"How do you feel?"
A clear and steady voice pulled Su Yue's mind back to consciousness.
She slowly raised her head, her gaze somewhat blank. "Wha-what?"
"My power—didn't you feel it?"
Seeing her dazed expression, Su Cheng couldn't help but frown slightly.
Compared to Spirit Power, True Power is indeed different.
For ordinary Spirit Masters, it's understandable if they can't comprehend this kind of energy.
But for someone with the Silver Dragon King's knowledge, she shouldn't be completely oblivious to its uniqueness.
"Hmm, oh…"
Su Yue forcefully pulled her hand back, still feeling a slight warmth lingering on it.
After quickly dispelling the chaotic thoughts in her mind, she lowered her eyes and said calmly, "It's indeed different. From the perspective of energy alone, although it's not as strong as the Dragon God's power, it's stronger in nature than most divine powers.
"Even when compared to the formidable power of the Asura God, it's not much weaker. It doesn't have the same sharp aggression, but it's more comprehensive and inclusive.
"Also, there seems to be some hidden element in your power. Is it mental strength? Or something else entirely?
"Is this a unique ability from your world?"
"No."
Su Cheng shook his head, picked up the teacup, gently blew away the steam, and took a sip.
"This is a power I developed myself. It's called True Power."
"A self-developed... True Power?" Su Yue repeated the term softly, lost in thought.
"Yes, True Power." He put down the teacup, clasped his hands in front of him, and looked at her with a calm and serious gaze.
"I have explored and studied various forces, including energy, the body, and the soul. It took me over a hundred years to reach this point step by step. In the future, as long as I continue down this path, the body and soul will merge perfectly, the will will become unified, and the spirit and instinct will be indistinguishable. This is the path of cultivating the True Self, so I named it 'True Power.'"
"Cultivating the True Self, unifying the will…"
Su Yue looked at Su Cheng, and countless images seemed to flash before her eyes.
Images of training, of battles, of growth...
"Do you want to learn? I can teach you, if you can learn it."
"Teach me?"
For a brief moment just now, she indeed had such a thought.
But she immediately dismissed it.
Who would easily impart such a powerful, transcendental force to others?
What he possesses is not something as common as Spirit Power or techniques for absorbing spirit rings. It obviously harbors enormous secrets.
They were indeed partners, but that was the extent of their relationship.
They were neither relatives nor friends—merely using each other for mutual benefit. Each would naturally keep some cards up their sleeve.
Just like when she had once deliberately concealed the existence of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion and never mentioned the specifics of the Golden Dragon King.
She thought this was an unspoken understanding between them.
After all, Su Cheng had never inquired in detail about the other half of the Dragon God's split, what it was, or what kind of abilities it had.
But Su Yue had never expected him to say something like teaching her…
Does he not have the slightest guard against her?
He should know that no matter how powerful the force, there are always ways to counter it.
Even the Dragon God back then had fatal flaws.
Even if he truly didn't care about others mastering this so-called "True Power," isn't he worried about its weaknesses being discovered and exploited?
Su Cheng looked at her, his voice calm, "I've said before, power is just a byproduct to me. It's irrelevant. Because I have enough knowledge to continue improving. Any difficulty or failure is only temporary. If I don't even have the confidence to progress further, how can I talk about seeking the truth?"
As he spoke, his eyes shone brightly, his face exuding unprecedented confidence, leaving Su Yue momentarily dazed.
Compared to before, the impact he had on her at this moment was much stronger.
The tone of his voice, his expression… That kind of confidence was not a façade.
It was the kind of belief she had always lacked and yearned for.
Su Yue lowered her head silently, the thin mist above the teacup obscuring her expression.
So, not only was her bloodline incomplete, her abilities incomplete, but perhaps her very life was also incomplete?
She was a split from the Dragon God.
From the moment she was born, she was the co-ruler of soul beasts, the king of the dragon clan, never experiencing a process of "growth," so her spiritual world was barren and dull…
Was this also within his expectations?
To start over, to make up for past shortcomings, to experience all that she had never experienced?
How should she face this new "life"?
