It was not just Huo Yuhao; even the Ice Empress and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm were the same.
For the Ice Empress, Electrolux's insights concerned her cultivation after her rebirth and might prove an enormous help.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, meanwhile, was trying to use Electrolux to keep adding weight to one side of the scales in his heart.
Seeing their intent expressions, Electrolux said, "Yuhao, would you mind showing me your Soul Rings?"
Huo Yuhao immediately returned his consciousness to his body and summoned his Soul Rings for Electrolux to examine.
In the end, he even temporarily handed control of his body over to Electrolux, allowing him to experience the Soul Rings firsthand.
Electrolux studied them carefully for a long time. Only when a fish-belly white began to spread across the eastern sky did he resume his analysis:
"I keep feeling that the development of the Soul Master system has grown stagnant, or perhaps someone has cut it clean in half at the waist."
"Becoming a god simply by revolving around Soul Rings and Soul Skills... that defies reason."
"And most importantly, even if someone becomes a god this way, they would only be a hollow god."
His words were startling.
"All I can do now is use the history of civilization's evolution on the Shengmo Continent to explain what I currently believe Soul Masters to be."
"In my view, the Soul Master system uses Soul Rings as a medium to forcibly connect Soul Masters with the laws of heaven and earth."
Huo Yuhao quickly responded, "In other words, every Soul Ring is actually a miniature bridge?"
Electrolux nodded.
Then he raised a withered finger and lightly tapped its tip, tracing a complex rune within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness.
Huo Yuhao, the Ice Empress, and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm looked over and discovered that it was actually a Soul Ring composed of three concentric circles, its surface a gray brimming with vitality.
"The outer layer of a Soul Ring is a Soul Power seal, used to ensure that its Soul Power does not leak out."
"The inner layer consists of fragments of a Soul Beast's soul."
Electrolux looked at the Ice Empress.
"Take the Ice Empress, along with the Sky Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape she mentioned. Even though you underwent sacrifice, some of your soul fragments still remain within your Soul Rings."
"Perhaps this has something to do with sacrifice. Because your Soul Rings did not produce Soul Shock, the soul fragments within them were not annihilated."
"As for ten-year, hundred-year, and thousand-year Soul Beasts, they have not developed intelligence, and their souls are far too weak, so the soul fragments stored within their Soul Rings do not produce Soul Shock."
The Ice Empress did not doubt Electrolux's insights.
He was the Holy Necromancer, and more than that, the Undead Scourge. When it came to understanding souls, no one on the entire Douluo Continent could compare.
"As for the core layer of a Soul Ring, it consists of fragments of laws."
"Thus, whether a Soul Ring is ten-year or million-year, its essence is that of a simple magic array."
"The Martial Soul is the array's focal point, while Soul Power is the expendable material used to activate it."
"Soul Masters use Soul Rings as bridges and altars, then offer sacrifices to their own Martial Souls, thereby gaining the ability to communicate further with the elements of heaven and earth."
Electrolux then looked at the Ice Empress and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.
He frowned. "As for why you Soul Beasts are born with the ability to communicate with the laws of heaven and earth, I have no way to explain that to you, because you Soul Beasts have no history."
"So there is also no way to explain why your growth is so slow."
The Ice Empress and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm exchanged a glance, then both shook their heads and sighed.
As Soul Beasts, they possessed long lives.
Yet they had never considered or examined their own existence from the perspective of civilization.
Huo Yuhao sank into thought.
He recalled his thoughts that day about Soul Beasts' lack of inheritance.
Compared with the demonic beasts of Tianxuan, the history of Soul Beasts was indeed a missing fragment of the Douluo Continent's memory.
Huo Yuhao said, "Soul Beasts are essentially crutches along the Soul Master system's path of growth."
Electrolux agreed. "Exactly. A mature cultivation system does not need to rely on external things. Rather, after sufficient refinement, one can communicate directly with the laws of heaven and earth through oneself."
"The simplest way to understand it is striking a fire with flint. Once you grasp the principles of making fire, you naturally no longer need to depend on a particular stone."
"In my eyes, neither Beast Martial Souls nor Tool Martial Souls are things that belong to the Soul Masters themselves."
"A Beast Martial Soul can be understood as the result of a Soul Master's bloodline coming into contact with Soul Beasts at some point in history. But Tool Martial Souls cannot be explained at all. They are clearly an external force."
"Only Body Martial Souls truly belong to Soul Masters themselves."
Huo Yuhao suddenly felt as though something within his heart had been illuminated.
The Ice Empress fell utterly silent at his words.
She suddenly felt that perhaps she should ask Huo Yuhao to visit the Far North and tell the Snow Empress all of this.
Electrolux raised a finger.
The phantom Soul Ring with its three concentric circles actually unfolded vertically, becoming three tiers of steps.
"The first tier: primitive civilization, cultivating the true through the borrowed false."
His finger lightly touched the first step, and figures of Du Busi and Mu En manifested there.
"The second tier: intermediate civilization, comprehending nature-I am nature."
The second step began to change, and a scene of the Undead Scourge appeared within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness.
"The third tier of civilization represents the cultivation realm hypothesized by the Holy Magic Continent-creating laws."
Huo Yuhao's mind reeled and his vision swam.
Just then, the Martial Scripture, which had shown no response all this time, suddenly erupted with an extraordinarily dazzling light!
The Ice Empress and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm were startled by this sudden change.
The Martial Scripture's light engulfed Huo Yuhao and Electrolux, and expressions of sudden enlightenment appeared on both their faces.
At last, when the Martial Scripture's light receded, Huo Yuhao and Electrolux exchanged a glance, then simultaneously threw their heads back and laughed.
Without hesitation, Electrolux offered a deep, formal bow to the Martial Scripture. "I, Electrolux, thank you, Martial Ancestor!"
Within that light, he had seen a man of imposing stature standing above the starry sky.
The man had clearly done nothing and said nothing, yet Electrolux somehow knew that the Martial Ancestor's realm was called Above Sovereign.
This understanding reached straight into the depths of his soul, impossible to articulate or comprehend.
Even with just a single glance, Electrolux could understand that this was the cultivation realm of the third tier of civilization.
As for Huo Yuhao, he had gained the recognition of the Talisman Master system within the Martial Scripture.
He understood that his idea of building his own path through Soul Magic and the Talisman Master system was genuinely feasible.
It differed from the Body Ancestor's philosophy.
Huo Yuhao had already witnessed the vistas of an intermediate civilization-the cultivation system of the Tianxuan Continent.
Thus, his approach took the creation of laws from an advanced civilization as its guiding principle, using the methods of an intermediate civilization-the Martial Scripture Heart Method, the Talisman Master system, and Soul Magic-to drive the primitive Soul Master system forward.
This orderly way of proceeding was highly feasible.
Brilliant, clear light flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes, stirring towering waves within his Sea of Consciousness.
Electrolux bowed three times to the Martial Scripture, then pressed his fingers together and pointed them at the space between his brows.
A hazy gray light, nevertheless brimming with vitality, spread from his body.
The steps suspended in the air transformed back into a Soul Ring of three concentric circles, which slipped directly over Huo Yuhao.
No-to be precise, it merged into Huo Yuhao's pupils.
This did not directly add another Soul Ring to Huo Yuhao. Rather, it was Electrolux's magical inheritance.
"Yuhao, the Martial Ancestor has allowed me to witness the third tier of civilization. This old man has nothing with which to repay him."
He said, "Therefore, I will pass on to you my cultivation insights into every kind of magic I have learned. I hope they will be of some help to you."