"You have a pretty good teacher," Electrolux said softly in the Spiritual Sea.
Amidst a vast gray mist, Lin Xiao's figure slowly condensed and took shape. "Teacher Lin… he's been very good to me."
Lin Xiao paused for a moment. "It's just that there are many things he doesn't know."
"Perhaps he takes care of you not because of your identity?" Electrolux smiled. "Identity doesn't determine what kind of person you are."
"Just like you, among so many evil soul masters, you still managed to retain a trace of kindness. I think those people, perhaps like me, looked after you not because of your identity, but because of something else in you."
Lin Xiao shook his head and didn't continue the topic. He gently raised his hand, and a strange power danced lightly in his palm.
In truth, he had already awakened from his deep meditation the moment the diving soul tool approached.
However, while condensing his soul core, he had gained insight into the profound laws of space. Having just regained consciousness, he still needed some time to digest the results of his meditation.
Seeing this, Electrolux let out a soft sigh and stopped pressing Lin Xiao about his identity.
"I've roughly understood the cultivation process of this world you're in. That so-called soul core, one of its functions is to open up a space inside your body to store soul power."
"Soul cores differ from soul master to soul master. The fact that you were able to comprehend this strand of spatial power, even if you can't fully control it yet, will still be of great benefit to your future cultivation and the growth of your soul core."
"Mm." Lin Xiao nodded. He instinctively lowered his head to look, only to remember that he was currently inside his Spiritual Sea—his present body was merely formed from consciousness.
"I wonder how much time has passed outside. It's about time I woke up."
As Lin Xiao was speaking with Electrolux, the door to the infirmary room outside was pushed open once again.
"I thought you would never come back."
A clear, crisp voice rang out softly. Lin Xiao's body remained motionless on the hospital bed, but inside the Spiritual Sea, he could clearly see who had entered.
He didn't know how long had passed in the outside world. Unknowingly, the person before him was no longer the little girl who had once fled everywhere because of war. Only those slightly furrowed brows remained the same as before, carrying a melancholy that seemed impossible to dispel.
"I'm sorry. Please forgive my selfishness. I know that with my current status, I shouldn't cause you any more trouble, but when I heard news about you, I couldn't help but come see you."
The person who entered the ward was none other than Ju Zi, whom Lin Xiao had not seen since the assassination attempt on the prince's group. Perhaps because she was about to become the Crown Princess, even within the academy, Ju Zi had been deliberately avoiding him.
She knew that with Xu Tianran's personality, if she showed even the slightest unusual behavior toward anyone else, it would arouse his suspicion.
Yet when Lin Xiao had been missing for over a year, she still came here. She spoke words that seemed like self-talk, gently raising her hand as if wanting to touch Lin Xiao's cheek.
However, before her palm could land, she saw that Lin Xiao had at some point opened his eyes and was staring straight at her.
"You… when did you wake up?"
Ju Zi took half a step back, somewhat flustered as she quickly withdrew her hand.
"Just now," Lin Xiao replied, pretending he hadn't seen anything. "How long have I been gone from the academy?"
"More than a year, I think." Seeing Lin Xiao's calm gaze, Ju Zi gradually calmed down as well.
"So much time has passed." Lin Xiao sighed lightly.
After leaving the academy, he had first spent a long time adapting underwater with the Great Elder, then some other things happened, and finally, he entered deep meditation. Thinking back, it had indeed been a very long time.
"Has anything happened at the academy?"
Lin Xiao leaped off the hospital bed and lightly clenched his fists, feeling the power coursing through his body.
"Nothing major." Ju Zi shook her head, glanced at Lin Xiao a few more times, then took two steps back, and said, "I'll go tell Director Lin. He's been worried about you the whole time you were gone."
Before Lin Xiao could reply, she had already turned and pushed the door open to leave.
Lin Xiao watched her retreat and let her go. He lowered his head slightly to look at his own body.
Inside his dantian, the soul core rotated slowly. With every rotation, the surrounding heaven-and-earth origin energy was drawn into his body, converted into soul power, and flowed through his meridians.
The power contained within a 400,000-year soul ring was far beyond that of an ordinary soul ring. Although most of that soul power had been used to condense his soul core, his current soul power level had still reached level 83.
Moreover, ever since his martial soul's attribute changed to Ultimate Death, his soul power had become much denser than that of ordinary soul masters.
What surprised Lin Xiao even more was that not only had his soul core and soul power improved his meridians were filled with resilience, and his physical strength had increased significantly once again.
"Teacher, is this the effect of the Living Gold?"
"Not entirely," Electrolux replied in Lin Xiao's mind. "Do you remember when you deliberately went deeper underwater to use the water pressure to stabilize your body while enduring the impact of the soul ring?"
"Your body was constantly tempered between those two internal and external forces, and the Living Gold continuously repaired the damage to your body. That's how you reached your current state."
"Otherwise, your body wouldn't have been able to absorb so much of the Living Gold's power."
Lin Xiao recalled the scene from back then. Although it hadn't been as extreme as breaking and rebuilding himself when absorbing his seventh soul ring, it still hadn't been pleasant. Fortunately, he had gained something in the end.
Letting out a long breath, Lin Xiao also walked out of the infirmary. Looking at the sunlight streaming in through the window, he narrowed his eyes slightly. It seemed he hadn't seen sunlight in a very long time.
"Hm? You're awake?"
The soul engineer on duty in the medical room noticed the movement and turned to look at Lin Xiao.
"Mm."
"Good to see you're fine. I could tell from your physical condition that you weren't seriously injured."
"By the way, the student who brought you here said they fished you out of the sea. I don't know what happened to you, but if someone dared to attack a student of Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, there aren't many who would. You can report it to the academy if needed."
Lin Xiao smiled at that. "Thank you, but I'm fine now. I'll be leaving first."
"Oh, alright. Rest well when you get back. If you feel any discomfort, you can come see me anytime."
"Mm, I will."
Standing in the academy grounds, Lin Xiao watched the students constantly passing by. It seemed that aside from some unfamiliar faces, not much had really changed.
It was a good thing this world didn't develop too quickly; otherwise, after being gone for over a year, he might not have been able to keep up with the changes outside upon waking.
He wondered if his dorm room was still there?
Various stray thoughts flashed through his mind as Lin Xiao stepped forward and continued walking.
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