Over the next few days, Yue Guan and Gui Mei did indeed try condensing soul cores.
However, they chose to make their initial attempts outside their bodies.
After all, none of them had ever condensed and compressed soul power into a crystal inside their bodies before. They feared it might explode if they made the slightest mistake.
A high-density soul power crystal exploding inside their bodies was no laughing matter.
In the rear courtyard of the pair's sleeping quarters.
Yue Guan sat cross-legged on the ground, his right hand open, a mass of dense golden soul power hovering above his palm.
The mass of soul power rotated slowly, constantly contracting inward. Its edges shone ever brighter as its volume grew smaller.
But once it reached a certain threshold, the soul power suddenly began trembling violently.
Bang.
With a muffled report, the mass of soul power burst apart, turning into specks of golden light that dissipated into the air.
Yue Guan shook his palm, which had gone numb from the shock, his brows tightly furrowed.
"Failed again... I was so close."
Gui Mei stood beside him, arms folded. "How many attempts has that been?"
"I've lost count." Yue Guan sighed. "Let me do it myself. Don't intervene yet."
Gui Mei did not argue and simply stood quietly beside him.
Only after Yue Guan had made dozens of attempts outside his body and gradually mastered the rhythm of compression did they begin trying it inside his body.
Even then, Yue Guan still tried first, while Gui Mei stood guard beside him.
Their martial souls were compatible, and their soul power could merge to a certain extent.
Gui Mei pressed both palms against Yue Guan's back and closed his eyes, carefully sensing the flow of soul power inside Yue Guan's body.
"At your lower dantian... how does it feel?"
Fine beads of sweat seeped from Yue Guan's forehead. "Not bad. There's quite a bit of pressure, but I can control it."
He cautiously guided his soul power toward his lower abdomen, gathering it, compressing it, rotating it, then compressing it again.
It felt like squeezing a balloon that might burst at any moment with both hands.
Over five full days, Yue Guan made no fewer than a hundred attempts, yet he remained unable to condense that mass of soul power into a solid crystal.
But he accomplished something else: he condensed a soul power cyclone inside his body.
The cyclone rotated slowly in his lower dantian, driving the soul power throughout his body to circulate faster.
Yue Guan could clearly feel that his soul power circulation and recovery had become twenty to thirty percent faster than before.
"Did it work?" Gui Mei asked when he saw him open his eyes.
Yue Guan shook his head. "It's still a long way from the soul core you mentioned. It's only a cyclone, but this does prove we're heading in the right direction."
Gui Mei looked thoughtful. "How much faster does your soul power circulate?"
"Twenty to thirty percent," Yue Guan said. "It recovers faster, too."
"If we keep going and actually condense a soul core, we might even double our staying power."
Gui Mei said little else, only, "Let me try, too."
Yue Guan nodded and explained his experience to Gui Mei in detail.
This included the rhythm of compression, the proportions for allocating soul power, and the risks that needed attention.
Gui Mei copied his method, tracing the gourd from its outline.
It likewise took him five days to condense a soul power cyclone inside his body.
The two had made essentially the same progress.
"Looks like this method works." Yue Guan breathed a sigh of relief. "But I'm getting a little scared about going any further."
He rubbed his lower abdomen. "Compress it any further, and the slightest loss of control means an explosion. I don't want to die that young."
Gui Mei gave a rare laugh. "Coward."
"If you're not scared, go ahead and keep going." Yue Guan rolled his eyes at him.
Gui Mei did not answer.
The two fell silent for a moment.
Yue Guan said, "Let's tell Her Holiness the Pope about this when she returns."
"One of her first martial soul's soul skills is Immortal Body. She can try without worrying."
Gui Mei nodded. "That's fine. Her Holiness the Pope's cultivation and experience both surpass ours. She might succeed."
Bibi Dong: ...
The two found Gui Yuan and told him about their progress over the past few days.
After hearing them out, Gui Yuan's eyes brightened slightly. "You formed the cyclones? Then you're not far from soul cores."
Yue Guan waved a hand. "It's hardly that easy. We've only just begun. Whether this succeeds from here will depend on Her Holiness the Pope."
Gui Yuan nodded. "Then let's wait until Teacher returns. Having her try is indeed a better choice."
He actually had a good idea of how things stood.
With Bibi Dong's talent and cultivation, as long as the direction was right, condensing a soul core was only a matter of time.
Besides, with "Immortal Body" as her safety net, the cost of trial and error was lower for her than for anyone else.
Elsewhere.
In the Star Dou Great Forest.
Bibi Dong had been searching here with Hu Liena and Xie Yue for over ten days.
Hu Liena's target this time was a mental-attribute soul beast just over ten thousand years old.
Xie Yue needed to hunt a soul beast around eight thousand years old.
Before setting out, Bibi Dong had selected three suitable kinds of soul beasts for Hu Liena.
Soul Hunting Demon Fox, Soul Devouring Flame Fox, and Soul Shattering Nether Fox.
They were all fox-type soul beasts.
Of these, the Soul Devouring Flame Fox was the most suitable.
After absorbing its soul ring, even if she could not obtain a mental attack soul skill, she would still have a high chance of acquiring a soul skill related to foxfire.
As for Xie Yue, they only needed to find a suitable strength-type soul beast.
"Teacher, there are a few soul beasts in that patch of forest ahead. Do you think they'll do?"
Hu Liena pointed toward a dense stretch of woods nearby.
Bibi Dong took a look and shook her head. "Just over eight thousand years. Too low."
"Let's go. We'll head a little deeper."
A few more days passed.
As they passed a swamp, they saw a pitch-black Soul Hunting Demon Fox hunting.
Hu Liena grew a little excited. "Teacher, a Soul Hunting Demon Fox!"
Bibi Dong observed it for a moment. "It's too old, almost twenty thousand years. You can't absorb it right now."
Hu Liena sighed and reluctantly withdrew her gaze.
On another day, they encountered a Soul Shattering Nether Fox beside a mountain stream.
But that fox was only around eight thousand years old, making it unsuitable as well.
Xie Yue did find a few strength-type soul beasts, but their ages were all less than ideal.
"Don't rush," Bibi Dong said as she walked at the front. "Finding a suitable soul beast isn't something you can rush."
On the twelfth day.
Bibi Dong suddenly stopped and raised a hand, signaling for the two to halt.
Ahead lay a rather scorching area. The air was dry, and numerous lava crystals littered the ground.
The entrance to a deep, dark dragon cave slanted into the mountainside.
From within the cave came the faint sounds of fighting.
Bibi Dong extended her spiritual power. A moment later, she opened her eyes, her gaze sharpening slightly.
"Two fox-type soul beasts are fighting inside."
Hu Liena and Xie Yue exchanged a glance, both holding their breath.
Bibi Dong continued, "One is a Soul Devouring Flame Fox, crimson all over and about three meters long."
"Its cultivation is between ten thousand and thirteen thousand years, just right for you to absorb."
Hu Liena's eyes lit up. "What about the other one?"
Bibi Dong shook her head. "The other one... should be a Space Shattering Silver Fox."
"It's silvery-white all over, two and a half meters long, with cultivation between seven thousand and nine thousand years."
"It has spatial abilities and is extremely rare. It can trade blows evenly with that ten-thousand-year Soul Devouring Flame Fox."
Bibi Dong looked toward Xie Yue and said calmly, "It's very suitable for you."