Public Beta, Invitation, and Overload

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, spilling across the draft paper Huo Yuhao had spread out. Dense symbols and structural diagrams recorded his thoughts from the night before. They were not soul skill diagrams, but a... "program" design document.

"Automatic Filtering Protocol," "Emergency Disconnect Protocol"... Concepts borrowed from "system" thinking had become the key to breaking through his bottleneck.

"Yuhao, didn't you sleep last night?" Wang Dong sat up, rubbing her eyes. Though her face was still somewhat pale, she looked much more energetic. Seeing the drawings on Huo Yuhao's desk, she curiously leaned over.

"I found a new direction." Huo Yuhao pointed at the diagrams, excitement gleaming in his eyes. "Our previous 'net' was entirely manual. I handled all the calculations, and you handled the execution. It was like I was driving alone, yet you had to tell me how to press the accelerator with your eyes. Something was bound to go wrong."

Wang Dong nodded, only half understanding.

"Now, we're going to install an 'Operating System' for the 'net.'" Huo Yuhao continued explaining. "I'll write some basic, fixed rules directly into the net's underlying structure. For example, it can automatically filter out useless background noise, allowing you to clearly receive my 'commands.' Or we can set a safety threshold—once your Spiritual Power consumption exceeds seventy percent, the net will automatically force a disconnect, protecting you from backlash."

Wang Dong's eyes lit up. "So from now on, I won't have to work so hard to 'listen.' I can just 'receive' directly? And... there'll be safety measures too?"

"Exactly!" Huo Yuhao nodded. "That will greatly reduce your burden and make our cooperation more stable. Today, we'll test this 'Operating System Version 1.0.'"

Their spirits lifted, and they immediately headed for the back mountain.

This time, they did not rush to construct the "Phantom Blade Ring." Instead, they began with the most basic connection.

"Link!"

Huo Yuhao initiated the connection himself. At the same time, he injected the "Filtering Protocol" and "Disconnect Protocol" he had devised the night before into the construction process of the "Spiritual Net" as "base code."

In an instant, Wang Dong experienced something completely different.

During previous connections, all kinds of stray thoughts, the wind, and insect cries would flood into her mind, forcing her to painstakingly distinguish them. But this time, her Sea of Consciousness was unusually "clean," as if protected by an invisible barrier. Only Huo Yuhao's clear, steady stream of consciousness flowed within it.

"It worked!" Wang Dong discovered in delight that her Spiritual Power was being consumed at least thirty percent more slowly than before!

"Don't celebrate too soon. This is only the first step." Huo Yuhao's voice rang through the "net." "Now, for the stress test."

Over the next hour, they carried out all kinds of attempts. Huo Yuhao rapidly transmitted complex commands while Wang Dong did her utmost to receive and execute them. To their delight, they found that the "net's" stability had greatly improved. Even when energy fluctuations occasionally appeared, the "Emergency Disconnect Protocol" acted like a fuse, automatically tripping before any damage could be done and protecting Wang Dong.

"Our 'net' has evolved!" Wang Dong said excitedly.

"Yes. Now, it can carry more complex 'programs.'" Huo Yuhao looked into the distance, where Beibei and Tang Ya were doing their morning training.

"Wang Dong, have you ever thought about... whether our 'net' can connect to a third 'terminal'?"

Wang Dong froze. "Connect Senior Disciple Brother Beibei? But... his Spiritual Power attributes are completely different from ours, and his Soul Power is lightning—far more violent than my Power of Light."

"That's precisely the point of testing." Huo Yuhao's expression became incomparably serious. "The scalability of the 'net' will determine its future potential. If only the two of us can use it, then it will ultimately be nothing more than a two-person skill. But if it can become a 'platform'... then its significance will be completely different."

He took a deep breath and walked toward Beibei.

"Senior Disciple Brother Beibei, may we ask for your help with something?"

Beibei and Tang Ya stopped, looking at them in confusion. Huo Yuhao briefly explained his idea and the concept of the "Spiritual Net," then made a bold request: he hoped Beibei could temporarily connect to their "net" and experience it for himself.

After hearing Huo Yuhao's nearly fantastical description, both Beibei and Tang Ya were stunned.

"Share Spiritual Power? And transmit commands in real time?" Beibei frowned. He had never heard of anything so unbelievable. It sounded even more miraculous than a Soul Tool.

"Yuhao, could this... be dangerous?" Tang Ya asked with some concern.

"Yes, but the risks are controllable." Huo Yuhao answered frankly. "We'll conduct the connection at the lowest power, and we've set up the strongest protection protocols. I need to test the net's compatibility with Spiritual Power of different attributes."

Seeing the thirst for knowledge and firm conviction in Huo Yuhao's eyes, Beibei pondered for a moment before finally nodding. As the Senior Disciple Brother, he had long grown accustomed to Huo Yuhao's wild ideas. Deep down, he was also full of curiosity about this "Spiritual Net."

"Alright, I'll try it. What do you need me to do?"

"Senior Disciple Brother, you don't need to do anything. Relax your mind and don't resist." Huo Yuhao spoke solemnly. "Wang Dong, prepare to connect the 'External Port'!"

The three sat down cross-legged. Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and cautiously separated a thread of Spiritual Power. Like a probe, it slowly extended toward Beibei's Sea of Consciousness.

At the other end of the "net," Wang Dong did her utmost to maintain the stability of the "Operating System," ready to activate the "Disconnect Protocol" at any moment.

When Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Power touched Beibei's powerful, heavy mental domain, carrying a trace of domineering presence, he immediately felt tremendous pressure. Beibei's Spiritual Power was like a surging sea of lightning, while his own was merely a small stream.

"Here it comes!"

Huo Yuhao forcibly "connected" that thread of Spiritual Power to the "Spiritual Net."

"Bzzzt—!"

In an instant, Wang Dong felt as if a massive hammer had struck her head!

Beibei's immense and violent spiritual information, like floodwaters bursting through a dam, instantly overwhelmed the "Filtering Protocol" Huo Yuhao had just established! It was not simple information, but a vast torrent of data mixed with Beibei's insights from years of cultivation, memories of soul skills, and even emotional fluctuations!

"Pfft—!"

Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao both spat out blood, their faces turning white as paper. The newly upgraded "Spiritual Net" instantly collapsed upon encountering higher-level "data"!

"Yuhao! Wang Dong!" Beibei was horrified. He immediately cut off his spiritual perception, but it was already too late.

Huo Yuhao clutched his throbbing head and struggled to raise his face, yet a bitter and excited smile appeared on it.

"The test... failed. But the data... has been acquired."

He finally understood. Their "net" was currently only a "local area network." To connect to more powerful "servers," their existing "bandwidth" and "Firewall" were still far from sufficient.

"Looks like our 'Operating System' needs to be upgraded to Version 2.0."