Chapter 200: A New Definition of the Soul Spirit System
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Xue Di entered the private booth as Su Yu closed the door behind her. He then activated a barrier-type formation within the room using a soul tool to ensure privacy.
"Xue Di, I never expected you to participate in this Soul Battle Tournament," Su Yu said.
Indeed, it was unexpected to see Xue Di appear at the tournament. Even after taking on human form—something necessary for her cultivation within human society—she had always remained on the outskirts of a small town in the Extreme North. She even relied on Su Yu's ultimate life-force soul power to accelerate her growth and minimize her contact with humans.
Given her usual disinterest in human society, her sudden appearance at the tournament naturally caught everyone off guard.
The reason for this meeting with Xue Di was actually at Huo Yuhao's request.
Xue Di's performance in the arena had already exposed her identity. Concerned for her safety, Bing Di asked Huo Yuhao to arrange a meeting between them.
Having witnessed firsthand the power of human soul tools, Bing Di understood the current strength of powerful human soul masters all too well. While Xue Di might be capable of handling most soul masters, the upper limits of human strength and technology were unpredictable even for her.
As for why Su Yu was invited to this meeting as well, it was because of his unique position.
Although Huo Yuhao was the disciple of Sun-Moon Hall's master, that status alone was unreliable—after all, even Jing Hongchen's true strength was not necessarily enough to influence matters at Xue Di's level.
Su Yu's teacher, Kong Deming, on the other hand, was a far more secure option.
With Xue Di's identity likely compromised in the tournament, the anxious Bing Di naturally assumed the worst.
She hadn't considered whether Xue Di already had her own plans.
After all, despite all she had learned in human society, Bing Di didn't believe that Xue Di would be able to anticipate every potential crisis while keeping a backup plan in place.
"Xue'er!"
At Huo Yuhao's side, Bing Di materialized in a flowing emerald-green dress. Her exquisite, fair face was marked by four distinct jade-green runes on each side. Long, dark green hair cascaded down her back, and her skin—pure and translucent like ice—glowed faintly with a greenish hue. Even though she was only present in spirit form, the surrounding temperature plummeted the moment she appeared.
This was Su Yu's first time seeing Bing Di in person.
Unlike Xue Di's regal presence, Bing Di exuded an icy elegance.
"..."
"Bing'er, what did you want to talk to me about?"
After some brief catching up, Xue Di finally inquired about the purpose of their meeting.
"Xue'er, it's like this—"
Bing Di voiced her concerns about Xue Di's safety, explaining everything she knew about the current advancements in human soul tool technology.
"A Rank Nine Fixed Soul Cannon?"
Hearing Bing Di's explanation, Xue Di uncharacteristically furrowed her brows.
If the description was accurate, such a weapon might indeed pose a threat to an Ultimate Douluo—but a threat was all it was.
Would an Ultimate Douluo really be unable to withstand a single strike from an opponent of the same level?
And even if it was a full-powered attack, so what?
Couldn't she just dodge it?
A Fixed Soul Cannon—just from the name, it sounded cumbersome. Its accuracy was probably not that high.
That said, Bing'er's concerns weren't unfounded.
The Rank Nine Fixed Soul Cannon itself wasn't the true threat—the real danger lay in its wielder.
If an enemy of the same Ultimate Douluo level possessed such a weapon, the level of threat would be on an entirely different scale.
Even though Xue Di was confident that, at her peak, she was stronger than the average Ultimate Douluo, she still had to take the matter seriously.
Moreover, in her current transformed state, unleashing her full strength would come at a tremendous cost.
Thinking it over, she realized she had indeed been a bit careless.
Still, it wasn't a major issue.
One of the reasons Xue Di dared to come to Sun-Moon for the tournament was the presence of Su Yu and Huo Yuhao.
She hadn't placed much hope in them, but now it seemed that while she had miscalculated her own preparations, the backup plan she hadn't counted on had turned out to be surprisingly effective.
All in all, this situation wasn't excessively dangerous.
Even in the worst case—without Su Yu and Huo Yuhao's warning or assistance—Xue Di still wouldn't have been in grave peril.
After all, she had absolute confidence in her own strength.
And the gains from this trip? They had proven that coming here wasn't a mistake.
—
"Xue Di, did you say you came here looking for Su Tong from Shrek Academy?" Su Yu asked in surprise.
Xue Di nodded, then shook her head slightly. "To be precise, I had an inexplicable premonition that participating in this tournament would bring me great rewards. And as it turns out, that feeling was right."
Ice Snow Maiden Martial Soul.
In truth, the moment Xue Di first laid eyes on Su Tong, she had already confirmed her purpose for coming.
