Huo Yuhao nodded upon hearing this, his gaze falling upon that crystalline little spider.
He naturally knew not to underestimate this exquisite and cute "little guy" before him; it was not as harmless as it appeared.
After learning a month ago that the Spirit Soul he was about to fuse with was a Phantom Heart Demon Spider, Huo Yuhao had spent considerable time researching relevant information to fully understand the background of this type of Spirit Beast.
The Phantom Heart Demon Spider was extremely rare on the continent, with only a handful of them remaining in existence.
This did not mean they were weak; quite the opposite, it was precisely because they were too powerful that they had maintained an extremely low population density throughout their long evolution.
The Phantom Heart Demon Spider was a top-tier Mental-type Spirit Beast that fed on thoughts. Any prey they locked onto would have their mental force silently gnawed away until they were completely reduced to an empty shell.
Most spider-type Spirit Beasts were trap masters, and weaving webs was their specialty.
However, the webs woven by the Phantom Heart Demon Spider were not physical silk, but were formed purely from condensed mental force, formless and intangible.
Once such a web was laid out, it was like an invisible swamp. Those who stepped into it would not even realize they had been trapped until their consciousness was drained and their thoughts were devoured, causing them to collapse in a daze.
It was no exaggeration to say that if this crystal spider, which was no longer than a forearm, were placed in a city with a population of hundreds of thousands, it would absolutely have the ability to turn the entire city into a ghost town without anyone noticing.
Huo Yuhao's mental force cautiously probed toward the Phantom Heart Demon Spider, and then he paused slightly, turning his head to look at Leng Yaozhu in surprise, asking, "Aunt Leng, why does it seem like it's asleep?"
In his perception just now, the mental fluctuations of this three-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Soul were extremely stable, almost static, without any of the naturally overflowing aura circulation typical of ordinary powerful Spirit Souls.
It was just like a cat curled up in the warm winter sun, completely devoid of alertness or attention toward the outside World.
Leng Yaozhu stood by the console, smiling upon hearing this, clearly having anticipated that Huo Yuhao would ask this question.
She explained, "This Spirit Soul is not quite like other Spirit Souls because its mental force is extremely powerful, and it can already create a complete virtual World for its own consciousness to roam in."
"For it, real time in the outside World is almost meaningless. In its own World, it may have already spent hundreds or thousands of years."
After listening, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but gain a bit more understanding of this seemingly exquisite little spider.
To be able to construct a complete World of one's own in consciousness was no longer something that could be described by the mere strength of mental force; it was a Realm where the mastery of the essence of the spirit had reached an extremely profound level.
As Leng Yaozhu spoke, she pressed another button on the console.
Huo Yuhao noticed that the Spirit Guidance Formation inscribed on the inner wall of the metal shell surrounding the Phantom Heart Demon Spider flickered slightly, and the direction of the flow of the patterns seemed to have undergone some subtle changes.
At the same time, Huo Yuhao clearly sensed a slight fluctuation suddenly appear in the mental force on the Phantom Heart Demon Spider, which had originally been as calm as a mirror.
Not long after, the little spider, which had been lying quietly, suddenly moved slightly.
Its front limbs lifted slightly and then fell slowly, as if a person who had been asleep for a long time had just awakened from a long dream, their body still adapting to the perceptions of the real World.
Huo Yuhao instantly became vigilant, his muscles slightly tensed, his gaze locked on the Phantom Heart Demon Spider.
A three-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Soul, no matter how beautiful or harmless it looked, had strength that could not be underestimated; he had to remain on guard.
But he noticed that Leng Yaozhu on the side was still in that composed posture, and even seeing his nervous appearance, she couldn't help but curl the corners of her mouth and smile at him.
Subsequently, her voice steadily reached Huo Yuhao's ears: "Don't be nervous. Although the Phantom Heart Demon Spider ranks first among the Unyielding Soul Spirits, it doesn't have much aggression."
