Soul Ring Age and Simulation

After pondering for a while, Jiang Yue finally made his decision. The look he gave Dream Iceworm became exceptionally serious, and his tone was solemn.

"Dream, I don't need another martial soul. I already have twin martial souls, so I'll need plenty of soul rings in the future to begin with. If I gain another martial soul, setting aside how much I'd need to improve my physical constitution to fill it with soul rings, the soul rings themselves would be a huge problem. Unless I went searching in the sea, there simply aren't that many high-quality soul beasts on the continent for me to hunt."

"You might not believe me, but please trust me. These two martial souls of mine are already the best possible combination. Even if either one were taken alone, it would be a martial soul capable of dominating an entire era."

"Not to mention that both of them are concentrated in me. Once I become a Titled Douluo, I guarantee that even if I faced Di Tian going all out, I could trap him for three days and three nights!"

"Taking everything into consideration, I think having another martial soul would not benefit my growth in the slightest. It would even seriously slow down my progress."

Though Jiang Yue spoke with immense confidence, Dream Iceworm did not really take his words to heart. Jiang Yue was simply too young, and Dream Iceworm instinctively felt that he did not know the immensity of heaven and earth.

Still, in Dream Iceworm's view, it was already quite rare for someone Jiang Yue's age to know of Di Tian's existence, clearly plan for his own future, and resist the temptation of gaining an additional martial soul.

Moreover, Dream Iceworm had long since decided on the form and first soul ring of that blank ice martial soul.

Dream Iceworm did not quite believe that any martial soul in this world could surpass the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion in strength. After all, neither the Radiant Holy Dragon nor the Dark Holy Dragon possessed an ultimate attribute, whereas the Ice Jade Scorpion did. The Ice Empress was even the emperor among Ice Jade Scorpions, far stronger than ordinary Ice Jade Scorpions.

Dream Iceworm had only just met Jiang Yue, and since it could not judge Jiang Yue's character by reading his memories, it naturally could not reveal everything to him right away.

It wanted the Ice Empress to become the first soul ring of the blank ice martial soul not only because the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion was powerful enough, but more because it liked the Ice Empress and wanted to ascend to the Divine Realm with her and achieve immortality together.

Yet Jiang Yue's words made some sense. Jiang Yue already had two martial souls, and another would only slow his growth. Unless they replaced his second martial soul, which he had yet to cultivate, with the new one, if they truly went with three martial souls—and a third one capable of absorbing soul rings—no one could say for certain whether Jiang Yue's body would be able to withstand twenty-seven soul rings in the future.

If the other two martial souls absorbed nothing but hundred-thousand-year soul rings, along with the nine soul rings on his first martial soul that could not possibly be low in age, there was no need to even think about it. Without the assistance of a god, he would definitely be burst apart.

As for adding the ice attribute to the Unfeeling Sword? Wouldn't that be completely unnecessary? The Unfeeling Sword only needed offensive power. Why would it need that insignificant ice attribute? Compared to ice, it would be better to try adding a spatial attribute. That might even enhance the power of Emotion Shakes Heaven.

Not to mention that blindly tampering with things might cause problems in the connection between the Passionate Sword and the Unfeeling Sword.

That would be far more loss than gain. So long as there was even the slightest possibility of risk to the Passionate Sword and Unfeeling Sword, Jiang Yue would not do it. Emotion Shakes Heaven was his most important life-saving method.

The value of Emotion Shakes Heaven was not something a blank ice martial soul, the Ice Empress, or the Snow Empress could compare to.

Jiang Yue would rather let that blank ice martial soul go to waste than do anything to the Unfeeling Sword. The Unfeeling Sword and Passionate Sword were the foundation of his place in this world. Nothing could go wrong with them.

If Dream Iceworm were the one making the decision, it would definitely want to replace the Unfeeling Sword with the Ice Empress martial soul. After all, it knew nothing about the Unfeeling Sword's strength, but it was well aware of the power of the Ice Empress's ultimate ice.

But judging from Jiang Yue's attitude, there was clearly no way he would replace the Unfeeling Sword with the Ice Empress martial soul. That left Dream Iceworm in a difficult position.

