Seeing that Yun Ming and the others had left, Oscar asked in a daze.
"Rongrong, how do you think I should choose?"
The choice Yun Ming gave him was significant, and he needed to hear some other voices.
Ning Rongrong was silent for a moment. In her mind, memories of the past few days—Oscar being exhausted and unhappy during his special training—surfaced one by one, and her heart ached for him. So, in the end, she stepped forward, took Oscar's hand, and voiced her thoughts.
"Little Oscar, why don't you just forget it?"
"Absorbing a soul ring beyond your limit is too dangerous, and after all, we are just of the Support System; there is no need to take such risks."
"Compared to you reaching the so-called peak of a soul master, I would rather you stay safe and sound, accompanying me for a long, long time."
Looking at the genuine worry in Ning Rongrong's eyes, Oscar recalled the helpless feeling he had when she was injured earlier.
At that time, he had only thought about becoming a Battle Soul Master so that if a similar situation occurred in the future, he wouldn't regret it. But if he made this choice today and something went wrong, and he still failed to protect Rongrong, would he really not regret it?
Bringing in Yun Ming's suggestion, he thought again: if he could reach the peak of a soul master, surpassing the level of Bone Douluo, would he definitely be able to protect Ning Rongrong and everything he wanted to guard? It was uncertain, but what was certain was that the possibility would be much higher.
Thinking of this, Oscar suddenly realized that he was no longer the person he used to be; now he had the person he cared about most and the things he wanted to do most. Since that was the case, he should also cast aside his former weakness.
A man's growth often happens in an instant, and this moment was Oscar's moment of growth. He finally completed a deep-seated shift in mentality, a change more profound than in the original timeline, where he only sought to meet the requirements of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Oscar held Ning Rongrong's delicate hand and said calmly.
"Rongrong, I've decided."
"I want to absorb that Evil Spirit Orca soul ring, and I also want to reach the peak of a Battle Soul Master."
Ning Rongrong's expression changed slightly upon hearing Oscar's decision. It was as if Oscar had asked for her opinion only to make the opposite choice—no, she had said so much, why hadn't Oscar listened, and instead done the exact opposite!
Before Ning Rongrong could ask, Oscar continued earnestly.
"I also want to accompany you for a long time, which is why I need to become stronger—strong enough to shield you from all the wind and rain."
Ning Rongrong looked at the unfamiliar determination in Oscar's Peach Blossom Eyes, and she was moved. With a husband like this, what more could she ask for!
She smiled, a very sweet smile, with happiness and joy overflowing from her eyes and brows. Since Oscar had already made his decision, she would naturally support him.
"Alright! I will accompany you on this journey."
Just as Oscar and Ning Rongrong were resetting their life goals, Yun Ming was confronting the Evil Spirit Orca that had delivered itself to their doorstep.
Hai Lan saw that several of his subordinates had already been injured in the battle with the Evil Spirit Orca and immediately summoned his spirit, preparing to rush forward to fight it. However, before he could enter the fray, Yun Ming, who was standing to the side, moved.
Yun Ming summoned the Atlas Divine Spear, and a Yellow Soul Ring appeared beneath his feet, lighting up.
Yun Ming's First Soul Skill, 'Source of Void', was activated.
With a flash of silver light, Yun Ming vanished from his spot and teleported above the head of the Evil Spirit Orca.
The Evil Spirit Orca, which was fighting other Sea Soul Masters, was startled by the sudden appearance of Yun Ming above its head. Instinctively, it whipped its tail, sending countless fine, red light blades slashing toward Yun Ming.
This was the Crushed Tooth Slash of the Evil Spirit Orca, a talent-based area-of-effect soul skill of the Evil Spirit Orca clan.
Yun Ming ignored the light blades that were mere inches away, which caused a flash of violent, cold light to cross the Evil Spirit Orca's eyes. That Yun Ming dared to ignore its attack was truly courting death. But the scene that followed stunned the Evil Spirit Orca, as its light blades passed directly through Yun Ming's body as if they had hit nothing at all.
Yun Ming's First Soul Skill derivative technique, Void.
Having dodged the Evil Spirit Orca's attack, Yun Ming naturally launched a counterattack. Golden light suddenly shone brightly on the Atlas Divine Spear, and a powerful, domineering, and majestic aura was suddenly released, making everyone and every beast nearby feel their hearts stop for a beat.
It was in this split second that Yun Ming moved, swinging the Atlas Divine Spear down violently onto the Evil Spirit Orca.
"Bang—"
The long spear made intimate contact with the Evil Spirit Orca's round head, producing a loud sound.
Judging by the sound, it's a good fish head; it should taste pretty good, Yun Ming thought to himself.
The other party involved, the fish that had been struck, felt its body shudder and immediately flipped over, exposing its belly.
It had been knocked over by a single strike of Yun Ming's 'Absolute Dominance'. After all, it was only a thousand-year soul beast; regardless of how high its lineage was, as long as it wasn't a pure mental-type, it was basically equal before 'Absolute Dominance'.
Hai Lan had known that Yun Ming's abilities were extraordinary, but he hadn't expected them to be this extraordinary. A thousand-year soul beast with a top-tier lineage had been settled by Yun Ming in just two or three moves, which gave him a new understanding of Yun Ming's combat power. Hai Lan retracted his spirit and sighed sincerely.
"Young Master Yun, your combat power is unparalleled; it has truly opened this old man's eyes."
Yun Ming said politely.
"Sea Hall Master is too kind."
Without giving Hai Lan another chance to praise him, Yun Ming continued.
"Please keep an eye on the Evil Spirit Orca, Sea Hall Master."
"The next step is to serve it on the table, isn't it? We'll wait for Oscar's choice. If he wants this soul ring, let him kill it and absorb it directly."
The speaker might not have intended anything by it, but Hai Lan took it to heart. He pondered silently to himself that regardless of whether Oscar wanted the soul ring or not, he would definitely give it a chance to be served as the main course later.
"Understood."
Afterward, Yun Ming gave some instructions to Ya Li, returned to his room, sat cross-legged, and entered his Spirit Space.
Seeing Yun Ming again, Ao Tian spoke up.
"Can we start now?"
Feeling the increasingly intense fluctuations within the Atlas Divine Spear, Yun Ming looked at Ao Tian with burning eyes and said.
"Yes! We can begin."
Ao Tian nodded, and a blinding red light suddenly spread from the center of his brow, transforming into a ring of red radiance that expanded in an instant. Wherever the red light passed, everything was dyed the color of blood, and everything, at this very moment, came to a standstill.
An incomparably powerful energy erupted from the room of Yun Ming, causing the others on the ship to be filled with astonishment, though fortunately, with Ya Li watching over them, no chaos ensued.
The Atlas Divine Spear sensed the surging energy appearing within Yun Ming's body and, without needing Yun Ming to mobilize it, began to absorb the energy quite consciously. Moreover, perhaps because this energy shared the same origin as the "Ao Tian" of later generations within the Atlas Divine Spear, it absorbed it even faster this time than the last.
At first, Ao Tian did not feel that there was any problem; after all, it was his first time performing a sacrifice, and he had no experience. However, as his energy was being consumed on a massive scale, a soul that was extremely similar to his own, yet vaguely stronger, also began to awaken.
"What is going on? How can it be so similar to me?" Sensing this fluctuation, which could only be described as eerie, the expression on Ao Tian's dragon face changed drastically, and he hurriedly asked.
Yun Ming said with profound mystery.
"He is you, the you from the future!"
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: DaoistReader