Just as Huo Yuhao was still pondering what Leng Yaozhu meant by "doesn't have much aggression," a milky, young boy's voice suddenly rang out in the Fusion room.
"Oh! So annoying, why did you wake me up again?"
There were only Huo Yuhao and Leng Yaozhu in the Fusion room at this moment; this voice was clearly not made by either of them.
Huo Yuhao's gaze instantly locked onto the Spirit Soul of the Phantom Heart Demon Spider in front of him.
It had already stood up. Its eight crystal-clear spider legs were stretched out, refracting fine halos under the lights. Two of its front legs were raised high and then lowered, like a person who had just woken up stretching.
Clearly, the milky, young boy's voice just now came from this Phantom Heart Demon Spider with three-hundred-thousand-year cultivation.
Huo Yuhao looked at it with some surprise. He really didn't expect that this Spirit Soul not only differed greatly in image from a three-hundred-thousand-year cultivation Vicious Beast, lacking any ferocious aura, but its voice was also so contrasting.
However, Huo Yuhao also noticed that the state of this Phantom Heart Demon Spider at this moment was indeed as Leng Yaozhu had said; it did not have much aggression.
He could not sense any hostility or alertness from it, and it had even completely retracted the oppressive aura that a three-hundred-thousand-year Spirit Soul should have, just like a pet kept by an ordinary family that had just been woken up, blearily sizing up the surrounding environment.
Leng Yaozhu stood to the side, looking at the Phantom Heart Demon Spider in this state, and began to introduce: "This is my Disciple, Huo Yuhao. In terms of talent, no Spirit Master has been able to surpass him in Ten Thousand Years. Becoming his Spirit Soul will definitely not be a waste of your potential."
This Phantom Heart Demon Spider Spirit Soul had been stored in the Spirit Pagoda for thousands of years, having experienced the changes of several generations of the Spirit Pagoda, and could be called a true "veteran," so Leng Yaozhu was also sufficiently polite to it.
The Phantom Heart Demon Spider turned its head slightly, its pair of crystal-clear eyes turning toward Huo Yuhao's direction.
At the same time, an invisible mental force silently covered him.
Immediately, its movements paused for a moment. The mental force that had reached out clearly felt something beyond its expectations when it touched Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Sea.
Its front limbs hung in mid-air for a brief instant, and a trace of very faint surprise flashed through the lazy look in its eyes, but that was all.
A moment later, that milky, young boy's voice sounded again: "Indeed, a Genius."
It paused, as if deliberating its words, and then continued: "However, as I said before, I will not become anyone's Spirit Soul."
The Spirit Pagoda's technology was now mature, and in the process of fusing a Spirit Soul, the Spirit Master held the dominant position and did not necessarily need the Spirit Soul's consent.
But this rule did not apply to all Spirit Souls. Facing those Spirit Souls with extremely high cultivation and extremely tenacious will, if they firmly resisted and refused to cooperate, the Fusion process would almost certainly not succeed.
This was the so-called Unyielding Soul Spirit!
And the one before him was precisely the one ranked first among the Unyielding Soul Spirits.
The most difficult one, and also the one most qualified to say "no."
Leng Yaozhu did not reply upon hearing this. She just stood quietly to the side, her gaze moving away from the Phantom Heart Demon Spider and falling onto Huo Yuhao's face, gently giving him a look.
Huo Yuhao understood, and his Spirit Domain Realm mental force was released without reservation.
It was as if an invisible ripple had appeared in the air, and even the faint light of the Spirit Guidance patterns flickered slightly at this moment.
The Phantom Heart Demon Spider's eyes flashed slightly; it clearly had not expected that Huo Yuhao's true mental force was much stronger than what it had perceived just now.
But it still did not move. Its front limbs waved slightly in the air, as if it were lazily waving its hand.
"Principles are principles; they will not change."
"In my own World, I can do whatever I want. Why bother experiencing the short life of humans, lasting only one or two hundred years?"
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.