Xiao Tian smiled as he tightened his grip around Xiao Wu's soft, slender arm. His voice was warm, tinged with both affection and seriousness.
"Of course I know this path will be difficult," he said gently. "After all, you and Zhuqing are both geniuses—your talents are undeniable. But… tell me honestly, Xiao Wu. It's already been two months, right? I'm afraid you still haven't truly mastered the art of swordsmanship yet, have you? Aside from not fully grasping the precision in controlling your soul power, there's another problem—you don't even have a proper sword."
He paused for a moment, narrowing his eyes slightly as though considering how best to guide her. Then, just as he was about to continue, he began,
"In terms of soul power control, what you actually should be doing is—"
Before he could get another word out, something whistled faintly through the air. In the blink of an eye, a wooden sword slipped out of Xiao Wu's storage ring, hovered weightlessly, then floated steadily in front of Xiao Tian.
Xiao Tian blinked in surprise. The wooden sword gleamed faintly in the dim light, spinning slowly as though deliberately showing off.
Xiao Wu pulled herself free from his embrace with a playful smile, her bright eyes twinkling mischievously. She looked at him with a hint of triumph and teased,
"Brother, you really underestimate us far too much. Did you think the three of us were just slogging away without progress? I've already learned basic sword control—you know, letting it fly and move by will. I just didn't have time to tell you before. Hehe! Surprised?"
For a heartbeat, Xiao Tian could only stand there, dumbfounded. Then joy sprang to his eyes as he broke into laughter. Overcome with happiness, he reached forward, cupped Xiao Wu's delicate cheek, and planted an excited kiss on her face.
"Hahaha! Xiao Wu, you little rascal! When did you secretly learn sword flight? Does Rongrong know how to do it? What about Zhuqing?"
Still smug, Xiao Wu folded her arms beneath her chest while responding proudly,
"I picked it up about half a month ago. During that time, Rongrong and Zhuqing were focused entirely on strengthening their foundations, so they had less time to practice with flying swords. But between us, Rongrong has surprisingly good control—she's already learned how to manipulate her Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda with more precision. As for Zhuqing… well, her soul power control is still a little stiff. She can make a wooden sword lift off the ground, but every time she does, the poor thing cracks apart within minutes. A wooden sword simply can't withstand her overwhelming strength."
Xiao Wu lowered her tone slightly, speaking more earnestly, "Brother, honestly, all of this is only possible because of the soul power guidance technique you taught us. Without it, I wouldn't even have the faintest idea where to begin. Now that we're actually practicing fine control, we've realized just how hard it is. It feels strange, though. I don't understand why I seem to progress faster than the others…"
Her words weren't discouraging in the slightest. Instead, hearing them only made Xiao Tian's hopes surge higher. His gaze sharpened while deep reasoning sparked within his mind.
After a quiet pause, he let out a low hum before speaking seriously.
"Xiao Wu, I have a thought. This difference might be tied to spirit rings themselves. Remember, spirit rings don't just grant abilities—they also impose restrictions. But you… are different. You were originally a hundred-thousand-year-old spirit beast. The first six rings on your body condensed naturally. That means you don't face the same constraints that ordinary spirit masters face. Rongrong and Zhuqing, however… they've inherited all the usual problems."
That left Xiao Wu blinking in confusion. She tilted her head slightly, her soft ears twitching subconsciously as she pressed him for clarity.
"Brother, what do you mean exactly? What does me being a transformed hundred-thousand-year spirit beast have anything to do with sword control?"
Xiao Tian spoke solemnly, his fingers tracing absent patterns in the air as though unfolding a grand theory.
"Think carefully. You know that ten-thousand-year spirit rings always contain some form of resentment, yes? A lingering mental echo of the soul beast's death. When a soul master absorbs one, that resentment lashes out as a spiritual attack."
Xiao Wu nodded slightly. "Yes, that's common knowledge. But what does that have to do with… restrictions?"
His tone lowered.
"In fact, I believe that every spirit ring, no matter the age—whether a mere hundred-year ring or a mighty hundred-thousand-year ring—retains fragments of the soul beast's will, resentments, and fragmented consciousness. These broken pieces might seem negligible at first. For most spirit masters, it doesn't matter. Why? Because releasing soul skills only requires pouring out vast pools of soul power. That process doesn't demand delicate micro-control."
