Chen Ming thought for a moment, brought his mouth close to the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, and took a deep sip, drinking two drops of dew.
The poor Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, having just enjoyed a good meal, was promptly consumed by Chen Ming a hundredfold in return. Its once upright flower drooped, and its tightly closed bud protected the little remaining essence it had.
Chen Ming chuckled mischievously. "This is just the beginning. If my idea works, I'll be able to drink a bit of this dew every now and then."
He sat cross-legged, digesting the medicinal effects within his body. The Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew was truly miraculous. The dew felt almost immaterial, and the moment it entered Chen Ming's body, it seamlessly integrated into him, transforming into the purest form of spiritual power.
The dew contained no soul power or life force, only the purest and most easily absorbed spiritual energy. Chen Ming channeled his spiritual essence, guiding this energy to nourish his spirit.
Although Chen Ming, having lived two lives, already had spiritual power that far exceeded that of ordinary people, he had never experienced such a noticeable increase. This sensation was unlike the subtle mysteries of spirituality; it was straightforward and distinct.
Problems that had previously baffled him became easy to solve. Fragmented memories and forgotten details began to resurface with clarity. Even his ability to utilize the soul power within his body became noticeably smoother than on ordinary days.
Chen Ming opened his eyes, and a faint golden light flickered within them. His originally black pupils now contained a trace of pale gold.
This golden hue was extremely faint, imperceptible unless closely examined. However, upon closer inspection, one might feel as if their very spirit was being gradually drawn out of their body.
The Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew was known to grant one a pair of eyes capable of seeing through illusions. Though Chen Ming had consumed only a small amount of the dew and had not yet fully maximized its spiritual enhancement, these eyes had indeed manifested within him. Moreover, due to his unique constitution, they had undergone some variation.
When Chen Ming opened his eyes to look at the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, his perspective had completely transformed.
Not only could he observe the surface details of the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, but he could also see through its internal structure—the intricate, vein-like threads that transported soul power and life force.
Fixating on the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew'x soul power, Chen Ming gently activated his spiritual essence. A faint trace of his mark was imprinted on the soul power that originally belonged to the dew.
However, this was no ordinary plant. Despite having had a significant portion of its essence consumed by Chen Ming, its noble quality as an immortal herb remained unchanged. Merely imprinting a faint trace of his mark on the plant's soul power caused a noticeable drop in Chen Ming's spiritual energy and a significant depletion of his spiritual essence.
Sensing that its soul power had been marked by another, the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, though devoid of intelligence, reacted as if it were a victim of betrayal, struggling madly.
With its soul power rapidly circulating, the mark Chen Ming had left was gradually being washed away. Yet, even with its high-quality essence and noble nature, the process was slow.
If Chen Ming were willing to endure the cost and continue maintaining the mark, it could result in a prolonged tug-of-war, forcing the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew to pay a great price and spend significant time reclaiming its soul power.
"What an incredible ability. I seem to have the power to mark external soul power—or even the soul power within others—and manipulate it?"
Chen Ming covered his eyes, enduring a sharp, needle-like pain in his brain as he quickly contemplated how to develop this newfound ability.
"If I mark someone else's soul power and then find a way to turn that soul power into poison, couldn't I remotely detonate it? And if I delve deeper, marking their life force as well, could I fundamentally alter their existence?"
"If I completely imprint my mark on someone's soul power and life force, could I use this mark to control them?"
"Could marking external soul power allow me to refine and absorb it more quickly, thereby replenishing or even enhancing my soul power? And if I mark someone else's soul power…"
As a transmigrator, Chen Ming's mind immediately raced with countless possibilities for developing this ability. Many of his ideas and potential applications would fall under the category of forbidden techniques in the world of Douluo Dalu.
However, Chen Ming remained calm and refrained from recklessly using this power. After contemplating for a while, he recalled the thoughts he had before absorbing the essence of the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew.
"With this ability, I can mark medicinal herbs with my imprint and connect their veins to the roots of the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, essentially adding more batteries to it."
"With this ability, I'll be able to monitor the grafting process more effectively without worrying about rejection."
"I'll start with some lower-quality herbs that are abundant in number. I'll experiment with fusing herbs of similar quality and age, merging their energy into one plant. Then, I'll move on to experimenting with modifying trees..."
Chen Ming rubbed his hands together, the stabbing pain in his brain now negligible. He resembled a mad scientist, consumed by thoughts of life modification and experimentation.
If Dugu Bo were here, he would likely feel his hair standing on end and would undoubtedly see Chen Ming in a new light. Unfortunately, Dugu Bo had yet to return.
It wasn't until half a day later that Chen Ming realized Dugu Bo had left him in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well for quite some time without returning, leaving him perplexed.
With Dugu Bo's strength, capturing a ten-thousand-year soul beast should be a simple task. Even if he couldn't use poison to preserve the meat's quality, a Title Douluo's soul power should make quick work of a ten-thousand-year soul beast, right?
Could it be that Dugu Bo had encountered someone—or something—that delayed him?
Chen Ming didn't even consider the possibility of Dugu Bo being defeated. After all, while Dugu Bo might prioritize preserving the meat's quality, he would undoubtedly resort to poison if he encountered a real problem. With his rank-92 strength, even a typical hundred-thousand-year soul beast wouldn't pose much of a threat.
The Sunset Forest was large, and while it likely housed some hundred-thousand-year soul beasts, it wasn't as densely populated with them as the Star Dou Forest.
Chen Ming approached the poison array and activated his eyes, gazing into the distance. After about three to five minutes, he finally detected the soul power fluctuations belonging to Dugu Bo.
Even from afar, Chen Ming could perceive the intensity of Dugu Bo's soul power. It was clear that Dugu Bo was in an excellent mood, even better than when he had left earlier.
PS: Chen Ming is cooking. Let him cook bruh.