Chapter 29: Douluo Society, Next Stop: Stark City
The journey was bumpy. After less than two days in the carriage, Tang Shan couldn't take it anymore and took the initiative to get off to stretch his legs.
"This Heaven Dou Empire is really something; they don't even know how to repair such a dilapidated road."
Tang Shan subconsciously rubbed his backside, which had been tortured by the bumpy carriage, and couldn't help but complain.
Su Yuntao and Tang Shan followed the carriage on foot. Hearing Tang Shan's words, he nodded in agreement.
"The road is indeed terrible. Fortunately, our physical fitness is decent enough to keep up with the carriage after getting off, otherwise, I really don't know how we would survive the journey to Heaven Dou City."
"By the way, Big Brother, do you think we might encounter bandits on the road?"
Tang Shan was curious. For Su Yuntao, who had long intended to travel, this knowledge was necessary. Hearing Tang Shan's question, he shook his head.
"We basically won't encounter human bandits; after all, the living environment in the Heaven Dou Empire isn't too bad."
Hearing this, Tang Shan became thoughtful.
Even if one looks at the social structure, the two great Empires of Douluo are not as unified as the dynasties of his previous life. However, in terms of longevity, the dynasties of his previous life combined probably wouldn't be as long-lasting as the Empires of Douluo Continent.
There is only one reason for this: the existence of Spirit Masters.
Not to mention the strength of top-tier Spirit Masters capable of changing the World or acting as a one-man army, simply in terms of alleviating social conflicts, commoners also have the possibility of possessing spirit power and using it to improve their social status. This subtle but real possibility greatly lubricates the friction between the two classes.
Even without discussing these reasons for alleviating conflicts, there is another important factor.
The most basic reason for any uprising by the common people is that they cannot survive. But this is Douluo Continent, and there are food system Spirit Masters. They possess the conditions to produce large amounts of food in a short time. To say that the common people cannot survive—it is simply easy to appease the public with large amounts of food.
From the top, there is absolute top-tier strength; from the middle, there is a tangible path for advancement; from the bottom, the existence of food system Spirit Masters ensures that as long as the emperor is not hopelessly incompetent, the common people will not be truly pushed to the point of being unable to survive.
No wonder even after ten thousand years, Douluo Continent remains a feudal system.
Tang Shan couldn't help but sigh. If it weren't for the collision with the neighboring continent, bringing the dimension-reduction strike of spirit tools, I'm afraid that by the time of the "legend of the dragon king", the feudal imperial system would still be prevalent.
"However, there is one type of bandit that is hard to say."
Tang Shan's eyes flickered: "Big Brother, are you talking about the Wolftaken?"
Su Yuntao nodded, a trace of solemnity appearing on his face.
The Wolftaken are a crossbreed between the Storm Devil Wolf and humans. They do not have Spirits, possess abilities similar to Spirit Beasts, but do not produce spirit rings. However, they have a chance to produce Spirit Bones. Whether it's because they are closer to human form or some other reason, the production probability is higher than that of ordinary Spirit Beasts.
They are inherently cruel and lascivious. If not for regular extermination, they would likely become a major scourge to humanity.
Tang Shan frowned: "We are on the main road now; could it be that we might still be attacked by them?"
"Large groups naturally won't, but small groups that are ill-informed—that's hard to say."
Su Yuntao shrugged helplessly.
"Forget it, when the carriage reaches the mountain, there will be a road. By then, relying on our strength, dealing with a few Wolftaken shouldn't be much of a problem."
Tang Shan watched the carriage, which had turned into a small dot in the distance, and decided to speed up to catch up.
He did not use any Spirit Ability, but during this time, by comprehending the effects of his Spirit Ability, his control over his body had improved by leaps and bounds.
The muscles in his left leg bulged, his sole gripped the ground, and power erupted.
In an instant, his figure shot out, leaving only a small depression on the ground, which showed that his control over power had improved again.
Moving forward about five or six meters, his speed gradually slowed, and his right leg tapped the ground lightly again.
Another small depression appeared on the spot.
His body seemed to be one seamless whole, power circulated smoothly and then erupted from the soles of his feet. Tang Shan quickly closed the distance to the carriage, while simultaneously falling into thought.
This shouldn't count as light body technique, but rather more like a forced explosive step. It's just that my method of eruption seems more exquisite, and the power is more concentrated.
The cultivation of the body has entered the right track. As long as I train normally, it is a smooth road until the Elixir Strength, which requires a transformation of the mind. It's just that I haven't figured out how the mind should transform yet;
As for the remaining research on the Meridians, with the cultivation of the past few days, there have been considerable results. In addition to the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, I also discovered the hand yangming large intestine meridian and the foot yangming stomach meridian, the operating lines of three of the twelve primary meridians. This has greatly accelerated my cultivation speed. It seems that I had not fully unleashed the cultivation speed of my Innately Full Spirit Power before. However, to prevent meridian conflict, the previous free Cultivation Technique from Spirit Hall cannot be practiced anymore. After all, the twelve primary meridians have not been fully explored, and connecting them immediately to the eight extraordinary meridians is very likely to bring some consequences I cannot foresee.
It's better to continue following the idea from that day in the Soul Hunting Forest, letting the spirit power in my body naturally find its own operating lines.
These studies and cultivation can actually be completely categorized into three aspects, which are Essence, Qi, and Spirit.
