"Ming Er!"
Seeing Yun Ming suddenly fall into such a state, Yang Wudi could no longer remain still. Ignoring everything else, he flashed to Yun Ming's side, intending to reach out and grab his wrist to investigate the condition inside his body.
However, he failed to make contact, as Yun Ming dodged him. Enduring the intense pain, Yun Ming gritted his teeth and said.
"Grandfather, this is a normal process; I am fine."
"Also, do not touch me, or it will disrupt the balance within my body."
After warning Yang Wudi, Yun Ming continued his great undertaking of forming the soul cores. Hearing this, Yang Wudi could only stand by and watch, anxious and helpless.
Facing this level of agony, even with Yun Ming's mental fortitude, he nearly cried out in pain.
Yet, the pain also provided Yun Ming with a benefit of sorts: it kept him exceptionally clear-headed.
Seeing the two soul cores inside his body clashing with their soul power without yielding, he immediately pushed his control over the two soul spirits to the limit, intending to suppress the resistance of both cores first.
While the soul spirits forcefully maintained control to prevent the two cores from erupting completely, they each opened a small gap, allowing the cores to adapt to each other's existence.
Meanwhile, Yun Ming himself mobilized the soul power stored within his Atlas Divine Spear martial soul to protect his meridians, bones, and internal organs.
Although the soul spirits had not fully suppressed the repulsive force between the two cores, leaving them with an outlet to vent their power, and the clash between his spiritual power and bloodline power continued to cause him pain, it was already much better than before.
Doing this had two benefits. First, the two cores needed to slowly adapt to each other's existence amidst this intense repulsion; this was an unavoidable process for them to reach a certain balance on their own. Second, Yun Ming needed this buffer time to actively seek the point of perfect equilibrium between the two; once he found that point, he could subdue them in one fell swoop.
But now, the impact of his plan being disrupted had appeared. Without the help of the two soul spirits, the time Yun Ming could suppress the soul cores was drastically reduced; he had originally expected to hold on for a while longer.
As time passed, the power of the two soul spirits was exhausted, their control gradually began to slip, and the intensity of the two cores' collision began to increase again. The clash between the spiritual power and bloodline power, tainted with the aura of annihilation and creation, grew increasingly fierce, and the pain Yun Ming felt surged. On the surface of his skin, fine beads of blood began to seep out continuously.
After an unknown amount of time, the power of the Evil King and Tian Ling faded to the extreme. After notifying Yun Ming, they inevitably fell into a deep slumber.
However, the self-balance between the two soul cores was still very weak, and under these circumstances, Yun Ming had no way to subdue the dual soul cores in one go.
Without the support of the two soul spirits, the all-out struggle between the soul cores broke through Yun Ming's defenses. His chest, where his lungs and heart were located, along with numerous major meridians, were now being continuously impacted by the two reversing energies. The pain this brought to Yun Ming was unimaginable.
Yun Ming endured the pain and used internal vision to look within himself. He saw his meridians appearing to fracture, his internal organs on the verge of collapse from the squeezing and twisting, and countless tiny blood vessels rupturing. He knew he didn't have much time left. He had to come up with a new plan immediately, or if things continued this way, his body would likely be torn apart by the power within. Furthermore, his two soul cores would explode due to losing control.
'Watching' those two fighting to the death with no sign of yielding, Yun Ming's brain raced, hoping to find a solution.
'What should I do? Is there any other way?'
A moment later, Yun Ming thought of something. Feeling his body on the verge of collapse, he became resolute.
'It seems the only way is to seek life through death!'
No sooner thought than done, six soul rings of distinct colors, far beyond common knowledge, appeared on Yun Ming. Then, under Yang Wudi's astonished gaze, Yun Ming's first three soul rings suddenly fractured, turning into a surging wave of blood-colored soul power that fiercely merged into the Atlas Divine Spear.
Yang Wudi was shocked: "Great Sumeru Hammer?!!"
As for whether Yun Ming was using the Great Sumeru Hammer? Of course not, but this move of his was indeed inspired by it.
With the situation having developed to this point, the only solution Yun Ming could think of was to use a third, sufficiently powerful energy to directly threaten the two soul cores, forcing them to temporarily set aside their struggle and unite against an external threat to maintain their own existence.
But where would this energy come from? Right now, Yun Ming's body was a chaotic mess; external soul power couldn't enter his body, and his own soul power had been completely drained by the two cores, so he had to choose an extreme method. Tang Xiao's ring detonation gave him an idea.