However, Jiang Yue's talent had still exceeded Dream Iceworm's expectations. Until the very last moment, it could not possibly give up on a genius like Jiang Yue—a natural twin martial soul wielder with a thousand-year second ring—and choose another host.

Thus, it decided to go along with Jiang Yue's wishes. If the strength of Jiang Yue's second martial soul truly was high enough and it possessed sufficient combat power, then even if the blank ice martial soul were turned into nourishment for that martial soul, Dream Iceworm could accept it.

Dream Iceworm certainly liked the Ice Empress. This was affection that had crossed species, and Dream Iceworm was the one at the bottom of the food chain—the one meant to be eaten. Could feelings for its natural predator possibly be fake?

But honestly speaking, Dream Iceworm's feelings for the Ice Empress had not reached an especially profound level. Compared with obtaining the Ice Empress, it cared more about whether its plan to become a god would succeed and whether it could attain true immortality.

For the sake of its own immortality, Dream Iceworm would even be willing to kill the Ice Empress. At most, it would apologize to her a few more times in its heart afterward.

"Forget it. We can discuss the martial soul matter later. The issue right now is that although I've already fused with you, and my spiritual origin has entered your sea of spirit, your body still can't withstand all of my power. My spiritual origin and everything else are sealed away for now. You'll need to increase your soul power rank and physical constitution to gradually unseal them."

"Also, you had already absorbed your second soul ring when I fused with you. Your main martial soul—that spiritual-attribute sword martial soul—doesn't have an empty soul ring slot at all. Cultivate to Rank 30 as soon as possible. Then I can completely fuse with you and become your third soul ring."

"A million-year third ring can provide you with four soul skills at once. Excited?"

"A million-year third ring? Dream, I think you should wait. Putting a million-year soul ring in the third slot would be far too wasteful. Besides, you just said it yourself—you don't have much offensive power. Although my main martial soul, the Passionate Sword, follows the control system, how could a sword martial soul possibly have no offensive power at all?"

"You're a spiritual attribute and lack offensive power, so you aren't suitable as my third soul ring. It would also be too wasteful. It would be best to wait until the seventh ring and use you for my Martial Soul True Body."

"Seventh ring? Martial Soul True Body? Oh! I get it! You want me to become your seventh soul ring and give you the strongest Martial Soul True Body in history?! Not a bad idea."

As a Dream Iceworm that had lived for a million years, even though it had spent most of that time eating ice marrow and sleeping, it had ultimately encountered quite a few high-level soul masters and understood human cultivation. Naturally, it knew that a soul master's seventh ring was an incomparably important soul ring slot.

A soul master's seventh ring was extraordinarily special. No matter what soul beast's soul ring a soul master absorbed, there was only one skill they could obtain: Martial Soul True Body.

Only after gaining a Martial Soul True Body could the martial soul's true power be fully unleashed. Soul masters with Martial Soul True Bodies and those without them were practically people from two entirely different worlds. Only those who possessed Martial Soul True Bodies had truly entered the ranks of high-level soul masters.

And there was only one factor that could affect the power of a seventh soul ring: its age. It was impossible for any soul beast in this world to possess a cultivation higher than Dream Iceworm's million years.

Even if one did exist, it would not be something an ordinary soul master could absorb at the seventh ring. After all, there had never been a precedent of successfully absorbing a soul ring from a ferocious beast, let alone one that was even higher—a million-year soul ring.

Dream Iceworm was not only a million-year soul beast, but also possessed the spiritual attribute. It could be said that Dream Iceworm was the most suitable seventh soul ring for Jiang Yue. It would surely provide Jiang Yue's Passionate Sword martial soul with an unprecedentedly powerful Martial Soul True Body.

Having understood Jiang Yue's intentions, Dream Iceworm could not stop itself from nodding. Even before the temptation of a million-year soul ring, Jiang Yue had remained clear-headed and chosen what suited him best. As expected of the host chosen by Dream Iceworm.

