Whale Rubber

Huo Yuhao had a vivid impression of Man Yi. Yesterday, that bully had swaggered around the servants' quarters because he was a Soul Elder. Yet when he met her, he had been like a mouse before a cat, unable to fight back even as he died.

It looks like her Soul Power Level must be quite high!

Man Yi gave Huo Yuhao a slight nod, then walked straight to Xu Jiujiu. She set the bracelet before her and took her place behind her.

The maid following Man Yi placed the large food box on the table as well, but she did not linger. After opening it, she took out a bowl of lean-meat porridge with a faint medicinal aroma and went into Huo Yun'er's room to help her eat.

Huo Yuhao moved to stop the maid, but Xu Jiujiu interrupted him.

"Yuhao, don't rush off yet. Ling'er can look after your mother. I still have something to give you."

Puzzled, Huo Yuhao returned to his seat in the pavilion and looked at Xu Jiujiu.

Xu Jiujiu slid the bracelet across the table toward him, her pale-purple eyes urging him to pick it up.

"Yuhao, this is a little gift from me. It's a Storage Soul Tool with ten cubic meters of space. Inside are some Heavenly Treasures that can help make up for what your body lacked at birth."

Huo Yuhao picked up the Storage Soul Tool and examined it. The bracelet-shaped tool was jet-black, with multicolored gems set across its surface. They made it look like a starry sky.

He tried channeling a trace of Soul Power into it. Once he did, he could see everything inside. It did not hold much: a number of things that looked like medicinal herbs and a few slightly translucent, amber-colored pieces resembling gelatin.

Huo Yuhao took one of the pieces out and studied it in his palm. It gave slightly when he squeezed it between his fingers.

"Jiujiu, what are these?"

"That's Whale Rubber. It'll strengthen your body when you take it."

Seeing that Huo Yuhao still looked confused, Xu Jiujiu explained further.

"Most of the Heavenly Treasures are medicinal herbs to build a firm foundation and make up for what your body lacked at birth. Those deficiencies can affect Innate Soul Power. You may not know this, but a soul master's Innate Soul Power is largely determined by their physical condition."

Xu Jiujiu fixed her violet eyes on Huo Yuhao again.

"That's what I find so astonishing. You had those deficiencies, yet you awakened Innate Full Soul Power. It really is incredible! But whatever the reason, you need to address them soon so they don't affect your cultivation later."

Huo Yuhao said nothing. Only now did he understand why Ye Fei had been so visibly surprised yesterday when she learned he had Innate Full Soul Power.

I probably have Senior Jiang Ziya to thank for that. This was no baseless guess. The night before his Martial Soul awakened, he had felt a deep warmth in his sleep. It was probably Jiang Ziya's doing. His gratitude toward the senior grew even stronger.

Unfortunately, he could not thank him in person right now. Jiang Ziya had been asleep since saving him yesterday. Huo Yuhao had a feeling he would have to absorb his first Spirit Ring before he could wake him.

When Huo Yuhao remained silent, Xu Jiujiu continued.

"As for the Whale Rubber, it strengthens your body. For ten thousand years, generations of soul masters poured their hearts into finding a way to absorb Spirit Rings from older Soul Beasts. Their hard work finally paid off several thousand years ago, when they discovered a method."

Huo Yuhao's blue eyes widened as he stared at the Whale Rubber.

"Jiujiu, do you mean...?"

Xu Jiujiu nodded. "That's right. The method is to take Whale Rubber. More precisely, they discovered that it strengthens the body, and a soul master's physical condition determines the upper limit of what they can absorb."

"Then if soul masters take Whale Rubber, couldn't some of them absorb a thousand-year or even ten-thousand-year Spirit Ring as their first?"

Xu Jiujiu laughed and reached out to ruffle his short blue hair.

"What are you thinking, little one? One piece of Whale Rubber can only do so much. Even if you could eat as much as you wanted, it would stop working after a certain point."

"Oh!"

Huo Yuhao was a little disappointed. He had thought that taking all this Whale Rubber would let him absorb a far stronger Spirit Ring. Now that he considered it, that probably was not realistic.

But a child's disappointment came and went quickly. He was already delighted to have these pieces of Whale Rubber to strengthen his body. Eager to begin, he asked Xu Jiujiu:

"Jiujiu, can I take them now? How old a Spirit Ring could I absorb afterward?"

Xu Jiujiu considered it for a moment before answering. "Hmm. There are six pieces of Whale Rubber in the Storage Soul Tool: five pieces of Century-Old Whale Rubber and one piece of Millennium Whale Rubber. If you take them, you should be able to absorb a thousand-year Spirit Ring as your first."

Huo Yuhao's eyes lit up. Just a few days ago, a thousand-year Spirit Ring had been beyond his wildest dreams.

Only yesterday, he had planned to escape the Duke's Estate with his mother, settle her somewhere safe, and then obtain a Spirit Ring. He would have accepted one of any age, even a ten-year ring. With just one, he could claim the Empire's stipend and give his mother a better life.

He put the Whale Rubber back into the Storage Soul Tool and looked at Xu Jiujiu with determination in his eyes.

"Jiujiu! I won't let any of you down."

"All right, Yuhao. We can talk about that later. For now, let's eat."

Xu Jiujiu pulled the food box the maid had brought toward her and lifted the lid.

A delicious aroma wafted out, making Huo Yuhao swallow. For years, the Duchess had made sure that he and his mother had little more than coarse, meager food to eat at the Duke's Estate. When they wanted something better, his mother would sneak out with him and trade her needlework for it.

Whenever she managed to trade for fresh fish, she would grill it for him. Eating the fish she made had always felt like the happiest moment of his life.

The box held a small pot of rice, several vegetable dishes, and two meat dishes. Xu Jiujiu took them out one by one, introducing each as she set it down.

"Yuhao, nearly all of these ingredients will help with your cultivation, especially these two dishes. One is stir-fried century-old Earth Rock Bull, and the other is century-old Three-Tailed Feathered Chicken stew. Eat while they're hot."

Huo Yuhao watched Xu Jiujiu set the dishes on the stone table without reaching for a pair of chopsticks herself. "Jiujiu, aren't you eating?"

"I ate before I came."

Only after Huo Yuhao urged her several times did Xu Jiujiu sit down and eat with him. Even then, she kept putting large pieces of Soul Beast meat into his bowl.

Xu Jiujiu cared for him like a real older sister. Huo Yuhao knew she was trying to win his loyalty, yet warmth still filled his heart. In just one day here, he had felt more at home than he had in six years at the Duke's Estate.