Chapter 206: Preparing to Absorb the Soul Ring
In the morning, Furina specifically took leave.
She had big plans for today. To simultaneously absorb a Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring and a soul bone, and see if she could make a stunning breakthrough all at once.
If she really could charge directly to Rank 70 and become a Soul Sage, then she'd be the absolute number one in both the Outer and Inner Courts of Shrek. The kind of unprecedented, never-to-be-repeated figure that even Ma Xiaotao couldn't compare to.
One could only say the Water God's divine trial rewards were exceedingly generous, but they were also fitting. Because nine divine trials had been condensed into three—the first two alone were equivalent to everyone else's full set, and the third was directly inheriting the divine position.
She first took out the first Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring and held it in her palm, looking it over.
A Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring was different from an ordinary soul ring in that its age could be continuously raised, right up until the body couldn't endure any more. In other words, not just a hundred thousand years, but even a million years was a possibility.
Furina naturally wasn't going to be satisfied with a measly ten-thousand-year ring. She planned to push it to at least the hundred-thousand-year level, and incidentally test the true limits of her body and spirit's endurance. The second Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring she would keep in reserve for later.
If, after absorbing the soul bone and this soul ring, she could rush to Rank 70, she'd then buy a hundred-thousand-year soul ring from the System store as a backup. Once she reached Rank 80, she would use the second Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring to see if she could break through to the million-year level.
Later on, she'd seek out those hundred-thousand-year soul beasts and make them her soul spirits. The upper limit of soul spirits was far higher than that of ordinary soul rings. But for now, the technique hadn't been developed yet, so she couldn't count on it for the time being.
To play it safe, she had specifically instructed Xiao Xiao that morning.
"If anyone comes looking for me, just say I'm not here, that I went out. Under no circumstances let anyone come to the dorm to find me."
Xiao Xiao nodded, asking no further questions.
Still not at ease, Furina summoned her three Salon Solitaire members and had them stand guard outside.
Her main concern was Ma Xiaotao. What if that girl came back from the Far North and Yan Shaozhe told her that she herself could help with her problem? Given her fiery temper, she might just barge right in.
If she were absorbing the soul ring at that time, an interruption would be disastrous. The soul ring's age might end up capped at the ten-thousand-year level, or it could even backlash against her.
With all preparations ready, Furina sat cross-legged and began to absorb the soul ring.
As her cultivation manual began to circulate, the divine body forged by Faith Power also started to play its role. The age of the Divinely Bestowed Soul Ring jumped upwards at a blistering pace, quickly breaking through the ten-thousand-year mark, and then kept climbing.
One hundred thousand years.
Reached.
Furina let out a breath of relief and officially began the absorption.
She was a little curious what soul skills she would get this time. A hundred-thousand-year soul ring granted two soul skills, after all.
For a food-type soul master, obtaining a hundred-thousand-year soul ring early on was extremely rare. The main reason was that food-types had little screentime in the original story, especially after Douluo Dalu 4, where the main cast simply didn't need them. But her situation was different. Her third, fourth, and fifth soul skills were already outrageously heaven-defying; the sixth and seventh were bound to be even more absurd.
She took a deep breath, calmed her mind, and began to absorb.
...
Meanwhile, inside the Dean's Office.
Ma Xiaotao stood before Yan Shaozhe, still carrying the dust of travel from the Far North upon her. She had just returned to the academy with Xian Lin'er and had been immediately called over by Yan Shaozhe.
"Teacher, you called me back so urgently—is there something the matter?" Ma Xiaotao asked. "Has the Shrek Seven Devils reserve team been chosen, or is the tournament starting earlier?"
Yan Shaozhe didn't answer her question directly, first asking, "How was your training in the Far North? Did it have any effect on your evil fire?"
Hearing this, Ma Xiaotao's face lit up with a smile.
"Yes, much better. Cultivating over there is a lot easier. The outbursts are rare, and the evil fire is easier to release. My soul power went up another notch."
But immediately, her brow furrowed again. "However, after leaving the Far North, the evil fire is still faintly lurking. It doesn't feel like a permanent solution, Teacher."
Yan Shaozhe nodded.
He knew, of course, that it wasn't a permanent solution. Not unless Ma Xiaotao's martial soul could completely shed the evil fire and evolve into a true phoenix, or ultimate fire. But that required time, and an opportunity—far too difficult.
"That's why I found you another method," he said. "More precisely, I found a person. She should be able to help you."
Ma Xiaotao's eyes lit up, and she leaned forward eagerly. "Who? What method?"