"Fine, you have a point. Then I'll wait until your seventh ring before completely fusing with you. Don't worry, my soul ring definitely won't disappoint you. Your Martial Soul True Body will be unprecedentedly powerful. Even those legendary people who became gods could never compare to you."

"By the way, do you want me to use my origin to raise the age of your first two soul rings right now? You've already absorbed a thousand-year soul ring and become a Grand Soul Master. You should be Rank 22, judging by the look of it. With that cultivation and the nourishment from your soul rings, your second soul ring hasn't reached your absorption limit yet. Your current physical constitution, along with some medicinal power that remains unabsorbed in your body, should be enough to raise your first soul ring to the thousand-year level."

"What do you think? Want to give it a try? A thousand-year first ring—there probably isn't anyone in the entire human world who has ever achieved that. Aren't you tempted?"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted, but I still want to ask, Dream, do you have a way to change the color of soul rings? It would have to be something that even a Super Douluo couldn't see through."

A thousand-year second ring was not impossible for the soul master clans of the current Unrivaled Tang Sect era if they truly wanted to nurture a genius capable of absorbing one as their second ring, though it was not easy either.

But a thousand-year first ring was another matter. That was no longer merely conspicuous—it was heaven-defying. At present, no one had ever achieved a thousand-year first ring. Such a thing would likely only become possible after soul spirits and the Spirit Ascension Platform had fully emerged in the era of Soul Land III.

A thousand-year first ring would indeed be impressive, but it would also bring Jiang Yue plenty of trouble. If he wanted to conceal the true color of his soul rings, the simulation soul skill of the Iceworm clan would be an excellent choice.

As the unshakable ancestor of the Iceworm clan, it would be strange if Dream Iceworm did not know their signature Simulation soul skill. If Dream Iceworm could use Simulation, and if it could allow Jiang Yue to use it to conceal the soul rings whose ages had been increased without fully fusing with him, Jiang Yue would definitely agree to Dream Iceworm's proposal immediately.

The problem was whether Dream Iceworm, in its current state, could grant Jiang Yue the Simulation soul skill. After all, the two of them had not fully fused yet.

"That's a little difficult. If I remained awake all the time, perhaps I could manage it. But I used up a great deal during the fusion process, and I'll definitely need to stabilize my power through sleep. Right, my shed skin!"

"My shed skin is good stuff. It contains my spiritual power. As long as I set it up beforehand, wearing it on your body will help you conceal the color of your soul rings. Forget Super Douluos—even an Ultimate Douluo, or even Di Tian himself, wouldn't be able to spot the problem. And my shed skin has excellent defensive power as well. At critical moments, it can help you block some attacks. The aura it releases can also continuously nourish your spiritual power."

"Alright. If there are no more problems, I'll start helping you raise your soul ring ages now. Once it's finished, I'll fall into slumber. When you become strong enough, I'll naturally awaken. Then we can discuss the next stage of our plan."

As Dream Iceworm's words fell, Jiang Yue's consciousness left the sea of spirit and returned to his body. He was still standing beside Maple Leaf City's lord as before, yet the city lord showed no sign of recovering, standing there blankly like a statue.

Under Dream Iceworm's urging, Jiang Yue immediately sat cross-legged. The Passionate Sword lay across his knees, while one yellow and one purple soul ring floated behind him, pulsing slowly.

As the soul rings appeared, the red Joy Sword emerged behind Jiang Yue as well. Beside it, a small sword identical to the Joy Sword in size and shape, save for its deep teal color, slowly condensed and floated behind him alongside the Joy Sword.

When a rough man sees injustice, he wears down the ancient blade in his heart—Wrath of the Seven Emotions, condense the sword!

Since the Anger Sword was not the focus now, Jiang Yue did not linger on the newly formed small sword. He immediately began circulating the soul power within his body as Dream Iceworm had instructed.

Soon, under Dream Iceworm's guidance, a power that was slightly cold at first yet left only warmth wherever it passed began merging with Jiang Yue's soul power. It flowed through every meridian and every cell in his body along with his soul power.

As if they had sensed the purpose of this power, the two soul rings behind Jiang Yue seemed to come alive. He could even feel emotional fluctuations of joy coming from them.

