Wood Release!

"Wood Release?"

Bibi Dong repeated the words, a trace of amusement flashing in her eyes.

"His Holiness the Pope, please allow me to demonstrate my Martial Soul!" Su Yu bowed slightly.

"Very well!"

Su Yu walked over to a pillar in the hall and formed hand seals according to the memories in his mind.

"Wood Release: Great Forest Technique!"

Several blue-green wooden vines actually sprouted from Su Yu's right arm out of thin air.

Each was as thick as three fingers, and they spread rapidly as though alive.

With a few swishes, they wrapped around the thick white jade pillar!

Tiny leaves sprouted from the wooden vines, and even a few pale purple flowers quietly bloomed.

Bibi Dong gazed at the wooden vines coiled around the pillar, a little interest appearing in her eyes.

She rose from her seat and walked forward, her long purple skirt trailing along the floor, bringing with her a cool, fragrant breeze.

Slowly approaching the wooden vines, she extended a slender finger and lightly touched their moist, glossy surface.

"They do look rather full of life." She applied a little pressure with her fingertip, her tone indifferent.

"Unfortunately, their toughness and hardness are both somewhat lacking."

Before she had finished speaking, a faint crack sounded, and the seemingly tough Wooden Vines shattered beneath her finger.

Seeing this, Su Yu did not panic. He raised his eyes to Bibi Dong and said with certainty:

"His Holiness the Pope, my Wooden Vines aren't this fragile."

"Oh?"

Bibi Dong arched an eyebrow and withdrew her hand, a little sap from the Wooden Vines still clinging to her fingertip.

"These wooden vines can actively absorb the Soul Power inside a Soul Master's body," Su Yu explained.

"The longer someone remains bound, the more Soul Power they lose, and the harder it becomes to break free."

A trace of surprise flashed through Bibi Dong's eyes, soon replaced by intense curiosity. She took half a step forward and looked straight at Su Yu.

"Interesting. In that case, try using them on me."

"His Holiness the Pope!" Su Yu hurriedly waved his hands, looking somewhat troubled. "This... wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

"What are you afraid of? You're just a little Soul Scholar. Surely you don't think you can hurt me?"

"Go ahead. I'd like to see just how capable your wooden vines really are."

Since Bibi Dong had gone that far, Su Yu could only comply!

"His Holiness the Pope! Forgive my offense!"

Su Yu formed hand seals, and then the blue-green wooden vines shot toward Bibi Dong.

In mere moments, the Wooden Vines had bound her tightly.

The vines tightened slightly, their tiny barbs resting lightly against the fabric of her clothes without harming her skin.

"Hmm?" Bibi Dong sensed them for a moment, her eyebrows lifting slightly, genuine surprise in her voice.

"Interesting. These wooden vines really are absorbing my Soul Power."

She could clearly feel a faint but continuous suction coming from the Wooden Vines.

The Soul Power within her body was flowing outward, although this little loss was negligible to her.

Standing nearby, Hu Liena watched with her heart in her throat, her little hands clenched tightly—Brother Su Yu had actually tied up His Holiness the Pope!

Su Yu was also a little nervous. Although he knew Bibi Dong could break free at any time with her strength, he hurriedly said:

"His Holiness the Pope, if you feel uncomfortable, I'll release you immediately!"

Looking at his tense expression, Bibi Dong suddenly curled her lips into the faintest smile.

"No need. Let me see what other tricks they have."

As she spoke, she stirred the Soul Power within her body slightly, and an invisible force spread outward.

The wooden vines coiled around her immediately began trembling violently, creaking as though they might burst apart at any moment.

But just then, the Wooden Vines suddenly accelerated their absorption of Soul Power.

The vines actually grew thicker at a speed visible to the naked eye, their color deepening as they withstood the impact head-on.

"Oh? They can even borrow strength to grow stronger?" The interest in Bibi Dong's eyes deepened.

A sharp glint flashed through Bibi Dong's eyes, and the Soul Power around her abruptly surged, invisible pressure crashing toward the wooden vines like a tide.

Purple-black Soul Power condensed at her fingertips and spread along the wooden vines.

When her Soul Power output climbed to around level 17, a sharp crack rang out, and the Wooden Vines snapped.

She withdrew her hand and looked at Su Yu, a measure of approval in her voice.

"Not bad. Your Martial Soul is rather interesting. It certainly lives up to the reputation of innate full Soul Power."

At this point, Bibi Dong paused slightly, light flickering in her eyes.

With his Martial Soul's traits and his talent, Su Yu was undoubtedly an unpolished jade, worthy of becoming her disciple.

Because of what had happened back then, she was deeply averse to contact with men.

Even in her everyday interactions with Yue Guan and Gui Mei, she always maintained an aloof distance.

If she took Su Yu as her disciple, teaching him and spending time with him would inevitably follow.

But on second thought, if that old thing Qian Daoliu snatched away such a rare talent, the loss would truly outweigh the gain!

At this thought, a trace of resolve flashed through Bibi Dong's eyes, and she said solemnly:

"Su Yu, from now on, join Nana under my tutelage and become my disciple."

"His Holiness the Pope! Is this really true?"

"Yes. Wait here for a while. The Pope Hall will send someone to fetch you shortly!"

"Yes! Teacher!"

Beside him, Hu Liena watched Su Yu answer and hurriedly spoke up in reply as well.

Bibi Dong looked at the two of them and nodded, then left the hall.

That very night, the two moved into the Pope Hall.

Having a room all to herself for the first time, the little girl Hu Liena rolled back and forth on her bed in excitement.

Meanwhile, Su Yu sat on his bed and began a heart-to-heart conversation with his godfather.

"System, are you there?"

"Ding! Yes, host! I'm here!"

"System, tell me, will I have a Soul Skill after I absorb a Soul Ring?"

"Ding, no. After the host absorbs a Soul Ring, the quality of your Soul Power will improve. Moreover, after you absorb a certain number of Soul Rings, your Sage Body will evolve!"

"System, can I use release techniques of other attributes? Or can I only use Wood Release?"

"Ding, the host can only use Wood Release, earth-attribute, water-attribute, and Neutral Attribute ninjutsu."

Su Yu thought it over. Being able to use ninjutsu of these attributes was pretty good too.

But Water Release and Earth Release were clearly no match for Wood Release!

Why use Water Release and Earth Release when Wood Release could solve the problem?

As for Neutral Attribute ninjutsu, Rasengan and Flying Thunder God were pretty good!

"Then, system, if I absorb the Sharingan, how can I evolve it? I won't have to lose something for it to evolve too, will I?"

"Ding, no. Whether the host's Sharingan evolves is linked to the number of Soul Rings absorbed."

"Then when can my Sharingan evolve into Mangekyo?"

"Ding, according to the system's preliminary assessment, the host must reach at least Soul Emperor for your Sharingan to evolve into Mangekyo!"

"All right! Then I'll absorb the Sharingan now!"

"Ding, Sharingan extracted!"

As the system's voice faded, Su Yu felt a warm current flow through his eyes.