49: Chapter 49 Fusion of Soul Cores

Within his Dantian, Ultimate Fire and Ultimate Ice each occupied one side, neither encroaching upon the other.

Bai Qi was in no rush to fuse them; instead, he first used his Mental Energy to guide the two liquid Soul Powers into his Dantian, letting them gradually draw closer.

The moment ice and fire made contact, Bai Qi felt a slight stinging pain in his Dantian.

The two opposing forces instinctively repelled each other. Even with the Torch Dragon Martial Soul's regulation, the two strands of Soul Power were like magnets of the same pole; they would spring apart as soon as they got close.

"Is it really not working?"

Then, Bai Qi steadied his mind and began his second plan, using Mental Energy to compress the two into small liquid spheres.

He then gathered the liquid Soul Power in his Dantian. This operation required the most Soul Power, and that was the one thing Bai Qi did not lack right now.

As the liquid Soul Power continued to pour in, the two small spheres—one icy blue and one crimson—constantly leaked their own Soul Power into the surroundings.

Yet these two strands of leaking Soul Power didn't cause Bai Qi any discomfort, just like the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

This was the place where the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings fell; however, aside from the Dragon Kings themselves, it was the leakage of Soul Power that transformed this place. This water wasn't Ultimate power, but something close to it; this was exactly the situation inside Bai Qi's Dantian now.

The Soul Power leaking from the two small spheres was diluted, allowing Bai Qi, who already possessed Ultimate power, to fuse them more effectively.

However, he cautiously controlled the speed of the fusion, ensuring that the attribute leaking from one side did not exceed the other.

If he made a mistake, he would lose control of the two Ultimate power spheres, and everything would fail instantly. Thus, every step required precise control.

Time passed minute by minute, and fine beads of sweat broke out on Bai Qi's forehead.

Liu Erlong watched him from the side, her heart tightening as she saw his furrowed brows and slightly trembling body.

She didn't know exactly what Bai Qi was doing, but she could feel the Soul Power fluctuations within him were extremely violent, as if they might spiral out of control at any moment.

She clenched her fists, suppressing the urge to step forward and interrupt him.

Meanwhile, Bai Qi was completely immersed in his Dantian.

After the guidance just now, the ice and fire Soul Powers finally achieved a preliminary fusion, forming a state similar to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well—a state where each contained a part of the other.

The icy blue and crimson no longer repelled each other; instead, they were like two intertwined streams, slowly circulating within his Dantian.

Seeing this, Bai Qi did not rush to the next step but first stabilized this state.

He used his Mental Energy to envelop the fused Soul Power, letting it slowly adapt to this mode of coexistence.

After confirming it was stable, he began the next step.

Bai Qi mobilized his Mental Energy to form an invisible vortex in his Dantian.

The two-colored liquid Soul Power was drawn by the vortex and began to rotate slowly.

At first, the speed was slow, but with the continuous pressure from his Mental Energy, the rotation grew faster and faster.

Under the effect of centrifugal force, the liquid Soul Power contracted toward the center, its volume shrinking while its density increased.

This process consumed a vast amount of Mental Energy. Bai Qi's face gradually turned pale.

He could feel every shred of Soul Power in his Dantian being compressed, as if an invisible hand were kneading them together.

Liu Erlong noticed that Bai Qi's complexion was worsening, and even his lips had turned pale.

She clenched her fists even tighter, but she knew she couldn't disturb him now. If he was interrupted, not only would all previous efforts be wasted, but it might also damage his very foundation.

She could only stay by his side, watching quietly.

Bai Qi gritted his teeth and continued the compression.

The rotation became increasingly violent, and the liquid Soul Power continued to shrink, changing from its initial mass into the size of an egg.

The icy blue and crimson colors intertwined within the sphere like a Taiji diagram, each containing the other.

Bai Qi took a deep breath, concentrated all his Mental Energy on his Dantian, and suddenly increased the intensity of the compression.

The two-colored Soul Power sphere shuddered violently, then contracted at a speed visible to the naked eye. It shrank from the size of an egg to the size of a walnut, and then from a walnut to a perfectly round crystal.

Icy blue and crimson colors flowed across the crystal's surface, intertwined and inseparable.

It wasn't static; it was slowly rotating. With every revolution, it drew a sliver of power from the surrounding liquid Soul Power, becoming even more solid.

Bai Qi felt a jolt in his Dantian as an unprecedented power surged from the crystal, flowing through his meridians to every corner of his body.

That feeling wasn't an explosion, but a steady, never-ending sense of fullness, as if an inexhaustible power source had been added to his body.

The Ice and Fire Same-Origin Spirit Core was complete.

Bai Qi exhaled a long breath of turbid air and opened his eyes.

In his eyes, a flash of red and blue light flickered before returning to normal.

Seeing him open his eyes, Liu Erlong hurried over and asked.

"How is it?"

The corners of Bai Qi's mouth curled up slightly. His voice was weak but filled with satisfaction.

"It's done."

Liu Erlong breathed a sigh of relief, her tense body suddenly relaxing. Only then did she realize her palms were covered in sweat.

"You really succeeded?"

She still found it hard to believe.

Bai Qi nodded. He didn't explain much, simply sensing the spirit core within him.

The icy blue and crimson colors within the crystal were like a miniature version of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, quiet and stable.

He clenched his fist, feeling that his strength had increased significantly, though the exact extent would require time to test.

Liu Erlong looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

She had seen many geniuses, and she herself was considered one. If she progressed steadily, she could also reach the rank of Titled Douluo.

But someone like Bai Qi, who dared to attempt a cultivation method that didn't even exist on the Douluo Continent yet at just level sixty—and succeeded—she had never seen before.

"What do you plan to do next?"

Liu Erlong asked, her voice slightly softer than usual.

Bai Qi sat cross-legged, thought for a moment, and said.

"Let's rest for two days. Then, once the Old freak returns, we'll head out to find a spirit ring for Teacher Erlong."

Liu Erlong looked at Bai Qi, nodded, and said with a smile.

"Alright."

But she also turned her face away, pretending to look at the spring in the distance, her earlobes turning slightly red.

Bai Qi smiled at Liu Erlong's reaction, knowing she had now completely forgotten her feelings for Yu Xiaogang.

He closed his eyes to sense the spirit core. It had just formed and still needed a period of stabilization and integration; there was no rush. But at least, he had taken this step.

Seeing Bai Qi close his eyes again, Liu Erlong sat down beside him, quietly keeping him company.

She didn't know what she was thinking, but she felt that sitting like this was quite nice.

As night fell, the mist in the valley gradually thickened.

Bai Qi was still stabilizing. Liu Erlong got up, fetched a blanket from the tent, gently covered his legs, and then sat back in her original spot.

She watched the moonlight spill onto the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, the red and blue waters shimmering with a faint light.

Liu Erlong suddenly remembered what Bai Qi had said during the day.

"I'll probably be able to fuse even more in the future."

She felt that if Bai Qi said it, he would do it.

She sighed softly, leaned against a rock, and closed her eyes.

The sound of the flowing spring and Bai Qi's steady breathing filled her ears.

Unconsciously, she also fell asleep.