Chapter 230 – Globes of Light

It worked!

Calron inwardly exclaimed, seeing that he was in his soul form while his physical body below him was currently cultivating essence.

When he returned to the hut after the meeting with Kail, Calron immediately brought out his soul power to train his Divine Perception; however, midway he realized that he could simultaneously cultivate as well. After breaking into the first rank of the Saint stage, Calron hadn’t had much time to cultivate his essence diligently.

Hence, using the technique taught to him by Ezkael when he was eight years old where he split his mind’s focus into two, Calron put his body into a meditative trance and began absorbing the essence around him while putting his main conscious in his soul form.

Alright, this time I need to make sure I don’t get consumed in another being’s soul.

Recalling his incident with the measly ant, Calron flew out of his hut and headed towards the newly-created farms. Combining the abilities of earth and water cultivators, the Patriarch had them form fertile lands within the outskirts of the city, so the non-warriors amongst the ex-slaves could start farming crops. The Raizel clan had a limited supply of food they brought from Selior city, and the sooner the new city could begin self-sustaining itself, the better it would be.

Good, not many people around.

Calron commented, detecting only a handful of people near the farm he picked. Taking a meditative position mid-air, Calron shut off his sight and focused entirely on his soul and that of others near him.

Inside the dark abyss in his perception, several globes of pale blue light flickered underneath him. These were the souls of the people currently on the farm. Compared to last time, Calron could only see the balls of light and not how the people appeared. He could still detect hundreds of other souls in the background, but they were dimmed to the point where he could barely locate them.

So, distance affects how far I’m able to see other souls near me.

Calron mentally noted down, delving his focus towards the six globes of light within the house below him.

This one is small.

He came across what he felt like was a farm dog. Its soul was much smaller compared to the others inside the room. Calron figured that since it wasn’t an intelligent being like other beasts with elemental cores, its soul would reflect that.

Calron made sure not to get too close to the dog’s soul as he wanted to avoid the previous unfortunate event that occurred with the ant. Moving on to the other souls, he saw that not all of them glowed with the same intensity. He wasn’t sure if it was related to their age or their cultivation levels, but now wasn’t the time to speculate. Calron needed to train his soul power so he could begin using the second ability of the Divine Perception.

He could’ve gone to the Grand Elder to learn more about the soul, however, he didn’t want to risk exposing the Divine Perception ability in case the old man decided to probe him.

Let’s begin.

Pausing for half a breath, Calron settled himself in between the globes of light and commenced his meditation. To train his mental strength, he needed to learn to control his soul without drifting away or being consumed by others.

He didn’t know if this method would work, but it was the only one he had right now.

Thus, it marked the day that Calron discovered about the secrets of the soul.

…………

“Letting him proceed like this is dangerous.”

The Patriarch muttered under his breath, his scowl concentrated outside in the direction Calron was meditating.

“Don’t worry, Quen, he needs to learn on his own if he’s to realize who he really is. Frankly, I’m stunned that he came to this method on his own.”

The Grand Elder patted Quen on the back and beckoned him to sit down. The two old men were inside a large tent and sitting in front of a table full of food and warm tea.

“The soul is a dangerous thing to explore, Uncle. You know that well as any other. I’m just worried about Calron, the brat just recently suffered a physical injury and I don’t want his mind to be crippled now as well.”

The Patriarch responded while sipping a bit of the tea.

“We don’t have a choice anymore. The Dark Immortal is moving faster than anticipated, and if he finds Calron before the child comes to his true power, all hope is lost. Our clan's guards are watching over him, so stop fretting over the lad like an old woman and tell me about the situation in Selior city.”

The Grand Elder tore a piece of bread and began chewing on it.

Temporarily pushing away his concern for Calron, the Patriarch started detailing. “Ancestor Morain continues to remain inside and waiting for Darkling Captains or General to come out, but so far, none of them have made an appearance. Similarly, none of the Tower Ancestors have entered the battlefield, and the war is only being fought by the Saint stage cultivators and below. It’s been several days and the Darklings have yet to make any progress with their siege. I have a feeling that something is not right here.”

“Could this be a diversion? By now, the other human cities would have heard about the Darkling invasion and sent out their reinforcements. With the Captains and especially that Zieter in hiding, they’re definitely planning something else. I don’t think their main purpose was the capture of Selior city…”

The Grand Elder stroked his beard, his face fixed in an expression of deep thought.

“Also, there’s been some rumors of a strange black cloud hovering over the battlefield. No one could tell what was weird about it, but just that it gave them an ominous feeling.”

The Patriarch continued, oblivious to the sudden change in the other man’s face.

“Wait, a black cloud? Quickly, describe it to me!”

The Grand Elder exclaimed in an urgent voice. If his suspicions were correct, then they were all in much greater danger than a simple war.

…………………………

The smell of rosewood, hay, and sweat lingered around him, sending a pleasant wave of contentment into his heart.

His wife was pregnant with his second child, and it couldn’t have been at a better time. They were finally free of slavery and could live their own lives without being afraid of their masters. His back ached with sore muscles; however, all he could think about was his gratitude to that one clan outside which gave him his own farm and a new life.

Gently stroking his wife’s bulging stomach, he leaned in to give her a soft kiss.

I am Calron.

Tomorrow, he has to toil that last bit of land and plant some fruit seeds in there. Having an orchard for the kids would be nice. Looking at the sweet smile on his son’s face, he let out a chuckle. It was nice to see him happy.

However, he wondered if he should let his son know that he was going to die soon. He was old, the effect of time was finally taking its toll. At least, he could die as a free man.

I am Calron.

She wondered why her momma’s belly had gotten bigger again. Pushing away her father’s hand, she rubbed her momma’s stomach and tried to search for clues as to why it was so big and what was inside.

She heard the others laughing and felt her momma’s gentle touch on top of her head. She was saying something while smiling.

I am Calron.

……………………

Waking up from his meditation, Calron let out a relieved sigh. He had managed to hold on to his identity without being absorbed by someone else’s soul. Now that he inspected his surroundings, he sensed that he could instinctively pick out the minute details between each globe of light. He knew that the dim light was the old man whose soul was beginning to fracture from his body and that the largest ball of light belonged to the middle-aged man who had the highest cultivation amongst all of them.

He could tell apart the little girl’s soul from the flickering ball of light inside the mother’s womb, and even better detect the further souls from the house.

It was a stark contrast to his perception from a few hours ago. Something had clicked inside him when he was meditating in his soul form.

“Now, let’s expand the area.”

A slow smile spread across Calron’s face as he flew above the farm and settled himself in the sky.

If he was successful with his next move, he had a feeling that he’ll finally be able to use the second ability of the Divine Perception.

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