Douluo Continent: I possess astonishing wisdom as I control energy!

With a touch of solemnity and seriousness, Kong Deming slowly began to speak:

"Ming'an, what do you need?"

They did not respond immediately.

He ignored the burning, inquisitive gaze in Kong Deming's eyes, and the shock that erupted from the surrounding silence, almost overwhelming him.

He simply stared silently at the slowly rotating soul guide core in Kong Deming's hand, as if utterly exhausted.

The soft yet steady blue light illuminated his face, which was slightly pale from exhaustion of soul power, yet unusually calm.

Bathed in that pale blue glow, a relaxed smile curved his lips.

It wasn't entirely a catastrophe from the start, was it?

Just a heads up, this book features multiple female protagonists. Please refer to the manga for their appearances (I initially read the manga, and it's much better than the original). Due to retconning elements in the original work, and the overly abstract settings of Douluo Continent III and IV, some parts of this book may involve some creative interpretation. (Mainly because I don't want to retcon the history of Douluo Continent IV). That's all!

Chapter 2: Methods of Body Tempering and the Beginning of Body Cultivation

Sun and Moon Empire, Ming Capital, Kong Family Residence.

As the head of the Sun and Moon Empire's Hall of Worship, a pillar of the empire, and the most powerful person second only to the emperor, this is Kong Deming's residence.

It wasn't as luxurious as I had imagined; in fact, compared to the residences of other nobles in the empire, it was rather "simple."

Of course, anyone who knew this was Kong Deming's residence would say, "Master Kong is indifferent to fame and fortune, truly a pillar of the empire."

Inside the room, Kong Ming'an sat cross-legged on the bed, meditating.

Nearly 60 hours had passed since he awakened his "Energy" martial spirit and proved himself.

Information regarding his awakened martial soul, his innate soul power level, and how he created a level-one soul guide core with only level 0.5 innate soul power after awakening, has all been kept secret.

Many of the level-nine soul masters present were his grandfather's confidants, so sealing them off wouldn't have been difficult; it was merely a matter of exercising his authority in a small way.

Of course, none of this is relevant to Kong Ming'an for the time being.

At this moment, his mind sank into the faint yet incredibly clear soul power within his body, and into the formless yet seemingly omnipresent martial soul—"energy".

What is energy?

In the Douluo Continent, soul power is the foundation for driving martial souls and unleashing soul skills; it is the source of life and strength.

Mental power, on the other hand, is an extension of will, a bridge between perception and control.

And these are all forms of energy.

Flow, transformation, and explosion—these fundamentals form the cornerstone of the Soul Master system in this world.

Kong Ming'an's "Energy" Martial Soul is unique in that it possesses a powerful control and insight into this "foundation".

After more than two days of initial exploration, he has tentatively summarized the two core abilities displayed by his own martial soul:

Firstly, it has strong internal control.

He possesses near-perfect control over the energy he wields, namely "soul power" and "spiritual power."

This can be seen from his demonstration two and a half days ago when he proved himself by creating a level-one soul guide core in front of numerous level-nine soul masters.

That level 0.5 soul power, though as weak as a candle flickering in the wind, did not dissipate or stagnate under his will. Following his intentions, it flawlessly outlined the shape he desired.

Secondly, there is the external energy perspective.

This is what he discovered recently when he tried to see inside his body.

When he concentrates, he can "see" the flow of energy within a radius of approximately five meters, centered on himself.

He could clearly "see" the trickle of his own soul power flowing steadily and laboriously through his meridians, and his spiritual power swirling around him like invisible ripples.

Similarly, he can also sense the soul power fluctuations and mental fields emitted by other life forms in the outside world, just like observing halos or air currents of different shapes and brightness in the dark.

Without a doubt, his martial spirit is far beyond the standard in some respects.

But is it merely the control over "soul power" and "spiritual power"?

Kong Ming'an expressed his doubts about this.

His martial spirit is named "Energy," but he can only control his own "Soul Power" and "Mental Power," which is somewhat of a misnomer.

