MTLNOVEL Chapter 19: "Main body, hurry back! There’s danger at home!"
Before Tianmeng could finish speaking, Huo Yuhao decisively infused Tianmeng Origin, which had already merged with him, into the soul ring.
Tianmeng Origin is a spiritual essence, and without it in the future, his cultivation, especially his spiritual power, would no longer progress as rapidly as before.
However, Huo Yuhao was not one to hesitate. If the effect of that soul skill matched his expectations, once the third soul skill was formed, it could become one of his trump cards.
"Brother Tianmeng, just focus on condensing the soul ring. Leave the rest to me. Ice Empress, prepare to release my origin!"
Huo Yuhao closed his eyes and spoke softly, "If it's not enough, I'll awaken the other souls."
Ice Empress replied solemnly, "Understood."
There was no need for Huo Yuhao to explain further.
She understood the immense benefits that the ability granted by Tianmeng, once solidified into a soul skill, would bring to his second martial soul.
Seeing this, Tianmeng felt a flicker of emotion.
If Huo Yuhao hadn't trusted him completely, he wouldn't have taken such a step.
All of Tianmeng's remaining origin was poured into the soul ring, and though it was no longer transparent, it still fell just short of being fully condensed.
Just as Huo Yuhao was about to instruct Ice Empress to release his origin, a stream of gray aura merged into the soul ring, gradually turning it into a gray-gold hue.
Electrolux spoke up, "Yuhao, kid... don't forget, I'm still here. If we're counting, I'm also your third martial soul. Let me help you. Save those origins for the future."
"Elder Yi..."
"Focus."
Huo Yuhao's gaze sharpened. "Yes!"
With Electrolux's divine sense aiding him, the soul ring was finally fully formed.
A gray-gold soul ring rose from beneath him, hovering above the two white-gold soul rings.
Sensing the effect of the third soul skill, Huo Yuhao took a deep breath.
Through this soul skill, he suddenly felt a connection between his two martial souls.
If he activated this skill, the probability of successfully performing the self-body martial soul fusion technique would be very high.
Moreover, with this soul skill, there was a chance to elevate Ice Empress Martial Soul to a higher level.
Confirming the ability of the soul skill, Huo Yuhao's eyes gleamed.
He stood up, retracted the soul ring, and condensed his spirit body within the sea of consciousness.
Turning to Electrolux, he spoke solemnly, "Thank you, Elder Yi. Without your help, condensing this soul ring would have cost me a significant amount of origin."
"It's nothing. Strictly speaking, this is the strongest ability of the big bug, and I'm curious about it too," Electrolux replied with a smile.
The two conversed amicably, and even Ice Empress joined in, inquiring about the power of the soul skill.
Only Tianmeng, feeling somewhat overlooked, rolled his eyes.
Have you all forgotten who the real hero is?
The world has forgotten him...
At that moment, Huo Yuhao looked at him and offered a gentle smile. "I plan to name this soul skill 'Heavenly Silkworm Transformation.' Thank you, Brother Tianmeng."
Tianmeng was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter. "That's a fitting name for my brother's soul skill. It's perfect."
...
"What?! 30,000 federal coins can't buy a hundred-year soul ring? You can only draw one?" The gray-robed Spirit Messanger stood up, his gaze shifting to Tang Wulin's adoptive father, Tang Ziran.
"That's correct. Here in Glorybound City, the price for a ten-year white soul ring is seventy thousand, and a hundred-year yellow soul ring costs one million. With 30,000 Federation Coins, your only option is to try your luck with a soul extraction."
"However, through extraction, you could end up with either a hundred-year yellow soul ring or a ten-year crippled artificial soul ring. Would you like to take the chance?"
"I don't recommend this approach. Although the soul contract left by the original Pagoda master allows the soul ring to improve alongside the soul master, enabling it to gain feedback and increase its age limit, extracting a crippled soul ring could make it extremely difficult to promote. It might take several generations of effort to achieve any significant progress."
Tang Ziran turned to look at Tang Wulin.
Tang Wulin's eyes were glazed over, stunned by the situation.
He had worked tirelessly for three years to save up the money, only to face such a dilemma.
Tang Ziran's heart ached. "Wulin, let's go back. I'll borrow some money and make up the 70,000."
"No, Dad. You and Mom have already worked so hard. Besides, my martial soul is just Blue Silver Grass. It doesn't matter what kind of soul ring I get."
Tang Wulin shook his head and looked at the Spirit Messanger with determination. "I choose to draw!"
Seeing the boy's filial devotion, the Spirit Messanger pondered for a moment and said, "Actually, aside from the two methods I mentioned earlier, there is another way to obtain a soul ring. It's a rule established when the Spirit Pagoda was first founded."
