"Hmph, I'm not some shallow guy." Tian Meng curled his lip.
He had to admit that Su Mo's qualifications were countless times better than little Yuhao's.
And this was still ten thousand years earlier. With God King Tang no longer running the table, becoming a god wouldn't be difficult. Divine inheritances were practically everywhere.
He simply wanted something a little more tangible.
As if seeing through Tian Meng's thoughts, Su Mo smiled and said, "Don't worry, Brother Sky Dream. I'll save a spot for the Ice Empress."
"Then it's settled! If you don't deliver, I won't let you off."
Tian Meng immediately sealed the deal.
He was so quick that even Su Mo was taken aback for a moment.
But it made sense. Despite possessing nearly a million years of cultivation, Tian Meng hadn't encountered many people or experienced much. Though his intelligence was no less than a human's, he was still somewhat naive-or rather, innocent.
Fortunately, Su Mo wasn't a bad person either.
"Oh, right. Once you're stronger, you have to avenge me. They sucked out my Soul Power, so I'll turn every last one of them into Soul Rings and Soul Bones. Hmph, heh, hahahaha..."
Recalling his earlier ordeal, Tian Meng added another condition.
Yet as he spoke, he seemed to imagine the fate awaiting those creatures and couldn't help laughing.
Su Mo: "..."
Another lunatic having an episode.
Where had that brooding, somber air gone after he had been spoiled on the future?
If Tian Meng hadn't been a mental-type beast, and Froglet hadn't already obtained his first ring, Su Mo would have wanted to pair the two of them up.
"Slurp~"
Wiping away his drool, Tian Meng looked at Su Mo again, his eyes brimming with eagerness.
"So, uh, when do we start? I can't wait to sacrifice myself."
Su Mo: "..."
Why was he suddenly so impatient?
"Brother Sky Dream, an ordinary sacrifice won't work. You need to figure out the Wisdom Soul Ring first..."
"I already have!" Tian Meng interrupted before Su Mo could finish.
"Huh?" Su Mo froze.
"You figured it out already? It's barely been any time. Wasn't that the culmination of thousands of years of your wisdom?"
Embarrassed, Tian Meng tried to scratch his head, discovered his arms were too short to reach, and explained sheepishly, "The principle behind it isn't actually that hard. After watching the story, I worked backward a few steps and figured it out."
Su Mo: "..."
So you used the story to instantly reproduce something that had taken you thousands of years to develop?
No, wait. You actually spent thousands of years figuring out something with such a simple underlying principle?
"Heh. Should I call you clever, or a big genius?"
Su Mo didn't know what to say. Tian Meng, however, missed the sarcasm entirely and raised his head proudly.
"A big genius, obviously. I'm so big, how could I not be a big genius?"
Su Mo: "..."
Sure, sure. As long as you're happy.
The man and the silkworm briefly discussed the procedure, and Tian Meng began his sacrifice.
"Here we go. Don't worry, I'll be gentle."
"Cut the dirty talk and come at me head-on!" Su Mo met the challenge squarely.
Then he felt an intensely cold aura invade his entire body and instantly lost consciousness.
Meanwhile, the nine golden rings on Tian Meng's body began to pulse, slowly detaching from him and transferring into Su Mo one after another.
Just as the final golden ring was about to leave his body, Tian Meng suddenly had a flash of inspiration-
He shot straight to the million-year mark!
Another golden ring grew on his body.
"Hohoho... hehehe... hahaha..."
"I did it! The first Million-Year Soul Beast on the entire continent! Well, probably..."
Suddenly, Tian Meng seemed to sense a terrifying energy gathering outside, already faintly affecting the stability of the separate dimension.
If he delayed any longer, the Frog House might collapse and be annihilated.
"So I really can't become a god..."
Though he had already known, Tian Meng still couldn't hide his disappointment.
He looked at Su Mo. Now he had no choice but to sacrifice himself. Closing his eyes, he transformed into a white halo of light and poured into Su Mo's body.
"Hmph, level thirteen. A little stronger than little Yuhao, but not by much. I'll still have to seal away most of my power..."
As the two fused, an invisible wave of mental energy spread outward.
Fortunately, this was a separate dimension, so it couldn't reach the outside world.
Anyone inside the space, however, suffered. Xiao Wu was completely engulfed by the mental wave and instantly fell into a daze.
Fortunately, the mental impact wasn't particularly destructive and only caused a brief lapse in awareness.
At that moment, Su Mo's entire body shone white as jade. A luminous white ring quietly appeared beneath him, circled his body several times, then gradually faded and merged back into him.
When Su Mo opened his eyes again, he found himself in his Sea of Consciousness.
Looking down, he realized he was stark naked.
"Oh, you're pretty quick, Brother Sky Dream." Su Mo surveyed his surroundings.
This pure white space stretched endlessly, yet his vision could reach every corner. Ten golden-white orbs hung high above...
"Huh? Ten?"
Su Mo suddenly noticed something amiss. Didn't Tian Meng currently have only nine golden markings?
So he broke through every time he sacrificed himself, huh?
Nice, nice, nice!
Though he wouldn't have turned up his nose at nine hundred thousand years, a million years was naturally even sweeter.
"So your name is Su Mo."
"You read my memories?" Su Mo's expression darkened.
A chibi Tian Meng appeared, frantically waving his hands. "No, no! I have principles. I just accidentally caught a glimpse of your name."
He wasn't lying this time.
Knowing that Su Mo's origins were anything but ordinary, he wouldn't overstep his bounds, however curious he was, and sour their partnership.
Seeing that Tian Meng didn't seem to be lying, Su Mo let it go and instead asked, "Did I gain another Martial Soul slot?"
"Uh, I did originally plan to give you an ice-type Martial Soul, but your divine artifact absorbed the ice attribute inside me during the sacrifice."
Tian Meng spread his little hands, making it clear that this wasn't his fault.
"Huh?" Su Mo was startled.
Then he recalled the Infinity Gauntlet's characteristic-the Infinity Stones.
Could the so-called pure energy mean ultimate attributes?
Su Mo summoned the Infinity Gauntlet.
Although he couldn't summon his actual Martial Soul into the Sea of Consciousness, he could simulate its real-world form.
He raised his right hand and turned his forearm over, revealing that one of the sockets on the back of the gauntlet had been filled.
An ice-blue gemstone sat in the socket, wisps of cold emanating from it.
"I'll call it the Ice Stone for now. I wonder what it does..."
Su Mo tried several times, but he couldn't use it at all.
"Is it because I haven't absorbed a Soul Ring?"
Dismissing the Infinity Gauntlet, Su Mo asked Tian Meng about his soul skills.
Tian Meng stammered, "Well, uh, you can't really blame me for this either. Your Divine Eye really is extraordinary. I couldn't pull any strings behind the scenes."
"Ahem. I couldn't interfere with the soul skills, but I did make you a Soul Bone. A skull bone, no less!"
"A skull bone!" Su Mo's eyes instantly lit up.
Tian Meng was now a Million-Year Soul Beast, so the Soul Bone he condensed would naturally be a Million-Year Soul Bone, complete with four Soul Bone Skills.
He looked at Tian Meng. "You should be able to arrange those Soul Bone Skills, right?"