One Meal a Day, One Meal Lasting All Day

10099 - 3050 = 7049.

His wallet had taken a massive hit.

"This really is a world where scholars are poor and warriors are rich!"

More than three thousand Gold Soul Coins did not sound like much. Compared to the source material, where figures casually reached hundreds of thousands or even millions, three thousand Gold Soul Coins were practically insignificant.

But Huo Yuhao only earned five Copper Soul Coins for selling one grilled fish. To make three thousand and fifty Gold Soul Coins, he would have to sell a full 6.1 million grilled fish.

Even RT-Mart could not slaughter as much as he could.

Luckily, the system had given him more than ten thousand Gold Soul Coins as startup capital. Otherwise, who knew how difficult Chen Yumo's path of evolution would have been.

How could evolving a Martial Soul require little in the way of resources?

Even people needed to eat more meals and meat if they wanted to grow taller and stronger. How could a Martial Soul possibly evolve just by breathing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth? Gangzi had cultivated to level twenty-nine—only he knew how many resources from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan he had consumed.

After returning all the way to his dormitory at Nuoding Academy, Chen Yumo finally breathed a sigh of relief after closing the door.

This was the first time he had exposed his wealth. One could never be too careful, and just as he had concluded earlier, three thousand Gold Soul Coins already counted as a huge sum. It was not impossible for it to make others jealous.

On the way back, he had deliberately stayed alert to his surroundings. Though he had not noticed anyone following him, he did not consider himself completely safe until he returned to his dormitory.

After sensing the three medicinal ingredients in the System Space, Chen Yumo pondered for a while before putting aside the thought of consuming the Whale Rubber.

The Whale Rubber's main effect was improving one's physical constitution, slightly increasing the age limit of Spirit Rings a Spirit Master could withstand.

But in Chen Yumo's view, the age limit of a Spirit Ring was not measured by physical fitness alone.

There was no need to mention the mental aspect. That was a problem one would only encounter after absorbing a ten-thousand-year Spirit Ring.

What he meant was the Martial Soul itself.

It was true that Spirit Rings were absorbed by Spirit Masters, but fundamentally, Spirit Rings were part of a Martial Soul's power. How could one consider only the Spirit Master's physical constitution when absorbing a Spirit Ring, without considering the Martial Soul's strength?

When carrying a bag by hand, did one only need to consider whether one's hand was strong enough to lift it, without considering whether the bag could bear the weight of whatever was inside after being lifted?

An ordinary plastic bag might be able to hold a massive chunk of gold equal to its capacity, but could its material guarantee that it would not tear apart once someone lifted it?

In Chen Yumo's view, absorbing a Spirit Ring was like carrying a bag by hand.

Not only did one have to consider whether the Spirit Master had enough strength to lift the bag, but one also had to consider whether, after the bag held something like a Spirit Ring, it would burst the moment it was lifted because it was not strong enough.

He had no choice but to consider this factor, because the Ice Silkworm's foundation was simply too weak.

If this theory was correct, then Chen Yumo needed to think carefully about it.

If he foolishly ate the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber, assumed that meant he could absorb a thousand-year Spirit Ring, then went and absorbed one beyond his level as his first Spirit Ring, only for his Martial Soul to be blown apart on the spot by the Spirit Ring's energy... that would be quite something.

If his Martial Soul shattered, he would be crippled even if he did not die.

Whale Rubber was a good thing, but unfortunately, he most likely had no chance of enjoying it right now.

"Only after truly coming to Douluo Continent and beginning to cultivate a Martial Soul did I realize that cultivation is nowhere near as easy as it seems," Chen Yumo sighed softly.

There were pitfalls everywhere.

Fortunately, he was cautious enough.

After burying those concerns in his heart, Chen Yumo spread open his hands. He summoned the Ice Silkworm in one hand and held a Cold Mulberry Leaf in the other.

The Cold Mulberry Leaf looked almost no different from an ordinary Mulberry Leaf. Only its veins were a faint bluish green, and it felt slightly cool to the touch.

After he placed the Mulberry Leaf before the Ice Silkworm, Chen Yumo did not even need to control it. It instinctively wriggled its way onto the leaf, then opened its mouth and began nibbling along the edge.

Rustle, rustle...

Rustle, rustle...

This directly proved that Chen Yumo's Ice Silkworm possessed independent awareness. Though it was still weak, it could already act on instinct without control from him, its Master. Once it grew through several more stages, perhaps it would become like a real living creature.

As he watched the Ice Silkworm continuously gnawing on the Mulberry Leaf, Chen Yumo's eyes gradually became unfocused.

Watching a silkworm eat Mulberry Leaves was as addictive as watching an excavator at work.

The Ice Silkworm's tiny mouth was like a paper cutter, repeatedly tracing arcs along the leaf's edge and eating the Mulberry Leaf bit by bit.

Chen Yumo had raised silkworms before, though that had been when he was very young. Back then, after school, he had liked sneaking over to the neighbor's house to pick Mulberry Leaves for his silkworms, then watching them for an entire day.

Just like now.

The difference was that, as Chen Yumo watched the Ice Silkworm eat the Mulberry Leaf, faint traces of coolness continuously surfaced in his abdomen, and the Soul Power within his body rose by an almost imperceptible amount.

Even if it was an External Martial Soul, it was still his Martial Soul. Fundamentally, it was one with him.

The Martial Soul consumed medicinal ingredients, absorbing and digesting their effects. As its Master, he could benefit as well.

This also confirmed Chen Yumo's previous guess. When the Ice Silkworm ate something containing energy, his Soul Power would increase in tandem.

He had noticed it during cultivation last night. The Ice Silkworm Martial Soul truly possessed extraordinary potential in his vision, but at this stage, it was simply too weak. With only innate level-one Soul Power, his talent was practically sewer-tier, and his cultivation speed was even slower than his Ice Silkworm Martial Soul's wriggling speed.

At this rate, if he relied on meditation to cultivate normally, even under ideal conditions, it would take him more than half a year to rise by one level.

Cultivation speed had always been his greatest weakness.

But now, while the Ice Silkworm ate Mulberry Leaves, his Soul Power would increase alongside it. That meant Chen Yumo could finally say goodbye to his former snail-paced cultivation speed.

"Starting today, I'm taking off!" Chen Yumo excitedly stood up and held the Ice Silkworm high above his head.

"..."

Ice Silkworm: Rustle, rustle...

Haochi!

After feeding the Ice Silkworm for a while longer, Chen Yumo watched it until he made himself hungry too. Seeing how deliciously the Ice Silkworm was eating, his stomach could not help growling.

Since the Ice Silkworm could eat by itself and did not need him to control its feeding, Chen Yumo simply held it in his palm and continued feeding it as he left the dormitory for the cafeteria.

The Soul Power the Ice Silkworm's eating gave him was greater than what he gained from cultivating himself. That meant that as long as he continuously fed Cold Mulberry Leaves to the Ice Silkworm, Chen Yumo was effectively meditating twenty-four hours a day.

Moreover, unlike actual cultivation, this process was not dull and tedious.

If the Ice Silkworm, as a Martial Soul, had not been unable to move too far away from him, he would have wanted to find a box for it and let it stuff itself every second of the day, working hard to make Chen Yumo stronger.

But then a problem arose.

Whose Ice Silkworm only ate one meal a day, with that one meal lasting an entire day?