Shrek Academy had two thousand years of heritage; although it didn't contain the cultivation method of the Great Sumeru Hammer, it did have some research on soul rings. The secret technique used by the two generations of Dragon God Douluo ten thousand years later—formatting soul rings and then adding innate soul skills—was one of the results of Shrek's research. Although Yun Ming didn't know how to detonate a soul ring without damaging its origin, he could at least detonate a soul ring completely to turn it into one-time energy.
"Bang! Bang! Bang--"
Excluding the last three rings related to his soul spirits, Yun Ming detonated all his other soul rings. Suddenly, a surging energy far exceeding his own cultivation erupted. Struck by the powerful energy, large patches of bloodstains began to appear on Yun Ming's skin, and blood gushed out like a fountain in an instant.
But Yun Ming clearly had no time to worry about this. He injected the energy from the detonated rings into the Atlas Divine Spear and exerted his full strength to drive the Atlas Divine Spear's anti-air power to press down on the two soul cores.
"Hum hum--"
The two soul cores, which had been fighting each other, felt the arrival of the anti-air power. They began to vibrate slightly, humming, and then launched a fierce resistance against the Atlas Divine Spear.
"Pfft--"
The Atlas Divine Spear clashed directly with the two soul cores, causing further severe damage to Yun Ming's already near-limit body. He spat out a mouthful of blood essence swirling with the power of life and destruction. However, this made Yun Ming's eyes light up; the fact that the soul cores resisted in unison proved that his method was indeed effective.
Soul cores were, by nature, the product of space power combined with soul power. Using anti-air power was indeed the right medicine. Aside from putting himself in opposition to the two soul cores, there was nothing wrong with it. In any case, their struggle was already using his body as a battlefield, and he was going to be injured regardless; he might as well be injured for a better cause.
However, while the method was correct, the energy from the three soul rings seemed insufficient. The suppression of the Atlas Divine Spear triggered the resistance of the two soul cores, but they were still attacking each other.
Noticing the current problem, a flash of madness crossed Yun Ming's eyes. Golden flames began to ignite on his body, and his aura suddenly began to skyrocket.
Sensing the powerful aura rising from Yun Ming, Yang Wudi was horrified and shouted out, "Ming Er, don't!"
But Yun Ming clearly could not listen to Yang Wudi now. The energy wasn't enough, he had already detonated his soul rings, and he couldn't touch the origin of his soul spirits—what else could he do? The final method was to burn his life force.
However, once he started burning his life, Yun Ming suddenly felt enlightened. He inwardly cursed himself for his lack of flexibility; why hadn't he thought of such a useful trick earlier? He had suffered for nothing for so long.
Burning life force had many disadvantages: the most direct being a reduction in lifespan, a decline in soul master talent, a weakening of all-around physical capabilities, and so on. But for Yun Ming, it didn't seem to matter!
As for lifespan, not to mention the precious medicinal herbs of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well behind him, even relying on himself, as long as he broke through to Title Douluo soon and continued to progress rapidly, he could make up for the loss in no time. His soul master talent here referred to the speed of soul power accumulation; he had already condensed dual soul cores and was cultivating with future techniques, so his improvement speed would only skyrocket. He wouldn't miss the small amount of soul power gained from running his meditation method. As for physical function, not to mention that he had a blood soul core that would help him strengthen his physique at all times in the future, he could recover quickly just from the normal growth of his cultivation.
Therefore, as long as he survived the period of weakness after burning his life force, the life he burned today was, for Yun Ming, just an illusory number.
In the blink of an eye, having cleared his mind of all burdens, Yun Ming directly burned twenty years of his life force and poured it into the Atlas Divine Spear.
The Atlas Divine Spear suddenly erupted with towering white flames, and endless, tangible space restriction white flame encroached upon the two soul cores in a pincer movement.
This time, feeling the suddenly surging power on the Atlas Divine Spear, the two soul cores could no longer afford to fight each other and began to fully mobilize their spiritual power and bloodline power to confront the space restriction white flame.
In an instant, the interior of Yun Ming's body turned into a battlefield of white flames, spiritual power, and bloodline power. Because the power of the two soul cores carried Yun Ming's own characteristics, they actually managed to block the anti-air power.
Seeing that the Two Soul Cores were still fighting each other, Yun Ming silently added more "fuel" to the Life Fire, sacrificing another twenty years of his lifespan. Ten years were used to protect his own body, and ten years were used to bolster the Space Restriction White Flame.
