Thank you to our new Patrons: RrJ, Emil Pedersen, Zhandos Kauzhanov, J L, Caio Cainel Buchalla, reece campbell, SilverWolf and Melon! You are what makes all this possible! We are up to Chapter 140: The Feeling of Controlling the Entire Battlefield on Patreon!
There's something for free patrons too! Free Patrons receive 1 chapter in advance :)
I've also recently started a new translation, please check it out and show your support! It's called Douluo: Martial Soul Seven Kill Sword, The Sword Opens Heaven's Gates. As always, Patrons will have unrestricted access to all of my stories including futures ones!
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"How could there be a Phantom Beast?"
Yun Ming was taken aback, turning to look at Xu Yuan with confusion.
Xu Yuan also wore a look of bewilderment.
He didn't understand why fusing with the Phantom Beast would surprise Yun Ming.
"Na'er and I reached the twenty-first floor during our trial. The soul spirit there was the Phantom Beast." Xu Yuan recounted his experience in the Spirit Pagoda honestly.
Yun Ming frowned.
"What's wrong, Teacher? Is there something special about the Phantom Beast's soul spirit?" Xu Yuan asked curiously.
He truly hadn't expected there to be anything unusual about the Phantom Beast.
With his brain-type martial soul, Xu Yuan had studied extensively, including research on comprehensive catalogs of soul beasts. This was foundational knowledge for soul spirit technology, akin to studying various species in biology.
The soul beast data Xu Yuan had researched included collections from both the Spirit Pagoda and Shrek Academy, yet he still wasn't aware of any unique traits the Phantom Beast possessed.
"The Phantom Beast is considered an extinct soul beast, one of the few whose genetic makeup has hardly been analyzed. Do you think the Spirit Pagoda would casually place such a soul spirit in the Spirit Pagoda? And as early as the twenty-first floor, no less." Yun Ming glanced at his student.
Extinct?
Xu Yuan nodded. Indeed, the Phantom Beast was extinct.
He knew this fact.
But he had never thought of it from this perspective before.
Of course, his lack of awareness stemmed from his incomplete understanding of the Spirit Pagoda's genetic database of soul beasts.
Their research in this area was insufficient.
He hadn't expected Yun Ming to have such profound knowledge.
"Many soul masters are interested in the Phantom Beast, so there's significant attention on analyzing its genetic code," Yun Ming explained.
"Why?"
This was truly outside Xu Yuan's realm of knowledge.
Though he had some theories, he didn't dare jump to conclusions.
"What do you think is the greatest benefit of the Phantom Beast to you?" Yun Ming countered.
"It's highly compatible with my brain-type martial soul. Just after fusing with this soul spirit, I already feel my brain developing further, even showing signs of splitting. It feels like I can think with multiple brains simultaneously."
Xu Yuan patted his head with his right hand.
Yun Ming lightly tapped Xu Yuan's head in response.
"Of course not that. If it weren't compatible with your brain-type martial soul, would someone like you choose this soul spirit just because of its spiritual attribute?" Yun Ming organized his thoughts and continued enlightening Xu Yuan.
"The greatest benefit of this soul spirit is that it has granted you a stellar attribute mutation."
Stellar attribute?
Xu Yuan's eyes widened as he looked at Yun Ming, eager for knowledge.
Knowledge.
He could sense the rich aroma of hidden secrets.
This was undoubtedly some of the most concealed information on the continent.
Seeing Xu Yuan's curiosity, Yun Ming hesitated for a moment but ultimately decided to explain.
"You must take the stellar attribute seriously. Ideally, focus your brain-type martial soul's development in this direction and cultivate the power of the stars well. It may benefit your future cultivation."
He emphasized the importance of developing the stellar attribute and then elaborated on the reasoning.
"With the advancement of soul-guided technology, the Federation has realized that the Douluo plane is a planet, and beyond this planet lies the vast universe, filled with countless stars. It's possible that other life-bearing planets exist."
"This much you know. But the truth is, it's not just a possibility—it's certain that other life-bearing planets exist, and there are many of them. However, compared to the vastness of the universe, their distribution appears sparse."
The true upper echelons were aware of the existence of beings from other planes, so they knew that Douluo Star wasn't the only life-bearing planet in the universe.
Based on this, one could boldly speculate that the number of life-bearing planets in the universe far exceeded a mere handful.
The birth of life, the development of life, the emergence of civilizations, the evolution of civilizations, and the creation and development of cultivation systems—all these processes, over the long history of the universe, were more than sufficient to give rise to countless intelligent races and innumerable cultivation systems.
"Of course, these matters don't concern you directly."
"Beyond Douluo Star lies an even vaster universe. However, the soul masters of Douluo Star haven't even broken through to the godly realm. According to speculation, achieving godhood means being able to leave the planet and survive in the universe. Restricted by the rules of Douluo Star, even Limit Douluo-level experts cannot advance further. Only by relying on divine positions can one reach the elusive godly realm. However, with the divine realm now untraceable—and some suspecting it has vanished—the path to breaking through to godhood on Douluo Star has been severed."
"Now, if one wishes to break through to godhood, aside from deeply exploring one's own abilities and striving for perfection in their chosen path to transcend the plane's limitations, there is another theoretically viable route: absorbing purer and more primal stellar energy from the universe. This might reduce the constraints imposed by the plane."
At this point, Yun Ming gazed deeply at Xu Yuan.
Now do you understand the value of the Phantom Beast?
Possessing a stellar attribute allows one to begin interacting with stellar energy from a young age. If one intentionally absorbs more stellar energy during soul power cultivation, it might make the eventual breakthrough beyond the Limit Douluo level easier.
Of course, this is speculative. Harnessing stellar energy is already extremely difficult, imbuing soul power with stellar attributes is even harder, and refining it is harder still.
Moreover, the stellar energy accessible on Douluo Star is already filtered through the plane's rules. If one were to encounter the raw, primordial stellar energy of the universe, refining it would be even more challenging.
Relying solely on stellar energy for cultivation would actually hinder soul power progress, delaying the possibility of reaching the Limit Douluo level.
Thus, many soul masters use heavenly materials and treasures imbued with stellar attributes to purify their soul power.
Additionally, some seek out soul spirits with a secondary stellar attribute to constantly nurture their soul power.
The best option, naturally, is to possess a stellar-attribute martial soul. However, such martial souls are exceedingly rare.
Therefore, acquiring a stellar attribute through mutation is a feasible alternative, especially for talented soul masters.
But there are only four types of soul beasts known to reliably grant soul masters a stellar attribute mutation—and the Phantom Beast is one of them.
"This…" Xu Yuan now understood the true value of the Phantom Beast.
It wasn't just an extinct soul beast with an entirely unanalyzed genome—it was also tied to surpassing the Limit Douluo level.
He couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.
Why did he encounter the Phantom Beast as early as the twenty-first floor?
Xu Yuan's mind worked quickly. He already had an answer forming in his head.
Proof!
There was something off about the proof required for him to enter the Spirit Pagoda.
Random matching?
Never trust claims of fair randomness.
So-called randomness, when supported by algorithms, can always be manipulated.
And, of course, it's subject to human oversight—rules that can be broken!
------------------------------------------------------
Support my writing journey: patreon.com/EphemeralShadow
40+ Chapters Ahead Guaranteed.