Great Evolution Body Refining Technique! Further Breakthrough!

The snowstorm gradually subsided around Liu Yuan.

With a thought, the three Soul Rings—yellow, purple, and black—quietly vanished, and the radiant gleam flowing through his Double Pupil receded into its depths.

He steadied the slightly restless Soul Power within him after jumping four levels in a row, then strode toward Du Busi.

Yet when he approached, he discovered that his bargain-bin master was not laughing heartily as before. Instead, Du Busi stood with his hands behind his back and his brows tightly furrowed, lost in deep thought.

"Master, what are you thinking about? Were you still dissatisfied with my display just now?" Liu Yuan asked doubtfully.

Hearing this, Du Busi came back to his senses. His dark green eyes swept over Liu Yuan again and again before he finally let out a faint sigh. "I was thinking, since your Third Spirit Ring is already this powerful, once you reach Level 40, what exactly should I find for your Fourth Spirit Ring?"

"..."

"Master, I've barely warmed up this Third Spirit Ring, and you're already planning that far ahead?"

"Far ahead? Not at all!" Du Busi snorted and pointed at him righteously.

"How long did it take you, brat, to cultivate from Level 20 to Level 30?"

"At your rate of advancement, you might reach Level 40 in another half year or year. Shouldn't I start digging through my stores in advance to see what kind of ten-thousand-year Soul Beast deserves those eyes of yours?"

Hearing that, Liu Yuan could not help falling into brief thought.

Indeed, that was not wrong.

Moreover, he had a great deal of room to choose when it came to his Fourth Spirit Ring.

If he continued to delve into spiritual attributes, he could seek out Soul Beasts with top-tier Illusion Technique or Soul Stripping abilities, killing without a trace.

If he wanted to strengthen the physical suppression brought by the Qilin Precious Technique, he could even use his immense spiritual power to condense an indestructible solid shell, making close-quarters combat even more purely violent.

So Liu Yuan himself had not yet decided how to choose.

"No rush, Master. We'll take it as it comes." Liu Yuan smiled, then looked around the snow-covered wilderness before asking Du Busi,

"Now that the Soul Ring has been settled, are we heading back?"

"Back? The Extreme North Core Region is a natural treasure ground. You might not get to visit it even once a year. Wouldn't leaving just like this be a terrible waste?"

As he spoke, Du Busi took out an ancient dark cyan book from his robes, its cover faintly gleaming with a metallic luster, and casually tossed it to Liu Yuan.

"Take it. This is the secret art of my Body Sect—Great Evolution Body Refining Technique."

"I originally planned to teach it to you once you reached Level 40 and your body had fully taken shape."

"But now, it seems that since you have obtained the Qilin Precious Technique, your physical strength has already met the standard ahead of time."

"And this place is perfect for it."

Liu Yuan caught the book. The instant his fingertips touched its cover, he felt an inexplicable heaviness.

He opened the first page and quickly swept his gaze across the densely packed diagrams of meridian circulation.

Soon, he found a note at the end of the book:

[Great Evolution Body Refining follows the heavens and is born against adversity. In places of extreme cold, extreme heat, or violent lightning, the technique operates at double efficiency, while the body-tempering effect increases geometrically.]

"Extreme cold..." Liu Yuan raised his head and looked at the polar gale around them, powerful enough to freeze steel blades into pieces in an instant. His eyes immediately lit up. "Master, you mean for me to refine my body here?"

"Correct. Though the Qilin Precious Technique is formidable, it is ultimately an external enhancement granted by a Soul Skill. Only when your own flesh reaches the point of being indestructible will you truly be able to bear higher-level Soul Rings." Du Busi pointed toward the distant glacier.

"Go on, then. See whether the fierce winds of the Extreme North can sharpen the edge of this fine blade of yours!"

"Alright!" Liu Yuan agreed without hesitation.

Over the next half month, Liu Yuan and Du Busi vanished completely into the depths of the Extreme North's snowstorm.

Liu Yuan discarded his clothing entirely, sitting cross-legged atop an ice peak that had not melted for ten thousand years, his lean and powerful upper body bare.

He madly circulated the Great Evolution Body Refining Technique, guiding the icy chill outside, cold enough to freeze the soul, into his skin. Then, using his powerful Soul Power to transform it, he repeatedly washed and tempered every bone and muscle in his body.

Every day, Liu Yuan's body underwent the brutal cycle of freezing apart and repairing itself.

Amid the extreme pain, he became increasingly aware of the importance of physical strength.

Not enough. I need to become stronger!

He knew very well that if his body could rise another level, then when his Fourth Spirit Ring arrived, he might be able to attempt reaching for those deep-black Soul Rings representing forty or fifty thousand years of cultivation.

By then, the qualitative change in his Soul Skills and the feedback from his level advancement would allow him to leave behind those of his age group—and even the older generation of powerhouses—at an even more terrifying speed.

Time flowed on, and fifteen days passed in a flash.

On this day, Liu Yuan, who had been sitting as still as a statue, suddenly shuddered. A lustrous, jade-like yet indestructible aura flashed across the surface of his body.

The lines of his muscles became smoother and tighter, while every inch of his skin faintly carried the texture of divine metal.

More importantly, as his body completed this minor breakthrough, the Soul Power that had accumulated for so long finally took that step naturally.

Level 35!

In less than twenty days, he had advanced another level.

This sort of speed was enough to make anyone who called himself a genius die of shame and fury.

"Good! Your blood and qi flow like mercury, your sinews and bones thunder. Your Great Evolution Body Refining Technique has finally entered the beginner stage!"

Du Busi's figure instantly appeared beside Liu Yuan, his eyes filled with satisfaction.

Liu Yuan opened his eyes. The sharp gleam shooting from his Double Pupil stirred ripples through the air. He stretched his muscles and bones, feeling as though he possessed inexhaustible strength.

"Still not satisfied?" Du Busi seemed to see through his thoughts. His gaze suddenly shifted toward an ice field ahead and to the side, and he gave a sly chuckle.

"Perfect timing. Three miles west, there's a ten-thousand-year Ice Ape that has just returned from feeding."

"That beast possesses boundless strength and excels at close-quarters combat. Since both your cultivation and body have broken through, go use it to test yourself. Let's see just how strong you are in actual combat now."

After hearing Du Busi's words, Liu Yuan fell silent for a moment.

He knew very well that a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast's actual combat strength was already equivalent to that of a human Soul King or even a Soul Emperor.

On top of that, this was the Extreme North, the creature's home ground. Fighting it here would be extremely dangerous.

But Liu Yuan looked carefully at Du Busi again.

Seeing Du Busi grinning at him, he heard him ask, "What? Scared?"

Liu Yuan gave a cold snort. "Scared of what? With you covering for me, Master, what do I have to fear? I'll go meet it!"