Speculations on Martial Soul Second Awakening and the Path Ahead

The rich aroma of fish caught Tang Shan's attention the moment he stepped out of the bathroom.

On a white plate, the heated, softened Whale Rubber gave off an enticing smell.

Tang Shan sat at the table, picked up a fork, and popped the Whale Rubber into his mouth.

Its rich flavor burst across his tongue and filled his mouth.

Thick and springy, it lived up to its name.

Once he swallowed it, waves of warmth rose from his stomach and spread through his limbs.

The muscles left aching by his frantic training seemed to soak up the warmth. Even the pain eased noticeably.

"Little brother, what are you going to do when the medicinal effects kick in?"

Su Yuntao had been so focused on whether the intense training would harm Tang Shan that he only remembered the Whale Rubber's side effect after seeing him eat it. He frowned.

"It's fine. I'll try to suppress it by cultivating."

Tang Shan had prepared for this. Instead of returning to his room, he sat cross-legged right where he was, focused on his Martial Soul, and began drawing in the Soul Power present throughout the world.

He had barely begun when a surge of scorching energy erupted from his abdomen and rampaged through his body.

The aches and pains left by training vanished under its onslaught.

His skin, flesh, sinews, and bones greedily absorbed the Whale Rubber's energy, strengthening themselves.

His physical condition improved at a striking pace.

Power coursed through him, and the Soul Power circulating through his body sped up noticeably.

As for the so-called Evil Fire? Sorry, there was barely enough energy to heal the tiny injuries in his body. None was left over to turn into Evil Fire.

Soul Power flowed into him, gathered within his body, and was refined through his meridians into Soul Power of his own.

Tang Shan had already reached the bottleneck of Innate Full Soul Power, so his Soul Power Level could not rise any further. Its quality, however, continued to improve slowly, gradually taking on a mist-like state.

Time passed. The restless energy around Tang Shan, stirred up by the Whale Rubber, gradually settled. Su Yuntao, who had stood nearby to protect him, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Watching Tang Shan cultivate today had sent his emotions through one sharp swing after another. Thankfully, despite how dangerous it had looked, he had worried for nothing.

Another two hours passed before Tang Shan stood again, the Whale Rubber's effects fully spent.

"Little brother, did you get taller again?"

Tang Shan clenched his fist, carefully felt the abundant vitality within him, and nodded.

"My Martial Soul is my body, so it's closely linked to my physical form. I grew a little taller when it awakened, too. Now that I've eaten a natural treasure like Whale Rubber that improves my physique, it's normal for me to grow."

Su Yuntao looked at Tang Shan, who already reached his chest, with an odd expression.

"Little brother, you're only six and already almost a meter and a half tall. How tall will you be when you're older, let alone fully grown?"

At that, Tang Shan's expression stiffened. He had never considered it.

Being tall was good, but being too tall was another matter. Finding a girlfriend might prove difficult.

"I'll let nature take its course."

With no solution in sight, Tang Shan could only comfort himself.

My body, I hope you know when to stop. Don't grow too tall.

"By the way, little brother, when are you going to hunt for your First Soul Ring?"

His older brother's question drove his worries about his height from his mind. After a moment's thought, Tang Shan replied.

"I still need to train for a while. With a Body Martial Soul, I should grow stronger much faster than you did back then. And with the Whale Rubber Dad's already bought, I want to try for a Thousand-Year First Ring."

Despite everything he had seen from Tang Shan, Su Yuntao could not help being startled.

A Thousand-Year First Ring. With enough training and the Whale Rubber's help, Su Yuntao believed his little brother could manage it. But from Tang Shan's tone, he meant to do it soon. That was frightening.

"Brother, when you reach Level 20, we can go Soul Hunting together. So train hard. I'm giving you one year. If you haven't reached Level 20 by then, I'll ask Father to take me instead."

Su Yuntao had been thinking of slowing his own cultivation to give Tang Shan more time to train. Now he could only nod helplessly.

His little brother had apparently anticipated that and closed the loophole in his proposal.

Back in his room, Tang Shan took out pen and paper and began sorting through his ideas once more.

He recalled, step by step, the insight he had gained while talking with Su Yuntao that morning. Drawing on what he knew of the first three Douluo stories, he wrote down his speculation:

When it came to cultivating a Body Martial Soul, what stood out most, aside from the Meditation Method, was repeated awakenings and Combat Techniques.

Combat Techniques could wait. Despite their distinct name, they were essentially the Body Sect's unique Self-Created Soul Skills.

They had earned a separate name only because, for the most part, Body Martial Soul users alone could practice them.

That left the Body Sect's Second Awakening and Third Awakening, along with the Immaculate Golden Body developed in the Douluo III Era to forge a god-level physical body.

First, there was Huo Gua's awakening. He underwent Second Awakening after taking the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew. Later, after receiving Body Sect leader Du Busi's inheritance, the pressure of fighting the Sea Princess drove him to Golden Awakening.

