The surge of Life Force washed through Jiang Yue's body for only a short while before stopping. The feeling of his body growing stronger faded rapidly, and his mind cleared from that blissful haze.
Jiang Yue's expression turned solemn. He clenched his fists. Now came the true fusion with the Living Blade.
The green carving knife hovered in midair, its sharpest edge pointed straight at Jiang Yue's forehead. Though it held an immense amount of Life Force, and though he had long known this was how the fusion would happen, he could not help feeling nervous.
This was a blade going into his skull. His skull. Any normal person would instinctively be afraid, wouldn't they?
Facing the Living Blade's edge, Jiang Yue swallowed twice. Then his gaze hardened. Compared with what he stood to gain from the fusion, what was a little pain?
The next instant, the Living Blade plunged into his forehead. Its edge entered his brain, bringing pain so extreme that his mind went blank. He could feel nothing else.
The pain came quickly and vanished just as fast. Almost the instant the Living Blade pierced his skull, it released a flood of Life Force, repairing every injury it had caused. Then the entire blade turned to liquid and flowed into the wound.
Life Force washed through Jiang Yue's body again, but this time, most of it swept through his Sea of Spirit.
Under the Living Blade's power, the wound healed completely without leaving a scar. Only a close look at his forehead revealed a vertical green-gold mark that resembled a tiny sword.
Within his Sea of Spirit, the immense surge of Life Force turned what had once been a bright expanse emerald green. The dense, almost viscous energy washed over the Spiritual Origins of Jiang Yue, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, and Electrolux, benefiting all three.
As their Spiritual Origins were nourished, Jiang Yue's Sea of Spirit expanded at an astonishing rate. A green-gold sphere rose slowly from below and floated above the Sea of Spirit alongside the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's Spiritual Origin, becoming another sun in its sky.
To stabilize his damaged fragment of Divine Sense, Electrolux, who had previously existed as a gray bead, had been forced to take most of the Living Gold's benefits. Now that fragment was finally stable. He no longer had to fear fading away.
The gray bead had disappeared. In its place stood an elderly man in gray robes, his aged face perfectly calm.
"I'm sorry. This fragment of my Divine Sense had no foundation and was far too fragile. I needed the Living Gold as a vessel to nourish it continuously, or I would have faded away."
"Yet this fragment holds far too few of my memories. So much of what I once knew is missing, and recovering it will take a long time."
"With the Living Gold's immense Life Force nourishing me, my Divine Sense will continue to mend. I'll also be able to use a little of my power."
Electrolux shook his head. He had been too optimistic about his condition. His fragment of Divine Sense had lain dormant in Jiang Yue's Sea of Spirit for years.
Had Jiang Yue not obtained the Living Gold, even remaining asleep to slow the fragment's deterioration would have bought Electrolux no more than three years. He would have perished in his sleep.
"This Sea of Spirit... beautiful. It's beautiful! I never imagined a Sea of Spirit could look like this!"
"That carving knife was incredible, Jiang Yue! It expanded your Sea of Spirit so much in one go. And from the looks of it, your Mental Power will grow three times faster than before!"
"One day, you'll definitely reach the level of Mental Power that old man just displayed. Heh, as your Wisdom Soul Ring, I'll benefit too. My chances of reaching that level will go way up."
"What a windfall! If only we could get more of that Living Gold. You'd definitely raise your Mental Power to the level of Divine Sense before turning twenty!"
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was beside himself with excitement. His spiritual body had benefited considerably, and if Jiang Yue wished, he could now release more of his seals and raise the ages of all Jiang Yue's existing Soul Rings.
But his words betrayed a fair bit of ignorance. Electrolux's mouth twitched, though he saw no reason to explain anything to this enormous worm who had seen so little of the world.
"My name is Electrolux. Electrolux, the Undead Calamity. Chance brought me here from another world."
"You specifically asked me to purify the Living Gold, so I assume you know what it is. I won't belabor its uses."
Electrolux paused and watched Jiang Yue intently. If he saw even a trace of confusion on his face, he would explain the Living Gold from the beginning.
But Jiang Yue understood this treasure, which he had coveted for so long, extremely well. He needed no lengthy explanation.
"Yes, Old Yi. I've heard a great deal about you, and I know a little about the Living Gold. What I know should suffice for now."
"But the Living Gold wasn't my only reason for waking you. If it's convenient, Old Yi, could you teach me a couple of methods for tempering Mental Power?"
"Methods for tempering Mental Power? You don't have any?"
Electrolux was taken aback. As he sensed it, Jiang Yue's Mental Power was already impressive for a twelve-year-old. It still fell well short of his own at that age, of course; Electrolux had been an unparalleled prodigy among the mages of the Holy Magic Continent. But Jiang Yue was far ahead of his peers.
And now Jiang Yue was telling him that he had never practiced a method for actively increasing his Mental Power? Just how extraordinary was his talent?
"This world has no cultivation methods for it. People haven't even fully mapped the body's meridians and acupoints. I know such methods exist, but that's about all I know."
"If that's true, your talent for Mental Power is remarkable. Unfortunately, my memories are incomplete. Aside from necromancy, I remember little concerning Mental Power. I'll give you an introductory method for now, then teach you others once I've recovered more of my memories."
"That would be great. Whatever happens, it's a step forward."
Seeing Jiang Yue's optimism, Electrolux stepped up to him and touched his forehead with a finger. Jiang Yue felt new knowledge appear in his mind.
