The significance of awakening intelligence

"You know quite a bit about the Earth Dragon cub, did you discover something?" Chen Feng asked.

Gu Yue Ling rarely spoke during discussions and seemed rather reserved, so his initiative to express his opinion this time was quite unexpected.

Gu Yue Ling glanced at the cubs and said, "That's right, I went to check on them when they were born, and I didn't notice anything wrong at the time."

"Yes, you said they all looked healthy back then, so you only discovered they had some kind of disease later?" Oscar asked.

Gu Yue Ling shook her head. "It can't be called an illness; it should be called a congenital deficiency?"

"Congenital deficiencies?" Xiao Wu, somewhat puzzled.

"Yes, it's probably because it was hunted down when it was pregnant. The eldest of these cubs is physically healthy, but it seems to have some mental issues, making it a bit slower than its younger siblings," Gu Yue Ling explained.

Everyone looked at the cubs, and after careful observation, they found that the largest cub reacted a beat slower than the others.

They hadn't thought anything was wrong before because newborn babies are usually a bit slow and clumsy, so it wasn't unusual for them to seem a little dull.

Now that Gu Yue Ling has reminded them, and especially after comparing them with the other cubs, the eldest cub's abnormality has become immediately apparent.

"So what is your consciousness?" Oscar looked at Gu Yue Ling.

Gu Yue Ling met his gaze calmly and said, "In the wild, being mentally challenged would be a significant flaw, greatly reducing the survival rate of Soul Beast. But if it's just about borrowing power, this flaw can be masked and won't have too much of an impact, right?"

Oscar thought for a moment and agreed, "That's true. I'm willing to experiment with it, but I don't know if my Old Tie is willing."

Gu Yue Ling turned to look at the Ironclad Earth Dragon not far away and said, "You should have heard what we just said, and you can also sense the child's defect. Are you willing to let it try?"

Perhaps it can give it a better future.

The Ironclad Earth Dragon silently glanced at the eldest of the cubs, stuck out its tongue and licked it, then picked it up and placed it in the magic circle, thus expressing its thoughts.

After being carried onto the metal plate, the Earth Dragon cub didn't move around much; it just sat there with a blank stare.

Before, this appearance didn't seem like anything special, but after Gu Yue Ling explained it, it inexplicably exuded a kind of simple-mindedness.

Seeing this, Oscar also walked into the magic circle and casually fed the little Earth Dragon opposite him two pieces of Tofu.

"Let's try again," Chen Feng said.

Oscar didn't hesitate to open his palm, while the mother of the Earth Dragon cub did the work for him.

Soon, two drops of blood fell into the magic circle, and the earth-yellow light spread out again, enveloping Oscar and the Earth Dragon cub.

This time...

... Just as Ma Hongjun opened his mouth, Dai Mubai decisively covered it.

"Shut up!"

Seeing Dai Mubai's fierce heterochromatic eyes, Ma Hongjun obediently made an X over his mouth, indicating that he would not speak anymore, and only then did Dai Mubai release him.

Perhaps because his jinx was silenced, the experiment went quite smoothly this time. The earthy yellow color did not suddenly shatter as before, but faded away quietly after a period of time, revealing the stunned Oscar and the Earth Dragon cub.

Everyone crowded around, curious about the outcome of the experiment.

Meng Yiran waved her hand in front of Oscar's face, "Are you alright, Oscar?"

Oscar gradually came to his senses, looked at Meng Yiran who was concerned about him, and smiled, "Don't worry, I'm fine, no, I've never been this fine."

"What changes do you notice?" Chen Feng asked expectantly.

"I can't feel anything else yet, but the biggest change is this." Oscar clenched his fists, striking a pose of exertion.

Instantly, a rock-like color spread across his skin, quickly covering his upper body, making him look like a stone man.

The Grandmaster raised an eyebrow. "This is... the Petrified Skin that the Ironclad Earth Dragon has from birth?"

The rocky color on Oscar's body faded rapidly. He took a breath and said, "I think so. I feel my body has become much harder after using this ability."

"So it seems you can share the abilities of this Earth Dragon cub. Then what did the cub get?" Chen Feng turned his gaze to the little guy on the other side, then paused for a moment.