There is no need to worry about the cultivation of Essence. spirit power can be seen as the cultivation of Qi. The cultivation of Qi is natural, but regarding the control of Qi, there isn't much of a method. As for Spirit, which is the mental force aspect, I currently cannot find a research direction at all.
Researching the application of Qi, Tang Shan quickly locked onto his next exploration goal. As for Spirit, it shouldn't be needed in the short term. Besides, the improvement of Essence and Qi can passively drive the improvement of Spirit; after all, it is refining essence into Qi, and refining Qi into Spirit.
Suddenly, a force came from behind, pulling his clothes.
Caught off guard, Tang Shan stumbled.
"Little Brother, what are you thinking about? So engrossed, you almost bumped into the carriage."
Su Yuntao's annoyed voice sounded from behind.
Tang Shan, as if waking from a dream, discovered with lingering fear that he was only a meter away from the carriage. If Big Brother hadn't pulled him, he would likely have bumped straight into it.
Even though his body was strong and bumping into it wouldn't be a big deal, avoiding the collision was still excellent.
"I was thinking about cultivation."
Tang Shan didn't continue to follow the carriage but returned to the carriage and explained to Su Yuntao, who was also getting on.
"Shan Zi, besides cultivation, is there nothing else you can think about?"
Su Haichao, who had been sitting in the carriage the whole time, rubbed his forehead and couldn't help but ask.
Tang Shan blinked, looking a bit surprised. "Why think about other things? Don't you think cultivation is a very interesting thing?"
"Little Brother, if you don't become a powerhouse in the future, it wouldn't make sense."
Su Yuntao couldn't help but pat Tang Shan's thigh, ultimately only managing to blurt out this sentence.
"Shan Zi, whether it's cultivation or research, you must strike a balance. You must never be overly eager for quick success."
Su Haichao couldn't help but earnestly advise.
Tang Shan nodded: "Don't worry, I will never be eager for quick success."
Afterward, he leaned back in the carriage, eyes slightly closed, not knowing whether he was thinking or resting.
Su Yuntao and his father Su Haichao looked at each other and could only smile bitterly.
Su Haichao's words did indeed remind Tang Shan that one must never be greedy for quick results or reckless in anything, but as he carefully recalled his research process, he completely relaxed.
Almost all of his research results, in the eyes of Su Haichao and Su Yuntao, might be something obtained only through forgetting to eat and sleep and racking one's brains.
But no one knew the true origin of these theories better than Tang Shan:
I was reviewing novels in my mind to unearth research results, and the protagonists within them were indeed going through ups and downs, racking their brains.
Sometimes it often makes me feel annoyed and gives me a headache, after all, how to resolve the conflicts in the worldview, and what the truth of the God Realm actually is.
Doing research is like this; others only need to experiment on different Spirit Masters or refer to some literature;
But as a master of a generation, I must carefully experience the path of destiny of the child of the era "reading novels", grasp the pulse of the World's rules "finding settings", bear the pressure of the whole World "reading the novel makes me angry", yet still move forward under the burden "still want to read"...
Tang Shan even admired himself; despite being under such immense pressure, he still researched exquisite Spirit theories, benefiting the vast number of Spirit Masters. It was simply too great.
The night was like ink, with starlight scattered all over the sky, exceptionally charming.
The chirping of insects and birds was incessant, bringing a bit of life to the quiet forest.
A bonfire was lit, emitting a bright firelight that illuminated this clearing.
The three of them sat around the bonfire, eating heated dry rations.
"Dad, is the carriage driver not coming over?"
Drinking a sip of hot water, Su Yuntao asked his father.
"He said he has already eaten and is resting in the carriage."
Su Haichao explained and then took out a tent.
"We will camp here today and continue our journey tomorrow morning."
Tang Shan and Su Yuntao nodded.
"By the way, what is the next city we are going to?"
The curious Tang Shan couldn't help but ask.
"Let me see."
Su Yuntao took a map out of his bosom and examined it carefully under the light of the fire.
"It is Stark City. We should be able to arrive tomorrow. We will enter the city to replenish some supplies before setting off again."
"How big is this city?"
Tang Shan's hand tapped his thigh unconsciously, and an idea formed in his mind.
"This city is not small. Because the surrounding area contains a special metal called black gold, the overall economic and trade situation is quite favorable."
Su Yuntao gave the answer quickly.
Upon hearing this, Tang Shan immediately stated his idea.
"Big Brother, didn't you want to go to the Great Spirit Arena to fight? How about we start from this city? It just so happens we can also see Big Brother's 'heroic bearing'."
Su Yuntao's eyes lit up, but he hesitated and looked at Su Haichao.
"Dad, did Spirit Hall say when you should go to Heaven Dou City to take up your post?"
Su Haichao smiled and shook his head.
"No, they just said to arrive within this year. The rest of the time is considered a vacation. Since you have an idea, we will go to the Great Spirit Arena to take a look together tomorrow."
Su Yuntao was excited, but was forcibly held down by Tang Shan.
"Big Brother, Cultivate well today and adjust your state to the best. Don't be careless tomorrow."
Su Yuntao took a deep breath, calmed his mood, then quickly set up the tent and entered it to Cultivate.
Tang Shan and Su Haichao chatted for a while, then also entered the tent to begin cultivating.
Strands of transparent spirit power started from the Dantian, traveled along the chest to the lungs, and then circulated along the operating line of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian. After reaching the end of the meridian, it entered the hand yangming large intestine meridian from the tip of the index finger...
Between the circulation of the Meridians, the spirit power improved rapidly, and the speed of improvement was twice as fast as before.
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