Mu Ye's question did not surprise Zhen Hua or Han Tianyi. Clearly, they had both formed their own guesses.
"No."
Su Ming's answer disappointed Mu Ye somewhat.
Mu Ye asked, "When you were forging just now, I sensed your aura becoming similar to a Body Martial Soul's. Can that state be maintained steadily?"
Even if it only brushed against a Body Martial Soul, it was still a Body Martial Soul.
As early as ten thousand years ago, the Body Sect had begun expanding its definition of Body Martial Souls. That was the foundation of why the Body Sect still flourished today. Because of that expansion, the range of disciples the Body Sect recruited had gradually broadened, extending from the Douluo Three Kingdoms to include the Sun Moon region.
During the subsequent continental wars, they had kept themselves even cleaner than Shrek, truly remaining uninvolved in the changing tides of the continent.
"That was the effect of my Soul Skill," Su Ming said. "It allows me to borrow power from the past."
"Borrow power from the past?!"
Han Tianyi, Mu Ye, and Zhen Hua all cried out in shock.
Even though they stood at the pinnacle of certain fields on the continent, they could not help but be astonished upon hearing Su Ming explain his Soul Skill's effect.
It was actually a Time Attribute Soul Skill.
"No wonder your Forging Hammer could develop such a characteristic. That should be material you Blood Sacrificed yourself, right?" Zhen Hua muttered.
"Yes, Teacher. That was my first Thousand Forgings work," Su Ming said.
Zhang Tianyang, Su Ming's teacher, could not get a word in at this moment and obediently stood to the side as a background prop.
"Can that state be maintained steadily?" Mu Ye cared more about that point. He also pressed on, "When you borrow power, do you only borrow pure Soul Power, or can you borrow their Martial Souls and Soul Skills as well?"
Su Ming thought for a moment, then nodded hesitantly.
"I can borrow Martial Souls and Soul Power, but not Soul Skills for now. The Martial Souls can be borrowed relatively intact. As for Soul Power, I feel that the Soul Power I borrow suffers some loss. After my Soul Spirit advanced to the thousand-year level, the amount of Soul Power I could normally borrow still depended on my condition, but the average increased significantly. As for whether I'll be able to borrow Soul Skills after further improvement, I don't know."
His successful Thousand Forgings this time was partly because the Star Soul Iron had developed its characteristic in advance and could replenish his Soul Power, allowing him to last a little longer. The other reason was that his Dou Yi self had broken through to two rings, increasing his Soul Power somewhat and letting him borrow more power.
Mu Ye marveled.
"So, you borrowed the Martial Soul of a Body Martial Soul Master, and fused with it perfectly."
Su Ming nodded in agreement.
"Can you succeed every time you borrow power? I mean borrowing a Martial Soul's power and entering that state."
"Yes. There's a guaranteed baseline."
The more Mu Ye asked, the brighter his smile became.
"Young man, would you like to join our Body Sect?"
Although Su Ming had sensed Mu Ye's intentions from the moment he started asking questions, he still had not expected to receive an invitation from the Body Sect.
No, what does an Elemental Control Martial Soul have to do with the Body Sect?
Am I going to be tied to the Body Sect for all three lifetimes?
What kind of fate is this...
"If I join the Body Sect, will I need to take another teacher?" Su Ming asked hesitantly.
He looked at Zhang Tianyang.
Mu Ye seemed to understand what Su Ming was worried about and smiled. "It just means having a few more teachers. As long as the factions don't conflict with one another and the fields involved do not overlap, it's fine."
Han Tianyi spoke from the side. "That's right."
Su Ming looked at Old Han.
Mu Ye also looked over, surprise appearing on his face.
Han Tianyi's expression remained unchanged as he said evenly, "Different fields. There's nothing wrong with taking a few more teachers. Among today's experts, aside from their teacher for Soul Power cultivation, which one doesn't have teachers for their secondary professions?"
Su Ming nodded in understanding.
Well said!
"So, you have talent in many fields. After joining the Body Sect, you will certainly need to cultivate the Body Sect's Blood Qi Secret Art. Mu Ye can teach you that. Your Martial Soul also relies on spiritual attributes, so you can come to this old man for Spiritual Power cultivation. As for Tianyang, he can teach you Elemental Control."
As Zhang Tianyang listened from the side, he sensed that something was off.
Why were they seriously discussing Mu Ye bringing Su Ming into the Body Sect, only for this old man to suddenly start talking about teaching Su Ming Spiritual Power cultivation?
"What is it, Little Tianyang? Do you think you're stronger than this old man in Spiritual Power?" Han Tianyi looked at Zhang Tianyang with a smiling expression.
Zhang Tianyang's scalp tingled. He gave an awkward laugh and said, "No. Old Han, you're the continent's number one Illusion Master."
He felt like crying.
He had brought Su Ming out for a trip, but was he about to become a commander without an army?
Originally, he had been the teacher responsible for every field, but now one field after another was being stripped away.
Spiritual Power, the main body, forging... Would Elemental Control and Soul Power cultivation be stripped away in the future too?
Come to think of it, Zhang Tianyang felt that was highly possible. His Elemental Control only involved the fire element, while his Soul Power was only Level 97. The joy of his breakthrough two years ago had long since been washed away.
So in the end, I can only barely retain the qualifications to teach Mecha design, Mecha manufacturing, and Mecha maintenance in those three fields?
Previously, he had vaguely felt that Su Ming cultivating four professions at once would spread his energy too thin. Now, he wholeheartedly supported Su Ming cultivating four professions at once.
Su Ming gave a helpless, bitter smile.
He looked at Zhang Tianyang, seeking his opinion.
Zhang Tianyang nodded helplessly.
Take them as teachers.
"Su Ming greets all of my teachers."
A smile appeared on Han Tianyi's face as well.
The moment they had met, he had noticed Su Ming's outstanding qualities. He had reached the Spirit Sea Realm before even turning nine. Such spiritual talent truly made one's heart itch.
"Since you've taken me as your teacher, there's no need to return to Skysea City for now. I will personally lay down a foundation of Blood Qi for you."
"I'll systematically assess your forging level."
"As for Spiritual Power cultivation, I'll straighten things out for you as well."
The three teachers spoke in succession.
Su Ming had no way to refuse.
Besides, why would he refuse something like this?
With Mu Ye here, Su Ming wished he could stay every day and never leave. Mu Ye's cooking was beyond reproach, and more importantly, he truly had an abundance of ingredients.
What?
No ingredients?
Would the treasury of a Divine Blacksmith not even have some decent Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures?
Moreover, in this era of Dou San, the Body Sect's secret arts had surely developed to their absolute limit and were more complete than in Dou Er. The earlier he learned them, the earlier his Dou Yi and Dou Er selves could enjoy techniques from the future.
"Teacher, when was our Body Sect established?"
"You're interested in history too?" Mu Ye was briefly surprised, then sent Su Ming a great deal of information.
Su Ming studied it for a while and understood the whole story.
"Just as I thought, it has nothing to do with my Dou Yi self."
"The Butterfly Effect exists. The Body Sect still stood at the peak of the continent in the Dou San era only because my Dou Er self joined the Body Sect, changing its nature. It turned the Body Sect from the Body Sect of the Douluo Three Kingdoms into a Body Sect for Body Martial Soul Masters. In history, there wasn't even the crucial battle where Du Busi self-destructed to assassinate Xu Tianran. Throughout the Sun Moon Empire's process of unifying the continent, the Body Sect was even more neutral than Shrek."