Skill and Surprise

I was surprised to discover that Brother Daydream managed to evolve his 900,000-year-old ring into a 1,000,000-year-old one. In the original work, this was supposed to happen in the next 10,000 years, but it seems that becoming a Soul Ring allowed him to overcome this hurdle earlier than expected.

"Congratulations, Brother Daydream," I said, approaching with a smile as I floated around the Iceworm.

"It's all thanks to you, Dai Mubai. When I sacrificed everything to become your Soul Ring, all my essence flowed into your body. In a way, my cultivation was concentrated but still dispersed. After using the formation to gather all this energy, I managed to evolve into a 1,000,000-year-old ring," he explained, joy evident on his Worm face. "Little brother, I am no longer a Gold-Patterned Iceworm. From now on, I shall be called Skydream Iceworm."

I nodded with pride. "You are the first Skydream Iceworm to exist, Brother Daydream." With an aura as pure as his, it was impossible not to feel happy for him.

We celebrated for a while, floating around the "Spiritual World." Today had been a day full of joy.

"Little brother, normally my body would have generated a Spirit Bone for you, but since I'm a special case, that didn't happen. Instead, my sacrifice gave rise to a second Martial Soul: Ice Element. However, this Martial Soul has no concrete form, only an attribute, meaning you won't be able to use it for now. Unfortunately, my evolution to a 1,000,000-year-old ring didn't influence this second Martial Soul," Brother Daydream said, somewhat disheartened.

"Don't worry, brother. I'm sure we'll find a solution in the future," I replied, comforting him with light pats on his Worm body.

"More importantly, what did you gain from evolving into a 1,000,000-year-old ring?" I asked, curious.

Brother Daydream explained that he could now provide four abilities as a Soul Ring. Before, at 900,000 years, it had only been two.

Although he wasn't known for offensive abilities, the ones I received were incredible in terms of control and support. Two of them were already familiar:

Spiritual Detection: An ability that enhances my vision in several aspects — enhanced sight, 360-degree stereoscopic vision, and telescopic vision. I renamed it to Byakugan for convenience.

Spiritual Sharing: Allows me to share thoughts and observations with others. Like Huo Yuhao, I can share my vision through Spiritual Detection.

The two additional abilities adapted to my Martial Soul after Brother Daydream's evolution:

Real Illusion: Creates illusions that affect reality. These illusions aren't permanent and consume a significant amount of spiritual power to maintain.

Spiritual Transfer: Transports the opponent's spirit into my "Spiritual World." If the opponent is too strong, there may be a backlash.

The two abilities are absurdly powerful and fitting. Real Illusion allows the Sharingan's illusion to now affect an area instead of a single target and lets the illusions cause real damage. Additionally, with Real Illusion, I can hide my Soul Ring without needing the second Soul Ring of the Ice Silk Worm.

As for Spiritual Transfer, it speaks for itself. If an opponent's spirit enters my Spiritual World, Brother Daydream only needs to crush them with his 1,000,000-year-old essence, and the opponent won't even know how they died.

"Brother Daydream, your abilities are incredible," I murmured, impressed.

"Of course, your brother here is phenomenal," he replied, as reliable as ever.

"Brother, can't Soul Beasts take on human forms when they reach 100,000 years of cultivation?" I asked, curious.

Soul Beasts must choose between continuing to cultivate in their original form or transforming into humans to restart cultivation upon reaching 100,000 years. Brother Daydream chose to continue cultivating as a Soul Beast, but I vaguely recall that some Soul Beasts can still assume human forms.

"Yes, even as Beasts, it's possible to take on a human form. However, it consumes a lot of energy and reduces our strength, so we avoid maintaining that form," he explained.

"But now you're a Soul Ring. Maintaining a human form shouldn't cost anything, right? Maybe it would be more comfortable," I suggested. It's not that Brother Daydream's Worm form isn't adorable, but maintaining a human form would be better.

"I think you're right. Now, as a Soul Ring, maintaining a human form shouldn't cost anything, so it might be better." Brother Daydream nodded. Then, his body glowed with white light, and after a few moments, it began to shrink. When the light faded, I was surprised by what I saw.

Before me stood a young woman with long blonde hair. She wore an elegant light blue dress with a high collar, off-shoulder sleeves, and a black decorative bow at the waist. The dress featured intricate details, paired with black thigh-high stockings. A delicate blue flower adorned her hair, and her golden eyes shone with a calm yet joyful expression.

