Chapter 6: Discoveries in the Library
Warm water streamed over Wu Tong's body, washing away sweat and grime.
After finishing his bath, he put on the academy's freshly issued uniform. The entire outfit was a deep indigo blue, with a pleasant texture and a faint clean fragrance.
Wu Tong was very satisfied. He had always liked indigo blue—a color rich with cultural meaning in Huaxia tradition, symbolizing calmness and elegance.
Once dressed, Wu Tong looked like a refined recluse, his figure shining with a sharp blue radiance under the lingering light of dusk.
With his clothes in order, Wu Tong didn't return to the dormitory. Instead, he headed straight for the academy's library.
The moment he stepped inside, the atmosphere changed entirely—quiet and solemn, peaceful and serene. One door seemed to separate two worlds.
Outside was noisy and bustling; inside, silence reigned.
The only sounds were the occasional rustling of pages and soft footsteps, as if the entire world was holding its breath to listen.
Sunlight filtered through the windows and cast dappled light across the shelves, creating a warm and comforting ambiance.
Books were neatly arranged along the shelves, as if waiting patiently to be opened, each one radiating its own unique charm.
Since it was already close to evening, the library wasn't crowded. The spacious aisles and numerous empty seats made it feel even more open.
A few readers sat quietly in corners, immersed in their reading, occasionally looking up to ponder, deeply absorbed in the sea of knowledge.
The air was filled with the scent of books and a subtle woody aroma, making one feel refreshed and at ease.
Wu Tong entered and casually pulled a book from the section on soul beast classifications, then found a quiet corner to sit down.
Soul Beast Compendium: Hunting Forest Edition
He glanced at the title, then began to flip through its pages.
Over the past three days, Wu Tong had formed a general idea about how to develop his martial soul.
In the novels of his past life, talents with heaven-defying comprehension seemed like finished products. Now, for Wu Tong, the key was to reverse-engineer that product—to deduce the process that made it possible.
After awakening his martial soul, his brain had undergone refinement through soul power. The resulting increase in cognitive capacity, memory, and understanding was like night and day compared to before.
To achieve a heaven-defying level of comprehension, the choice of soul rings would be absolutely critical.
After all, unlike dual martial soul wielders, he only had nine soul rings to work with. To reach his goal within that limitation, every ring needed to be chosen with utmost precision. Time, for him, would never be enough.
Therefore, the selection of his soul rings—especially the first one—was crucial. A good choice could potentially cause a small-scale mutation in the martial soul.
In the original story, Tang San's first soul ring was from a Mandala Snake, which endowed his Blue Silver Grass with some of the snake's resilience and toxicity, resulting in a minor evolution.
This proved how vital the first soul ring was for a soul master.
As for his own first ring, Wu Tong had already decided: he would find a soul beast that could grant him absolute memory.
With absolute memory, he could absorb knowledge at a rapid pace, saving time and preventing precious hours from being wasted on information gathering.
[Dream Butterfly: Butterfly-type soul beast. Common bloodline. Its wing dust can induce dream states in other organisms...]
"Dream infiltration, huh? No… not suitable. But maybe useful later. I'll make a note of it."
Wu Tong shook his head and rejected this soul beast.
[Nine-Leaf Starfall]: A plant-type soul beast. Possesses the ability to absorb starlight energy for cultivation. Boasts immense spiritual power. Edible—consumption can enhance spiritual strength...
No. Next.
[Moonspike Bitter Bamboo]... enhances soul power.
No.
[Heavenstar Moth]...
No.
[Brain-Eater Ape]...
No.
——————
"I finally found it!!!"
One week later.
The once serene and quiet library was suddenly stirred by a low, excited shout.
Wu Tong was trembling all over as he stared at the book in his hands, overcome with emotion.
[Mind-Eye Golden Fox]: A fox-type soul beast with golden bloodline. Known as the strategist among soul beasts. Possesses exceptional intelligence and can command other beasts to ambush enemies. Has extremely strong spiritual power and can hypnotize other creatures. Cunning, treacherous, and notoriously vengeful.
Records show that a Soul Elder once injured a thousand-year-old Mind-Eye Golden Fox but failed to kill it. The beast escaped.
Over a decade later, when the soul master had become a Soul Emperor and went out to hunt soul rings, he was ambushed and gravely wounded by a ten-thousand-year-old Mind-Eye Golden Fox.
If not for his companions rushing to his aid, he would have died. As he lay wounded, he saw the scar on the fox's chest—recognizing it as the very same beast from years ago. He later documented the entire incident.
Soul beasts take revenge—ten years is never too late.
Just a thousand-year-old beast, not yet even awakened to full sentience, had the memory to track and take revenge more than ten years later.
That alone proved the terrifying strength of the Mind-Eye Golden Fox's memory.
No doubt about it. Mind-Eye Golden Fox—you're the one.
Wu Tong's eyes brimmed with tears.
It had been a full week. He had spent nearly every day buried in the library, poring over materials.
Most of the soul beasts he found didn't meet his criteria.
Some merely increased soul power. Others had too many mixed traits, making it hard to extract one specific effect. He had no choice but to give them up.
But now, finally, today, Wu Tong had found the soul beast most suitable for him.
(End of Chapter)