Yue Guan froze for a moment, then laughed. "You broke through to level 96?"
"You bastard, are you trying to kill me?" As he laughed, his eyes grew even redder. His right hand gently pushed Gui Mei's chest, his voice very soft. "You scared me to death just now, you know?"
Gui Mei looked at his reddened eyes, fell silent for a moment, and gently wiped away his tears.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Yue Guan's emotions came quickly and passed just as quickly.
After all, Gui Mei had truly broken through, and his excitement swept away much of the tension from earlier.
Something suddenly occurred to Yue Guan, and he lowered his voice. "Old Ghost, do you think His Holiness the Pope would notice if you absorbed that immortal-grade herb you have now?"
In his view, the medicinal potency of a single immortal-grade herb could not actually take Gui Mei from level 96 to level 97.
The accumulation of Soul Power needed to go from level 96 to level 97 was enormous. A single immortal-grade herb alone would hardly allow him to break through directly.
On the other hand, taking the immortal-grade herb would make it much easier for Gui Mei to break through to level 97 in the future.
Gui Mei thought it over and agreed that it made sense.
He took the Netherworld Shadow Flower out of his Soul Tool, the immortal-grade herb he had harvested at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Its pitch-black petals gleamed with a deep, dark luster in the candlelight, giving off a faint, elusive netherworld presence.
Without hesitation, Gui Mei put the entire immortal-grade herb into his mouth and swallowed it.
Then he closed his eyes and began circulating his meditation method to refine its medicinal potency.
Yue Guan watched from the side with his chin propped in both hands, the corners of his lips slightly raised.
The room fell quiet, leaving only the soft mingling of their breaths.
Several hours later, Gui Mei's presence suddenly surged.
He slowly opened his eyes and looked down at his hands.
"My Martial Soul seems to have become much stronger." His voice held unmistakable surprise. "Is this the effect of an immortal herb?"
"I feel I should have a chance of breaking through to level 97 within three to five years."
Yue Guan smiled and nodded. "That's what's so miraculous about immortal herbs."
"Now you have a Soul Core inside you providing an endless supply of Soul Power, and an immortal herb nurturing your Martial Soul Origin."
"Three to five years to reach level 97 might even be a conservative estimate."
Gui Mei nodded slightly and did not disagree.
He raised his head to look at Yue Guan. "Then it's my turn to help you condense a Soul Core."
Yue Guan nodded, and the two interlaced their fingers again.
This time, to prevent any accidents, Yue Guan had their Soul Power mingle from the very start of condensing his Soul Core.
Golden and black light flowed slowly through their clasped palms, like two rivers flowing into the same lake.
But the instant their Soul Power mingled, both of them abruptly opened their eyes and looked at each other.
Both their eyes were filled with shock.
"The compatibility between our Martial Souls... has increased!" Yue Guan and Gui Mei spoke in unison.
If their Martial Soul compatibility had only been fifty to sixty before, it was now at least eighty.
An increase in Martial Soul compatibility meant the power of their Martial Soul Fusion Skill would also multiply.
Yue Guan murmured, "Could it be because we've both condensed Soul Cores? Or because we've both taken immortal herbs?"
Gui Mei shook his head. "I'm not sure, but it's a good thing for us."
Yue Guan suppressed his excitement. "Then let's strike while the iron is hot and keep going."
He closed his eyes again and began guiding his Soul Power toward his dantian.
This time, the process went unbelievably smoothly.
With Gui Mei's Soul Power harmonizing it, the Soul Power Cyclone inside Yue Guan barely experienced any major fluctuations.
Although there was one sign of an impending eruption along the way, their Soul Power intertwined and easily suppressed that out-of-control cyclone.
Within two days, Yue Guan successfully condensed a golden crystal in his dantian, which he named the Yang Soul Core.
Their respective attributes were yang and yin, so Gui Mei's Soul Core was called the Yin Soul Core.
The instant his Soul Core successfully condensed, Yue Guan's presence also surged.
However, he remained at level 96, with no sign of a breakthrough.
Yue Guan did not mind. "It's good enough that it worked. The levels can come slowly."
He glanced at the sky outside the window. "It's getting late. Let's rest first and tell Xiao Yuan the good news tomorrow morning."
Gui Mei nodded, stood up, and stretched his legs, which had gone numb from sitting cross-legged for too long.
Since it was so late, Gui Mei naturally stayed in Yue Guan's sleeping quarters as well.
Don't misunderstand. Yue Guan's sleeping quarters had more than one room.
The next morning.
Sunlight fell on the corridor's bluestone floor, coating it in a warm golden sheen.
Yue Guan and Gui Mei walked out of the sleeping quarters together.
Yue Guan wore a pale yellow robe that day, its hem swaying gently with his steps. He looked to be in an excellent mood.
Gui Mei was still dressed in black robes, walking beside him with an expressionless face.
They walked shoulder to shoulder, even the rhythm of their footsteps remarkably in sync.
Just then, someone happened to come around the corner of the corridor.
Wang Mozhu.
He was the theory instructor who taught Gui Yuan, and his Martial Soul cultivation was at the Soul Saint level.
At this time each day, he always went to Gui Yuan's place for morning lessons.
Wang Mozhu looked up and froze on the spot.
Because he saw Yue Guan and Gui Mei coming out of the sleeping quarters together.
No one could enter this area without permission. He could come here because he had special approval from the Pope.
But Elder Ju and Ghost Elder...
Wang Mozhu blinked, towering waves crashing through his heart.
Could it be... Elder Ju and Ghost Elder had disregarded worldly prejudice and openly gotten together?
His mind raced, his imagination filling in the gaps. He did his best to keep his expression calm, but the slight twitch at the corner of his eye betrayed him.
"Ahem." Acting as though he had seen nothing, Wang Mozhu took the initiative to greet them. "Your Eminence Elder Ju, Your Eminence Ghost Elder, good morning."
"I was just heading to Xiao Yuan's place to give him his morning lesson."
"If there's nothing else, I'll be on my way."
He spoke considerably faster than usual and tried to slip away to the side as soon as he finished.
He feared that if he left too late, he would be killed on the spot to silence him.
"Wait."
Wang Mozhu wanted to cry but had no tears.
Keeping his expression under control, he turned around stiffly. "Is there anything else, Your Eminence Ghost Elder?"
Yue Guan took over. "We happen to be going to see Xiao Yuan too. Let's go together."
Wang Mozhu: "..."
His smile froze slightly, but he could only nod. "All right, all right..."
So the three walked side by side toward Gui Yuan's sleeping quarters.
Yue Guan walked in the middle, with Gui Mei on his left and Wang Mozhu on his right.
Wang Mozhu kept his eyes fixed straight ahead the entire time, even deliberately softening his breathing.
Yue Guan, however, was completely oblivious-or rather, he did not care in the slightest how Wang Mozhu reacted. All he cared about was Gui Mei.
As they walked, he said quietly to Gui Mei, "How do you think Xiao Yuan will react when he hears we've both condensed Soul Cores?"
Gui Mei said flatly, "He'll probably say, 'Just what I'd expect from my Big Dad and Second Dad.'"
Yue Guan could not help laughing. "He really would say that."
Walking beside them, Wang Mozhu had no mind to eavesdrop on their conversation at all. He silently quickened his pace, wanting only to reach Gui Yuan's sleeping quarters as soon as possible.
Then he would find an excuse to hurry away from this "den of trouble."