Practical Training and Confrontations
Free time ended, and classes resumed the following day. Unexpectedly, we had a practical session focused on body training to accommodate the power of dragon spirit souls.
I approached the equipment area and attached two 2,500-kilogram arm guards to my limbs. Even with this substantial weight, I felt no change in my mobility or strength.
My body had been refined through Taishang refinement techniques, Paramita dao tier physique, other shore flesh refinement, desolate cultivation and the establishment of Tao pillars within my physical form. Compared to all that tempering, 2,500 kilograms was close to nothing. Even when I channeled heavenly energy, my base physical strength didn't increase dramatically ~ it was already at such a high level.
Several students were watching me with obvious interest. The instructor noticed that I showed no signs of strain even after equipping the weights and was clearly pleased to have such a talented student. Long Yuyin, however, frowned as she observed that her genuine advantage of red dragon bloodline didn't seem to bridge the gap in raw physical strength that was apparent at first glance.
After a period of adjustment to the new suppression guards, the Red Soul Venerable initiated combat drills. Nie Li started walking toward me, probably hoping to achieve some kind of psychological victory in the area of martial combat, but someone else was faster.
"Long Yuyin," I spoke her name as she positioned herself between Nie Li and me.
"I can't beat you at your current cultivation level, but if I had the same realm, I would defeat you fair and square," she declared.
"Perhaps," I replied noncommittally.
"You may not realize this, but in terms of innate physical strength, our Long Yin clan with red dragon bloodline is indeed superior. Usually, higher realms correlate with stronger bodies, but those arm guards you equipped represent peak-level suppression, which should have negated your advantage. I'll show you what real talent looks like."
Before the instructor had time to create a protective barrier around us, she had already lunged at me with her foot raised in attack. For me, however, her movements appeared to be in slow motion. I took my time and, at what seemed like the last possible moment, simply pressed two fingers against her leg. The contact disrupted her meridians, causing her to lose strength in that limb.
Although taken aback by this unexpected result, she didn't lose heart. By now, the instructor had hastily erected a barrier around our sparring area to prevent interference or accidents.
Taking advantage of what she perceived as my loose grip, she spun and attempted to lock my head with her other leg while using her hands for support, intending to throw me off balance. However, I remained perfectly still. I simply spread her legs apart easily and, with one hand, threw her away from me.
Seeing her panting and disbelieving expression, I said, "You've indeed had everything presented to you on a silver platter since birth. Well, I also had my advantages ~ don't think coming from a tiny world means life was full of hardship and struggles. I'm also a very lucky person, so take this seriously if you really want to learn from each other."
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Comparing our qualifications? Your exceptional heavenly root has clearly gone to your head."
"Not at all," I replied with absolute certainty.
She launched herself at me again, this time leading with her fists. I employed the fundamental physical movement technique of Nine Flying Runes Movement without any energy attach to it. Whether she used punches, kicks, or backhand strikes, she was always just millimeters away from connecting. I remained stationary and dodged everything while calmly responding to her attacks.
"If you really want to play fair, I suggest fighting Nie Li instead. He's only second to me in capability."
I locked both her hands with my palm and delivered a light knock to her head. She flew backward from the impact. "See? I'm simply stating an obvious truth. Without your clan's resources and protection, you would be nothing special."
I could sense her thoughts spiraling into rage without even trying to read them. The anger was practically radiating from her. "I will kill him. I will make him admit defeat. I can't stop now," she thought were flying furiously.
"How dare you question my abilities? I will destroy your family!" she shouted.
"Is that so? That's the best you can do? Rely on your clan for a simple loss? Can't handle this basic friendly fight?" I held my face in mock disappointment. "Then what's special about you if you depend on them for everything? Can't even defeat a newcomer from a tiny world on your own?"
Long Yuyin's face flushed with rage at this direct challenge to her fundamental identity.
"You..." she began.
"Please, go ahead and demonstrate your supremacy against inhabitants of a tiny realm. I'm certain that will prove your point conclusively," I replied, completely unfazed by her fury.
I didn't want anyone else to know of about my way of speaking to enrage her, so I have employed a shielding to the barrier venerable put on, so no one ever heard anything controversial I said but only her angry words.
After a brief pause to let her recover, she engaged again. This time, I pointed out her technical flaws in the middle of battle and even took the fight airborne by effectively shifting weights and using her own force to maintain balance. I decided to take up the role of training her while having some entertainment.
It was indeed bullying on my part. I had also received ultimate abilities delivered on a golden platter that allowed me to grow beyond normal limits. I couldn't really shame others for their inadequacies when I had been blessed. My age had been recorded during the entrance trial, marking me as a prodigious talent.
Despite being away from the tiny world for many years and returning to the same exact time point, my recorded age was still considered quite young and didn't change. Others naturally compared me of their age to their standards of genius.
