-----
-----
"The place with the most casualties?"
Wu Liuqi glanced around, curious, but unfortunately, almost everything nearby had already been wrecked by Kurama.
Hmph. Coming in just to smash things—doesn't he know flowers and grass are alive too?
Wu Liuqi rolled his eyes at Kurama's destruction spree.
Elsa, on the other hand, looked genuinely interested in Liu Erlong's explanation. "Why does it have the most casualties?"
"Spirit beasts are really strong," Liu Erlong shrugged. "So, if people want to break through to the next spirit ring, there's no other choice."
"???"
The more you explain, the less I understand…
And then he started dropping a bunch of stuff I'd never even heard of.
"This is just how the world works," Sam said when Liu Erlong didn't clarify. She decided to break it down in a way everyone could get.
"In this world, everyone has something called a Martial Soul. Only a very small number of people can cultivate theirs, and that's what makes someone a Spirit Master."
"Ah, kinda like ninjas in the Naruto world."
At that, everyone nodded immediately—they'd never known what a Spirit Master was, but hearing it compared to Naruto ninjas made it click.
"Spirit Masters face a bottleneck every ten levels. And because of the world's rules, no matter how talented or amazing you are, you can't get past it through normal training."
"So the only way to break through is by hunting spirit beasts and taking their spirit rings," Sam continued.
"That's the only way to level up to the next stage of training."
Wu Liuqi froze. "Wait… there's a method of getting stronger like this?"
He was used to just grabbing his scissors and getting to work. He'd never had to worry about training before.
Well… maybe Killer Seven had worried about it back in the day?
It wasn't just him—everyone listening couldn't help feeling that the way people got stronger in this world was seriously wild.
"Every world is different," Sam said. "Different laws, different rules, different systems of training."
"So what does a Martial Soul actually look like?"
Kurama perked up. "Can we… get one of those Martial Souls too?"
Sam: "I think Martial Souls come in two main types, right?"
She looked at Liu Erlong, clearly expecting an answer.
"…." Liu Erlong nodded, though she couldn't understand why they were so excited over basic common sense.
Also… what does "Can we get a Martial Soul?" even mean? Didn't you just fight using yours?
Obviously, Liu Erlong had misunderstood. She thought Kurama transforming into his real form meant he was in Martial Soul form.
Sam went on to explain the difference between Weapon-type Martial Souls and Beast-type Martial Souls.
"Whoa, Martial Souls can be scythes or hoes?"
Wu Liuqi's eyes lit up. He was thrilled.
"So that means I could awaken one too?"
He pictured having a scissor Martial Soul. Think about it—no more buying scissors for the shop. That would save a ton of money!
Hairdresser scissors aren't cheap, you know!
And with a scissor Martial Soul, he could even expand his business. Anywhere someone needed a haircut, he could whip out his scissors and get to work. Perfect!
Just thinking about being able to cut hair anywhere anytime made Wu Liuqi feel rich already.
Money, come to me!
"In this world, Martial Souls are usually inherited. Yours…"
Sam glanced at Wu Liuqi. "Yours would probably be random. We don't actually know what it is yet."
Wu Liuqi: "…."
Way to kill my excitement!
"Every Martial Soul has its own traits. There's no such thing as a useless Martial Soul, only useless people," Sam continued. "But how far a Spirit Master can go really depends on their own talent."
She thought of a certain guy called Tang San.
He'd started out with nothing but an ordinary Blue Silver Grass, but his innate spiritual power was high. Later, his Blue Silver Grass evolved into the Blue Silver Emperor—totally proving the "no useless Martial Soul, only useless people" saying.
After Sam's explanation, Kurama and the others were genuinely curious about Martial Souls.
And conveniently, someone from this world was right there.
"Wh-what's going on?"
Liu Erlong panicked a little when all the big shots turned curious eyes on her.
Fight? No way. She couldn't win.
Though she had a hot temper, she wasn't stupid.
"Can you show us your Martial Soul?" Elsa asked with a smile. "We're really curious."
"???"
Show it?
You're curious?
What the heck…
But Liu Erlong released her Martial Soul anyway.
After all, they were her lifesavers. What's the harm in letting them see it?
"Wow~"
Wu Liuqi's eyes sparkled. "So cool~ I just wonder… can you eat it?"
Liu Erlong: "…It's not a food-type Martial Soul. You can't eat it…"
Eat it?
If I weren't unsure of how strong you are… I'd be jumping up and running away right now!
"....."