Once reinforced, the Space Restriction White Flame surged within Yun Ming's body, officially overwhelming the Two Soul Cores. It began to seize territory, crushing their spheres of influence and forcing them into a steady retreat.
Under Yun Ming's ruthless, high-pressure tactics, the Two Soul Cores had no choice but to operate at their limits, resisting with everything they had.
Because of their differing natures, the full-force exertion of the Two Soul Cores initially caused even more violent collisions. Like a thunderbolt striking a wildfire, it immediately triggered a massive shockwave within Yun Ming's body. Had he not burned another ten years of his life to intercept the impact, it might have torn his body apart, but soon, a mutation occurred.
The two forces, pushed to their absolute limits, suddenly began to transform and merge with one another. The Annihilation Spiritual Power and the Creation Bloodline Power, which had been completely opposed, began to shift their attributes, generating and restraining each other, growing continuously.
Perceiving this change, Yun Ming was overjoyed; the moment for coordination and symbiosis had arrived! He immediately formed a hand seal, beginning the final process of subjugation, unification, and fusion.
As the integration of the Yin-Yang Soul Cores entered the right track, Yun Ming fell into a profound state of epiphany. The dizziness of his spirit and the burning sensation of his blood were all fading away, though, in his current state, Yun Ming could no longer feel these physical sensations.
Outside, Yang Wudi saw Yun Ming's hair turn white in an instant, his breathing cease, and his Life Fire extinguish. His face turned deathly pale, and he stumbled back two steps.
Fortunately, this state only lasted for a moment before other changes began to appear on Yun Ming's body; otherwise, Yang Wudi truly wouldn't have known what to do after witnessing his grandson "pass away."
Seeing the changes beginning to manifest on Yun Ming again, Yang Wudi knew the situation hadn't reached the worst-case scenario. He suppressed his other emotions and prayed to the gods for Yun Ming's protection.
Light patterns flared brightly on Yun Ming's body. Dark Purple Gold Ghost King Markings began to spread from his forehead, quickly covering his entire face before trailing down his neck, past his collarbone, and further downward. Simultaneously, Scarlet Gold Golden Tree markings began to cover his entire body, spreading from his chest, shoulders, arms, and abdomen.
Within just a few minutes, Yun Ming's entire body was covered in these two-toned markings. Not only that, but a massive phantom of the Atlas Divine Spear appeared behind him, and countless two-toned patterns began to emerge upon the spear itself. A terrifying suction force appeared once more, twice as strong as before. The natural energy in the air immediately began to converge toward Yun Ming at an astonishing speed.
The blood-stained clothes on Yun Ming's body were reduced to dust in an instant, revealing a physique that perfectly combined power and beauty.
His muscular frame, covered in intricate markings, exuded a primitive and mysterious texture.
The spear behind him gradually evolved into a two-toned black hole, terrifyingly devouring everything in the air. Yang Wudi could feel his own Soul Power and Spiritual Power being drained from a distance, and the suction force was much stronger than before, forcing him to retreat once more while increasing his own Soul Power output to maintain control.
Time ticked by second by second, and the tremors in Yun Ming's body gradually stabilized. The black hole of the Soul Cores on his forehead and chest vanished, and a new, magnificent set of patterns emerged on the phantom of the Atlas Divine Spear behind him.
Within the phantom of the spear, there was an endless starry sky, shimmering with starlight; a vast, ancient tree sheltering all living things; countless colorful worlds; and a majestic man clad in divine armor and wearing an imperial crown, standing above the sands of the universe, his back turned to the world. The image seemed to contain everything.
Finally, all the markings on Yun Ming's body began to recede like a tide. Just as quickly as they had appeared, they vanished with equal speed. As the markings faded, Yun Ming's skin emitted a faint golden glow, which also slowly dissipated. Yet, the feeling he projected was as if he had undergone a sublimation.
Yun Ming's physical changes finally returned to normal, save for the two Sun Moon Phantoms above his head, which rotated in sync, reflecting each other's brilliance.
Around these two phantoms, there was a layer of fine, dense light patterns. Although their colors, energies, and auras differed, they all shared one trait: every single light pattern was constantly flickering and shifting, resembling jagged tears in space.
They were clearly hovering above Yun Ming, yet, when stared at closely, they seemed to exist in another world. This profound sensation captivated Yang Wudi, who watched without blinking, until Yun Ming opened his eyes—
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: DaoistReader