I ceased overthinking the situation and focused on dodging a lock aimed at my head.
I stopped thinking commentary and simply let her fight and vent her emotions. I made sure the ground wasn't destroyed and that my face and hairstyle remained unaffected. When I finally offered her a hand to help her up, she tried to take revenge and pull me down.
Instead, she only succeeded in throwing herself onto me, with a punch nearing my forehead. I stopped it with a finger from my other hand, then flicked her meridian points, causing her to lose her grip strength. She fell to the floor once again.
"Making you fight each other is indeed unfair," the Red Soul Venerable commented from among the other spectators. "Next time, I'll provide you with heavier arm guards, Tao. And Long Yuyin, perhaps you should find a different partner?"
"No, the defeat is only temporary. I will fight him next time. I only need to compete with the best," she replied determinedly.
Since I had only used strength comparable to hers and mostly deflected her attacks with superior technique, it gave her the illusion that this gap was something she could eventually bridge.
After leaving the battle zone and rejoining Lu Piao and Gu Bei for some casual conversation, I had some genuine fun with some trash talking as usual. However, Long Yuyin approached me after the class ended.
"Stay and train with me," she demanded.
"No, I'd rather be sleeping in my room now. Yawn...see - I am sleepy. We can spar during the next class."
I caught her surprise strike without even looking, gripping her wrist even though she had put her full strength behind the attack.
"No means no. Next class. And if you send your fiancé to fight me or my group in the meantime, I will only look down on you more."
"He is not my fiancé. I told you that before," she protested.
Escalating Training
Classes continued with the same pattern, and I was simply sleeping at night time during these days.
In the next session, the instructor venerable approached me with a special arm guard that could handle limits up to 4,000 pounds. When he saw that this also seemed effortless for me, he activated an array within the guard. The mechanism absorbed some of my natural strength to create genuine resistance.
Now I could actually feel a difference when using only my refined body strength without additional techniques. A feeling of dullness.
"Yes, this is better," I said, swinging my arms and adjusting to the new weight as though they were no heavier than feathers. The teacher provided additional pointers on body refining techniques before pairing us up for sparring once again.
Nie Li ended up matched with a girl named He Yin Yin, while Long Yuyin, glaring at me with visible frustration, stepped forward as my opponent. It was clear she needed an immediate victory to restore her wounded pride.
The match began, and without hesitation, Long Yuyin launched a knee strike aimed directly at me. I calmly intercepted her attack using the flaws I identified through experience, delivering a precise strike to her acupoint that caused her to stumble to the ground. I could see every weakness in her form if I chose to use LoHP~ her past, her pain, her vulnerabilities ~ all laid bare before my enhanced perception.
However, since that would make the fight boring, I kept that ability suppressed and focused solely on her physical techniques. Her subsequent strikes became increasingly desperate but were noticeably better than her previous attempts.
"You've been training all night?" I asked while parrying every move effortlessly.
"Yes," she replied through gritted teeth.
When she struck while airborne, I dodged with ease and countered with a swift takedown. She attempted to target what she perceived as vulnerable points in my defense, but I kicked her supporting arm away, lifted her by both legs, and delivered a controlled knee strike to her abdomen.
After ten minutes of relentless sparring, she had been knocked down multiple times, losing every single exchange despite her increasingly precise attacks.
"Do you genuinely want to perfect your techniques?" I asked. "Acknowledge me as your master, and I will train you properly. Otherwise, you'll be knocked down by me every time we fight."
"Go to hell," she replied with characteristic stubbornness.
"I'm just saying ~ there's always someone stronger. If you continue with this attitude, you'll eventually meet someone who won't be as merciful as I've been today."
This pattern continued for a week. I systematically defeated her and gradually wore down her overall arrogance in what were, technically, fair fights. Some people from her faction did try to intervene on her behalf, but I fully manifested my protective shield around the dormitory area. My soul power made it appear as though someone tremendously powerful was backing me, which discouraged most interference.
During this time, Nie Li ventured to the Ghastly Ruins and was literally killed before being reborn from the Soul Hall after a fierce battle with Murong Ye. His improved strength gave him some advantages in fighting, but not decisive ones.
After six days of continuous defeats, Long Yuyin's fury had notably diminished. When the lesson ended and most of the class dispersed, she wasn't finished yet. She approached me again, clearly unsatisfied, but this time she waited for me to be alone, away from Lu Piao and the others.
" Tao..." she called from behind me.
I turned around and looked directly at her face. "Hmm? ... no training other than in session, I already told you. "
" ... If I acknowledge you as my master, will you help me?"
" ... You serious?" I asked with a smile on my face.
"Yes. Sparring with you has helped me tremendously, and I understand that you've been holding back and allowing me to land hits most of the time. My cultivation also some how improved. I genuinely want you to be my master."
"Alright then. Come to my dormitory tonight. I'll help you activate your full potential."
