A Soul Master needed Soul Rings to help increase their level, but Soul Beasts didn't need outside help to improve their cultivation. They just cultivated more slowly.
Compared with the Soul Ring system, where Soul Masters relied on outside help to advance, he preferred the Soul Core system rooted in Soul Beasts' origins.
And the fact that Soul Beasts could follow the Soul Ring system after their Soul Beast Transformation proved the two cultivation systems could be converted into each other.
After their Soul Beast Transformation, Soul Beasts could follow the Soul Ring path. Soul Masters should be able to follow the system of Soul Beast Origin Soul Cores, too.
Of course, developing this path of conversion would be difficult. He had a lot to learn.
Though he possessed a Golden Finger, it was only a support-type one. It could improve his comprehension, but it couldn't hand him results directly. It was nothing like Deep Blue from the neighboring story.
For now, he could use Soul Beast Origin Soul Cores, Soul Masters' Soul Power Cores, and Soul Tool cores as references.
There were also the inner cores of certain strange beasts, such as the one Tang San obtained from the Ten Headed Fierce Yang Serpent ten thousand years ago.
There were other similar inner cores, such as Poison Douluo Dugu Bo's Poison Core.
The Holy Spirit Cult's collection included many kinds of texts, some of which contained similar records. They could help Yang Hao with his research.
He wasn't doing this because he had nothing better to do. He was preparing to become a god.
Since he'd come to a world where gods existed, of course he'd want to become an immortal, eternal god himself.
It was just that becoming a god was difficult. Looking across the Douluo series, not one of the beings who became gods had broken through their limits by relying on their own strength. Even the First Generation Angel God and First Generation Sea God had relied on Faith Power. The Sea God had even struggled for over a thousand years to achieve it.
By comparison, the Soul Beast path to godhood was much clearer. A million years of cultivation was equivalent to a human Soul Master reaching level one hundred and becoming a god. There were even divine beasts, and by then their Soul Cores would evolve into god-level God Cores.
The Golden Dragon King had a God Core, the foundation of his power. In the end, Tang Wulin refined it and became the new Golden Dragon King.
With such a complete, broad road to follow, of course he wanted to hitch a ride.
As for the Thunder Tribulation that came with the Soul Beast path, as long as one was strong enough, it could be used to temper the body.
All of this required careful planning well in advance, so he could settle on a direction and even lay his foundation.
Only if he headed in the right direction would his efforts mean anything. Otherwise, if he got stuck at level ninety-nine and couldn't break through, while Huo Yuhao became a god, it would be awkward.
"If you came to ask me to give up on taking revenge against Shrek Academy, don't bother. I won't change my mind."
He put the book back on the shelf and glanced at the dark-circled girl who had been standing nearby for a long while. Yang Hao could guess why she'd come. No doubt she wanted to plead for Shrek Academy, frightened by the hot weapons he'd developed.
Ma Xiaotao lightly bit her lip and stayed silent for a long while before finally speaking.
"I'm sorry. We were wrong!"
They really had been in the wrong. The mastermind had admitted as much.
Before, she had been furious with this... this guy. Now she felt guilty.
"You don't know you were wrong. You're just afraid."
"I've seen Shrek's arrogance and tyranny for myself. Besides, you can't speak for Shrek Academy."
Yang Hao responded with a cold expression, keeping up his act at all times. Only then could he keep this girl in check.
He turned to Feng Ling, who had come over with her, and greeted her politely.
"Beautiful sister."
He took the Holy Spirit Cult's vice-leader seriously. She was also the person in the Holy Spirit Cult who valued Soul Tools most. She was in charge of the hot weapons research project he led, making her his direct superior and provider. In other words, she was the one who paid his bills.
"You really don't seem like a nine-year-old child."
Feng Ling glanced at Ma Xiaotao, who looked even more guilty and dejected, then turned her gaze to Yang Hao.
They had already investigated the boy's background. There was nothing suspicious about it, but he was far too precocious.
Not just in his physique, but in his mind, too.
"Age means nothing to someone like me."
Yang Hao looked down at his palm, then slowly clenched his hand into a tight fist.
"My childhood ended the moment I lost my parents, lost my brother, and was taken away by the Strength Clan. I wasn't a child anymore."
As a good actor, he had to make use of every resource he could. His own past was a valuable resource, too. When it was time to play the victim, he had to play it.
After all, the art of playing the victim was a Dao in its own right, one that could rival Great Emperor Jingze's True Fragrance Dao!
These words... no, this performance moved both women.
The Strength Clan weren't fools. Though they needed to keep the child alive for the time being to dispel others' suspicions and keep them from making connections, they would certainly have kept him under close surveillance.
For three whole years, he had hidden his hatred, disguised himself to avoid discovery, and even built up strength for revenge. They couldn't imagine how he'd managed it.
They certainly wouldn't have been able to do the same. The boy's mind was truly frightening, to have survived and grown in such an environment.
And he had suffered severe injuries back then. From what they had learned in their investigation, his survival had been nothing short of a miracle. They had no idea how he'd endured it.
