"In short, because of all this, large amounts of toxins have accumulated in both your body and your Soul Power, senior, and you have no effective way to expel them. That's why things have become so serious over time."
"A Soul Core is like putting a lock on the room that is the human body. It uses a Soul Power vortex to actively gather the toxins together, then relies on the Soul Core's properties to keep them from spreading elsewhere. That way, you can use them whenever you want, or put them away on a high shelf when you don't."
After listening to Xiang Yang, Dugu Bo couldn't help nodding. So far, there were indeed no flaws in the theory he had presented—at least, Dugu Bo thought so—and the plan seemed quite feasible.
It was just that...
Dugu Bo asked, "You said before that there was only an eighty percent chance of success, but now it doesn't sound very difficult. I imagine the process of condensing this Soul Core is somewhat dangerous?"
"You're right, senior," Xiang Yang replied. "When compressing Soul Power, if your control over your spiritual power falls short, there's a strong chance the Soul Power will explode inside your body. That's why you need to reach the Titled Douluo realm before you can attempt it."
After all, this wasn't ten thousand years in the future, when Soul Core techniques had become highly mature, supported by the experience of countless predecessors or overseen by elders. Otherwise, given Dugu Bo's cultivation as a Titled Douluo, Xiang Yang would have put his chances at ninety-eight percent at the very least.
Dugu Bo also had the Poison Pill, something that didn't fit in with the present era. It was already a part of his Soul Power, making it just right to use as the starting point and transform into a Soul Core.
Otherwise, Xiang Yang wouldn't have dared say he had an eighty percent chance. That "he" actually referred to Dugu Bo himself. If it were someone else, such as Tang Hao, who had just returned and was standing nearby, even with higher cultivation than Dugu Bo, his chance of success in this regard might not have matched Dugu Bo's.
Early the next morning, Tang Hao left with Tang San. Besides transplanting Ah Yin, Xiang Yang had also asked Tang San to deliver a Blue Silver Grass Soul Beast he had cultivated, which had just reached four hundred years of cultivation, to Lin Ping. This had come about because, the last time Tang Hao had brought them back, there had been nothing urgent to attend to, so Xiang Yang had simply stopped by his nearby home to visit the elders.
His grandfather Xiang Ming was still fairly hale. After all, he had no worries about food or clothing, and he regularly practiced the exercises Xiang Yang had tinkered with as a child. Six or seven years had passed, and Lin Ping's cultivation had finally reached level ten, so Xiang Yang had prepared a Blue Silver Grass Soul Beast especially for her. Besides being a simple favor, he also wanted to see how the most ordinary Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul would change after absorbing the Soul Ring of a Soul Beast of the same origin.
Over the following days, Xiang Yang divided his time between "watering and nurturing" the Nine Yang Ginseng and discussing the Soul Core with Dugu Bo. No matter how good their earlier discussion had sounded, it was still only theory; putting it into practice required constant exploration. Fortunately, given Dugu Bo's cultivation, none of this was much of a problem, and the medicine Tang San had left behind could effectively suppress his symptoms. It was a rare period of peace.
A little over ten days later, Tang Hao returned with Tang San, much later than Xiang Yang had expected. When Xiang Yang caught sight of Tang San, he almost didn't recognize him.
Tang San had shot up again, and Xiang Yang estimated that he was already about 1.85 meters tall. He was only thirteen, after all, while Xiang Yang, who was the same age, was only a little over 1.7 meters tall.
The greatest changes were in his appearance and hair color. His handsome features carried a masculine edge, and his hair faded from cyan to blue.
Xiang Yang had a hunch and asked, "Did you awaken it?"
Tang San gave a wry chuckle and told him what had happened over the past few days.
Tang San had brought the Ink Jade Divine Bamboo with him when he set out. He had planned to awaken his bloodline beside his mother in that little valley, because judging by their previous bloodline resonance, doing so would most likely bring her regrowth considerable benefits, or at least shorten the time it would take by a few years.
As for why he hadn't done it at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, wasn't the place supposed to boost plants? Naturally, it was because he feared affecting this treasure land and the other Immortal Herbs. Ah Yin had once been a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, after all, and was not to be underestimated. If maximizing this one resonance destroyed the treasure land, the loss would certainly outweigh the gain. The tenfold boost was far more important than this one opportunity.
But that was really only Tang San's own thinking. Xiang Yang knew what lay beneath the place, and there was absolutely no way Ah Yin could destroy it. Still, that information was hard to explain, so after weighing everything up, they had to settle for this.
After absorbing it for two days and a night, Tang San had not only gained six levels of Soul Power, but his Martial Soul had also awakened successfully, just as they had expected.
The trouble was that they had somewhat underestimated the Immortal Herb's medicinal power and overestimated the Blue Silver Emperor Bloodline. Tang San's hair had turned directly from black to a cyan-green shade slightly lighter than the Ink Jade Divine Bamboo's own dark green.
His Martial Soul had retained its properties, but the influence of the previous Soul Beasts had almost entirely disappeared. It had become green blades of grass resembling bamboo leaves, and even the golden veins down their centers had taken the shape of bamboo stalks.
Its basic attributes, such as strength and toughness, had risen dramatically, giving it exactly the kind of power a top-tier Martial Soul should have. But the color scheme was a little...
In any case, it had left the couple dumbfounded on the spot. Was this still the Blue Silver Emperor? There wasn't a trace of blue! Should they rename it the Green Silver Emperor? That sounded far too awful.
Even Tang San had found it a little hard to accept at the time. After all, someone from "later generations" often taught him about modern knowledge, and that included green...
Fortunately, there was still a Blue Silver King, which had originally been intended to help Tang San awaken. Moreover, because of the special nature of the Blue Silver clan, they could collectively offer themselves in sacrifice without losing their lives.
So they went through another round of tinkering, and Tang San had ended up looking as he did now. With the Blue Silver King's wholehearted assistance, his Martial Soul and hair had both turned an interwoven cyan and blue. But the Blue Silver King could do nothing about the bamboo-stalk-shaped golden vein right in the middle.
Listening to his account, Xiang Yang was left somewhat speechless. He put on a fierce look and punched Tang San. "What are you talking about, you fellow? Don't get a bargain and still act aggrieved!"
"Hahaha." Tang San finally couldn't hold back his laughter. Xiang Yang had been the one surprising him in all sorts of ways before, and at last it was his turn. He had to admit, it felt pretty good!
Xiang Yang laughed too, though what he was laughing about was the thought of the Shrek group seeing the new Tang San later.
Nearly two weeks had passed since they set out. Judging by the distance, they should have reached Heaven Dou City by now, perhaps even several days ago.
Dugu Bo escorted them all the way to the city gates, then returned to his residence. Xiang Yang made a few inquiries at some small shops.
Sure enough, the former Blue Tyrant Academy had been renamed Shrek Academy two days earlier. As for why the people there paid attention to it?
That was naturally because Blue Tyrant Academy was one of the few advanced academies that accepted only commoners, and it even refused to admit nobles. So although its students weren't particularly powerful, it was far better known than many higher-ranked advanced academies.
After asking for directions, the three of them took less than ten minutes to reach a ten-meter-tall white jade gatehouse. Across it were the words "Shrek Advanced Soul Master Academy" in large characters, only recently changed.