"The soul contract is a two-way bond. While the soul master can choose the Soul, the Soul can also choose the soul master!"
Hearing this, Tang Wulin's eyes lit up. "Master Spirit Messenger, are you saying...?"
"Come with me." The Spirit Messenger first tested Tang Wulin's spiritual power, then led the way down a passage.
"I'll take you to meet the souls housed in the Spirit Pagoda. If any of them are willing to form a contract with you, you can take them directly, paying only a fee of 1,000 federal coins."
"However, there's a condition. After you graduate from the Soul Master Academy, you must contribute to the Spirit Pagoda in whatever capacity you can, or repay the cost of the soul ring. If you choose to repay, there's no interest until you graduate from intermediate college, but interest will accrue annually after that."
Tang Wulin was pleasantly surprised, but Tang Ziran, concerned about the financial implications, asked, "Excuse me, what kind of work would he be expected to do?"
"Given your son's martial soul, he would likely serve as auxiliary staff for the Spirit Pagoda," the Spirit Messenger explained.
"The work isn't particularly demanding, tasks like awakening martial souls in remote areas. While it's not as stable as regular employment, it should be enough to cover daily expenses."
"I'll show you the terms later. For now, let's go see the souls. After all, if it's only a ten-year soul ring, you should be able to repay the cost in the future, right?"
"Yes, no problem," Tang Ziran replied, breathing a sigh of relief.
In this case, it's acceptable. The Spirit Pagoda is truly a formidable and generous organization.
The Spirit Messenger glanced at Tang Ziran before withdrawing his gaze.
This rule is the primary way for most civilian soul masters to obtain soul rings.
After all, ten-year soul spirits aren't highly intelligent, and when they encounter soul masters whose attributes align with theirs, they naturally gravitate toward them.
However, most civilian soul masters struggle to grow and earn enough to repay the cost.
The basic tasks like martial soul awakenings don't require many people, so they often don't contribute much to the Spirit Pagoda.
From the tower's perspective, this arrangement isn't a loss. In fact, it's a mutually beneficial system.
But there's no other way. Several tower masters and soul beasts within the Spirit Pagoda have upheld this rule for generations.
For soul beasts, the more humans who obtain soul rings, the more stable their position becomes.
This is the only hope for coexistence as humans grow increasingly powerful.
And for those who lack the means to obtain Souls, the chance to become a soul master through a Soul's approval is life-changing. How could they not revere these soul spirits?
Grandparents often say, "Your grandfather's success, and even our family's prosperity, is all thanks to the Soul that chose me back then. As long as our family endures, this Soul will be honored for generations. Does anyone object?"
Future generations: "No!"
This is why many heirloom soul bloodlines, though not particularly strong, are passed down through generations and revered by descendants. It becomes a matter of faith.
Of course, if this rule only benefited a few members of the Spirit Pagoda, it wouldn't have lasted for 10,000 years.
This is largely thanks to the concept of the "Heirloom Soul."
With the advent of the Heirloom Soul, some descendants of soul masters who initially struggled to grow managed to advance further by investing in these soul spirits.
Many of these families became closely tied to the Spirit Pagoda, enhancing its prestige and bringing significant benefits.
Occasionally, an outlier emerges, someone who defies the odds and becomes a pillar of the Spirit Pagoda.
Seeing this, the higher-ups of the Spirit Pagoda no longer objected and retained this rule for obtaining soul rings.
After all, the tower already spends money on free martial soul awakenings.
Investing in some ten-year soul spirits is a small price to pay.
You might make a small profit, and we lose nothing.
To this, the Spirit Messenger could only say:
"The first Pagoda master was truly remarkable!"
It's as if he had the ability to foresee the future, planning everything so meticulously...
As they walked, Tang Wulin listened to the Spirit Messenger explain the origins of this rule. Finally, the Spirit Messenger added:
"The Awakening Day also traces its roots to the first Pagoda master. After the Martial Soul Hall was destroyed 20,000 years ago, there was no Awakening Day for a long time. Soul masters had to pay for martial soul awakenings. It was only after the first Pagoda master established the Spirit Pagoda that the tradition was revived."
"You're lucky to be born in this era. If it were 10,000 years ago, you wouldn't even have been able to awaken your martial soul, let alone hunt for soul rings."
Hearing this, Tang Wulin instinctively turned to look at Tang Ziran.
Seeing the other man's serious nod, Tang Wulin realized this was all true.
His admiration for the Sea God faded slightly.
How could someone like the first Pagoda master not become a god?
In terms of contributions to the world, he far surpasses the original Shrek Seven Monsters...
Tang San's Divine Sense: "..."
"Main body, hurry back! There's danger at home! Wulin is being swayed by the legacy of that fool from 10,000 years ago!"