Before he ever attempted Evil Fire Body Tempering, Lin Xiao had considered evolving his Martial Soul by absorbing soul rings—but the results were underwhelming.
Absorbing the 500-year Fire Sparrow ring only increased flame intensity slightly.
Absorbing the 2,000-year Blazing Flame Roc ring enhanced the fire's power and added a bit of wildness, even embedding an explosive factor into his soul power…
But Lin Xiao knew he wasn't doing anything wrong.
At the very least, he'd followed the correct path: choosing fire-attribute soul beasts of the beast-type.
Unlike a certain someone—Tang San.
Who gave his Blue Silver Grass the abilities of a Mandala Snake, Man-Faced Demon Spider, and even a ten-thousand-year demon vine. In doing so, he turned a pure, noble plant into a creepy, blackened version with snake markings...
True, it enhanced toughness, paralyzing effects, and even poisonous traits. But it was a Frankenstein-like mix that abandoned the Blue Silver Emperor's core essence—its life force.
Had Tang San chosen the correct path from the start, maybe the Blue Silver Emperor would have drawn the favor of the Goddess of Life and inherited the title of Life God-King.
Too bad the Asura God had claimed him early.
"If we're talking about Martial Soul bloodline strength, Blue Silver Emperor should actually surpass the Clear Sky Hammer," Lin Xiao mused.
"After all, in a forest of millions, only one Blue Silver Emperor can exist—when the old one dies, the new one is born. Whereas the Clear Sky Hammer? The Clear Sky Clan mass-produces them."
"And yet, after all that leveling, all that training, and years of coaching from Yu Xiaogang... Tang San still had to rely on an unringed Clear Sky Hammer to win fights. What a waste."
That's what you get for walking the wrong path.
So many cheats—and in the end, it's still hammer and hidden weapons?
Lin Xiao swore to learn from Tang San's mistakes. He would never follow that detour.
"My basic attribute is fire," he thought. "But if I go deeper... the Fire Phoenix is all about rebirth—which means life force is essential too."
The Phoenix doesn't die.
That concept kept circling in Lin Xiao's mind.
When the time came to hunt his third soul ring, he needed to target a fire-attribute soul beast with high vitality.
If it happened to be avian, all the better.
He made a mental note to consult the soul beast encyclopedia.
Currently, his flame had the following traits:
Explosion factor
Near-extreme fire attribute (not quite pure extreme fire yet)
Adhesive & lingering burn — inherited from the Evil Fire
The persistent-burning aspect likely represented the life-force variant.
The stickiness and adhesion came from darkness and destruction.
He continued poring over his books. Nearby, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling had been standing so long their legs were going numb. But neither interrupted him—they simply watched Lin Xiao in silence, observing his deep concentration.
"Yan-jie, don't you think Lin Xiao looks kinda... handsome when he's this focused?" Lingling whispered.
"No."
"Eh?"
"Maybe he's just plain handsome—focused or not."
"But he's a bit more charming when focused, right?"
"Hmmph."
The two girls whispered back and forth.
Then, a young librarian in a fitted uniform—almost like a modern office lady—walked over and cleared her throat.
"Ladies, this is a library. Could you keep it down?"
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling immediately shut up.
Lingling lowered her head to stare at her embroidered shoes as if they could magically show her toes through the fabric.
Dugu Yan gave a sheepish smile. "Sorry, sorry, we'll be quiet."
The librarian, seeing they were well-behaved, nodded and turned to leave—but not before stealing a glance at Lin Xiao.
Look at him—so immersed he's practically buried in the pages! That's what a real student looks like!
Once the librarian left, Lingling finally looked up and scanned the room. Seeing no one watching, she let out a breath of relief.
Dugu Yan gave her a glare.
You freeze up every time someone shows up!
Lingling quietly poked Lin Xiao's back.
He slowly lifted his head, blinking in confusion.
She poked her own belly.
Eyes slightly misty, she whispered, "I'm hungry~"
Lin Xiao finally noticed the time—past noon.
"Let's go get lunch," he said.
Then he paused. "Wait, how many books can I borrow at once?"
"Three max," Dugu Yan answered. "If any get damaged, you pay for them. The borrowable ones are labeled—others are just blank shells for display. To access the originals, you have to apply—and approval's not guaranteed."
"Got it."
Lin Xiao grabbed the book he was reading—A Brief Theory on Martial Souls—then added one about the Extreme North's folklore and geography.
As he reached for a third, he suddenly paused.
His expression turned strange.
He slowly pulled out a book titled:
"The Ten Core Theories of Martial Souls"
By: Yu Xiaogang
…
Lin Xiao stared at the author's name with a crooked smirk.
Well, well. Now this is interesting.
He flipped through it.
Sure enough, his brows creased with every page.
As expected.
The world's not short on misunderstood geniuses—just people with overactive imaginations.
If Yu Xiaogang's theories actually worked, he wouldn't be a punchline. Even the so-called title of "Grandmaster" had become an insult.
Yes, some of the data he cited was accurate—but the conclusions?
Pure conjecture.
The man was a mere Grand Soul Master, daring to theorize about cultivation paths up to Title Douluo?
Without evidence, logic, or testing?
Lin Xiao nearly threw the book back on the shelf—but then hesitated.
No.
He'd take it with him.
Not because he respected it.
Because he wanted to annotate and destroy it, page by page!
Let me publish my own critical edition someday. I'll personally dismantle this garbage theory and put proper soul master science on the map!
At the checkout desk, the librarian saw his first book—A Brief Theory on Martial Souls—and nodded with approval.
Then her eyes fell on The Ten Core Theories of Martial Souls.
"Wait, that book?"
Lin Xiao gave a helpless smile.
"Just... reading it critically. For research."
The librarian hesitated, then finished the checkout process and said seriously:
"You can read it, but don't follow it, okay?"
Lin Xiao nodded.
Inwardly, he swore:
One day, I'll rewrite this book—and let the truth bury the falsehoods for good.