Mimicry Training, Explosive Soul Power Growth

Shrek Academy's Mimicry Training Ground was actually a naturally formed area that had undergone some simple planning. It included woodlands, waters, rocky hills, and other environments that simulated the habitats of various soul beasts, helping students better comprehend their Martial Souls and improve their cultivation speed. Though crude, it was already a rare facility in this remote little village.

Ling Yun chose a secluded corner near the rocky hills. The earth and metal elements were relatively abundant here, which would greatly benefit his comprehension of the laws of strength and the condensing of the Chaos Dragon God's Soul Rings. A Qing, meanwhile, chose a softly lit woodland beside a stream. Her Precognitive Spirit Eyes seemed to have particular requirements for the natural environment.

Sitting cross-legged atop a massive bluestone, Ling Yun calmed his mind once more. With last night's experience of successfully condensing his first Origin Soul Ring, he was far more familiar with the process this time.

He first activated the Nine-Heart Begonia Emperor Martial Soul. Compared to the Chaos Dragon God's domineering power, the Nine-Heart Begonia Emperor's strength was gentler and more restrained. Emerald life energy flowed through his limbs and bones like a warm spring, nourishing his meridians and soothing his soul.

He tried to guide this life energy and connect with the intangible laws of life and healing. Unlike the violent laws of strength, the laws of life were full of gentleness and resilience, like spring rain nourishing all things in silence.

This process was no easier. It required extremely precise spiritual control to capture, sort through, and merge the scattered fragments of life laws bit by bit. The slightest mistake would not only prevent him from condensing a Soul Ring, but could even damage the Martial Soul's origin.

But how firm was Ling Yun's will? His experiences across two lifetimes, combined with the proud will brought by the Chaos Dragon God Martial Soul, made his heart as steadfast as stone. He guided the process with utmost care. The origin of the Nine-Heart Begonia Emperor slowly spun to the right of his dantian, radiating increasingly dense vitality.

Time quietly passed, and the sun gradually climbed higher.

Suddenly, Ling Yun's body trembled slightly. The emerald begonia phantom in his dantian shone brilliantly, and at the center of its stamen, an incomparably slender, nearly transparent emerald-green halo quietly took shape! Rich life energy flowed through the halo, refreshing everyone who sensed it.

The Nine-Heart Begonia Emperor's first Origin Soul Ring had successfully condensed!

At the same time, information about a corresponding healing soul skill surfaced in his mind—

[Begonia Guardian]: Releases a lasting aura of life that envelops a designated target, providing continuous healing and negative status removal. Its range and effects increase as the Soul Ring grows.

A group healing skill! This was precisely the support ability a team needed most!

Ling Yun was delighted. He had Dragon Emperor Earthshaker Wave for offense and Begonia Guardian for defense. His combat system had begun to take shape. Moreover, the two Origin Soul Rings had perfectly fused with his body, as though they had always been one. They operated smoothly and seamlessly, without the slightest obstruction.

At the very instant the two Soul Rings took shape and completely fused with his body, a sudden change occurred!

Ling Yun felt as though his body had become a bottomless pit, beginning to devour the surrounding heaven and earth energy with wild abandon! Energy from the Mimicry Training Ground surged toward him like countless rivers flowing into the sea! Filtered and refined by his two god-tier Martial Souls, it became the purest Soul Power and poured into his meridians and dantian!

His Soul Power Level began soaring at a terrifying rate!

His dantian, which had been somewhat depleted from condensing the Soul Rings, was filled in an instant, then crashed through bottlenecks with unstoppable force!

Level twenty-one! Level twenty-two! Level twenty-three!...

The speed of his Soul Power growth was simply horrifying! This was not merely due to the devouring abilities of two god-tier Martial Souls, but also because the Origin Soul Rings fit his body perfectly, bringing his efficiency in absorbing and converting energy to an unimaginable level! It was like a once-clogged river channel being completely cleared, allowing the water to rush forth in a mighty torrent!

Naturally, this scene drew everyone's attention.

