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*****
Lin Dong's soul power was currently at rank sixty-seven.
He was nineteen years old now--a nineteen-year-old rank sixty-seven.
If he maintained his cultivation progress from the past two years, he could expect to break through to become a Soul Sage by the age of twenty!
A Soul Sage at twenty meant he would definitely become a Spirit Douluo before twenty-five, and reaching Title Douluo before thirty would be no problem at all.
And this was a conservative estimate.
If he continued his fierce, aggressive progress without his cultivation speed dropping, it wasn't impossible for him to break through to Super Douluo or even begin sprinting toward the Limit Douluo rank before turning thirty!
Yet, Lin Dong had started with only rank one innate soul power!
It could be said that his current achievements were entirely due to him closely following the footsteps of Grandmaster Wen and practicing according to the theoretical guidance left behind by him.
This was the fundamental reason why Su Wen maintained an unshakable status across the entire Douluo Planet, even though he never showed his face.
The world of Spirit Masters was changing and advancing, yet no one showed the slightest disrespect toward Su Wen.
Because what Su Wen left behind were genuine techniques that could allow an ordinary Spirit Master to undergo a complete metamorphosis.
Lin Dong was the prime example.
All of his cultivation, and even his personal data, was made public to serve as validation for Grandmaster Wen's various cultivation methods.
In contrast, Ye Luochen appeared slightly dimmer under Lin Dong's radiant light. Despite possessing innate full soul power, his current soul power rank actually lagged three ranks behind Lin Dong's!
Even Chen Xin had lamented multiple times, expressing shock at Lin Dong's terrifying momentum of progress.
The Spirit Master world frequently compared the two of them, who served as the Eldest Senior Brothers and Hall Masters of the Academy's two great halls.
Ultimately, the most mainstream consensus was that Lin Dong had undergone a metamorphosis of talent, giving him a more precise grasp of the core essence of cultivation.
The process of transforming from weak to strong was extremely precious.
When comparing two people with the same level of talent in the end, whoever had the worse talent initially but managed to raise it step-by-step through their own efforts would display more outstanding performance.
Breaking through adversity often forged aspects that those born with innate talent could never experience or temper.
For instance, the feeling of breaking through a bottleneck.
I have broken the shackles of life, experienced true despair, and captured that microscopic glimmer of dawn.
Faced with a true bottleneck, I will only be more at ease than you.
And this was just the smaller bottlenecks in the early stages.
Upon reaching Title Douluo, when condensing a second soul core, the effect of this experience would become even more pronounced. In the later stages, when breaking through the limits, Lin Dong would likely benefit from this even more.
This was the most popular and widely accepted explanation circulating within academic circles.
Lin Dong had also become a role model for countless Spirit Masters with poor talent, guiding their steps forward.
Of course, while this path seemed more inspiring and held a greater advantage in the later stages, the hardships endured to achieve such a metamorphosis and the demands placed on the Spirit Master themselves were extraordinarily harsh.
Lin Dong's own efforts could never be replicated.
Up until now, a second Lin Dong had yet to appear on the continent.
Even a transformation from rank five innate soul power to a top-tier talent had not occurred yet.
However, examples of raising one's innate talent level by two or three ranks were everywhere.
It wasn't that their innate soul power was directly increased, but rather that after appending several soul rings, their cultivation speed underwent a transformation. Their cultivation ceiling was no longer limited by their original innate soul power, but was instead calculated as if they were a Spirit Master with an innate soul power three ranks higher.
"Grandmaster Wen said that Douluo is about to undergo a massive change."
Lin Dong and Ye Luochen were currently clad in magnificent armor.
The armor covering Lin Dong's body was overbearing and matchless, its five colors blending harmoniously. The five elements manifested in perfect harmony through the patterns alone, radiating a sense of mutual generation.
Ye Luochen's armor appeared even sharper, exuding an unstoppable, fierce aura.
"It's a pity we couldn't meet Grandmaster Wen's expectations and reach Limit Douluo before this," Lin Dong sighed.
Ye Luochen rolled his eyes.
"You actually took that seriously? You're only nineteen."
A nineteen-year-old Limit Douluo was something even Grandmaster Wen couldn't achieve.
However, he knew Lin Dong was just lamenting the missed opportunity.
"Grandmaster Wen said the great change of Douluo is an opportunity for Limit Douluos. It must involve a higher level."
An opportunity for Limit Douluos?
What qualified as an opportunity?
For a Limit Douluo, what else could possibly be considered an opportunity?
Naturally, it was the chance to become a god.
Therefore, when Grandmaster Wen said Douluo would change and Limit Douluos would receive the greatest benefits, he must have been referring to an opportunity worthy of godhood.
This was exactly what Lin Dong regretted missing out on.
"But even without this opportunity, I will definitely become a god on my own!" A smile appeared on Lin Dong's face.
His tone was brimming with confidence.
He believed that the methods taught by Grandmaster Wen could lead to godhood!
