Body Forging Method and the Beginning of "Body Cultivators"

Sun Moon Empire, Mingdu, Kong Family Residence.

As the head of the Sun Moon Empire's Hall of Worship, a pillar of the Empire, and the man with the greatest authority beneath the emperor, Kong Deming's residence—

—was not nearly as lavish as one might have imagined. Compared to the residences of the Empire's other nobles, it even seemed somewhat "plain."

Of course, anyone who knew this was Kong Deming's residence would have to say, "Elder Kong is indifferent to fame and fortune. He is truly a pillar of the Empire."

Inside the room, Kong Ming'an sat cross-legged on his bed, meditating.

It had been nearly sixty hours since he awakened his "Energy" Martial Soul and proved himself.

All information regarding his awakened Martial Soul, his Innate Soul Power level, and his creation of a Level 1 Soul Tool Core with just 0.5 levels of Innate Soul Power had been completely sealed away.

The many Rank 9 Soul Engineers present at the time were all his grandfather's trusted subordinates. Keeping it under wraps was not difficult—merely a small indulgence within the bounds of his authority.

Of course... none of that concerned Kong Ming'an for now.

At this moment, his mind sank into the faint yet incomparably clear thread of Soul Power within his body, as well as the intangible, formless, yet seemingly omnipresent Martial Soul—"Energy."

What was energy?

In the understanding of Douluo Continent, Soul Power was the foundation for driving Martial Souls and unleashing Soul Skills, the source of life and strength.

Spiritual Power, meanwhile, was the extension of one's will, the bridge of perception and control.

Both were forms of energy.

Flow, conversion, eruption... these fundamentals formed the cornerstone of this world's Soul Master system.

The special aspect of Kong Ming'an's "Energy" Martial Soul was its powerful control and insight over this "cornerstone."

After more than two days of preliminary exploration, he had temporarily summarized two core abilities displayed by his Martial Soul.

The first was powerful internal control.

He possessed nearly perfect control over the energy he possessed—namely, Soul Power and Spiritual Power.

This could be seen from how, two and a half days ago, he had crafted a Level 1 Soul Tool Core by hand before numerous Rank 9 Soul Engineers to prove himself.

That 0.5 levels of Soul Power had been as weak as a dying candle in the wind, yet under his will, it neither dissipated nor faltered in the slightest. It flawlessly outlined the shape he desired.

The second was external Energy Vision.

He had discovered this while recently attempting internal observation.

When he concentrated, he could "see" the flow of energy within roughly five meters centered on himself.

He could clearly "see" the tiny stream of his Soul Power struggling yet steadily through his meridians, while his Spiritual Power surrounded his body like invisible ripples.

Likewise, he could sense the Soul Power fluctuations and Spiritual Power fields emitted by other living beings, like observing halos or currents of varying shapes and brightness amid darkness.

Without question, his Martial Soul was absurdly overpowered in a certain sense.

But... was it really limited to controlling "Soul Power" and "Spiritual Power"?

Kong Ming'an was skeptical.

His Martial Soul was called "Energy," yet it could only control his own "Soul Power" and "Spiritual Power." That was somewhat undeserving of the name.

Thus, he guessed—

Either his Martial Soul possessed some unmanifested flaw due to his excessively low Innate Soul Power.

Or perhaps, because he currently possessed only these two forms of energy, Soul Power and Spiritual Power, the scope of his Martial Soul's abilities was temporarily limited to them.

He would need to verify these things bit by bit.

For the first time in a long while, Kong Ming'an felt a hint of excitement...

This was far more interesting than cleaning up the messes his mentor and junior classmates made in the Laboratory every day in his previous life!

Waking from meditation, Kong Ming'an's gaze fell upon several exquisite jade bottles before him.

These had been sent by his grandfather, Kong Deming, after learning of his intentions.

There were three types of pills in total, each capable of increasing Innate Soul Power to a certain extent without side effects.

Two bottles had been developed by the Sun Moon Empire, while the other bottle, wreathed in faint mist and exuding a cool aura—

—contained Mysterious Water Pills.

Picking up the jade bottle, information about this pill surfaced in Kong Ming'an's memory.

A top-grade Foundation-Consolidating and Origin-Nourishing Pill, it cleansed the marrow and transformed the tendons. It was remarkably effective at improving one's Innate Soul Power aptitude, especially for low-level Soul Masters.

The gentle water-attributed Life Energy it contained could nourish the meridians, wash away impurities, and gently raise Innate Soul Power by one level.

Although this pill was a specialty of the Xuanming Sect, the Sun Moon Empire had secretly purchased quite a few to cultivate imperial talent.