She blushed with a little disappointment. "You... men are all the same!"
"Not that kind of potential ~ your bloodline potential. You have much power, and you haven't even activated it. If you're so worried about implications, then don't bother coming. Also, deal with your fiancé situation. He's been lurking around my quarters for several days now. I don't want him thinking I've stolen his woman too."
I left her standing there speechless with the abrupt willingness from me, and returned to my dormitory by teleporting directly. It really helped avoid unnecessary petty conflicts with fellow teenagers.
Unexpected Developments
When I returned to my room, I was greeted with a surprise. Nie Li had somehow managed to collect over 60,000 demon spirits during his recent adventures. The sheer number was staggering, though I didn't bother copying his collection methods.
Instead, I reached out through my soul connection to Xiao Ning'er, checking on how she and the others were progressing in their respective sects. Ye Ziyun had become a personal disciple ~ a prestigious position that spoke well of her talents. Both women were busy cultivating loyal followers around them and maintaining occasional conversations through our network.
After these communications, I finally condensed my ninth star using the abundant heavenly energy in the surrounding area. I had been experimenting with the consumption rate of heavenly energy in the outside world, and it was massive ~ the process took more than a month to complete properly. However, I wasn't just wasting time. I had successfully converted the principles of attack techniques I'd studied in another world, translating them to work under the laws governing this realm while maintaining their full power level.
Time passed peacefully until few hours into late night someone knocked on my door. I opened it to find a somewhat irritated Xiao Yu standing alongside Long Yuyin.
"Welcome in," I said to Long Yuyin.
When Xiao Yu also tried to step inside, the door automatically closed, leaving her outside. I heard a muffled shout from beyond the barrier about being disappointed, but I ignored it.
Long Yuyin removed her outer robe and stood before me in simpler training clothes. She seemed excited but also nervous about what was to come.
"I know I agreed to this before, but this is your last chance," I said seriously. "If you perform the proper bowing ceremony, you become my disciple in name and reality. You of all people should understand how this creates a karmic relationship between two people."
She didn't reply immediately but grew serious, her expression showing the weight of the decision. Finally, she bowed deeply and called out, "Master, I have no confusion in my heart."
"Very well. Before I activate your bloodline and begin your real training, tell me ~ what do you wish to learn from me? Physical arts? Techniques? Something else entirely?"
"As you wish, Master. Please impart to me what I need most."
I helped her rise and extended a finger extracting a soul seal from me. I transferred a small speck of light to her forehead. "This is a soul seal. You can contact me in emergencies whenever needed. First, I want to show you something important." I paused, watching her expression. "Close your eyes and try to see through the far end of the connection you just felt."
In the soul realm, when she attempted to perceive me through the intangible thread connecting us, what greeted her was the ridiculously powerful aura of my Yang soul. If hers appeared like a flowing, translucent stream, mine was as condensed and solid as a physical body.
"Let me properly introduce myself. My name is Tao. You can see the nine fate souls ~ my actual realm. My soul is extraordinarily strong. To house such a powerful soul, a refined body is necessary. Just like your dragon bloodline, my physique is special and enables me greater strength."
I snapped my fingers and returned our consciousness to the physical realm. "Follow that same connection if you need to contact me when in trouble. Now, let's begin the real work. Have you prepared different clothes?"
"Yes, I always carry spares why?."
"Good. You won't need to undress since this isn't an acupoint-based method, but the energy released won't be gentle. It will likely burn through what you're wearing."
I extended my palm toward her and, within my protective shield, unlocked a portion of my true strength. Based on my body's transformation abilities and all the cultivation scriptures I had mastered, I had developed multiple techniques for various purposes. Enhancing someone's potential was relatively straightforward work.
Life divine dao energy overflowed from my hands. For any being in this world, that green energy was ridiculously potent, but under my careful control combined with heavenly principles, it rapidly penetrated her body. The transformation process wasn't painless ~ even with her considerable pain tolerance, she cried out in agony as the energy began fundamentally altering her genetics and refining her internal structure.
Unlocking her meridians was merely the beginning. The divine dao energy refined through her skin, flesh, bones, marrow, and organs systematically. The turbulent power of her bloodline, which had seemed so formidable before, became as docile as a calm pet when faced with the overwhelming force of divine dao principles.
The heavenly energy consumption was enormous, so I retrieved a very small piece of the divine phaseless fruit I had previously partly consumed and guided it to her mouth. The concentrated power exploded from within, but I controlled these otherwise chaotic forces with precise care, using them to refine her spirit roots and complete the physical refinement that the life divine dao had initiated.
Her bloodline power began condensing fate souls rapidly, assisted by the abundant heavenly energy. The progression was dramatic ~ from a single fate soul to three, then four, and finally stabilizing at six heavenly fate souls. I even repaired cracks that had formed in her soul realm during the intense process.