Seeing her like this, Yan Shaozhe felt a bit helpless. "Do you still remember the time you lost control and attacked those new students?"
Ma Xiaotao thought for a moment and nodded. "I remember. But I don't recall the details of that incident very clearly. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have even known. Teacher, are you saying... the person who can help me is one of the new students I attacked that time?"
"More or less."
"How is that possible?" Ma Xiaotao's face was full of disbelief.
Yan Shaozhe sighed. "It is possible. I've always suspected that among those new students, someone possesses the ultimate water attribute."
Ma Xiaotao immediately asked, "Who? I'll go find them right now."
Yan Shaozhe raised a hand to halt her.
"See, you're rushing again. This impatience of yours won't do."
Ma Xiaotao paused, lowered her head, and her voice grew quieter. "Sorry, Teacher. I'm just too anxious. This matter means everything to me."
Yan Shaozhe looked at her, a complicated feeling in his heart. He knew why Ma Xiaotao was so impatient—she wanted to become strong, desperately. But it was precisely this temperament, too hasty, too rash, that really did make trouble easy to come by. Furina had been right; this child only focused on cultivation, caring nothing for anything else.
"Calm down first, and then I'll tell you," he said.
Ma Xiaotao took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, forcibly making herself calm down.
"Alright, Teacher. Please speak."
Only then did Yan Shaozhe begin. "The Church of the Water God, you know of it?"
Ma Xiaotao nodded.
"Their Pope, the one called Furina, is currently studying right here in our academy. She was among the new students you attacked back then."
Ma Xiaotao froze for a second.
"Ostensibly, she's a food-type support soul master, but I'm willing to bet she definitely has a second martial soul, at least of the ultimate water attribute. At that time, she was only a Soul Ancestor. Now, she's already a Soul King."
"What?" Ma Xiaotao's eyes widened. "A new student? Soul King? That's already Inner Court level!"
She was an Inner Court student and one of the Shrek Seven Devils; she understood this better than anyone. The highest in the Outer Court's senior grades was four rings at most. Only upon entering the Inner Court did one count as a Soul King. Her teammates were all at the Soul King level, too. She herself, now a Soul Emperor, was already top-tier.
A new student, a Soul King?
Then by the time she entered the Inner Court, wouldn't she be charging towards Soul Emperor?
Yan Shaozhe nodded. "You heard correctly. She is already a Soul King, and close to Soul Emperor. Possibly by the end of this semester, she could break through. A monster among monsters, even more talented than you lot."
He continued, "But that's not what's important. What's important is that a few days ago, she came to me asking for cultivation methods for ultimate martial souls. I gave them to her; after all, our Shrek now intends to cooperate with the Water God Church. I didn't ask her why she wanted them, but I'm certain that either she or someone close to her definitely possesses an ultimate martial soul."
Ma Xiaotao immediately said, "Then I'll go find her right away."
Yan Shaozhe reached out and held her back.
"Don't rush. I've already asked her to help you, and she agreed. When the treatment comes, you must listen to her, understand? Don't act on impulse."
Ma Xiaotao nodded. "Understood, Teacher."
As soon as she finished speaking, her martial soul was already manifesting, ready to bolt straight out.
Yan Shaozhe hadn't let go of her hand and pulled her right back.
"I said, don't rush. I'll take you there myself, just to avoid any incidents."
He truly feared this girl would stir up trouble again, and when that happened, it wouldn't be easy to clean up.
Ma Xiaotao retracted her martial soul and obediently nodded. "Thank you, Teacher."
Yan Shaozhe sighed and led her out.
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Thanks for reading the chapter!
I started a new translation and I would be very happy if you decided to check out my new translation story. It's a crossover of Toaru and One Piece... Well, the only Toaru element here is one cute Misaka. This is all that came of my desire to translate a Toaru fanfic, but I'm not complaining—even though I've only just started reading and translating it, I'm really enjoying the story. It has plenty of slice-of-life elements, and the pacing is quite slow and detailed. It's written in a sweet, positive way—at least for now. There likely won't be any romance, as there were no tags indicating such, but I won't say for sure until I've finished reading it myself. I'd recommend it to those who aren't craving violence, carnage, or excessive cruelty. In my opinion, it's a worthwhile story, though it's definitely a matter of personal taste—especially since the protagonist is a girl, which isn't everyone's cup of tea (though it doesn't really matter for now—at least as of 30+ chapters in, Misaka is still 6 years old). Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story as much as I do.
One Piece: Railgun Misaka Misaka https://www.webnovel.com/book/one-piece-railgun-misaka-misaka_37195209600636405