Bibi Dong Didn't Want to Turn Ugly

An hour or two after Yue Guan ate the Immortal Herb.

Bibi Dong took a sofa from her Soul Tool and sat down nearby, crossing her legs with a bored look on her face.

Gui Mei, meanwhile, sat in front of Yue Guan. His eyes barely left him.

Bibi Dong asked, "Elder Gui, how much longer before Yue Guan wakes up?"

Gui Mei shook his head. "I don't know."

Bibi Dong pressed curiously, "Gui Mei, Yue Guan made Immortal Herbs sound so miraculous. He's the first to eat one, too. How much Soul Power will he gain? Will his Martial Soul mutate?"

Gui Mei answered helplessly, "Your Highness, we're Titled Douluo, after all. No matter how miraculous an Immortal Herb is, it can't raise our Soul Power several levels at once."

"So I'd say gaining even one level would be excellent. It would save years of hard cultivation."

"As for his Martial Soul mutating, that's unlikely. Of course, I know as little about Immortal Herbs as you do."

Gui Mei might have been Yue Guan's best friend, but he was a ghost. He had never shared Yue Guan's fascination with flowers.

"Just one level?" Bibi Dong sounded unconvinced. "I'm guessing two. Want to bet, Elder Gui?"

Gui Mei remained silent.

"You're no fun, Elder Gui," Bibi Dong said, looking bored. "Yue Guan is much better company."

"I don't know how Yue Guan stayed friends with someone as cold as you for so many years."

Gui Mei: ...

After a moment's silence, Gui Mei finally said, "Your Highness, I've never been much of a talker."

Bibi Dong tilted her head at him. "I know... That's why I said Yue Guan is better company."

Gui Mei: "..."

"Forget it. I won't bother talking to you." Bibi Dong sighed. "Lin Fan is still the best. If he were here, he'd at least tell me a little story."

With nothing else to do, Bibi Dong began meditating.

She soon noticed that cultivating Soul Power through meditation at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was far more effective than it was outside.

Another two hours or so passed.

A powerful surge of Soul Power abruptly broke Bibi Dong's meditation. She opened her eyes and saw Yue Guan enveloped in flowing golden light.

Within the golden glow, the phantom of Yue Guan's Martial Soul appeared above his head.

It was a Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum magnified several times over. Its petals layered upon one another, each threaded with flowing strands of golden light.

"What's happening?" Bibi Dong asked as she joined Gui Mei.

Gui Mei kept his eyes fixed on Yue Guan. "He's breaking through. He must be at a critical stage."

Yue Guan had indeed reached a critical stage.

With the strength of a Titled Douluo, he had fully refined the medicinal power of the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and was now making it his own.

That molten-gold power flowed through every part of his body, transforming his physique.

That was why golden light covered Yue Guan from head to toe, making him look like a little golden statue.

Gradually, the light surrounding him faded, and the phantom of his Martial Soul grew indistinct.

Before long, Yue Guan returned to normal. A glint of gold flashed through his eyes as he opened them.

Then he flinched. Two faces were staring at him from close range.

Still seated, Yue Guan leaned his upper body back. "Your Highness, Gui Mei, you startled me. Why are you so close?"

Bibi Dong asked curiously, "Yue Guan, are you all right? You turned into a golden statue just now!"

Gui Mei asked, "Are you all right? How effective was the Immortal Herb?"

Yue Guan stood and closed his eyes, carefully sensing the changes in his body.

He opened them again, his face bright with delight. "Your Highness, Gui Mei, I gained two levels of Soul Power. I'm at level ninety-five now. Unfortunately, I'm still a little short of level ninety-six. That's a difficult threshold."

"And look at my Martial Soul." Yue Guan summoned it. "Your Highness, Gui Mei, can you see what's changed?"

Bibi Dong stepped closer and examined it from every angle. "How is it different from before?"

Gui Mei spotted the difference at a glance. "It has more petals."

Yue Guan smiled. "You know me best, old ghost!"

"That's right. My Martial Soul went from nine petals to eighteen. It's now flawless—a perfect, top-tier Martial Soul. Its overall attack power has risen by fifty percent, including its soul skills."

"And that isn't the full extent of the improvement. The Immortal Herb enhanced my physique, too."

Bibi Dong stared in surprise. "Damn, it's that miraculous?"

Gui Mei cared about only one thing. "Yue Guan, can we still use our Martial Soul Fusion Skill?"

Yue Guan smiled knowingly. "Don't worry, old ghost. Of course we can. If the quality of your Martial Soul improves too, our fusion skill will only grow stronger."

A rare smile crossed Gui Mei's cold face. "Good."

Bibi Dong watched the two exchange a warm look, momentarily at a loss.

Seriously? Are you two going to let me get a word in?

"Hey, hey... Hold it," Bibi Dong cut in helplessly. "I'm still here."

"Yue Guan, tell me which Immortal Herb would suit me."

"Your Highness, well..." He rubbed his hands together and thought carefully before answering. "With Immortal Herbs, what matters is finding the right match. The strongest one isn't necessarily the best for you."

"Both your Martial Souls are top-tier, and you have Twin Martial Souls, but poison is their primary attribute. Of the mature Immortal Herbs here at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the one best suited to you should be..."

"The Aromatic Silk Beauty." Yue Guan pointed to a plant in a corner. "That one suits you best, Your Highness."

"The Aromatic Silk Beauty?" Bibi Dong followed his finger. "What makes this Immortal Herb special?"

"Your Highness, the Aromatic Silk Beauty is one of the rare 'harmonizing' Immortal Herbs," Yue Guan explained. "It has no extreme attribute of its own, but it has a special effect: it can reshape or harmonize a Martial Soul's attributes."

"So the Aromatic Silk Beauty could completely smooth out how Soul Power circulates between your two Martial Souls, letting your Twin Martial Souls work together more seamlessly. Your soul skills would cost less to use and become more powerful."

"It might even reshape and evolve your Twin Martial Souls, fusing them into a single god-tier Martial Soul."

Bibi Dong jolted. "What did you say? Reshape my Martial Souls and fuse them into one?"

"If they fuse into one Martial Soul, will it still be a spider?"

Bibi Dong had always cared deeply about how she looked after Martial Soul Possession.

If she could avoid that ugly transformation, she would gladly give up one of her Martial Souls.

How could Yue Guan's explanation not tempt her?

Yue Guan answered cautiously, "Your Highness, that's only what the books say. No one has ever tried it before, so I can't guarantee anything."

At the thought of how ugly Martial Soul Possession made her, Bibi Dong decided at once. "All right. That's the one I want."

Yue Guan looked up in surprise. "Your Highness, are you sure? If your Twin Martial Souls really become one, you may have to change the direction of your cultivation."

Bibi Dong's gaze hardened. "I'm sure. Tell me how to use it!"

Twin Martial Souls were powerful, but deep down, Bibi Dong had always hated those two ugly Spider Emperor Martial Souls.

She didn't want Martial Soul Possession to leave her without legs, her lower body swollen into a spider's abdomen, purple-black carapace creeping up her chest and across her cheeks, and four tiny compound eyes appearing beneath her own.

No. She didn't want to look like that!