Under Han Li's scrutinizing gaze, not only Guang Ling and Du Gu Bo, but even Azure Luan felt a bit uneasy.
"So? Don't tell me you've only come up with a theory?"
In the end, it was Guang Ling who couldn't hold back and spoke first.
"Oh, no, that's not it. I was contemplating another issue."
Han Li was pulled out of his thoughts by Guang Ling's words and replied with a smile.
"It must be that the method to condense the soul core is dangerous, right?"
It was Du Gu Bo who chimed in, his tone very certain. Among the three, he was the only one with relevant experience, although he had been quite clueless when he condensed his poison core.
"Hmm, there are some risks, but actually, it's manageable. I was assessing your control over your soul power."
Han Li first nodded, then shook his head. He was communicating with the will of the plane, and the result was somewhat surprising to him.
"If the risk is controllable, then there's no problem. I'll go first."
Hearing his words, Du Gu Bo took a step forward. Compared to the other two, he was certainly the most experienced.
"No, you should wait. Let Martial Uncle go first. He has better control over his soul power."
To Du Gu Bo's surprise, Han Li decisively rejected him and turned to Azure Luan.
According to the will of the plane, Azure Luan had the best control over his soul power among the three. Both Guang Ling and Du Gu Bo lagged behind in this aspect.
It was best to start cautiously, which could also provide experience for the others and boost their confidence.
"Alright."
Azure Luan nodded and agreed without any change in his expression.
"There's no need to start immediately. Martial Uncle, you should prepare first. In the coming days, try to get more in touch with the power of space, but don't recklessly draw it into your body."
After Han Li finished speaking, he produced a piece of paper and handed it to Azure Luan.
"This is the route your soul power should take when condensing the soul core, along with the coordination of your mental power and physical body. Memorize it first and follow it when the time comes."
Azure Luan took the paper and glanced at it. At just one look, his pupils contracted slightly.
No wonder Han Li wanted him to go first. This method required a high level of control over one's soul power.
Seeing his reaction, Guang Ling and Du Gu Bo also leaned in to look at the content.
After a while, Guang Ling withdrew his gaze and scratched his head in frustration.
"This... this technique is kind of like, like what?"
"Soul beast sacrifice."
Han Li glanced at his master and enunciated the two words.
"Yes, sacrifice. Xiao Li, are you sure this only has a bit of risk?"
Guang Ling slapped his forehead. Even though he trusted Han Li, he still found it a bit crazy.
"So I said, this is a version suitable only for geniuses. But once successful, the benefits are immense. You don't think you can condense a soul core just by simply compressing energy, do you?"
"If it were purely soul power or solely mental power condensing, the risk wouldn't be great. But as I've mentioned, this would create a shortcoming, and later on, achieving unity or balance will be a significant hurdle."
"To enhance combat power and achieve rapid improvement, there's no way to do so without taking on some risk."
Han Li spread his hands, explaining his development philosophy.
"But with this, if it fails, it could mean death, right?"
Guang Ling hesitated for a long time, avoided Azure Luan, and lowered his voice as he spoke to Han Li.
"Once I obtain the sixth soul ring, it won't be. As long as it's not completely uncontrollable, the success rate will be 100%. Of course, this is with my assistance."
"Don't forget, I can inherently see through the operation routes of others' soul power. If I gain spatial abilities, the problem will no longer be a problem."
A slight red glint flashed in Han Li's right eye as he reminded Guang Ling.
"That Dark Devilgod Tiger deserves to die even more."
Guang Ling's expression shook, and he murmured.
After speaking, he went back to study the contents of the paper.
Seeing that his master had no objections, Han Li also briefly fell into thought.
To be honest, at first, he was only planning to develop based on the subsequent soul core. But during the process of his obedient son helping to analyze the neidan, he changed his mind.
He abandoned the gradual soul core model and chose to go all out in one step. Although this increased the risk slightly, it directly eliminated the need for the subsequent soul core resonance process.
Moreover, compared to the soul core, the form of the neidan was more suitable for cultivation.
Starting with unified energy was harder, but it wouldn't create a gap in combat power. It also avoided the future risk of being unable to construct subsequent soul cores due to the first soul core being too strong, or even losing the possibility of breakthroughs.
Additionally, Han Li always believed that unification was more advantageous than dispersion. Once his neidan version of the soul core was constructed, techniques similar to Mu En's Descension of the Sovereign would be easily within reach, saving development time. Why not do it?
Han Li took a deep breath, came out of his thoughts, and looked at Du Gu Yan. It was time to solve her problem.
"Your turn, Sister Yan. Take out the neidan."
Han Li smiled at Du Gu Yan, and his words reached the others' ears, making them pause their activities and gather around concernedly.