Although the Earth Dragon cub's eyes were still bewildered, they were visibly more lively than before, and anyone who wasn't blind could see the change.

"So, Oscar shared the abilities of the Earth Dragon cub, while the Earth Dragon cub shared Oscar's wisdom?" Gu Yue Ling said while teasing the little Earth Dragon.

"That should be the case, so the function of this magic array is indeed to allow humans and Soul Beast to share some of each other's abilities," Chen Feng concluded.

"So the previous experiments failed because the two sides were too strong?" Tang San felt something was off; his strength wasn't that much greater than Oscar's.

"It might have exceeded the total capacity of the magic array. You're a little stronger than Oscar, but Old Tie is much stronger than its child. Wuxiang is also Ten-Thousand-Year -old Soul Beast," Chen Feng said.

"That... does indeed make sense." Tang San accepted this reasonable explanation.

Chen Feng continued his analysis, "In addition, the materials used to inscribe the magic array should also have an impact. We used the best Star Soul Mithril as the base to support us in completing these experiments, and even so, cracks still appeared. If inferior materials had been used, their load-bearing capacity would probably have been even lower, and they might have shattered like before."

The reason he was able to borrow the Snow Empress's power was probably because of the special nature of the Cycle of Rebirth. It might be a fragment of a world or a Plane, or something similar. In any case, it would definitely have a stronger carrying capacity than Soul Tool Metal.

"There's nothing we can do about it. We used Soul Iron for our previous experiments because it's cheaper, and those experiments were all successful. This time, it's just a matter of habit; we didn't consider the material factors," Tang San said helplessly.

He secretly conducted the experiment without Chen Feng, intending to surprise his good friend and prevent him from being in a dilemma. However, he suffered two failures, which made him feel a little embarrassed.

"You'll learn from your mistakes. Next time, don't try to figure things out on your own. Discuss things together." Chen Feng punched Tang San and said.

He naturally understood Tang San's good intentions, but such behavior should not be encouraged. He hated those melodramatic plots in movies where someone claimed to be doing it for the other person's good but then secretly did something terribly wrong.

Chen Feng didn't want something like that to happen to him one day.

"Don't worry, I'll definitely discuss things with you in the future." Tang San learned his lesson.

The saying "One person's plan is short-sighted, but many people's plans are long-sighted" still holds some truth.

"Speaking of which, don't you realize what the success of this experiment means?" Xiao Wu suddenly spoke up, her tone tinged with excitement.

"Does that mean... humans and Soul Beast can borrow each other's abilities?" Ma Hongjun scratched his head and asked.

Xiao Wu glared at him. "You're standing here, standing here. I'm asking if you've realized the meaning behind this kind of borrowing ability." "It should be easier for humans and Soul Beast to cooperate, right? After all, humans can benefit from it. Although the benefits for Soul Beast are smaller, improving their intelligence is still quite good," Chen Feng said.

"Smaller? No, no, no, Xiao Feng, you're wrong this time. It's actually the cubs of Soul Beast who benefit more," Xiao Wu shook her head and said.

"So what if they become a little smarter? It should be fine for Soul Beast, just a higher survival rate. Ling'er already explained it. In terms of benefits, humans still benefit more," Dai Mubai said dismissively.

"That's not true at all! Pay attention to what I said, it's a Soul Beast Cub," Xiao Wu emphasized.

Chen Feng raised an eyebrow; he vaguely understood what Xiao Wu wanted to say.

"It is very difficult to awaken the intelligence of Soul Beast. Why did we need to cooperate with Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast in our previous experiments? Because only Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast and a very small number of Thousand-Year Soul Beast have enough intelligence. The key is that they can also consciously cultivate, which distinguishes them from those Soul Beast that only have instincts and simple intelligence."

"This magic array allows Soul Beast cubs to share human wisdom. With just a little guidance, they can develop the ability to cultivate independently. This is like how humans normally need to awaken their Martial Soul at age six before they can cultivate, but a baby can cultivate right after birth. Do you still think this is a simple matter?" Xiao Wu said excitedly.

Tang San:

"From this perspective, this magic array does seem to be more significant for Soul Beast. Xiao Wu, you have a good grasp of Soul Beast knowledge. I feel you could develop into a Soul Beast Studies expert in the future." Chen Feng patted Xiao Wu's shoulder, while subtly squeezing it.

