Cultivating Soul Spirits [Seeking Follow-up Reads]

Leng Xue'er glanced at Yun Xiao: "The probability of such a thing is too low. The lower the cultivation of a spirit, the lower its intelligence; many possess only instinctual consciousness, much like the Star Dou Great Forest in ancient times. No soul beast would be willing to serve as a spirit for a soul master, because soul masters and soul beasts are locked in an irreconcilable, life-or-death opposition."

Yun Xiao wore a look of disappointment upon hearing this.

Tang Wuling also grasped the situation: "Sister Xue'er, does that mean if we reach a bottleneck and enter the Spirit Ascension Platform, and the spirits within follow us voluntarily to become our spirits, we are allowed to take them away?"

"Correct. If a spirit voluntarily follows you and transforms into your spirit, it can be taken away, though as of now, no spirit in the Spirit Ascension Platform has yet..." Leng Xue'er stopped mid-sentence, stunned, as she thought of Cheng Duoyi.

Seeing Leng Xue'er hesitate, Gu Yue asked: "Sister Xue'er, has a soul master ever persuaded a spirit in the Spirit Ascension Platform before?"

"Perhaps there has been." Leng Xue'er said: "Everything I have said relates to the secrets of the Spirit Pagoda. Since you have joined the Spirit Pagoda, these matters must not be leaked. Any Spirit Master who reveals them will be hunted down by the Spirit Pagoda and face imprisonment."

Tang Wuling and the others nodded quickly: "Sister Xue'er, please rest assured, we will not speak of this."

Only Gu Yue remained lost in thought, wondering who had been followed voluntarily by a spirit to become their spirit.

Cheng Duoyi and the others gathered together after finishing breakfast.

They sat upon a massive sofa.

Tang Wuling, sitting to the right of Cheng Duoyi, looked at him happily.

"Brother Yi'er, starting today, I am a member of the Spirit Pagoda. Does this mean I can cultivate spirits with you in the future?"

Tang Wuling was very curious about the research into spirits and wondered what kind of spirits she might be able to cultivate in the future.

Cheng Duoyi was clearly well-versed in the affairs of the Spirit Pagoda: "Did Sister Xue'er tell you about the spirits?"

Gu Yue, sitting to the left of Cheng Duoyi, nodded in agreement: "That's right, Sister Xue'er told us. Little Yi, with your current clearance, what level of spirits can you cultivate?"

Cheng Duoyi looked at the group. Xie Xie and Yun Xiao were also looking at him intently, clearly wanting to learn more about the Spirit Pagoda.

Cheng Duoyi thought for a moment and said: "Within the Spirit Pagoda, there are Junior Spirit Master, Intermediate Spirit Master, and Senior Spirit Master ranks. Above the Senior Spirit Master are the Thirty-Six Elders, the Four Great Spirit Envoys, two Vice Pagoda Masters, and one Pagoda Master."

"I am currently an Intermediate Spirit Master, and the upper limit of the spirits I can cultivate is three hundred years."

Tang Wuling looked at Cheng Duoyi, puzzled: "Brother Yi'er, how come I've never heard you mention that you can cultivate spirits?"

Cheng Duoyi wore a helpless expression: "Although my mother is a Vice Pagoda Master of the Spirit Pagoda, many things are confidential and cannot be told to outsiders. Now that you are Spirit Masters, it is not a violation for you to know, which is why I am telling you."

Xie Xie nodded at this point and asked curiously: "Brother Cheng, you just said you are an Intermediate Spirit Master and the limit for the spirits you can cultivate is three hundred years. What are the requirements for a Junior Spirit Master to advance to an Intermediate Spirit Master?"

Tang Wuling, Gu Yue, and Yun Xiao were also curious about this and turned their gazes toward Cheng Duoyi.

Seeing this, Cheng Duoyi did not hide anything: "Since that is the case, I will explain in detail, but you must keep this to yourselves and not tell outsiders, otherwise the Spirit Pagoda will not let you off."

