After studying the Mysterious Water Pill for a full half month, consulting all sorts of books, and even visiting nearby pharmacies to make inquiries, Xu Zhengyang had more or less figured out its ingredients.
But Xu Zhengyang knew very well that making a Mysterious Water Pill required the blood essence of a Mysterious Underworld Turtle as its main ingredient, as well as a Mysterious Underworld Turtle Martial Soul. Without either one, no one could succeed.
Xu Zhengyang hesitated no further. After returning to his room that evening, he swallowed the Mysterious Water Pill in one gulp.
After taking the Mysterious Water Pill, he felt as though a special medicinal potency had instantly surged throughout his body, making him indescribably comfortable. Every inch of his skin seemed to receive its nourishment in an instant, and he even felt as though his entire body were immersed in refreshing spring water.
Intense fluctuations of Soul Power appeared around his entire body. Under the Mysterious Water Pill's effects, the skin all over him gave off a faint blue glow, which seemed to carry a peculiar fragrance.
The sensation left Xu Zhengyang utterly intoxicated. Every pore relaxed completely, and something seemed to flow out through them. Even his previously blocked meridians felt as though the pill were clearing them.
Only after an entire night had passed did Xu Zhengyang awaken from this state of extreme comfort.
At that moment, a foul odor seemed to permeate the room. In particular, a layer of sticky grime had appeared on the surface of his skin, and even his clothes looked as though they had been fished out of the mud.
But Xu Zhengyang paid no attention to any of this. Instead, he carefully examined his body.
Xu Zhengyang could clearly feel that his physical strength had increased considerably. The faint thread of Soul Power he had possessed before now seemed much denser.
Even his previously blocked meridians seemed much clearer, and his meditation speed had increased more than fivefold.
His Soul Power, in particular, seemed to have taken a great leap forward.
After all, only a little over a month had passed since he awakened his Martial Soul. His cultivation had been extremely slow before, but now it had become considerably faster.
By Xu Zhengyang's estimate, his Soul Power was now at roughly rank two, perhaps even approaching rank three.
The Mysterious Water Pill's effects were very special. It could improve a Soul Master's Soul Power and physique, and the lower their initial Soul Power, the more pronounced the improvement. In the original story, Huo Yuhao had taken a Mysterious Water Pill after becoming a Soul Master and still gained more than one rank of Soul Power. Since Xu Zhengyang had yet to become a Soul Master, the improvement was even more pronounced.
Seemingly struck by a thought, Xu Zhengyang hurriedly summoned his Martial Soul. It had originally been a large, dark iron rod covered in rust, but now the rust showed faint signs of flaking away, and a trace of searing heat came from within the rod.
This was not heat from flames, but more like a sense of masculine vigor emanating from within the iron rod-a tiger had a body of pure yang, representing abundant yang Qi, its body like a raging fire, supremely unyielding and fierce, capable of warding off all evil in the world.
Xu Zhengyang could clearly feel that his body seemed stronger. This was reflected not only in increased strength, but also in greater endurance, a greater ability to heal wounds, and even greater powers of recovery.
At this thought, Xu Zhengyang completely ignored the filth on his body and could not help bursting into laughter. His aptitude had improved after all, and his cultivation would surely grow faster and faster from here on.
At breakfast, his father Xu Haoyang's eyes lit up.
"Zhengyang, that's quite an improvement. It looks like the Mysterious Water Pill worked very well for you."
A smile appeared on Xu Zhengyang's face. "Dad, I reckon my Soul Power should be at rank two now, perhaps even close to rank three. My Soul Power has increased by a rank and a half. In a month at most, I should be able to break through to rank three."
Only then did Xu Haoyang nod, his face filled with gratification.
"Very good. You haven't disappointed our expectations. At least before reaching Soul Elder, you shouldn't encounter any major bottlenecks. We can leave the future for later."
As his Soul Power increased, Xu Zhengyang felt that his physique had also grown considerably stronger, and the difficulty of his daily training increased considerably as well.
In particular, his spear-thrusting and spear-jabbing drills increased from one hundred repetitions every morning to five hundred, and his other exercises were intensified as well.
Even with the intensified training, Xu Zhengyang still felt as though his body contained an endless wellspring of strength. Whenever he grew tired, his ability to recover was much stronger, and after a medicinal bath in particular, his body could recover at an extremely rapid pace.
Time flew, and two years soon passed.
During those two years, Xu Zhengyang was like a tireless machine, rising early and working late to train his body every day, then devoting himself fully to meditation every night. He essentially never concerned himself with anything in the outside world.
The only things he did unrelated to cultivation were studying books on medicinal herbs and researching methods of refining medicine, and those were purely personal interests.
By contrast, Xu Zhengyang never touched Soul Tool research from beginning to end. Even though his father brought it up several times, he remained largely uninterested.
After all, in his father Xu Haoyang's eyes, even after taking the Mysterious Water Pill, Xu Zhengyang's Innate Soul Power was still far too low. He would probably reach Soul Elder or Soul Ancestor at most, and breaking through to Soul King would be difficult.
Soul Masters of that level could only be considered at the very bottom in terms of strength on the continent. Whether in work or service to the family, they probably could not contribute much. By contrast, if Xu Zhengyang could become a Soul Engineer, his talent would allow him to reach Class Four without much trouble.
A Class Four Soul Engineer was worth more than a Soul Ancestor or even a Soul King, and would have an easier time surviving in the Sun Moon Empire. Unfortunately, Xu Zhengyang had always rejected this.
Over those two years of arduous training, his family spent a great deal on medicine and other resources. To help Xu Zhengyang grow, his mother even prepared sumptuous meals every day, with Soul Beast meat at every meal.
Under this extreme training, investment of every kind without regard for cost, and the most perfect planning, Xu Zhengyang finally broke through to rank ten at the age of eight, becoming a prospective Soul Master. For a Soul Master with only half a rank of Innate Soul Power, this could be called a miracle.
Although Xu Zhengyang was still only eight, he had grown considerably taller, reaching a height of 1.6 meters. His entire body was packed with muscle and looked full of strength, and he was far bigger than others his age.
As for studying at a junior Soul Master academy, Xu Zhengyang had only gone there to take exams over those two years. He spent the rest of his time cultivating at home.
Yet every time he took an exam, Xu Zhengyang's results ranked among the best. This was partly because he had read a vast number of books, and partly because he spent a good deal of time seeking guidance from his father and mother.