"It's alright. You have us now," Jiang Shengyu said warmly, leaning forward and patting Huo Yuhao on the shoulder. "You've already met Qingtong, right?"
Huo Yuhao nodded.
"Yes, she's already gone to Shrek Academy."
After a brief pause, he added,
"She also imprinted my martial soul."
"She imprinted your martial soul?" Jiang Shengyu raised his eyebrows in apparent surprise and murmured,
"My teacher and I both told her not to imprint souls lightly… Why would she imprint yours? Yuhao, can I take a look at your martial soul and soul skill?"
Huo Yuhao didn't hesitate. He activated his Spirit Eyes and demonstrated his Spiritual Detection Sharing skill.
Jiang Shengyu feigned astonishment at the soul skill, then turned his gaze to the gentle white soul ring hovering at Huo Yuhao's feet.
"Don't get discouraged, Yuhao. Even if your first ring is a weak ten-year one, your cousin will help you!"
In Yuhao's spiritual sea, the Skydream Iceworm shrieked:
"Weak? Who's weak? He's weak! This brat's got some nerve—unbelievable!!"
"Easy, Brother Skydream," Yuhao quickly comforted the Iceworm in his mind. "He doesn't know you're here…"
"Hmph! I want to see how he thinks he's going to help you," the Iceworm muttered angrily, waiting to hear more.
Jiang Shengyu, noticing Yuhao's brief mental distraction, smiled and continued,
"I can help you increase your soul ring's age. Not right away, of course—the method is still under research."
"What?!"
Huo Yuhao and the Skydream Iceworm shouted in unison.
"You can increase a soul ring's age?" Huo Yuhao asked in disbelief.
Soul rings came from soul beasts, and their age was set upon formation—this was basic knowledge! How could someone possibly increase a soul ring's age after acquiring it?
Jiang Shengyu smiled again and summoned his own martial soul.
A shimmering crescent moon rippled behind him like a water wave. Two soul rings circled him in rhythm—one purple, one black. The dark, inky black ring emanated overwhelming pressure.
"Black? A ten-thousand-year soul ring?" Huo Yuhao's eyes widened in shock.
"Who taught him to match soul rings like that? Is he crazy? Doesn't he know he could explode from soul force backlash?" Even the Skydream Iceworm was stunned by the reckless mismatch in ring ages.
Jiang Shengyu explained,
"My second soul ring was only a thousand-year one a year ago. It just recently upgraded to ten-thousand-year."
"What?!"
Huo Yuhao's mind nearly short-circuited. Could soul rings really be upgraded after the fact?
The Skydream Iceworm was dumbfounded.
"No way! How the heck did he do that? I've lived for so long and never heard of anything like this!"
Yuhao voiced that very question.
Jiang Shengyu began his explanation:
"The age of a soul ring reflects the cultivation level of the soul beast it came from. But when we talk about ten-thousand or hundred-thousand-year soul beasts, how many of them actually live that long? Most of the time, the 'age' just refers to the amount of energy they've accumulated."
"So in theory, as long as you can infuse a soul ring with enough soul power and energy, its age should naturally increase—just like a soul beast's. Unfortunately, my research is still in its early stages, and I haven't found a way to replicate the process in others yet."
"That alone is already incredible," Huo Yuhao murmured.
Jiang Shengyu nodded.
"Exactly. If this research succeeds, soul masters won't have to risk their lives to hunt high-level soul beasts to obtain strong rings."
Huo Yuhao frowned slightly and raised a concern.
"But… what about soul bones from hundred-thousand-year soul beasts? That's not something you can replicate with just ring age. Without them, some soul masters won't be satisfied."
Jiang Shengyu sighed.
"I've always found it disturbing—this so-called cultivation method that involves attaching bones from other living beings to your own body. Are those soul masters even human anymore?"
Yuhao quietly responded,
"This method has been passed down for generations… there must be a reason."
"There is no reason such a system has endured," Jiang Shengyu said firmly, looking directly at him.
"Mark my words, Yuhao—in the near future, when soul beasts are on the brink of extinction, the entire soul master profession, and even the human civilization built upon it, will collapse."
"Is it really that serious?"
Huo Yuhao's expression changed.
"Then what should we do?"
Got him!
Jiang Shengyu cheered inwardly, but kept his composure outwardly.
"That's exactly why I've started another research project. I want to change the way soul masters cultivate."
"Change… soul master cultivation?" Huo Yuhao's pupils shrank as if struck by lightning.
If anyone else had said this to him, he'd assume they were insane. But this was the same person who had just shown him an upgraded soul ring with proof.
Maybe he really could do it?
Jiang Shengyu nodded.
"That's right. At their core, soul rings are simply vessels for storing soul power and abilities. They don't have to come from soul beasts. For example, neither my sister nor I have ever hunted a soul beast for a soul ring."
Huo Yuhao was stunned.
"Then your rings…"
"Correct. All our soul rings appeared naturally when our soul power broke through specific thresholds," Jiang Shengyu explained. "I'm working to fully understand the mechanism. If I succeed, it will change everything. Yuhao, will you help me?"
By now, Huo Yuhao had been bombarded by so many shocking revelations that his mind was spinning. Even the Skydream Iceworm remained silent, deep in thought.
After a long pause, it finally murmured,
"Could he actually be… a genius?"
Yuhao clenched his fist and looked Jiang Shengyu in the eye.
"I'm in!"
"Excellent!" Jiang Shengyu clapped a hand on his shoulder, beaming.
"Yuhao, welcome to the Soul Hall. From now on, you're one of us! Together, we'll build a future where humans and soul beasts can coexist in peace!"
"Mm!" Huo Yuhao nodded firmly, then asked,
"What exactly is the Soul Hall?"
Jiang Shengyu began to explain, detailing the mission and structure of Soul Hall. Huo Yuhao grew more and more excited as he listened.
"Not only are you researching new cultivation methods, you're helping people awaken their martial souls for free and giving soul masters subsidies just for registering? Even Shrek Academy doesn't do that! So this is Soul Hall? How amazing!"