The material of the Earth Dragon Golden Melon destined it not to be something simply meant for eating. Perhaps with a Martial Soul Avatar, he could force himself to transform into one and swallow it whole, digesting it like a Spirit Beast, but that was far too distant a prospect for Chen Ming. He chose a more convenient and effective method.
Chen Ming pressed the Earth Dragon Golden Melon's stem against his Dantian, carefully absorbing the energy within it before circulating that energy through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians inside his body.
As the energy gradually flowed, vast amounts of energy from the Earth Dragon Golden Melon followed Chen Ming's guidance and streamed into his body like threads.
While drawing out its energy, Chen Ming infused part of his own origin and life force into it. He then slowly altered the speed and direction of his Soul Power circulation, allowing the portion of energy bearing his mark to slowly flow back into the Earth Dragon Golden Melon.
At first, this process did not bring any major changes. Only after Chen Ming steadily and slowly refined it three times a day—morning, noon, and night—for an entire month did the Earth Dragon Golden Melon undergo noticeable changes.
The Earth Dragon Golden Melon, originally the size of a cantaloupe, had shrunk somewhat and become slightly lighter. Its shape had also grown rounder, resembling a large golden ball polished smooth.
When Chen Ming closed his eyes, he could sense the Earth Dragon Golden Melon within a certain range. If it was within three steps of him, a wave of his hand would make it sway in his direction.
If Chen Ming closed his eyes and forcefully poured Soul Power and will into the Earth Dragon Golden Melon, it would glow, and the energy of its gold and earth attributes would make it somewhat heavier.
The Earth Dragon Golden Melon had originally been a natural Dragon Core prepared for dragonkind. Chen Ming could not absorb it directly, but he could activate it outside his body and obtain part of its abilities.
Chen Ming's ultimate goal was to transform the Earth Dragon Golden Melon into his External Elixir and a weapon. He did not expect it to reach the legendary level of the Heaven-Turning Seal, but he felt that if he worked hard enough, turning the Earth Dragon Golden Melon into a Heaven-Turning Melon was not impossible.
It could assist his cultivation, purify the origin of his Martial Soul and his Soul Power; in battle, it could transform into a falling meteor and smash down upon his enemies. That was the true treasure Chen Ming wanted to cultivate.
At present, the Earth Dragon Golden Melon could not yet be stored within his body. It merely had a faint connection with him and could not be used as a true weapon. Once it could shrink to the size of a pellet and be swallowed into Chen Ming's abdomen to serve as a Soul Core, its refinement would be complete.
As his origin was continuously replenished and purified, Chen Ming's Martial Soul was also changing.
After summoning his Martial Soul, the scales covering his body were no longer earthy yellow, but carried a faint golden tint. The originally thick heavy armor had begun to become lighter and more convenient, while its actual weight had increased rather than decreased.
If Chen Ming had once looked as though he wore heavy armor, and truly did wear heavy armor, then now he looked as though he wore medium armor, yet his defense had increased rather than weakened compared to when he wore heavy armor.
If Chen Ming's former Martial Soul had been a large chunk of metal ore filled with impurities, then after absorbing part of the Earth Dragon Golden Melon's energy and undergoing its initial transformation, his Martial Soul had become forged pig iron.
Though it was still some distance from becoming an excellent material, it was far superior to unpolished and unmined metal ore.
Then one day, during his routine training, Chen Ming transformed his scales into energy and gathered them in his hand. When they finally formed a metal shield covered in Dragon Runes, Chen Ming understood that the time had finally come for him to acquire a Spirit Ring.
Carrying the shield formed from part of his own scales, Chen Ming went to find Dugu Bo.
Chen Ming's performance during this period had greatly stimulated Dugu Bo as well.
After confirming that his granddaughter, Dugu Yan, was doing well at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, Dugu Bo sent word outside that Chen Ming was safe. Then he threw himself into the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well and began his own research.
Chen Ming studied Dugu Bo's body, detoxifying him while learning the mysteries of Titled Douluo and Martial Souls.
Meanwhile, Dugu Bo studied the theories and various methods Chen Ming had provided, trying to understand them and incorporate them into his own cultivation and legacy.
He even sincerely believed that the results of studying Chen Ming would be more valuable than all the poison arts he had accumulated over his lifetime.
However, Chen Ming's speed in studying Dugu Bo and Dugu Bo's speed in studying Chen Ming were entirely different matters. Even when Chen Ming broke everything down and explained the principles in detail, Dugu Bo's progress was truly not very fast.
For this reason, Dugu Bo had specially built himself a wooden hut near the outer edge of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, determined to stay closer to Chen Ming.
Still, compared to Chen Ming's wooden hut, which had been built only after careful calculations and combined both beauty and practicality, the hut Dugu Bo had made himself was somewhat uglier.
Watching Chen Ming push open the door and enter his room, Dugu Bo raised no objection. He merely looked up at the sky.
"Eh, is it time for treatment again? Was I too absorbed today? Why does it feel like it's earlier than usual?"
Dugu Bo muttered to himself and was about to take off his shirt for Chen Ming to perform acupuncture and scraping therapy when Chen Ming reached out and stopped him.
"Senior, can't you see that something has changed about me?"
"Changed? Where did that shield come from?" Dugu Bo looked at Chen Ming, whose scales were far fewer than usual after Martial Soul Possession, then fixed his gaze on the metal shield covered in Dragon Runes in Chen Ming's hand.
"This is... a Spirit Skill, right? It has to be a Spirit Skill, right?"
Though Dugu Bo had more or less guessed how Chen Ming had done it, he still spoke with a trace of hope.
"It's a Beast Soul Tool-ification talent I figured out." With a thought from Chen Ming, the Dragon-Patterned Shield turned into energy and returned to his body, while the missing scales grew back.
Chen Ming closed his eyes, focused his mind, and mobilized his blood vitality and Soul Power. A few seconds later, the scales on his body gathered in his hand as though melting, ultimately forming a shield.
Chen Ming's shield was roughly one meter long, fifty centimeters wide, and around five millimeters thick. It was rectangular overall, a genuine medium shield.
As for its weight, it was likely more than fifteen kilograms. Compared to ordinary shields, it was a genuinely overweight shield.
If it were not part of his Martial Soul and therefore more manageable for Chen Ming as its owner than its actual weight suggested, merely using it would have required tremendous strength and effort.
When used, it could shield most of his body like a wall while defending, and when swung, it could easily smash a person's bones apart.
Its material looked like some sort of metal, but when Dugu Bo touched it carefully, he could feel a trace of life force and a texture like rock. He could also sense Chen Ming's Soul Power slowly flowing through it.
Due to the influence of Chen Ming's Martial Soul Origin, the shield bore patterns resembling dragon scales. Some areas faintly carried golden threads and a golden gleam. Under the sunlight, the shield radiated an imposing aura.
Even considered on its own, it was a Tool Martial Soul of decent quality. Yet this was merely one part of Chen Ming's Martial Soul.
Though it was not truly a case of Twin Martial Souls, and he possessed both a Tool Martial Soul and a Beast Martial Soul, Chen Ming still held an enormous advantage over ordinary Spirit Masters.
Dugu Bo fell silent for a long while, as though he had disconnected from the world. In the end, he let out a long sigh and summoned his own Martial Soul.
"Help me take a look. Does my Martial Soul have the talent for Beast Soul Tool-ification?"
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