Silver Spirit Rings

Outside, Dream Butterfly's figure gradually turned ethereal. The silver halo seemed to solidify, building a bridge between the Spirit Soul and Dream Butterfly.

For a moment, Shi Quan's mental fluctuations grew violent, streams of heat gathering within his mind.

Shi Quan suddenly jolted awake.

"Master, focus. My power is about to evolve into Spirit Rings."

Dream Butterfly's gentle voice sounded at just the right moment. Her voice was like a spring breeze, instantly rousing Shi Quan's consciousness.

Recalling what had happened in the dream, that strange and wondrous sensation left Shi Quan somewhat dazed. Having only just awakened, he could not even tell whether he was Shi Quan or Dream Butterfly. If Dream Butterfly had not reminded him, he would not have realized it at all.

That feeling was truly wondrous.

As he marveled inwardly, Shi Quan also felt his entire body grow lighter. It was as though countless threads had burrowed into his skin, awakening every cell in his body in an instant and filling them with vitality. His perception of everything around him became exceptionally clear.

The inner force within his dantian was drawn by those threads, and his cultivation art began operating automatically. After completing one Great Heavenly Cycle, it all surged into the Niwan Palace within his Upper Dantian.

Shi Quan only felt as if something had suddenly burst open in his mind, and the scene before his eyes began to change. It was a vast white space filled with countless points of light, stretching beyond the limits of sight. Yet his gaze seemed able to extend into every corner of that space.

"Sea of Consciousness? Or is this my Niwan Palace?" Shi Quan muttered in confusion as countless pale cyan-white motes descended from above.

Wherever the motes scattered, the space became a little more solid, while the points of light within it grew brighter.

The pale cyan-white motes gradually gathered together, once again forming Dream Butterfly's figure.

"Master." Dream Butterfly fluttered her wings and slowly flew to Shi Quan's side, landing on his shoulder.

Dream Butterfly was countless times smaller in this white space than she was in the real world.

"Dream Butterfly, is this my Sea of Consciousness?" Shi Quan asked.

"Yes, Master."

"It doesn't seem that big." Shi Quan looked around.

Dream Butterfly chuckled softly and explained, "It is not small, Master. Because you possess the Spirit Soul martial soul, your Sea of Consciousness was already much larger than that of Spirit Masters at the same level. With my power added to it, your Sea of Consciousness is now even broader than that of some Soul Ancestors."

"Is that so?" Shi Quan rubbed his nose. He had thought he was quite weak.

"Yes, Master," Dream Butterfly answered respectfully.

After looking around for a while, Shi Quan tilted his head toward Dream Butterfly beside him and asked, "By the way, Dream Butterfly, what was that dream just now?"

"Master, that was the power of my spiritual inheritance. It is somewhat like a Spirit Master's bloodline. My power can enhance your ability to sense nature, helping you immerse yourself in and comprehend it more easily. It can greatly improve your perception. You will understand its wonders when you cultivate."

As she spoke, Dream Butterfly held her head high and puffed out her chest, looking as though she were saying, I'm amazing, hurry up and praise me.

Shi Quan could not help laughing at her adorable appearance. "You little thing are quite cute."

As he spoke, Shi Quan subconsciously raised a finger and gently poked Dream Butterfly's little head.

Hearing Shi Quan's praise, Dream Butterfly immediately flew up from his shoulder in delight, darting back and forth before his eyes.

"By the way, Dream Butterfly, is Dream Butterfly your name?"

"A name?" Dream Butterfly paused. The feelers on her forehead twitched slightly as she shook her head. "Master, I do not have a name. You can give me one."

"You don't have a name?" Shi Quan fell into thought. Recalling everything that had just happened, he suddenly remembered an allusion from his past life: Zhuang Zhou dreaming of a butterfly.

Could the Dream Butterfly before him be related to Zhuang Zhou? If Dream Butterfly were male, Zhuang Zhou would be a good name. Unfortunately, Dream Butterfly was clearly female.

Shi Quan grumbled inwardly that he was making trouble for himself. He had no literary talent, yet he was trying to name someone.

Seeing the expectant look on Dream Butterfly's face, Shi Quan could not help feeling a headache coming on. Then inspiration suddenly struck, and he recalled a poem from his past life, "Jin Se."

Two lines from that poem were especially famous: "Why has Jin Se fifty strings unbidden, each string, each fret, recalling youthful years?" And: "This feeling could have become a memory, yet even then it was already lost in a daze."

Many people had forgotten that this seven-character regulated verse contained more than just those two lines.

The complete poem was:

Why has Jin Se fifty strings unbidden, each string, each fret, recalling youthful years. Zhuang Zhou's dawn dream bewitched by butterflies; the Emperor of Longing entrusts his spring heart to cuckoos. Bright moon over the blue sea, pearls hold tears; warm sun over Lantian, jade gives rise to mist. This feeling could have become a memory; yet even then it was already lost in a daze.

Shi Quan happened to remember it.

"Dream Butterfly, how about Jin Se or Xiao Meng?"