The bottle before Kong Ming'an contained five entire Mysterious Water Pills—enough to practically make him develop drug resistance to them.

This was the resource allocation granted by demonstrating his own value, combined with his status as the Kong Family's sole heir.

Pulling out the stopper, a refreshing medicinal fragrance filled the air. Without hesitation, Kong Ming'an placed the dragon-eye-sized, entirely azure pill into his mouth.

The pill melted as soon as it entered his mouth, transforming into a gentle yet vast torrent of coolness that instantly surged through all four limbs and hundreds of bones.

In his perception, this azure torrent of medicinal power gently yet swiftly washed through every tiny meridian.

Wherever it passed, those sluggish, narrow "river channels" caused by congenital deficiencies were gently widened and reinforced.

The minute "impurities" clinging to the meridian walls faded away beneath the washing current like melting snow.

The most concentrated Life Energy seeped thread by thread into the origin of his faint Soul Power.

Who knew how much time passed before the surging torrent of medicinal power within him finally subsided, becoming a gentle stream that nourished his renewed meridians.

Kong Ming'an slowly opened his eyes. A sharp glint flashed through them as he once more looked inward.

At this moment, the stream that had once been so weak it was nearly imperceptible had clearly grown thicker. Though its flow was still far from smooth, it had become much less sluggish and more stable than before.

"My Innate Soul Power... has roughly risen to 1.5 levels..."

In the Original Work, after Huo Gua took a Mysterious Water Pill, his Soul Power rose from just entering Level 11 to the peak of Level 12.

Aside from Huo Gua's own resolute will, this seemed to involve the Mysterious Heaven Skill, as well as the absorption bonus from his unawakened Ice Martial Soul.

His own situation, however, seemed fairly ordinary. His absorption had not been perfect, but neither had his constitution made the effect so poor that it failed to reach even the minimum.

Still... that was not a major problem.

"It just means taking a few more pills."

Kong Ming'an spoke casually.

A low starting point was only a minor issue. Resources could make up for it to a certain degree, and besides, it was merely innate aptitude.

It was not his first time trying to defy fate and change his destiny. He merely had to do it again.

Standing up, he put away the Mysterious Water Pills and the other bottles of similar medicine, planning to take more once the medicinal power of the Mysterious Water Pill had been completely absorbed by his body.

Kong Ming'an entered the bathroom and washed away the impurities expelled by the Mysterious Water Pill. After some time, he dressed, gathered his belongings, and opened the door.

Outside stood a figure in the Sun Moon Empire's standard dark-gold armor, his aura as steady and imposing as a mountain. He had clearly been waiting for quite some time.

Though the invisible pressure was deliberately restrained, Kong Ming'an could still see through his Energy Vision the vast Soul Power halo within the man's body, burning like a furnace and condensed like liquid mercury.

Without a doubt, a Titled Douluo.

This was the guard and guide his grandfather had arranged for him.

Without any unnecessary words, Kong Ming'an gave a slight nod. The Titled Douluo immediately understood, turned around, and began leading the way with steady steps.

Their destination—the Barracks.

On the outskirts of Mingdu, at the station of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Legion's Reserve Soldiers.

On the vast military drill ground, thunderous shouts, heavy impacts, and the sounds of weapons slicing through the air intertwined, forming a primal and blazing torrent of strength.

Under the scorching sun, the scent of sweat and dust filled the air. Thousands of robust soldiers, bare from the waist up, were undergoing brutal physical and basic Soul Skill training.

This was the daily training required of Reserve Soldiers.

Kong Ming'an did not enter the center of the field. Instead, led by the Titled Douluo, he quietly sat on a shaded step at the edge of the drill ground.

The Titled Douluo stood several paces behind him like a boulder. His aura blended into the surroundings, yet he also formed an invisible barrier that shut out outside interference.

A moment later, roughly a dozen Soul Elder-level soldiers, led by their officer, arrived at the open space before Kong Ming'an.

After respectfully giving a Sun Moon military salute, the officer stood straight and promptly dropped to one knee.

"Young Master Ming'an, this subordinate is Wang Meng. By the Hall Master's order, I have been waiting here! Please give your instructions!"

That look of someone eager to advance...

Kong Ming'an's gaze lingered on Wang Meng for a moment before he waved his hand.

"Begin. Show me the Soul Skills you have that can strengthen the body. Hmm... one at a time."

"Yes!"

Wang Meng answered swiftly, then turned to the soldiers behind him and beckoned.

