I Borrowed Power from the Time River (Please Follow!!!)

Su Ming stared intently at the golden light cluster.

Beneath the golden glow lay a powerful force of attraction.

"What a peculiar attribute. And within this golden light, I can sense the power of the Time Attribute."

He had taken Zhang Tianyang's introduction to heart, along with Zhang Tianyang's warning.

After considering it for only a moment, he made his decision.

"Tower Master, this one."

Ten thousand years ago. (P.S.: This refers to Dou Yi. These brief time-setting segments are respectively ten thousand years ago, the present, and ten thousand years later, corresponding to Dou Yi, Dou Er, and Dou San.)

Past Su Ming, who had awakened a Body Martial Soul, was under the greatest pressure.

Of the three bodies, two possessed Innate Full Soul Power, while the remaining one—him—had only Innate Level 5 Soul Power.

Of course, there was bad news, but there was good news as well: he had earned Su Yuntao's approval and been classified as having a useless Martial Soul.

"In this era, I won't join any faction for now."

He had no psychological resistance to joining Spirit Hall.

However, Spirit Hall's training was too brutal. At the very least, the assignments at the Spirit Hall Soul Master Academy that Su Ming knew of were extremely demanding, and he would likely have no spare energy to study Battle Armor.

Thanks to shared information, he could master Soul Tool technology in this era where Soul Tools had vanished. He could use it to make a living, secretly crafting them from time to time and selling them for enough Gold Soul Coins to support himself.

For him, Battle Armor was still the most crucial matter.

Studying and crafting Battle Armor consumed an immense amount of energy. In the era of Dou San, Soul Tool technology was already highly advanced, and Soul Masters' cultivation talent generally far surpassed that of the Dou Yi and Dou Er eras. Yet Shrek's graduation requirement was still five rings plus becoming a Battle Armor Master.

Shrek in Dou San even had a sixth grade, while first grade corresponded to three years.

In other words, Shrek required students to reach Soul King by the age of thirty and become Battle Armor Masters.

There were only three Soul Kings by third grade. This cultivation speed was actually slower than during the Dou Er era.

All because of the additional training required to become a Battle Armor Master.

Of course, in terms of strength, the improvement was enormous. A Battle Armor of the same rank could increase one's power by twenty levels. In other words, a Soul King-level One-word Battle Armor Master possessed strength at the Soul Saint Level.

Thus, Battle Armor Master cultivation consumed tremendous energy and would slow one's progress in the early stages.

Naturally, the rewards were equally astonishing. You reaped what you sowed.

Among Su Ming's three bodies, future Su Ming was naturally not too worried, since he lived in that era. The Soul Master elites around him were all striving to become Battle Armor Masters and had to endure the same hardship.

Past Su Ming and present Su Ming were different. Present Su Ming seemed to live in an era with Soul Tools and could directly obtain all kinds of Rare Metal, but in reality, his era had the harshest environment. Soul Power cultivation was the most competitive, and he still had to devote energy to studying and crafting Battle Armor.

Was the Dou Yi era competitive?

Even though he had awakened with only Innate Level 5 Soul Power, past Su Ming felt no pressure at all.

The Soul Master Talent of this era was simply too low across the board.

He felt that even if he became a Soul King at twenty, he would not seem behind.

"I'll lie low at Nuoding Academy for a few years. Once I have two rings, it'll be safer to travel far on my own, and my body should have developed by then. At that point, I'll head to Gengxin City, the Metal Capital."

Su Ming froze.

He sensed a summoning force.

This was—

Ten thousand years later.

Su Ming opened his eyes and felt a cracking sound echo within his body.

The golden light cluster had transformed into a cocoon of light, continuously expanding and contracting as though it were breathing.

"It hasn't finished gestating yet, but it looks like it is only a matter of time. At the very least, it isn't an inferior Soul Spirit," Zhang Tianyang said after hearing this.

He asked Su Ming how his Soul Skill was.

Su Ming pondered for a moment, feeling out the effects of his Soul Skill.

A trace of surprise flashed through his eyes, followed by delight.

Noticing his expression, Zhang Tianyang said, "It seems you've obtained a very powerful Soul Skill."

"More than powerful. This is simply—"

He paused.

This was simply a Soul Skill tailor-made for him.

Zhang Tianyang merely assumed Su Ming had no words to describe his feelings and quietly waited for him to calm down.

After taking a breath, Su Ming said, "This Soul Spirit possesses the Time Attribute. I seem to have aptitude in that area as well, so my Soul Skill is time-attributed."

A glint of wonder flashed through Zhang Tianyang's eyes.

The Time Attribute!

To obtain such an attribute, this Soul Spirit had truly been worth it.

"What exactly is the Soul Skill?"

"First Soul Skill: Borrowed Power!"

For a moment, two question marks seemed to appear above Zhang Tianyang's head after hearing Su Ming's answer.

Was that a name a time-attributed Soul Skill would have?

Su Ming's Soul Ring had already lit up, and the Power of Time curled around his body.

Ordinary people could not sense it.

Only Su Ming could clearly feel the Power of Time surrounding him.

A long river appeared before his eyes.

The river flowed, and every drop of water seemed to be a fragment of history.

At the river's upper reaches stood two figures.

One was him.

The other was also him.

The three Su Mings stood at three points along the Time River.

Su Ming noticed that only his future self stood within illusory river water. Starting from the middle point, where present Su Ming stood, the river became unreal and began to branch. Countless tributaries overlapped one another, and future Su Ming stood on only one of them.

The Power of Time surged.

The phantoms of the two Su Mings swiftly crossed the Time River and merged into his body.

From Zhang Tianyang's perspective, Su Ming's Soul Power inexplicably began to swell.

His body grew a full circle larger, his Soul Power multiplied several times over, and even its quality underwent a qualitative transformation.

"My Soul Skill is called Borrowed Power. I can borrow power from the past through the Time River, drawing upon it to fill myself," Su Ming said softly.

He clenched his fist and felt stronger than ever before.

Zhang Tianyang's eyes widened in shock.

"That's that outrageous?"

"It's fine. I can only borrow power if they do not need their strength. If the target I lock onto needs that power, then I can't borrow it."

"Uh..." Zhang Tianyang opened his mouth and spat out two words. "Gambling addict?"

Su Ming's lips twitched.

Based on the information he had revealed to Zhang Tianyang, that was indeed how it worked.

But the targets from whom he borrowed power were his two past selves. Their minds were connected, so there was no need to rely on luck at all.

Moreover, even if his two past selves needed power, they could coordinate with one another and lend him only a little. Even borrowing merely ten percent would be enough to bring about a qualitative change.

Because the power he borrowed fused directly together.

That's right. After borrowing power, he entered the state of a Trinity Martial Soul Fusion Skill!

Even ten percent of past and present Su Ming's strength was enough to let him enter the Trinity Martial Soul Fusion Skill state. It was a perfect amplification.

"So I do have a cheat after all." Su Ming's heart surged with excitement.

Both his past and present selves could exploit information gaps, while only he seemed unable to gain any benefits.

Now things were different. He could borrow power from the past.