Next up was the mecha battle once again. Unlike his effortless win in the soul master battle's first round, the round-robin stage for the mecha matches posed significantly more difficulty.
Spectators had gathered in large numbers, just like before.
Gu You once again chose the long spear as his mecha's weapon of choice.
His opponent this time was piloting a ranged mecha, but it was unlike any of the soul cannon-equipped ones he'd faced before. This one's weapon consisted of two massive boomerangs, crossed over its back and glowing faintly with silver light.
As the battle began, Ling Wuyue's mecha raised both hands, gripping the boomerangs jutting out over its shoulders, and hurled them forcefully toward Gu You.
Gu You's eyes narrowed as he focused on the screen, and a multicolored glow briefly shimmered along the shaft of his mecha's spear.
Ding!
The spear clashed with the boomerangs, producing a metallic chorus of sharp collisions.
The boomerangs were instantly deflected, but guided by some internal system, they returned neatly to Ling Wuyue's mecha.
In the few seconds it took for that exchange, Gu You's mecha's boosters roared to full power. With lightning speed, he unleashed the Spear of the King!
Boom!
Shards of mecha armor exploded off the arena floor and flew outward.
What just happened?
Ling Wuyue stared blankly at her hands, stunned. She bit her lip in frustration. As one of the ace mecha pilots of the Blood God Army, had she really lost like this?
Instant defeat!
She changed back into her uniform to cover her exquisite figure, but her expression was utterly grim.
…
After logging out of the Star Dou Battle Network, Gu You returned to his new quarters and sat down in meditation.
Tonight, he would break through—into the realm of Soul Saints!
Soul power rapidly gathered toward him. Within the vortex of qi and blood swirling in his core, a new, pale-white whirlpool began to emerge.
As it absorbed the soul power around it, the vortex began to change. If Gu You were to peer inward at this moment, he would see streaks of white lightning dancing around it like tiny bolts of electricity.
Among soul masters, those capable of forming a soul core were one in a hundred. Reaching the seventh-ring Soul Saint level was the true mark of a high-level soul master, and the formation of the soul core was the milestone that defined this breakthrough. Only with a soul core could one move toward manifesting the true body of their martial soul.
That said, this theory wasn't absolute. Martial soul true forms didn't strictly require a soul core—they depended on the level of resonance between the martial soul and its user. Even without a soul core, once a soul master reached seven rings and had enough compatibility, they could still manifest their soul's true form.
The only difference was energy efficiency. With a soul core, the true form would last significantly longer.
That pale-white vortex was now transforming into luminous bands of soul power. As they spiraled, they compressed inward like a black hole, absorbing everything around it.
Gu You's dragon core stood firm at the center of his chest, radiating a gentle, multicolored glow that reinforced his bones, meridians, and muscles.
Soul masters who reached a certain level always had to return to physical training. As soul power continued to rise and breakthroughs occurred, without a powerful physique, the body simply couldn't endure the immense pressure of energy transformation.
Many people spent their whole lives unable to break through from Soul Douluo to Title Douluo, and the official records often chalked this up to poor talent.
But that was laughable. How could someone who reached Soul Douluo level still be accused of lacking talent?
For Gu You, this step was simple. His physical body had long since surpassed the requirements for forming a soul core and had already reached god-tier strength.
Inside the white vortex, cycles of collapse and expansion repeated themselves again and again. Each time, Gu You endured immense pain. He could clearly feel the elemental forces in the air rushing madly toward him. Every surge brought with it powerful soul energy fluctuations.
It was like a black hole transforming into a white hole, and then back again—an endless loop.
In the Blood God Camp, Xue Yi opened his eyes from meditation, a flash of surprise in his gaze.
With a wave of his hand in the air, he sensed something and let a subtle smile spread across his face. Rising lightly to his feet, he stepped out the door.
As he exited, he spotted someone else stepping out of a nearby room.
"Xue Yi, did you feel that? Is it him?" Xue San asked, clearly astonished.
Xue Yi nodded with a smile. "Who else could it be? Even my absorption rate for soul power has been affected. Just how much soul energy has that little brat drawn in from within a hundred-mile radius?"
"Sigh, I can't even focus on training. My absorption rate just dropped to a fifth of normal."
"Let's hope he succeeds in forming the core."
As Gu You's body began to absorb the elemental energy in the air on its own, he entered a strange new state. His consciousness expanded outward, and he could sense countless energy particles cheering as they surged toward him. He could even differentiate their attributes. The most abundant were ice and water elements. Dark elements were also plentiful. Wind elements, especially, were fierce and sharp.
Light elements were fewer in number, but incredibly pure—likely due to the lack of pollution in the atmosphere. The thinner air had its drawbacks, but it also made everything cleaner.
Those abundant elemental forces were continuously pouring into Gu You's body.
At that moment, the elemental energy in the air suddenly intensified. What had been distinguishable, individual elements now transformed into an ocean of energy. Gu You's body was completely submerged in that elemental sea.
All those rich elemental particles surged toward him, burrowing into his body and merging into his dantian. The soul power bands became more vibrant and spun faster and faster. In the center of his dantian, a green, oval-shaped crystal began to take form.
It shimmered with a luminous emerald light, and at its core, a tiny new bud seemed to sprout forth.
It broke through the soil, pushing past everything—unafraid of scorching flames, unshaken by solid rock.
Gu You's heart grew even calmer. His entire being sank into the sensation of that elemental world. Quietly meditating, quietly feeling, each change in energy made him sense that his very existence was being elevated—as if he were about to step into another realm entirely.
The soul core represented a fundamental transformation of life itself. From this moment forward, Gu You was no longer an ordinary human being—he had become something transcendent.
The formation of a soul core could extend a soul master's life by a hundred years. It marked one of the greatest milestones in a soul master's journey. No one could skip this step...
(End of Chapter)
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