"?"
Yu Xiaogang heard the commotion and glanced back at Yu Yuanzhen.
But his father looked as if he had suddenly seen the light—and misunderstood something.
"Xiao Gang, I was indeed careless about this. Let's discuss it another day." Yu Yuanzhen closed his eyes, tipped his head back, and let out a long sigh.
It seemed his hopes of holding a grandson in a few years would come to nothing.
So be it. He would let his son do as he pleased.
So Xiao Gang didn't like the young ones...
No wonder... No wonder...
"..."
Yu Xiaogang was at a loss for words.
He had no idea what his father had imagined.
Still, this counted as good news.
Judging by his father's expression, he would not bring up the subject again for at least a few years.
Let the misunderstanding stand. It would save Yu Xiaogang from answering the same question over and over, and buy him some peace.
He had been a virgin in his previous life and remained one now, but he truly could not understand: could romance really feel better than the strength gained through cultivation?
He did not think so.
Every increase in power, every bit of foundation he built, filled him with delight.
It meant he was stronger and his foundation more solid.
His future achievements would rise higher too.
"The meat's ready. Let's eat, Father." Yu Xiaogang sprinkled on seasoning, gathered his Soul Power into a knife, and cut off small pieces to eat with measured elegance.
He could control every strand of Soul Power in his body with flawless precision.
Turning Soul Power into a knife was effortless for him.
"Do you have to make eating so refined?" Yu Yuanzhen's eye twitched.
His Soul Power carried the attribute of thunder, but even he could not control it as perfectly as Yu Xiaogang did—forming a little knife without letting a trace of its aura leak out.
Even if he could manage it, using one to eat would make him its first victim.
"I don't want to wash my hands a second time." Yu Xiaogang ate as he talked with his father. "Father, you and everyone else control your Soul Power far too crudely."
"The first step toward creating a Self-Created Soul Skill is gaining sufficiently fine control over your own Soul Power."
"Suppose a Soul Skill from a Soul Ring is a switch. When you use one, you're essentially feeding Soul Power into that switch to run it. Setting aside the skill's inherent strength and the ring's age, its power depends on how much Soul Power you feed it."
"Frankly, that way of using Soul Power is too... 'inefficient.'"
What he had wanted to say was simpler and blunter: it was a wheelchair.
Why were Self-Created Soul Skills so rare these days? Precisely because Soul Ring skills were such a convenient crutch.
Creating a Soul Skill of your own took inspiration, a deep foundation, and, most of all, time.
Rather than spend all that time creating one, it was more practical to gain another level or two.
But if you could create a Soul Skill without falling behind in cultivation, it was as good as having an extra Soul Ring slot compared to someone who had not.
Besides, the power of a Self-Created Soul Skill was not determined by a Soul Ring's age.
It depended far more on your own cultivation.
"Hmm... That makes sense." Yu Yuanzhen thought it sounded reasonable. "Should I train that ability too?"
"Of course. Even if you never create a Soul Skill, it could improve your combat strength and endurance."
"But your cultivation is already so advanced that starting now will be much harder than training it from the early stages."
Yu Xiaogang had included this in the training plans he had made for Xie Yue and Hu Liena.
With their training time arranged sensibly, neither would fall too far behind in cultivation.
As for being tired?
Did they want to get stronger or not? If they did, they had better work hard.
"All right. Put together a training plan for me when we return to the sect. I'll practice in my spare time." For Yu Yuanzhen, gaining even one more level had become difficult beyond words.
Since he could not break through anyway, he might as well use his spare time to explore other avenues.
Perhaps one day insight would strike, and he would break through to Level 96.
"Ah!" Yu Yuanzhen suddenly slapped his forehead. "That's right! How did I forget about that?!"
His eyes lit up as he stared hard at Yu Xiaogang.
Yu Xiaogang had no idea what had gotten into his father this time. "Father, if you have something to say, just say it. Stop startling me like that. It's unnerving."
"Ahem..."
Yu Yuanzhen cleared his throat. "Xiao Gang, I've hit a bottleneck in my cultivation. Do you think..."
"?"
Yu Xiaogang heard him out, then slapped his own forehead in exasperation. "Father, why didn't you say so sooner?"
"I forgot, didn't I?" Yu Yuanzhen protested, a little embarrassed.
How had it not occurred to him before?
He was stuck at a bottleneck and did not know how to break through.
Yet the foremost authority on the matter was right in front of him.
Who could understand the path better than his own son, who had cultivated to Level 99 and nearly become a god?
"You're at Level 95 now, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
Yu Xiaogang cleared his throat. "Starting from Level 90, why do we call those at Levels 90 through 95 Titled Douluo, those at Levels 95 through 98 Super Douluo, and those at Level 99 Peerless Douluo?"
"Because Level 95 is a dividing line."
"Beyond Level 95, simply piling up Soul Power is useless."
"What matters more is understanding the Laws, Profound Meanings, and your Martial Soul Origin."
To make it easier for Yu Yuanzhen to understand, Yu Xiaogang offered an example. "You know Chen Xin of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Father."
"Yes. Chen Xin is stuck at Level 96 and can't advance an inch."
Yu Yuanzhen was naturally familiar with Chen Xin.
"Why was he able to break through to Level 96? Because he grasped the Profound Meaning of the sword—or, to put it another way, sword intent."
"On the path of the sword, the clearest and most reliable measure of a swordsman is whether he possesses sword intent of his own."
"And you, Father, need to understand the origin of your Martial Soul and comprehend the Laws."
"For instance, the true meaning and Profound Meaning of thunder. Once you make a breakthrough in those, reaching Level 96 will be as easy as reaching into a bag to take something out."
Yu Xiaogang did not think this was particularly difficult. Most Titled Douluo of this era simply had not realized it yet.
Nor would the other Level 99 Peerless Douluo teach it to them.
In this era, precious few people could even touch the threshold of the Laws.
Many did not even know what the Laws were, much less what kinds existed.
Even some Super Douluo who had advanced beyond Level 95 did not necessarily understand their importance.
Yu Yuanzhen had another question. "Then why is Chen Xin stuck at Level 96?"
"To break through further, he has to comprehend the Laws at a deeper level."
"His foundations must also be solid. Everything built in the early stages lays the road for the future."
"Both must be up to the mark before he can advance."
"Otherwise, he'll be stuck at Level 96 like Chen Xin, unable to advance an inch."
Yu Xiaogang took a sip of water. "To be honest, I don't know much about the path of the sword, but I'm certain Chen Xin hasn't reached its limit."
"Why?" Yu Yuanzhen asked.
"The sword can reach the divine. The limits of the sword's path lie far beyond the realm of Titled Douluo. The Great Dao is wondrous and profound; follow any one path to its end, and becoming a god is within reach."
"As for the precise reason Chen Xin is stuck at Level 96, I'm not Chen Xin himself."
"What I've said is only a preliminary guess based on my knowledge and experience."