Spirit Ascension Platform: This Thing Clearly Prioritizes Efficiency

Gu Yue lowered her head, watching the two soul rings at her feet rhythmically pulse like a pair of blooming violets; their age had already crossed the thousand-year threshold.

"Success!"

Xiao Mu retracted his force field. After this ordeal, the few remaining soul beasts in the vicinity no longer dared to approach.

The three continued forward, with Jun Wu circling in the sky at an incredible speed, his dark feathers trailing flames with every beat of his wings.

The wildfire spread wider and wider, growing from a patch of charred ruins into an entire burning forest.

The roars of beasts rose and fell within the sea of fire, only to eventually fade into silence.

Xiao Mu walked at the very front, his force field expanded around him to push away the heatwaves and thick smoke.

"Brother, the cleanup speed is really fast!" Na'er looked around, catching the faint scent of roasted meat; it was a pity there were no spices.

She didn't have much else to say.

Xiao Mu looked up. Countless tiny specks of light surged from all directions like fireflies on a summer night, floating and swirling amidst the flames.

Every soul beast burned to death released spiritual power—hundred-year, thousand-year—the specks of light converged into a river, rushing toward the three of them.

"No wonder there are so many evil soul masters; this method really is a shortcut!" The corners of Xiao Mu's lips curled upward slightly.

He reached out his hand, and those specks of light were pulled by an invisible force, rushing toward him like iron filings drawn to a magnet.

He was still pondering whether this vision of the future had to be based on fundamental cognition, much like how a poor student sees no correct answers.

The three continued to absorb the spiritual power. Na'er's complexion turned somewhat pale; clearly, her body had reached the limit for soul ring absorption, and she could not yet withstand a ten-thousand-year soul ring.

"Has your body reached its limit? Then let's leave first." Xiao Mu noticed Na'er's distress and spoke in a gentle voice.

"We can just come back to the Spirit Ascension Platform next time."

The three pressed their distress beacons one after another, logging out of the Spirit Ascension Platform immediately.

A flash of light passed, and the figures of the three dissipated into the forest.

Outside the Spirit Ascension Platform, in the monitoring room.

The red alarm light finally extinguished. The operator's fingers slid off the control console as if he had just woken from a long nightmare.

"Supervisor, they've finally come out!"

The supervisor stood before the main console, watching the three light spots vanish from the screen, and remained silent for a long time.

"Calculate the losses."

"Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform... thirty-seven percent of the ecosystem destroyed. Spiritual power loss... incalculable."

The supervisor closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

This guy is a real beast.

Xiao Mu sat up from the metal pod with a faint, elusive smile on his face.

"This trip to the Spirit Ascension Platform was truly worth it. I'm almost at a six-thousand-year soul spirit."

Li Jing, the Spirit Pagoda master of East Sea City, heard this and his mouth twitched. Was that even human talk?

He had suffered a massive loss; he shouldn't have sold that soul spirit to him back then.

The child had been corrupted by that evil soul spirit.

Unfortunately, Xiao Mu's thinking was simple: efficiency was the top priority.

The three walked out of the metal pods. In the hall, the lights were blindingly white, casting a bloodless pallor over everyone's faces.

Tang Wulin sat on a bench, a lingering trace of fear in his eyes.

Xie Xie leaned against the wall, his own eyes filled with undissipated terror; clearly, the two had experienced the same event.

The other three were also still shaken, evidently having gained little.

"They finally came out. They actually broke into the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform—is this the gap between us?" Xie Xie couldn't help but say.

Wei Xiaofeng stood up, pulling a forced smile to his lips. "Boss, you nearly tore the Spirit Ascension Platform apart this time."

"You have no idea how anxious the staff were just now."

Wu Zhangkong suddenly stepped forward, his white robes like snow, his face still devoid of expression. His gaze swept over the group, lingering on Xiao Mu for a moment before shifting to Tang Wulin.

"In the Spirit Ascension Platform, I saw the gap between you all."

He raised his hand and pointed at Xiao Mu.

"You killed the Spirit Ascension Platform guardian and entered the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform. You took two people with you and burned half the forest. You are truly reckless."

After speaking, he pointed at Tang Wulin.

"You were chased all over the field by a single thousand-year soul beast. Xie Xie, you were forced to withdraw by a Flame Lion. Zhang Yangzi, Wang Jinxi, you failed to coordinate your attacks."

