The Direction of the Second Evolution

"Gangzi, oh, Gangzi..." Chen Yumo smiled as he toyed with his fingers, letting the Frost Illusion Butterfly Martial Soul flutter up and down between them.

"Now that I've taken the first step toward becoming one of the strongest, and even received an upper-mid Grade A certification in Brother System's Martial Soul potential rating, you—the one who declared I could never become a Spirit Master—can only hide like a sewer rat, too afraid even to leave your room..."

He still could not forget Yu Xiaogang's mockery in public that afternoon.

To Chen Yumo, using Hook Literature to disgust Yu Xiaogang was merely a way to vent his anger.

If he truly wanted revenge, he had to become an absolute powerhouse. Only by crushing Yu Xiaogang like an ant with invincible strength could he completely settle this grudge.

Yu Xiaogang had declared him to be nothing but a useless bug, so he would stand at the summit, slap Yu Xiaogang's face hard, and let him see who the real bug was!

After absorbing his first Spirit Ring, Chen Yumo did not remain in Holy Soul Village for long. After informing Old Jack, he returned to Nuoding Academy.

After all, he had left Nuoding Academy without asking for leave. A brief absence was fine and would not draw attention, but if he stayed away too long, then no matter how low his presence at the academy was, someone would eventually notice that he had gone missing.

His first evolution had given him the potential to cast off the label of trash, but it had not yet given him the strength to fear nothing.

What Chen Yumo needed to do was continue living peacefully at Nuoding Academy, slowly accumulating strength until he had passed through this most vulnerable period.

"I'm in Nuoding, leveling up alone!"

Chen Yumo had only been away from the academy for two days. When he rejoined the group, no one noticed that he had silently vanished for a day and a night.

That was the benefit of reducing his own presence.

Aside from occasionally making an appearance before Xiao Lao Da to see whether the boss might arrange another hidden plotline for him, Chen Yumo rarely had much interaction with anyone else.

Unfortunately, the hidden plotline he had hoped for never appeared. Even the boss could only be squeezed dry for so long.

No one knew that Chen Yumo had silently become a one-ring Spirit Master, and that his Martial Soul had completed a perfect evolution with the support of theory.

If his theoretical and practical process were compiled into a book and spread throughout the world, he would definitely be hailed as a true theoretical scholar and Martial Soul master, rather than a self-proclaimed master like Gangzi who relied on plagiarism.

As someone devoted to lying low, Chen Yumo would not push himself into the spotlight at a time like this.

After his Martial Soul evolved, some changes came to Chen Yumo's life during this period.

He had finished the Cold Mulberry Leaves he had purchased before. For the time being, he did not buy more. Instead, he needed to plan the direction of his next evolution, study the relevant knowledge, and purchase the corresponding medicinal herbs.

As early as the Louse Swarm battle two and a half years ago, Chen Yumo had already planned the direction of his second Martial Soul evolution.

As the owner of an External Beast Martial Soul, his main body was too weak, and a butterfly's defense was hardly worth mentioning. Otherwise, that Ice Mist Cold Butterfly would not have been knocked down by two arrows from Chen Yumo.

His second evolution had to strengthen his defensive capabilities so that he could better preserve his life.

"The second evolution... then it shall be the Nine Transformations of the Divine Silkworm's—Basalt Transformation!"

Black Turtle-Snakes existed on Douluo Continent as well. Xu Sanshi of the Peerless Tang Sect was a typical example of the Mysterious Underworld Shield evolving into a Black Turtle-Snake. The one that helped him successfully evolve was a hundred-thousand-year Golden Hawksbill Turtle.

If Chen Yumo wanted to fix the second transformation as the Basalt Transformation, he had to obtain a Golden Hawksbill Turtle Spirit Ring.

And as far as he knew, the Star Dou Great Forest was the only place that had this type of Spirit Beast.

Not only were Golden Hawksbill Turtles rare, but medicines that could grant the Ice Silkworm both water- and earth-attribute origins were also difficult to find. This evolution might not go as smoothly as the first one.

The Metamorphosis from a silkworm to a Black Turtle-Snake spanned far too great a distance.

By Chen Yumo's estimate, he would most likely only obtain a portion of the Black Turtle-Snake bloodline at first. The second transformation would probably grant abilities somewhere between a Golden Transformation and a Hawksbill Transformation.

But that was fine. As long as the evolution succeeded, the bloodline's Metamorphosis could be gradually completed later.

The Bloodline Secret Technique was a cultivation method for developing bloodline abilities, so it naturally included methods of purifying one's bloodline. Therefore, strengthening his bloodline was not something he needed to worry about yet.

Medicinal herbs with both water and earth attributes...

There really were not many of those...

In the days that followed, Chen Yumo studied the knowledge in the Encyclopedia Advanced Edition during the day. Whenever he grew tired of studying, he practiced the Bloodline Secret Technique to develop the Frost Illusion Butterfly's abilities. At night, after cultivating for four hours, he lay down in bed at exactly eleven-thirty, slept for eight full hours like a baby, opened his eyes at exactly seven-thirty the next morning, and repeated the previous day's training schedule.

Even his physical examination report said his body was very healthy.

One day, Chen Yumo suddenly discovered that Gangzi had appeared on Nuoding Academy's campus again after more than a year. He even strode around openly, completely shedding his previous dejected appearance.

Chen Yumo: What did this mean?

Had the gloomy little rat finally crawled out of the sewer?

Then he saw Tang San, smiling brightly, leave together with him and Nuoding Academy's dean.

Well then, so Tang San had broken through Rank Twenty and could obtain his second Spirit Ring to become a Soul Grandmaster. No wonder Gangzi was so happy.

Tang San was about the same age as Chen Yumo. Both were still a few months away from turning nine. Breaking through now meant becoming a Soul Grandmaster before the age of nine, and that cultivation speed was already exceptionally fast.

Gangzi was finally basking in the sunlight again after so long, his back straight and proud.

He had taught a genius!

Although he himself was still only a Soul Grandmaster even in his forties or fifties, his disciple had become a Soul Grandmaster before turning nine. Tang San would surely become a Titled Douluo in the future, and he would become a Titled Douluo's teacher.

Who would dare laugh at him now? Who would dare gossip about him behind his back now!

As he watched Gangzi, Tang San, and the dean of Nuoding Academy leave the academy together, a strange glint flickered in Chen Yumo's eyes.

He had perked up again?

That would not do!

Where I, Chen Yumo, stand, Gangzi, you only deserve to kneel and sing "Conquer"!

Ding~

"I suddenly thought of a really cool way to execute him!" Chen Yumo raised his right hand and extended his index finger, while a lightbulb lit up beside his head.

However, Chen Yumo's proficiency in the Bloodline Secret Technique was not yet sufficient to carry out this method of execution. He still had to keep practicing. Once he could achieve the ability he had envisioned, Gangzi's splendid execution could begin.

The advanced edition of the Encyclopedia was rather thick, and he could not finish reading it anytime soon. He also could not find suitable medicinal herbs with both water and earth attributes.

In order to execute Gangzi sooner, Chen Yumo decided to stop spending most of his time reading. He would use that freed-up time to cultivate the Bloodline Secret Art and develop Self-Created Soul Skills.

The Frost Illusion Butterfly was not defined merely by the word "frost." It also carried the ever-changing, treacherous meaning of "illusion."

This meant that aside from ice-attribute abilities, Chen Yumo could also develop skills on the spiritual level.