Ziyang looked at the motionless gray bead, remaining silent for a moment.
Then, his gaze was drawn to his own spiritual sea space. Also benefiting from the Silver Dragon Wolf's sacrifice, Ziyang's spiritual sea space had undergone tremendous changes.
His spiritual sea had expanded by more than double, his total mental force had increased by fifty percent, and his mental force level had reached the pinnacle of the tangible yet formless realm. In terms of mental force cultivation, even an ordinary Spirit King would likely not be his match.
Ziyang floated above the spiritual sea, with the Iclais Soul Pearl and a silver rhombus-shaped crystal before him. His gaze fell upon the silver rhombus-shaped crystal, which contained a miniature silver Dragon. This should be related to the Silver Dragon Wolf.
He touched the crystal with his mental force and sensed a faint soul fluctuation from within.
He recalled a legend: after a 100,000-Year Soul Beast sacrifices itself, its soul is immortal and will reside within its spirit ring.
The truth of this statement is unknown, as throughout the entire history of the Continent, only three Spirit Masters have received a 100,000-Year Soul Beast's sacrifice. Ten thousand years ago, Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao and Thousand Hands Douluo Tang San, father and son, became the first and second Spirit Masters to receive a Soul Beast sacrifice because their wives were 100,000-Year Soul Beasts who had taken human form.
The third was Ziyang.
He decided to leave the silver crystal for now; after all, within his spiritual sea, it couldn't cause any trouble.
The spiritual sea was a pure, azure lake, where mental force gathered as a pristine blue liquid without a trace of impurity. Silver ripples shimmered on the lake's surface, yet when Ziyang mobilized his mental force, there was no silver light within it.
Ziyang felt puzzled, but he vaguely sensed that this was related to the Silver Dragon Wolf.
The spiritual sea space outside the spiritual sea was an area known as the Soul and Body Firmament, the boundary wall between the soul and the body. This wall separated a Spirit Master's soul and body. Only top-tier powerhouses who had condensed a Soul Core could break the shackles between soul and body, allowing them to recombine and achieve the realm of primordial unity.
At this moment, Ziyang's Soul and Body Firmament was no longer the gray, lifeless expanse it once was, but a blue-and-white sky with a golden star hanging in it, surrounded by gray clouds, indistinguishable from the real sky outside.
The blue-and-white sky represented Ultimate Ice, the golden star represented Ultimate Light, and the gray clouds represented Death. These were the reflections of his ultimate Spirit in his spiritual sea.
After another glance at his spiritual sea, Ziyang contentedly withdrew his consciousness and returned to reality.
He wasn't in a hurry to cultivate. Instead, he extended both hands. Holy light elements gathered in his right palm, while the gray, cold Power of Death was guided into his left palm.
Thanks to his dual ultimate attributes, Ziyang could easily release different elements from each hand. He only needed to replace the ice element with the Power of Death.
He smiled and then began to cultivate.
The night passed uneventfully.
In the morning, Ziyang woke from his cultivation with a radiant expression.
Whenever he thought of the fortunate encounters of the past two days, he couldn't hide his joy, and the smile on his face never faded, which made Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying and Jiang Nannan somewhat curious.
Naturally, he couldn't tell them the truth, so he vaguely said that he had made a breakthrough, which was indeed not a lie.
For several days, Ziyang remained in a state of excitement. Perhaps it was his good mood, but his cultivation efficiency had improved significantly, which made Ziyang even happier.
— —
A week later.
Anyang City, outside the South Gate, by the official road.
Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying and Bai Xinyi were seeing off their children.
Today was the day Ziyang and Jiang Nannan departed for Shrek Academy.
"Yang Yang, you have been extraordinary since childhood. At six years old, you awakened your Spirit with innate full spirit power. Father believes in you; you will definitely be admitted to Shrek Academy!" Zhu Changhe said to Ziyang, his face filled with deep pride.
"That's right, my son is so outstanding, he will definitely become a student of Shrek Academy!" Liang Ying also said proudly, not forgetting to remind him, "Once you get to Shrek Academy, remember to send letters home!"
"Don't worry, Father and Mother." Ziyang said confidently with a smile, "Just wait for my good news."
