White Tiger Transformation, Martial Soul Possession

Chen Yumo had no idea how much time had passed.

All he could do now was grit his teeth and endure, forcing himself to circulate the immense energy continuously pouring into his body from the Spirit Ring despite the needle-like, knife-cutting pain in his meridians.

Fortunately, he had not been too stingy to use that piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber.

As the absorption of the Spirit Ring gradually got on track, his body's endurance slowly reached its limit. Fine threads of blood seeped from every pore, and the enormous pressure the Spirit Ring placed on his body made it seem as though he could hear his bones creaking under the strain.

His second ring, absorbing a high-quality 1,700-year Spirit Ring beyond his level.

This was already the upper limit of the "optimal age ratio" for a third Spirit Ring. Any Spirit Master who saw some self-taught Spirit Master like him daring to absorb a Spirit Ring of this age while breaking through to Soul Grandmaster would definitely call him insane.

"Thankfully, I'm cautious enough!"

Chen Yumo was especially glad that he had made sufficient preparations. No matter how sharp and violent the energy of this thousand-year Spirit Ring was, it could only make him suffer; it could not utterly crush him.

What could not crush him would only make him stronger!

At last, even through his tightly shut eyelids, Chen Yumo could sense the room growing brighter. A pale strip of dawn appeared on the distant horizon. A night had passed amid pain and perseverance.

The Spirit Ring absorption was also nearing its end.

[Ding—]

At that moment, Brother System finally came online.

[Host, congratulations. You have completed another evolution.]

[Evolution path—Ice Silkworm → Frost Illusion Butterfly → Golden White Tiger]

[Second Spirit Skill: White Tiger Transformation. Switches the Martial Soul's form, transforming it into a White Tiger. A second activation allows Martial Soul Possession, turning you into a Beast Martial Soul battle Spirit Master.]

[Martial Soul combat rating: B-middle]

[Martial Soul potential rating: A-high]

[Overall rating: A-low]

[A-low evolution rewards are as follows: Bloodline Solidification—Divine Silkworm Transformation Bloodline, Level 5 Trigger-type Invincible Barrier ×3, Level 9 soul tool—Sun God Needle, 500,000 Gold Soul Coins, expanded System Space, System assistance uses ×3]

[Divine Silkworm Bloodline Solidification has been issued in advance. It will fully merge within the host while the host fuses with the Spirit Ring and breaks through in Soul Power, with no side effects.]

The smile on Chen Yumo's face stiffened slightly. "So the reason fusing with the Spirit Ring hurt so much just now wasn't only because of the Spirit Ring. It was also because of the bloodline evolution, right?"

[Yes.]

Fine. He could let it go now.

No wonder.

He had clearly made plenty of preparations. For two years, he had constantly tempered his body in preparation for absorbing a Spirit Ring beyond his level, and he had even chewed through a piece of Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber before the absorption.

Even if something went wrong, it should have been because his Martial Soul could not endure it. No matter what, his actual body should not have suffered such intense pain.

So you were the one behind this.

This was no longer merely an evolution of his Martial Soul. Chen Yumo himself had awakened the Divine Silkworm Bloodline. The bloodline's strength might not have been high, but it had already pulled him out of the weakling category.

Refining a bloodline and strengthening a thin bloodline inside the body was no different from crazily squeezing the bone marrow to produce blood, then refining all the blood in the body into drops of even more powerful vital blood.

In other words, if Chen Yumo left descendants now, this ability to undergo Metamorphosis could be passed down to them. It would no longer be a mutation unique to him while his descendants remained mere Ice Silkworms.

Even without the System's assistance, his descendants could follow the path Chen Yumo had taken and undergo nine Break Cocoon Metamorphoses.

As long as nothing went wrong during the process.

"Normally, refining a bloodline like this would consume an enormous amount of Life energy and lifespan, yet Brother System says there are no side effects at all?" Chen Yumo rubbed his chin, unable to stop himself from marveling at the System's power once more.

This kind of cheat truly was the most unreasonable golden finger available to transmigrators.

[It's nothing. It merely used one System assistance attempt.]

[Remaining System assistance attempts: 2]

"...Fine!" Chen Yumo gritted his teeth and nodded.

It was worth it!

[Then, does the host wish to use another assistance attempt to preserve the Martial Soul origin and increase the Spirit Ring ages?]

[Current first and second Spirit Ring ages: 2,200 years. Without using an assistance attempt: Soul Power will rise to Level 23, and Spirit Ring ages will remain unchanged. Using an assistance attempt: Soul Power cultivation will be Level 21, while the first and second Spirit Ring ages will slowly rise to 3,000 years along with the host's physical strength.]

"Same as usual. Use it." Chen Yumo waved a hand.

Soul Power could be increased by feeding his Martial Soul, and the color of his Spirit Rings could be concealed with the Simulation Spirit Skill. With no risks involved, increasing Spirit Ring age was still the most cost-effective choice.

There were many ways to increase Soul Power, but only a few ways to increase Spirit Ring age.

God Trials, the second awakening of a Body Martial Soul, the slaughter secrets of Evil Soul Masters, and Chen Yumo's Ice Silkworm Metamorphosis evolution method.

With no leads on the first three methods for now, increasing Spirit Ring age was absolutely the best choice.

[Successfully used. Remaining attempts: 1. May the host reach the pinnacle soon.]

Chen Yumo had no idea how to use the remaining assistance attempt for the time being, so he decided to save it. It might come in handy someday.

Now it was time to inspect his gains!

First of all...

"Come on, White Tiger Transformation!" Chen Yumo lowered his head, staring fervently at the platinum silkworm cocoon in his palm as two dazzling purple Spirit Rings lit up around him.

The cocoon suddenly burst with blinding white light. Cracks appeared across its surface, and an imposing aura began to gather.

When the momentum of the cocoon's first transformation reached its peak, a vivid little White Tiger broke out of the cocoon and bounced about in Chen Yumo's palm.

Second Spirit Skill—White Tiger Transformation!

The little White Tiger looked much the same as the previous Bright White Tiger, but because of Chen Yumo's cultivation method, it did not carry an overly intense aura of light. Its original attributes, with light as the primary and gold as the secondary, had now reversed.

The gold of slaughter became its primary attribute, while light became secondary.

The change in attributes brought a change in temperament as well. If the previous Bright White Tiger had been majestic and domineering, then the current Slaughter White Tiger was sharp and ferocious.

Chen Yumo tossed it upward. The little White Tiger expanded at a visible rate in midair, and upon landing, it became a gigantic fierce tiger three meters long. Its sharp, vicious bearing multiplied countless times over, radiating fearsome might.

"Phantom Butterfly Transformation!" Chen Yumo snapped his fingers, and amid a cloud of Ice Mist, the Golden White Tiger transformed into an icy blue butterfly with a wingspan of two meters.

The entire process took around three seconds.

That was not long, but in battle, it would be extremely fatal.

Chen Yumo figured it was probably because his current cultivation was still too weak and he was not sufficiently familiar with the Divine Silkworm Transformation's abilities, which was why the transformation required three seconds.

Once he could switch forms seamlessly, his Divine Silkworm Transformation would have reached mastery.

Next up was...

"Martial Soul Possession!"

Chen Yumo spread his arms, and the Frost Illusion Butterfly flapped its wings as it crashed into his chest.