Martial Soul Mimicry, Rejuvenation Art

Although Xing Tian was as wild and unrestrained as most practitioners of evil paths, he still knew how to conduct himself when facing his elders.

He immediately retracted his Martial Soul and poured a cup of tea for Dugu Bo, presenting it before him.

After taking a satisfied sip, Dugu Bo spoke slowly: "I have read in ancient texts that if a Martial Soul is shattered, one must absorb a spirit ring within a short period—a very powerful spirit ring. Furthermore, it must be as consistent as possible with the form of the Martial Soul, and ideally, one produced by a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast through sacrifice."

"This... sacrifice?"

Ye Renxin's face was filled with sorrow, unable to believe what he was hearing: "Wouldn't that require a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast? Are you saying..."

Xing Tian asked curiously: "What is a sacrifice?"

Dugu Bo explained: "A sacrifice is when a soul beast willingly offers its spirit ring and spirit bone to a spirit master. In this case, as long as the spirit master's strength has reached a bottleneck, even if they are only at level ten, they can absorb a Hundred-Thousand-Year spirit ring and spirit bone. Moreover, it is a perfect absorption, allowing for complete mastery of the spirit skills."

"Furthermore, basically only Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts can perform a sacrifice. The number of such beasts known on the continent can be counted on one's fingers, and each one is at least equivalent to a level 95 Super Douluo. Just hunting one would require mobilizing several Titled Douluo."

"Legend has it that a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast sacrifice creates a special magnetic field. Not to mention Titled Douluo, even the legendary gods cannot interrupt the sacrifice until the spirit master has fully absorbed the ring and bone, and it can even restore the spirit master to their peak state."

Dugu Bo's words were essentially a death sentence for Xing Tian's cultivation. A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, and one that had to match his Martial Soul's form—this was nearly impossible.

Ye Lingling and Dugu Yan were also incredibly nervous. Xing Tian held special significance for Ye Lingling, and she did not want anything to happen to him, while Dugu Yan felt that it was a tragedy for the heavens to deny such a talented and handsome young man the ability to cultivate.

Dugu Bo took another unhurried sip of tea and then said: "It is not as serious as you imagine."

"This boy's Martial Soul is a beast-type, so the requirements for the age of the spirit ring can be greatly reduced. Moreover, it is not only Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts that can sacrifice; in fact, as long as the soul beast's quality and intelligence are high enough, it suffices."

"What I mentioned earlier about the best case being a sacrifice is for tool-type spirit masters. Beast-type spirit masters only need the soul beast to willingly merge its essence."

Although the difficulty had been significantly lowered, Ye Renxin still felt the hope was slim.

"But even so, it would still need to be a mantis soul beast with tens of thousands of years of cultivation. Even if it were willing to become a spirit ring, it is not something Xiao Tian could absorb at his current stage."

Dugu Bo drained his tea and laughed: "That is why I said this boy is lucky. His Martial Soul has basically reassembled due to his death and rebirth, and its essence is stable. It is just that as an energy-based beast Martial Soul, its form is not yet fixed, which makes this situation much simpler."

"We only need to attach a top-grade mantis spirit ring that is highly compatible with his attributes. A thousand-year age is sufficient, and it doesn't even need to be willing."

Dugu Bo briefly squeezed the muscles in Xing Tian's arm and said: "His physical fitness is quite high, likely also due to his death and rebirth. As long as his will is firm enough and he can endure some hardship, he should be able to survive a thousand-year spirit ring."

"That's wonderful! In that case, it's just a matter of spending some time finding a soul beast. Xiao Tian, the problem is solved!"

Ye Renxin and Ye Lingling were genuinely happy for Xing Tian, even shedding tears of excitement, and Dugu Yan also breathed a sigh of relief.

"I am also very curious to see what a thousand-year first ring will look like and what kind of achievements he will have in the future."

Dugu Bo was initially expectant, but he quickly poured cold water on the mood: "However, there are two hidden flaws in this."

