The Normal State of "Ring Unlocking," Cultivation Speed Soaring Once More

Time passed slowly.

In the blink of an eye, two months had gone by.

Inside Jiang Ci'an's room at Ping'an Pharmacy.

Late autumn sunlight slanted in through the carved wooden window, bringing a hint of warmth.

Jiang Ci'an sat cross-legged on the bed, his eyes half-closed. Soul Power flowed steadily around him, while one yellow and one purple Soul Ring quietly circled at his side, each giving off a faint glow.

At a certain moment, as though he had finished preparing, Jiang Ci'an opened his eyes and summoned his first Soul Ring before him.

Staring at the Soul Ring, he moved his thoughts and skillfully condensed and compressed a wisp of Soul Power, forming it into a hair-thin needle in his palm.

The Soul Power needle moved, hovering above the Soul Ring before slowly descending.

There were no great fluctuations, no dazzling light, and not even much sound.

The Soul Power needle entered the Soul Ring like a needle piercing jelly, silent and soundless, meeting only faint resistance.

Then, a stream of energy slowly flowed out.

This energy was not violent. Unlike when he drilled into Xiao Wu's Soul Rings in the Virtual World, where energy poured forth like a raging flood, it flowed like a gentle, continuous trickle from the Soul Ring into his body.

Jiang Ci'an did not hesitate. The Body Tempering Method within him naturally began circulating, gradually refining this newly introduced energy and integrating it into his meridians, flesh, blood, and bones.

His cultivation speed, which had not been slow to begin with, rose once more. His Soul Power steadily climbed bit by bit.

It was not especially fast, but it was stable.

Jiang Ci'an carefully sensed everything. After confirming that there was no discomfort in his body, no damage to his meridians, and no sluggishness in the circulation of his Soul Power,

he relaxed his mind and allowed the Body Tempering Method to continue operating on its own, refining the trickling energy. Then, he shifted his attention to his first Soul Ring.

He carefully sensed the Soul Ring and confirmed that Indifference could still be used normally, unaffected by the fact that the Soul Ring had been drilled open.

Only then did Jiang Ci'an finally let out a breath, his posture relaxing.

His Ring Unlocking had succeeded.

With Time Control, his efficiency at drilling into Xiao Wu's Soul Rings in the Virtual World had greatly improved, making it easier to review the process as well.

Every explosion of a Soul Ring could be paused, rewound, and slowed down. Every detail could be repeatedly observed and analyzed.

In just over a month in reality, he had completed his initial Ring Unlocking through countless cycles in the Virtual World of "drill open the Soul Ring, explode, rewind, and try again."

He had then spent another month systematizing and stabilizing the entire process, ultimately creating his current Ring Unlocking.

It was a method that could permanently lift the restrictions on Soul Rings, allowing them to continuously channel the energy contained within them into one's body and thereby improve cultivation efficiency.

Feeling his current cultivation speed, Jiang Ci'an made a rough calculation in his heart.

His cultivation efficiency had increased by at least another five percent.

Five percent might not sound like much, but this was a permanent boost that required no additional expenditure and would continue as long as the Soul Ring still contained energy.

Moreover, he was currently maintaining Time Control on himself at all times, accelerating his personal time by twenty percent.

In other words, this was an independent twenty-percent multiplier to his overall cultivation efficiency, one that could stack with every other bonus.

And unlocking the first ring was only the beginning.

His first ring had only four hundred years of cultivation, and the energy it contained was not actually much for someone like him, who was already level twenty-four and whose physique was growing ever stronger.

But his second ring was four thousand years old!

That was the real main event.

With all these boosts combined, advancing to Soul Elder within a year... or even less, would be easy.

Jiang Ci'an slowly exhaled, but he did not rush to begin drilling into his second Soul Ring.

He would first let his body adapt to the current state of permanently activated Ring Unlocking, allowing his meridians to gradually grow accustomed to the continuous influx of energy before steadily proceeding to unlock his second Soul Ring.

After all, this was reality, not the Virtual World.

In the Virtual World, he could directly drill open a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring. Even if it exploded and killed him, he could simply exit and reenter without any burden.

But reality was different. He had to be more cautious.

He rose to his feet and pushed open the door.

The sunlight outside was bright.

It was a late autumn afternoon. The sky was high and clear, and the breeze was refreshingly cool.

At the edge of the training ground, two small figures sat upright on meditation cushions.

They were Xiao Xiao and Wang Dong'er.

At that moment, the two girls sat facing each other, cross-legged, their shoulders relaxed and backs straight as they cultivated with their eyes closed.

They were practicing a new meditation method.

Electrolux had created this meditation method by breaking down the principles behind the spiritual cultivation of the Purple Demon Eye, combining them with the circulation of Soul Power in the soul master system, and incorporating meditation methods from the world of Throne of Seal.

It was called the Concentration Meditation Method.

Its core principle was not particularly complicated. Through a specific form of spiritual guidance, one absorbed the free energy within sunlight or moonlight to temper one's spiritual power and soul.

Simply put, one could cultivate by basking in the sun or moonlight.

Furthermore, depending on one's martial soul, this meditation method also possessed a certain elemental inclination.

Some soul masters absorbed sunlight more efficiently, while others absorbed moonlight more efficiently. They could choose freely, making the method highly versatile.

Standing beneath the corridor, Jiang Ci'an quietly watched the two figures bathing in sunlight, faint streams of light rippling through his golden eyes.

Under the Perspective view, everything about the two girls was clearly visible.

He did not linger on the girls' outward appearances. His gaze went deeper.

Since obtaining his second Soul Ring, both his Perspective and Indifference had received further enhancements in reality as well.

Previously, he could only see the flow of Soul Power. Now, he could see souls.

At that moment, Xiao Xiao's soul was seated in the same posture as her physical body. It was quiet, translucent, and gave off a faint glow.

When sunlight fell upon her, part of it was reflected by her skin, while another part was naturally absorbed by her soul.

Every wisp of sunlight she absorbed transformed into an exceedingly thin thread of spiritual power, flowing into the soft cluster of light deep within her brow.

Her spiritual power was growing slowly, but genuinely, bit by bit.

And on Wang Dong'er's side...

Jiang Ci'an's gaze paused slightly.

Within the girl bathing in sunlight, he saw an incomplete soul.

One half of her soul was clear and solid, bearing the same outline as Wang Dong'er and radiating a faint warm glow.

But the other half was as illusory as transparent gauze, its edges drifting and indistinct, as though it might dissipate at any moment.

If not for a blue-gold power covering that incomplete half of her soul, forcibly holding those soul fragments that were about to scatter in place and maintaining a fragile balance,

then... her soul would likely have shattered long ago.