Xu Bai: I Can Take On Her Soul Head-On (8000)

The progress bar slowly increased until the last blank space was finally filled. In the blink of an eye, pale blue smoke appeared in mid-air, constantly shifting and moving.

Then, the pale blue smoke gradually transformed into words, appearing before Xu Bai.

[You studied the travelogue and comprehended the Soul Locking Art (incomplete).]

This time, the pale blue smoke did not disappear, but quickly dispersed the words in front of him. Xu Bai knew that this was a sign that they were about to merge.

[Mergeable options found, currently in progress.]

[Soul Locking Art (Flawed) + Undying Body (Flawed) = Undying Soul Body.]

[Merger successful.]

As the words "fusion successful" appeared, the pale blue smoke slowly disappeared, transforming into a large amount of information that entered Xu Bai's mind.

At the same time, Xu Bai closed his eyes. After absorbing all the information, he reopened his eyes, a golden light flashing in them.

The latest attribute panel appeared before his eyes.

[Name: Xu Bai]

[Realm Level: Second Rank Loose Cultivator]

[Swordless Saber Grand Technique (Transcendent Stage 2): Max Level.]

[Myriad Aspects Heavenly Art (Transcendent Stage 2): Max Level.]

[Returning Wind Flowing Snow (Tier 5): Max Level.]

[Nine Revolutions of Action and Ruin (Rank 9): Max Level.]

[Moving Stars and Changing Constellations (Tier 9): Max Level.]

[Vajra Saint Demon Body (Tier 8); Max Level.]

[Strengthening Kidney Gathering Art (Tier 5): Max Level.]

[Poison Compendium (Tier 9): Max Level.]

[Mechanism Puppet True Explanation (Tier 9): Max Level.]

[Undying Soul Body (Transcendent Stage 1): Max Level.]

[Water Adaptation Method (Tier 5): Max Level]

[Feng Shui Arithmetic (Level 9): Max Level.]

[Thousand Faces Method (Tier 9): Max Level.]

[Comprehension: Max level.]

Well, Xu Bai felt that sometimes things were just that clever. What does it mean to search high and low without finding it, or to find a new path after a long and fruitless search? This situation perfectly described what he was going through. In the past, he always wanted to make up for the defects of his Undying Body. After all, the ability to repair one's soul was still full of danger in his eyes. He had consciously searched for it, but found nothing.

But to everyone's surprise, the problem was solved not long after arriving at the Azure Cloud Academy.

Both the Undying Body and the Soul Locking Art are incomplete, but when combined, they form the Undying Soul Body, which is not incomplete at all.

The effect of the Undying Soul Body skill is very simple, but its simplicity is full of violence. In addition to restoring the physical body to the level of the first stage of the Transcendent Realm, it also has the power to repair the soul.

Moreover, the Soul-Locking Technique itself has the effect of probing the soul. In short, he seemed to have inexplicably solved the problem that the white-robed man, Liu Qingfeng, had been trying to solve.

"I feel like even if my soul were crushed into powder, it could be reborn." Xu Bai had a slightly reckless attitude. "I really want to find someone to test this on."

This feeling is like suddenly becoming so strong that you feel like you could kill a bull, and then you really want to find a bull to fight.

However, this was just a suicidal idea of his; he didn't actually do it, since he had more important things to do.

With the method to probe the soul, that Old Hag who coveted her body would have nowhere to hide. Now, all she needed to do was find the dean and plot with him.

Thinking of this, Xu Bai didn't linger. He got up and left the room, heading towards the dean's room.

Along the way, he encountered many scholars, but after learning his identity, they treated him with exceptional respect. This was one of the benefits of his status; if he had any other identity, he probably wouldn't have had such a smooth journey.

Soon, he navigated through various wide alleyways and arrived at the dean's room, where he gently knocked on the door.

"Squeak--"

With a crisp sound, the door was opened by the dean.

The dean held a book in his hand and looked at Xu Bai with an incredulous gaze. "Don't tell me that you've already deciphered the incomplete chapters in there."

Xu Bai nodded and said, "Actually, it's still very difficult. After all, it took me so long. I've been reading it ever since I got the travelogue after arriving here. It's really hard."

