Chapter 171: The New Spirit Core with Inner Core Characteristics
After chatting for a while longer, Guang Ling and Qing Luan urged Han Li and Dugu Bo to get some rest, considering they had just returned from the City of Slaughter.
The night passed without incident.
The next morning, the group was up early not because they had slept well, but because they were still not fully adjusted.
After spending so long in the City of Slaughter, even the slightest disturbance made them react instantly. They were so on edge that even Guang Ling and Qing Luan were repeatedly woken up.
It couldn't be helped every time they opened their eyes, their martial souls automatically activated, and their killing intent surged out uncontrollably.
"If I stay with you guys any longer, I might actually go insane."
Guang Ling gave them a helpless look, not holding back his complaints.
"It'll stop in a few days."
Han Li responded a bit sheepishly. He had caused the most disturbances last night.
"There's a small town nearby. Let's stay there for a few days. Besides, there are some matters with the merchant guild that require your decision."
Qing Luan smiled and suggested.
"Sounds good. By the way, Uncle, what's going on with the guild?"
Han Li immediately agreed, then turned to ask.
"What else? The guild clashed with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect just as you originally expected."
Guang Ling shook his head, not too concerned about the matter.
"Oh? That means the Seven Profound Gate is developing even better than I expected."
Han Li looked thoughtful, a smile appearing on his face.
"Yes, especially over the past year."
Since Qing Luan handled most of the guild's affairs, he explained with a smile, "Xiao Li, after you entered the City of Slaughter, news of you personally funding supplies for the Soul Master Legion spread widely within Spirit Hall."
"Once that news got out, especially among lower ranked soul masters, they began shifting their spending toward our guild. Even some nobles followed their lead."
"Now, the Seven Profound Gate Merchant Guild is thriving. Even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has faced some pressure in their businesses within the Heaven Dou Empire."
"So that's how it is? Hah, I really didn't expect that."
Han Li was momentarily stunned. He hadn't thought his actions back then would bring him such benefits.
"Not just that your reputation within Spirit Hall is sky high right now. How about it? Interested in becoming the next Pope? I can go ask Xiao Xue and your Great Master for you. If it's you, they probably wouldn't oppose it."
Guang Ling, recalling the internal discussions in Spirit Hall and his last meeting with Qian Renxue, teased Han Li.
"Don't joke around. The 'Pope' title? Whoever wants it can have it."
Han Li nearly let his true thoughts slip.
Qing Luan shook his head helplessly, choosing not to comment on how these two casually joked about something as serious as the Pope's position.
After a moment of thought, Han Li looked up again. "The details of the Seven Profound Gate Merchant Guild shouldn't be hidden from Ning Fengzhi, right? Has there been direct conflict?"
"Ning Fengzhi hasn't made any direct moves, and both sides have shown restraint. After all, based on your initial plan, our guild's focus is on serving the common people rather than selling high end goods. We operate in the luxury niche."
"The only real conflict came from Ning Fengzhi's daughter. Not sure who provoked her, but she went and smashed one of our stores in a small city. Later, Ning Fengzhi personally visited to apologize and compensated us three times the damages. It wasn't a big deal."
"But because of his visit, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has also started competing in the low end market, which has caused some dissatisfaction within our guild."
"Since you were the one who picked the guild leaders, Guang Ling and I didn't intervene."
Qing Luan explained the full situation and waited for Han Li's response.
"Is there malicious competition?"
Han Li raised an eyebrow, unsurprised by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's response.
"No. Ning Fengzhi has played by the rules, but as a result, he has taken a share of the profits."
Qing Luan shook his head, giving a fair assessment.
"Then there's nothing to worry about. Stick to our original plan for expanding distribution. Once we reach the town, gather the key figures I'll speak with them."
Han Li thought for a moment before making his decision.
At this stage, money didn't hold the same importance to him as before it just needed to be sufficient.
His original goal in establishing the guild was to generate income while improving the lives of commoners and setting up an intelligence network. But now, with his dear son awakening, the intelligence network was becoming obsolete.
If the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect wanted to compete, fine. They could take a cut of the profits or claim some prestige so long as they could hold onto it.
However, some people within the guild seemed to be getting too many ideas. It was time to remind them of their place.
And Ning Rongrong? Smashing his shop?
He'd remember that.
After packing up, they headed toward the town and settled into a large estate owned by the merchant guild.
For the next few days, life was relatively relaxed for everyone except Han Li.
His intuition had been correct. The very afternoon they arrived, the Will of the World awakened from its slumber.
Then, after a brief, overly enthusiastic greeting, Han Li immediately put it to work, forcing it to dedicate its limited enthusiasm to unlimited research projects.
During this time, Han Li also met with the guild's leaders. An hour later, some left with glowing faces, while others were pale as ghosts, bowing deeply as they left.
Finally, on the fifth afternoon, Han Li emerged from his room and casually tossed the inner core to Dugu Yan.
Judging by his expression, he was in a very good mood.
"How big is the good news?"
Guang Ling, lounging comfortably in a chair, lazily asked.