Ye Luochen did not refute this.
He had his own ambitions and wanted to attain godhood as well.
The existence of the academic community had turned many past secrets into common knowledge.
After all, Su Wen was not the secretive type. If he happened to encounter questions regarding matters he knew about, he would directly provide the answers.
Attaining godhood had long since become the greatest goal for the new generation of Spirit Masters.
Title Douluo was no longer the ultimate peak.
This shift in goals alone was the largest step forward in the development of the Douluo Continent.
"Let's not worry about the opportunity for now. First, let's complete the task assigned by Grandmaster Wen."
"Exactly."
The two transformed into streams of light, swiftly flying off in two different directions.
They weren't flying in opposite directions, but rather along two paths forming a triangle.
The remaining direction was being handled by another person far away in Star Luo City.
Their auras were incredibly powerful.
Divine Masters!
Under the amplification of the Divine Master armor, even as rank sixty Soul Emperors, they could burst forth with the strength of a past rank eighty Spirit Douluo!
Lin Dong, Ye Luochen, and the other person in charge in Star Luo City were all top-tier Divine Masters. Their Divine Master armor was also the most complete and high-grade, offering the most astonishing degree of amplification.
"Two years have flashed by in the blink of an eye."
Su Wen came to a halt in the air above the vast ocean.
He had traveled across the Douluo Planet more than once.
The mountains, rivers, terrain, energy flows, and natural concepts that he had previously meditated upon and recorded within his visualized world were now observed by him in person, over and over again. He saw through their core essence and sensed the laws within them.
"I used to be too ignorant."
Too stubborn in his own views.
However, the rules of the Douluo plane were highly concealed. Before reaching the limit, one could not touch this barrier. Therefore, even if Su Wen wasn't constrained by conventional concepts, he wouldn't have been able to sense the existence of these rules. He still had to rely on past methods to cultivate and comprehend the world.
In truth, his past perspectives weren't wrong; they were just not fundamental enough, scratching only the surface.
They could be viewed as a superficial understanding of the existence of rules.
Rules could also be viewed as fundamental laws.
Upon reaching the cosmos, Su Wen's initial perspectives could conversely serve as a deeper understanding of the existence of rules.
Rules had always been omnipresent.
Re-evaluating his past comprehensions from the perspective of rules brought unimaginable gains.
On this basis, he observed time and again, moving from the local parts to the grand whole.
Stepping outside the Douluo Planet to observe the operation of all rules from a holistic perspective presented a completely different sight.
Thinking back to the past, traveling across the entire Douluo Planet had taken Su Wen several years, requiring multiple journeys just to barely cover the whole world.
Now, two years had passed, and he had traveled to every corner of the Douluo Planet no less than ten times.
Within his inner world, the three small worlds had become completely perfected.
Currently, among the three small worlds, the Visualized Small World took the shape of a planet, highly resembling the Douluo Planet. The aura of knowledge could be seen everywhere. The spiritual runes had birthed intelligence and possessed an innate instinct for cultivation, comprehending the rules Su Wen left behind within the inner world.
The Heavenly Book Small World was divided into multiple layers of space, with each small space displaying a different scenery.
The Physical Body Small World was a primitive, savage continent. The development of spiritual runes there was the most violent, actually giving rise to ferocious beasts. At the same time, every ferocious beast spawned by the spiritual runes split off into distinct patterns, thereby giving birth to beast clans. They even cross-bred, their patterns combining with one another into countless variations. The struggle for supremacy among the beast clans on the savage continent was exceptionally fierce.
Looking at the three small worlds as a whole, each had its own unique characteristics, and all contributed accordingly to the perfection of Su Wen's inner world.
Su Wen shifted his gaze toward the numerous other small worlds. Those small worlds all revolved around the three major worlds of essence, qi, and spirit, operating under the logical rules of the inner world. They repelled and attracted one another, forming a perfect equilibrium.
Initially, these small worlds were merely sub-spaces, but over the past two years, they had gradually matured into small worlds.
Because the spiritual runes within them had also evolved, gaining intelligence and beginning to cultivate. Due to their innate fusion, the progress of the spiritual runes drove the advancement of the entire sub-space.
Since the spiritual runes were transformed from Su Wen's own world, their inherent ceilings and potential were extraordinary. Thus, in this early stage of the world's development, there was no need to worry about their potential.
"Two years of accumulation and settling should be enough to suppress the gods."
Su Wen cast his gaze toward the higher dimensions. Piercing through layers of dimensions, he seemed to see the high-and-mighty Divine Realm and the various retired gods residing within it.
"Phew, it's time to break through."
Receiving reports from Lin Dong and Ye Luochen via a portion of his consciousness in the academic network, Su Wen couldn't help but feel highly satisfied.
"All arrangements have been completed. Next, it will be your own era."
Su Wen looked down at the Douluo Planet beneath his feet.
To what extent the Douluo Planet could break through depended entirely on the efforts of the Spirit Master world itself.