It was indeed difficult; he wasn't lying. After all, he hadn't seen such a slow progress bar in a long time.

But when he spoke the truth, it nearly made the dean spit out blood.

The dean looked like he'd eaten something unclean. "You'd better not say these things outside, or some old guys might come all the way here to beat you up. After all, what you said was too arrogant."

That's really arrogant.

They said it was difficult, but they figured it out in just a few days. Is that really a difficult thing?

This would be something to be proud of for anyone, but looking at Xu Bai now, he seems to feel somewhat ashamed of himself.

If it weren't for Xu Bai's current status, the dean would really like to pull Xu Bai into his room and thoroughly examine him to see what secrets this kid has.

Even if the Female Daoist Abbot were here, she probably couldn't have learned this quickly, right? "Sigh, come in." The abbot stood there, feeling frustrated for a long time, before finally stepping aside to let Xu Bai into the room.

Xu Bai strode in, and after the dean closed the door, he looked around and saw Yun Zihai in the corner, and his lips twitched slightly.

In the corner of the room, Yun Zihai was alright. He took off his shirt, revealing his muscular body.

It must be said that although Yun Zihai was born with congenital deficiencies, his body was actually quite perfect.

He has plenty of muscle in some areas, but not much fat in others.

However, Yun Zihai's actions are now somewhat bizarre.

In the corner, Yun Zihai was having a great time playing with an enormous iron ball, the size of two adults hugging each other.

Every now and then, he would toss the iron ball up, catch it on his back, and then catch it on his chest. In short, the scene was quite shocking.

"What are you doing?" Xu Bai asked.

While playing with the iron ball, Yun Zihai, his face covered in sweat, agreed, "The Revised Strengthening Body Art, actually I suggest you learn it too. I feel like I could kill a bull now."

Xu Bai: "..."

To be honest, why is Yun Zihai also picking a fight with cows?

Faced with Yun Zihai's enthusiastic invitation, Xu Bai quickly waved his hand and even silently took a step back, feeling that the current situation was somewhat tense.

"Practice diligently! You haven't mastered it yet, so don't talk so much!" the dean scolded.

Yun Zihai quickly shut his mouth and continued to concentrate on his practice.

The closer Xu Bai looked, the more agitated the scene became. He decided to ignore it and turned to the dean, saying, "Dean, I've figured it out. Shouldn't we implement the plan now? I wonder what the next step should be?"

Let's get down to business. If it's an eyesore, so be it, we can just ignore it.

The dean stroked his beard and said, "What else can we do? In your young people's terms, it's like sharpening your weapons and going into battle."

Sharpening a gun?

To go into battle?

Although he didn't know where the dean had learned this new word from, Xu Bai felt that it must not be a very good word.

"Is your ability area-of-effect, or are you going to do it one at a time?" the dean asked.

Xu Bai stroked his chin and said, "The range can roughly cover the Academy, but if it is expanded, the effect will be reduced, and it will be easier for the other side to detect it. It can be used to its fullest potential by attacking one by one. It can be effective within ten meters."

Upon hearing this, the dean fell into deep thought.

If they come one by one, then we must be careful not to alert them, otherwise his junior sister could easily slip away.

Thinking of this, the dean said, "As long as you go one by one without being discovered by her, you can search slowly. Once you find them, don't alert her. I have a way to make sure she can't escape."

"What method?" Xu Bai asked with interest.

The dean said, "Her ability to constantly regenerate has a very obvious drawback: if the body she occupies does not die, she cannot leave."

"You must not commit suicide, because she has not completely devoured the soul of the body. Suicide would only trigger the body's instinctive defense."

"So after I found out, I just captured her and locked her up forever, that was all."

Xu Bai was speechless. "I thought it was a way to solve the problem once and for all, but it turns out it's just locking her up."

The dean said helplessly, "If there were a way to solve this once and for all, we would have done it back then. There really is no other way."

"Alright then, I'll be going now. Anyway, I don't have much to do lately. Apart from that revised version of the Body-Strengthening Technique I need to read, I'll look it up whenever I have free time," Xu Bai said.

He's safe as long as he's here, and as long as he doesn't leave, they'll definitely target him.

