"Teacher, what are you planning to teach me?"
"I have here a method for strengthening your foundation and prolonging your life. After learning it, your physical constitution will be enhanced, far surpassing that of an ordinary person."
"After learning it, will I be able to defeat those people from Shrek?"
"It would probably be very difficult."
"Not learning it, not learning it."
"Then I shall teach you the arts of beast rearing and herbology. Once you've learned these, you can raise spirit beasts to protect yourself and cultivate medicinal herbs to make a living."
"Raising spirit beasts takes too long, and cultivating herbs gives me no combat power. I won't become a powerhouse or be able to beat the people from Shrek Academy. Not learning it, not learning it."
"Why are you so insistent on competing with the people from Shrek?"
"They tried to steal the Phoenix-Tailed Cockscomb Serpent from Grandmother in the Star Dou Great Forest and bullied both of us. I want to be stronger than all of them and bring honor to my grandmother."
"Then I shall teach you the secret art of Necromantic Summoning and the ability of the Thousand Netherworld Weapons."
"Teacher, what kind of skills are these?"
On the morning of the day after returning to Taoyuan Academy, Su Ran began his instruction for Meng Yiran in the classroom.
The academy had returned to its usual vibrant state. Both Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong were back on track with their training. After absorbing her third Spirit Ring, Zhu Zhuqing felt a faint connection to the lord of the first hall of Yama, and it seemed she would soon be able to awaken its power. Ning Rongrong's second layer of the Golden Bell was nearing perfection, and she was beginning to condense the third layer. However, the cultivation from the third layer onward was even more arduous, involving the refinement of blood and bone, a process more painful than physical training, akin to having one's bones carved.
As for Meng Yiran, she was staring blankly at Su Ran, who sat at the front of the class.
Necromantic Summoning, Thousand Netherworld Weapons? What are those? I don't understand, but they sound incredibly powerful.*
"Necromantic Summoning, upon great mastery, can transform your Snake Staff Martial Soul into a Necromantic Demon Snake Staff. The staff's yin-cold energy will evolve into necrotic energy. Combined with the absorption of the Ghost Barrier Great Snake—which also goes by the name Ghost Summoning Great Snake—your third spirit ability will likely awaken as a summoning-type skill."
"As for the Thousand Netherworld Weapons, that is a cultivation method for hellish and netherworld hidden weapons. It includes the training of the Nether Hand and various Hellish Netherworld Hidden Weapons. After achieving great mastery, you will be able to kill without a trace, annihilating thousands in the blink of an eye, with just a flick of your fingers."
Su Ran spoke calmly, but even he had to marvel at Meng Yiran's good fortune. The two ultimate techniques he had found for her were no less profound than the Ten Halls of Yama he had given to Zhu Zhuqing.
The moment Meng Yiran heard the words "hidden weapons," her eyes lit up. "Teacher! I think this one is interesting!"
"But, Teacher, what is a summoning-type? I've only ever heard of control-type, agility-attack type, support-type, and defense-type. I've never heard of a summoning-type before. Is it powerful?" Meng Yiran asked, a little baffled, having just realized her teacher had mentioned a Spirit Master specialization she had never encountered.
"My grandparents' plan for my cultivation was to be an agility-attack and power-attack type. That's why my first spirit ability, Snake Blade, is an offensive skill, and my second, Snake Body, is for agility and movement. The combination of the two allows me to attack in a way that only an agility-attack type Spirit Master can."
"And that is also your limitation," Su Ran stated.
"What limitation?"
Su Ran walked out of the classroom, plucked a branch from a peach tree, and beckoned to Meng Yiran. "Yiran, come. Attack me with all your might using your spirit abilities. I will suppress my spirit power to rank thirty, and I will stand right here without moving. I will not use any spirit abilities, only this peach branch to block your attacks."
"Teacher... wouldn't that be inappropriate?" Meng Yiran didn't understand what he was trying to do.
"It's fine. I have the protective aura of my immortal peach blossoms. Even with my spirit power suppressed, you won't be able to hurt me. Feel free to go all out."
"Alright then, Teacher. Be careful."
"I'm going to knock your mask off, Teacher!"
"Teacher, this is my way of the snake."
"Very well, then let me have a taste of your 'way of the snake'."
"What is this Su Ran kid up to now, so early in the morning? I'd like to see what he can possibly teach," the Dragon Duke muttered. He and Snake Grandma had been drawn over by the commotion.
Su Ran stood there calmly as two yellow, hundred-year Spirit Rings flickered on Meng Yiran's Snake Staff Martial Soul.
[Second Spirit Ability, Snake Body.]