He leaned forward. "But the moment a cultivator tries to sharpen their control—say, to the level of crafting their own soul skill from scratch—these disturbances are magnified infinitely. They become obstructions."
Xiao Wu's breathing quickened slightly as she hung onto his every word.
"That means," Xiao Tian continued firmly, "the fewer spirit rings a soul master has, the less interference they suffer. Which also means the greater their chance of creating their own techniques. But the stronger they become, the more rings they stack, and the harder it gets. Think about it, Xiao Wu—why do most Titled Douluo never manage to invent many original soul skills? Is it really because they lack imagination? Or because the constraints become unbearable?"
His eyes burned with conviction. "Anyone who's climbed to that level has immense talent, unimaginable experience, and decades of life behind them. Surely they're not all uncreative. So why aren't they overflowing with self-created techniques? Because they're being weighed down—suppressed—by the broken souls within their rings."
"To give an example," Xiao Tian continued without pause, "Sword Douluo, Chen Xin—Grandpa Jian—confessed to me once that his cultivation has been stuck at rank ninety-six for years. Do you know why? He admitted that among all these decades of training, he's only managed to forge two truly original sword techniques. Just two. And even those aren't considered supreme. He's over a hundred years old, brimming with talent, and yet only two creations. Doesn't that seem questionable to you?"
Xiao Wu fell silent. The theory sounded bizarre at first, but as she weighed his reasoning, it oddly fell into place. And yet, she still spotted a flaw.
"But brother… doesn't this contradict itself? In the early stages, isn't it smarter for a soul master to focus on raw cultivation? Most people wouldn't have energy to develop techniques until their progress slows down later. So if the restraints worsen as one gains power, but people don't try until after they've already gotten stronger… isn't it already too late?"
Xiao Tian inclined his head, surprisingly at ease with her critique.
"You're right, Xiao Wu. This is the very contradiction at the heart of our current cultivation path. The truth is that the whole system we practice under is flawed. Right now, there's no structured inheritance path for creating movement arts or techniques. Why would there be? After all, just acquiring a spirit ring gives you a ready-made skill. It's basically a shortcut, one so easy that people grow lazy, content with gifts instead of creation. This has shackled generations of cultivators."
A dawning realization spread across Xiao Wu's delicate face. Her ears quivered, and she covered her lips in shock as the idea struck her fully.
"Brother… you… are you seriously planning to… create your own cultivation system?!"
Xiao Tian's laughter boomed out, hearty and bold.
"Hahaha! I wouldn't claim I have the power yet. But yes—I want to create a completely new system, one centered not on spirit rings but on the sword itself. A cultivation path that doesn't rely on rings to boost someone's upper ceiling, but instead pushes the human body to ignite its own hidden potential and smash through the barriers keeping us shackled."
But halfway through his declaration, his smile shifted bittersweet.
"Of course, saying it now is easy. Actually creating it? I'm nowhere near ready. Not only that—if I really attempt this, it will certainly stir up trouble. Immense, unnecessary trouble…"
Xiao Wu furrowed her brows at his sudden unease. Her gaze sharpened.
"Trouble? Who would interfere with your dream? You mean… the person who made our rules in the first place?"
Xiao Tian chuckled bitterly as he lifted his face to the distant sky, eyes narrowing with an almost defiant glint.
"Not a person, Xiao Wu… a god."
Her breath caught at the word.
"Yes," Xiao Tian said in a low, heavy tone. "In this world, gods exist. It's very possible the laws of this lower plane—our reliance on spirit rings, our rigid breakthroughs—were all crafted by them, deliberately. Think about it… why is it that soul masters must absorb rings to advance? Why must even a hundred-thousand-year beast like you still rely on rings after transformation to reach higher levels? Yet the gods themselves—when they break through to heights like level one-hundred-and-twenty—do you think they go hunting for soul beasts? There wouldn't even be creatures capable of granting them rings!"
Xiao Wu's body trembled at his implication.
Xiao Tian's eyes gleamed with a mix of unease and daring insight.
"I suspect the gods condense their own divine rings directly. No outside creatures needed. You want to know why I believe that? Because of the so-called God-bestowed spirit rings! They're clearly modeled after the gods' own divine condensation. At first, I thought they were born from faith power—the worshippers of the Sea God or the Angel God feeding energy back. But now that I've dug deeper, there's something… off. Something that doesn't add up."
He fell silent, the weight of his suspicion lingering heavily between them.
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