The Sword Mother Who Maxed Out Emotional Support

With the pressure from the soul impact gone, Jiang Liang's process of taming the Soul Ring's energy became much smoother.

He discovered that the strand of Sword Qi he had cultivated was practically the nemesis of Soul Ring energy.

That strand of Sword Qi was incomparably sharp, like an immortal sword descending to suppress everything.

No matter how violent the Ice Blade Mantis's Soul Ring energy became, it could only obediently submit and be assimilated.

In the blink of an eye, six full days passed.

Throughout those six days, Jiang Liang remained seated in meditation.

Little by little, he refined the Soul Ring's energy and transformed it into pure Sword Qi.

Sword Mother remained by his side the entire time, never leaving even a single step.

She watched Jiang Liang's expression shift from pain to ferocity, then gradually calm. A faint, gratified smile appeared on her face.

She could sense that the Sword Qi in Jiang Liang's Qi Sea had grown much stronger.

It was about time to begin Sword Nourishment.

Meanwhile—

The Sword Qi in Jiang Liang's Qi Sea had also stabilized.

He could clearly feel the restraints within his body shatter in an instant.

His level rose rapidly, reaching level seventeen in one leap.

Jiang Liang was overjoyed.

His first Soul Ring had reached ten thousand years—no wonder his level was rising so quickly!

And the increase had not ended yet.

After all, he had previously absorbed so many Immortal Herbs.

Although those Immortal Herbs had been meant to temper his body and strengthen his Spiritual Power, they had also expanded his meridians and improved his absorption of the spiritual energy between heaven and earth.

As a result, his level shot up to eighteen, then even nineteen.

He was only one final step away from reaching level twenty!

Could he make it?

Jiang Liang did not slacken. He began recalling the breathing and circulation method Sword Mother had taught him, drawing all the spiritual energy around him into his body and pushing his level even higher.

Gradually, the rate of improvement that had already slowed began soaring again under the stimulation of that spiritual energy.

Half an hour later.

Level twenty—securely reached!

He could hunt for his second Soul Ring now!

Jiang Liang was ecstatic.

This feeling of leveling up so quickly was simply amazing!

He opened his eyes and immediately shared the good news with Sword Mother.

"Fairy Sister, I broke through!"

"Not only is my first Soul Ring ten thousand years old, but I even reached level twenty!"

Hearing this, Sword Mother smiled and slowly crouched down, her slender hand gently brushing aside the damp strands of hair stuck to his forehead with sweat.

In the time it took to absorb a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring, this child's Soul Power had not only advanced by leaps and bounds, but he had even quietly grown much taller.

He was now nearly as tall as an ordinary child of eight or nine.

Her eyes brimmed with undisguised pride and affection. She gently rubbed the top of his head, her voice warm and soft with praise.

"My Xiao Liang is truly amazing. You reached level twenty just after absorbing your first Soul Ring."

"With talent like yours, there isn't another in the world."

With his emotional needs thoroughly fulfilled, Jiang Liang was so delighted his nose nearly tipped skyward.

See? This was Sword Mother!

She always maxed out the emotional support she gave people.

"Not only that, Fairy Sister, my first Soul Ring's Soul Skill turned out exactly as I hoped."

"Look!"

As he spoke, he flicked out his Cold Moon Sword Martial Soul and activated his first Soul Ring's Soul Skill.

"First Soul Skill, Blade of Ice!"

The instant the Soul Skill activated, a layer of crystalline icy-white light wrapped around his Cold Moon Sword Martial Soul, making it seem extraordinarily sharp.

At the same time, an incomparably pure energy surged through the sword hilt and into his body.

At that moment, Jiang Liang felt his entire body grow much lighter. Even his Speed and strength received a tremendous boost.

With only a gentle step, he flashed a hundred meters away.

Before his footing had even stabilized, he raised his hand and swung his sword.

"Whoosh—!"

