"No need to thank me. This can be considered my legacy. Though it's difficult to master, someone will likely succeed after many years. As for Bei Ming Shen Gong, forget about it.
It's even harder than Ling Bo Wei Bu. Without me around to guide you during the initial stages, you might spend decades and still fail to use it." said Xiao Yao Zi.
He was a peerless genius, exceeding the limits of what could be called human.
Yet even he took decades to perfect and apply Bei Ming Shen Gong effectively.
For others, learning it would consume a vast amount of time. According to Shi Hao's reasoning, the younger one begins cultivating soul power, the faster the progress.
Focusing on soul power cultivation was far more practical than pursuing Bei Ming Shen Gong.
After all, the requirements of the latter were extraordinarily strict. Only prodigies could master it within decades.
For ordinary people, it wasn't even worth considering—they might die before finishing their cultivate.
Of course, there was always a chance for success, but who would willingly take such a risk?
Living a normal life was far more comfortable. Moreover, even a minor mistake during training could leave one crippled.
The only reason Xiao Yao Zi could master Bei Ming Shen Gong within a month was because he had spent his entire life researching and refining it.
"As for Truth, I won't pass that on either. It's even more dangerous than Bei Ming Shen Gong. A single misstep, and you'll die." added Meng Cheng Xian.
The paths taken by the two of them were nearly exclusive to themselves.
By common reasoning, anyone capable of learning their cultivation methods would also possess the ability to create something similar on their own.
"Do you want to go hunting for a soul ring?" Shi Hao asked.
"No need. Isn't there one right here? That little wolf dropped a soul ring."
Meng Cheng Xian pointed to the white soul ring floating above the wolf's corpse as she spoke.
Shi Hao froze upon hearing that. He said:
"Are you mistaken? According to conventional wisdom, the first soul ring should have an age limit of 300 to 400 years. For a strong martial soul, 450 years isn't an issue. The physical resilience of soul masters of the same level is generally similar, but you're an exception. Logically speaking, you should be able to absorb a thousand-year soul ring."
Meng Cheng Xian nodded but said:
"Since the soul ring isn't blue, I can't alternate it with red. So, I just chose white because I like it."
Shi Hao's mind momentarily froze, and then he cursed:
"Are you kidding me? Big bro, people aim to absorb the strongest soul rings they can. But you? Impressive, you deliberately chose a low-tier one that's just a few decades old."
"Kekeke, too much praise, too much praise." Meng Cheng Xian chuckled in response.
Then, without hesitation, he began absorbing the soul ring.
Due to the massive disparity in power, it only took him a few seconds to complete the absorption.
A white soul ring hovered around him, radiating faint energy. Meng Cheng Xian declared:
"I'm going to collect nine white soul rings."
Shi Hao could already envision the absurd scene in the future: a demigod with nine white soul rings—the weakest possible combination—fighting top-tier experts from the Sun and Moon Divine Hall with punches and kicks.
"Fine, do whatever you want. Anyway, you two can upgrade your soul rings whenever you like. Energy is not a problem with you." Shi Hao said.
He hadn't forgotten this peculiar ability of the two ancient monsters. They defied all conventional logic.
"By the way, have you fixed that laugh of yours yet? Every time you laugh, it gives me chills. You sound like someone from the demonic path."
To be honest, Meng Cheng Xian's laughter after mastering Truth sounded nothing like that of a righteous man.
"Kekeke, I think it's great as it is." Meng Cheng Xian replied, chuckling again.
Looking at the soul beast's corpse, his left arm, now a dark gray-black, began to morph into a monstrous form.
It transformed into a grotesque creature with only one large mouth, lined with razor-sharp teeth designed to shred its prey. Inside, nothing could be seen but darkness.
Externally, it resembled a massive, rough, black tube capped with a gaping maw.
The entire body of the wolf was swallowed whole by the "monster".
A moment later, the grotesque entity shrank back into Meng Cheng Xian's arm.
This was the pinnacle of the Truth technique. Thanks to it, Meng Cheng Xian's consumption speed had increased dramatically.
It wasn't a living creature—just Meng Cheng Xian's arm transforming into a bizarre shape.
Naturally, its bite strength couldn't compare to the force of Meng Cheng Xian's punches.
Therefore, it was never used for direct combat but instead for energy collection.
The collected energy couldn't be used immediately.
It was stored in the left half of his body and required complete integration with the right half before becoming usable.
.....
Time passed, and Meng Cheng Xian was now six years old.
He spent his days lying flat on his back, occasionally hunting soul beasts to cultivate.
Despite his lackadaisical approach to cultivation, he had already reached level 33, a third-degree soul master with all-white soul rings.
When Xiao Yao Zi could finally summon his martial soul, he left for the Ancient Forest to train.
Meng Cheng Xian had initially planned to stir up chaos in the Primal Forest but was stopped by Shi Hao.
Shi Hao worried that excessive slaughter of soul beasts might draw the attention of their emperors—soul beasts that had lived for tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years.
At Meng Cheng Xian's current age, he stood no chance against such ancient and powerful rulers.
After Xiao Yao Zi left, Shi Hao also departed to find a suitable place to cultivate his soul power.
That left Meng Cheng Xian alone in the shabby little wooden house, lying idly day after day.
His martial skills had long become second nature to him, so further practice wasn't going to improve anything.
Knock, knock!
The sound of knocking broke the silence. Meng Cheng Xian didn't get up, still lying flat on the floor, and lazily said:
"The door's not locked. Come in."
Creak!
An old man with a cane pushed the door open. It was the village chief—Oggy.
Over the years, Old Oggy had helped Meng Cheng Xian with many things, though Meng Cheng Xian didn't really need much assistance.
As a xian who was kind, approachable, and filled with boundless goodwill for the elderly and children alike, Meng Cheng Xian graciously accepted the old man's good intentions.
In fact, Meng Cheng Xian's age likely exceeded Oggy's several times over, so calling the latter a "little old child" wasn't entirely out of place.
"Is something the matter?" Meng Cheng Xian asked, still lying on the floor.