In the Douluo III Era, the Son of the Sea God likewise underwent Second Awakening under the combined effects of medicinal ingredients and intense pressure.

From this, two main methods of awakening a Martial Soul could be inferred. They could be used separately or together.

The first was to obtain a natural treasure. Using it might increase one's Martial Soul Origin and bring about a Second Awakening naturally.

The second was to endure a life-or-death crisis or immense pressure, forcing out one's potential and thereby awakening the Martial Soul a second time.

One point deserved scrutiny. By the Douluo III Era, the Body Sect could induce Second Awakening in Soul Masters without Body Martial Souls, provided they had exceptional Qi and Blood. Difficult as that condition sounded, it was no small feat.

But if the Body Sect truly could give all its non-Body Martial Soul members a Second Awakening through Qi and Blood, it should have met one of two fates.

Either it would have welcomed talent from everywhere and reached its peak, or the major powers would have torn it apart to seize its method of inducing Second Awakening.

Qi and Blood might seem hard to cultivate, but enough natural treasures would always have some effect. The leaders of those major powers could surely see the value in trading medicinal ingredients for a chance at Second Awakening.

Yet in the era of Legend of the Dragon King, the Body Sect had neither flourished nor vanished from history. It was merely hanging on. There had to be a reason.

Clearly, applying Second Awakening to ordinary Soul Masters was not so simple.

My offhand remark earlier, that my physical body has some of my Martial Soul's characteristics, gave me a rough idea.

The Body Martial Soul is one thing; the physical body is another.

For now, my Body Martial Soul and my physical body remain two separate entities.

A life-or-death crisis draws out the physical body's potential. However closely linked it is to the Body Martial Soul, it seems far-fetched for that alone to cause a Second Awakening.

Unless, by then, the physical body and Body Martial Soul have already become indistinguishable. The body's potential would be the Martial Soul's potential, so drawing out one would naturally draw out the other.

With that possibility in mind, many questions seemed to have a reasonable answer.

Before a Body Martial Soul's Second Awakening, there should be a transitional stage. During it, the Martial Soul gradually fuses with the corresponding part of the body. Afterward, the Martial Soul is the body, and the body is the Martial Soul.

Only when that stage is complete can one attempt a Second Awakening.

Huo Yuhao did not seem to go through that stage, but he had advantages no one else did.

He had a Spiritual Origin, a Million-Year Soul Ring, and a transformation brought about by the Gold of Life. His endless fortunate encounters had probably paved the way for his body and Martial Soul to fuse long before then.

The major powers of the Douluo III Era had not seized the Body Sect's secret for awakening non-Body Martial Soul users. They were not fools; the method simply offered too little for what it demanded.

The Second Awakening method had barely changed in ten thousand years: draw out potential, then use it to stimulate the Martial Soul.

Because a Body Martial Soul was closely tied to the body, or even inseparable from it, drawing out that potential was relatively easy.

A non-Body Martial Soul user could certainly undergo Second Awakening by the same means. But neither a Tool Martial Soul nor a Beast Martial Soul could match a Body Martial Soul's connection to the body. Most of the potential drawn from the body would likely be lost on its way to the Martial Soul. Drawing out enough extra potential would therefore demand a powerful physique and abundant Qi and Blood. It all fit.

It also explained how a struggling Body Sect had devised a method for cultivating a god-level physical body.

What they had researched was not, strictly speaking, a god-level physical body. It was how to raise a Body Martial Soul to god level.

Once the Martial Soul reached god level, it would be the body, and the body would naturally reach god level too.

It makes sense. It all makes perfect sense.

Tang Shan felt as though everything had clicked into place.

Otherwise, how could the Body Sect have a clear method for raising the hardest thing to cultivate—the physical body—to god level, yet lack one for raising Soul Power, its main focus, or Mental Power, which flourished in the Douluo III Era, to that level?

So it was not the physical body reaching god level on its own. It was the Martial Soul joining with the body and lifting the body along with it.

Tang Shan casually burned the paper bearing his startling discovery. His path of Body Martial Soul cultivation might not be smooth, but he now had a clear direction to pursue and test.

From now on, I should train with my Martial Soul active whenever possible and see whether the Soul Power needed to maintain it gradually decreases.

If it does, my guess is right: the Martial Soul really is gradually fusing with my body. If it doesn't, the theory is wrong, and I may need to investigate another direction.

As for my Soul Ring, I should seek out a strength-type Soul Beast. I hope I can get the Soul Skill I want.

P.S. Thank you all for your recommendation votes. This humble author is deeply grateful. This should be the chapter with the most discussion of Body Martial Souls and Martial Soul Theory for a while. Next, the protagonist will begin putting his theory into practice, gradually cross paths with characters from the original work, and truly set foot on the Douluo Continent. Any further theory will be woven into the story.