"Selective Expression of Soul Rings"

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

Outside Shrek City.

An inconspicuous carriage traveled along the main road. The carriage body was plain, devoid of any extra ornamentation, and the two horses pulling it were of an ordinary breed, looking no different from the common transport vehicles found in the city.

Jiang Ci'an sat inside the carriage, reached out to lift the cloth curtain of the window, and took a look outside.

Outside the carriage, three figures were following along. The leader was naturally Elder Xiao.

He had changed into a crisp, dark-colored martial outfit today. His graying hair was tied back, his waist and back were held straight, and he looked much more spirited than usual.

The demeanor of a kindly old man had mostly faded, replaced by the steady composure belonging to a high-level Spirit Master.

As for the other two, they were trusted aides he had brought from the Xiao Clan—one man and one woman, both around forty years old. They were both Spirit Kings who had been by Xiao Shan's side for over twenty years, loyal and devoted.

The destination of this trip was the Star Dou Great Forest.

To be precise, the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Since it was ultimately just to hunt the first spirit rings for him and Xiao Xiao, with a limit of no more than five hundred years, there was no need to venture too deep; the outer region would suffice to meet their needs.

However, even so, Elder Xiao remained sufficiently cautious for the sake of these two talented juniors.

With Elder Xiao, who possessed the cultivation of a Spirit Douluo, personally taking the lead and providing protection without leaving their side, plus two Spirit Kings responsible for scouting spirit beasts and clearing the path, this configuration in the outer region could not be called foolproof, but it was at least extremely secure.

Jiang Ci'an withdrew his gaze and lowered the curtain.

Inside the carriage, the light softened slightly.

Xiao Xiao sat beside him, wearing a light cyan short shirt, dark trousers, and a pair of small leather boots. Her ink-green hair was tied into a ponytail, giving her a more heroic air than usual.

Seeing Jiang Ci'an lower the curtain, Xiao Xiao tilted her head slightly, her eyes flickering, and then she asked in a low voice:

"Ci'an, how do you think I should choose my first spirit ring?"

Jiang Ci'an paused at these words and countered, "Elder Xiao should have given you quite a few options, right?"

Xiao Xiao nodded obediently, shifted her body without a trace, and leaned closer, pressing softly against Jiang Ci'an's side before speaking in a whisper:

"Grandfather suggested I focus on cultivating the 'Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron'. After all, the Xiao Clan's ancestral martial spirit is the 'Soul-Suppressing Cauldron', and the spirit ring configuration path is clear. Even though my martial spirit has mutated, it can still serve as a reference."

"However, I have to decide the specific effects of the spirit skill myself."

Jiang Ci'an understood.

The Xiao Clan's ancestral martial spirit, the "Soul-Suppressing Cauldron," had indeed started on an auxiliary path—suppression, sealing, and control were all potent auxiliary abilities.

But later, a genius among the Xiao Clan ancestors had a sudden inspiration to stack weight onto the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, and then proceeded to use the cauldron to smash people...

And from then on, things spiraled out of control.

Since that day, the cultivation of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron within the Xiao Clan had developed an additional branch alongside the purely auxiliary school.

As for Xiao Xiao's "Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron," being a mutated version of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, one cauldron split into three, with the cauldrons interacting with one another. Whether she chose attack or auxiliary, the effects would only be better.

The reason it was said that the spirit skill effect was decided by Xiao Xiao herself was that the spirit skills obtained by a Spirit Master from a spirit ring were not entirely random.

While this was not common knowledge known to everyone in the spirit master world, families or sects with a bit of heritage were well aware of it.

Jiang Ci'an called this "selective expression of spirit rings."

Simply put, the specific effect of the spirit skill a Spirit Master obtained upon absorbing a spirit ring depended on three factors.

First, the skill library of the spirit beast itself.

Second, the Spirit Master's martial spirit.

Third, the Spirit Master's personal intent and thoughts regarding the spirit skill.

First, when absorbing a spirit ring, the Spirit Master's personal intent would exert the first layer of interference.

This meant filtering out a direction that roughly matched their needs from the many spirit beast skills contained within the spirit ring.

For example, if a Spirit Master wanted a defensive spirit skill, this layer of interference would select those skills from the spirit ring's library that leaned toward defense as candidates.

Then, the Spirit Master's martial spirit would exert the second layer of interference.

The martial spirit would modify and reshape the filtered skills, making them conform more to the characteristics and style of the martial spirit itself without affecting their general effect.

Combined, the result presented was the spirit skill the Spirit Master obtained.

For instance, the strange and indescribable spirit skills of that Grandmaster from ten thousand years ago, or the unchanging first three ring configurations of the Dai family of Star Luo.

These were some of the most classic cases of "selective expression of spirit rings."

If Xiao Xiao's "Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron" followed the established trajectory, it would lean toward attack and defense.

According to the Xiao Clan's tradition, the first three rings would likely move in the direction of increasing the cauldron's suppression force or its vibrational force.

It wasn't bad, nor was it exceptionally good, but it had the advantage of a clear path. Following it step by step wouldn't lead to any problems.

However...

Jiang Ci'an thought for a moment, and a potentially viable idea occurred to him.

"Perhaps, you could try stacking weight?"

Xiao Xiao blinked, looking a bit puzzled. "Stack... weight?"

"Yes, stack weight."

Jiang Ci'an nodded, looking at Xiao Xiao earnestly. "It's a convenient way to improve your physique."

He certainly wasn't just spouting nonsense.

With twin martial souls, one would inevitably face the issue of martial soul conflict in the later stages.

The power of two martial souls clashing within the body—at best, it caused chaotic soul power; at worst, it led to the body exploding and death. This was a hurdle that every twin-martial-soul master had to face.

Among all the solutions he knew of, the most direct and convenient method to start building a foundation right now was to improve one's physical constitution.

As long as one possessed a sufficiently strong physique, they could suppress the martial soul conflict and avoid having their meridians shattered one day by the collision of the two forces within.

Furthermore, if the physique was strong enough, one could gradually attempt to reconcile the balance between the two martial souls, thereby completely resolving the twin-martial-soul problem.

And a physique, naturally, could not be forged in a single day.

The earlier one started laying the foundation, the better the results.

According to records, that genius ancestor of the Xiao Clan had played it exactly this way, carrying a cauldron every day to train. His physique was exceptionally powerful, allowing him to absorb soul rings beyond his limit to a certain extent, and his strength among his peers was formidable.

This confirmed that this path was very promising.

Listening to this, Xiao Xiao didn't continue to ask further questions.

Having known each other since childhood and living together since the age of two, the trust between them was more solid than anything else.

She believed that Jiang Ci'an was doing this for her own good, and there was no need to question it.

Nodding naturally, Xiao Xiao took the matter to heart.

After a brief pause, Xiao Xiao asked again, "Then... Ci'an, how do you plan to choose your first soul ring?"

Jiang Ci'an paused, his gaze dropping slightly as if he were seriously contemplating the question.

"That..." he murmured softly, "I haven't quite decided yet."

After all, his martial soul was truly difficult to evaluate.

Based on the "selective expression of soul rings," heaven only knew what kind of shape his martial soul would transform and reshape his soul skills into...

After all, he already had "X-ray vision," so could other strange and bizarre abilities be far behind?