The moment Gu Han swallowed the five pieces of thousand-year whale jelly, he instantly felt a surge of immense, pure energy coursing through his body, reinforcing his internal organs and meridians.
At the same time, Gu Han activated his nameless technique manual, guiding this energy along its designated path to form a full-body circulation cycle, eventually drawing it into his lower dantian.
The refined energy transformed into attribute-less soul power, which gradually evolved into his signature Ice Soul Power.
The misty energy within his lower dantian condensed further, and his qi sea expanded significantly as a result.
With such an overwhelming influx of energy, Gu Han could no longer suppress his cultivation level. In one go, he surged from Rank 23 to the cusp of Rank 26—almost ready to break through to Rank 27.
"As expected of whale jelly that's over five thousand years old. The energy it contains is leagues beyond ten-year or even hundred-year resources."
Gu Han stood up, sensing the enhanced soul power within his body. He also assessed his physical strength—it had more than doubled compared to before.
"Master! Junior Brother! I reached Rank 30!"
A voice of excitement rang out beside him. Bibi Dong had also finished absorbing her share of the whale jelly and bounced up from the ground, eagerly sharing her joy.
Unlike Gu Han, Bibi Dong possessed extraordinary innate talent. After absorbing just two pieces of whale jelly, she leapt from the peak of Rank 28 straight past Rank 29 and broke through to Rank 30 in one go.
Of course, if not for the bottleneck every ten levels imposed, she might have improved even more dramatically.
But that wasn't an issue—the excess energy would be stored as reserves and erupt when the next breakthrough came.
"Mm, very good."
Qian Xunji nodded in satisfaction. As he placed a hand on Bibi Dong's wrist, he sent in a strand of soul power to examine her condition, then smiled.
"Dong'er, your physique now rivals that of a Soul Elder. For your third soul ring, you might be able to attempt one from a 6,000- to 9,000-year-old soul beast."
"But just to be safe, you should finish refining the remaining three pieces of whale jelly first."
"Yeah, Senior Sister," Gu Han chimed in. "Refining all the whale jelly will greatly increase your success rate and safety when it comes to absorbing higher-year soul rings."
Bibi Dong's talent was immense, and she also possessed twin martial souls, which meant her physical requirements were even stricter than Gu Han's. After all, she would eventually need to attach rings to a second martial soul.
If her physical foundation wasn't strong enough, the growth ceiling for that second martial soul would be limited.
Whale jelly could enhance the body, but compared to soul rings, it still fell short. If Bibi Dong could follow Tang San's example and absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring as her fourth ring, then her second martial soul's potential would far exceed what it was in the original story.
"Mm, I understand."
Bibi Dong obediently nodded, suppressing the joy in her heart as she consumed the remaining whale jelly. Sitting cross-legged on the ground, she began refining it.
Looking at Bibi Dong's still slightly baby-faced features, Gu Han fell into thought. Come to think of it—was her soul power strong enough to withstand the impact of a ten-thousand-year soul ring for her fourth?
After some consideration, Gu Han said, "Master, if Senior Sister's third ring is from a 9,000-year-old soul beast, then her fourth ring might very well be ready for a ten-thousand-year one."
"But considering the soul shock that comes with ten-thousand-year soul beasts, I think her third ring should come from a spirit-type beast."
"Or better yet, we could find her a spirit-type skull bone to prepare her for absorbing a ten-thousand-year ring in the future."
Qian Xunji's eyes lit up slightly at the suggestion, and he nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed, Dong'er's talent is exceptional. Now that she's received support from the whale jelly, it's time to make adjustments to her future cultivation path."
"As for the spirit-type beast, perhaps not. Once she obtains her third soul ring, I'll go to the treasure vault and retrieve a skull bone. If I remember correctly, there's a 70,000-year spiritual immunity skull bone still stored there."
"That soul bone is so valuable even I couldn't bear to absorb it, so it's just been sitting in the vault all these years. Looks like it's time to finally put it to use."
Qian Xunji recalled the soul bone that had been stored in the vault for decades. It had once belonged to a previous Worship Elder of Spirit Hall who left it behind after their passing.
Out of respect for that elder, no one had dared to claim or distribute it. It had simply remained untouched in the vault.
But now, for Bibi Dong's future, Qian Xunji had decided it was time to break tradition.
Even if it meant being beaten up by the other Worship Elders or even his own father, he was willing to take the risk—this was, after all, for the future of Spirit Hall. He believed they would understand.
"Master, you're incredible."
Gu Han was shaken upon hearing about the 70,000-year spiritual immunity skull bone. He couldn't help but marvel at how wealthy Spirit Hall truly was.
That was a 70,000-year soul bone—and a skull bone at that, the rarest of all types. Even Titled Douluo would fight tooth and nail for one, and yet Qian Xunji was giving it to Bibi Dong, a mere Rank 30 Soul Master.
But considering Spirit Hall's resources and Bibi Dong's identity, Gu Han thought it made sense.
She was the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall, personally trained by the Pope, born with full innate soul power, and possessed twin martial souls.
Talent? Check. Background? Check. A certified little heiress. Absorbing a measly 70,000-year skull bone? Totally within reason.
…Okay, Gu Han admitted it—he was jealous.
"Heh, no need to sulk, kid," Qian Xunji said with a smile. "Word is that Glowing Feather Douluo recently acquired a 60,000-year spiritual-type skull bone too. Since you're my disciple, I won't play favorites."
"I'll set that soul bone aside for you. Once you reach Rank 30, it's yours."
Though Qian Xunji couldn't actually read Gu Han's inner thoughts, he could guess—any young man would envy someone getting a 70,000-year skull bone right in front of them. He'd feel the same way.
Gu Han was stunned. Had he been that obvious?
But he was sure he hadn't shown any emotion just now. How did Qian Xunji figure it out?
Still, Gu Han was overjoyed. Once again, he affirmed that joining Spirit Hall had been the right choice. Women might slow down a man's sword, but a rich little heiress? She only sped things up.
After all, ever since getting on Bibi Dong's good side, he'd started benefiting from her glow.
Without hesitation, Gu Han bowed a full ninety degrees.
"Thank you, Master. I promise to cultivate diligently and never bring shame to your name."
From start to finish, Qian Xunji had been thinking of Bibi Dong's future—giving her the best of everything as if raising her as his own daughter.
And as for Gu Han, this was also a tremendous blessing. The fact that Qian Xunji was willing to give a 60,000-year spirit-type skull bone to someone like him—a student of average talent—proved he truly meant what he said about not showing favoritism.
No matter how poorly Qian Xunji was portrayed in the original story, Gu Han could no longer bring himself to dislike the man.
In fact, he was now more determined than ever to change the tragic fate that lay ahead.
If he remembered correctly, Qian Xunji's talent wasn't quite on par with past Angel Douluo. Maybe the immortal herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well could help him.
As for Qian Renxue—well, that child hadn't even been born yet. And even when she was, her talent would be god-level from the start. She wouldn't need anything like an immortal herb to begin with.