The World's Erosion

"Boom, boom, boom!"

Violent knocking rang out. Looking at the trembling door, it was clear the person outside was in a bad mood.

"Click~"

"An Zhen, you bastard!"

Wang Dong stormed in, clutching her bedding, furious.

"A Beautiful Girl shouldn't curse."

The calm-faced youth said slowly, his black eyes seeming to gather something murky, strands of emotion being stripped away.

"How dare you say that!"

Her fair cheeks flushed red—not from barging into a boy's dorm at night, but from sheer anger.

Just as she was about to lie down and rest, she'd caught a strange, refreshing scent. Turning her head, she saw a layer of blue water mist enveloping Huo Yutong.

Remembering what An Zhen had won from that sixth-grade big shot, there was no doubt—Huo Yutong's condition was from taking the Xuan Water Pill. Wang Dong refused to believe he didn't know the effects of that pill.

She was amazed that An Zhen would use a pill worth tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins on someone he'd only met a day or two ago, but she was even more furious—furious that he knew full well and still made Huo Yutong take it at night.

Where was she supposed to sleep?

Go to him?

A Spiritual Light suddenly exploded in Wang Dong's mind. Her dreamlike, beautiful pink-blue eyes instantly filled with wariness. She lowered her body slightly, her pajamas hugging her form tightly, looking ready to strike at any moment.

"The Xuan Water Pill—don't you dare say you didn't do it on purpose."

"Do what on purpose?"

An Zhen stood up and took a clean, soft blanket from the wardrobe.

As if struck by a thought, the youth suddenly stepped forward, a sly smile on his handsome face, backing the bedding-clutching girl into a corner. She raised a pale fist, as if to say she wasn't someone to mess with.

"Wang Dong, you don't think I planned this to share a room with you, do you?"

"Isn't that the case?"

Wang Dong swore—if this guy had even a hint of such scumbag intentions, that fist would land on his face in the next second.

"I honestly didn't think of that."

An Zhen shook his head lightly, then kept a proper distance between them. His soft voice rang out, "Stay here tonight. I'll find somewhere else to crash."

"?"

Had she really misjudged him?

Wang Dong was puzzled.

But the youth was already moving. He tossed the blanket, and two objects arced through the air onto the bed. "These are the two keys to the dorm."

"You're serious?"

"Take it or leave it."

A slightly cold voice sounded.

"!"

"How dare you snap at me!"

Wang Dong caught the hostility in that tone, but just as she was about to retort, the youth's slightly unsteady figure disappeared around the corner.

"Hmph! You know what's good for you!"

"Slap!"

The dorm door slammed shut in a fit of pique.

"I wasn't snapping at you."

Just outside the dorm building, An Zhen let out a helpless sigh. The struggle in his eyes grew more pronounced.

This was the aftermath of overloading his martial soul temporarily.

A person could influence their martial soul—through will, talent, or other aspects. And a martial soul could influence a person too, like the Evil Fire Phoenix, or those that, upon awakening, were branded as Evil Soul Masters—not from prejudice, but from the painful lessons of the past. A powerful martial soul was like a sentient divine artifact; those who could wield and control it became top-tier experts, but those who couldn't became slaves to its power.

World Modulation Mode.

Or rather, the World.

Without a doubt, it was an incredibly powerful martial soul.

Innate Full Soul Power wasn't its limit—it was the limit of An Zhen's body. He wasn't like the Qian family of Martial Soul Hall, blessed with divine bloodline and even bestowed divine trials every generation.

Since his martial soul was the World.

Then what was he?

The Heavenly Dao.

An Zhen found a fitting term from the myths of his past life.

The Heavenly Dao was impartial and emotionless, like a machine devoid of thought or feeling, keeping the entire world running in order.

A martial soul that can autonomously absorb the energy of heaven and earth, continuously strengthening his spirit—it sounds like having a cheat code turned on.

But there's no such thing in the world as getting something for nothing without paying any price.

The erosion of his martial soul, gradually drawing him closer to the Heavenly Dao—that is the price.

Ordinarily, the erosion isn't severe enough to affect his daily life, but every time the world is significantly enhanced (by devouring vast amounts of pure heavenly energy, such as from a blessed cave or paradise), every time An Zhen's authority increases by a large margin (by obtaining a soul ring), or when he overuses his power like now, the erosion suddenly worsens.

The world rejects him.

His martial soul erodes him.

Good grief, getting stronger these days really isn't easy.

But fortunately, the former problem is already solved—with Huo Yutong around, there's no issue.

As for the latter, An Zhen has his own solution.

Heavenly Dao, human nature.

Since his martial soul wants to turn him into an emotionless Heavenly Dao.

All he has to do is strengthen his own emotions to resist it, or increase the anchors that reinforce his humanity.

In the end, master everything!

'Thankfully, I matured early in this life, or else doing certain things would be really inconvenient.'

'But then, who should I pick this time?'

Although he can't reset his state with a single refresh through the Virtual World, using the Virtual World to solve it is just as good—it won't affect anyone, keeping An Zhen from having to do the kind of things Ma Hongjun did in his teens.

The boy, his steps a little unsteady, wandered through the academy at night. Among the countless stars, a silver moon hung high in the sky, its silvery light spilling down onto the world, draping the daytime blue lake in a shimmering, beautiful glow.

"Is this... Sea God Lake?"

In Shrek Academy, there seems to be only one lake this big—Sea God Lake.

"An outer courtyard student?"

A clear, cool, and crisp voice sounded in An Zhen's ears.

The boy, wrapped in a blanket, turned around and closed his eyes under the other's puzzled gaze.

Virtual World, Second Soul Skill, Tuo Yin.

He opened his eyes.

"Yeah."

"If you run into any trouble, you can find a teacher." The tall, fiery figure left behind a single sentence. The next moment, the originally chilly night temperature shot up, and crimson flames traced the shape of a graceful bird, wrapping around the tall figure as she shot across the lake like a meteor, departing.

"Looks like I was misunderstood."

Pale face, looking utterly weak, wandering outside in the middle of the night instead of sleeping in the dorm, wrapped in a blanket.

Shaking his head, An Zhen spread the larger blanket on the grass, lay down directly, and pulled a corner of the blanket over his stomach.

Virtual World.

Second Soul Skill, Tuo Yin.

By the Sea God Lake in the Virtual World, a red boot stepped onto the soil.

It was an incredibly beautiful person.

A head of crimson hair, like burning flames, a delicate oval face beneath her bangs, appearing to be in the bloom of her twenties. The slightly cold lines of her face added a touch of aloofness to her stunning beauty. A gorgeous red dress outlined her perfect curves, with a breathtaking fullness arching in a beautiful curve.

"Grant reality, relationship, passionate lovers." The virtual deity issued the command.

"An Zhen?" A voice tinged with a hint of confusion sounded.

The next moment, plump softness pressed against the boy's cheek.

"It's like a ridiculous yet beautiful dream."

An Zhen rarely grants real emotions to his projected figures, because the projections are inherently false—but that beauty makes one want to indulge in it.

Still, at times like this, just enjoy it.

As his body's various abilities gradually matured, the soul that had once been in his twenties, the long-dormant primal desires quietly revived.

Eyes full of maidenly tenderness looked at her lover with confusion, then she willingly offered her fragrant kiss, conveying a false but fervent love to the real boy.

A tall, graceful figure appeared beside the two, identical to the beauty holding An Zhen, except for the maid outfit that revealed large swaths of fair skin and the black stockings wrapped around her long, shapely but not skinny legs.