Yu Yuanzhen remained silent for a long time.
Even after the battle had ended, he still could not calm the storm raging in his heart.
The performance Yu Xiaogang had displayed earlier was simply too shocking.
Control-type Spirit Abilities were already rare and valuable, but the way Yu Xiaogang used his power had gone beyond ordinary understanding.
It was precise.
Efficient.
Overwhelming.
And most importantly, terrifyingly practical.
At last, Yu Yuanzhen slowly looked at his son.
During their return journey, Yu Xiaogang had explained the hidden effects of his newly acquired second spirit ring.
"You mean to say…"
Yu Yuanzhen narrowed his eyes.
"Just like your first spirit ring, your Second Spirit Ability is not only something you can actively release…"
"It also passively strengthens your natural abilities?"
Yu Xiaogang nodded calmly, though the satisfaction in his eyes was impossible to hide.
"That's right."
"My second spirit ring leans toward the mental aspect."
"So in addition to the active skill, it continuously enhances my mental force."
"With that increase, when facing opponents of the same rank in the future, unless they specialize in mental defense or spiritual resistance…"
"They will have very little ability to resist my Second Spirit Ability."
The more Yu Yuanzhen listened, the more speechless he became.
After a long pause, he finally let out a bitter laugh.
"When your abilities are described out loud…"
"They truly make others envious."
At that moment, even Yu Yuanzhen did not know how to describe the son standing before him.
Gifted?
A genius?
Monster?
None of those words felt sufficient.
Yu Xiaogang was simply too heaven-defying.
Yu Xiaogang himself was also in a good mood.
Unlike many young Spirit Masters who relied purely on instinct, he understood very clearly what kind of fortune he had obtained.
Because he had read countless books.
He had studied histories, biographies, spirit beast records, and accounts of famous experts across the continent.
And from everything he had seen…
Very few Spirit Abilities could compare to the first two spirit rings he now possessed.
At least, among all recorded cases he had encountered, none were more complete, more practical, or more absurdly useful.
His first spirit ring granted terrifying control and utility.
His second spirit ring expanded his spiritual power while further strengthening his control.
Together, they formed a near-perfect foundation.
A foundation that many Title Douluo would envy.
White World – Spirit Hall
Inside the grand halls of Spirit Hall, many spectators were equally stunned.
Hu Liena stared at the heavenly screen with open envy.
"How can someone be this lucky?"
As a Spirit Master who specialized in mental techniques, she understood the true value of Yu Xiaogang's second spirit ring better than most.
An active release capable of controlling enemies.
A passive enhancement that continuously strengthened spiritual power.
The two effects perfectly complemented each other.
The stronger the passive effect became, the more terrifying the active effect would grow.
It was the dream of every control-type Spirit Master.
Hu Liena nearly drooled.
Then she quickly ran to the side of Bibi Dong and hugged her arm.
"Teacher!"
"Do you think I should also choose a Radiant Heavenly Dragon as my next spirit ring, just like Dragon God His Eminence?"
Bibi Dong rolled her eyes immediately.
"You're asking for trouble."
Hu Liena's smile froze.
Bibi Dong spoke sternly.
"Xiaogang's path has already proven something."
"For Spirit Masters, maximizing your own strengths is the righteous road."
"Your spirit is the Demonic Fox."
"You specialize in charm, illusion, and mental influence."
"Why abandon your own advantages just because someone else succeeded?"
She then raised a finger.
"Yes, the Radiant Heavenly Dragon is excellent in spiritual power."
"But first—it is a dragon-type spirit beast."
"Second—it possesses a light attribute."
"Xiaogang is highly compatible with it, which is why he chose it."
Then she poked Hu Liena lightly on the forehead.
"And you?"
"A fox spirit wanting a light-attribute dragon spirit ring?"
"Do you want to block your own cultivation path?"
Hu Liena's expression instantly collapsed.
She pouted and pretended to be wronged.
Unfortunately, Bibi Dong was completely unmoved.
"You always act on impulse."
"Not everyone can become Xiaogang."
Bibi Dong then recalled an old incident and laughed softly.
"A few years ago, there was a Spirit Master who wanted to copy Xiaogang's path."
"He believed that if his son followed the same route, the child would become another genius."
"So he spent a huge fortune investigating which spirit beasts Xiaogang had used for his early spirit rings."
Hu Liena blinked curiously.
"What happened?"
Bibi Dong smirked.