His voice rose sharply, like the crisp sound of cracking ice.

"What is Zero Class? You are monsters! You are the strongest individuals in East Sea Academy! But look at yourselves—"

He finally addressed Xiao Mu again: "You are too much of a lone wolf. You took Na'er and Gu Yue and completely ignored the others, even though you clearly had the ability to find them."

Xiao Mu was silent for a moment before finally saying, "This way is more efficient. Gu Yue was just an accident; I didn't intend to bring her along in the first place, she only dragged down the efficiency."

Wu Zhangkong's voice turned abruptly cold. "Do you think you can accomplish everything all by yourself?"

"One person cannot do everything, but you cannot deny that what I intend to do is very dangerous."

Xiao Mu retorted directly. He did not deny the existence of teammates, but he insisted that his objective was perilous.

Wu Zhangkong walked up to Xiao Mu. The two stared at each other, their gazes colliding in the air like the clash of two swords.

"Zero Class is a single entity. You need each other, you need trust, and you need to be able to entrust your backs to one another."

"Xiao Mu, the next time you enter the Spirit Ascension Platform, gather the members of Zero Class. At the very least, try to be a little more united."

Xiao Mu looked at him, his eyes devoid of ripples. "What if they cannot keep up with me?"

"I know you have a way to make them keep up with you!" Wu Zhangkong said.

"Starting tomorrow, we begin team coordination training."

Xiao Mu was speechless. Who could keep up with his speed? Na'er and Gu Yue had spatial abilities, so perhaps they could.

He suddenly recalled the speed he had seen Jun Wu display in the Spirit Ascension Platform, which had been faster than he anticipated, and couldn't help but ask, "True Monarch, why do you fly so fast? According to my calculations, your wingspan shouldn't be able to reach that speed."

"Ignorant youth, I fly this fast even without flapping my wings. Who told you that I rely on wings to fly?"

"Ah? What? There's something I don't know?"

"When I wish to fly, the entire world must support me and clear the way. I am destiny itself! If it weren't for you humans being despicable and using special methods, how could I have been captured with my Rainbow Transformation?"

"I am the fastest soul beast on the Douluo Continent! Without exception."

"To put it in terms you can understand, you've seen fish, right? Sea soul beasts can let the water push them forward; that is the bond between sea soul beasts and the ocean."

Xiao Mu understood now. This creature was purely blessed by the sky and was the absolute hegemon of the heavens.

At the same time, in the eastern part of Shrek City, at the Spirit Pagoda headquarters.

Inside a lavishly decorated office, the light was filtered by heavy curtains into a dark gold, like a layer of aged rust.

Qiangu Dongfeng sat in his position as Pagoda Master, the collar of his black suit slightly open, revealing the dark pattern of his Coiling Dragon Staff martial soul brand beneath.

The light screen before him was looping a segment of footage—surveillance recordings from the East Sea City Primary Spirit Ascension Platform.

In the footage, Xiao Mu stood in the center of the battlefield, holding a silver coin in his right hand. Arcs of electricity spiraled up his right arm, and blue-white plasma circled into an orbit.

The coin flipped up, and an orange-red stream of light tore through the night, piercing the chest of the Dark-Gold Dread-Claw Bear.

Qiangu Dongfeng's expression darkened. Watching the back of the youth on the screen as he turned to leave, his eyes grew cold as if covered in ice.

"Two rings, and he killed the guardian of the Primary Spirit Ascension Platform..."

The screen switched to display Xiao Mu's profile: twelve years old, two-ring Great Soul Master, soul spirit Three-Legged Crow, Body Martial Soul.

Qiangu Dongfeng's fingers tapped on the desk, unable to hide the irritation in his heart.

Phantom Brain Douluo sat to the side; his martial soul was a brain, and he had once been a member of the Body Sect.

"A Body Martial Soul, so powerful. It's definitely not his hands; it might be his entire body. I truly wonder what his strength will be after a second awakening."

He pondered, thinking about how to recruit Xiao Mu into the Body Sect.

Opposite him, a red-haired woman had her eyes on the other girl; she was very interested in such extensive elemental control.

Of course, this was before she saw Xiao Mu set the mountain on fire.

The two watched for a while, then simultaneously looked at Qiangu Dongfeng, who was still lamenting the loss of his hundred-year soul bone.

"Alright, everyone, I called you here because of this incident involving a soul guidance device being brought into the Primary Spirit Ascension Platform."