"Mm!" The couple nodded simultaneously.
On the other side, Jiang Nannan also said goodbye to Bai Xinyi.
"Mother, I'm leaving." Jiang Nannan tried her best not to cry. Compared to Ziyang's maturity, she was still just an eleven-year-old girl. It was her first time leaving home for such a long distance and duration, so she naturally felt sadness.
"Mm! Go!" Bai Xinyi said with a relieved smile, gently stroking Jiang Nannan's beautiful hair.
The two left, heading south along the official road.
Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying and Bai Xinyi stood at the city gate, watching the two children until their figures disappeared from view.
"Let's go." Zhu Changhe withdrew his gaze and said.
"Okay." Liang Ying replied, then looked at Bai Xinyi and called out, "Sister Bai, let's go back."
"Mm!" Bai Xinyi nodded silently.
— —
Ziyang and Jiang Nannan traveled quickly, heading south.
Shrek Academy was located in the central region of the original Douluo Continent, precisely at the junction of the Three Great Empires: Tianhun, Douling, and Star Luo. Anyang City was situated in the northern border of the Tianhun Empire, also in the northern part of the Douluo Continent. To reach Shrek Academy, they naturally needed to travel south.
They planned to take the Tianbei Road alongside Tianhui Canyon to reach Heaven Dou City, the imperial capital of the Tianhun Empire. From Heaven Dou City, they would take the Tiansuo Road to the Suonan Province of the Tianhun Empire, and finally, take a small path to Shrek Academy. The distance between them was nearly eight thousand li. For the two of them, one a Spirit Elder and the other a Spirit Grandmaster, if they traveled day and night, it would only take seven days to arrive.
However, they naturally didn't need to rush like that, as there was still half a month until the start and end of Shrek Academy's enrollment period.
In fact, Ziyang didn't particularly care about joining Shrek Academy. His own talent ensured that he would receive sufficient attention no matter where he went.
The reasons he chose to go to Shrek Academy were, first, to fulfill the wishes of his parents and Hong Zhen. Second, joining Shrek Academy could bring him the greatest benefits, such as spirit rings and Spirit Bones. And third, Ziyang had a small ambition: what kind of strength would be required to become the master of the Continent's number one academy?
— —
"Brother, it looks like there's a village ahead. Let's ask to stay for the night." Jiang Nannan pointed to the faintly visible smoke in front and to the side, very pleasantly surprised, suggesting to Ziyang.
"Alright." Ziyang thought for a moment and agreed.
They had been sleeping outdoors for three consecutive nights. They had passed through a few cities along the way, but they hadn't stopped in any of them. At this point, they were in Falan City, about three hundred kilometers from Heaven Dou City. They had left Falan City in the afternoon, and if all went well, they would reach Heaven Dou City tomorrow morning.
The night was deep, and the smoke from the small village was particularly clear. After Ziyang and Jiang Nannan left the official road, they walked another three or four li along a small path before they could clearly see the full extent of the village.
This was a small village with only thirty to forty households, surrounded by mountains on three sides, and a small forest on one side. Beyond the forest was the official road. Ziyang and Jiang Nannan entered the small village via the forest path. They stood at the village entrance, looked around, and then walked towards a house at the entrance of the village.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
Arriving at the door, Ziyang knocked.
"Who is it?" A hoarse, faint voice came from inside the house. Footsteps approached from afar, and the tightly shut door opened. An Old Woman with silver hair peeked out. Seeing two unfamiliar faces, the Old Woman was puzzled and asked, "Who are you?"
"Hello, Old Woman, we are travelers passing by and would like to ask to stay at your home for the night, if possible?" Ziyang said with a smile.
"This..." The Old Woman hesitated, her ancient face showing some uncertainty. Her cloudy eyes scrutinized Ziyang and Jiang Nannan. Seeing that both were children of eleven or twelve, decades of life made her realize that these two youths were not ordinary people. She reluctantly nodded and said, "Alright, come in."
The Old Woman pulled the door open, allowing Ziyang and Jiang Nannan to enter the house.
"Thank you, Grandma." Jiang Nannan was very happy, smiling sweetly at the Old Woman and thanking her.
"N-no need to be polite." The Old Woman said.