Martial Souls and Innate Soul Power, Giving Up a Soul Bone

"Good. I want to see my little brother soon, too."

After absorbing his Soul Ring, Su Yuntao had shot up in height. If not for the lingering boyishness in his face, he could have passed for a grown man.

His leather armor gave him a dashing air, and with his handsome features, he was still quite attractive to girls.

He hurried after Su Haichao, who had already started back, and launched into an excited account of everything he had gained from his breakthrough.

Fine beads of sweat formed on Tang Shan's forehead, ran down his cheeks, and fell to the ground.

Tang Shan wove alone through the streets and alleys of Notting City, moving somewhere between a brisk walk and a slow jog.

At the end of the day, he still had the body of a three-year-old. More strenuous exercise might hinder his development, but brisk walking and jogging were harmless. Other children did those things all the time. He was simply doing a little more to make himself healthier.

Tang Shan did not know exactly what determined how much Innate Soul Power a person had, but he was certain that poor physical condition and malnutrition would not lead to a high amount.

That suspicion came from the "Grandmaster" of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. As the clan leader's son, Yu Xiaogang could hardly have lacked nutritious medicinal herbs while growing up, yet he had awakened with only level-one Innate Soul Power. The reason for such a low result was worth considering.

Taking into account Yu Xiaogang's Martial Soul Fusion Skill with two other people, as well as Bei Bei, the great-grandson of a Limit Douluo who headed the Sea God Pavilion in Douluo II, Tang Shan had begun to form a theory.

Bei Bei's situation in Douluo II was somewhat similar to Yu Xiaogang's, except that one's Martial Soul awakened toward a Radiant Sacred Dragon, while the other's awakened toward a Golden Sacred Dragon.

Whether it was due to something inherent in Yu Xiaogang or simply bad luck, his Martial Soul had tried to awaken directly into a Golden Sacred Dragon. His body clearly lacked the reserves to complete that awakening in one step. It might even have been forced to expend his Innate Soul Power in the attempt. The result was disastrous: his Martial Soul awakened, but the process effectively failed, leaving him with only half a level of Innate Soul Power.

Bei Bei was different. His Radiant Sacred Dragon had not awakened prematurely; the potential merely lay dormant within him. It awakened fully only after he encountered a highly compatible Soul Spirit.

From all this, Tang Shan drew the following conclusions about Martial Soul Awakening and Innate Soul Power:

First, a Martial Soul's strength depended to some degree on the nourishment stored in the body, while the amount of Innate Soul Power depended on the Martial Soul's strength. If the Martial Soul developed normally and the body was well nourished, Innate Soul Power should be correspondingly high. If the Martial Soul was too powerful, however, it might draw on that power to sustain its own awakening even when nourishment was plentiful.

Second, Soul Power was energy. It could not appear from nowhere; it had to be converted from something. Before a Martial Soul awakened, a person could not absorb energy from the world, so Innate Soul Power could only come from the body itself. Without enough nourishment, even a powerful Martial Soul could not produce sufficient Innate Soul Power. Tang San was an example of this.

According to the account, Tang San had cultivated the Mysterious Heaven Skill for quite some time before he sensed a bottleneck—that was, before he reached Innate Full Soul Power. Evidently, he had not started with Innate Full Soul Power.

Although his physical abilities suggested that his Martial Soul would not be weak, Tang Shan still intended to do everything he could.

He kept putting one foot in front of the other, his expression unchanged despite the fatigue spreading through every part of his body.

In his view, anyone from a scientific world who arrived in a world of extraordinary powers and the possibility of eternal life would be unable to suppress their longing for such power, at least at first. Their will would be unshakable during that time. Tang Shan was no different.

He did not know whether the passing years would eventually dull his resolve, but right now, he was certain it was stronger than at any point in either of his lives.

Physical exhaustion was nothing. His longing for the extraordinary and the eternal was enough to overcome any bodily discomfort.

When the sun stood overhead, Tang Shan ended his workout. His clothes were nearly soaked through with sweat. He went home and rinsed himself with cold water.

Creak!

Tang Shan's ears twitched as he washed. Before he could decide whether he had imagined the sound, Su Yuntao called out.

"Little brother, we're back!"

Tang Shan quickly finished rinsing off and changed his clothes. When he stepped out, he saw a young man nearly six feet tall running toward him in excitement. The next moment, Tang Shan was flying through the air.

"Big brother, put me down!"

Though he was an adult at heart, Tang Shan was being tossed and caught like a child. It felt unbearably awkward. He tried to struggle free of Su Yuntao's hands, but his short arms and legs made resistance useless.

Only after another bout of chaos did Tang Shan land safely.

Now he finally had time to take in Su Yuntao's changes.

He's grown so much taller. He looks almost like a sturdy eighteen-year-old. And those muscles showing on his arms and stomach... The Soul Ring's boost was much greater than I imagined.

"Yuntao, Shanzi, come to my room."