"Brother Cheng, rest assured, I absolutely will not speak of it." Xie Xie was the first to pledge.

Yun Xiao followed closely behind: "Brother Cheng, I won't speak of it either."

Tang Wuling and Gu Yue looked at Cheng Duoyi: "We won't either."

Cheng Duoyi nodded: "The history of the Spirit Pagoda spans ten thousand years. Initially, it only helped soul beasts and soul masters form contracts. Both parties had to agree for it to be implemented, and it was generally soul beasts nearing death, knowing their time was up, who chose to pin their hopes on a soul master. It is a pity that, apart from the clearly recorded cases of Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong ascending to the God Realm, no other soul master has ever become a god."

"I've heard of this, I didn't expect it to be true." Xie Xie looked surprised.

Gu Yue wore a look of reminiscence, lost in thought.

Tang Wuling asked: "Does the God Realm really exist in this world?"

Cheng Duoyi pondered for a moment: "Perhaps it does, but these things are too far removed from us, so let us not discuss them for now."

"Next, I will speak of the main event, so listen carefully."

"Alright."

Cheng Duoyi said: "Thousands of years ago, the development of Soul Guidance Technology made life miserable for the soul beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest and other soul beast forests. A vast number of trees were felled by soul masters, and soul beasts were hunted down, all for the Spirit Bone that had a chance of dropping from them."

"Humans are truly detestable!" Gu Yue's expression was one of anger.

"Gu Yue, aren't you human?" Xie Xie said: "They were only a portion of humanity; you cannot lump all humans together with them. Besides, that was thousands of years ago, and they are long dead."

Gu Yue glanced at Xie Xie.

Xie Xie met Gu Yue's gaze for a split second before immediately lowering his head, not daring to speak again.

Because Xie Xie felt as if he had been stared at by a powerful creature, sending a chill down his spine.

"The harm humans have caused to soul beasts is indeed great." Cheng Duoyi said: "If not for the rapid development of Soul Guidance Technology, the number of soul beasts would not have vanished so quickly. The Star Dou Great Forest has almost ceased to exist, leaving only the Core Area. The former Star Dou Great Forest had three regions: the Core Area, the Mixed Area, and the Outer Area, covering an unknown number of kilometers. It was home to a vast number of soul beasts, but unfortunately, many soul beasts are now extinct."

Tang Wuling felt dejected: "Can't humans and soul beasts coexist?"

Gu Yue glanced at Tang Wuling.

She had not expected her to say such a thing.

"According to the historical records I have read, this is very difficult." Cheng Duoyi pondered for a moment and shook his head: "The greed of some humans is boundless. Unless a supreme powerhouse emerges among the soul beasts to restore them to their former status—though that would correspond with a massive death toll among humans—the best method is to find other habitable planets for soul beasts to live on."

Gu Yue desperately wanted to tell Cheng Duoyi that they could lead the soul beasts to glory together.

But she dared not; she feared that if Cheng Duoyi knew her identity, he would find it hard to accept, and for a moment, she felt a sense of loss.

Tang Wuling said helplessly: "Alright then..."

Although Cheng Duoyi lamented the plight of the soul beasts, he understood that he could not change it for now: "These are not things we can manage. We should just live our own lives for now. Who knows what changes might occur in the future that could allow soul beasts and humans to coexist?"

Gu Yue, Tang Wuling, Xie Xie, and Yun Xiao nodded.

Yun Xiao asked at this moment, "Brother Cheng, is it because of the emergence of the Spirit Pagoda that a large-scale death of soul beasts has occurred?"

Cheng Duoyi glanced at Yun Xiao.

Yun Xiao immediately shut his mouth, realizing he had spoken out of turn.