"What flaws? Does it mean draining Xiao Tian's potential?"

Dugu Bo waved his hand: "Not exactly. First, his future cultivation direction for his Martial Soul might not be something he can choose freely, and it is prone to Martial Soul Mimicry combat."

"The vast majority of beast-type spirit masters fight by relying on Martial Soul Possession, causing their bodies to change to fight. Martial Soul Mimicry combat, however, involves releasing the Martial Soul directly and controlling it to fight, similar to a parasitic form of a beast Martial Soul."

"In this case, the burden on the spirit master is smaller, but they themselves become relatively fragile."

"When a beast-type spirit master reaches the Titled Douluo realm, they can autonomously switch between the two combat styles, with almost no difference, entirely at will."

"However, when a beast-type spirit master chooses their first soul beast to be highly similar to their Martial Soul's form, they can autonomously cultivate into Martial Soul Mimicry. But unless they become a Titled Douluo, they will forever be forced to fight this way and cannot use Martial Soul Possession."

"Since his Martial Soul is not yet fixed, he might lose the ability to choose, making it easy to end up in a situation where he has no choice but to practice Martial Soul Mimicry combat."

Xing Tian was already satisfied: "Compared to being unable to cultivate, this is not worth mentioning at all. Many thanks for your guidance, Your Excellency Dugu."

Ye Renxin asked again: "And the second one?"

Dugu Bo shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Heh, that is a thousand-year first ring we are talking about; think of how many people will covet it."

Ye Renxin and Ye Lingling immediately understood what Dugu Bo meant. Xing Tian would likely be unable to go to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy with Ye Lingling, and until he was strong enough, he might not even be able to leave the Ye Mansion.

At this moment, Xing Tian said something that shocked everyone: "Actually, I have a method to change the color of a spirit ring."

"What?" X4

Xing Tian explained: "When I was young and playful, I accidentally got lost in the mountains. It happened to be raining heavily that day, and while seeking shelter, I stumbled upon a cave. Inside, I found a skeleton and an ancient book. The book described a secret technique to change the color of spirit rings, though I don't know if it actually works."

Of course, Xing Tian was making up the story. The secret technique he spoke of was actually a cultivation method passed down to him by his master in his previous life—the Rejuvenation Art.

By practicing breath regulation and fetal respiration to fully nourish the body, the practitioner bestows new life upon their entire being, and their cultivation leaps to a new realm.

Therefore, the Rejuvenation Art itself is an auxiliary technique practiced after mastering other methods.

The Rejuvenation Art also has a special function: it can use internal energy to change one's own or another person's appearance and age.

In his previous life, Xing Tian found that the Rejuvenation Art did not help much with his Nine Deaths Reincarnation Evil Art, and the time required for breath regulation and fetal respiration was too long, so he never spent time practicing it.

However, Xing Tian thought the ability to change appearance and age was useful, thinking he could use it when he grew old, so he modified the Rejuvenation Art.

He simplified it, retaining only the ability to change appearance and age; after all, being handsome is a lifelong pursuit.

Unfortunately, although Xing Tian had practiced it in his previous life, he never actually used it, as he was only in his twenties when he died.

Dugu Bo asked: "Can you let me see it?"

Xing Tian immediately wrote down the Rejuvenation Art, changing the references to internal energy into spirit power, adding details about spirit rings, and then handed it to Dugu Bo.

Dugu Bo browsed through it, becoming more shocked and enthralled the more he read. Finally, he exclaimed repeatedly: "What a profound secret technique! This must have been created by a Titled Douluo—no, a Super Douluo. Brother Ye, you should take a look too."

After Ye Renxin took it and read it, his reaction was almost identical to Dugu Bo's.

"It is indeed profound. The core is to use special means to alter one's appearance and even the color of spirit rings through life force and spiritual power, but it has very high requirements for both. Xiao Tian, can you do it?"

Xing Tian said confidently: "I can! After my death and rebirth, my life force and spiritual power are exceptionally vast, but it will still require about two years of closed-door cultivation."