"...How do you plan to teach me?" Su Yue's emotions were turbulent, but her tone remained calm and indifferent. "Since leaving the Star Dou Forest, you've shown me many different people and many things, but you haven't told me much. What exactly do you want me to understand?"
At this moment, she finally let go of all her defenses and sincerely asked the question in her heart.
Hearing her words, Su Cheng was a little surprised. "It's not about what I want you to understand, but what you want to understand."
He carefully observed the expression on the girl's face opposite him, choosing his words carefully as he continued, "Su Yue, I thought you had already realized. I only let you see, observe, and understand. Every extraordinary being in this world has a unique core character. Without it, they are destined not to go far. Character determines fate, that's the principle.
"If you want to better control your power, I can teach you some techniques. I have some experience in this regard. But that's all I can do.
"As for everything else, you have to see it for yourself. At most, I can share my personal thoughts. I will never interfere more than that, because this is your life."
"My life?" Su Yue's eyes shone faintly.
For some reason, she suddenly felt a strange and unfamiliar emotion. Perhaps it was joy, perhaps excitement.
"Yes, this is your life. I have no right to dictate it, nor do I deserve to." Su Cheng leaned back against the chair, a lazy smile on his face. "Don't forget, you're the Silver Dragon King. For countless years, you've upheld distant hopes, protecting the survival of your clan. How could someone like you be swayed by the mere thoughts of a human?"
"…"
Su Yue's eyes rippled with subtle emotions, her fingers tightening slightly around the teacup.
"If you're happy with what you hear, smile. There's no need to be so serious."
Crack!
The teacup shattered.
The tea inside spilled over the edge of the table.
"Ahem, speaking of which, back in the Star Dou Forest, I chatted a bit with Di Tian and learned about how soul beasts cultivate after taking human form. They said that after transforming, the more they interact with talented humans, the easier it is to grow and advance?" Su Cheng cleared his throat, changing the subject casually.
"The little girl named Xiao Wu we met before, she's a hundred-thousand-year-old soul beast, right? I noticed she's quite close to Tang San and seems to have lost her own will.
"Although I'm not a transformed soul beast, based on my perception, excessive dependence on humans to the point of losing oneself isn't a good thing. Those experiences are just what past soul beasts in human form have summarized. They may not be entirely correct. You still need to walk your own path."
His voice echoed in Su Yue's ears, "Understand humans, learn from humans, but remember, you are yourself. Don't lose your sense of self."
"…"
After a moment of silent contemplation, Su Yue suddenly looked up at him, revealing a bright smile he had never seen before.
There seemed to be some hidden meaning in that smile, making Su Cheng feel a bit bewildered.
"Why are you smiling?" he couldn't help but ask.
"I think you're right." Su Yue responded casually, her voice carrying a hint of joy and ease, as if she had just let go of a heavy burden.
She then turned her gaze towards the table, looking at the shattered pieces of the teacup and the spilled tea. She softly exclaimed, "Ah, I accidentally spilled it. Could you get me another cup?"
"You said you weren't interested in such indulgences, didn't you?"
"Are you going to get it or not?"
"...Fine, I'll get you another one."
With that, he was about to call the restaurant's waiter to get some more tea.
"No, you go get it for me."
"Are you crazy?" Su Cheng raised his eyebrows in displeasure. "I'm not your servant. Why should I fetch tea for you?"
Su Yue didn't mind his dissatisfaction. She simply looked at him quietly, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Does it really need to be a servant to do such a thing? Can't friends help each other out?"
Su Cheng was taken aback by her words and found himself at a loss for a reply. He could only shake his head helplessly and turn to leave the quiet room.
Watching his retreating figure, Su Yue's eyes gradually grew calm, her gaze drifting as she fell into deep thought.
In fact, Su Cheng had overlooked something.
The first human the Silver Dragon King had truly come into contact with, the one she had observed most closely, was neither the Shrek Seven Devils nor the conflict with Blue Sunshine Academy, but Su Cheng himself.
Many of her views and actions were subconsciously based on comparing and observing Su Cheng. From the moment she took on human form to rebuild her cultivation, her heart had already been deeply imprinted with his influence.
