"Remember that feeling, next time you disobey me, I won't stop midway."Xiao Wei threatened.
Shi Ming didn't argue.
"Now, tell me everything—from the moment you entered the Shadow Soldier. I want to understand what happened."Xiao Wei asked.
Despite his pride, Shi Ming didn't want to experience that bone-deep terror again—the sensation of his soul unraveling at Xiao Wei's single command. The threat of erasure was no longer just words to him; it was real, and it had left a mark. So, even though it galled him, Shi Ming began to speak, recounting what had happened after he entered the Shadow Soldier.
Shi Ming sat cross-legged on the ground, his expression subdued, and said in a low, thoughtful tone.
"When I first entered that… black body, I didn't see anything. No structure, no form, no light—just a void. A space made of endless blackness, stretching in all directions. There was no sense of up or down, no horizon, no origin. Just emptiness."
Xiao Wei listened intently, not interrupting.
"But as I start roaming that blackness… something started happening. My soul began to feel strange. Weaker. Dull. Like the blackness itself was swallowing me, slowly consuming my soul. I had never felt anything like it before—not even during in my peak years."Shi Ming continued.
Shi Ming paused, his gaze distant, remembering the sensation.
"If my Soul Power hadn't been as strong as Martial King Realm Cultivator Soul Power—I think I would've been devoured right then and there."Shi Ming said.
Xiao Wei remained silent, processing the information.
"After some time though I have no idea how long, because in that blackness you can't measure time—I began to recover. My soul adjusted, adapted. Once I steadied myself, I started wandering, looking for anything that might explain the nature of this body. And then I found it."Shi Ming added.
Xiao Wei's brows rose slightly.
"There was a figure. A soul, just like mine, sitting in a lotus position within the blackness and was Cultivating. He was at the Second Layer of the Martial Master Realm. At first, I thought he might help me, maybe give some insight into what was happening. But the moment I got close… he attacked me. Fiercely. No words. No warning. As if I were a threat by simply being there."Shi Ming added.
"What happened?"Xiao Wei asked quietly.
"I fought him. And I killed him. It was a battle of souls—brutal and raw. When it ended, I thought I would continue exploring. But the moment his soul shattered, I opened my eyes… and I was back. Here, in the cave. Sitting like this, in this body."Shi Ming's explained.
Xiao Wei's thoughts churned. His instincts had been right.
*That Martial Master soul must have belonged to that Mo Clan Cultivator I killed*Xiao Wei thought as he looked at Shi Ming.
"Shi Ming, do you feel anything else? Any changes in the body itself?"Xiao Wei asked.
Shi Ming glanced down at his hands, then at his arms, flexing the fingers with fascination. His eyes sparkled—bright blue and full of a excitement that Xiao Wei didn't like.
"Yes, I feel like… this body isn't ordinary. It will not age. It will not decay. There's no weakness, no fatigue. It's like… pure power in a still form. There's also a strange feeling, as if this potential has no ceiling."Shi Ming said, slowly as he looked up at Xiao Wei, smiling, almost reverently.
But Xiao Wei didn't smile. His expression remained hard, serious.
"Shi Ming, listen closely. You have two choices now."Xiao Wei said, stepping forward, his voice turning cold again.
Shi Ming blinked, the momentary excitement in his eyes flickering.
"One: follow me and obey my orders. Use this body to fight alongside me. Or two: I will erase your soul from existence."Xiao Wei said firmly.
The moment Xiao Wei issued his ultimatum, the atmosphere inside the dimly lit cave grew heavy with tension.
Shi Ming didn't waste time as he answered in few moments.
"I will follow you."Shi Ming responded, his tone was neither subservient nor proud—it was pragmatic.
Shi Ming wasn't someone who yielded easily, but after everything he had experienced within the mysterious body, he knew better than to gamble with whatever force Xiao Wei had at his command. That single word Xiao Wei had spoken—Release—had nearly torn his very soul into shreds. Whatever secrets this young Cultivator held, Shi Ming understood one thing clearly, Xiao Wei was no ordinary Martial Apprentice Realm boy.
"Good"Xiao Wei nodded in satisfaction, his voice was calm, but inside, he was analyzing everything.