He was only responsible for helping the Douluo Planet break through the shackles of the god-level, allowing it to accommodate god-level and true god-level entities. As for taking a step further, and whether it could develop to accommodate super god-level or even higher-level powerhouses in the future, that would require the efforts of the Spirit Master world itself.
The Myriad Celestial Stars Array, complete!
Su Wen pointed with his right hand, and brilliant beams of light rose from various locations across the Douluo Planet.
Pillars of light connected the heavens and the earth, covering the entire Douluo Planet.
The pillars of light intersected in the sky.
"What's happening?"
The Douluo Planet trembled.
From any location, one could see at least a dozen pillars of light soaring into the sky. And those were just the ones right before their eyes; looking out as far as the eye could see, they could discern countless dense phantoms of light pillars.
With the academic network available for communication, the Spirit Master world quickly discovered that pillars of light were soaring into the sky from every location across the entire Douluo Planet.
"This is an array!"
Someone yelled loudly while observing the pillars of light connecting in the sky, watching the light within them flow and circulate after connecting.
"An array!"
"An array covering the entire Douluo Planet!"
"This must be Grandmaster Wen's handiwork!"
"The handiwork of the great God of Knowledge!"
Su Wen paid no heed to the frenzy within the academic community.
He triggered the Myriad Celestial Stars Array. His divine sense from various locations had long since fused into the array, controlling its operation.
All across the Douluo Planet, members of the Academy were scattered atop array bases, circulating their soul power to assist Su Wen in operating the massive array.
As the array took form, it began to swallow and draw in energy from the universe.
Under the operation and digestion of the array, the cosmic energy was rapidly absorbed and refined by the Academy students, helping them break through their soul power bottlenecks.
This was a grand occasion.
It was also a benefit provided by Su Wen to the students of the Academy.
It was equivalent to everyone being cleansed by the power of the stars, breaking through an average of three ranks in their soul power bottlenecks.
Xiao Zhan also served as a crucial array base. Acting as a main force at this moment, he refined an immense amount of starlight energy, his soul power breaking through successively.
He broke through directly to rank ninety-eight, requiring only the condensation of his third soul core to break through to rank ninety-nine.
And this was not difficult for him.
Over the past two years, Su Wen had already shared his experiences regarding the condensation of a third soul core with him.
He had also studied it deeply, planning out and preparing for all possible scenarios for condensing his own third soul core long ago.
At this moment, with the massive starlight energy empowering him, it was the absolute best time to break through.
Condense the soul core!
Aside from Xiao Zhan, other powerhouses also served as array bases this time.
The Academy students had contacted all powerhouses above the Spirit Douluo rank on the Douluo Planet to serve as array bases for the deployment of the Myriad Celestial Stars Array.
This time was a centralized refinement of cosmic energy.
Among it, only a small portion--less than ten percent of the starlight energy--was refined by them, which already stuffed them to their limits. The remaining portion, exceeding ninety percent, returned to the world, nourishing the plane.
In the past, they had always devoured the primeval energy within the Douluo plane to cultivate. Now, they had finally formed a feedback loop.
They actively devoured external cosmic energy to nourish the Douluo plane.
At this point, the cultivation system formed a perfect closed loop.
The rules of the plane were perfected.
Su Wen smiled slightly and released the restriction on the soul power within his body.
Boom!
His soul power broke through.
Rank one hundred!
The barrier ahead was shattered by him, and the path beneath his feet began to extend. His soul power circulated, quietly leaving behind a god-level path within the Douluo plane.
Upon reaching rank one hundred, a path appeared.
Rank one hundred, obtaining the tenth soul ring!
Attaining godhood at rank hundred, the tenth ring would be bestowed by heaven and earth!
Above Su Wen's head, tribulation clouds composed of a full nine colors gathered, churning violently.
By undergoing the tribulation and passing the godhood tribulation, one could become a god while receiving a god-level soul ring bestowed by the laws of heaven and earth.
Moving forward, at rank one hundred and ten and every ten ranks thereafter, one would face the trials of heaven and earth to obtain new god-level soul rings from the laws of nature.
This was the path opened up by Su Wen. The breakthroughs of future Spirit Masters would all follow this template.
The Douluo plane underwent a massive change.
The Divine Realm.
The gods were shaken.
They felt it.
Even without controlling the core of the Divine Realm, they could still sense the commotion caused by the breakthrough of a subordinate plane.
This was a colossal fluctuation.
A fluctuation that transcended dimensions.
Moving from a sub-space to a small world was a change capable of nurturing life.
Moving from a small world to a plane was the perfection of rules, a transformation from three dimensions to four dimensions.
Moving from a plane to a god-level plane was the final shaping of rules, the sublimation of the origin, and a detachment from the existing four dimensions, no longer bound by the universe.
When a plane promoted to a god-level plane, the range of the fluctuations was extremely vast.
Multiple neighboring star domains could even sense it from afar.