It was evening, and the others were already meditating.
Tang San had just finished forging iron and returned from the blacksmith shop.
Sweaty from the forging, he habitually showered and changed before heading to Grandmaster's place.
As he entered the dormitory, his eyes caught the familiar figure on the adjacent bed, and his heart lifted with joy.
It was Zhao Liuyun!
"Liuyun, you're back?" Tang San asked with a smile.
He had grown used to the clear, cool fragrance of the Moonlit Lotus, which calmed the mind.
Not having smelled it for three days, the familiar floral scent now brought a sudden sense of peace.
"Just got back," Zhao Liuyun replied with a gentle smile.
"Was the soul hunt smooth this time?" Tang San hesitated slightly, feeling their friendship was deep enough, and asked directly.
"I..."
"I know! I know!" Before Zhao Liuyun could finish, Xiao Wu's crisp voice came from the doorway.
She skipped over to the two of them and told Tang San in a bright voice:
"Liuyun's soul ring comes from a three-hundred-year-old Human-Faced Purple-Striped Scorpion. The soul skill is called 'Cease...'."
Seeing Xiao Wu pause, Zhao Liuyun gently filled in, "Stopping Hostilities."
"Stopping Hostilities?" Tang San felt it sounded like a peaceful name.
Xiao Wu nodded vigorously: "The effect is to make people sleep!"
Though crudely put, it hit the nail on the head.
Zhao Liuyun explained in detail: "It makes people drowsy, helps them sleep more easily, lowers their fighting spirit, and reduces their will to fight."
When one is extremely tired, naturally, all they want to do is lie down and sleep.
The soul skill was still Dream-Making, but after the breakdown, it sounded completely different.
As for the name "Stopping Hostilities"...
Well, it does stop conflict, doesn't it?
"A very good soul skill," Tang San praised.
Truly worthy of a Support-type Martial Soul; it offers floral fragrance to soothe the mind and a soul skill to aid sleep.
Zhao Liuyun smiled: "If you ever can't sleep, you can come find me."
"Haha, I will." Tang San and Zhao Liuyun exchanged a look and a smile.
Putting so much effort into meditating and cultivating every night, where would he find time to sleep?
It was just a joke, after all.
And for now, it was indeed a joke.
But once I use the [Hypnosis] on you, Tang San, you'll remember this!
After acquiring the Dream Demon soul ring, the doubled Spiritual Power gave Zhao Liuyun abundant confidence.
His spiritual power must be far superior to Tang San's current level!
This was the value of a rare Spirit-type Soul Master absorbing a Dream Demon soul ring in this world.
"I know the Purple-Striped Scorpion is highly venomous, but what kind of soul beast is this Human-Faced Purple-Striped Scorpion?"
Tang San noted the source of Zhao Liuyun's soul ring.
He had learned about the Purple-Striped Scorpion from Grandmaster.
But the Human-Faced part?
While [Hypnosis] deepened Tang San's impression of the soul skill's sleep effect, Zhao Liuyun also amplified the slight curiosity in his heart.
Asking him to consult Yu Xiaogang was also part of the process of deepening the impression of the soul skill.
"I don't know, I just ran into it by chance. It's probably some kind of variation," Zhao Liuyun replied vaguely.
"Why don't you go ask 'Grandmaster'?
"'Grandmaster' is highly knowledgeable and well-informed; maybe he knows? Then you can come back and tell us about it."
Tang San nodded: "I'll go ask later."
As he spoke, his attention shifted to Xiao Wu beside him.
Zhao Liuyun tactfully stopped interjecting.
But [Hypnosis] didn't stop.
The two of them were having a great time playing brother and sister, huh?
Family affection, is it?
Perfect. Tang San, I'll help you further deepen the conflict between the two relationships: sister and lover.
It will help you face your true feelings sooner.
No need to thank me.
Chuckling inwardly, Zhao Liuyun immediately entered meditation.
The continuous, high-intensity use of [Hypnosis] was indeed a drain on his spiritual power.
Time to take a breather.
Meditation it is—30 experience points every night, to break through to Level 12 soon.
Considering his physical condition, Zhao Liuyun didn't plan to stay in Nuoding Academy for too long.
Going to the Soul Hunting Town for medicinal baths sooner was the proper course of action.
