The Potential to Become a God

"Luo, you're not getting any younger, yet that impatient temper of yours hasn't changed one bit."

Yan Shaozhe shook his head helplessly, his tone carrying a hint of indulgence.

He knew he had wronged her in his youth, and now that he needed something from Lu Chen, he naturally would not argue with Luo Wei and risk further complications.

Ignoring Luo Wei's cold expression, Yan Shaozhe turned to Lu Chen, his face turning serious.

"Young man, you know that finding compatible Soul Beasts is entirely a matter of luck for Soul Masters.

With my abilities, finding two Soul Beasts that meet your requirements would not be difficult, but their quality might not be top-notch. I'm afraid they would not be able to draw out your potential to the fullest."

Lu Chen frowned slightly. "What do you mean by that, Senior Yan?"

Yan Shaozhe smiled faintly. "How about we make a deal?

I guarantee on my honor that I will do my utmost to find the finest Soul Beasts most compatible with you.

And you only need to act one more time and use your ability to completely eradicate the Evil Fire within Xiaotao."

The moment those words were spoken, Lu Chen sneered inwardly.

Old man, you've finally revealed your true purpose!

Still, not only could he accept this condition, he was more than happy to see it happen.

Resolving Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire was no more than a trivial matter to him.

And an exceptional Soul Beast was precisely what he needed most urgently right now.

The difference in attributes between ordinary Soul Beasts and exceptional Soul Beasts was like heaven and earth, and the boost to his strength was even more incomparable.

Although Elder Luo Wei was an expert of the Body Sect, her understanding of Star Dou Forest ultimately could not compare to Shrek, which had been rooted here for so long.

Besides, Evil Fire was never something that could be completely eradicated in one go.

As long as Ma Xiaotao continued cultivating, new Evil Fire would keep growing.

Perhaps he could even turn her into a long-term source of benefits and exchange that for more resources.

Of course, it all came down to the fact that he was still too weak.

Even if Yan Shaozhe had refused to apologize, Lu Chen could do nothing about it.

It was even more impossible for him to let the Body Sect go to war with Shrek, as Aunt Luo had suggested.

Even if Du Busi agreed, he would do everything in his power to stop it.

Shrek's high-level combat strength was no weaker than the Body Sect's, and it even had a Limit Douluo overseeing it.

Starting a war now would only give Sun Moon Continent and the Holy Spirit Cult an opening to exploit.

After considering it briefly, Lu Chen nodded. "Naturally, I trust Senior Yan's character, and I agree to this condition.

But the prerequisite is that you bring the Soul Beasts back first.

If they are truly compatible, it will not be too late for me to act then."

Yan Shaozhe was speechless inwardly.

This brat claimed to trust him, but he still had to inspect the goods himself.

Still, Yan Shaozhe did not dwell on it.

For Xiaotao's future, helping this boy find two exceptional Soul Beasts was not an unacceptable price.

After Ma Xiaotao absorbed her fourth Soul Ring and fully released her Evil Fire, her Soul Power had already reached Rank 44.

If the Evil Fire within her could be completely cleansed, she could advance to Soul King in at most about a year!

That was the terror of the Evil Fire Phoenix.

Once she no longer needed to suppress the Evil Fire inside her, her cultivation speed would soar like a rocket.

Putting those thoughts aside, Yan Shaozhe turned and gave Zhang Lexuan a few instructions before his figure vanished instantly into the forest.

Before leaving, he deliberately sent a message to Luo Wei. "Luo, Star Dou Forest is dangerous. Please look after my students."

His voice was not loud, but everyone heard it.

"Hmph!"

Luo Wei snorted coldly. Naturally, she understood the double meaning behind his words.

It was both a request and a threat.

If she truly killed Shrek's students, then the Body Sect's disciples would surely be targeted by Shrek when they trained in Star Dou Forest in the future.

"Aunt Luo, do you think he'll sincerely help Little Chen find Soul Beasts?"

Tang Ya had an extremely poor impression of Shrek, and her face was full of distrust.

Luo Wei said in a deep voice, "I can tell that he values that girl called Xiaotao greatly.

Everything that happened today was a play he directed himself. His purpose was to make Little Chen treat that girl, so he probably will not try to deceive us."

Lu Chen raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Luo, you saw through it too?"

Luo Wei shot him a sidelong glance and scolded him with a smile. "I'm not stupid. How could I fail to see through such a petty trick?"

After a pause, Luo Wei frowned. "But there seems to be an evil aura inside that young girl, constantly eroding her reason.

It was somewhat like when Xiao Ya had lost her mind before."

Tang Ya nodded upon hearing that. "I felt it too. Her Martial Soul seems to be an Evil Martial Soul, just like mine."

"An Evil Martial Soul?"

Long Aotian suddenly understood. "No wonder they came looking for Brother Lu."

Lu Chen glanced at the unconscious Ma Xiaotao in the distance and explained,

"If I'm not mistaken, her Martial Soul should be the Evil Fire Phoenix. Its potential is immense."