Meng Yiran's body moved like an enchanting snake-woman, boneless and fluid, allowing her to escape many entanglement and restraint skills while also increasing her speed. She flexibly charged toward Su Ran. * Rongrong told me I must never take off Teacher's mask, but I refuse to listen. I just have to see what he looks like.*
"Announcing your intentions to your opponent beforehand is not the mark of a qualified agility-attack type Spirit Master. The pursuit of an agility-attack type is to strike when least expected," Su Ran said. Holding the peach branch, he skillfully blocked Meng Yiran's joints, preventing her from touching him at all.
"Hmph!"
Seeing that she couldn't get near him, Meng Yiran slid low, attempting to seize the moment Su Ran waved the peach branch. She raised her Snake Staff, and a two-foot-long blue, venomous blade shot forth.
First Spirit Ability, Snake Blade!
But to her surprise, Su Ran simply raised his right hand in a relaxed motion. The ordinary-looking peach branch extended from his sleeve and met her Snake Staff. The Snake Blade that shot out from the staff grazed past his side, completely missing its target.
Meng Yiran tried several more times, from left to right, from front to back. But without exception, a light tap from that peach branch was all it took to dismantle every single offensive setup she prepared for her Snake Blade.
"Teacher, your reaction speed is too fast. It's impossible for me to hit you," Meng Yiran said, dejected.
"It's not that I'm too fast, but that you are too slow," Su Ran replied, shaking his head.
"Am I slow? My Snake Body has a lubricating and accelerating effect. How can I be slow?"
"If you had a beast Martial Soul, the speed your Snake Body provides would indeed not be slow. But unfortunately, yours is a tool Martial Soul, and a staff-type one at that."
"While the Snake Staff isn't a particularly clumsy Martial Soul, its length—longer than half your body—makes it easy to spot during an attack, and it's difficult to vary your attack methods." Su Ran tapped Meng Yiran's forehead twice with the peach branch and continued.
"So, every time you finally get close to an opponent, you're immediately detected and can only engage them head-on. An agility-attack type Spirit Master does not have an advantage in a frontal assault. Your opponent only needs to slightly deflect your Snake Staff, and your Snake Blade will completely miss its target."
Meng Yiran thought about it, and it did seem to make sense. A few days ago in the Star Dou Great Forest, it was because the Phoenix-Tailed Cockscomb Serpent was too agile that her grandmother's first four spirit abilities had trouble hitting it, which was how it had escaped. Using a powerful spirit ability might have killed the beast outright, preventing her from absorbing its Spirit Ring, so controlling the power was difficult.
"So, Teacher, you think I shouldn't follow the path of an agility-attack and power-attack type, but should instead become the summoning-type Spirit Master you mentioned?"
"Mmm. I once said something to Wang Sheng, and I can give you the same words today." Su Ran led Meng Yiran back into the classroom and wrote eight large characters on the blackboard:
"Adapt to the Soul, Man and Soul as One."
Meng Yiran's eyes widened at the sight of these eight characters.
The Dragon Duke and Snake Grandma, who had secretly come over to eavesdrop out of concern for their granddaughter, were also greatly shaken when they heard Su Ran's words and saw the characters. The phrase was short, but it held a profound principle, not something an ordinary person could summarize.
"No matter how good a Martial Soul is, it's useless if you cultivate it incorrectly or choose the wrong specialization. Only by following a suitable path based on the Martial Soul's characteristics and achieving unity between the Martial Soul and the Spirit Master can you unleash your greatest strength."
"According to my research, staff-type Martial Souls have two suitable cultivation paths."
"The first is a 'mage,' which you can also understand as a control-type Spirit Master. You wear down your opponent from a distance, control their movements, and prevent them from getting close, thus playing to your strengths and avoiding your weaknesses."
"The second is the summoning-type. A summoning-type Spirit Master uses their Snake Staff as a vessel, opening a contract through the power of their Spirit Rings to summon spirit beasts to fight. In this way, you no longer need to attack clumsily with your Snake Staff. Instead, you can control the spirit beasts to fight for you."
"Combine that with learning the Thousand Netherworld Weapons, allowing you to multitask and master the hidden weapons of the necromantic hell, and in the future, you could even fight alongside your summoned beasts. With just one person, you could achieve the effect of two, or even three or four Spirit Masters."
Hearing this, Meng Yiran's mind was buzzing. She couldn't fully comprehend Su Ran's words at that moment, but that didn't stop her from understanding that the path he was laying out for her was incredibly powerful.
The young girl's slender, snake-like body trembled slightly as she nodded with excitement. "Teacher, I'll learn that one then!"
Outside the classroom, the eavesdropping Dragon Duke and Snake Grandma exchanged a look, their faces filled with emotion. The Spirit Master knowledge Su Ran spoke of was far too advanced for them.
"A summoning-type Spirit Master?"
"It seems I really am old. The future of the Spirit Master world belongs to this little friend Su."
(End of Chapter)