Therefore, he guessed that

Alternatively, one's own martial soul may have some unmanifested defect due to insufficient innate soul power.

Alternatively, it could be that because one currently only possesses two forms of energy—soul power and spiritual power—the scope of a martial soul's abilities is temporarily limited to this.

And he needs to verify these things little by little.

Kong Ming'an felt a surge of excitement, something he hadn't felt in a long time.

This is much more interesting than cleaning up the messes made by my mentor and junior students in the lab every day in my previous life!

Awakening from his meditation, Kong Ming'an's gaze fell upon the several exquisite jade vases in front of him.

This was sent by his grandfather, Kong Deming, after he learned of his thoughts.

There are a total of three types of pills that can enhance innate soul power to a certain extent without side effects.

Two of the bottles were developed in-house by the Sun Moon Empire, while the other bottle, which was shrouded in a faint mist and exuded a subtle, refreshing scent,

That is, the "Mysterious Water Pill".

Picking up the jade bottle, Kong Ming'an recalled information about this elixir from his memory:

This top-grade elixir for strengthening the body and nourishing vital energy, cleansing the marrow and transforming the tendons, has a remarkable effect on improving innate soul power aptitude, especially for low-level soul masters.

Its gentle water-attribute life energy can nourish the meridians, wash away impurities, and gently raise one level of innate soul power.

Although this pill is a specialty of the Xuanming Sect, the Sun and Moon Empire secretly purchased a considerable amount to cultivate talents for the empire.

The bottle in front of Kong Ming'an contained five Xuan Shui Pills, enough to allow him to develop a tolerance to them.

This is a manifestation of his own value, coupled with the added advantage of being the only son of the Kong family, which led to preferential treatment in resources.

Upon uncorking the bottle, a refreshing and invigorating medicinal fragrance filled the air. Without hesitation, Kong Ming'an put the longan-sized, azure-blue pill into his mouth.

The elixir melted upon entering the mouth, transforming into a gentle yet powerful torrent of coolness that instantly flowed into every part of the body.

In his perception, this torrent of azure medicinal power gently yet swiftly washed over every tiny meridian.

Wherever it passed, those "river channels" that were inherently stagnant and narrow were gently widened and reinforced.

And those tiny "impurities" adhering to the walls of the meridians, washed away by this clear stream, disappeared like melting snow.

The most concentrated life energy then seeped into his faint soul power source.

After an unknown amount of time, the surging torrent of medicinal power within his body finally subsided, transforming into a gentle stream that nourished his newly rejuvenated meridians.

Kong Ming'an slowly opened his eyes, a glint of shrewdness flashing in them. He looked inward again.

At this moment, the stream, which had been so weak as to be almost imperceptible, had noticeably grown larger. While its flow was still far from smooth, it was much less turbulent and more steady than before.

"His innate soul power has roughly increased to level 1.5."

In the original novel, after Huo Qubing took the Xuan Shui Pill, his soul power increased from the initial level 11 to the peak of level 12.

Aside from Huo Gua's own unwavering will, this also seems to be due to the Xuan Tian Gong and the absorption bonus from his unawakened Ice Martial Soul.

His situation seemed to be average; the absorption wasn't perfect, nor was it so poor due to his constitution that there was no guarantee of absorption at all.

However, this is not a big problem.

"It's just a matter of taking more drugs."

Kong Ming'an spoke casually.

Starting from a low point is a minor issue; resources can compensate for it to some extent. Besides, it's just a matter of innate talent.

This isn't the first time he's tried to defy fate; it's just another attempt.

He got up, put away the Profound Water Pill and several other bottles of similar pills, and decided to take the Profound Water Pill only after its medicinal power had been fully absorbed by his body.

Kong Ming'an went into the bathroom to wash away the impurities expelled due to the Xuan Shui Pill. After a while, he dressed, gathered his belongings, and then opened the door.

Outside the door, a figure clad in the dark gold armor of the Sun Moon Empire, exuding an aura as solid as a mountain, had been waiting for some time.

Although the invisible pressure was deliberately concealed, Kong Ming'an could still see the soul power aura within the other party's body, burning like a furnace and condensing like molten mercury, through his energy vision.

