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After its final burst of power, the Swordgrass had reached its limit.
True One-Second Swordgrass.
The sword aura surrounding it had thinned considerably, and even the sword patterns on its leaves had dimmed.
Jing Hongchen's launchers fired again.
This time, the Swordgrass, weakened by its earlier outburst, couldn't break through the suppression.
A fierce force of suppression erupted from the sixteen suppressive cannon shots.
The sixteen blasts didn't merely combine their power but produced a synergistic effect.
"Xiao Yu!"
Su Yu immediately unleashed his soul skill.
"Bluesilver Strike Spear!"
The Bluesilver Grass formed into a long spear, charging fiercely and piercing the root of the Swordgrass.
Although much of the sword aura surrounding the plant had dissipated, it still managed to block Su Yu's first attack.
With another strike, Su Yu finally subdued the Swordgrass completely.
A pitch-black soul ring slowly rose from the Swordgrass's corpse, darker and more profound than the one Xiao Hongchen had absorbed earlier. The soul power within it was even more intense.
Even though he hadn't begun the absorption yet, sharp energy emanated from the ring.
Su Yu used his first soul skill to fully restore himself to peak condition.
Sitting cross-legged beside the Swordgrass's corpse, he guided the black soul ring over his body.
The power of the stars entered his body, working alongside his soul power to endure the soul ring's energy surge.
Hiss~
Su Yu felt a sharp tearing sensation, as if countless tiny swords were cutting through his meridians.
It was as if thousands of miniature swords were wreaking havoc inside him.
Fortunately, Su Yu's vitality was strong. The life force of the Bluesilver Grass surged into his body, rapidly healing the damaged meridians.
Meanwhile, the power of the stars was also fully integrating into his body, taking advantage of the soul power infused with sword energy to further enhance his strength, reaching its peak effect.
As for the soul shock…
The moment the soul ring enveloped him, Su Yu immediately triggered the first activation of Hongchen's Protection.
He didn't try to endure the Swordgrass's soul shock head-on.
*Outside...*
Su Yu had barely begun absorbing the soul ring when Hongchen's Protection triggered its first layer, causing both Jing Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen to frown.
"He's only just started the absorption, and Hongchen's Protection has already activated?"
Xiao Hongchen turned to his grandfather, asking, "Grandfather, should we interrupt Su Yu's absorption?"
The absorption of a soul ring is a highly complex process, and interrupting it midway can severely harm the absorber.
If the soul ring absorption fails…
If handled poorly, the soul power of the ring could explode inside the soul master, often resulting in instant death.
More importantly, the soul master isn't just physically connected to the soul ring during the process.
Even with soul rings as weak as ten or a hundred years old, the soul master's spiritual power is linked to the ring. This is an involuntary effect triggered by their martial soul during absorption, not something the soul master actively controls.
It's precisely because of the involvement of spiritual power that any disruption could cause unprecedented mental damage.
However, Xiao Hongchen's question wasn't unreasonable.
The true value of Hongchen's Protection isn't just its added protection when absorbing ten-thousand-year soul rings.
Beyond shielding against the soul ring's soul shock, Hongchen's Protection could theoretically protect the soul master's spiritual power in the event of an interrupted absorption.
But this use was only theoretical—an untested hypothesis. No one had verified it yet, as the risk was too great.
Jing Hongchen shook his head.
"No rush, let's wait and see. After all, there are still two more chances."
He observed Su Yu's expression, which didn't reflect someone struggling to endure the soul shock.
If Su Yu had triggered Hongchen's Protection out of desperation, even with its protection, his spiritual power would have suffered from the initial shock, and the fluctuations would have been intense.
But in reality, Su Yu's spiritual power remained incredibly stable.
"Xiao has already explained the effects of Hongchen's Protection very clearly. So why did Xiao Yu still choose to activate it on his own? What is he thinking?"
Could it be to guard against the initial burst of the Swordgrass?
But the soul shock that comes during the absorption of a ten-thousand-year soul ring comes from the remnant spirit of the soul beast—it's not just an instinctual reaction but retains traces of rationality.
In the sea of consciousness...
Even though the Swordgrass's remnant spirit had some awareness, it didn't erupt immediately when Su Yu started the absorption. But the soul shock was inevitable.
Above the sea of consciousness, a pale white shield enveloped Su Yu's mental space.
Waves of spiritual force collided against the shield, causing ripples.
Su Yu's consciousness appeared in his sea of consciousness.
The two runes, Condense and Gather, were radiating a rich purple aura.
After nearly a year of cultivation, the purple energy within the two runes had grown incredibly dense. Su Yu's rapid spiritual growth was largely thanks to these two runes.
In addition to nourishing his spiritual power, the purple energy also helped stabilize his sea of consciousness, providing an extra layer of protection.
Beside the two runes hovered a small gray bead.
"Has Yi Lao not awakened yet? Or is it because my spiritual power is too stable?"
Su Yu glanced outside the shield, and his spiritual energy extended outward.
The gray bead above his sea of consciousness trembled slightly, and Su Yu, noticing this, relaxed.
Only three seconds passed, fleeting as they were.
The shield dissipated.
It seemed that the Swordgrass's remnant spirit had finally sensed an opportunity.
In an instant, the spirit, carrying a sharp sword aura, surged in. To achieve the maximum burst of power, the Swordgrass's remnant spirit merged fully with this energy, aiming to annihilate Su Yu completely.
But Su Yu remained calm, not activating the second layer of Hongchen's Protection.
"I was waiting for you."
"Senior, I leave this remnant spirit to you."
"Child, you've thought it through!" Yi Lao's voice echoed in the sea of consciousness.
From the once-unremarkable gray bead floating above Su Yu's mental space, wisps of gray energy streamed out.
The Swordgrass's attack didn't harm Su Yu in the slightest.
As soon as it encountered Yi Lao's consciousness, the Swordgrass's remnant spirit, along with the power it commanded, melted away like snow in the sun.
The difference in their strength was simply worlds apart.
"Thank you, Senior."
"No need for thanks. Since I'm residing here, it's only right I do something in return." Electrolux replied warmly. "From now on, just call me Yi Lao."
"Yi Lao, when you absorb the remnant spirit's energy, could you leave some for me to refine my spiritual power?"
Yi Lao agreed to Su Yu's request.
"Not a problem."
Outside, Jing Hongchen, seeing that Su Yu was still stable, breathed a sigh of relief.
Hongchen's Sanctuary hadn't triggered again.
Su Yu's spiritual fluctuations were growing more intense but still within a safe range.
Although the Swordgrass's remnant spirit wasn't large, it was highly concentrated, and after absorbing it, Yi Lao's condition improved considerably.
Having absorbed the Swordgrass's spirit, Yi Lao began to take notice of the outside world.
"What a fascinating cultivation system."
Su Yu was currently undergoing the soul ring absorption phase, a key transformation in martial soul cultivation.
Yi Lao felt the uniqueness of the martial soul system very clearly.
"Soul beasts, martial souls, soul rings..."
Suddenly, his consciousness picked up something on the Swordgrass's corpse.
"Huh?"
(End of Chapter)