"You want to find clues about the Ice God through Su Tong?" Su Yu quickly deduced Xue Di's goal.
If there was one thing that could capture Xue Di's interest, it was godhood. For soul beasts, the temptation of divinity was overwhelming—far greater than it was for human soul masters.
For soul beasts—especially those who had lived for over 700,000 years—the obsession with becoming a god was beyond imagination.
Even though a soul beast's cultivation wasn't directly equivalent to their actual lifespan, and they would often suppress their own breakthroughs to avoid tribulation, most powerful beasts took their time, ensuring they fully experienced every 100,000-year milestone before attempting the next stage.
Unless a great opportunity presented itself.
Xue Di had obviously encountered such opportunities throughout her life—otherwise, she wouldn't have reached her current level. Even so, she had lived at least 300,000 to 400,000 years in actual time.
And across those vast, endless years, how much time had she spent yearning for godhood?
Even if she had only fantasized about it for a few minutes at a time, over the course of three or four hundred thousand years, that longing had surely grown into an unshakable obsession.
—
"A calling from the Ice God's bloodline."
Xue Di was certain—her initial premonition had originated from the Ice God's blood running through her veins. And Su Tong's existence had only reaffirmed that.
"Ice God…" Huo Yuhao murmured under his breath.
Xue Di looked at Bing Di, a trace of apology appearing on her face. "Bing'er, when it comes to the Ice God's divine position, it looks like we might have to compete for it."
Bing Di had already sacrificed herself to Huo Yuhao for the God Creation Plan.
The Ice God was undoubtedly the most suitable divine position for Huo Yuhao. Especially since, during his last visit to the Extreme North, he had explicitly expressed his pursuit of the Ice God's divine throne.
"You don't need to feel apologetic over this," Su Yu interjected. "From what I know, the Ice God is at least a First-Class God, and a First-Class God can bring at least two retainers to the God Realm—allowing them to achieve immortality together."
Hearing this, Xue Di breathed a sigh of relief.
There was such a hidden secret?
Huo Yuhao looked at Su Yu in astonishment.
Why didn't I know about this?
I even studied at Shrek Academy, yet I've never heard of such a thing.
As expected, following Yu-ge always leads to uncovering all sorts of secrets.
From the God of Life to the God of Fire, to all the information Su Yu casually revealed during his travels—Huo Yuhao had long since labeled him as mysterious.
Even Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had sighed many times, saying that if one wanted to become a god, "sucking up—cough, I mean, befriending Su Yu" would increase the success rate by 30%.
—
"But more importantly, Xue Di, from what you're saying, it sounds like you're now confident in finding clues about the Ice God?" Su Yu focused on the key point.
Judging by her demeanor, after meeting Su Tong, Xue Di seemed extremely confident about tracing the Ice God's whereabouts.
Xue Di nodded. "Yes, I can feel the resonance of the Ice God's bloodline within me. If I follow this guidance, I'm sure I can uncover information about the Ice God."
—
God Realm.
The God of Destruction held a scepter that emanated an icy chill, a smile playing on his lips.
The Ice God would be a powerful ally.
—
Meanwhile, Su Yu took the opportunity to consult Xue Di about techniques related to spirit power integration with soul power.
However, their discussion didn't last too long.
After all, he and Huo Yuhao still had to participate in the Soul Engineering Tournament.
After exchanging insights for over two hours, both sides parted ways. Su Yu and Huo Yuhao headed straight to the black market for the tournament.
Upon arriving, Su Yu was still deep in thought about a key point Xue Di had mentioned.
A fundamental aspect of soul master cultivation—one that he had nearly forgotten.
From Super Douluo onward—or rather, from the Titled Douluo level, perhaps even throughout the entire cultivation process—every increase in soul power also deepened the bond between a soul master and their martial soul.
By the time they reached Rank 99, this fusion was almost complete.
"I completely overlooked that," Su Yu muttered to himself.
Although Kong Deming had reached the Super Douluo level, from Rank 95 onward, his cultivation had relied heavily on stacking soul rings, leading to less profound insights.
Even though he was passively pushed toward martial soul fusion, he lacked deep comprehension. Coupled with the Sun-Moon Empire's limited knowledge on traditional soul master cultivation, key insights had been missed—which explained why Su Yu had overlooked this crucial detail.
"Hmm, I'll definitely need to visit the Sea God's Pavilion someday, study the records there, and examine the Golden Ancient Tree. Once I'm strong enough, that's a place I must explore," Su Yu thought to himself.
—
The Soul Engineering Tournament posed no significant challenge to Su Yu.
Even after returning to Sun-Moon Hall, he still had plenty of energy left.