"You still don't have a Soul Ring. Have you decided what you want to do?"
Feng Ling changed the subject and brought up Soul Rings.
That was the main reason she'd come today. She had seen the boy's Martial Soul. Its evil attribute was powerful, and it had great potential.
"Not for now. I have a few ideas about cultivation that I need to test."
Yang Hao shook his head slightly. He had some ideas about cultivating his Martial Soul and had been experimenting with them lately. If they worked, the gains would be enormous.
"It's good that you have ideas."
Feng Ling nodded, then took out a pendant-shaped Soul Tool.
"Wear this Cold Jade Heart. Its Soul Tool core was carved from a piece of Cold Ice Jade Marrow. It's a Level 9 Soul Tool that can dispel inner fire and steady your emotions, which is very helpful for us Evil Soul Masters' cultivation.
"It can also activate and form Ice Armor, which can withstand a full-power strike from a Titled Douluo."
"Cold Ice Jade Marrow!"
Yang Hao's eyes lit up. He knew of the stuff. The Clear Sky Sect seemed to have a piece of it, though it was a huge jade bed.
This stuff was incredibly rare, even in small pieces. And this was a Level 9 Soul Tool with defensive power, too.
It looked like he had really come to the right place by joining the Holy Spirit Cult.
"Thank you, beautiful sister."
Yang Hao reached out with both hands and took it, then immediately hung it around his neck. He channeled Soul Power into it and instantly felt a cool current flow through his body along with his Soul Power, clearing his mind.
It really was a treasure!
At the same time, Long Xiaoyao was troubled elsewhere.
That child was terrifying. The system of explosives and firearms he had invented could change the balance of power on the continent, even usher in a new era.
But every changing era demanded sacrifices. Given that child's beliefs and the Holy Spirit Cult's ambitions, the four great empires, Shrek Academy, and the major sects would all be destroyed. And they had the power to do it.
That was terrifying.
Shrek Academy would be first in line. That old friend of his would never back down, so his death was inevitable.
"Sigh!"
"What a headache!"
Long Xiaoyao sighed in frustration. He really couldn't think of a way out. It was a dead end.
That child had already handed the system of explosives and firearms over to the Holy Spirit Cult. Even if they killed the child, it would only slow the Holy Spirit Cult's development.
And he couldn't bring himself to attack the child, either. After all, he was the Holy Spirit Cult's chief enshrined elder, and a member of the cult himself.
Not to mention she was there, too.
Besides, Shrek Academy really had wronged that child's family. Even if they had been manipulated into killing with someone else's knife, a wrong was still a wrong. There was no denying it.
That was a failing of this world, too. The Holy Spirit Cult was an Evil Soul Master organization that had committed countless evil deeds, but the other forces were hardly innocent. They, too, had done plenty of shameful things in secret.
The tragic fate of that child's family was only a tiny reflection of the bigger picture.
And the child wanted to change this world. Even the era itself was wrong, and wanting to change something wrong was a good idea.
That left him helpless and conflicted. He didn't know what to do.
What Long Xiaoyao didn't notice as he pondered, troubled, was a red-clad figure watching him from afar.
Chapter 25: Human Punching Bag
"Beautiful sister, I'm ready. Come on."
Feng Ling had brought Yang Hao to a training ground, where he prepared to fight.
Feng Ling was going to teach him how to fight. He didn't have much experience in that area.
After all, back at the Strength Clan, all he could do was swing a hammer and forge iron. In his next two fights, he had just used land mines to blow things up. After that, he'd run away and stayed cooped up cultivating. He'd never really fought before, and that was one of his biggest shortcomings right now.
"Your opponent isn't me!"
Feng Ling smiled and gestured toward Ma Xiaotao.
"Xiaotao, spar with Xiao Hao."
"Me?"
Ma Xiaotao froze, then excitedly cracked her knuckles. A ferocious look appeared on her face.
"Little guy, your big sister's going to take good care of you!"
Though she felt guilty about that guy because of the academy, she was angry, too. He had really put her through the wringer back then. Not only had he left a huge bump on her head, he had shoved something inside her like that. Every time she thought about it, she nearly went mad.
Today was the perfect chance to teach him a lesson.
That guy wouldn't give up on taking revenge against Shrek, no matter how much she pleaded, so there was no point in begging anymore.
Now it was time to settle old scores and repay old grudges. Maybe she could even beat him into submission!
Seeing the ferocious look on the girl's face, Yang Hao silently took out an upgraded Six-Barrel Vulcan Cannon. Its power, accuracy, and rate of fire had all improved considerably.
But the girl couldn't take it anymore. She shouted furiously.
"Are you kidding me? That's not fair!"
She had seen how powerful that thing was. There was no way she could stand against it.
"Xiao Hao, this is a spar. You're supposed to gain practical combat experience. You're not allowed to use those guns... or Rocket launchers, either. Those are external tools. You need to improve your own strength. That's your foundation.
"Only by improving your own abilities can you make better use of those Soul Tools and build even greater combat strength."
Before you continue