Therefore, Xu Bai didn't care about time, because he was here.

As he spoke, Xu Bai unleashed a... Soul-Probing Method on Yun Zihai.

The next moment, Xu Bai sensed that Yun Zihai's soul was completely pure, with no superfluous elements present.

Moreover, Yun Zihai didn't notice anything and continued playing with the iron ball.

After finishing that task, he left immediately.

He kept using the soul-searching method along the way. Whenever a scholar passed by, he would use the soul-searching method to check, but he found nothing.

Even after returning to his room, there were still no clues. Xu Bai decided to rest for a while and work on the enhanced version of the Body-Strengthening Technique.

He plans to grind the progress bar every day and go out to investigate until he finds the real culprit.

That's what it means to balance work and rest. Focusing solely on finding something while neglecting to keep up with the progress bar is putting the cart before the horse.

Xu Bai Xu Bai took out the Enhanced Strengthening Body Art, and just as he was about to begin, there was an unexpected knock on the door.

A woman's voice came from outside the door.

"Xu Bai, are you inside?"

He knew that voice all too well; the only woman he recognized here was Liu Xu.

"The door wasn't locked," Xu Bai said.

Liu Xu pushed open the door and entered, carrying a wine pot with two cups hanging from it.

Seeing this, Xu Bai handed the book in his hand to the first-rank puppet beside him and frowned, saying, "Want some wine?"

Liu Xu nodded and said, "I don't know what's going on, but I've been feeling restless lately. They say that what you think about during the day, you dream about at night, but I don't have any other thoughts, so I came here specifically to find you to cheer me up."

Although veiled, one could still see some worry in Liu Xu's eyes.

Liu Xu placed the wine pot on the table, Liu Xu a cup for Xu Bai, and the two clinked glasses and drank it down in one gulp.

"Feeling uneasy?" Xu Bai asked, "Weren't you perfectly fine at the Academy? Why do you seem so uneasy?"

Liu Xu shook her head and said, "I don't know either. Maybe it's because of all the things that have happened recently. Anyway, I feel like I've been acting strange lately."

"Every night I wake up in a fright, but I don't know why I'm awakened. And my strength is growing rapidly."

As she spoke, Liu Xu released her energy directly.

"It's already at the first rank. I find this speed very strange."

"By the way, I had a dream last night, a dream about you."

Xu Bai put down his wine cup, sensing Liu Xu's imposing aura and hearing Liu Xu words, and asked, "What dream?"

Liu Xu thought about it carefully before organizing her thoughts and speaking.

"I saw you waiting for me in a temple far from the Academy. I don't know why. And recently I went to the place in my dream. There really is a temple there."

"Moreover, this temple is an abandoned temple, and no one comes here."

"There is a large Great Buddha in the temple, just like the one in my dream. However, the Great Buddha in my dream shed tears of blood, while this Great Buddha looks very ordinary. I could only take a look from afar and did not rush in."

As she spoke, Liu Xu sighed and drank another cup of wine.

"Most importantly, you were in my dream too. I'm worried this might affect you. Why don't we go and take a look?"

Xu Bai fell into deep thought. This dream was quite strange. He was about to tell Liu Xu that he could take some time to go and see it, but before he could say it, he suddenly thought of something.

He quietly used his Soul-Checking Technique to scan the Liu Xu catkins.

The next moment, Xu Bai's eyes flashed, and he saw that there were two divine souls inside Liu Xu's body.

One of the souls was very weak, while the other soul was very strong, suppressing the weaker one.

Xu Bai put down his wine glass, a slight smile playing on his lips, "Tomorrow, I'm a little tired today. I've been reading too many books. Let's go again tomorrow."

Good heavens, I had no idea what I was looking for until I swept away the old witch. It turned out that the Old Hag he had been searching for was actually hiding in Liu Xu's body.

What Liu Xu just said was probably orchestrated by the Old Hag, so this is a scheme to lure her out. Old Hag probably thinks there's no opportunity to make a move inside the Academy.

Thinking about it this way, everything made sense, but Xu Bai didn't immediately agree.

Now that he has received the news, he needs to communicate with the dean and make sure that this Old Hag is pinned down and killed here.

