"Such a pity, such a pity." Yu Xiao Gang sat there with a vacant look, mumbling to himself.
Yu Yuanzhen felt awful seeing his son Yu Xiao Gang sitting there in a daze, utterly crushed. After all, he was his son, so he hurriedly asked Su Ming:
"Master Su, is there still a chance for my son Yu Xiao Gang's Martial Soul to evolve into a Radiant Sacred Dragon?"
"That depends on the situation. Wait a moment. First, let me ask Yu Xiao Gang a few questions."
Hearing how Yu Yuanzhen addressed him, Su Ming looked at Yu Xiao Gang and began asking questions.
"What was your First Soul Ring?"
At Su Ming's question, the Yu Xiao Gang who had been utterly crushed forced himself to pull it together and answer.
"A Unicorn Dragon Soul Beast that was over three hundred and twenty years old."
"What Soul Skill did you get?"
At Su Ming's question about his Soul Skill, Yu Xiao Gang felt ashamed and furious. Su Ming, standing right before him, had an Innate Soul Power of level six. With talent like that, reaching Soul Sage would be a blessing.
Yet with his own theories, he had reached level forty-plus at the age of twelve, and had even used those theories to help other people's Martial Souls evolve.
And what about himself? He had the resources of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, as well as the Spirit Hall's records on Soul Masters and Martial Souls, collected over nearly ten thousand years.
Despite all those years of research, Yu Xiao Gang still hadn't solved the problem of failed Martial Soul Mutations. If only he were my disciple. Then his theories would be mine.
But just as his anger flared, he forcibly suppressed it, remembering that his own Martial Soul might still evolve into a Radiant Sacred Dragon.
"My First Soul Skill is farting at people to attack them."
Su Ming nodded.
"I understand. At the time, you were probably hoping your Martial Soul, Luo Sanpao, would eventually gain the ability to shoot beams of light, right?"
"What about your Second Soul Skill?"
"Poisonous farts."
"Got it. Your thinking at the time was probably that your First Soul Skill was already useless, and since you weren't sure whether your 0.5 levels of Innate Soul Power would get you to level thirty and make you a Soul Elder, you hoped your Second Soul Ring would give you some combat ability, so you chose poison. If your Martial Soul really were a Trash Martial Soul, that reasoning wouldn't have been wrong."
"But..."
As he spoke, Su Ming stopped looking at Yu Xiao Gang and turned to Yu Yuanzhen.
"Did you choose his First Soul Ring for him, or did he choose it himself?"
Yu Yuanzhen glanced at Yu Xiao Gang beside him and answered with a helpless look.
"He chose it himself. He chose the Second Soul Ring himself, too."
"When his Martial Soul Awakening happened, there should have been an apparition of a Radiant Sacred Dragon, right? Then the awakening probably failed, and the apparition shattered, giving rise to this Luo Sanpao?"
Yu Yuanzhen nodded.
"That's right."
Hearing the answer he wanted, Su Ming looked at Yu Xiao Gang with exasperation.
"I told you that your Martial Soul was a divine-grade prototype, and I wasn't wrong. That apparition was practically giving you a hint."
"Besides, Yu Xiao Gang's bloodline power is strong enough. Otherwise, he couldn't have manifested a Martial Soul with its own intelligence."
"You can think of his Luo Sanpao Martial Soul as a Radiant Sacred Dragon Soul Beast hatchling."
"For your First Soul Ring, you only need to hunt a Light Attribute Soul Beast. After you absorb its Soul Ring, the Light Attribute it brings will cause your Luo Sanpao to change significantly."
"Once it reaches level seventy, it should be able to evolve into a Radiant Sacred Dragon."
"Your Martial Soul could be classified as summoning-type. And don't think that having a Soul Beast Martial Soul means you'll be unable to fight yourself."
"Summoning-type Martial Souls have enormous potential. Think about it: once your Luo Sanpao changes after absorbing its first Light Attribute Soul Ring, might it grow dragon claws? And could you use Soul Power to wield dragon claws, too? Add your Martial Soul's support, and your summoning-type fighting style would be the strongest among those of the same rank."
