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*****
Xu Tianyou's eyes gradually brightened as he pieced together the principles behind Su Wen's cultivation. Simultaneously, he began to apply this logic to his own circumstances.
"What I need is the Path of the Sovereign and the strengthening of my Dragon's Might, but that doesn't mean I must completely abandon the powers of Lightning and Destruction."
"The Path of the Sovereign likewise requires thunderous methods!"
Having reached this realization, Xu Tianyou sat cross-legged and began to directly absorb the overflowing energy emanating from the Dragon Crystal. While Su Wen sought the profound 'Artistic Conception' within, Xu Tianyou focused on the raw power, using the escaping energy to temper and strengthen his own bloodline.
Su Wen sensed the shift beside him and extended his spiritual perception to observe.
"This Xu Tianyou... he wasn't shaken by my words. Although he hasn't changed the primary goal of evolving his Martial Soul, he has adjusted his own internal path."
Instead of forcing external things to fit him, Xu Tianyou had attained a self-realization that better aligned him with the present situation.
In the blink of an eye, three months passed.
During this period, Su Wen occasionally left the inheritance space to travel across the Sun Moon Continent, establishing Academies in various cities. While he spent his time in meditation, the physical Academies were built first; he would then arrive to complete the final spiritual and structural arrays, saving both time and energy.
Once the Academies were fully established, Su Wen returned to the inheritance space to continue his meditation on the Destruction Lightning.
"It is time to leave."
Su Wen opened his eyes, feeling a sense of absolute completion. The 'Academic Realm' had now completely covered the entire Douluo Star!
At that moment, a notification regarding his Divine Nine Trials echoed in his mind.
"The Fourth Trial of the Divine Nine Trials is complete. Reward: Techniques for the Operation of Faith Power."
A massive influx of information flooded his Sea of Consciousness, and Su Wen absorbed it in its entirety.
With the fourth trial finished, the technological data on Soul Tools secured, and the Academic Realm extended to the Sun Moon Continent—allowing him to maintain contact anywhere on the planet—there was no longer any need for him to stay on this continent.
Su Wen was eager to begin condensing his Seventh Soul Ring. However, before he could do so, he still needed to refine his theories and techniques regarding self-condensation.
"First, I'll return to Sea God Island. Rongrong has broken through to Rank 60 and received her God-Bestowed Soul Ring. She is about to begin the fusion process."
Su Wen took a deep breath and left the inheritance space. He traveled east until he reached the coast, where Xiao Bai was already waiting for him.
"Xiao Bai, back to Sea God Island."
"You got it, Master Wen!"
Traveling in a straight line, the journey back took only half a month.
"Xiao Bai, thank you for the hard work."
Su Wen leaped from Xiao Bai's back and landed on the shores of Sea God Island, waving a hand in farewell. A graceful figure suddenly darted forward and threw herself into his arms.
"Brother Wen, you're back!" Ning Rongrong exclaimed, snuggling into his chest with a soft, affectionate tone.
Su Wen rubbed her head gently. "The Light of the Sea God is immensely beneficial to your cultivation. If possible, try to linger there until the final deadline of your trial."
Though Ning Rongrong's trials differed from the standard ones—appearing to be custom-tailored for her Martial Soul's development—she still had tasks similar to the cultivation projects under the Light of the Sea God.
The God-Bestowed Soul Ring she was about to absorb was a reward given to any Soul Master undergoing trials on the island once they reached a level requiring a new ring. Theoretically, Su Wen was entitled to one as well. Now that he had reached Rank 70, he could receive a God-Bestowed Soul Ring from the High Priestess.
In fact, the High Priestess had already prepared it for him. Upon reaching the sacred grounds of the island, the Sea Dragon Douluo handed over the ring entrusted to him by the High Priestess.
"A God-Bestowed Soul Ring... it can serve as a fallback plan." Su Wen tucked the ring away.
He didn't intend to give this one away; he planned to keep it for research. If he failed to condense his Seventh Soul Ring himself, he could use this as a backup. If he succeeded, he would study it to understand its secrets.
After all, a God-Bestowed Soul Ring could grant a Soul Master the most suitable soul skill and adjust its year-level based on the master's physical limit. These were effects well worth Su Wen's study. He didn't believe each ring inherently possessed the energy of a God-level ring. Some Soul Masters received them at Rank 40 and only gained a thousand-year ring; if the ring contained God-level or even hundred-thousand-year energy, such a result would be a massive waste of resources.
This was clearly illogical. Since God-Bestowed Soul Rings weren't categorized by grade, Su Wen suspected the secret lay in their internal mechanism. At the very least, the year-level wasn't determined by pre-stored energy, but rather by the method of its creation.
"Rongrong, hold on as long as you possibly can."
A God-Bestowed Soul Ring produced very weak spiritual soul-shocks, which allowed the benefits of the 'Soul Elevation Method' to be maximized. Previously, Ning Rongrong's soul ring limit had reached 26,000 years. After absorbing the pearl of the Star Spirit Clam, her body had been cleansed by Astral Power. Su Wen estimated that her current limit should be close to 50,000 years.
Ning Rongrong's absorption process lasted a full half-month. By observing her during this time, Su Wen gained a new understanding of these divine gifts.
"I see... a God-Bestowed Soul Ring is essentially a converter. The year-level of the ring is actually achieved by absorbing the Origin Energy of Heaven and Earth."
For rings under the ten-thousand-year level, the inherent power of the God-Bestowed Ring was enough to rapidly pull in enough energy. Once past the ten-thousand-year mark, every year of progress became exponentially harder and took longer. This lapse in time also allowed the Soul Master to better gauge their own endurance during the process. To reach a hundred-thousand-year level, one would likely need to accumulate energy for a significant amount of time.
Of course, a large portion of the half-month was spent with Ning Rongrong pushing her limits.
"If it were just a matter of rapid growth, reaching 50,000 years wouldn't take half a month. But Rongrong began to struggle after 40,000 years, and the speed at which the ring absorbed external energy slowed down significantly."
The existence of the God-Bestowed Soul Ring was truly miraculous, and Su Wen was becoming increasingly curious about its principles. However, his primary objective remained the self-condensation of soul rings.
"I need to manually outline a core that can replace the soul ring's origin..."
Through a combination of observation and deduction, Su Wen reached this preliminary conclusion. "I still need to observe more examples."
For instance, the way a transformed Soul Beast condenses their own rings!
At the same time, he needed outside help. Su Wen remembered that he still held a token—the token of the Void Douluo.
(End of Chapter)