And most importantly, this Old Hag has taken over Liu Xu's body, making it difficult for Xu Bai to make a move.

"Sigh, let's go tomorrow then." Liu Xu sighed again and said, "I'll be going now."

Without getting a definite answer and without finishing her drink, Liu Xu turned and left, citing other reasons.

After Liu Xu left, Xu Bai sat in his chair for a moment and then stood up and walked towards the dean's room.

The matter was urgent, and he couldn't afford to waste any time, so he didn't waste any more.

Soon, he returned to the dean's room and knocked on the door. The dean opened the door again and asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Could they have already found it?"

Xu Bai nodded without saying anything.

The dean immediately understood, let Xu Bai into the room, and closed the door. "Don't worry, no one here will know what we said. You can speak freely. I don't want anyone to know, not even Yun Zihai will hear."

Xu Bai nodded and recounted the whole story.

After listening, the dean fell into deep thought.

Xu Bai didn't say anything either. Apart from Yun Zihai, who was still playing with the iron ball, there was no other sound in the room.

As for what Dean Yun Zihai said, it was as if he hadn't heard it at all.

The room was quiet, as if time had stood still.

After a long while, the dean finally let out a long sigh.

"It really is Liu Xu, sigh..."

Xu Bai raised an eyebrow and said, "From what you're saying, you already knew that Liu Xu might have this possibility?"

The dean smiled wryly and said, "This child is somewhat special."

"She can read not only orthodox books, but also unorthodox books, and she herself is not even affected by those unorthodox books."

"I think she has great potential, because I have almost never seen someone who is so unaffected."

"This situation is also particularly attractive to my junior sister. I think she must have already planned to do this."

With that, the dean sighed again and continued.

"I guess my junior sister has already entered Liu Xu's body. She just doesn't usually prevent Liu Xu from taking control of the body. Liu Xu is unaware of this until the crucial moment when my junior sister takes control. Otherwise, Liu Xu's teacher should have been able to tell."

Xu Bai frowned and said, "Dean, do you mean that your junior sister originally wanted to take over Liu Xu's body and completely devour Liu Xu's soul?"

The dean gave Xu Bai a meaningful look and said, "That's right. My junior sister would naturally want to take on a special type like Liu Xu by force, but unexpectedly, you appeared halfway through, and you are a better choice for her."

"It is precisely because of your appearance that Liu Xu is temporarily out of danger; she is simply being controlled by my junior sister."

Xu Bai pondered for a moment and said, "It is indeed difficult."

Following the dean's method will solve the junior sister's problem, but only temporarily.

Most importantly, Liu Xu will be imprisoned forever, which is not what Xu Bai wants to see.

"Isn't there any other way?" Xu Bai asked.

The dean shook his head and said, "No, unless Liu Xu's own soul is strong enough to suppress her, it's simply impossible, because the more she fights with her, the weaker Liu Xu's soul will become."

"And most importantly, after she takes over Liu Xu's body, her cultivation speed will definitely be incredibly fast. After all, she once stayed at a very high level, and she will catch up sooner or later."

"Before they could catch up, I had to take the necessary measures."

The necessary method was to kill the Liu Xu.

The dean didn't make this very clear because he knew that the relationship between Liu Xu and Xu Bai was extraordinary, and making it too explicit would be counterproductive.

But Xu Bai was an extremely shrewd person; how could he not understand the meaning behind it? "In other words, he could make Liu Xu's strength advance by leaps and bounds even without using Liu Xu's soul," Xu Bai said. "In the end, he was forced to kill Liu Xu, but she would still escape."

"Yes." The dean smiled wryly. "If it were someone else, it might not be this fast, but Liu Xu herself has the advantages of both the righteous and the evil paths, and she cannot be controlled by Evil Book, so it just fits her characteristics."

In short, it's a difficult situation.

For Xu Bai, the more difficult part is the aftermath. If he really can't kill this Old Hag, Old Hag will definitely come back and find him again. So he must take this opportunity to completely eliminate the Old Hag.

