Gu La was somewhat surprised but quickly understood.
Ye Xinglan was a pure swordswoman and seeker of the Dao (Way). Her world revolved only around the sword and growing stronger. The ball was merely a medium for her to approach her goal. He admired this purity.
"The honor is all mine." Gu La extended his hand.
The two stepped into the dance floor. Ye Xinglan's steps were slightly stiff, carrying the crisp decisiveness unique to swordsmen, but her gaze remained focused on Gu La.
"Your sword intent is sometimes heavy, sometimes ghostly—varied yet precise, like flowers in a mirror or the moon in water. How do you achieve such an extreme and complex refinement of will by discarding all distractions?" Ye Xinglan cut straight to the point, her voice clear and resonant.
As Gu La guided her somewhat rigid steps, he calmly replied: "Sword intent originates from the heart. What appears varied isn't the fluctuation of thoughts, but the mastery of one's emotions, refining the will into pure 'reason.' Your Star God Sword seeks the perfection and vastness of celestial trajectories. Try feeling the movement of the stars—it is a natural form of 'reason'…"
He explained profound concepts about willpower refinement, power control, and how to perceive the "Way" and "Reason" from the myriad phenomena of heaven and earth in simple yet insightful terms.
Ye Xinglan listened with utmost focus, her eyes growing brighter as if a new world had opened before her.
She occasionally asked follow-up questions, and Gu La patiently answered. For her, the time spent dancing with him yielded more insights than ten days of solitary cultivation.
At the edge of the dance floor, Xu Xiaoyan, dressed in her aqua-blue dress, watched enviously as Ye Xinglan conversed animatedly with Gu La in the dance floor. She glanced at her empty hands and felt utterly dejected.
"Ah… I'm too late again… Xinglan moves so fast…"
She had finally mustered the courage to invite Gu La to dance, but hesitated just for a moment—and the opportunity was snatched away by Ye Xinglan!
All she could do was sulkily pick up a glass of juice, sipping it slowly while gazing longingly at the dance floor.
The banquet continued, the lights hazy, and shadows of people interweaving.
Tang Wulin awkwardly fended off enthusiastic dance partners in the dance floor; Xu Lizhi was still battling it out in the buffet area; Gu Yue secluded herself in her room, her thoughts swirling; Ye Xinglan was immersed in newfound enlightenment about the sword; and Xu Xiaoyan lingered in frustration and envy.
Meanwhile, Bai Yuan had quietly exited, standing on the deck, gazing at the faint outline of the Star Luo Continent emerging in the night.
…
The voyage of the Star Luo continued across the vast expanse of the ocean.
After the initial excitement wore off, life aboard the ship became somewhat monotonous and dull. At Secretary Pan Wen's second banquet, significantly fewer students attended.
Aside from necessary socializing and meals, most chose to stay in their rooms meditating and cultivating, seizing every moment to improve their strength.
With Mu Yi, the direct disciple of Mu Ye, shouldering the responsibility of eventually leading the Body Sect, there was no one left to guide Tang Wulin in mastering his blood essence.
Unaware of the missed opportunity, Tang Wulin enjoyed the peace and quiet, fully immersing himself in cultivation.
He sat cross-legged on his bed, his blood essence surging like a dragon, golden light flowing beneath his skin, relentlessly pushing against the bottleneck of Level 40. He was determined to break through to Level 40 before reaching the Star Luo Continent, fusing with the Tyrant Dragon spirit soul obtained in the Intermediate Ascension Platform, elevating his strength to new heights!
In Gu La's room, he stood by the porthole, his deep gaze piercing through the glass, directed at the seemingly endless, deep blue expanse of the ocean below.
Beneath the shimmering surface of the sea lay countless secrets and immense energy.
"Soul King achieved—it's time to cultivate the sixth avatar."
Gu La calculated internally. "The Star Luo Continent approaches, and the shadow of the Sea God Tang San looms ever-present. Though I can fly, facing a potential return of the Sea God amidst the ocean's domain requires deeper preparation. An avatar capable of unleashing ultimate combat power in the ocean, with extraordinary potential, is crucial."
His target was set on marine plants. While marine soul beasts were powerful, plant-type soul beasts offered greater malleability, growth potential, and adaptability to the environment, aligning better with the essence of his "Forest Avatar" soul skill.
"Celebi, Possess!"
With a thought, an overwhelming aura of life and affinity with nature surged through his body.
Simultaneously, telekinetic force activated, enveloping him in an intangible yet incredibly resilient psychic shield that isolated him from the threat of seawater and crushing deep-sea pressure.
Silently, Gu La's figure merged seamlessly into the sea, slipping off the rear deck of the Star Luo into the icy, profound depths.
Descend! Keep descending!
The telekinetic shield emitted a faint glow, illuminating a small area around him. Cold, darkness, and immense water pressure pressed in from all sides.
Various bizarre marine creatures swam at the edges of the light. Sensing the life aura emitted by the Celebi martial soul and Gu La's unfathomable spiritual pressure, they fled in panic.
Although suppressed under the sea, Gu La's mental power functioned like the most precise radar, scanning the ocean floor.
He saw vibrant coral reefs, slow-moving starfish and sea urchins, and vast forests of giant seaweed… His goal was clear—to find a seed of a plant-type soul beast with immense potential to become a dominant force in the ocean!
The search lasted for several hours. He encountered countless types of algae—brown algae, red algae, green algae—each with unique forms but mostly limited in potential or overly singular in attributes.
Just as he delved into a seabed canyon shrouded in extremely weak light and terrifying water pressure, a peculiar sight caught his attention.
Covering the canyon walls was an exceptionally rare type of algae. Unlike ordinary algae clinging to rock surfaces, these emerged stubbornly from crevices, their stems as thick as an adult's thigh, displaying a deep emerald green and covered with a tough cuticle.
Most remarkably, some individuals bore leaves not in the usual ribbon-like or sheet-like forms but instead as countless fine, semi-transparent blue threads cascading downward like waterfalls, stretching tens of meters long!
Under the dim light, these thread-like leaves emitted a faint blue glow, swaying gently with the current, forming a dreamlike "blue curtain forest."
"Phycodrys… Sea God Grass!" (A type of algae)
A sharp glint flashed in Gu La's eyes. This was exactly what he had been searching for—an ancient and extraordinarily resilient plant in the oceans of Douluo Star.
As a type of giant brown algae, even in its ordinary form, its stems could reach dozens of meters in length, with leafy forests covering areas spanning several kilometers.
Once transformed into a soul beast, absorbing extraordinary energy, its size and strength would increase exponentially, easily dominating a stretch of the ocean to become a true ruler of the underwater forest!
It was not only a foundational producer in the marine food chain but also a critical pillar of marine ecological balance. Its potential was unparalleled among marine plants.
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