"Jin Se? Xiao Meng?" Dream Butterfly softly murmured the names. She clearly looked conflicted as well, and only after a moment did she say, "Master, I prefer the name Xiao Meng."

"Fine." Shi Quan wiped away nonexistent cold sweat from his forehead. Thankfully, he had dealt with the naming matter. "By the way, Dream... no, Xiao Meng, don't call me Master anymore. It sounds strange. Call me by my name, or call me A Quan."

"How can I address Master by name?" Dream Butterfly hurriedly shook her head.

Shi Quan waved his hand. "Then call me A Quan from now on. I'll call you A Meng too. It rolls off the tongue better."

"Alright, Mas—"

"Hm?"

Dream Butterfly hurriedly covered her mouth and changed her words. "No, no, no. Alright, A Quan."

"A Meng, you don't need to be so polite with me. We'll be partners growing together from now on. Let's work hard together." Shi Quan raised a hand and gently stroked Dream Butterfly's head.

"Partners?" Dream Butterfly softly repeated. The light in her eyes visibly grew brighter.

"By the way, A Meng, how many Spirit Rings did you provide me with?" Shi Quan asked curiously.

After thinking for a while, Dream Butterfly said, "A Quan, your current Soul Power Level can only absorb two Spirit Rings, so I have only provided you with two for now. Once your Soul Power Level rises, I feel I can provide at least two more."

"Besides the Spirit Rings, I have two innate abilities that you can use as well. The first is Dream Entry. I can take your consciousness into other people's dreams. The second is Spirit Sense, which can materialize spiritual consciousness. It can be used for scouting and detection, or for conversing with others and sharing..."

"So amazing!"

After listening to Dream Butterfly, Shi Quan's eyes shone.

Spirit Sense could be said to combine detection and sharing into one, while Dream Entry was also an ability well worth studying.

Hearing Shi Quan praise her again, Xiao Meng lowered her head shyly and continued, "My innate abilities and the abilities granted by my Spirit Rings will continuously evolve as your strength increases, A Quan."

"Nice!" Shi Quan gave her a thumbs-up.

"What does that mean, A Quan?" Xiao Meng looked at Shi Quan in confusion.

"It means you're great." Shi Quan asked excitedly, "A Meng, then what Spirit Abilities did you bring me?"

Xiao Meng shyly touched the feelers atop her head. "One of the two Spirit Abilities concerns dreams, and the other concerns illusions. You will need to comprehend the specifics yourself. No matter how much I explain, it will not be as clear as experiencing them for yourself."

"Then do I need to leave the Sea of Consciousness to experience them?"

Understanding Shi Quan's meaning, Xiao Meng said, "That's right. As long as you think about leaving, you can leave."

"Is that so?" With a thought from Shi Quan, the snowy-white world vanished the next moment.

He slowly opened his bleary eyes and looked at the familiar surroundings. It really is that easy.

The sunlight filtering through the curtains showed that it was already daytime.

"I wonder how long I was absorbing it for," Shi Quan murmured.

"A Quan, you absorbed it for about two days." Perhaps because she had heard Shi Quan speak, Xiao Meng's voice rang out in his mind.

"A Meng, can you hear me talking?" Shi Quan asked in surprise.

"A Quan, if you do not want me to hear, you only need to think about it in your mind..." Xiao Meng's voice gradually grew softer, as though she felt aggrieved.

Hearing Xiao Meng's wronged voice in his mind, Shi Quan seemed to see her cautious little appearance and could not help smiling. "It's good. At least I have company. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to communicate with you once I left the Sea of Consciousness."

"Really?" Xiao Meng's excited voice rang out in Shi Quan's mind.

"Of course."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shi Quan circulated the inner force within his body and summoned his Spirit Soul martial soul.

The moment he saw the two Spirit Rings beneath his feet, Shi Quan froze in place.

That was because neither Spirit Ring was yellow, purple, black, or red.

They were silver!

Both Spirit Rings were the exact same silver color.

After standing there in a daze for a while, Shi Quan finally asked in astonishment, "A Meng, why are the Spirit Rings silver?"

"The color of the Spirit Rings changed after my power combined with the Spirit Soul martial soul." Xiao Meng asked in confusion, "A Quan, do you not like this color?"

"It's not that I dislike it." Shi Quan felt a headache coming on and said helplessly, "It's just that if other people see Spirit Rings of this color, I'll be in a lot of trouble."

"Is that so?" The next moment, Xiao Meng said something astonishing. "A Quan, what color do you want?"

Shi Quan was stunned, then asked in delight, "A Meng, can you change the color of the Spirit Rings?"

"I cannot change the color of the Spirit Rings, but I can conceal their color and make them appear in another color." Xiao Meng said confidently.

"Then after you disguise them, can anyone else detect it?" Shi Quan asked curiously.

Xiao Meng's proud and confident voice sounded. "No. These Spirit Rings are also part of my power. Whatever I want others to see is all they can see. Unless someone can directly see through my origin, they will never detect it. I do not think anyone in this world can see through my origin."