Soul Land: Full Body Martial Soul

Yang Xiong summoned his martial soul and spirit rings simultaneously, activating his second spirit skill, Golden Heart, while also manifesting the Mysterious Dark Armor. Although the turtle shell on his back appeared rather unsightly, his chest and abdomen were entirely covered with thick protective shell, maximizing his physical defensive capabilities.

Yang Xiong, wielding an iron dagger, approached the Eight Corner Mysterious Ice Grass with determination. Even with his condition optimized to its fullest extent, an extremely cold aura penetrated his entire body, making him feel as if he were about to freeze completely solid.

Yang Xiong gritted his teeth and directly severed the Eight Corner Mysterious Ice Grass with a single decisive strike. Holding the precious herb in his left hand, his entire hand felt as if it were transforming into a solid ice block, and even his various defensive measures proved completely useless against the intense cold.

At this critical moment, Yang Xiong's face was filled with unwavering determination. He had no possible way to retreat now—he had to endure even the most excruciating pain imaginable.

Yang Xiong quickly moved to stand before the Blazing Apricot Passionate, using his jade knife to cut it cleanly from its roots, then swiftly grasped the dangerous herb in his right hand.

As soon as the Blazing Apricot Passionate entered his grip, the originally sturdy iron glove began to glow red-hot, appearing as if it might melt completely at any moment. Even the specially crafted silkworm silk glove beneath couldn't withstand such extreme temperatures, and a distinct burnt smell began emanating from his entire hand.

Even though Yang Xiong was actively using his second spirit skill, Golden Heart, at this crucial moment—with his spirit power rapidly working to heal his damaged body—both hands were enduring tremendous, overwhelming pain. His left hand felt as if it had condensed into a single solid piece of ice, while his right hand burned as if it were being roasted in flowing magma.

Yang Xiong clenched his teeth and quickly brought the Eight Corner Mysterious Ice Grass and the Blazing Apricot Passionate together. Under the violent collision of extreme cold and extreme heat, the opposing temperatures actually neutralized each other temporarily, creating red and white auras that clashed dramatically in the air.

At this moment, Yang Xiong didn't hesitate for even an instant. He quickly placed both the Eight Corner Mysterious Ice Grass and the Blazing Apricot Passionate into his mouth, consuming these two powerful immortal herbs as rapidly as possible and swallowing them down into his stomach. The cold and heat auras of the two opposing herbs were only temporarily suppressing each other—they would violently erupt in just ten breaths, perhaps even more catastrophically than before.

As soon as both immortal herbs entered his mouth simultaneously, the cold and heat auras suddenly erupted with explosive force, and his entire abdomen immediately began emanating a volatile, dangerous energy.

First, an extremely cold aura burst forth initially, and his whole body immediately felt as if it were trapped within solid ice. His entire form turned blue, whether flesh, skin, cells, or even bone marrow—every single cell seemed to be frozen solid, transforming his whole person into an ice block that was a hundred times colder than during his previous body tempering sessions.

In just an instant, the blue aura disappeared completely, and his entire body immediately turned bright red again, as if he were submerged in flowing magma. His whole form radiated intense heat waves, and his hair appeared ready to burst into flames.

His entire body alternated between red and blue coloration, sometimes becoming as cold as ten-thousand-year-old ice, and sometimes as scorching hot as molten magma. Even the spirit power circulating throughout his body changed dramatically under the influence of these two opposing auras, and his whole being seemed on the verge of complete collapse.

At this moment, Yang Xiong was enduring absolutely tremendous pain, with his entire body seemingly completely beyond his control. His whole form was being tormented as if he were being subjected to the torture of slow slicing.

With his last remaining fragment of rational thought, Yang Xiong gritted his teeth and staggered toward the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Without caring about any other considerations, he jumped directly into the mystical spring water.

After entering the spring water, the pain didn't weaken in the slightest—instead, it became even more intense and overwhelming. The inability to release the extremely cold and extremely hot auras to the outside world made him suffer tremendously, and even his entire body began twisting and contorting involuntarily.

Especially after the combined power of ice and fire entered the spring water of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the intensity actually increased dramatically. His body seemed to be pulled apart by two opposing forces, and his whole person felt as if he might be completely crushed.

Although Yang Xiong possessed a second spirit skill that could repair his physical body and even eliminate negative effects, compared to the awesome power of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water and the ice and fire forces raging within his body, these healing abilities proved far too weak to make a meaningful difference.

Compared to Tang San in the original timeline, Yang Xiong didn't possess the continuous life-sustaining power of the Mysterious Heaven Skill, but after years of dedicated tempering, his body was definitely stronger than Tang San's had been. The unique nature of his body-type martial soul meant that his physical form was literally his martial soul itself.

In Yang Xiong's understanding, ice and fire represented the two opposing poles of the entire world. If he wanted his body to truly withstand these two conflicting forces, he could only achieve success by allowing them to blend and rotate together in perfect harmony.

Yang Xiong employed meditation techniques and used his final remaining consciousness to make the spirit power within his body circulate rapidly. He focused particularly on the spirit power in his torso, making it flow back and forth continuously, forming a circular closed loop throughout his system.

Under this extremely painful environment, Yang Xiong seemed to perceive the true essence of his martial soul. He could see the meridians throughout his body, with spirit power flowing and surging through these channels like an endless river system.

What Yang Xiong didn't realize was that during the process of his spirit power circulation, the spring water of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well also seemed to be affected by his internal energy flow. The originally distinct red and blue colors actually began blending and rotating together in perfect synchronization.

If people from Earth were to witness this phenomenon, they would recognize that a clear symbol was actually forming within the spring water—resembling a Tai Chi diagram in its perfect balance.

Just when Yang Xiong was using his last trace of consciousness to circulate the spirit power throughout his body, even that final fragment of awareness began to gradually fade away. His whole person slowly fell into unconsciousness, but the spirit power within his body continued running rapidly on its own, as if it had become a mighty river. The ice and fire power from the two immortal herbs also seemed to form an enormous, self-sustaining cycle.

Under the continuous erosion of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water, the turtle shell on his back actually began to gradually dissolve and transform. However, this piece of Mysterious Dark Armor external spirit bone had already become integrated with Yang Xiong's skeletal structure. It was constantly being dissolved and then continuously regenerating, with its shape gradually changing and evolving into individual pieces of armor that attached directly to the surface of his torso.

Time passed in an unknown quantity before Yang Xiong gradually began to regain consciousness. Although he remained lying within the spring water of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, he could no longer feel any pain from the ice and fire power. He actually felt particularly comfortable and at peace within the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. The ice and fire power from the two immortal herbs seemed to have been completely integrated into every single cell of his being.

Yang Xiong couldn't help but release a triumphant roar. He had finally succeeded in his life-threatening gamble. He had not only completed the ice and fire body tempering process, but had also accomplished his own true transformation. Even the experimental breakthrough he had once only dreamed of achieving had become reality.

However, Yang Xiong didn't allow himself to hesitate for long. He quickly climbed out of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, immediately changed into a fresh set of clothes, then gathered all his belongings and rapidly ascended out of the well using the steel cable. This location remained Dugu Bo's personal lair, and he had no idea how long he had remained unconscious in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. It would prove extremely troublesome if he encountered Dugu Bo returning unexpectedly.

After completing the ice and fire body tempering process, Yang Xiong was no longer afraid of any poisonous fog or toxic effects. He walked directly through the poison formation with confidence and quickly headed toward the direction of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School. At this critical time, it would be best to seek safety within his sect's protected territory.

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