Yu Xiaogang, who was guiding Tang San through special weighted training nearby, abruptly raised his head and looked in Ling Yun's direction, his face filled with shock. "This... such an enormous fluctuation of heaven and earth energy?! Who's cultivating? Could Flender or Zhao Wuji be breaking through?"

But he immediately dismissed the idea. He was familiar with Flender and Zhao Wuji's Soul Power fluctuations. They were nothing like this.

Tang San also stopped moving and stared in that direction in shock, instinctively activating his Purple Demon Eyes. Though he could not directly "see" the flow of energy as Ling Yun could, he could still sense that the heaven and earth energy in that direction had become abnormally active and sparse, as if something were forcefully draining it away!

"It's Ling Yun!" Tang San blurted out. He could never mistake that unique aura, the one that made his Martial Soul tremble!

"What? Him?" Yu Xiaogang's expression changed again. "Just what is he cultivating? How could he cause such an anomaly? This rate of Soul Power growth... how is that possible?!"

The theories he had studied his entire life had been shattered again and again by Ling Yun. No Soul Rings, yet possessing formidable combat power; cultivating, yet able to stir such a massive phenomenon of heaven and earth! This had completely surpassed his understanding.

Dai Mubai, Xiao Wu, and the other students also sensed the abnormality. They all stopped cultivating and looked toward the rocky hills in uncertainty.

"S-so amazing! Big Brother Ling Yun's cultivation is making way too much noise!" exclaimed the female student with the Sparrow Martial Soul.

"A monster... he really is a monster..." muttered the male student with the Rhinoceros Martial Soul.

Xiao Wu tugged at Tang San's sleeve and whispered, "Brother, he seems to have... gotten stronger again."

Tang San clenched his fists tightly, his face frighteningly dark. He considered himself a genius, and with a supreme art like the Mysterious Heaven Skill, his cultivation speed far surpassed that of ordinary people. Yet compared to the commotion Ling Yun was causing now, he was nothing more than a firefly before the moon! The enormous disparity made him feel suffocated.

On the rocky hill, Ling Yun's Soul Power continued rising until level twenty-eight before gradually slowing, finally stabilizing at the peak of level twenty-nine, only a single step away from level thirty!

One cultivation session had increased his Soul Power by nearly ten levels! It would be enough to frighten a whole crowd of soul masters to death if word got out!

Ling Yun slowly opened his eyes and felt the surging Soul Power within him, far beyond what it had been before. A satisfied curve rose at the corner of his lips. The benefits of the Origin Soul Rings fitting his body perfectly were finally beginning to reveal themselves. At this rate, it would not be long before he could condense his second Soul Ring, and his strength would make another tremendous leap.

He rose to his full height and stretched his body. A series of crackling pops rang out from him, and he seemed to overflow with strength.

His gaze swept below, meeting Tang San's incomparably complicated eyes in the distance. Ling Yun smiled faintly without paying it any mind, then turned and headed toward the dormitories. It was time to return and consolidate his cultivation.

Watching Ling Yun's calm, unhurried back as he left, Tang San suddenly drove a fist into the tree beside him, leaving a distinct fist mark.

"Teacher, I won't lose!" Tang San's voice was slightly hoarse. "I will prove that your theories are right! I will surpass him!"

Yu Xiaogang looked at his disciple's stubborn yet pained expression, his heart filled with mixed feelings. He patted Tang San's shoulder and sighed. "Little San, don't let others disrupt your rhythm. Everyone has their own fate. Building a solid foundation is what matters most."

Yet even he had begun to doubt whether his set of theories still applied before a "monster" like Ling Yun.

The cultivation phenomenon Ling Yun had caused was like a massive boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirring enormous waves in the hearts of Shrek Academy's young geniuses. The seeds of competition had already been deeply planted.

As for Ling Yun, he had already begun planning how to obtain resources and further accelerate his growth. After all, on the path of cultivation, wealth, companions, methods, and a proper place to cultivate were all indispensable. Shrek Academy clearly could not provide the vast resources he needed.