The remaining medicinal power from the whale glue that his body had not fully absorbed also began taking effect. Jiang Yue's entire body turned red, wisps of heat constantly rising from him. Sweat soaked the clothes that had already become somewhat ill-fitting after he absorbed the soul ring, making them cling tightly to his skin.

The two soul rings pulsed slowly, their colors growing ever deeper. The second purple soul ring did not change much. Its color merely deepened slightly before the change stopped, returning to its original state.

With Dream Iceworm's help, the first yellow soul ring soon turned deep yellow. Then, as if it had reached a critical point, it remained unchanged for a full five minutes. Just as Jiang Yue thought it might not advance to a thousand-year soul ring until next time, a trace of purple spread from deep within the ring, dyeing the entire yellow soul ring pale purple.

Seeing the two purple soul rings behind him, along with Dream Iceworm and that gray bead in his sea of spirit, Jiang Yue felt that this trip to the Star Dou Forest to hunt soul beasts had been an absolute windfall.

He picked up the snow-white cicada shell from the ground before him, which was still releasing faint strands of cold air. The moment Jiang Yue held it, it began to change, quickly becoming long and slender, looking just like a lengthy hair ribbon.

Looking at the drastically altered cicada shell, Jiang Yue's expression became somewhat strange. He was a grown man—he had no use for a hair ribbon. Did that mean he would have to try growing his hair out later?

And after growing it out, would he also have to stick a blade of grass in his mouth and go around looking for women like some ridiculous sword cultivators?

Jiang Yue silently sighed. He would rather die than become like that. Fortunately, the cicada shell was long enough. After wrapping it around his wrist as an unusual wristguard, Jiang Yue felt a cool sensation spread through his wrist, traveling along his nerves to his brain.

With every breath he took during this brief time, Jiang Yue felt threads of chill enter his mind. His sea of spirit seemed to be nourished by it, and the coolness made him feel incomparably refreshed.

At the same time, the two purple soul rings behind Jiang Yue changed back into one yellow and one purple. This was the soul ring coloration Jiang Yue had asked Dream Iceworm to set within the cicada shell earlier.

After seeing Jiang Yue put away the cicada shell, Dream Iceworm finally rested easy and fell into slumber. Maple Leaf City's lord also finally awakened from his statue-like state.

He had no memory whatsoever of that period, nor did he realize how much time had passed. All of his attention was now fixed on the purple soul ring on Jiang Yue's body.

For a moment, Maple Leaf City's lord was so excited that he could barely speak. He felt that he had personally participated in and witnessed the growth of a future powerhouse—especially one from Maple Leaf City.

The city lord could already imagine just how prosperous Maple Leaf City would become for a long time after Jiang Yue grew powerful and made his name known across the continent!

As for why he was so certain that Jiang Yue would become a powerhouse renowned throughout the continent? Wasn't that purple soul ring proof enough?

Although Maple Leaf City's lord was not among the continent's very strongest, as the lord of a main city in the Heavenly Soul Empire, he had met many major figures of the present era. Yet he had never seen anyone with a thousand-year second soul ring.

"Good, very good. A Grand Soul Master at just over seven years old, not yet eight! I've never even heard of talent like this. But don't become arrogant or complacent. You must cultivate diligently."

"Strive to become a Soul Elder before entering Shrek Academy or any advanced soul master academy!"

"Only then will you be able to see a broader world!"

"Yes, I'll work hard."

"Mm, child, remember this: no matter what happens in the future, you will always be Maple Leaf City's pride!"

After his initial joy, Maple Leaf City's lord realized that this was not a place to continue talking. He picked up Jiang Yue and left the Star Dou Forest at top speed.

There was no need to worry about much on the way out. They only needed to move at full speed. In less than two hours, the city lord safely brought Jiang Yue out of the Star Dou Forest and headed toward Shrek City.

Maple Leaf City was still some distance from the Star Dou Forest, and the nearest major city was Shrek City. Having just finished hunting soul beasts and absorbed his thousand-year second soul ring, the city lord felt that Jiang Yue still needed a relatively comfortable environment to rest properly.