It was the height of summer, and the sun beat down at its zenith.
Across the continent, everywhere except the far north, the climate was scorching hot.
Heaven Dou Royal Academy, the volcanic cluster simulation training grounds.
"Hongjun, summer has arrived. If the temperature of this volcano goes any higher, even I, a Soul King, won't be able to stand it for long," a burly, stout uncle said to the red-haired boy beside him.
"We'll reduce the training volume for the next few months. We'll resume the full load once autumn arrives and the volcano's temperature cools down."
Billowing waves of magma surged from the crater, like a natural sauna. In just the two sentences spoken, the speaker had wiped sweat from his forehead no fewer than four times.
"Hot? I think it's fine!" At the edge of the crater, the red-haired boy exuded a purplish-red aura, his long hair fluttering in the magma's heatwaves. Though his features weren't handsome, they were regular, and combined with his sturdy physique, no one would guess this was the originally obese, brothel-frequenting Phoenix, Ma Hongjun.
"Uncle Xu, have you forgotten my Martial Soul is the Fire Phoenix? It naturally has strong adaptability to extremely hot environments." "If you find it unbearable to stay here for long, I find it quite comfortable."
The guard, Xu Pan, scratched his head sheepishly after hearing this and said, "I was short-sighted. I only thought of you as a Spirit Master of level ten-plus and forgot that your Martial Soul is the Fire Phoenix."
As Xu Pan spoke, he unintentionally revealed a hint of envy. The Fire Phoenix was a top-tier Beast Martial Soul. Even a flawed Fire Phoenix was nothing his ordinary Rock Horned Bull Martial Soul could compare to. He was already in his early forties when he broke through to Soul King, and he estimated that reaching Soul Emperor in this lifetime would be his limit. As for this child, Ma Hongjun, if nothing unexpected happened, he could cultivate to the realm of the legendary Titled Douluo.
Xu Pan wondered how the Duke had known someone in the Barak Kingdom would awaken the Fire Phoenix Martial Soul. While lost in thought, Xu Pan endured another gust of hot air erupting from the crater. He couldn't stand the heat anymore, so he moved away from the crater to find a place to sit, enduring the sweltering weather and calming his mind to meditate.
The volcanic heat made the world's elemental energy in this area extremely active. Meditating and cultivating Soul Power here would speed up one's progress significantly compared to ordinary places, provided the cultivator could withstand the intense heat. Ma Hongjun's ability to approach three and a half levels of cultivation per year with only a innate level nine Soul Power was not only due to the simulated environment's boost but also the active elemental energy.
Three days ago, Ma Hongjun's Soul Power had broken through from the peak of level sixteen to level seventeen, leaving him only three Soul Power levels away from level twenty. He firmly believed he could break through to level twenty within a year.
"I am currently seven years and seven months old, and I will be eight in five months. It's impossible for me to break through to Grand Spirit Master before I turn eight." "If only I had met Uncle Xu on my sixth birthday."
Ma Hongjun was already six years and two months old when he awakened his Martial Soul. If he had met Xu Pan on the day he turned six, there might have been a slim chance of breaking through to level twenty before turning eight.
"I've already broken through to level seventeen. I wonder how that esteemed person's cultivation is progressing?"
...
In a secluded courtyard.
Beneath a pavilion, Lin Rong leaned against the railing, occasionally picking up pastries from a porcelain plate and tossing them into the water, causing a school of koi to scramble for them.
While feeding the koi, Lin Rong inquired, "Grandpa Yu, has there been any progress on my second Spirit Ring?"
In the pavilion, the old butler looked ashamed and replied softly, "This old servant is incompetent; there is still no news."
"Grandpa Yu, you don't need to blame yourself," Lin Rong turned back, seeing the butler's crestfallen expression, and comforted him, "It's not that you're incompetent; it's that my requirements are too high."
"Spirit Beasts with spatial attributes are already rare, let alone a plant Spirit Beast with spatial attributes that I require." "If I can't find one that meets my criteria, I can be a bit flexible with the Spirit Beast's age." "My previous requirement was between nine hundred and one thousand years; now, change 'nine hundred years or more' to 'eight hundred years or more'." "If there's still no progress, I'll have to go to the Star Dou Great Forest myself and try my luck."
The second Spirit Ring Lin Rong needed was a plant Spirit Beast possessing spatial attributes. Plant Spirit Beasts were compatible with the Nine Bend Vine Dragon, and a plant Spirit Beast with spatial attributes, combined with the Nine Bend Vine Dragon's own Martial Soul tier, would very likely grant Lin Rong a Spirit Skill with extremely strong life-saving capabilities. With that, Lin Rong would have the confidence to proceed with his next plan.
As for the Heart of the Banyan Wood's skill, "Flower Transfer, Wood Grafting," its cooldown was too long, making it only usable as a last resort for survival.
Lin Rong wouldn't use it unless absolutely necessary.
Among spirit beasts, those with spatial attributes were extremely rare.
Only a few types of spirit beasts were born with spatial attributes; the rest mostly developed them through mutation.
While plant spirit beasts were numerous, no one had yet discovered any that were innately spatial.
The only recorded instances were that bamboo and gourd vines were the most likely plant spirit beasts to develop spatial attributes postnatally.
Furthermore, the higher their cultivation, the greater the probability of developing spatial attributes.
Lin Rong, however, requested a spirit beast under a thousand years old, making the chance of a spatial mutation extremely low.
This was why the dark guards had such trouble finding a suitable one, and had yet to find a match.
Lin Rong understood that this approach was indeed a bit rushed, but it was also unavoidable.
Spirit Masters had nine spirit rings.
The first, third, fifth, seventh, and ninth spirit rings were all extremely important.
The first and ninth spirit rings marked the beginning and end of a Spirit Master's journey.
The third and fifth spirit rings, one being the first thousand-year spirit ring and the other the first ten-thousand-year spirit ring, served to connect the stages.
And the seventh spirit ring, which was for the Martial Soul's True Body, was of paramount importance.
Therefore, the third spirit ring, serving as a bridge between stages, should ideally be taken from a spirit beast closely related to the Martial Soul.
Lin Rong's Nine Bend Vine Dragon Martial Soul was a fusion mutation of the Dragon Soul Vine and the Thousand Leaf Banyan.
His first spirit ring was taken from the Thousand Leaf Banyan, granting him the excellent skill Dragon Soul Awakening.
It would be best if his third spirit ring could also be taken from the Dragon Soul Vine.
However, the Dragon Soul Vine itself was a mutated spirit beast and was virtually nonexistent in the spirit beast forests.
Thus, Lin Rong lowered his requirements for the third spirit ring.
Without the Dragon Soul Vine, its mutated precursor, the Azure Vine, was also an excellent choice.
With the third spirit ring already decided, if Lin Rong didn't obtain a spatial skill from his second spirit ring, he would have to wait until his fourth spirit ring to acquire one.
The meticulously laid plans would then be delayed until that time.
To avoid jeopardizing the overall plan, Lin Rong had to obtain his desired spatial skill from his second spirit ring.
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