"Straight to Titled Douluo, maybe even all the way to Ultimate Douluo."
Han Li walked over to the table, poured himself a cup of tea, circulated his soul power to warm it, and downed it in one gulp.
"That strong?"
Dugu Bo shot to his feet, moved behind Han Li, and started massaging his shoulders with a flattering smile, then pushed him toward his own seat and refilled his cup.
Qing Luan also showed a rare trace of surprise, though his reserved nature kept him from reacting as dramatically as Dugu Bo.
"Oh, is that all?"
Guang Ling's tone was particularly annoying, and he even glanced disdainfully at Dugu Bo as if he were embarrassed to be associated with him.
He still had a perfectly compatible immortal herb stored at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, so he didn't feel burdened at all. His dream of becoming an Ultimate Douluo had long since been secured.
Sure, he relied on his disciple for it, but that didn't stop him from looking down on others.
"Get lost. Alright, Xiao Li, give me the details."
Dugu Bo pulled out a folding fan from somewhere and gave Han Li a few gentle waves.
"The inner core I've simulated the process of its formation and deduced a method for condensing a spirit core. Not only can it help soul masters break through, but it also accelerates cultivation."
"Of course, after forming a spirit core, the total amount of soul power won't increase, but recovery and endurance will improve dramatically, leading to a significant boost in combat power."
Han Li leisurely enjoyed Dugu Bo's fawning, even shooting a glance at his master.
Guang Ling's expression changed slightly. He immediately stood up, shoved Dugu Bo aside, snatched his fan, and waved it himself.
"Come, good disciple, continue! I knew your discoveries wouldn't be simple!"
His face was beaming with a fawning smile, as if he hadn't just been mocking Dugu Bo.
This scene made Dugu Bo and Qing Luan's faces twitch as they turned their heads away.
When it came to shamelessness, no one they knew could compete with Guang Ling.
Dugu Yan and the other two women, however, simply covered their mouths and laughed. They were already used to the constant bickering between this master and disciple pair. In their words, Guang Ling Shifu is actually pretty cute.
Seeing his master's antics, Han Li couldn't help but chuckle.
"The inner core… or rather, condensing a spirit core. It's both difficult and simple. Essentially, it's about mimicking the Ten Headed Blazing Sun Snake merging essence, qi, and spirit into a single stable core."
"Right now, we cultivate body, soul power, and mental strength separately, which leads to weaknesses. That's why people get stuck at Soul Sage or before reaching Titled Douluo."
Han Li explained the core principle in a straightforward manner.
Strictly speaking, the spirit core he developed wasn't the same as the ones that would appear in the future. His approach was more based on the concept of inner cores.
"Merging all three aspects, using the advancement of soul power to pull up the other two and compensate for the lack of physical and mental cultivation methods?"
Having condensed a poison pill before, Dugu Bo had some insights. He muttered to himself while processing the idea.
"Exactly."
Han Li nodded in affirmation.
"But even if you succeed, wouldn't this slow down soul power advancement? Since you'd have to simultaneously raise the other two aspects?"
Guang Ling stopped fanning and looked puzzled. Qing Luan also nodded in agreement.
"If that's all there was to it, then yes, but I never said I was done explaining."
"If we follow my initial method, we could indeed eliminate weaknesses, but at the cost of slowing down cultivation. Although it would eventually catch up, there would be too many uncertainties along the way."
Han Li shook his head at this point. That was exactly where the Ten Headed Blazing Sun Snake had suffered.
"But if, during the condensation of the spirit core, we allow it to absorb spatial power and store soul power directly within, then it's a different story. The moment the core starts spinning, it will continuously absorb external soul power."
"At that point, cultivation and battle endurance would no longer be an issue. And as for the concern about slowing down progress? That problem is completely solved."
Han Li laid out the entire theory, then looked toward the three Titled Douluo.
"If that's the case, then after condensing a spirit core, cultivation speed would actually increase. Any improvement in one aspect would accelerate overall progress such as absorbing soul bones."
Guang Ling mentally ran through the logic and arrived at an even more shocking conclusion.
"Exactly, Master. You always understand things immediately."
Han Li gave him a thumbs up, his smile particularly bright.
Otherwise, if all he had gained from the City of Slaughter was some battle experience, a domain, and a slight boost to his cultivation speed, would that really have been worth it?
"But condensing a spirit core would require extremely harsh conditions. The entry threshold is too high."
Qing Luan glanced at the three women, implying that with their current strength, even sensing spatial power was difficult let alone absorbing it.
"This was always meant to be a cultivation method for geniuses. As for a version that works for ordinary people… that's a discussion for another time. I'm not wasting my energy on it right now. Besides, that version would have too many flaws and make breakthroughs much harder."
"As for Xiu'er and the others, once we deal with the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, everything will be resolved. Otherwise, even if I can manipulate spatial power, there are still risks, and they'd have to wait."
Han Li smiled at the three women before turning back to the three Titled Douluo, as if deep in thought.
(End of Chapter)
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