The reason why Liu Xu cannot be killed is not only because Xu Bai and Liu Xu have an unusual relationship, but also because if she is killed, the Old Hag will definitely disappear, and then she will be in the shadows, making it difficult for Xu Bai to deal with her.

So, is there any solution? Xu Bai paced back and forth, thinking about a solution.

He went over what the dean had said to him from beginning to end, and finally looked up.

"What would happen if I let her possess my body and then fought her with my soul?"

The dean was taken aback, then his expression changed drastically. "Absolutely not! Her soul is very powerful; you can't possibly defeat her."

Xu Bai shook his head and said, "What I mean is, what if my soul could be repaired?"

Upon hearing this, the dean thought for a moment and said, "If it can be repaired, there is a possibility of slowly wearing her down to death. However, you must know the difference between your soul and hers, otherwise you will be instantly killed, and then there is no point in talking about it."

Halfway through the conversation, the dean suddenly realized the key point.

"Can you repair the soul?"

He felt that Xu Bai had been surprising him one after another lately.

Methods for repairing the soul are extremely rare in the martial arts world. They do exist, but they are generally extremely precious.

Back then, the man in white, Liu Qingfeng, sought out many professions that repaired souls in order to find this method, but ultimately failed to integrate them all.

The dean wondered if this young man in front of him was some kind of legendary son of heaven, how could he know everything? Of course, Xu Bai completely ignored the dean's shock.

He took out a piece of paper and roughly drew two circles, one larger and the other smaller, only half the size of the larger circle.

Then, he described the proportions, explaining that the two circles were divine souls, drawn on paper in a scaled-down form, with the larger one representing the dean's junior sister's divine soul and the smaller one representing his own.

"With this kind of gap, is it possible to avoid being instantly defeated by her?" Xu Bai asked.

It must be said that the dean's junior sister truly lived up to her reputation as a top figure of that era; her spiritual power was simply immense.

The dean glanced at it briefly and shook his head, saying, "It's very difficult. Even a slight difference in the power of the soul can make a world of difference. Most importantly, I don't know your recovery ability and can't calculate it."

Xu Bai opened his arms and silently uttered four words: "Attack my soul."

The dean was slightly surprised. "Do you know that this kind of pain is unbearable?"

He could easily guess that Xu Bai wanted to test him, but there were some things he had to say beforehand.

Xu Bai laughed and said, "I have suffered far more pain than this."

Back then, in the Ghost Market, the pain was truly unbearable; the pain that struck the soul was far more difficult than the physical pain.

"Moreover..." Xu Bai paused slightly, his eyes narrowed, and a cold light flashed in them.

"She has to die because I can't let a threat exist indefinitely. Even if it comes at a cost, she has to die."

At this moment, Xu Bai exuded an overwhelming chill.

This isn't a movie or TV series; he wouldn't let a potential threat escape. He should find an opportunity to kill the enemy in one fell swoop. That's what he should be doing.

Are we really going to wait for the enemy to shout "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river"?

Should we wait for the enemy to develop for a few hundred years before coming back to settle accounts with them?

That's impossible.

The dean withdrew his gaze, but his face still showed approval. "When I first saw you, I thought the rumors in the martial arts world were false, after all, everyone says you are ruthless, but now I can see a bit of that in you."

"Ruthless, your ruthlessness is not only towards others, but also towards yourself. It would be unreasonable for a young man like you not to achieve much in the future."

In the dean's mind, he had not seen the Blood Slaughtering Saber Wielder since he met Xu Bai, but today he discovered that the Blood Slaughtering Saber Wielder's shadow had been following Xu Bai everywhere.

As he spoke, the dean raised his index finger and pointed it at Xu Bai's brow, saying, "I will be careful, but it will hurt, so you'll have to bear with it."

Xu Bai smiled and said, "Come on."

The next moment, a surge of Righteous Qi burst forth from the dean's fingertips and instantly entered Xu Bai's mind.

The dean was very measured; he did not use his full strength, but only a fraction of it.

But even so, a sharp pain suddenly exploded in Xu Bai's mind.

The soul in his mind was being ravaged by the Righteous Qi, but soon, the effect of the Undying Soul Body appeared.

The ravaged soul was repaired in the blink of an eye, while the wisp of Righteous Qi, exhausted after destroying the soul, vanished into nothingness.

