Ling Yu had just stepped onto the library stairs when he saw a girl coming out. It was Ye Lingling, carrying a stack of books, the ends of her hair trailing over the pages. Her fingertips pressed lightly against the covers, afraid the stack would come apart.
They nodded in greeting at the same time, then instinctively stepped sideways together, their shoulders brushing lightly.
A breeze stirred, gently lifting the wisps of hair over Ye Lingling's forehead and her black veil.
Ling Yu paused. When he looked back, he saw only her retreating figure as she slowly walked away with her books. Sunlight fell on the crown of her head, as though a layer of tiny flecks of light had been scattered over it.
As he pulled the door open, Ye Lingling quietly stopped, turned slightly, and glanced back at Ling Yu.
Her eyelashes cast faint shadows in the sunlight. Her gaze was quiet and clear, like light that had accidentally fallen between the pages of a book.
Only a moment later, she turned back and slowly walked away, holding her books.
Watching from the side, Su Yao's lips unconsciously curled upward.
After entering the library, Ling Yu began looking for books on mental-type Soul Beasts and certain special Soul Beasts, taking notes as he read-
Engraving Soul Tool array patterns requires spiritual power, Soul Power, and physical fitness. The only thing I can improve right now is my physical fitness. I haven't eaten the ten-thousand-year whale glue yet.
Whale rubber comes from the brains of whale-type Soul Beasts. Whale brains and Whale Pearls are likewise tonics for both spiritual power and the physical body.
Why does whale rubber need to be calcined? Is it because of oxidized impurities? So is the whale rubber inside a normal whale's brain actually liquid?
Wait, could whale rubber be the precursor to a Whale Pearl?
Does this only happen with whale-type Soul Beasts? Or is it that mental-type Soul Beasts have such powerful spiritual power that, to better control and manipulate it, their brains form some kind of gelatinous, primordial mixture of spirit and flesh?
Ling Yu tapped his forehead and shook his head, feeling an inexplicable sense of the bizarre. "I'm a mental type too."
He kept reading until Su Yao called him to dinner. Only then did Ling Yu leave the library for the cafeteria. That night, he cultivated for a while before going to sleep.
The way spiritual power recovered was quite unusual. A good night's sleep restored most of it. Continuous meditation also restored it, but very slowly.
The weekend soon arrived, and Ling Yu was organizing his notes in the research room-
Array eye: the center of the array, supporting the operation of the entire array. External Soul Power is fed through it to every part of the array.
Array patterns: the control center of the Core Array (special runes; their underlying principles and composition cannot currently be analyzed).
Array boundary encapsulation: the boundary of the Core Array, preventing power leakage and crossed lines, and determining the array's specifications and shape.
Soul lines: the routes responsible for transporting the flow of Soul Power. The wider a soul line, the more Soul Power it outputs within a standard unit of time, and vice versa.
Mass points: hubs for accelerating/amplifying Soul Power transmission.
Nodes: hubs for impeding/cutting off Soul Power transmission.
Point arrays: relay stations placed on soul lines or at the junctions of multiple soul lines, composed of nodes and mass points.
Soul Tool operation process: Soul Power injection-Soul Power amplification-array activation-array pattern conduction-Soul Skill component module release.
Soul Tool components: outer casing, inner casing, and core. The outer casing provides protection and dissipates heat, the inner casing conducts and amplifies Soul Power, and the core releases Soul Skills.
As Ling Yu focused on writing, he suddenly noticed a shadow softly covering the corner of the paper, dimming the light. He looked up and saw Qian Renxue, in her true form at that, and hurriedly greeted her with a smile:
"Sister Xue, what brings you here?"
"Am I not allowed to come?" The moment the words left her mouth, Qian Renxue regretted them a little. Was my tone too harsh? I'm feeling a little irritated. Thoughts churned through her mind.
Ling Yu was somewhat surprised. He felt there was some emotion hidden in those words. Did someone upset her? The thought stirred in his mind.
"What are you writing?" Qian Renxue did her best to return to her former tone and demeanor, taking the initiative to change the subject.
"I've put together some findings from dismantling Soul Tools lately. I'm planning to organize them into a textbook later."
"A textbook? You're going to teach other people?" A barely perceptible flicker of panic passed through the depths of Qian Renxue's cool eyes. Even her breathing grew lighter for half a beat as she looked at Ling Yu with a complicated expression.
"Yes." Ling Yu was a little surprised. Hadn't sharing the technology been one of the conditions they had agreed on?
"Who are you going to teach?" Qian Renxue's tone abruptly grew heavier.
"I don't know who specifically. Aren't you responsible for arranging that? Once I finish organizing the first edition, I'll give you the book, won't I?" Ling Yu was rather baffled. Why had her tone suddenly become so serious?
Hearing Ling Yu's answer, Qian Renxue breathed a sigh of relief.
"Sister Xue, did someone make you angry?" Ling Yu tilted his head slightly, a hint of inquiry in his eyes.
"No." Qian Renxue answered almost immediately, without the slightest hesitation, so firmly that it left no room for doubt.
"All right."
"Oh, right, Sister Xue, could you help me get a piece of ten-thousand-year whale glue? I haven't eaten any before. I'm going to try engraving Soul Tool array patterns next, so I want to improve my physical fitness."
"Yes. When I go back later, I'll have someone send it over."
"Great. Thank you, Sister Xue."
"Mm."
Their surroundings suddenly became frighteningly quiet. Only silence spread between them, and the atmosphere was a little cold.
"Have you lately..."
"Sister Xue..."
They spoke at the same time, then instantly fell silent.
"You go first."
"You first..."
"I'll go first." A little embarrassed, Ling Yu raised a hand and lightly scratched the back of his head.
"Mm..."
"It's like this. These are some of my conjectures about mental-type Soul Beasts. If anyone in Spirit Hall hunts a mental-type Soul Beast in the future, could they help me verify them?" Ling Yu took out the conjectures he had organized in the library a few days earlier and handed them over.
Qian Renxue skimmed them, her pupils shifting.
In fact, after reading Ling Yu's deductions, Qian Renxue already believed they were true. It was easy to imagine how much this information would shake the Soul Master World if it spread after being verified. Perhaps mental-type Soul Beasts would even go extinct.
"If it's true, could you keep it from spreading and only let Spirit Hall's higher-ups know?" Ling Yu bit his lip, looking at Qian Renxue with a hopeful expression.
Qian Renxue instantly turned her head away and answered, "Yes."
"Thank you, Sister Xue."
"Oh, right, Sister Xue, what did you want to ask?"
"I..."
"How have things been at the Seven Treasure Store? Has anyone been asking questions about you?"
Ling Yu shook his head. These past few days, he had been learning from Chen Ying in the workshop. Everything he needed had been prepared early, so there was no need to interact with anyone.
"Has the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect noticed something?" Ling Yu asked.
"The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect wanted to research Soul Tools before too, but they never achieved anything. I'm worried Ning Fengzhi might deduce from certain things that you're researching Soul Tools, and that you're capable of researching them."
At those words, Ling Yu's pupils shifted. If Ning Fengzhi really knew he was researching Soul Tools, then the progress of his practice at the merchant association would be the best information.
"I..."
"It's fine. Just keep going as usual. Even if he knows, it'll only take a little more effort. I can still keep him at bay for you." Qian Renxue saw Ling Yu's concerns and reassured him.
"I'm sorry, Sister Xue. It's my fault things turned out this way..."
"So you have muddleheaded moments too. I thought you could calculate everything without a shadow of doubt." The corners of Qian Renxue's lips lifted in a faint smile.