"The result?"
"The child gained completely different abilities."
"The spirit ring combinations clashed with his original spirit."
"He ended up as a useless four-unlike monster."
Hu Liena burst into laughter.
But Bibi Dong's expression soon turned serious again.
"The cultivation system of Douluo Continent is deeply personal."
"Even twins with identical spirits, obtaining spirit rings from the same beast, may awaken entirely different abilities."
"To blindly copy another person's path…"
"Is foolish."
She then turned her gaze toward Yu Xiaogang on the screen.
"Still…"
"The heavenly screen is not entirely a bad thing."
"With it, all those who wish to imitate you will finally understand the distance between themselves and you, Xiaogang."
Yu Xiaogang, hearing these words through the screen, also smiled faintly.
"I've always told people not to casually imitate others."
"But they never believed me."
"They thought I was hiding secrets."
He shook his head.
"This time, let them see clearly what my path truly consists of."
Was his road easy to copy?
His spirit's unique nature.
The support of his father.
His own years of study.
His careful planning.
His personal effort.
And more than a little luck.
All these factors combined to create who he was now.
Even if Yu Xiaogang himself returned to the past and tried again, he might not be able to reproduce the same result.
So how could strangers hope to do so?
The Heavenly Screen Continued…
After obtaining his second spirit ring, Yu Yuanzhen brought Yu Xiaogang back to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect.
Naturally, Yu Yuanzhen could not resist showing off.
Just as before, he gathered elders and core members to witness Yu Xiaogang's new ability.
Although many had already heard rumors and mentally prepared themselves…
They were still stunned speechless when they saw the skill firsthand.
Several elders stood with mouths open for a long time.
Yu Yuanzhen was deeply satisfied.
Only after enjoying everyone's reactions did he finally return home.
There, he found Yu Xiaogang seated at a desk, frowning while rapidly flipping through books.
Yu Yuanzhen approached curiously.
"What happened?"
He glanced down at the volume in Yu Xiaogang's hands.
It was a record of light-attribute spirit beasts.
Yu Xiaogang looked up.
"Father."
"Is this all the information our sect has regarding light-attribute spirit beasts?"
Yu Yuanzhen paused.
"What?"
"Is it not enough?"
Yu Xiaogang nodded seriously.
"It's far from enough."
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect was famous for one thing above all else:
Lightning.
Its members overwhelmingly walked the thunder path.
Though some disciples occasionally awakened spirits of different elements, they were rare and not the sect's focus.
As a result, more than half the books in the sect library concerned thunder-attribute spirit beasts.
And those records were astonishingly detailed.
For example:
The habits of a certain lightning beast.
Its temperament.
Its hunting style.
Illustrations of body structure.
How to judge its age.
What type of spirit abilities it commonly produced.
How dangerous it was in battle.
Weak points.
Habitat changes by season.
Everything was recorded meticulously.
Generations of accumulation had turned the sect library into a treasure trove for thunder Spirit Masters.
But for spirit beasts of other elements—
Especially the light beasts Yu Xiaogang now needed—
The records were pitifully thin.
Take the Radiant Heavenly Dragon, source of his second spirit ring.
The sect possessed only a few sparse pages.
They briefly described:
Its appearance.
Its elemental affinity.
A rough method of estimating age.
And a few warnings for battle.
That was all.
There were not even proper illustrations.
For an ordinary disciple, such records might be enough.
For Yu Xiaogang, they were useless.
Because he was not merely searching for a spirit ring.
He was designing an entire future cultivation path.
Without enough information, choosing future rings would become dangerous guesswork.
Yu Yuanzhen stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"You're right."
"Our sect follows the thunder route."
"So naturally, we collected less information about light beasts."
He thought for a moment longer.
Then his eyes sharpened.
"If there is one place on the Douluo Continent with more complete records of light-attribute spirit beasts than our sect…"
"There is only one."
Yu Xiaogang nodded immediately.
He already knew the answer.
Only one force possessed the manpower, reach, scholars, hunters, and resources to gather records from every region of the continent.
Only one organization systematically studied spirit beasts of every type.
Only one power maintained archives vast enough to rival entire nations.
That place was—
Spirit Hall.
The room fell silent.
Yu Yuanzhen and Yu Xiaogang exchanged looks.
Both understood what this meant.
If Yu Xiaogang wished to continue perfecting his path…
Then sooner or later, his road would lead there.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)