"It really hurts." Xu Bai forced a smile. "It's alright though."

The dean said, "I'll add a little more power."

Xu Bai nodded.

This time, more Righteous Qi entered his mind, and Xu Bai's soul was like a canoe on the sea, constantly tossing and turning.

However, the restorative power of the Undying Soul Body is repairing the divine soul at an even faster speed, keeping his divine soul in a state of balance forever.

Xu Bai guessed that the two attacks on his soul did not trigger a reaction from his cheat system, probably because they did not cause him fatal damage. Otherwise, like in the Ghost Market, it would have reacted long ago.

After a moment, the dean withdrew his hand, stroked his beard, and nodded. "There's hope."

Upon hearing these two simple words, Xu Bai nodded and said, "Then let's do it."

The dean asked in surprise, "You believe me?"

"In this world today, who can disbelieve what the Dean says? Besides, even the Dean wouldn't dare let me die at the Azure Cloud Academy, would he?" Xu Bai said with a smile.

He was a king of a different surname, backed by the emperor and the Rising Dusk King. Even Azure Cloud Academy dared not let him make any mistakes here, otherwise they would suffer the wrath of the Great Chu Kingdom.

"You're quite clever. Don't worry, if I say it can be done, it can be done." The dean said confidently, "No one knows my junior sister better than me. I know her inside and out."

Xu Bai's lips twitched; he felt that the dean was uttering inappropriate words again.

Sure enough, the dean added another sentence, straightening out what had gone astray.

"After all, we're like siblings; we grew up together."

Xu Bai rubbed his forehead, and after confirming that there was nothing wrong, he said, "Tomorrow, I will go with her to that temple she mentioned. That will be the time to make my move."

The dean nodded and said, "I will keep a close watch on things to make sure that no one other than her is involved."

Xu Bai agreed, then suddenly remembered something and held out his hand, saying, "Give it to me."

The dean was stunned. "What?"

Xu Bai smiled slyly, "Look, I helped your Academy get rid of such a big scourge, so I should at least show some appreciation, right?"

At that moment, his murderous aura vanished, and his ruthlessness disappeared, replaced by the shrewdness of a businessman.

The dean said helplessly, "But the reason I called you to the Azure Cloud Academy was to help you get rid of her. Even if you were outside, you would still attract her attention. Here with me, I'm the one who's keeping you safe."

"No, no." Xu Bai waved his hand and said, "This matter cannot be discussed like that. Actually, I have the majority share, right? You have the minority share. In that case, I have to put in more effort, so I am more important."

The dean's lips twitched as he said, "Tell me, what do you want?"

"How about I go to the Azure Cloud Academy and read books around there for a year or two..." Xu Bai tentatively suggested.

The dean interrupted directly, "Stop. This book is another travelogue I wrote when I was young. The books in the Academy are very precious. There are rules about this, rules set by successive deans. I cannot break them. You can take this book."

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai knew that the matter was unlikely to succeed, so he could only settle for second best and received the travelogue. He was still very satisfied to see the golden progress bar on it.

"Then I'll be going. Remember to act together tomorrow."

He waved his hand and left, leaving the dean standing there dumbfounded.

After returning to his room, Xu Bai closed the door again. He didn't go out again, but instead picked up the Enhanced Strengthening Body Art and started grinding the progress bar once more.

As for dealing with the dean's junior sister, the outcome will naturally be known after tomorrow.

Xu Bai had to make a move because this guy was an old monster, and a cunning and treacherous one at that.

If we let her escape, and she comes back to find Xu Bai after she's fully developed, that would be a real problem.

Xu Bai usually eliminates trouble completely, so the Old Hag must die.

"Let's see what you can come up with tomorrow."

The next day.

The morning sun shone earlier than usual, streaming in through the window early. Xu Bai heard a knock on the door and opened his eyes.

Arriving at the door, he opened it and saw Liu Xu standing calmly outside, which made him smile.

Liu Xu asked, "Shall we set off now?"

"Of course." Xu Bai's smile deepened.

After getting this thing, I felt like a saint, even though it was 40 degrees Celsius.