into showers of blood and severed limbs.

"Senior Brother..."

Andrea massaged her forehead as memories deep within her soul stirred, threatening to awaken.

"Yu Yuan, surely you could have prevented the Secular Bird Queen's madness, couldn't you?"

At that moment, Zhong Chichen, with a grave tone, addressed Yu Yuan, "You've grown increasingly powerful, but it seems you've changed with your full awakening. Have you noticed it yourself?"

Yu Yuan paused, taken aback.

"You've become increasingly indifferent to life."

Zhong Chichen murmured, "In the past, even as the Lunar Divine King, you were indifferent only to the deaths of your enemies. But Yu Yuan of this lifetime has always been known for his loyalty and righteousness. Yet, of late..."

He hesitated before continuing, "The warriors of the Serene Starfield and those near the Galaxy Crossing have perished due to the Secular Bird Queen's power, but you've shown an alarming lack of concern."

"The aliens are one thing, but the members of the Divine Soul Sect were merely misled."

Zhong Chichen spoke softly.

"Colorful Patriarch, why such compassion all of a sudden?" Loong Jie inquired with a hint of surprise.

"Silence! You've perfected your Golden Dragon path to become a cold, unfeeling war machine. Your indifference is born from your path, just as it was with your ancestors."

"Yu Yuan is not like that."

With a touch of melancholy, Zhong Chichen observed Yu Yuan's contemplative silence and added, "I mean no offense. I'm aware you must have your reasons, but I fear you're becoming more and more... inhuman."

"If you're solely focused on right and wrong, willing to sacrifice everything for your ideals, then how are you any different from those lofty, emotionless Origin Spirits?"

Zhong Chichen shared his perspective.

Yu Yuan remained silent for a considerable time.

Indeed, he had sensed that something was amiss. With the construction of the Soul Altar, the structure grew increasingly imposing, and he found himself becoming more detached from the lives of others.

Things and people that once mattered to him had lost their significance, except for a select few.

Was the act of creating the Soul Altar, harnessing the Essence of the Origin Spirit to forge this edifice, meant to transcend the Origin Spirit itself, capable of producing such an adverse effect?

He was growing stronger, yet more emotional, more human.

Meanwhile, as the Soul Altar's influence expanded, he grew more indifferent to life, more devoid of emotion.

Yu Yuan pondered deeply, then said with gravity, "I will get to the bottom of this. I'll be vigilant."

He acknowledged that the Soul Altar was indeed subtly affecting him, hardening his heart and stripping him of sentiment. For the sake of his ultimate objective, he could sacrifice anyone without a second thought.

To bring the Great Demon God Beilstein through Andrea, he had turned a blind eye to the Secular Bird Queen's tyranny.

Had he shone the light of the Soul Altar upon Chen Qinghuang in the Still Starfield, could it have erased those marks of death?

Perhaps then, he could have prevented Chen Qinghuang's descent into madness and spared the Serene Starfield from disaster.

"I hope, Senior Martial Brother, that one day you can tell me what transpired."

"Only you have the potential to stand against it, to awaken us all."

Suddenly, Andrea's final entreaties, before she lost her sanity, echoed in his mind with piercing clarity, like lightning striking his heart.

"I may have erred. I might have been led astray by the Origin Soul. Surely, there must be another way."

Yu Yuan murmured to himself.

With a whoosh, the Dragon Slash Platform emerged from the shadows, positioning itself above the Galaxy Crossing. "Senior Martial Brother Zhong, secure the Galaxy Crossing. Don't let any more Devaputra pass through!"

Manifesting his true form beneath the Dragon Slash Platform, he gazed down at the Outland Devaputra.

"Yu Yuan!"

Andrea and the Great Demon God, Yuv Qian, cried out in unison.

"Master!"

The fervent Evil God, Hamm, was also present.

"You once called me senior brother. You expressed a wish for me to awaken you in the future, to tell you about the past, so you could reclaim your true self."