Xiao Wu felt the force of Chen Feng's grip on her shoulder. At first, she was a little puzzled, but she quickly realized that her tone just now was a bit suspicious, so she quickly laughed and made amends, "Haha, I think so too. I've been interested in all kinds of Soul Beast since I was little. Maybe I can really become an expert in this field."

Tang San smiled and continued, "It seems we'll have another Scholar. Xiao Wu, you'd better work hard and try to open a Soul Beast Studies in the New Academy in the future."

"Hmph, just you wait and see." Xiao Wu feigned smugness, exchanged a glance with Tang San, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing that they had steered the conversation in the right direction, Chen Feng said, "Since this magic array is important to both sides, it is necessary to promote it and even establish a healthy and complete order. However, achieving this will not be a simple matter for either humans or Soul Beast."

As he spoke, he subtly glanced at Gu Yue Ling and noticed that she seemed to be deep in thought.

What was she thinking about? Why was it Xiao Wu who first suggested that the magic array was important to the Soul Beast? Chen Feng was initially puzzled, but after thinking about it, he realized it wasn't surprising.

Because Gu Yue Ling, as an Imperial Auspicious Beast, is a special being that possesses intelligence from birth, she probably didn't realize the significance of her cubs gaining intelligence for Soul Beast, or rather, she didn't expect it to be so significant.

Although Xiao Wu is Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, she has grown up step by step from her ignorant childhood, which is why she was able to quickly realize the importance of awakening the intelligence of Soul Beast cubs.

Judging from this, Gu Yue Ling's infrequent speaking during meetings might not be because of her deep personality, but perhaps because she hadn't quite grasped the concept yet, and was thus pretending to be an expert by remaining silent, Chen Feng thought to himself.

Like some students in my past life's classroom, they seemed to be paying attention and understanding, but when asked a question, they knew nothing.

Given Wang Qiu'er's impulsive and headstrong personality in Douluo Dalu 2, this guess isn't impossible. Gu Yue Ling is only one-third the age of Wang Qiu'er.

Dai Mubai's words interrupted Chen Feng's inner turmoil, "Is it feasible to let the Empire take the lead?"

"Unreliable. It's a miracle if those Nobles and bureaucrats in the empire don't cause any trouble." Chen Feng shook his head without hesitation.

Given the bureaucratic nature of these officials, it seems that in the future, even contracting Soul Beast will require a stamp. After getting the stamp from one department, you'll have to go to another, or they'll ask you to provide some supplementary materials to prove that you are who you are. Don't even think about getting anything done without running back and forth seventy, eighty, or ninety times.

This approach is actually not bad; it's just a matter of procrastination and formality. The real problem is that they might hide the best Soul Beast cubs and only offer them to powerful families. What if you want one? Then you'll have to offer it as a tribute.

Of course, this refers to the Douluo World.

In short, matters requiring patience, meticulousness, and good communication skills should not be left to bureaucrats, just like the task of awakening Martial Soul.

Replacing the lower-level deacons of the Spirit Hall with imperial officials would surely create chaos and disorder in the matter of awakening Martial Soul within a few years.

Ning Rongrong then offered another option, "Xiao Feng, have you forgotten? Isn't your New Academy a perfect fit?"

Chen Feng's eyes lit up. "That's right! Let the teachers or students of the Academy be in charge. We can even use academic credits as rewards. Brilliant!"

If the future Academy is allowed to lead this matter, Academy status will rise rapidly, and it may even surpass the Spirit Hall.

Chen Feng had been considering how to make the Academy replace the Spirit Hall, which was also a goal he had been focusing on researching. However, his knowledge alone was simply not enough, and neither the Ring Expansion Method nor the Ten-Thousand-Year Fourth Ring had such power.

After all, these are just two subjects of knowledge; they can only elevate the status of the Academy.

However, if the Academy can facilitate the Soul Beast Contracting, promote the union between humans and Soul Beast, and become an intermediary institution recognized by both sides, then this matter will be almost certain to succeed.

However, before that, Chen Feng still had to deal with the possible counterattack from the Spirit Hall.