Su Haichao had appeared beside them at some point. His words interrupted Tang Shan's thoughts. He gestured for them to follow, then headed upstairs.

Tang Shan gave his older brother a questioning look, asking what was up with their father. Su Yuntao's answer was simple: he widened his eyes innocently and spread his hands. He had no idea either.

After that silent exchange, they obediently followed. Both began trying to remember whether they had done anything out of line lately. Their father's expression suggested this was no small matter.

Su Haichao's room was far from lavish. Apart from a bed and a desk, it held a bookshelf packed to the brim. Tang Shan had looked through those books before. Most recorded trivial matters concerning Spirit Hall in Nuoding City; very few covered cultivation, theory, or Martial Souls. He had lost interest after a quick browse.

The curtains were already drawn. Su Haichao channeled Soul Power into a Soul Guidance Lamp, and its warm yellow light spread through the room.

The room, darkened by the curtains, brightened again.

"Dad, what's so serious?"

Su Yuntao spoke first, finding the atmosphere oppressive.

"Little brother's still young. It's perfectly normal for him to make a mistake. There's no need to be so stern."

He had searched his memory and was sure he had done nothing out of line lately. If their father looked this serious, his little brother had probably done something wrong. That was only natural. No matter how mature he seemed, he was still just three years old.

Tang Shan froze too. Me? Make a mistake? I don't think so. I'm not really a child.

Then a guilty thought struck him. Wait, didn't I try to find Big Brother a match a few days ago? He couldn't have found out about that, could he? But there's no need to be this serious. I was only trying to help Big Brother.

Only then did Su Haichao realize what his two anxious sons were thinking. He did not know whether to laugh or cry.

"What are you two thinking? I'm serious because of something else."

He sat cross-legged on the floor and motioned for them to sit as well.

Tang Shan and Su Yuntao finally let out a huge sigh of relief and hurried to sit down.

"Dad, what is it that has you acting so solemn?"

Since he was not in trouble, Tang Shan relaxed and asked outright.

Su Haichao said nothing. He simply took a bloodied foreleg from his storage bracelet.

Su Yuntao was the first to react. "Isn't that the foreleg of the Gray-Furred Wolf I killed? Dad, why did you bring it back?"

A thought flashed through Tang Shan's mind, and he said two words without hesitation. "Soul Bone."

"That's right." Su Haichao nodded and gave his younger son an approving look. At the same time, he slapped Su Yuntao on the shoulder, cutting off the cry about to burst from his mouth.

"A Soul—"

Only after a long while, when Su Yuntao had calmed down, did Su Haichao take a dagger from his Soul Tool and begin cutting into the leg at the severed end.

Soon, a palm-sized bone shaped like a human right arm lay in his hand.

As they gazed at the bone's gentle sheen, Su Yuntao's and Su Haichao's eyes burned with excitement. Tang Shan was astonished too.

What astonished him was not the Soul Bone itself, but the fact that it had come from a Hundred-Year Soul Beast.

According to later information about Tang San, a Soul Bone was formed from a Soul Beast's Soul Core or the beginnings of one. Every Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast possessed a Soul Core, so each was guaranteed to yield a Soul Bone. As for the claim that torturing a Soul Beast increased the chance of one dropping, Tang Shan strongly suspected the torture merely drove it to unleash its potential and forcibly form a nascent Soul Core.

In other words, any Soul Beast under a hundred thousand years old that could yield a Soul Bone was a prodigy among Soul Beasts. If it grew without mishap, reaching a hundred thousand years might be uncertain, but becoming a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast should be no problem.

Forming the beginnings of a Soul Core required a certain amount of Soul Power, which was why older Soul Beasts generally had a higher chance of yielding Soul Bones.

Yet the Soul Bone they had found came from a Gray-Furred Wolf, a Soul Beast with neither age nor an exceptional bloodline to its name. Tang Shan could only call it extraordinarily rare, perhaps even one of a kind.

"Yuntao, this Soul Bone came from the Gray-Furred Wolf you killed. Absorbing the Soul Ring and Soul Bone from the same Soul Beast gives the best results. Absorb it now. I'll protect you."

"Dad, why don't we save it for Little Brother? I've already absorbed a Soul Ring beyond the usual limit for a Soul Master. That's more than enough of a boost for me. Little Brother's future is still uncertain. Let's keep it for him."

Though Su Yuntao's eyes were full of longing, he voiced his decision without hesitation.

Warmth surged through Tang Shan. This was a Soul Bone. He might not think much of it after reading about Douluo and growing accustomed to far greater things, but Su Yuntao was only an ordinary Soul Master. Even a Soul Ring beyond the usual absorption limit was something he had never encountered, let alone a Soul Bone perfectly suited to him. Yet he held back and chose to give it to his family. As for having gained enough already—when was any improvement ever enough in cultivation? That was only an excuse to give it up.

His brother's kindness moved Tang Shan and helped him make up his mind.

Forget the Grandmaster. I'm the real grandmaster!