So comfortable.
That was her first thought when Huo Yuhao stroked her head.
"Hello! I am the Three-eyed Golden Lion!"
She blinked, seemingly mimicking human ways to introduce herself to Huo Yuhao.
She moved a bit closer to him, her three eyes staring at him as she felt the similarity—yet subtle difference—between their fates. Unconsciously, she drifted even nearer until, finally, she simply lay down beside Huo Yuhao.
Using her Soul Power as a guide, the Three-eyed Golden Lion pulled her unfinished roasted rabbit over from a distance.
"These things you made are super delicious!"
"Mhm, thank you. I'm glad you like them."
"Yeah! I like them a lot!" the Three-eyed Golden Lion said with utmost seriousness. She looked at the roasted rabbit, then at Huo Yuhao, and after a moment's hesitation, she invited:
"Do you want to eat together?"
Huo Yuhao was a bit surprised, but he rubbed her large, fluffy head and gently declined:
"No need, as long as you enjoy it. If it's not enough, I can make more for you."
"Thank you! You're a pretty good human!" the Three-eyed Golden Lion offered her heartfelt thanks. Then, without hesitation, she began eating right there beside him.
It was strange, truly strange.
The Three-eyed Golden Lion really didn't understand why she felt so happy just by being near Huo Yuhao. Was it because of their similar fates?
She didn't know, but she knew she was happy by his side, and eating roasted rabbit made her happy—so eating roasted rabbit by Huo Yuhao's side was double the happiness!
Humph, humph, humph~ Happiness!
Feeling the waves of joy emanating from the Three-eyed Golden Lion, Huo Yuhao showed a faint smile, his hand instinctively stroking her excellent-feeling fur.
To be honest, the texture was incredible; it felt like the warmth of the sun, likely an effect of the fusion of the Three-eyed Golden Lion's Ultimate Fire and Ultimate Light bloodlines.
In short, he liked it very much.
Not far away, Gu Yuena lifted her eyes to look at the pair. Seeing that they seemed to be getting along quite well, she was slightly surprised.
Attraction generated by the similarity of destiny?
Gu Yuena quickly reached a conclusion, then lowered her head to continue gnawing on a rabbit head. Honestly, while it wasn't as good as Huo Yuhao's roasted fish, it wasn't far off; it was equally delicious.
As for Huo Yuhao and the Auspicious Beast? Gu Yuena wasn't worried. Regardless of the process, she was certain to be the final winner. This was her confidence as the Co-lord of Soul Beasts!
Whether it was a little worm, a little scorpion, or the Three-eyed Golden Lion before her, she didn't view any of them as a threat.
Gu Yuena was just that confident!
However, unlike the confident Gu Yuena, the "old father" figure Di Tian watched his "cabbage" being patted so casually. His gaze toward Huo Yuhao gradually turned "kindly"—in a way that made one's skin crawl...
...
In the evening, by the Lake of Life.
Huo Yuhao and Electrolux sat facing each other, with Gu Yuena sitting beside Huo Yuhao acting as an observer.
The Three-eyed Golden Lion had wanted to stay as well, but a dark-faced Di Tian had promptly led her away.
"...In summary, while this cultivation system I built—which is based on theory and was put into practice without full testing—allows for the rapid acquisition of power, I feel it has significant flaws."
"Specifically, after condensing the second silver-glow External Pseudo-Dantian Soul Ring and forming a second Spiritual Soul Core within it, I can clearly feel that the levels of my spirit and Soul Power far exceed my physical body."
"If the Seed of Emotion hadn't been slowly reconstructing my body with pure emotional power, I feel I would have reached my limit already."
Huo Yuhao summoned his two silver-glow Soul Rings.
According to his calculations, the current load limit of his body was four rings. However, when his cultivation reached Level 40, his body's limit would surely increase again, allowing him to bear a fifth silver-glow Soul Ring.
However, there was a scenario he had to consider.
The process of condensing a fifth Soul Ring and forming a Soul Core was a qualitative leap—a metamorphosis from "human" to "god."
His "Soul Ring Bearing Soul Core Method" currently only condensed a Spiritual Soul Core representing Soul Power and spirit. This meant that when he condensed his fifth silver-glow Soul Ring, only his Soul Power and spirit would evolve, while his body would likely collapse instantly.
This was unacceptable to Huo Yuhao. He had several plans in mind but was somewhat indecisive. Therefore, he chose to ask Elder Yi to see if he had any good solutions to offer.
"The body cannot withstand excessive spirit and Soul Power, leading to direct collapse..."
Electrolux murmured softly. After a moment of thought, he spoke:
"If you cultivated in the normal way, this problem shouldn't occur, right?"
"Mhm. If I followed standard Soul Master cultivation, my spirit, soul power, and body would grow in synchronization."
"But to gain power quickly, I chose the method of using Soul Rings as external pseudo-dantians to condense Soul Cores. This, however, has created a state of 'imbalance'..."
Huo Yuhao shook his head. When he was first reborn, he lacked any sense of security, so he naturally chose a risky, extreme path. There was no avoiding it.
Now, Huo Yuhao wanted to correct this.
Elder Yi lowered his head in thought. After a moment, he spoke softly:
"I have roughly two feasible plans."
"The first is to continue on your current path but become even more extreme—completely abandoning your own Soul Power to pursue the purest Mental Power."
"When you reach the fifth-ring metamorphosis you mentioned, take the opportunity to shed your physical body and Soul Power, then use pure Mental Power to reshape a body of flesh and blood, achieving a spiritual body."
"That way, your limit will be the memory of your spirit, no longer bound by flesh or Soul Power. You would only need to constantly evolve your spirit to advance step by step."
"I have considered that path, but I feel it is too extreme with no room for reversal. Furthermore, giving up the body creates corresponding weaknesses; it feels like the losses outweigh the gains."
Huo Yuhao voiced his thoughts.
Elder Yi nodded and continued:
"I imagine you must be hesitating about this plan as well." Elder Yi raised his hand, and several large golden characters appeared in the air: "Spirit Eye," "Ultimate Ice," and "Seed of Emotion." Then, Elder Yi began his explanation.
"Based on my research during this time, a Soul Master's growth is closely related to their Martial Soul. Different Martial Souls cause the Soul Master to have different focuses. Similarly, a condensed Soul Core will have the same effect."
"For example, your Spiritual Soul Core. After condensation, the focus of its metamorphosis is on Soul Power and spirit, neglecting the 'physical body.' This is what gives you the feeling of 'imbalance'."
Electrolux lightly tapped the words "Spirit Eye" in mid-air, and two lines branched out, pointing toward "Soul Power" and "spirit."
"So..." Electrolux pointed to the solitary word "Physical Body" in the air and continued: "To return to balance, you must let your 'physical body' grow along with them."