Yun Ming's question cut straight to the heart of the matter.
Can it be replicated?
Can this method of forming runes be popularized?
Xu Yuan nodded, then shook his head.
"In theory, it should be possible, but I'm not confident that I can simplify it to the point where any soul master could form one."
Yun Ming let out a sigh of relief.
Any soul master?
That was clearly impossible.
First, looking at the so-called personal insights involved in these heavenly runes—invoking the power of heaven and earth—it was evident that the conditions for forming these runes were incredibly stringent. There weren't many soul masters on the entire continent who could meet such requirements.
If the method of forming them could be replicated, that alone would be a great achievement.
"It requires the use of willpower and an understanding of the laws of nature. So far, only you, Teacher, might be able to attempt it," Xu Yuan said.
Yun Ming shook his head and sighed.
"I don't have any soul ring slots left."
Xu Yuan's expression turned peculiar.
"Who said you need a new soul ring slot?"
Yun Ming was stunned again.
He looked up at Xu Yuan, trying to confirm whether Xu Yuan was joking.
However, Xu Yuan's serious expression clearly told him that he wasn't.
"This Heavenly Rune is fundamentally still an application of soul rings," Xu Yuan explained.
Inwardly, he couldn't help but marvel.
Soul masters were a truly remarkable cultivation system. Through soul rings, they could directly gain access to soul skills.
A long time ago, he had thought about studying the characteristics of soul rings and developing some interesting applications.
Now, he had finally succeeded.
"Since it's an application of soul rings, even soul rings obtained through spirit souls can potentially form runes. I just haven't tried it yet, so I can't provide specific methods for forming them."
The reason Xu Yuan assigned the Seal rune to his fifth soul ring position on the Heavenly Origin Brush was that none of his existing soul skills were related to it, so it had to occupy a new soul ring slot.
As Yun Ming listened to Xu Yuan's explanation, he realized that the key to forming these Heavenly Rune lay in the soul rings.
"Teacher..."
"No rush. Focus on your own cultivation first. Don't go out of your way to explore other methods of forming these Heavenly Rune for my sake. Becoming stronger yourself is the foundation," Yun Ming interrupted, speaking seriously.
He paused, then reminded Xu Yuan, "Tang Wulin also gained Elder Tree's recognition earlier and absorbed more of the Golden Ancient Tree's power than you did when you triggered it. He's already formed his fifth soul ring, and his soul power is catching up to yours."
Although Xu Yuan still held the lead in terms of soul power levels, his progress in recent years had clearly lagged behind.
Yun Ming felt anxious for his disciple.
In the past, Xu Yuan would have felt a slight sense of urgency.
But times had changed.
"Teacher, after reaching level 99 in soul power, will there still be room for improvement?" Xu Yuan countered with a question.
"There will still be a period of soul power accumulation, but it will quickly reach its limit."
"And will one's strength continue to grow?"
"Naturally."
"So, soul power level isn't the sole measure of cultivation speed—strength is," Xu Yuan said calmly. "Of course, my overall strength growth has indeed lagged behind Tang Wulin's in the past few years, but that won't last much longer."
First, there was the imminent creation of his one-word battle armor.
Next, the condensation of his soul core and breakthrough to Soul Emperor, followed by upgrading his battle armor to two-word level!
Xu Yuan estimated that this process wouldn't take more than two years.
This would boost his foundational abilities, which would stack with his existing techniques, meaning his strength would increase proportionally.
Meanwhile, Tang Wulin had temporarily hit a plateau.
The fusion of the eighth seal was something Tang Wulin had barely managed to complete with the full assistance of Old Tang's divine consciousness. As for the ninth seal, Tang Wulin wouldn't have the chance to attempt it for at least three years.
Without fusing the ninth seal, Tang Wulin's strength ceiling wouldn't change over the next three years.
This was another insight Xu Yuan had gained.
The Dragon God's inheritance had allowed him to prematurely fuse seals of the Golden Dragon King that he shouldn't have been able to handle yet.
For a considerable amount of time afterward, he wouldn't be able to continue fusing seals.
Three years was the most conservative estimate. The reality was that Tang Wulin wouldn't dare to recklessly fuse another seal until his soul power level caught up.
Of course, this was only a stagnation in Tang Wulin's strength growth. Xu Yuan's strength was still steadily improving.
One stagnant, the other steadily advancing—but this wasn't the root of Xu Yuan's confidence.
His confidence stemmed entirely from the fact that, on top of his already steady progress, he now had a doubling of his potential for growth.
This doubling naturally came from the Heavenly Rune.
The Seal rune was only Xu Yuan's first Heavenly Rune, but it wouldn't be his last.
He still had multiple soul rings that could form runes.
Once he formed a rune, he could rapidly enhance his comprehension.
Improving soul power and crafting battle armor could be seen as enhancing foundational abilities, while the increase in comprehension acted as a multiplier of effectiveness.
Progress in both areas didn't mean a simple 1 + 1 = 2 increase—it was more like 2 x 2 = 4, a fourfold increase!
Thinking about the effects of Xu Yuan's Heavenly Rune, Yun Ming silently nodded and stopped worrying about Xu Yuan's cultivation.
"Teacher, my battle armor should be nearing completion. When do you plan to begin the operation against the Demon Plane?"
Xu Yuan changed the subject.
"We haven't finalized it yet. If you're going to be part of the operation, we can push the plan back a bit and wait until you've finished crafting your battle armor."
"My battle armor is missing only three parts. I've already forged the materials for the waistband and chest armor. Now, all that's left is the fusion forging of the alloy for the helmet."
Hearing this, Yun Ming couldn't help but ask, "Didn't you say you could fusion-forge a long time ago? Why haven't you finished forging the basic materials for your battle armor yet?"
This was a question he had wanted to ask for a long time.
As the leader of this generation's rising stars and as his disciple, how could Xu Yuan still not have completed his battle armor when his soul power had already reached level 50? Now, his soul power was at level 59, and his one-word battle armor still wasn't finished.
Yun Ming even felt a bit embarrassed to talk about it!
This time, he couldn't hold back and asked directly.
"Teacher, forging Perfect Alloy is really difficult," Xu Yuan said helplessly.
"What alloy?" Yun Ming was startled.
He truly had no idea what standards Xu Yuan was holding himself to for his battle armor.
"Perfect Alloy—fusion rate of 99%," Xu Yuan replied with a smile.
Yun Ming fell silent.
After a long pause, he let out a deep sigh and turned to leave.
"Finish crafting your battle armor within three months."
---
Inside the Sea God Pavilion, Xu Yuan and the others were gathered.
"Very good. It seems you've all made significant gains this time," Cai Yue'er said with a satisfied smile as she looked at the nine of them.
Among the nine, Xu Yuan and Tang Wulin's advancements went without saying. The remaining seven had each gained an average of one soul power level.
The biggest beneficiaries were Wu Siduo, Yuanen Yehui, and Le Zhengyu, who had broken through to level 50.
However, the three of them couldn't bring themselves to smile.
Because they had just learned that Tang Wulin was also at level 50...
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