Without a doubt, a titled Douluo.

This was the bodyguard and guide that his grandfather had arranged for him.

Without a word, Kong Ming'an nodded slightly, and the Title Douluo immediately understood, turning around and leading the way with steady steps.

Target—the military camp.

……

……

The outskirts of Mingdu, the reserve soldiers' garrison of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Legion.

On the vast military training ground, deafening shouts, heavy impacts, and the whistling of weapons mingled together, forming a primal and intense torrent of power.

Under the blazing sun, the air was thick with the smell of sweat and dust. Thousands of strong soldiers, shirtless, were undergoing rigorous physical and basic soul skill training.

This is a daily requirement for reserve soldiers.

Kong Ming'an did not enter the center of the arena. Instead, led by the titled Douluo, he quietly sat down on a shady set of steps at the edge of the training ground.

The titled Douluo stood several steps behind him like a rock, his aura blending seamlessly with the surrounding environment, yet acting as an invisible barrier to isolate him from external interference.

A moment later, roughly ten soldiers at the Soul Venerable level, led by their officer, arrived at the open space in front of Kong Ming'an.

The officer respectfully performed a sun and moon salute, his posture upright, and knelt directly on the ground.

"Young Master Ming'an, this humble servant Wang Meng is here on the orders of the Hall Master! Please give your instructions!"

That look in his eyes, yearning for progress.

Kong Ming'an unconsciously lingered on Wang Meng for a moment, then waved his hand.

"Let's begin. Show me your soul skills that can strengthen your physique. Hmm, one at a time."

"Yes!"

Wang Meng responded quickly, then turned to look at the soldiers behind him and beckoned them with his hand.

The soldiers immediately understood. The first soldier in line stepped forward, shouted, and a phantom image of a grizzly bear appeared behind him.

In an instant, the soldier's muscles expanded rapidly as if inflated, coarse brown hair appeared on his skin, and his hands transformed into giant bear paws, pounding his chest with a dull thud.

Then, the soldier took a deep breath, and his first spirit ring lit up instantly. Yellow light surged into his limbs and bones, and his already bulging muscles swelled up again, with veins protruding like earthworms, exuding a powerful aura!

Kongming watched quietly, his energy vision already activated.

His gaze ignored flesh and bones, clearly seeing the state of the soldier's soul power circulation at that moment.

He noticed that although the soldiers' soul power circulation paths were crude, the points where it erupted overlapped with certain acupoints in traditional Chinese medicine that he knew from his previous life, used to strengthen the body and unleash potential.

For example, acupoints such as "Jianjing", "Quchi", "Zusanli", and "Yongquan" where spiritual energy surges when exerting force.

"Soul power stimulates acupoints and certain specific locations, while also protecting the meridians from overload, thereby achieving a short-term increase in physical strength."

Kong Ming'an murmured softly, his eyes gradually brightening.

He was acutely aware of his own shortcomings. The "Energy" martial soul was indeed powerful, but relying solely on it was absolutely insufficient.

With his innate aptitude of 0.5, there are definitely limitations to how he can improve using various elixirs.

Therefore, simply following the traditional path of Soul Masters—leveling up, absorbing Soul Rings to break through, then leveling up again, and absorbing Soul Rings again—is absolutely not feasible!

He has to get some work done, and it has to be big work!

The first step in this whole thing is to have a strong enough physique!

This is not only the beginning of his secondary development based on the Soul Master system, but also the beginning of obtaining an ideal configuration for the first stage.

"Soul skills enhance physical strength, stimulate acupoints along the soul power circulation route, and draw upon external energy."

Kong Ming'an watched as the soldiers took turns possessing their martial spirits and activating similar spirit skills that enhanced their physiques, and his mind began to race.

The "underlying code" provided by energy vision, the knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine meridians and acupoints accumulated in previous lives, and the experience of powerful control over one's own energy...

The three elements began to collide, dismantle, and recombine in his calm mind.

"What if we optimize the path of soul power circulation?"