The Cold Moon Sword was so fast that only an icy-white streak remained. The blade itself had nearly vanished from sight as it completed several slashes in an instant, leaving behind only a string of shrill, piercing sounds tearing through the air.

With a thunderous bang.

A snow-covered boulder taller than Jiang Liang rapidly broke apart, splitting into countless fragments that scattered across the ground.

Jiang Liang turned around gleefully and asked, "Fairy Sister, what do you think of my first Soul Skill?"

Sword Mother stood behind him and nodded repeatedly at the sight.

It seemed that after Xiao Liang absorbed this Soul Ring, not only had he himself been strengthened, but even his natal Flying Sword, the Cold Moon Sword, had been enhanced considerably.

Judging by its sharpness, it was already comparable to an ordinary magical artifact.

"Very impressive. Your Speed, strength, and sword edge have all been enhanced to such a degree. It truly is worthy of a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring."

Jiang Liang chuckled. "Fairy Sister, these are actually all effects of this Soul Ring's Soul Skill."

"After activating the Soul Skill, the Cold Moon Sword's edge becomes sharper, and it boosts my movement Speed and attack Speed by one hundred percent for thirty minutes."

Sword Mother nodded slightly. "Thirty minutes? That is already enough. A Sword Cultivation battle is often decided in a single instant."

"Whether one can win depends on one's Speed, strength, and grasp of timing."

"This Soul Ring truly suits you."

After she finished speaking, she suddenly seemed to think of something and walked over with graceful steps.

"Xiao Liang, now that you've reached the level twenty threshold, do you need to find another Soul Ring to break through again?"

"Yes, Fairy Sister. I can feel that I've reached another bottleneck."

Jiang Liang said helplessly, "Looks like Fairy Sister will have to stay in this icy wilderness with me for a while longer."

Sword Mother chuckled and slowly crouched down, reaching out to pinch his chubby little cheek.

"You can stay here for as long as you want. Fairy Sister will keep you company."

Jiang Liang's eyes immediately lit up, and his heart melted with warmth.

He suddenly reached out and took Sword Mother's large hand, smiling. "Then, Fairy Sister, let's set out quickly!"

"The sooner we get the Soul Ring, the sooner we can go home!"

"Alright." Sword Mother smiled indulgently and left the place with Jiang Liang.

Along the way, she did not remain idle. She began explaining the steps of Sword Nourishment to Jiang Liang.

Sword Nourishment was different from Qi Refinement.

Qi Refinement was one cycle of meridians.

Sword Nourishment was another cycle of meridians.

Only after taking this step could one be considered a true Sword Cultivation practitioner.

Just as Jiang Liang had imagined, Sword Flight and killing enemies from a thousand miles away were merely the most basic methods of Sword Cultivation.

Of course, with his current cultivation, he could not achieve anything so exaggerated.

But as long as he tempered himself with the method of Sword Nourishment for a while and allowed his sword body to truly connect with his Divine Soul, he might be able to reach the level of wielding a sword through Qi and using Sword Flight over short distances.

Jiang Liang's eyes immediately lit up.

"Fairy Sister, then teach me how to nourish a sword quickly!"

Sword Mother merely smiled and tapped the tip of his nose. "What are you thinking? This is the Extreme North, a forbidden zone for humans."

"Hunt your second Soul Ring first. Once we leave, I'll teach you slowly along the way."

"Mm!" Jiang Liang nodded furiously in anticipation.

Sword Flight—this was the romance of every Chinese person.

Thinking that he would soon be able to touch upon that realm, he was so excited he could barely contain himself.

He wished that a suitable Soul Beast would immediately appear before him so he could take its Soul Ring and leave this place at once.

However, just as they left the Ice God Mountain Range, they heard a wolf howl in the distance.

"Awoo!"

Jiang Liang abruptly stopped and looked toward the source of the sound.

"Perfect. I just obtained my first Soul Ring, and prey has already come knocking."

"Fairy Sister, how about we eat wolf meat tonight?"

Seeing how excited he was, Sword Mother smiled helplessly.