However, at the same time, there had always been a subtle sense of resistance deep within her.
This resistance did not stem from any dissatisfaction or dislike towards Su Cheng, but rather from her own pride and principles.
It wasn't until today, when Su Cheng's words enlightened her, that she fully relaxed, letting go of the past resistance, and was ready to let everything happen naturally.
If even Su Cheng didn't care about those things, what was there for her to fear?
Since she had already decided to rebuild her cultivation, she might as well fully experience what it was like to be "human."
---
A few days later, in the bustling commercial district at the heart of the Heaven Dou Empire, in front of a four-story building with a sign that read "Moon Pavilion," the crowd was bustling and carriages were coming and going.
A boy and a girl stood quietly by the side of the street, their eyes fixed on the young man who slowly stepped down from a luxurious royal carriage.
Their stakeout position was not randomly chosen but carefully selected.
As a social hub frequently visited by the Empire's nobility, Xue Qinghe, the Crown Prince who was vying for the throne, was naturally a regular here, often coming to maintain relations with various factions.
Whether it took a few days or half a month, a little patience would definitely yield a sighting.
Of course, Su Cheng would never tell the whole truth, admitting that his real purpose was to catch a glimpse of Qian Renxue and see if there had been any changes in her.
The reason he gave was impeccable: being in the capital of the Empire, where the best and brightest from across the nation gathered, one naturally had to meet a few of them.
Although Su Yue was somewhat puzzled, she didn't ask further.
Their gazes pierced through the crowd and locked onto the young man stepping down from the carriage.
"This person is quite extraordinary," Su Yue suddenly said softly.
"What do you mean?" Su Cheng responded casually, his eyes not leaving Qian Renxue.
He hadn't noticed anything unusual about Qian Renxue, unlike the case with Zhu Zhuqing.
Her Spirit was still the Six-Winged Angel, her cultivation level was average, and her behavior didn't differ much from that of the "Xiao Xue" he knew.
But it shouldn't be this way…
"I sense a familiar aura from him."
"What?" Su Cheng looked at Su Yue in surprise, then laughed and said, "You're not suggesting he's a Spirit Beast in human form, are you?"
Su Yue frowned, seemingly feeling a bit offended by his impolite tone and words, and said coldly, "I mean his Spirit has the potential to become a god."
"Oh? Now that you mention it, I do think there's something different about him," Su Cheng replied absent-mindedly, not taking her words to heart.
After all, with Qian Renxue's innate Spirit Power reaching an absurd level of twenty, it wasn't exaggerated to say she had the potential to become a god, unlike the Silver Dragon King who had a vast accumulation of power from her past life.
He was still pondering the earlier issue.
Why did Zhu Zhuqing awaken the Hell White Tiger Spirit, while the seemingly more unique Qian Renxue showed no signs of any change?
At this moment, as if noticing his distraction, Su Yue glanced sideways at him.
Her clear eyes narrowed slightly before she said in a calm tone, "That person is a woman in disguise, isn't she?"
"Really? Is that true?" Su Cheng's heart skipped a beat, but he feigned surprise and turned to look Su Yue in the eye.
Though he was putting on an act, he truly couldn't discern Qian Renxue's disguise.
To be precise, he couldn't see through the disguise in terms of gender and appearance.
The soul bone he used wasn't of high enough age, and the disguise ability had its flaws. The fake Swan Spirit couldn't deceive him.
But combined with a human skin mask and physical chest bindings, it really did hide her appearance and gender well enough to escape his detection.
Seeing his seemingly genuine confusion, Su Yue tilted her head slightly, momentarily unsure herself.
If even Su Cheng couldn't see through it, she certainly couldn't. But she felt that the person's aura was concealed, and the outer appearance of the Spirit didn't match its essence at all, clearly indicating it was someone in disguise.
Based on this and some subtle incongruities in the person's movements, she had formed this suspicion.
Su Cheng looked back at Qian Renxue, who was about to enter the Moon Pavilion.
After a brief hesitation, he lowered his head and told Su Yue, "Wait here for me," and then walked directly towards Xue Qinghe's direction.