The soldiers immediately understood. The first man in line stepped forward and let out a fierce shout. The phantom of a Grey Bear emerged behind him.

In an instant, the soldier's muscles rapidly swelled as though inflated. Coarse brown fur appeared over his skin, and his hands turned into massive bear paws that struck his chest with a dull boom.

Then, the soldier took a deep breath. His First Soul Ring immediately lit up, yellow light flooding into his limbs and body. His already knotted muscles bulged further, veins protruding like earthworms, and an overwhelming sense of strength rushed forth!

Kong Ming'an watched quietly, his Energy Vision already active.

His gaze ignored flesh, blood, and bone, clearly observing the current flow of Soul Power throughout the soldier's body.

He noticed that while the paths through which the soldiers' Soul Power circulated were crude, the points at which it erupted overlapped with certain acupoints from the Chinese medicine knowledge of his previous life—acupoints that strengthened the body and stimulated potential.

For instance, the Jianjing, Quchi, Zusanli, Yongquan, and other acupoints where Soul Power surged during exertion.

"Soul Power stimulates acupoints and certain specific locations, while also protecting the meridians from overload. This produces a short-term enhancement of the body..."

Kong Ming'an murmured softly, his eyes gradually brightening.

He understood his own shortcomings clearly. The "Energy" Martial Soul was indeed powerful, but relying solely on his Martial Soul would never be enough.

With his aptitude of 0.5 levels of Innate Soul Power, there would absolutely be limits to improving through various pills.

Therefore, simply following the traditional Soul Master path of raising his level, absorbing Soul Rings to break through, then raising his level again and absorbing more Soul Rings, would never work!

He had to do something big... something truly big!

And the first step of doing something big was acquiring a sufficiently powerful physique!

This was not only the beginning of his secondary development based on the Soul Master system, but also the beginning of obtaining an ideal configuration for his first Soul Ring.

"Soul Skills... strengthening the body... Soul Power circulation paths... acupoint stimulation... drawing in external energy..."

Kong Ming'an watched as the soldiers took turns using Martial Soul Possession and activating similar Soul Skills that enhanced their bodies. His mind began racing.

The "underlying code" provided by Energy Vision, the Chinese medicine knowledge of meridians and acupoints accumulated in his previous life, and his experience with powerful control over his own energy—

—began to collide, break apart, and reorganize within his calm consciousness.

"What if... the Soul Power circulation paths were optimized?"

"What if... those acupoints that could best unleash potential and strengthen tendons, bones, flesh, and blood were stimulated precisely?"

"What if... Spiritual Power was used as guidance to more efficiently draw in and refine Heaven and Earth Origin Power during body forging, accelerating cultivation?"

"What if... by combining it with my powerful control over internal energy, I created a systematic, efficient 'method' that did not rely on high Soul Power levels, but focused on excavating the treasures within the human body and strengthening the physique?"

An unprecedented concept gradually became clear in his heart.

He simply sat there quietly, his gaze as deep as an abyss.

Energy Vision continuously scanned the flow of Soul Power each time the soldiers exerted force, as well as the Soul Power stimulation of their acupoints with every breath.

Unconsciously, his fingers lightly traced across his knee, as though outlining more efficient and exquisite circulation paths in the air, marking each crucial energy node.

Time passed second by second. Before long, several hours had gone by.

Even though they had taken turns using Martial Soul Possession and Soul Skills, the dozen or so soldiers before him had now exhausted all their Soul Power and were lying on the ground.

Kong Ming'an's fingers suddenly paused, and he unconsciously frowned.

"Not enough samples. Too much repetition, too little variety. I need more..."

He murmured softly as he casually took more than ten cards from his Storage Soul Tool Bracelet and tossed them to Wang Meng, the officer at the side.

"One thousand for each person. The rest is yours. Replace them tomorrow and continue."

Wang Meng caught them reflexively, only to see more than ten gold cards worth one thousand Gold Soul Coins each and a Purple Card worth ten thousand in his hand.

His expression immediately became feverish.

"Yes! Sir!"

Another standard Sun Moon Empire military salute from someone longing to advance.

Kong Ming'an ignored him completely. Rising while deep in thought, he slowly walked out under the protection of the Titled Douluo at his side.

The basic framework of the "Body Forging Method" he envisioned had already been constructed. What he needed now was a massive number of real samples to fill it in, then actual cultivation to verify it, and finally, results.

However...

"Since the cornerstone framework has already been built, this new system cannot lack a name..."

He murmured, a thoughtful glint flashing through his eyes. Then... his eyes lit up slightly.

"Let it be called... 'Body Cultivation.'"