Level Ten Soul Power

"Thank you for your guidance."

Chu Heng steadied his breathing and gave Su Xianling a respectful salute.

Though they called each other brother and sister, what she had just done was the work of a teacher. He owed her his thanks.

"Oh, it was nothing. I got a little exercise out of it."

Su Xianling waved off his formal thanks and turned away, though she couldn't keep the corners of her mouth from lifting.

"Now, remember what I told you today and keep practicing. Since it's your day off, I won't take up any more of your time."

With that, Su Xianling soon vanished from sight, and Chu Heng made his way back into the city at an unhurried pace.

In the days that followed, Chu Heng continued to train hard.

After returning from the Soul Master Academy, he added another exercise to his routine. Every Wednesday, when Su Xianling came to check his progress, she sparred with him and helped him improve his close-combat skills.

He trained his body by day and cultivated his soul power by night. A month later, his soul power finally reached level ten.

During that month, Chu Heng also visited the Soul Master Academy twice. He saw Tang San and Xiao Wu there and struck up a friendship with Xiao Wu.

One Wednesday, Su Xianling came to check Chu Heng's progress and found that he had reached the threshold of level ten.

"Your soul power rose quickly before level nine, but getting from level nine to ten took you a month. That still isn't slow, but it's quite a drop from your earlier pace."

Su Xianling considered his progress.

"It seems your innate soul power was somewhere between levels eight and nine. That would explain your rapid growth at first. Your pace after level nine is your normal rate of cultivation."

Chu Heng nodded, but inwardly he grumbled, The first two system tasks rewarded me with soul power. There haven't been any new tasks lately. Of course I've slowed down...

Just as he was lamenting how slowly his soul power grew through cultivation alone, he spotted Tang San in Spirit Hall, with Yu Xiaogang beside him.

Yu Xiaogang took Tang San to the hall master's room. Before long, the two came back out together.

"Tang San!"

Chu Heng had no intention of passing up a chance to make himself known to Tang San. As soon as Tang San returned to the first floor of Spirit Hall, Chu Heng went over to greet him.

"Chu Heng!"

Tang San greeted him back.

"What brings you here?"

Chu Heng pretended not to know why Tang San had come to Spirit Hall.

"Oh, my soul power has reached the peak of level ten. My teacher brought me here to arrange entry to the Soul Hunting Forest. He'll take me to choose a soul beast soon."

Chu Heng nodded, a hint of envy in his eyes as he looked at Tang San.

After all, who wouldn't want their first spirit ring as soon as possible? Chu Heng wanted one especially badly. So far, his martial soul couldn't even take physical form. He had no idea whether it would gain a definite shape after he obtained his first spirit ring.

Gun Soul... What kind of soul beast should I get a spirit ring from for a martial soul like that?

The thought excited him, but it also left him troubled. Even if Yu Xiaogang was just guessing, he could still pick out a usable spirit ring or two for Tang San. With Chu Heng's martial soul, though, he truly had no idea where to start. And his second martial soul was the even more abstract "Heart of Technology"...

"Oh, you've reached level ten too?"

Yu Xiaogang, whom Tang San had left a couple of steps behind, came over as they talked. Sensing the fluctuations of soul power around Chu Heng, he spoke in surprise.

"Chu Heng, your soul power is level ten too?"

Surprise flashed in Tang San's eyes at Yu Xiaogang's words.

Chu Heng answered sheepishly.

"I broke through a couple of days ago, but I'm still a long way from the peak of level ten."

"Mm."

Yu Xiaogang nodded. Chu Heng's rise from level seven to level ten in a month and a half was astonishing, but it was not beyond explanation. Tang San had already reached the peak of level ten. Once he found a suitable spirit ring, he would become a true soul master. He was still progressing much faster than Chu Heng.

My judgment was right after all.

With that thought, Yu Xiaogang took Tang San by the hand and led him out of Spirit Hall.

"Chu Heng, I'll come find you once I have my first spirit ring!"

Tang San shared his excitement even as he left. Chu Heng waved in reply.

"What's this? Envious that your friend is about to become a soul master?"

Su Xianling's voice came from behind him. Chu Heng quickly turned and found himself facing a pair of long legs. He looked up into Su Xianling's beautiful face.

"Uh... What are you doing here?"

Chu Heng guiltily took two steps back.

"Because of you..."

Su Xianling stepped forward and caught him by the ear.

"I've barely been gone, and you're already neglecting your training to stand around chatting. Looks like you didn't get enough practice earlier."

"Ow, ow, ow!"

Chu Heng had no defense against her ear-pulling and could only beg for mercy.

"Sorry! I came down to find someone about something..."

"Something? What?"

Su Xianling eased her grip and waited for an answer. When Chu Heng stammered without managing to explain himself, she tightened it again, making him yelp.

Fortunately, after a few seconds, she noticed everyone in the hall watching them and let go. Then she said coldly,

"Go back to your room."

In a flash, she disappeared from the hall.

By the time Chu Heng returned to his room, Su Xianling was already sitting inside, raising a cup of tea to her lips.

"Do you want your first soul skill?"

The blunt question caught Chu Heng off guard the moment he entered.

"Uh, I only just reached level ten. It'll be a while before I reach the peak..."

Chu Heng tried to explain.

A soul master could attempt to obtain a first spirit ring upon reaching level ten, but bringing one's soul power to its peak made the ring easier to absorb and allowed for an older ring. Chu Heng's long months of physical training had also been preparation for this. There was no need to rush into getting his first spirit ring just to save a little time.

"I know that."

Su Xianling understood what he was thinking and explained.

"Your martial soul is highly unusual, so I don't yet know what kind of soul beast would be suitable for your first spirit ring. That's why I plan to take you to the Soul Hunting Forest early. We can spend more time searching and try to find the best match."

Su Xianling took another sip of tea.

"The search itself will be good training for you. If we find a suitable beast early, all the better. We can keep it captive until your soul power reaches its peak, then hunt it. But if we still haven't found one by then..."

Su Xianling sighed.

"I'll report it and do my best to secure better support for you..."