"Yun Xiao is not wrong." Cheng Duoyi did not mind that Yun Xiao had spoken the truth about the rapid extinction of soul beasts. "I have read the historical records within the Spirit Pagoda. The emergence of the Spirit Pagoda and the rise of Soul Spirits brought a catastrophic disaster to soul beasts, especially as the technology of the Spirit Pagoda grew increasingly powerful. In the past, the Spirit Pagoda could not cultivate Soul Spirits; it could only create them by converting one soul beast into one Soul Spirit. At that time, the Spirit Ascension Platform was only just beginning to take shape."

"Later, because Soul Spirits could increase their cultivation by devouring other Soul Spirits, it led to the death of Soul Spirits on a massive scale. Only then did the Spirit Pagoda expend a great deal of time, energy, and resources to divide the Spirit Ascension Platform into three levels: Junior, Intermediate, and Senior. This way, the mass death of Soul Spirits would no longer occur."

Tang Wuling said with a sense of loss, "Soul Spirit death... does that mean this soul beast is truly dead?"

Cheng Duoyi's expression also turned somewhat somber. "Yes..."

"However, this kind of thing is unavoidable. The Spirit Ascension Platform is just like the Star Dou Great Forest in the ancient era; soul beasts hunt soul beasts, soul masters hunt soul beasts, and soul beasts hunt soul masters. It is just that because of the metal cabins, soul masters do not die when entering the Spirit Ascension Platform, and what is inside are not soul beasts, but Soul Spirits."

"Therefore, even if we soul masters do not enter the Spirit Ascension Platform, the Soul Spirits inside will still die as they should. Do not place too much of a psychological burden on yourselves."

"If you find it truly hard to accept, then work hard to cultivate Soul Spirits. Although a Junior Spirit Master can only come into contact with and cultivate Soul Spirits under one hundred years, there is a high probability of the Soul Spirit dying during the cultivation process. If the Soul Spirit dies, that cultivation attempt fails. But if you succeed, once the Soul Spirit breaks through the hundred-year mark, it will be fine until it tries to break through the thousand-year mark."

"To advance from a Junior Spirit Master to an Intermediate Spirit Master, one needs to cultivate thirty Soul Spirits over one hundred years old, and to advance from an Intermediate Spirit Master to a Senior Spirit Master, one needs to cultivate fifteen Soul Spirits over one thousand years old."

"Among them, the thousand-year Soul Spirit is the current limit of what can be cultivated. The task of cultivating a ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit has not yet been conquered; even the Pagoda Master and Vice Pagoda Master cannot do it. Any ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit is one that was converted into the Spirit Ascension Platform after the soul beast died."

"If anyone can conquer this task, the next Vice Pagoda Master or even Pagoda Master will very likely be them."

"However, judging by the current situation, it will take at least several thousand years to cultivate a ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit. You must not be overly ambitious and think about cultivating ten-thousand-year Soul Spirits. Being able to cultivate a ten-year Soul Spirit is already rare enough for you right now."

After hearing what Cheng Duoyi said, Gu Yue's expression turned profound, clearly thinking about some important matters.

Tang Wuling nodded heavily. "I will study hard."

Xie Xie sighed, "Brother Cheng, given my situation, I reckon it will be very difficult for me to cultivate a very strong Soul Spirit. I think I'll just make up the numbers."

Yun Xiao, however, felt a fire of anger ignite in his heart. He was different from Xie Xie; he already knew that Xie Xie possessed Twin Martial Souls and that following in Cheng Duoyi's footsteps in the future would be much easier. He could also see that Tang Wuling and Gu Yue were not only powerful but also had a close relationship with Cheng Duoyi.

Only he lacked strength and was not a girl; his only utility was his strong ability to think. Now, he had found a goal: cultivating soul beasts!

Yun Xiao decided that if he couldn't keep up with Cheng Duoyi's pace in the future, he would work hard to learn how to cultivate soul beasts. Once he gained status in the Spirit Pagoda, he could support Cheng Duoyi in becoming the Pagoda Master!

Cheng Duoyi then took everyone to visit the process of a Junior Spirit Master cultivating soul beasts. It was not very difficult, but it was not simple either; it relied purely on luck.