Even in his past life, nothing like this had ever happened—no soul had ever taken over a Shadow Soldier. And after talking with Shi Ming he found out the Shadow Soldiers had more potential than he previously understood.
With Shi Ming now obedient, Xiao Wei decided to finally inspect the contents of the Tier 4 Storage Ring the former Martial King had given him. Placing his palm against the Storage Ring's cold surface, he let his Spiritual Sense seep into it. A surge of space expanded in his mind's eye—vast and orderly, unlike his cramped Tier 2 ring.
This Storage Ring's internal space was nearly ten times larger than his previous one. Inside, carefully arranged, were rows of jade bottles and pouches filled with alchemical ingredients. Most of the jade bottles contained pills—glowing with faint medicinal light. He scanned through them one by one, identifying various healing, strengthening, and Cultivation pills. The highest-tier pills were Tier 3, likely useful even for Martial Saint Cultivators.
In one corner of the ring, nestled beside bundles of dried plants and herbs, lay a normal wooden bow of refined craftsmanship, and beside it rested a set of Tier 1 and Tier 2 arrows.
He gave the bow only a glance before focusing on what mattered most to him at the moment, the pills.
Without hesitation, Xiao Wei began pulling out all the Tier 1 and Tier 2 pills that could be used to boost his Cultivation. He didn't bother with the Tier 3 pills yet—they were valuable, and he preferred saving them for when he entered the Martial Master Realm or Martial Grandmaster Realm. With a swift motion, he organized the extracted pills and left the rest inside the ring.
Then, he unlatched his own Tier 2 Storage Ring and began transferring everything inside it—ingredients, low-tier pills, ores, and some Monster Cores—into the Tier 4 Storage Ring. It took only a few moments, but when he finished, his belongings now sat in a space ten times more spacious, far more convenient and efficient for future use.
With that done, he turned to Shi Ming, who stood a few steps away, adjusting to his new form.
Xiao Wei took the neatly organized pile of Tier 1 and Tier 2 Cultivation pills and handed them to Shi Ming without a second thought.
"Eat all of them"Xiao Wei said plainly.
Shi Ming blinked in surprise.
"All of them? Are you trying to kill me? I'll explode from overconsumption! These aren't candies, boy!"Shi Ming said.
Xiao Wei's expression didn't waver.
"You won't explode. Just eat them. You've merged with a body that isn't ordinary."Xiao Wei said.
Shi Ming hesitated. He wasn't someone who blindly followed orders, but the recent experience had taught him caution. And more than that, he couldn't deny he was curious.
"Tch… Fine"Shi Ming muttered under his breath and sat cross-legged.
One by one, he began consuming the pills, swallowing them with growing ease. Spiritual Energy began surging through in the Shadow Soldier body—an overwhelming tide of Spiritual Energy that should have exploded a normal Cultivator get. But Shadow Soldier body managed to control the Spiritual Energy.
Minutes passed. Then an hour. Then two.
Xiao Wei watched in silence, prepared to intervene if anything went wrong. But Shi Ming remained calm and focused. The Spiritual Energy around him intensified gradually, and then suddenly—.
Shi Ming had broken through.
From the Sixth Layer of Martial Master Realm, he rapidly advanced through the Seventh and Eighth Layers. By the time he finished consuming the final pill, Shi Ming reached the peak of the Ninth Layer of Martial Master Realm.
Shi Ming rose slowly to his feet. He clenched his fists and looked down at them in awe.
"It feels… incredible to get stronger so quickly without the need to Cultivate for years."Shi Ming muttered to himself.
With a flick of his hand, Xiao Wei removed the Tier 2 Storage Ring from his finger and tossed it to Shi Ming.
"Take this."Xiao Wei said.
Shi Ming caught the Tier 2 storage ring Xiao Wei had tossed at him with a practiced hand. Though smaller than the Tier 4 ring he had just given away, it still better than nothing.
As Shi Ming channeled a sliver of his Spiritual Sense into the ring, his eyes lit up.
Inside was a wooden bow and a quiver of simple wooden arrows. His fingers trembled slightly as he pulled them out.
The moment his hands touched the bow, a rush of long-buried memories surged to the surface. Without a second thought, he notched an arrow and aimed at a nearby rock. A soft twang rang out as he loosed the arrow. It struck the rock squarely, penetrating deep with surprising force for a wooden arrow.