Chapter 16: A Thousand Years of Serpent's Growth
The Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor truly lived up to its name as one of the most exalted bloodlines among soul beasts.
Over the past several months, Li Chang'an's serpent clone had rapidly evolved, feasting on soul beasts in the wild to accumulate soul power. Even though a portion of that energy was siphoned off to strengthen his human body, the clone still managed to ascend from a hundred-year soul beast to a full thousand-year creature in an astonishingly short time.
But once the milestone was reached, the inherited bloodline memories from the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor awakened in him more clearly—bringing sobering news.
Rapid growth was a privilege granted only to the weak. From this point on, evolution would slow drastically. It was only thanks to the supreme pedigree of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor—noble by nature, with innate potential far above ordinary beasts—that such rapid development had been possible. But going forward? Advancing from the thousand-year stage to the ten-thousand-year realm might take twenty to thirty years, or even longer. For most soul beasts, it could take half a century. For a hundred-thousand-year breakthrough, that timeline could easily stretch into several centuries—perhaps even a thousand years.
A soul beast reaching one hundred thousand years of age wasn't just rare—it was transcendent, bordering on enlightenment. That level of power was out of reach within mere decades.
Of course, every rule had its exceptions. If Li Chang'an could find and devour enough high-level soul beasts with noble bloodlines—or better yet, absorb rare immortal herbs—then he could significantly accelerate this process.
But no matter how he tried to shortcut the path, there were limits. He couldn't fatten himself in one bite. Even with the peerless bloodline of the Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor, it was impossible to reach a hundred-thousand—or heaven forbid, a million—years within a mere twenty years. That kind of miracle only existed for freaks like the Dark Devilgod Tiger.
Speaking of which, the Dark Devilgod Tiger's terrifying ability to devour and convert cultivation instantly was truly unnatural. While normal soul beasts needed time to digest and absorb the energy of their prey—often losing much of it in the process—the Tiger could convert nearly everything it consumed into raw power, allowing it to grow at a monstrous rate.
That was the difference. Most soul beasts bled energy through inefficiencies. The Dark Devilgod Tiger had none.
Still, even that monster had no future. The path to godhood was blocked for soul beasts, sealed by the very laws of the God Realm.
That's why Li Chang'an had no illusions. If he wanted to become a god, he'd have to walk the human path. His serpent clone was never meant to be his main body—it was a tool, a cultivation engine to help accelerate his rise.
The soul beast's role was clear: share power.
Humans and soul beasts differed drastically in their soul power capacity. A soul beast's massive body could store far more energy than any human ever could. Soul rings might only boost a human's level slightly, but that didn't mean the soul beast lacked power—far from it.
In fact, Li Chang'an had personally tested this. Once, he tried swallowing a live soul beast whole, before it had time to condense its soul ring after death. The result? He found that a soul beast's raw body contained far more energy than what was stored in the soul ring it left behind.
That discovery was groundbreaking.
The soul ring, it seemed, was just a fragment—perhaps only a tenth or less—of the beast's total energy. The rest either dissipated back into the environment or remained locked in the corpse, potentially forming a soul bone.
Otherwise, how could a powerful soul beast, containing vast reservoirs of soul power, give such a minor level-up to a soul master upon death? The math never added up.
After that, Li Chang'an changed his strategy.
When hunting, he would strike with lethal precision, killing instantly and preventing the soul ring from even forming. Then he would devour the corpse whole. As expected, the energy harvested from such meals was several times greater than from absorbing a ring.
This was the hidden truth: soul rings were not a law of nature—they were a rule imposed by the world. A rule that could be bent… or broken.
And with this knowledge, the value of his Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor clone skyrocketed.
Even if the serpent's own cultivation progressed slowly compared to Li Chang'an's main body, the sheer quantity of soul power it could share back to him made it more than worthwhile.
At this rate, becoming a Titled Douluo within twenty years was entirely realistic. All he needed now was to obtain an immortal herb—something to transform his foundation and push him to the next level. Because only then would he be able to meet the prerequisites of the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud… and inherit the mantle of the Sea God.
Time Skip:
Tian Dou Royal Academy.
Li Chang'an opened his eyes in his dormitory room. The sky outside was already bright, with golden morning light filtering through the windows—an ideal time for morning training.
He rose, freshened up, and changed into a set of close-fitting training clothes.
Then, stepping out into the dormitory courtyard, he summoned the Jade Phosphor Serpent Sword with a flick of his wrist.
And began.
Chop. Thrust. Flick. Sweep. Intercept. Hang. Collapse. Point. Smear. Lift. Cloud. Parry. Block. Lead. Pierce. Slash. Shave. Support.
The eighteen fundamental sword techniques flowed from him like water—elegant, fluid, precise.
They were simple, basic forms. Not flashy sword techniques, not secret arts. But in Li Chang'an's view, these were the foundation—how he familiarized himself with his weapon, his martial soul. He had no interest in charging into battle only to embarrass himself by holding his sword wrong.
What mattered wasn't some mystical technique—it was killing efficiency.
As long as his blade moved faster and struck harder than the enemy's, no technique in the world could save them. If they couldn't block or dodge, then all the elegance in the world was meaningless.
In the world of combat, speed was king.
When your blade moved faster than the eye could see, and your soul skills amplified each strike beyond human limits, the enemy's "moves" became nothing more than choreography before death.
People in this world didn't study swordsmanship—they relied on soul skills. Even Sword Douluo, named for his blade, leaned on his Seven Kill Sword's abilities rather than intricate sword forms.
In Douluo, there was no "Way of the Sword"—only the power of one's martial soul and spirit rings.
Take Tang San's early-stage techniques from the original story: Controlling Crane Catching Dragon, Ghost Shadow Perplexing Steps… impressive on the surface, but as enemies got stronger, they lost all effectiveness.
You think you can dodge with footwork? I'll use a soul skill that auto-locks on your position.
Try to redirect an attack? I'll drown the battlefield in poison gas—let's see you redirect that.
Skills like that were cute at low levels. But past the Soul Ancestor realm, they became more decoration than substance.
This world was a pyramid, and strength was its only foundation.
A Level 10 Soul Master, even if granted a hundred-thousand-year soul ring, wouldn't even scratch a Titled Douluo.
So Li Chang'an wasn't interested in inventing some so-called "self-created soul technique," or pining after the Tang Sect's hidden weapons and secret arts. He didn't need them.
He only needed two things: levels and powerful soul skills.
What was the point of technique if you got one-shot?
Was a Level 50 Soul King going to lose to a Level 30 Soul Grandmaster? Not unless that Grandmaster brought a divine weapon—and even then, good luck.
So, yes—skills had value. But they weren't the core. Power was the core.
And Li Chang'an was going to climb that mountain faster than anyone else.
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