Eventually, she lost consciousness from the overwhelming transformation. Her body had literally caught fire earlier, completely disintegrating her clothes. I retrieved spare robes from her storage ring and, using a technique I had developed, caused them to flow through the air and dress her automatically.
The comment earlier about inventing techniques had been literal ~ I had created flawless methods for washing, cleaning, dressing, creating pleasant aromas, memory projection, and countless other conveniences.
An hour later, she awakened. As she felt the new power flowing through her enhanced body, she was completely dumbfounded. Her raw physical strength was now comparable to peak Heavenly Star realm cultivators. Her reflexes and senses had sharpened dramatically, and she could feel a new type of energy flowing through her meridians ~ properly awakened bloodline power. Much unabsorbed essence and energy remained, continuing to strengthen her gradually.
"Master..." she began, then her eyes spotted the burned remnants of her previous clothes and noticed she was wearing different garments. "Did you change my clothes while I was unconscious?"
"After experiencing such a dramatic increase in strength, that's the first thing you want to ask?" I replied with amusement. "Yes, of course I changed your clothes. Would you have preferred me staring at your naked body for an extended period?"
"What?" she screamed in embarrassment, her face turning red.
"Enough of that. I didn't cross any boundaries." I activated the clothing technique again, demonstrating how a fresh set of robes flew through the air and dressed me automatically. "See? Just like that. I didn't need to touch you. Are you still in pain?"
" ..... Its manageable."
After recovering from her embarrassment, she expressed genuine gratitude for the transformation. "There are many things I need to tell you, but they can wait. It's nearly midnight now. You should return to your quarters, and incidentally, your fiancé Hu Yong is lurking nearby. Don't give him the wrong impression about what happened here."
Since my room had been entirely covered by protective shields, there was no external indication of the intense energy work out that had taken place inside. As I escorted her out, I noticed Nie Li watching us with wide, suspicious eyes.
"What is it, Nie Li?" I asked.
"What were you doing with her?" he demanded.
"It's exactly what you think," I replied mischievously.
"You...!" he exclaimed, clearly outraged.
From his surface thoughts, I could see he was actually here seeking spirit stones. I retrieved another 20,000 spirit stones from my storage and handed them over. "Here. Yours might be running low."
I went back inside and closed the door, leaving him to process what he thought he had witnessed.
Now it was time to address someone who had been trying to reach me through my soul plane communication network.
"What is it, Xiao Ning'er?" I asked.
"I suddenly felt a sense of crisis from your direction, so I began reaching out to you. What were you doing just now?"
Women's intuition was indeed remarkable. "I already told you that the confrontation you expected to see on the steps didn't happen because Nie Li's cultivation was higher and he naturally reached greater heights. Later, Long Yuyin tried to attack me during combat drills, and I handed her a series of defeats. Now she genuinely wanted to learn, so I made her my first disciple."
"I knew leaving you alone wasn't a good idea. I can't bring you into my side with den of scheming foxes without transforming you either."
"Don't worry about it. I'm very open-minded. I have no romantic interest in her currently. However, leaving her to her fate would cost Nie Li a major potential ally. I decided to make her stronger instead."
"Setting that aside, in two months I'll be coming over for the usual sect meeting between Heavenly Note Sect, Skyblaze Sect, and your Divine Feathers Sect."
After some additional small talk, I ended the communication.
I decided to focus on cultivation advancement in following period. When I attempted to enter the Heavenly Star realm, I discovered something interesting. The technique I had developed wasn't forming a heavenly star when I tried to run the complete version of the Boundless Spirit Ascension Sutra while inside my rule domain shield. However, when I deactivated the shield, the star formation process initiated properly.
It appeared that the deeper rules of this source world could adapt heavenly principles to condense additional fate souls under normal conditions. I consumed the remainder of the divine phaseless fruit that Shen Xiu had cultivated within my ring world. This time, the combined energy of heavenly principles and soul power began forming yet another fate soul.
The tenth fate soul took until morning to complete fully. The moment it stabilized, I felt a slight but distinct change in my soul strength. Due to my previously overwhelming power, minor changes hadn't been perceptible, but now there was a small response I could actually feel. It seemed that from the Heavenly Star realm onward, I might begin experiencing noticeable strength increases.
When I removed the rule domain protection, I immediately sensed a distinct aura emanating from my presence. The tenth fate soul shouldn't exist in the outside world according to local understanding. While this realm had no concept of thunder tribulation, something was definitely different.
I sought out Nie Li to test whether he noticed any change in my aura. When I converged everything except the fate soul energies, he told me I gave off "the feeling of something ancient."
"What do you mean by ancient?" I asked.
"Like the power of heaven itself is destabilizing around you just by your existence. It's not the typical nine-fate aura, and it's not normal star realm energy either."
Interesting indeed.