Among their four-person team, Du Gu Yan was actually under the most pressure and had the greatest struggle. She was the oldest, had the lowest quality martial soul, and her soul power cultivation had been caught up to.
Although Xiu'er's martial soul hadn't produced ultimate power, the mutated Purple Gold Terrorclaw Bear was in no way inferior to the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, ranking at the forefront of the continent.
After rejecting subsequent immortal herbs, Du Gu Yan, who followed Han Li earlier than Shui Bing'er, fell behind in martial soul progress.
Though she always seemed the liveliest among them, she was the one who trained the hardest, never resting until she reached her limit.
But talent and the upper limit of her martial soul were there, blocking her no matter how hard she tried. Now, she finally saw a glimmer of hope.
Shui Bing'er and Xiu'er held her hands, gave her an encouraging look, and pushed her a few steps forward.
"This is a good thing. Don't all look so serious. It's not like we're going to war. It's quite simple, no different from taking an immortal herb."
Seeing everyone's demeanor, Han Li couldn't help but chuckle, helping them to relax a bit.
"You mean I just swallow it directly?"
Du Gu Yan held the fist-sized neidan, opened her mouth to demonstrate, and felt somewhat at a loss.
"Indeed, you do swallow it. But let me help you."
As he spoke, he manipulated his soul power to transform into fire elements and mental power to wrap around the neidan, gradually converting it into a liquid state.
A fist-sized neidan—he wondered how Ma Hongjun from the original work managed to swallow it, considering he didn't have Du Gu Yan's conditions.
While controlling the process, a random thought popped into Han Li's head, which he quickly dismissed. Whatever, it didn't concern him now.
"Open your mouth."
A flash of martial soul aura appeared and disappeared from Han Li as he completely suppressed the snake aura within the neidan to make the following process smoother.
Hearing his voice, Du Gu Yan instinctively opened her mouth. The golden-red liquid neidan flowed like a thread down her throat.
"Xiao Yan'er, how does it taste?"
Guang Ling suddenly asked, leaving everyone momentarily stunned.
"Sweet, but a bit spicy."
Du Gu Yan, also taken aback, responded instinctively.
"Alright, quickly refine it. And Master, stop causing trouble. If you want something to eat, go buy it yourself."
Han Li advised Du Gu Yan and then turned helplessly to his master.
"Ah, okay."
Du Gu Yan finally realized what she had said, feeling incredibly foolish for even answering.
Her cheeks flushed red, whether from embarrassment or the energy from the neidan, and she quickly walked aside, sitting down to enter a cultivation state.
"I was just curious, not wanting to eat it."
Guang Ling awkwardly glanced at the others who were focusing on him and explained.
"Yes, we believe you. Let's have snake soup tonight; I'll go get some."
Du Gu Bo nodded, wearing a believing expression.
"Sure, how about a Bilin Snake?"
Guang Ling glared at him, pretending to be enraged.
"Alright, no problem. How about I don't remove the poison glands for you?"
"That's fine too. If you dare, I'll even eat your martial soul true form."
The two bickered as they walked outside, staying away from Du Gu Yan's cultivation spot to avoid disturbing her.
The remaining four watched their backs, chuckling, then sat down to observe Du Gu Yan.
As time passed, changes began to occur in Du Gu Yan.
Her previously stable soul power fluctuations gradually became more volatile. Han Li and Azure Luan focused on her face, seeing her expression still calm, which reassured them temporarily.
The scarlet flames on Du Gu Yan began to change, the golden-red color growing stronger until it completely replaced the previous scarlet hue. Her hair also underwent a corresponding transformation.
"Speaking of which, this is the third time Sister Yan's hair color has changed. Looks like she'll need to order a new batch of clothes again."
Han Li couldn't help but comment, seeing Du Gu Yan's hair change once more.
Perhaps because of her inherently weaker martial soul, Du Gu Yan's hair color kept changing with the evolution of her martial soul.
"Sister Yan looks even more valiant now, like a female war goddess. If her clothes were also golden-red, she'd look even more like one."
Shui Bing'er couldn't help but interject, her eyes sparkling, and Xiu'er nodded in agreement.
Han Li and Azure Luan exchanged a glance, wisely choosing not to join the conversation.
Nearly two more hours passed, and the sky had darkened. Guang Ling and Du Gu Bo had returned, having actually caught quite a few snakes, but the others firmly declined their dinner invitation.
In the courtyard, Du Gu Yan, now like a golden-red lantern, provided light for everyone.
"She's about to wake up."
Han Li turned his head, receiving a prompt from his obedient son, and focused on Du Gu Yan.
The others, hearing his words, also turned their attention to her.
Quack!
A familiar sound rang out, and those who had emerged from the Slaughter City stood up. Above Du Gu Yan's body, a new martial soul phantom appeared.