But the prerequisite was obtaining the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.
For the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, Zhao Liuyun had prepared more than one trick.
Summarizing all the tricks, the core was to silently and effectively use [Hypnosis].
To make your emotions fluctuate, your thoughts scatter; to make your heart conflicted, your mind distracted; to make you restless, even interfering with normal cultivation and life...
And now was the time for Zhao Liuyun to act.
Becoming a One-Ring Soul Master actually qualified one for graduation.
Several famous Intermediate Soul Master Academies had already sent invitations early on.
However, Zhao Liuyun naturally wouldn't accept.
Uncle-Master Huang Xin was right: Intermediate Academies were places where mediocrities gathered.
True geniuses always went straight to Advanced Soul Master Academies.
Instead of wasting three years drifting along, it was better to use this opportunity to compensate for his physical shortcomings.
The books in the library hadn't been fully read yet; Zhao Liuyun didn't want to waste the experience, so he continued to attend classes on time every day and read on the side during lessons.
In the afternoon, he continued his usual routine, going to the medical clinic to study medicine with his master.
But every time night fell, Zhao Liuyun would put on a grand performance.
He would apply a new [Hypnosis] to Tang San when he returned for washing up.
He couldn't always milk the same few sheep; occasionally, he would add something new.
For example, the fatigue of forging iron—
He deepened the feeling of exhaustion from forging, creating a stark contrast with the carefree ease of Xiao Wu's daily play.
Tang San would thus generate considerable resentment in his heart.
Under normal circumstances, this resentment would be transformed into resignation by the bond of brotherhood, ending with a soft sigh.
But [Hypnosis] took effect, pinning it firmly in his heart!
Not only that.
Tang San meditated diligently every night, his Soul Power circulating ceaselessly, while Xiao Wu slept soundly, showing few signs of cultivation.
Yet, the gap between their cultivation levels was never opened up by even an inch!
In the past, Tang San would simply sigh at the power of innate talent and dismiss it with a laugh.
However, now, Zhao Liuyun used the power of [Hypnosis] to amplify and solidify that subtle imbalance.
Furthermore, there was the subtle nervousness that arose in Tang San's heart when he broke through to Level 12...
The deliberate creation of various conflicting emotions and thoughts played a crucial role, just as Zhao Liuyun had predicted.
In just one month, the smile on Tang San's face had significantly decreased, his complexion showed a hint of gloom, and his mood became more irritable than before.
Neither he, Yu Xiaogang, nor Tang Hao could detect the anomaly.
Zhao Liuyun's long-term maintenance of various strange emotions in Tang San's heart, stirring up chaotic thoughts, was all for this moment!
While casting [Hypnosis] on Tang San, he didn't forget to cast [Dream Invasion] on Xiao Wu.
In one month, he had summarized quite a few rules for dream evolution.
Dreams are disordered.
Those bizarre, illogical dreams are extremely easy to interfere with.
Because they are so absurd, even if discovered, or even if they completely defy logic, they can be easily accepted.
However, this type of dream cannot be trusted for any information.
Even using a person's most profound memories as a dream anchor will result in severe distortion.
Zhao Liuyun had seen "Life Lake Xiao Wu," "Sun Xiao Wu," "Cthulhu Xiao Wu"...
This category of dreams is represented by the final stages of a person's dream as they are about to wake up.
Dream resources are largely drawn away, and the residual dream cannot evolve normally, resulting in a chaotic, mixed, and utterly strange patchwork.
To stably acquire the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, Zhao Liuyun's best choice was the initial stage of the dream.
This is the dream right after falling asleep.
As the dream is born, the subconscious mind's thoughts are continuously injected, pushing the dream to gradually take shape.
It is also disordered, but influenced by [Phantom Dream]'s ability to "make the dream develop more naturally and harmoniously," a logical main thread will naturally emerge as the dream deepens.
Moreover, because the dream is just starting, it is the easiest to interfere with.
Even replacing a key figure who consumes a large amount of dream resources can be seamlessly integrated without any sense of incongruity.
The middle stage of the dream is the second-best option: the information is credible, but interference is more troublesome.
In a relatively mature dream, foreign elements that are too incongruous might provoke the dream owner's instinctual rejection and resistance.
To be absolutely foolproof, it would require more spiritual power.
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