There were insights he needed to digest.
But before that, there was something else he needed to take care of.
He had to discuss some details with Jing Hongchen.
—
"What?!"
Jing Hongchen stared at Su Yu in shock. "You want to cheat?!"
Su Yu's face darkened.
"What do you mean, cheat?"
Su Yu was only reminding Jing Hongchen, explaining that he planned to depart from the normal procedure for the upcoming matches.
"I'm drawing lots with my own abilities; how does that equate to cheating?" Su Yu said with a shrug.
Jing Hongchen looked at him, arms crossed, wearing an expression of disbelief.
"How can you guarantee the result is what you want if you're not cheating in some way?"
Su Yu briefly explained the principles behind Fate Power predictions, and Jing Hongchen, frowning, waved his hand. "Alright, alright, I believe you, stop explaining."
If he kept talking, Jing Hongchen might unintentionally look completely confused.
Still, using Fate Power for such things felt a bit outrageous.
"So, you're planning to use Xue Di's appearance in the tournament to stir up the major powers and further promote Battle Armor?"
"Exactly. And, while I'm at it, I'll also promote the Soul Spirit System."
Soul Spirit System?
That system with barely any use?
Jing Hongchen raised an eyebrow, looking skeptical.
While the Soul Spirit System might seem promising at first glance, it fundamentally still relied on using soul beasts' lives to help soul masters grow.
Even if it became widespread, its impact likely wouldn't be that big, right?
"No. The Soul Spirit System is still incomplete and imperfect, but I already have a direction to improve it. I should be able to make progress in the next few days," Su Yu said calmly.
The era where soul beasts had to sacrifice their lives to provide soul rings for soul masters was coming to an end.
Su Yu had come up with new ideas.
Xue Di's reminder had led to several realizations for him.
That's right. The process of soul master cultivation was essentially about the fusion of a soul master and their martial soul. But if, during the cultivation process, there was a way to actively push toward this ultimate goal, would it speed up the fusion? In other words, adding elements to the cultivation techniques that encourage faster fusion between the martial soul and the soul master.
However, every soul master's situation was different. How could this be achieved?
Soul Rings.
Soul Spirits.
Su Yu felt he was on the verge of creating an entirely new Soul Spirit System.
What if soul beasts could transform into soul spirits without needing to sacrifice their lives?
What if only a portion of their bloodline power was needed?
The essence of a soul ring was still spirituality. Without the soul beast itself, only the bloodline power could create soul power, but spirituality alone couldn't do it. Therefore, he needed to include a component of spirituality in the cultivation techniques.
Jing Hongchen, feeling overwhelmed, waved his hand and told Su Yu to research the topic himself.
"I believe you can perfect these ideas. I've also heard what you said tonight, and I'll make sure Sun-Moon Hall is prepared for the possible changes."
Su Yu left Jing Hongchen's office and returned to his dormitory, where he began refining his cultivation techniques and the Soul Spirit System.
With his experience in Qi and Blood Soul Rings, developing techniques to condense soul rings using bloodline power went smoothly.
The real challenge was the construction of spirituality.
But problems were meant to be solved.
After a soul beast died or transformed into a soul spirit to serve as the spiritual source for constructing soul rings, there might be no obvious issues. However, this process didn't accelerate the fusion between the martial soul and the soul master.
"What if, during the soul master's cultivation, they spend time exploring their martial soul's spirituality to condense the soul ring? This could help push the fusion between the martial soul and the soul master, which would greatly enhance the overall strength of the soul master."
"Would absorbing external soul rings make the process quicker?"
Not necessarily.
The further fusion between the martial soul and the soul master might slow down the process of acquiring soul rings, but the increase in base strength would be substantial. When applied to everyday cultivation, the boosts wouldn't be small.
Moreover, the increase in strength and the potential to further extend the soul ring's lifespan were also quite appealing.
"Well, this isn't going to be easy to develop," Su Yu muttered.
He rubbed his forehead, but the prospect of the new Soul Spirit System grew increasingly exciting.
Perhaps, more than being the creator of cultivation techniques, the Soul Spirit System was the key to truly reforming the soul master world and gaining immense belief.
Previously, Soul Spirits were just the spiritual entities left behind by soul beasts. However, the new Soul Spirit System would have no connection to spirituality whatsoever.
"Exploring the martial soul's spirituality and creating a cultivation system that promotes the fusion of martial soul and soul master through soul rings—this is the Soul Spirit System," Su Yu thought as he redefined the concept.
He revised his outline overnight, realizing that the Battle Soul Tournament would likely conclude during the National Day Festival and usher in an era of great development.
"Brothers, let's go!"
(End of Chapter)