Inside the study room of Spirit Hall.
Xiao Lin handed Tang San the blanket he had once slept with here, then turned around and sat on the chair, beginning to write his thesis.
"Lin-ge, if you give me this blanket, how are you going to sleep later?"
Tang San looked at the blanket in his hands, his expression somewhat complicated.
"What do you mean, how am I going to sleep? We'll just squeeze together later. It's so hot anyway, and this isn't even a blanket—it's a mat."
Xiao Lin casually replied, then started thinking about the title of his thesis.
He wasn't planning to write this thesis using the standard academic format—he was going to use a sensationalized headline.
"Shocking! The Flow of Martial Soul Power Actually Has These Dangers!"
After thinking for a long time, he finally wrote down these words on the draft.
Xiao Lin had many research theories, but he didn't want to shock too many people at once or reveal theories that were too advanced.
Otherwise, he might have to worry about his own safety.
This particular theory was just right—ordinary people would become aware of the dangers, intelligent people would start thinking about how to choose the right spirit rings, and most importantly, Dugu Bo would be shocked.
Making Dugu Bo surprised, making Dugu Bo pay attention—this was what Xiao Lin wanted to achieve.
As for why he wasn't worried that Dugu Bo might pose a threat to him?
First, he trusted Tang San's detoxification abilities. Second, he believed in Dugu Bo's attitude toward Tang San.
After all, even when Dugu Bo found out that Tang San had taken all the immortal herbs, did he say anything?
No, and he even started calling Tang San his brother.
Tang San taking all the immortal herbs might have been a bit ungracious, but since Dugu Bo himself never mentioned it, Xiao Lin wouldn't say anything either.
Now, with Xiao Lin here, at worst, they could just give Dugu Yan an immortal herb to improve her physique.
Dugu Bo, who knew nothing about immortal herbs, had his life-threatening poison removed and his granddaughter freed from the risk of death—what more could he ask for?
If they could improve Dugu Yan's physique to the level of the Shrek Seven Devils who had consumed immortal herbs in the original story, that would already be quite good.
Later, when they went to train on Seagod Island, they could bring Dugu Yan along to receive divine bestowal, divine power, and divine spirit rings.
Wouldn't that be even more generous than Tang San in the original story?
And once Tang San became a god, they could evaluate whether Dugu Yan had the potential to become one as well. If she did, they could lend a helping hand.
Wouldn't that be enough to earn Dugu Bo's gratitude?
So, after considering everything, Xiao Lin finally decided to write about this theory.
The core reason was that Dugu Bo was more trustworthy than Spirit Hall and the others.
Xiao Lin continued writing.
"As everyone knows, the relationship between martial souls and soul masters is inseparable. However, the color of soul power varies among individuals, yet no one has ever paid attention to this. Thus, I, Xiao Yan, have conducted the following research on the relationship between soul power color and martial souls."
Author: Xiao YanAdvisor: Lin Dong
After filling in some details, Xiao Lin started citing references.
Through extensive reading, Xiao Yan discovered that different soul masters had variations in their soul power, and these differences had distinct effects.
For example, the "White Tiger Duke's Travel Notes" recorded an intriguing incident.
During a game of poker with one of his maids, the White Tiger Duke discovered that his soul power was far more resistant to high temperatures compared to others.
In fact, as long as he released his yellow-white soul power, he could ignore many forms of damage.
However, the maid's soul power did not have such an effect. Her soul power, matching her ordinary plant-type martial soul, was green and highly susceptible to fire's heat.
Out of curiosity, the White Tiger Duke attacked the maid's soul power using his own. He found that her soul power was completely overwhelmed by his yellow-white energy.
At first, the White Tiger Duke thought this meant he had an innate advantage against all plant-type soul masters.
But later, during his travels across the Star Luo Empire, he encountered a pair of twin sisters.
Tempted by their beauty, the White Tiger Duke naturally didn't want to miss the chance to "play poker" with them.
However, to his surprise, his proud White Tiger martial soul was rendered completely ineffective in front of the twin sisters.
Or rather, the moment his yellow-white soul power came into contact with their unique soul power, it immediately softened.
The twin sisters had very common plant-type martial souls—one had the Corpse Flower (a giant, foul-smelling Rafflesia), while the other had the Consort Flower (a highly fragrant exotic bloom).
The moment they released their martial souls and their green soul power touched the White Tiger Duke, his own soul power instantly weakened, nearly losing all its combat potential.
This incident was only recorded in the White Tiger Duke's memoirs near the end of his life.
Xiao Yan found this discovery deeply intriguing.
Both the maid and the twin sisters had plant-type martial souls, yet why did the twins possess such a powerful effect?
And why did the White Tiger Duke's soul power soften?
Wasn't it supposed to be purely physical in nature?
After gathering relevant materials and conducting detailed research, Xiao Yan formulated some preliminary conclusions:
Plant-type martial souls are inherently vulnerable to fire and ice attributes. Even pure soul power exhibits this weakness, making it difficult to withstand extreme heat or cold. Furthermore, plant-type soul masters typically possess green-colored soul power.
The White Tiger martial soul, known for its extreme yang and rigid attributes, has a high resistance to physical damage. The White Tiger Duke's yellow-white soul power likely contained metallic properties, which made it effective against plant-type martial souls.
The twin sisters' soul power was highly unusual and seemed to be directly influenced by their martial souls.
These conclusions raised even more questions for Xiao Yan.
He then investigated the descendants of the White Tiger Duke, specifically the Evil-Eyed White Tiger martial soul.
This top-tier beast martial soul was incredibly powerful. However, when it first awakened, it did not initially possess metallic properties.
It was only after obtaining its third spirit ability from a Diamond Tiger soul ring that the Evil-Eyed White Tiger gained a metallic attribute.
From that point on, soul masters with the Evil-Eyed White Tiger martial soul started developing yellow-white soul power, cementing its reputation as a top-tier martial soul.
Additionally, Xiao Yan researched the Corpse Flower and Consort Flower spirit beasts.
At their earliest stages, neither of these spirit beasts had any offensive capabilities—they merely emitted foul or fragrant odors.
However, upon reaching the hundred-year level, the Corpse Flower's stench intensified, while the Consort Flower's fragrance became even more potent.
More interestingly, when these two scents mixed, they produced a paralyzing effect on anyone who inhaled them.
Xiao Yan theorized that this was the source of the twin sisters' special soul power effect.
The most astonishing revelation was that—whether it was the maid's soul power, the White Tiger Duke's soul power, or the twin sisters'—all of them had already developed distinct attributes before using any soul skills.
Some even had their soul power color change entirely.
This led Xiao Yan to a profound question:
Is soul power really just soul power?
(End of Chapter)