Self-Created Soul Ring

So Gu Ziyi decided to try creating a soul ring himself.

Because Gu Ziyi understood that what suited him was best.

What kind of soul ring could possibly suit him better than one condensed by himself?

Of course, Gu Ziyi had also considered other, more extreme methods.

For example, detonating his martial soul. Since cultivating Soul Power was limited by one's martial soul, he might as well cripple it altogether.

But Gu Ziyi only dared to think about it; he did not dare actually try.

After all, cultivating Soul Power required using one's martial soul to absorb the energy of heaven and earth.

If he blew up his martial soul, perhaps he really would no longer be limited by it. Like the cultivation systems in other novel worlds, he might be able to directly absorb energy through his body to cultivate.

But Gu Ziyi still did not dare, because if he failed, he would be crippled.

Besides, how to destroy his own martial soul was a problem in itself.

If all else failed, he could always try detonating his soul rings.

Gu Ziyi had read Douluo: Starting by Detonating Soul Rings.

Of course, Su Xing had detonated his soul rings so that his soul skills would not be limited by them.

If the soul rings themselves were condensed by him, then that problem would not exist.

So Gu Ziyi still felt that trying to create his own soul rings would be enough. There was no need to go that far.

As for how to create a soul ring, Gu Ziyi had already come up with an idea.

To that end, Gu Ziyi questioned every teacher in the school, as well as two senior students—one male and one female, both either graduated or still enrolled—who had broken through Level 10 and absorbed soul rings.

What Gu Ziyi mainly asked about was the detailed process of absorbing a soul beast's soul ring.

The school had not taught that at all.

Regarding the absorption of soul rings, they only said that after finding and killing a soul beast suitable for oneself, one simply had to absorb its soul ring.

As for the exact process of absorption, there was nothing.

Perhaps they considered it unimportant. After all, once a soul beast was killed, one only needed to absorb its soul ring.

Most of the teachers and students Gu Ziyi asked could not explain it clearly either.

"You just absorb the soul beast's soul ring, and then it's done!"

"The detailed process? I don't remember either..."

"You absorb the soul beast's soul ring into your body, then refine it. Once the refinement is complete, my First Soul Ring is formed!"

"More details? The soul ring absorbed into my body is first absorbed by my martial soul, and only then does refinement begin..."

"..."

After piecing together everyone's recollections and confirming them from multiple sources, Gu Ziyi came to understand the truth behind absorbing soul rings.

When soul masters killed soul beasts and absorbed the soul rings produced after their deaths, those soul rings did not condense directly onto the soul masters' bodies.

Rather, after being absorbed into a soul master's body, they were first absorbed by the martial soul within the soul master. Then, after a certain period of absorption, they were ultimately transformed into the soul master's own soul rings.

Looking past the surface to the essence, the final formation of a soul master's soul rings was always accomplished through the martial soul.

As for whether the soul rings ultimately condensed by soul masters were still the original ones from the soul beasts, Gu Ziyi was doubtful.

Every soul master said that they were.

But Gu Ziyi did not think so. He believed they were merely soul rings re-condensed after being absorbed and refined by the soul master's martial soul, incorporating the characteristics of the soul beast's soul ring.

The manifestations of many soul skills proved this.

Aside from soul masters with certain special martial souls, no matter what soul beast soul rings they absorbed, the soul skills condensed by their martial souls were fixed. The soul skills condensed by other soul masters were formed through the fusion of their own martial souls and the soul beasts' characteristics.

Whether the soul rings on a soul master's body were the soul rings of the hunted soul beasts or were re-condensed after absorbing them was something none of the soul masters here cared about in the slightest. But Gu Ziyi cared deeply.

Because this was the key to his plan to create soul rings himself.

If the absorbed soul beast soul rings were treated as energy, then it meant injecting energy into the martial soul, causing it to transform and condense the soul master's own soul rings.

Then what if, instead of relying on soul beast soul rings, the soul master injected Soul Power into the martial soul himself?

Could that condense soul rings belonging to the soul master himself?

Gu Ziyi did not dare be certain.

Because if that really were the case, would it not be far too simple? Shouldn't the soul masters here have discovered it long ago? Still, even if that truly was the answer, Gu Ziyi would not be surprised.

The reason the soul masters here had failed to discover it was because they were constrained by habitual ways of thinking.

They believed that the soul rings soul masters needed had to be hunted from soul beasts.

No one had ever broken convention and considered that soul masters themselves could actually condense soul rings.

Others might not dare think of such a thing, but it was not a problem for Gu Ziyi. As a modern person, he had received far too much information. There was nothing he did not dare imagine.

"Phew—"

"Let's begin!"

Gu Ziyi took a deep breath, then closed his eyes again, calmed his mind, and sensed himself.

With his mind stilled, Gu Ziyi quickly sensed the presence of his Martial Soul.

Then, Gu Ziyi controlled the Soul Power within his body and began pouring it into his Martial Soul.

Buzz—

Under Gu Ziyi's control, his Soul Power flowed into his Martial Soul with ease.

Within his consciousness, Gu Ziyi saw his Martial Soul Talisman tremble slightly. As Soul Power flowed into it, it continuously emitted a faint glow.

Everything went smoothly.

But after Gu Ziyi poured all of his Soul Power into the Martial Soul, other than the glow on the Martial Soul Talisman growing brighter and brighter, there were no other changes.

And Gu Ziyi had no more Soul Power left to pour into it.

"...It failed!"

Gu Ziyi opened his eyes and sighed in disappointment.

As Gu Ziyi gave up on continuing to inject Soul Power into his Martial Soul, the Soul Power within it naturally flowed back out and returned to his body.

Gu Ziyi tried several more times afterward, but without exception, every attempt failed.

His Martial Soul did not produce a Soul Ring.

"Was my guess wrong, or is there some other reason?"

Gu Ziyi frowned, trying to figure out what he might have overlooked.

"Is there not enough energy?"

If a soul beast's Soul Ring was treated as a form of energy, then perhaps the energy was insufficient.

That was the only explanation Gu Ziyi could think of.

"Then I'll keep cultivating for a while before trying again!"

Gu Ziyi gritted his teeth, still intending to give it another shot.

For this, he would rather delay attaching a Soul Ring to his Martial Soul. After all, even if he asked the academy to help hunt a Soul Ring, it would most likely only be a Ten-Year Quality White Soul Ring.

Unless he was exceptionally lucky, the academy did not have the means to help students find a suitable Hundred-Year Soul Ring.

Even Xiao Chenyu, the son of Notting City's City Lord in the original story, had only a Ten-Year Quality White Soul Ring as his First Soul Ring.

Even Su Yuntao, a Hall Master who had joined Spirit Hall, had a white First Soul Ring.

It was clear just how difficult things were in a small place.

Besides, after reaching Level 10, one could still continue cultivating and increasing their Soul Power even without absorbing a Soul Ring to break through. They simply could not advance in level.

So even if Gu Ziyi ultimately failed to create his own Soul Ring, it would not delay him by much.

"I refuse to believe it can't be done!"