The others didn't share Xu Xiaoyan's worries and were happily discussing the arrangements within their respective spaces.
"What a massive space!"
Through the transparent sections of their Ultra Balls, everyone marveled at their individual domains. Gu La instructed them on how to project the internal layouts, making future repairs easier.
"Dai Mubai, your mountain forest looks quite impressive!"
Ning Rongrong, accustomed to her own Ultra Ball, curiously examined the setups in others' spheres.
In Dai Mubai's projection, a lush green forest stretched out beneath an imposing mountain that resembled a white tiger roaring toward the heavens. Golden specks of sunlight filtered through the canopy, swirling within the projection. The surging malevolent aura was locked tightly in the shadows, ensuring it wouldn't interfere with his cultivation.
"Boss Dai's is nice, but mine's better!"
Ma Hongjun snapped his fingers smugly, and the fragrant aroma of burning phoenix wood filled the air.
At the center of his spherical space stood a colossal phoenix tree. A nest made of crimson bird feathers rotated slowly in the projection, each feather sparking with embers.
Ma Hongjun pointed proudly at the nest: "I named it Phoenix House. Inside, my erratic fire energy feels much calmer. Just wait—I'm confident I'll catch up to you guys!"
"Pfft, talk is cheap."
Ning Rongrong shot down Ma Hongjun, showing no interest in his nest-like dwelling.
"Well, fatty, you'd better step it up."
Oscar sauntered over, a sausage dangling from his mouth. His space projection emitted the tantalizing scents of sweet-and-sour pork ribs and honey-glazed ham. As everyone instinctively sniffed the air, the aroma bizarrely shifted to freshly baked cream puffs.
Since Oscar was an attributeless soul master, his space lacked elemental bias and instead overflowed with various food scents, each breath bringing a different fragrance.
"Damn! It smells so good it's making me hungry. Xiao Ao, toss me a sausage, will you?"
Ma Hongjun reached out without hesitation. Oscar hesitated, reluctant to recite his soul incantation in front of the ladies.
Gu La had once suggested he try reciting it silently, but the difficulty was high, and he hadn't succeeded yet.
Pretending not to hear, Oscar changed the subject: "Soul tools are truly amazing. If only they hadn't been lost to history…"
This offhand comment planted a seed in Xu Xiaoyan's mind. She glanced at the star-patterned soul tool on her wrist, recalling the ancient, dust-covered soul tools stored in her family's secret treasury.
"The sect probably has quite a few soul tools… I wonder if Gu La's teacher would be interested."
Seeing everyone engrossed in conversation, Gu La interrupted with a tone that killed the mood: "Enough chit-chat. Get to training!"
His voice carried traces of soul power, causing the training ground to hum with resonance.
"Don't even think about resting until you've constructed the visualization method best suited to you. If you don't succeed within two months, you'll have to make up for all the missed training."
"What? No way! Can't we take a few days off?"
Ma Hongjun groaned miserably, having thought he could dodge a few days of training.
Gu La remained unmoved. He had already tested this method—spiritual breakthroughs weren't as rewarding as the daily grind in terms of points earned.
"Another word of complaint, and your training doubles."
Ma Hongjun wailed as Dai Mubai dragged him away. The others dispersed quickly, now viewing Gu La as nothing short of a devil—a whip-wielding, taskmaster type who drove them relentlessly.
Gu La paid no heed to his image in their eyes. After offering some guidance, he returned to his dormitory and took out paper and pen.
"Spirit Hall's scheming has actually done me a favor. In the past, I'd write a thesis every two or three months. Now, over these eighteen months, I can release a detailed analysis of last month's visualization diagram each month. The influence won't be insignificant."
"Based on previous calculations, once I digest the magma energy in my body, my Groudon martial soul will evolve into Ultimate fire. If I use the system's abilities to complete a permanent Mega Evolution (Primal Reversion), there will even be a minor breakthrough in the Ultimate fire."
Gu La meticulously planned every step of his cultivation to avoid any regrets later on.
With split attention, he focused on the system panel while telekinetically manipulating a quill to sketch and write on the paper.
He could afford to share visualization methods with others, but most soul masters didn't have such opportunities. Taking advantage of the Spirit Hall's actions, he could also gather a wave of admiration from soul masters.
Many soul masters harbored resentment toward the Spirit Hall for not releasing all the visualization diagrams at once, but no one dared complain—the Spirit Hall had already provided its reasoning, and no one wanted to cause trouble.
However, by publishing analytical papers on the visualization diagrams, Gu La was sure to earn gratitude. Whether useful or not, when striving for godhood, even the smallest details couldn't be overlooked.
…
Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect
Ning Fengzhi was meditating on a visualization method inside the main hall, with Chen Xin and Gu Rong standing guard nearby.
Ning Fengzhi's talent wasn't bad. The Seven Apertures Divided Mind (Heart Separation Control) Technique demanded a high level of spiritual power, and he had already reached the Seven Apertures Exquisite Heart stage ten years ago. Although his attempts to break through since then had failed, his spiritual power had been honed to near Titled Douluo levels.
After spending an entire day weaving a seven-layered Glazed Pagoda centered around the Universal Pearl within his mental sea, the result was breathtaking.
The seven-tiered pagoda shimmered with glazed colors, topped by a perfectly round, multicolored pearl. Though the pearl and pagoda weren't physically connected, the pearl rotated unpredictably, solidifying spiritual power, while the pagoda spun clockwise, amplifying and channeling spiritual energy upward.
Within the originally transparent crystal tower, the Universal Visualization Diagram served as the core. Forty-nine streams of colored energy surged along the newly formed diagram, and the Universal Pearl atop the pagoda projected seven ring-shaped halos.
"The sect leader has been in meditation for twelve hours already," Bone Douluo muttered anxiously, tapping the armrest of his seat. The oppressive aura of soul power in the air had driven all insects and creatures away from the vicinity.
"Sword man, do you think that visualization method can really trigger a martial soul mutation?"
Chen Xin swiped his fingers across the Seven Kill Sword, and the sharp sword intent instantly cleared the turbulent soul power. "Fengzhi broke through to level seventy-nine eight years ago. His willingness to take this risk stems from his unwillingness to settle. But what about us? Should we cultivate this attributeless visualization diagram?"
He suddenly fell silent. The hall became deathly quiet, and all objects began to emit a clear, resonant hum.
The moment Ning Fengzhi opened his eyes, seven rainbows shot out from the tip of the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, intertwining above the dome to form a massive rainbow illusion.
The two Titled Douluo were astonished to discover that the rainbow light clung to their soul power, providing a slight boost.
"This is… the spiritual characteristic cultivated based on the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda martial soul. Fengzhi, you've succeeded!"
Ning Fengzhi retracted the phenomena of his martial soul and spiritual power. "Indeed, Uncle Sword, Uncle Gu. From my understanding, the Universal Visualization Diagram uses the Universal Pearl as its foundation, allowing any martial soul to cultivate and transform it into a suitable visualization method."
"I relied on the research of our sect's predecessors regarding the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda to directly construct a visualization diagram combining the pagoda with the pearl."
"Though it's still in its infancy, I have a feeling this is the correct path for cultivating martial souls alongside visualization diagrams!"
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