This was because the Spirit Pagoda headquarters possessed a vast amount of Soul Beast Genetic Sequence data.

However, many genetic sequences were between accurate and inaccurate. Many Soul Spirits could not live to be a hundred years old due to issues with their genetic sequences, and some even died as soon as they were born.

This was because the genetic sequence of the cultivated Soul Spirit was not exactly the same as its original genetic sequence. When cultivating a Soul Spirit, the embryo needed to be nurtured within a body that had a similar bloodline.

Often, the following would occur:

Genetic mutation, death.

Genetic mutation, deformed Soul Spirit.

Genetic mutation, a Slaughter Soul Spirit without any intelligence.

Genetic similarity, breaking through to a hundred years, but unable to break through successfully due to genetic issues, leading to death.

And a series of other problems.

However, as long as one successfully cultivated a thousand-year Soul Spirit and had a record of it, there was a high success rate in subsequently cultivating Soul Spirits of the same species. It was just that the cultivation level would likely not be able to break through higher. Currently, ten-year and hundred-year Soul Spirits were the mainstream; thousand-year Soul Spirits were incredibly rare.

Except for those provided to major factions, ordinary forces simply could not afford them or had no use for them, because of the level restrictions on soul masters. How many Soul Elders at level thirty could there be?

Therefore, cultivating Soul Spirits was not such an easy task. The Soul Spirits that these Junior Spirit Masters cultivated required extracting the genetic sequence of the soul beast from the remains of soul beasts from the ancient era, and then cultivating that soul beast, or combining its genetic sequence with that of other soul beasts to cultivate them.

The success rate for this was very, very low, because they were not extracted while alive, but from remains that had been dead for thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of years, such as the Indomitable Soul Tyrannosaurus.

Its appearance was due to the fact that its skeleton was stored intact. After extracting the entire genetic sequence, it was converted into a Soul Spirit, but it was disobedient. It was impossible to make it combine with other Sub-Dragon Soul Beast species.

The strength of the Tyrannosaurus was also very high; even an ordinary Title Douluo was no match for it. Forcing it was out of the question and impossible to achieve.

This resulted in it being very difficult for Spirit Masters in the Spirit Pagoda to advance.

But as long as you could cultivate a Soul Spirit, especially one that had never appeared before, your status could rise sharply. If you could cultivate a powerful thousand-year Soul Spirit or a weak ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit, your status would approach that of a Vice Pagoda Master. If you operated well in the future, even if your strength was high, it was not impossible to become a Vice Pagoda Master. As for being the Pagoda Master, that was basically impossible.

After observing, Gu Yue's expression was happy. It was unknown if it was because Gu Yue, as the incarnation of the Silver Dragon King, could actually see the problems in these Soul Beast Genetic Sequence data.

If that were the case, wouldn't cultivating Soul Spirits be a breeze?

Tang Wuling felt her head spinning. Although she was very smart, the process of cultivating Soul Spirits was too difficult. Not to mention that it required a lot of operations, there was a high probability of failure. This kind of mental torment was not something an ordinary person could endure.

Xie Xie immediately stated that he was just making up the numbers and that he would talk about cultivating Soul Spirits later.

Although Yun Xiao could not understand it, he worked hard to memorize the cultivation process and the process of extracting soul beast genetic sequences, serving as experience for his first attempt in the future.

Cheng Duoyi's status was very high, otherwise, he would not have been able to bring them here to visit. At the same time, Cheng Duoyi personally operated the process. The soul beast he was cultivating was a Herbivorous Soul Beast. During the cultivation process, he could vaguely sense what was right and wrong. Under such guidance, he also felt some anticipation in his heart.

Could this be because of the Seven-Colored Bloodline? Cheng Duoyi thought to himself.

Gu Yue watched as the Soul Spirit genetic sequence Cheng Duoyi was cultivating was completely correct, and she felt happy in her heart: As expected of my husband...