The battle ended quickly.
It was not Osler who was defeated by Yu Cheng, but Yu Tianheng, who could no longer withstand Dugu Yan's Snake Venom.
Dugu Yan's Second Soul Skill could erode Soul Power and weaken the effects of Soul Skills.
Amplified by Yu Cheng, this move directly shattered Yu Tianheng's Wrath of Thunder and inflicted internal injuries on him.
A war of attrition had always been Dugu Yan's specialty.
It was worth noting that after half an hour, Dugu Yan had not shown any signs of weakness.
"Just as I thought, Ye Lingling's Soul Skill can make up for the life force stolen by the Frenzied Seed."
Yu Cheng thought to himself.
His expression remained calm as he silently absorbed the Soul Power converted by the seeds.
This battle was roughly equivalent to a full day's hard cultivation for him.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Yu Cheng's gaze sharpened.
A surge of Soul Power erupted from within him. In an instant, everyone's eyes turned toward him.
"This is a Soul Power breakthrough!"
Osler said.
He had seen stories at the theater where the protagonist broke through in the middle of battle or suddenly gained enlightenment after a fight.
"Could I be some minor supporting character from a story? A stepping stone for the protagonist?"
Osler cried out.
"Idiot!"
Yufeng rolled his eyes at him.
As an Agility Attack Type Soul Master, he had actually failed to take down two Support System Soul Masters? If the Ghost Leopard Martial Soul had not excelled in speed, Osler might even have been beaten flat by Yu Cheng.
How embarrassing!
"Enough fooling around. I have something to announce."
Dugu Yan clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"After discussing it with Teacher Qin, I've decided to invite Yu Cheng to join the Imperial Dou Team's First Team. Everyone, welcome him!"
Originally, she had only intended for Yu Cheng to serve as a theoretical advisor, since his Soul Power was only in the teens.
However, after this battle, everyone had witnessed Yu Cheng's strength.
"Clap, clap, clap..."
Everyone applauded enthusiastically, including Yu Tianheng.
After his battle with Dugu Yan, Yu Tianheng had deeply realized just how terrifying Yu Cheng's Soul Skills were.
He even felt somewhat fortunate that Yu Cheng was his teammate rather than his enemy.
One month later.
"Knock, knock, knock~"
Yu Cheng knocked on the door and entered the office.
"Yu Cheng, what do you need?"
Qin Ming asked with a smile.
"Teacher Qin, I want to enter the Royal Forest to cultivate, so I came to seek your approval."
Yu Cheng got straight to the point.
According to his original plan, with Ye Lingling restoring his life force, he could harvest to his heart's content without restraint.
Who would have thought Qin Ming would stab him in the back!
Over the past month, the Imperial Dou Team had spent most of its time training at the Great Soul Arena, while Yu Cheng could only cultivate at the academy.
In Qin Ming's words, Yu Cheng's Soul Power was too low, and his foremost task was cultivation. Only after reaching level twenty could he participate in spirit fights with the team.
There was nothing wrong with that arrangement in itself.
However...
Without being able to steal life force, and having to cultivate honestly, who knew when he would break through?
Therefore, he could only find another way.
"The Royal Forest?"
Qin Ming pondered briefly before nodding. "All right. I'll arrange for a teacher to be specifically responsible for protecting you."
He smiled apologetically.
"I've been busy arranging matters at the Spirit Fighting Arena and have neglected you somewhat. For a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, a soul beast forest is the best mimetic cultivation environment."
Yu Cheng shook his head. "Teacher, I want to enter the forest alone."
He was going to the forest not only for the mimetic environment, but more importantly to kill soul beasts and use the Blood Sacrifice Array.
Wouldn't bringing a teacher along expose his secret?
"No."
Qin Ming refused outright. "Your combat ability is decent, but the soul beast forest is too dangerous. I don't want even the slightest accident to happen to you!"
Yu Cheng smiled. He had already guessed that Qin Ming would not agree.
"Teacher Qin, look at this."
Yu Cheng took out the Godly Zhuge Crossbow from his Soul Tool.
"This is a weapon I forged. With it, I can protect myself."
Yu Cheng said confidently.
"A crossbow?"
A trace of doubt appeared in Qin Ming's eyes, but he did not strike at Yu Cheng's confidence. "Show me."
"All right."
Yu Cheng disengaged the safety, aimed at the door, and pulled the trigger.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
The bolts shot out at high speed and sank viciously into the door.
Qin Ming strode to the door in a few steps. The arrowheads had penetrated about half a foot deep, while their shafts trembled violently for a long time without stopping.
"What a powerful weapon!"
A sharp glint flashed in Qin Ming's eyes.
Suddenly, he thought of something and slammed his fist into his palm.
"What a pity weapons like this aren't allowed in official matches. Otherwise, the Imperial Dou Team might have a chance to contend for the championship in the next Soul Master Tournament!"
Qin Ming composed himself and patted Yu Cheng on the shoulder.
"I approve this, but you must promise me that you won't spend the night in the forest."
"Yes!"
Time flew by, and a year passed.
Royal Forest.
Yu Cheng sat cross-legged on the ground. Beside him lay the corpse of a massive gray wolf.
Blood flowed down, soaking into the grass.
If the turf were lifted, one would discover the hexagram array Yu Cheng had set up underground.
This was his improved Blood Sacrifice Array.
He let the blood seep into the ground, then attached Frenzied Seeds to the Blue Silver Grass, controlling it to absorb the blood from the soil before finally inscribing the array.
If an outsider were here, they would scarcely notice anything unusual. They would only think that the Blue Silver Grass was growing exceptionally lush.
"Exhale~"
Yu Cheng slowly opened his eyes and released a breath of stale air.
He felt Soul Power surging through his body, circulating through his meridians before gathering in his dantian.
Like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea.
Smooth and natural.
"Level twenty. I did it!"
A smile curled Yu Cheng's lips.
"Four levels of Soul Power in one year. That old buddy's Blood Sacrifice Array really packs a punch!"
The Blood Sacrifice Array transformed blood from material form into energy.
The Frenzied Seed absorbed life energy and converted it into Soul Power.
Neither could be absent.
Without the Blood Sacrifice Array, Yu Cheng would be no different from merely eating beast meat and drinking beast blood.
Although it could strengthen his physique, the increase in Soul Power would be negligible.
Without the Frenzied Seed's conversion, the energy within blood would be extremely impure and could easily conflict with Yu Cheng's own Soul Power.
Only by combining the two could he increase his Soul Power by four levels within a year!
"I wonder what levels Tang San and Xiao Wu are at now?"
Yu Cheng lay on the grass, quietly thinking.
"I'm exactly eleven years old now. In the original story, Tang San broke through level thirty when he was twelve years and seven months old."
"I need to raise my Soul Power by ten levels in a year and a half to catch up to him."
"Hard, hard, hard!"
"I can probably only reach level twenty-seven."
Yu Cheng stood up. The joy of breaking through his bottleneck had faded considerably.
"Sigh, this is already pretty good."
"I didn't even have Innate Soul Power to begin with."
"What more could I ask for?"
Yu Cheng's First Soul Ring flashed, and countless red points of light flew out, covering the gray wolf's corpse.
Before long, the grass over the gray wolf's grave had grown more than a foot tall.
Just as he was preparing to leave, an electronically synthesized voice suddenly sounded in his mind:
My name is Yu Cheng. When you see this sentence, I am already dead. Please collect the Ash Box and properly bury the remains.
Before you continue