"The Evil Fire Phoenix!"

Tang Ya was startled. "Isn't that the Martial Soul of Ma Hongjun, the Tang Sect's vice hall master who followed Ancestor Tang San to godhood ten thousand years ago?"

Lu Chen nodded. "That's right."

Long Aotian's expression changed. "Doesn't that mean she has the potential to become a god?!"

Even Luo Wei's expression shifted slightly.

Becoming a god was the ultimate dream and desire of all Soul Masters.

Lu Chen glanced at the excited Long Aotian and was speechless inwardly.

Becoming a god was not that simple.

Even if Ma Xiaotao's Martial Soul inherited Ma Hongjun's legacy, that guy would never willingly give up his own Second-Level God position and pass it to Ma Xiaotao.

Not to mention that all the Divine Positions on Douluo Continent had already been monopolized by that little bastard Tang San.

Even if a new Divine Position appeared, if one did not submit to Tang San and become his dog,

there was still a high chance that the little bastard would use all kinds of excuses to cut off the path of inheritance.

In short, if one wanted to become a god standing tall in this era without becoming a vassal of the gods in the heavens,

there was only the option of creating a Divine Position oneself and forcing open the gates of heaven through one's own strength.

Or becoming a god through faith, like the Sea God.

In the afternoon, sunlight filtered down through gaps in the leaves.

Lu Chen and the others sat beneath a large tree, with Shrek's students seated opposite them.

The atmosphere was not harmonious, but for the moment, they remained at peace.

"Hiss—That hurts!"

Ma Xiaotao sucked in a cold breath and slowly opened her eyes, her head still dizzy and swollen.

"Xiaotao, you're awake!"

Seeing this, Zhang Lexuan immediately revealed a delighted expression and hurried forward to support her.

Ma Xiaotao rubbed her aching head in confusion.

"Senior Sister, what happened to me? Why does my head hurt so much?"

Zhang Lexuan asked in surprise, "Lu Chen injured you. Don't you remember any of it?"

Ma Xiaotao looked blank. She only vaguely remembered that while absorbing her fourth Soul Ring, the Evil Fire within her had suddenly erupted out of control.

After that, she had flown rapidly following some inexplicable sensation. The moment she saw Lu Chen, her consciousness had completely gone blank.

Seeing her confusion, Zhang Lexuan told her everything that had happened that morning in full detail.

Ma Xiaotao instinctively sensed the state of her body and discovered that more than half of her Evil Fire had truly been cleared away. She was so excited that she nearly jumped up.

"Haha! My feeling was right! Lu Chen really can purify the Evil Fire inside me!"

"Hey, Xiaotao!"

Zhang Lexuan was stunned by her leap in thought. "Shouldn't you first be concerned about the fact that you were knocked out of combat with one punch?"

For a proud genius like Ma Xiaotao, should defeat not have been the hardest thing to accept?

Yet Ma Xiaotao waved her hand, looking completely unconcerned.

"Wasn't it just one punch? You know he's a freak!"

To her, nothing was more worth celebrating than removing the Evil Fire.

Once the Evil Fire was gone, she could cultivate without restraint. Compared to that, a single defeat was not worth mentioning at all.

After speaking, Ma Xiaotao fixed her blazing eyes on Lu Chen.

She could not wait to rush to his side and have him clear away the remaining Evil Fire within her.

As if sensing her gaze, Lu Chen looked up and glanced at her, his expression calm.

He then withdrew his gaze and continued speaking to Luo Wei.

"Aunt Luo, Flash Step uses Soul Power as propulsion to make the body shift rapidly.

Then if one does not use Soul Power and only relies on the feet striking the ground rapidly, could one achieve a similar displacement effect?"

Lu Chen carefully explained the principles of Shave from Navy's Six Powers to Luo Wei.

"Achieve Flash Step's speed through physical strength alone? How is that possible!"

Long Aotian stared wide-eyed in disbelief, feeling that Lu Chen was simply fantasizing.

"Flash Step already places extremely high demands on leg strength. It can barely be used even with Soul Power assisting it.

If one relied purely on physical strength, what kind of terrifying physique would that require?

By the time someone met those requirements, they would probably already be a Soul Saint!"

Yet Luo Wei's eyes flickered after hearing him. She lowered her head and pondered seriously before slowly speaking.

"Rapidly striking the ground within a fraction of a second could indeed use the reaction force to generate instantaneous momentum and achieve short-range movement.

However, the physical demands would be far harsher than Flash Step.

Not only would the legs need to be strong enough, but one's core strength and bodily coordination would also need to reach the absolute peak..."

Hearing this, Lu Chen was immediately delighted.

Aunt Luo's words undoubtedly confirmed his guess. The technique of Shave was completely feasible on Douluo Continent!

Just as they were talking, Luo Wei's expression suddenly sharpened as she looked toward the forest ahead.