Yu Yuan turned to Andrea and the bewildered Yuv Qian, declaring, "I am here to awaken you."

Whoosh!

The Soul Altar, nestled within his sea of consciousness, emerged from his brow and radiated a dazzling Soul Cleansing Brilliance above his head, casting its light over Andrea and Yuv Qian.

The weaker beings, unable to break free from the Devaputras, were cut off by the iridescent glow of the Dragon Slash Platform.

Sizzle! Sizzle sizzle!

Beneath the Soul Cleansing Brilliance, a sinister knot akin to Taishi's emerged within the dark green Devil Souls of Andrea and Yuv Qian. Yet, in this miraculous radiance, it was gradually dissolving.

Andrea and Reid, poised to resist, were immobilized as if struck by lightning when the first beam of the Soul Cleansing Brilliance touched them.

With just a glimmer of their own spiritual light, they would remember Yu Yuan.

In the depths of their Devil Souls, the memories of their past interactions with Yu Yuan became vivid, as if the Soul Cleansing Brilliance was etching them deeper into their minds.

Especially Yuv Qian!

His acquaintance with Yu Yuan dated back even further. As the Ghost King, Tianzang, he was a demon of the Fallen Moon Forbidden Area.

He and Yu Yuan shared many past experiences, and the images of them fighting shoulder to shoulder surfaced in his mind.

"Yu Yuan!"

"He has never been our adversary; he is our guide! The Divine Soul Sect was founded on his principles, high above in the heavens, and we regard him as our beacon."

"We were the ones deceived, our thoughts corrupted, our memories tampered with!"

As the soul knots within Yuv Qian's Devil Soul unraveled, and the long-buried memories resurfaced, Yuv Qian lifted his head.

A smile of liberation played upon Yuv Qian's lips.

In that moment, Andrea too was whispering to herself, reinforcing her recollection of Yu Yuan, piecing together the memories that had been wiped away.

A moment later, she lifted her head, her smile brimming with contentment.

"Senior Brother, you truly haven't let me down. I knew that if anyone in this world could rouse me from his twisted thoughts, it would be you!"

"It had to be you, Senior Brother!"

"Senior Brother!"

Andrea's voice suddenly pierced the air with excitement, "My father! He's still confined within the Evil God Temple. He needs your strength to rediscover his true self!"

"He's lost. He needs you to show him the way now!"

Beilstein had been Yu Yuan's mentor through two lifetimes. In the first, he guided Yu Yuan in his cultivation, establishing the human race's cultivation system and devising a method to ascend to the Primordial Spirit.

In the second lifetime, Beilstein taught Yu Yuan the art of weapon refinement, transforming what should have been a mundane existence into one filled with wonder and vibrancy.

Now, the mentor who had led Yu Yuan through both lives had himself become lost within the Evil God Temple, and it was Yu Yuan who needed to help him find his way back.

Beneath the Dragon Slash Platform, Andrea and Yuv Qian were bathed in the Soul Cleansing Brilliance, while the surrounding Devaputras gazed at Yu Yuan as if he were a demon incarnate.

"Andrea, Yuv Qian, have you both lost your minds?"

From afar, Saka, with a wild gesture, pointed at Yu Yuan and roared, "Yu Yuan has been chosen as the vessel for possession. This is Yu Yuan's glory! You two should seize him and present him as an offering, allowing His will to descend upon us!"

Beneath the Soul Cleansing Brilliance, Andrea and Yuv Qian, looking towards Saka, had eyes filled with pity.

"Yu Yuan, Saka is my father's most devoted disciple. Should we..."

Andrea implored.

"My power is only sufficient to awaken the two of you. He is a Great Demon God, and the more powerful the individual, the harder the awakening. Moreover, his influence could compromise your full recovery," Yu Yuan said, shaking his head decisively.

To prevent an onslaught from Saka and the Devaputras, he gave Zhong Chichen a directive, "Hold off those Devaputras. I need enough time to completely purge the invasive forces from Andrea and Yuv Qian's minds."

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