Douluo, my clone Groudon

Chapter 270 Breakthrough
That night, the team stayed at a hotel near Starry Sky Academy.

After dinner, Bai Yuan went to the rooftop alone and looked up at the starry sky.

The night sky over Tianding City was exceptionally clear, with the Milky Way stretching across the sky like a shimmering ribbon.

"I knew you'd be here."

Bai Yuan didn't turn around; he knew it was Gula from the footsteps. He lightly leaped onto the roof and sat down beside him.

"What's going on with your martial soul? I remember the seed I used was a two-headed man-eating flower. The appearance of the abyss bloodline is already an impossible miracle from a tiny probability. Could there be some hidden story? Or was there something wrong with the soul master who absorbed the soul power back then?"

Gula realized for the first time that he had not yet truly mastered his fourth spirit ring.

Bai Yuan shook his head: "You don't know, and of course I don't know either. But I have a guess. That kind of hunger that completely devours reason, which even we who have reached the Sword Soul realm can't resist, may be related to the real Abyss Plane."

"...I suspect that the Abyss Maw is merely a manifestation of the Martial Soul; it is actually an aggregate of unconscious shadows born from the death of some being."

Bai Yuan expressed his feelings, "So what it desires to devour starlight is actually the stars that emit starlight, as well as the life planes near those stars... Isn't that just like the abyss?"

Gula frowned. Bai Yuan's conjecture was astonishing, but not without reason. His avatar was a manifestation of a distorted timeline and had the same god-level potential as him. His martial soul could not be a common abyssal creature.

After racking his brains to no avail, Gula still couldn't see the future several years from now. Unless he went to the future himself, Gula, who had the ability to travel through time and space, knew very well that the future was uncontrollable. Unless absolutely necessary, he would not risk going to the future.

"Let's leave it at that for now. In any case, cultivation is never wrong. Your martial soul has the fastest cultivation speed. Once you break through to the Soul Saint realm, you'll probably be able to let your martial soul show its true form."

"Hmm." Bai Yuan nodded. Actually, it wouldn't matter if he died. Gula could revive him in a while, but the time would vary depending on his cultivation level.

The following night, Shrek and his group returned to the Heavenly Star Sea Academy.

The observatory's dome opened completely in the night, revealing a dazzling starry sky.

Gula looked up and saw the Milky Way stretching across the sky like a shimmering waterfall, with countless stars several times brighter than usual, seemingly within reach.

"This is the once-in-a-millennium starlight tide..."

Xu Xiaoyan murmured softly, her pale blue eyes reflecting the Milky Way, her slender fingers unconsciously gripping the hem of her clothes.

As the only member of the team with a Star Spirit, she could clearly feel the surging power of the stars in the air. With each breath, her spirit trembled slightly, as if it were about to manifest spontaneously.

Gula stood in the center of the observatory, her short, emerald-gold hair gleaming like gold under the starlight.

He closed his eyes, sensing the surging soul power within his body—level 49, peak, just one step away. His twin martial souls were exceptionally active under the stimulation of the starlight tide, like a volcano about to erupt.

"Are you ready?"

Bai Yuan looked at the two of them, his short black hair resembling a deep universe in the starlight. As a member who had mastered the true meaning of devouring, he would assist in guiding the energy of the starlight tides.

Gula opened his eyes, his golden pupils seemingly burning with flames: "Let's begin."

Xu Xiaoyan took a deep breath and nodded: "I'm ready." Li Zhilong hadn't expected to encounter a once-in-a-millennium starlight tide. He had already accepted all the benefits from the Spirit Transmission Tower, and it was too late to back out now. He could only ask his students to cultivate near the Star Observation Platform in order to try and gain some benefits.

He activated the observatory, and the soul-guiding device and special structure on the dome began to draw in starlight, instantly transforming the bright, daylight-like observatory into a golden ocean.

Bai Yuan leaned against a stone pillar at the edge of the observatory, his black trench coat blending seamlessly into the night. He appeared nonchalant, but in reality, his muscles were tense. He activated his Devouring Domain, but instead of consuming the starlight, he sent it to Gula and Xu Xiaoyan's vicinity.

The energy fluctuations brought by the starlight tide stirred his primal instincts. Na'er keenly noticed his unusual behavior and quietly approached: "Can you hold on?"

"Don't worry about me." Bai Yuan forced a smile, but his voice was hoarseer than usual. "Just watch the show."

Wu Siduo stood on the other side, her dark eyes fixed on the center of the arena. Then she sat down cross-legged to meditate and cultivate.

Gu Yue formed a hand seal, and a silver halo spread from her body, forming a precise light array that enveloped the entire observatory.

"The starlight guidance array is complete. The tidal peak will be reached in three minutes, and the stellar power will reach its peak in five minutes."

Xu Xiaoyan walked to the designated spot and released her Star Wheel Ice Staff Martial Soul. Three spirit rings rose from beneath her feet, a standard configuration of yellow, yellow, and purple.

The Star Wheel Ice Staff floated in her palm, its tip resembling a miniature moon, growing brighter as the starlight intensified, its ice attribute gradually dissolving and transforming into pure astrological attribute.

Groudon stood at the very center of the observatory, unleashing the full power of his Groudon spirit, its four black spirit rings gleaming under the starlight. He held his arms outstretched, as if to embrace the entire starry sky.

"They're here!" Gu Yue suddenly looked up.

Above, the Milky Way suddenly shone several times brighter, and countless starlight cascaded down like a waterfall, pouring directly into the observatory. The entire area was instantly bathed in a dreamlike silver-blue and golden hue, and the stellar energy in the air became so concentrated that it almost liquefied.

Xu Xiaoyan had reached a critical moment. The excessive starlight infusion caused her Star Wheel Martial Soul to begin to deform, the spokes breaking and reforming one by one, while the ice crystal gem in the center continued to expand. The intense pain made her bite her lip until it bled, but she didn't utter a single groan.

Xu Xiaoyan's delicate body trembled, and the Star Wheel Ice Staff flew out of her hand uncontrollably, hovering above her head and spinning wildly, greedily absorbing the pouring starlight. Her martial spirit had never been so thirsty, like a desert that had been parched for many years suddenly encountering a torrential rain.

"Stay calm!" Gu Yue's voice pierced through the starlight. "Guide it to understand and master your martial spirit!"

At the moment the starlight tide reached its peak, Gula felt his soul power boiling like molten lava. The bottleneck of the forty-ninth level peak had become as fragile as paper under the impact of such immense stellar power.

However, he did not rush to break through. His years of cultivation intuition told him that this was the best time to condense his first soul core.

"Not enough..." Groudon muttered through gritted teeth. Groudon's spirit manifested as a radiant sun phantom behind him, while Celebi's spirit manifested as a primeval forest behind him, greedily absorbing the starlight pouring down from around them.

The energy of gold and silver surged through his meridians, causing a tearing pain.

Gu Yue was the first to notice the anomaly: "He's fusing starlight?!" A hint of shock flashed in his purple eyes, "His two martial souls can actually be compatible with the power of stars?"

Bai Yuan, standing at the edge of the observatory, suddenly straightened up. His devouring instincts allowed him to perceive the changes in energy flow more clearly than anyone else.

At this moment, Gula was like a human-shaped vortex, frantically devouring the most essential part of the starlight tide.

(End of this chapter)