Chapter 92: The Terrifying Upright Ape

Although Xu Yang's words were somewhat exaggerated, his goal was to make Gu Rong and the others believe in the power of Body Spirit Masters, and to get Gu Rong to accept Ge Erdan as a disciple, so that Ge Erdan could help verify another hypothesis in the future.

The hypothesis was quite simple — it was about body tempering.

The body tempering method Gu Rong had given him initially could no longer keep pace with his cultivation, because his physical body was now comparable to Soul Saints, but his Soul Power was still only at the Soul Master level. Therefore, the increase in physical strength per level of Soul Power was limited, and this increase was largely thanks to the Gravity Bracelets he wore.

Unfortunately, his Soul Tool level wasn't high. The Gravity Bracelets he had were only third-level Soul Tools, which could at most increase gravity by five times — not very effective for him.

So, he planned a two-pronged approach: researching new body tempering methods based on Soul Power, and improving his Soul Tool level.

But researching both simultaneously would consume too much time and hurt his cultivation, so he needed external help. Soul Tools could be developed by Soul Masters of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and the best researchers for Soul Power body tempering methods were Body Spirit Masters.

Based on the characteristics of the Body Spirit Master's spirit, Xu Yang roughly divided body training into seven parts: Muscle, Fascia, Skin, Bone, Viscera, Blood, and Brain. Except for the Brain, he believed the order of cultivation of these parts didn't matter.

The advantage of Body Spirit Masters was that once they activated their spirit, they could clearly feel and control their muscles, bones, blood flow, skin contraction, pore closure, etc., making them ideal for researching body tempering methods.

"… It's a pity the book is incomplete and doesn't contain cultivation methods for Body Spirit Masters!"

Xu Yang sighed deliberately but kept his eyes fixed on Gu Rong.

How could Gu Rong not guess Xu Yang's intention? He rolled his eyes and said angrily, "Alright, I don't know what scheme you're plotting this time, but I do have some research on bones. I'll guide him in his cultivation when I have time. But don't expect me to accept him as a disciple — he's not qualified yet!"

"Thank you, Bone Grandfather!"

Thus, under Ge Erdan's confused gaze, they finalized his path forward.

Although Ge Erdan was confused, he wasn't stupid. He had heard that his spirit had weak potential. Even if he cultivated well, he might not become a strong Douluo. His heart immediately filled with killing intent.

I must kill all the Fallen!

Ge Erdan clenched his fists and swore fiercely in his heart.

…

"Xu Yang, this time when you return, you will follow Old Sword Man to go out and cultivate!"

"But is that okay?! If I follow Sword Grandfather to go out, doesn't that mean Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will have only you left as a Titled Douluo? That will limit you and Teacher's activities!"

Xu Yang was happy to hear Gu Rong's arrangement. After all, Old Sword Man was the strongest Douluo on the continent; few could compare to him in combat. He was more than enough to cover Xu Yang's absence, but Xu Yang also had his concerns. He couldn't just put the sect in a passive position.

"Don't worry. While we were hunting Soul Rings for you, Qing'er successfully obtained her ninth Soul Ring and became a Titled Douluo. So now the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has three Titled Douluos, not two." Gu Rong smiled smugly and looked at Xu Yang. "Although Qing'er's strength isn't as good as Old Sword Man, she's capable of protecting Fengzhi when he goes out."

"Master's wife really broke through?!" Xu Yang reacted immediately. Since she had taken the Daffodil Jade Flesh Bone, breaking through to Titled Douluo was no problem.

"Of course. The sect already sent me word by carrier pigeon." Gu Rong nodded, then looked Xu Yang up and down with a smile. "Looks like you've realized your problem."

"Yes, I have some mental issues. When I first fought those three Fallen, it seemed like I was using all my strength, but because of my mindset, I was a bit timid and only used about 50% of my power."

Xu Yang smiled bitterly. He had realized this while sitting with Dugu Yan by the ridge. His fierceness later came entirely from adrenaline surging after injury.

This reminded him of a meme from his previous life — in the eyes of animals, humans are terrifying, with records of humans single-handedly killing wolves and leopards in life-or-death situations.

That's because humans live peacefully for long stretches, instinctively fearing injury and hesitating in combat. But once bitten and adrenaline kicks in, they become terrifying.

Generally speaking, it's difficult for humans to exert full strength.

Although Xu Yang wasn't afraid of injury, his instincts from peaceful life made him subconsciously cautious, trying to solve problems with minimal cost. This caused some hesitation in battle, which was subtle but obvious to Soul Masters like Gu Rong and Dugu Bo, who said Xu Yang was overly cautious.

Looking back, Xu Yang realized he'd only had three serious injuries. In thousands of Soul Arena battles, he mostly emerged unscathed.

Of those serious injuries, except the time he was hit by Dugu Bo's Poison Explosion Art and passed out, the other two times he burst out with more strength than usual thanks to adrenaline — in other words, he showed the strength he should have had.

Ultimately, it was a mental problem stopping him from using full strength. As Tang Hao said, he lacked the spirit and killing intent in battle.

The solution was simple: more experience and more fights. Xu Yang had planned to force himself to go to Slaughter City to temper after reaching level fifty, but Gu Rong's idea to have Chen Xin take him out for training was a better choice.

"Now that you've realized it, follow Old Sword Man and work hard. Didn't you always want to learn the Seven Kill Swordplay? You can learn it from him now!"

"Thank you very much, Bone Grandfather!"

Now that Master's wife has broken through, Xu Yang won't refuse. After returning, he will begin training with Chen Xin.

As for school — with Sword Douluo teaching him, what school does he need?

"Grandpa, I'll follow you to practice when we return!" Seeing Xu Yang prepare to train, Dugu Yan grabbed Dugu Bo's arm and acted coquettishly.

"Okay! When we get back, Grandpa will train you!" Dugu Bo said happily.