"It's just a pity. You have such a good Martial Soul, and it can even eat—that is, digest things."
"Judging from your First Soul Skill, Yu Xiao Gang, you must have fed it plenty of carrots. If you'd fed it dragon meat or meat from a Light Attribute creature, you'd have felt your Martial Soul changing."
"What a pity. There's nothing I can do now."
Hearing Su Ming's words, Yu Xiao Gang slumped in his chair like a heap of mud.
Seeing Yu Xiao Gang collapsed in his chair like a heap of mud, Yu Yuanzhen also caught that Su Ming's saying there was nothing he could do now didn't mean there would never be a way. He hurriedly asked:
"Master Su, is there any other way for him to evolve into a Radiant Sacred Dragon?"
"With your current situation... unless you can find an immortal-grade herb called a Light Dragon-Nurturing Fruit."
Hearing that his Martial Soul could still be saved, Yu Xiao Gang knew that with his father Yu Yuanzhen's strength as a level ninety-five Super Douluo, there was no place he couldn't search. He hurriedly stood up from his chair and asked Su Ming where he could find the Light Dragon-Nurturing Fruit.
"Master Su, what kind of place would have a Light Dragon-Nurturing Fruit?"
"That's simple, too. Your Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan has a history of several thousand years. Your ancestors must have encountered and learned about Soul Beasts over a hundred thousand years old."
"A Light Attribute dragon that had cultivated for over two hundred thousand years must have died there. If the place then went undiscovered for ten thousand years, it could give birth to a Light Dragon-Nurturing Fruit."
As he spoke, Su Ming glanced at Yu Yuanzhen.
"If you find such a treasure trove, you won't just obtain a Light Dragon-Nurturing Fruit. You'll also find some top-grade dragon-type medicines, such as Ten-Thousand-Year Dragon Blood Ganoderma, Ten-Thousand-Year Dragon Blood Grass, Ten-Thousand-Year True Dragon Grass, and a whole host of other top-grade spirit herbs suited to Dragon Martial Souls."
"If you can find such a place, then setting everything else aside, Sect Master Yu, if you eat one Ten-Thousand-Year Dragon Blood Ganoderma and one Ten-Thousand-Year True Dragon Grass, once you reach level ninety-eight, you'll be able to fight Qian Daoliu, a level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo, evenly—and might even have the upper hand."
"If you advance one more level and become a level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo, you'll be able to beat two Qian Daolius while keeping them pinned down."
When Yu Xiao Gang heard that the place had to be where a dragon with over two hundred thousand years of cultivation had died, he knew there was no hope. He slumped back into his chair, dejected.
Yu Yuanzhen, meanwhile, had heard Su Ming's description of the immortal-grade herb and those top-grade spirit medicines. He glanced at Ning Fengzhi, recalling the information his subordinates had gathered about Su Ming over the past few months.
Ning Rongrong's Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda had evolved into a Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda. Dugu Bo had recently stopped looking so lifeless, and his originally green hair had turned black—his poison cultivation must have advanced greatly. And Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphorous Serpent had evolved into a Jade Phosphorus Ice Dragon.
Yu Yuanzhen looked at Sword and Bone Douluo behind Su Ming, then turned to Ning Fengzhi and said:
"Sect Master Ning, could I take a look at your Martial Soul?"
Ning Fengzhi instinctively looked at Su Ming. Seeing that, Su Ming nodded.
Yu Yuanzhen had taken in their actions, and knew his guess was right.
Ning Fengzhi summoned his Martial Soul with the Soul Power in his body, and Yu Yuanzhen looked over. Sure enough, the seven-tiered Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda that should have appeared in Ning Fengzhi's right hand, glowing with seven colors, had become a nine-tiered Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, glowing with nine colors.
Then two yellow, two purple, and four black Soul Rings appeared beneath Ning Fengzhi's feet and gathered around the nine-tiered pagoda. The Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda in Ning Fengzhi's hand now had only its very top tier without a Soul Ring.
When Yu Xiao Gang saw the Eighth Soul Ring appear on Ning Fengzhi's Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul, he turned to look at Su Ming. He was just about to ask him something when Su Ming cut him off.
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