Chapter 53: The Root of the Mutation
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After listening to Ye Wen's explanation, Yu Yuanzhen finally understood the principle behind it and connected it with his son's martial soul situation.
"Xiaogang, it was my negligence as a father. If I hadn't been so obsessed with cultivation back then and had paid more attention to your martial soul's condition, we wouldn't have hunted the wrong soul rings, causing your martial soul to continuously undergo malignant mutations."
Yu Xiaogang seemed to want to say something but hesitated and remained silent.
"So, Master Ye Wen, is there still hope for my son?" Yu Yuanzhen asked earnestly, looking at Ye Wen.
Ye Wen pondered for a moment before slowly replying, "We can try, but I can't guarantee anything. After all, his body has developed significant resistance, so external aids will have minimal effect on your son now."
"Go ahead and explain," Yu Yuanzhen said calmly. He was well aware of Yu Xiaogang's condition, so he wasn't upset by Ye Wen's cautious response.
"First, as I explained in my Treatise on the Origin of Martial Souls, the closer any resource is to the essence of the martial soul, the greater its benefit to cultivation. Therefore, for your son's future training, it would be best to choose an environment that mimics light attributes.
The best light-attribute simulated training environment on the continent undoubtedly belongs to the Spirit Hall. If Your Excellency has enough influence, you could apply to the Pope for access.
I'm sure the generous Pope would grant permission."
Upon hearing this, Yu Yuanzhen's expression darkened. Asking the Pope for access to a simulated training environment as one of the continent's top powers? He couldn't bear the humiliation. But remembering that Ye Wen came from humble origins and that this suggestion was made in good faith, he didn't lash out.
However, glancing at his foolish son beside him—who clearly expected him to go beg the Pope—Yu Yuanzhen felt a surge of irritation. How could he have fathered such an idiot!
"Additionally, I've studied martial soul mutations extensively. Based on my research, these mutations don't happen without reason.
One of my disciples comes from a family whose inherited martial soul is just an ordinary rabbit. However, she eventually awakened a top-tier rabbit martial soul—the Soft Bone Rabbit.
Her innate soul power was only 6.5 levels, whereas for such a top-tier martial soul, the average awakening level in my investigations should be above 7.
This discrepancy is puzzling. After all, the child was raised under my care from birth, so there was no external force damaging her essence. The issue must lie within the martial soul itself.
Furthermore, considering the leap from an ordinary rabbit martial soul to a three-level higher top-tier martial soul, I boldly hypothesize that when a martial soul undergoes a significant mutation, if the host's body cannot provide sufficient nourishment, it will consume the host's innate soul power instead.
Thus, I'd like to ask, Thunderclap Douluo—your son's mother must have been quite powerful, correct?"
"She was a Soul King, but she died during childbirth with Xiaogang," Yu Yuanzhen replied grimly, his expression worsening.
"My condolences, Lord. However, based on this situation, your son's innate soul power seems highly abnormal.
Both you and your wife were strong individuals with excellent physical strength. For her to die during childbirth due to complications suggests that she expended a tremendous amount of life essence during labor."
Yu Yuanzhen frowned deeply. "Are you suggesting that Xiaogang devoured a large portion of his mother's life essence at birth, leading to insufficient medical intervention and her eventual death?"
"Precisely. After all, your son's original martial soul attributes are light and dragon. Dragons of this attribute are generally stronger than the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. Moreover, your son inherited your bloodline, Lord, and consumed such a vast amount of life essence, using your bloodline as the origin point for the mutation. Such a process should have resulted in an exceptional martial soul.
Yet the final outcome is this… useless martial soul. Something doesn't add up.
Thunderclap Lord, may I ask—was your son's appetite unusually large during childhood?"
"Xiaogang did eat more than other children when he was young, but he never gained weight," Yu Yuanzhen replied.
Ye Wen nodded knowingly. This was a classic case of absorption issues.
Excluding the possibility of parasites, there was only one plausible explanation: Yu Xiaogang's martial soul craved more nutrients. But as a child who hadn't yet awakened his martial soul or cultivated, what could his body provide? Initially, it likely consumed his innate soul power. Later, when abnormalities arose, he began eating excessively, converting food into bodily energy—but even that was a drop in the bucket for a powerful martial soul.
Considering his wife's death, if Yu Xiaogang's martial soul had indeed been the cause, and if the martial soul hadn't fully mutated after birth but continued to crave more energy, the reason for his large appetite and inability to gain weight became clear.
This also explained Yu Xiaogang's meager half-level innate soul power.
"Based on your analysis, Xiaogang's original martial soul should have been an extremely powerful super martial soul, far surpassing the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. However, it lacked sufficient energy during the mutation process, resulting in failure and leaving him with this pitiful state.
Am I correct?"
"You're absolutely right, Lord." Ye Wen nodded firmly.
Yu Yuanzhen felt a bitter pang in his heart. His son, whom he had always thought of as a born failure, was now revealed to be a genius whose awakening had gone awry. Suppressing his emotions, he asked quietly, "Is there any way to fix this?"
"There may still be a way. If your son can break through to Level 30 and obtain a third soul ring from a true dragon-blooded light-attribute spirit beast, it might be possible to reverse the failed mutation and restore his martial soul.
Moreover, if you act now, you can use the blood of a light dragon to create a medicinal bath to enhance your son's physical condition.
After all, the core of my soul ring absorption theory revolves around physical strength. If your son wants to strengthen his essence as much as possible, he'll need to work hard.
If everything goes smoothly, he should at least reach four rings and reverse the malignant mutation, transforming his martial soul into a true light-attribute dragon martial soul.
By the time he reaches four rings, using the same methods, he should be able to break through to six rings and achieve the rank of Soul Emperor by the age of 50, shedding the label of 'failure.'
Furthermore, by that time, your son's bloodline will have grown significantly stronger. If he marries a woman with a similarly profound dragon-attribute cultivation, it might truly allow the mutated martial soul in his bloodline to be passed down."
Watching Ye Wen's confident demeanor, Yu Yuanzhen's eyes flickered—he was intrigued.
"Thank you for your guidance, Master Ye Wen. If Xiaogang succeeds in his cultivation in the future, I will personally visit to express my gratitude. My earlier promise remains valid."
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