"What? Are you surprised by my beauty?" she said, placing her hands on her hips and puffing out her chest proudly. Her voice was incredibly delicate and soft, like a stream, and her eyes sparkled with confidence. But what caught my attention the most were her particularly large breasts, which I couldn't stop staring at.

"Brother Daydream, weren't you... a man?" I asked, confused, as the young woman looked at me, equally puzzled.

"Of course, I'm a man! Why the strange look?" She blinked, perplexed, before continuing: "Wait... why is my voice so high-pitched?" Looking down, she realized something was wrong because she couldn't see her feet due to the, uh, obstruction.

"What happened to me?!" The young woman, who was clearly Brother Daydream... or rather, Sister Daydream? exclaimed in panic.

"Uh... Brother... or Sister?... I'll go check on things outside." Seeing that the young woman's panic wouldn't subside anytime soon, I spoke softly to her before leaving the now "Spiritual World" with my heart racing.

-----------------------------------------

I opened my eyes slightly as sunlight filtered through the tree branches, illuminating the surroundings. Slowly, I stood and looked around.

There was only one headless body—Dai Ming's.

An entire night had passed since the life-or-death battle from which I had emerged victorious.

"I hope big sister Jiangqi and Teacher Qi are safe," I murmured softly, approaching Dai Ming's body.

In his hand was a ring—clearly a storage ring. I took it from him before storing his corpse inside. At least I could offer him a proper burial. Of course, it wasn't entirely selfless; it was all for the positive energy from Good Deed.

The talismans I had used for defense were nearly depleted. Fortunately, thanks to acquiring a Soul Ring and a good night's sleep, my soul power had recovered to more than half.

I left the tree trunk I had been leaning against and headed toward a more open area. Once there, I retrieved a Fireball talisman.

I aimed it toward the sky and activated it. A fireball shot through the canopy of trees, disappearing into the horizon. Then I activated several other talismans: invisibility, scent neutralization, and trail concealment.

Though excellent for stealth, the invisibility talisman had its flaws. It didn't hide spiritual presence or mask soul power. It also wasn't foolproof; even in darkness, a faint silhouette could still be seen.

Even so, it was a useful Rank 3 talisman, and it was what had allowed me to escape the camp.

Before coming to Star Dou Forest, Teacher Qi, Jiangqi, and I had agreed that if we got separated, we'd use a Fireball talisman as a signal and meet at a designated location.

As I ran through the forest, one particular ability lingered in my mind.

"Sharingan." Without delay, I activated it.

My eyes turned red, and a white-golden Soul Ring appeared behind me. I used my Real Illusion ability to disguise the Soul Ring's appearance. Thanks to the illusion, its color shifted to yellow, and its aura resembled that of a 420-year-old spirit beast.

"There's no need to attract the attention of the entire continent with a thousand-year or higher ring. As the emperor's son, being a 'common' genius is more than enough for now," I muttered so quietly that not even a mosquito could hear.

I took the opportunity to activate another spiritual ability I had renamed.

"Byakugan." My vision expanded to cover a 50-meter radius, granting me a 360-degree view. At first, it was disorienting, but with the help of the Sharingan, I quickly adjusted.

The world around me seemed to slow, and I could perceive every minute detail within the 50-meter range. If the Sharingan already provided extraordinary sight, the Byakugan elevated it to an entirely new level. I could even see the tiniest specks of dust floating in the air.

It didn't take long for me to reach the meeting point.

There they were: Jiangqi and Teacher Qi.

"Young Master Bai!" Jiangqi ran toward me and hugged me tightly. I could feel her body trembling as she clung to me.

"Xiao Bai, it's so good to see you back! We were afraid something had happened to you after the beasts' fury," Teacher Qi said as she approached, visibly relieved.

I noticed that both of them had minor injuries. I gently patted Jiangqi's back to comfort her.

"Let's return to the Star Luo Empire," I said, feeling a pang of guilt seeing them hurt.

"Xiao Bai, we still haven't obtained your Soul Ring," Teacher Qi pointed out, but before she could continue, I manifested my Soul Ring.

"This is a Soul Ring over 400 years old." Teacher Qi seemed surprised. "Does its ability suit you, Xiao Bai?" she asked, a hint of worry in her tone, fearing it might be something useless.

"Don't worry. I acquired an incredibly useful ability," I said, nodding and smiling. I couldn't have wished for a better Soul Ring.

"Good, then let's return to the empire," Teacher Qi finally said, smiling in relief.

On the way back to the Star Luo Empire, Jiangqi didn't leave my side for even a moment.