NOVEL NEXT Chapter 229: Chapter 229: Wu Mei
Chapter 229: Wu Mei
"Wu Mei, why are you brooding here again? The competition is about to start!"
A young girl, who appeared to be in her twenties, called out to Xiao Wu.
Since arriving in the Star Luo Empire, Xiao Wu's appearance had remained unchanged, but she had grown wiser and adopted a new name.
"'Wu' was taken from her original name, Xiao Wu, while 'Mei' came from her identity as the Soft Bone Enchantress Rabbit. Thus, she renamed herself Wu Mei."
To those around her, Wu Mei appeared to be a quiet, refined young lady—gentle and elegant. However, her tendency to brood and burst into tears baffled everyone.
Her talent was exceptional, and she had reached the Soul Elder stage at such a young age. What could possibly cause her such sorrow?
When asked about her background, she could only give vague answers. It was said that she had suffered a head injury in the past, which caused her to lose her memory.
A beautiful girl like her being gravely injured was something hard for anyone to accept.
The academy Xiao Wu had joined was one of the top institutions in the Star Luo Empire. Qualifying for the competition was expected to be a breeze.
Unlike the Heaven Dou Empire, which was divided into numerous kingdoms and duchies, the Star Luo Empire's unified structure ensured its longevity, even after the Heaven Dou Empire eventually fractured.
This structural difference also made the competitions in the Star Luo Empire much fiercer. All advanced soul master academies across the empire vied for just fifteen slots, creating intense competition.
"Alright, I'm coming."
Xiao Wu wiped her tears, adjusted her expression to appear normal, and walked toward her "companion."
In truth, she had no true companions. The last of her kin, Da Ming and Er Ming, had already perished, their soul rings likely unused since Title Douluo could no longer absorb them. However, their soul bones had undoubtedly been taken.
"Tang San, Shrek Academy—just wait. I will make you pay the price!"
If she couldn't personally kill Tang San, she would use her beauty as a weapon to achieve her goal.
Xiao Wu, as a hundred-thousand-year-old soul beast in human form, possessed an extraordinarily rapid cultivation speed. Although this was akin to starting over, unsealing her former powers allowed her to cultivate much faster than ordinary soul masters.
However, there was one drawback: in the early stages, she needed to absorb human energy to continue cultivating. At this point, she was not entirely human.
Once she reached the mid-stages, this requirement would disappear, and she could cultivate normally.
After reaching the seventieth level, she would fully transform into a human, completely unsealing her former strength and condensing her seventh spirit ring, a hundred-thousand-year ring.
Like humans, her eighth and ninth spirit rings would require her to hunt soul beasts.
At this moment, Xiao Wu was unaware that one of her greatest perceived enemies, Tang Hao, was already dead.
His six or seven soul bones had been scattered and divided among others.
As for Tang San, while he posed some threat to her, it was not as significant as she imagined.
Xiao Wu wore a veil, revealing only her pink eyes. If she weren't planning to rely on her beauty to attract powerful allies, she would have destroyed her own appearance long ago. That way, Xiao Wu would cease to exist, and Wu Mei would become her new identity.
As the original female lead, Xiao Wu carried a great deal of fortune. However, her sacrificial act in the original storyline had destroyed this fortune entirely—or, more accurately, it had been devoured by Tang San.
This was similar to how Tang San later schemed to seize the fortune of the Star Dou Forest. He merged half of his daughter's soul with the divine beast, then orchestrated its sacrifice, allowing Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong to obtain part of the forest's fortune. This ultimately destroyed the Star Dou Forest's last hope for survival.
Tang San, often called the scheming God King, was known for his millennia-long plans to manipulate the Star Dou Forest.
Meanwhile, in Heaven Dou City, as Tang San returned, the Royal Fighting Team Two advanced through the competition rounds, leaving spectators and opponents in shock.
Tang San's spirit power level had inexplicably reached 48. The last time he competed, wasn't he only at 41?
Could it be that Tang San had been hiding his strength? That seemed impossible under such public scrutiny.
"How could Tang San have reached the Soul Elder stage at level 48? Why didn't he show this before?"
Members of the Blazing Fire and Godwind academies were dumbfounded. Tang San had been clearly unwilling to lose in their previous match, so why hide his abilities?
"Could he have been deliberately holding back? But that doesn't make sense!"
Hiding one's spirit power level served no purpose, as it would be exposed eventually. Most teams only concealed tactics, spirit abilities, or unutilized members of their roster.
Apart from that, concealing one's spirit power was simply illogical.
"Regardless of whether he deliberately hid his spirit power, Tang San is undeniably a genius. At such a young age, he's already reached level 48."
"If he competes in the next Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, no one will be able to stop him from claiming the championship!"
Amid the various opinions voiced by the crowd, only Yu Xiaogang stood silently with a grim expression. He had never imagined that Tang San would secretly add spirit rings to his second martial soul without consulting him!
Tang San, such a clever child, how could he act so foolishly and recklessly?
"Patience brings calm seas; retreat brings boundless horizons."
Why couldn't he wait a few more years to dominate the continent invincibly?
By obtaining four spirit rings in advance, Tang San had significantly reduced his future potential!
Four entire spirit ring slots! If all of them had been used to absorb spirit rings over 50,000 years old, even a Title Douluo could have gained several levels of power!
"Sigh…"
"Is the dream of an invincible soul master destined to remain just that—a dream?"
Yu Xiaogang let out a heavy sigh, his once-proud demeanor now absent.
Suddenly, as if struck by inspiration, a glimmer of hope reignited in Yu Xiaogang's eyes.
"Tang San has merely wasted four spirit ring slots, but even so, his first four spirit rings are stronger than those of ordinary soul masters. Moreover, his second martial soul is the Clear Sky Hammer!"
"There's still hope! There's absolutely still hope! I only pray that Tang San doesn't do anything foolish again."
After pondering for a moment, Yu Xiaogang silently reflected.
"Wait, how did Tang San resolve the conflict between twin martial souls?"
This had been a source of great anxiety for Yu Xiaogang. While twin martial souls were an extraordinary gift, failing to resolve the inherent conflict between them would undoubtedly result in death—body explosion, leaving no trace behind!
Tang San, however, seemed to have discovered the solution.
When absorbing spirit rings or spirit bones, the comprehensive attributes of the soul master are enhanced. If their physical body cannot withstand the surge of spirit power, it leads to an explosive death.
Thanks to possessing two thousand-year-old spirit bones and his regular physical training, Tang San was able to successfully fuse four thousand-year spirit rings without succumbing to such a fate.
The limit of a soul master's ability to absorb spirit rings depends on their physical strength and spiritual power. For spirit rings beyond ten thousand years, spiritual power becomes as crucial as physical resilience.
(End of Chapter)
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