Jiang Yue was genuinely delighted. On the Douluo Continent today, there was no way to actively train Mental Power apart from the Tang Sect's Purple Demon Eye.
For most people, increasing Mental Power meant waiting for it to grow naturally with the body.
Without sufficiently strong Mental Power, a person could not control a Soul Core. Condensing Dual Soul Cores demanded even more. This was a major reason Limit Douluos were so rare in this era, yet so numerous ten thousand years later, in the age of Legend of the Dragon King.
After all, Soul Spirits themselves could train a soul master's Mental Power. The demands placed on Mental Power in that era were far beyond those of this one.
The Mental Attribute was strange and unpredictable, and it was no exaggeration to call this a primitive age for Mental Power. With Electrolux's method in hand, Jiang Yue was in his element.
"I'll go back to sleep and try to recover more of my memories and strength. But first, a warning: the fusion with the Living Gold has made your mind and body a seamless whole. That big worm over there can no longer take control of your body."
After leaving Jiang Yue the introductory method for Mental Power, Electrolux said no more. He turned back into a gray bead and settled beneath the "sun" formed by the Living Blade, steadily absorbing the Life Force it released.
"Did that old man just say I can't take control of your body anymore?"
"Seems so."
"That's terrible! You said I'd help you hunt a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast for your fourth Soul Ring. Well, that's impossible now. You heard him, Jiang Yue. You'll have to find another way."
"It does make things difficult. We'll have to think of something else. Besides, if you lend me some of your power, I might still be able to kill a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast myself."
Jiang Yue had forgotten about that detail. When he read the book, he distinctly remembered the author mentioning that rule only in passing.
He had planned to do more than hunt a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast for his fourth Soul Ring. Afterward, he had wanted to explore the Star Dou Forest and see whether a stroke of luck would lead him to the Golden Tortoise.
Whether he could find the Golden Tortoise at this point was another matter. Its true age was a hundred thousand years, but the Living Gold inside it was tormenting it. Right now, it not only looked like a thirty-thousand-year-old Soul Beast, but could wield only about that much power.
Even the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, for all his weakness, could seriously injure a noncombat Soul Beast like the Golden Tortoise with a single Dream Finger if it was only fighting at that level.
Jiang Yue might not be able to absorb its Soul Ring, but he could at least obtain a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone and a large piece of Living Gold—enough to turn the Blade of Life's Watch in his possession into a proper short sword.
Now, though, his plan to have Tian Meng help hunt Soul Beasts had fallen through. He would have to rely on himself.
"If it comes down to it, I'll use other means. I can handle one Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast on my own. When the time comes, Tian Meng, I just need you to pinpoint a suitable one's location."
"Don't worry. I can do that much. By the way, remember what I said? We should keep an eye out for Living Gold elsewhere on the continent."
"I underestimated what Living Gold could do. The effect was incredible. That felt amazing."
"Come on. You think Living Gold grows by the roadside? The Life Force you accumulated over a million years would amount to only a droplet of it."
"What?! I might be weak in a fight, but my Life Force is no joke! Living Gold may be extraordinary, but there's no way I'm worth only that tiny bit!"
Ice Silkworms lived at the bottom of the food chain in the harsh Extreme North. Their Life Force was relatively strong even among Soul Beasts; otherwise, that brutal climate might have frozen them to death.
And the million-year-old Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was exceptional even among the Ice Silkworm Clan. Though he was not a life-attribute Soul Beast, he could not accept that all his Life Force amounted to no more than a droplet of Living Gold.
"I'm not lying. It takes the entire Star Dou Forest Two Hundred Thousand Years to form a piece of Living Gold the size of that carving knife. Other Soul Beasts might have less Life Force than you—not even enough for a droplet."
"Hah! Trash, the lot of them. Compared with me, they're all trash. I knew those backwoods beasts from Star Dou could never match my talent."
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm found unprecedented satisfaction in the thought that the Ferocious Beasts of Star Dou, who had once drained the Heaven and Earth Vital Energy from his body, did not even have enough Life Force to make a droplet of Living Gold.
It was a victory in his own mind, at least.
Jiang Yue had no words for that, but he let it pass. As long as Tian Meng was happy.
"I've accomplished what I came to Star Luo City for. Next, I'll go to the Star Dou Forest to hunt a Soul Beast. Since you can't help me directly now, Tian Meng, I'll have to find another way."
"If nothing else works, I'll have to use my trump card."
There were only a few known Mental Attribute Soul Beast species. Silver Wolves and Evil Eyes were both in the Sun Moon Empire, far too distant, with too many things that could go wrong along the way.
The Merfolk Tribe lived in the Extreme North Ice Sea, and Jiang Yue was not capable of venturing down there yet. The Star Dou Forest seemed the better choice.
"All right, Tian Meng, get some rest. Over the next couple of days, I'll buy information on Mental Attribute Soul Beasts from mercenaries. I'll wake you when I reach the Star Dou Forest."
"No problem. When the time comes, I'll definitely help you hunt a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast of a decent age."
He certainly would not find a ten-thousand-year-old Mental Attribute Soul Beast in the Outer Zone or along the edge of the Mixed Zone. He would have to go deep into the Star Dou Forest—perhaps deep into the Mixed Zone, or even to its border with the Core Area. The danger was absurdly high.
Jiang Yue swore that if he made it back safely and grew strong enough, he would seize the first chance he got to properly "repay" Yan Shaozhe.
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