Master, What Dao Do You Cultivate?

Chapter 58: Master's Soul Perception

As the Master said, this guy really has a fetish for disguises. This time when he arrived, the person behind the counter had turned into a plump middle-aged woman.

But the voice was still mechanical, just like before. Now, he could easily switch voices with a voice changer. It seemed like he still liked his mechanical tone: 

"Yu Ye, huh? Has Brother Qinglin not come this time?" 

"Master is out on business. I came to buy some new soul refinement techniques from the boss." 

"Have you already begun basic cultivation?" 

"Yeah, Master set up a soul refinement server for me. I've already gone through the basics, so now I want to buy some new techniques." 

"Your master really... alright, let me find some for you." 

Zhang Huai Min pulled out a drawer containing soul refinement technique storage devices and slowly began to pick them out: 

"I already gave you the Xuan Soul Technique, so I'll find you some higher-level techniques. But you should be cautious. Even though you have two souls in one body, you only have one physical body. If both souls are used intensively one after the other, it could cause damage, just like a computer that's always reloading the system." 

The cost for the technique storage devices was still charged to the Commerce Guild's account. After all, the people in the guild knew better than to object. Master protected the guild, and he himself relied on Master's money. Yu Ye nodded and said: 

"I'll be careful. I won’t use them carelessly. By the way, Master Huai Min, can you tell me about Master's soul refinement talent?" 

Zhang Huai Min froze for a moment and waved his hand: 

"I can't tell you that. It’s a customer’s privacy. I have no right to disclose it." 

Yu Ye took a 50-yuan red coin out of his pocket and placed it on the table, explaining: 

"I’m not prying into personal matters. I just want to help Master. If Master has any issues with soul refinement, maybe I can assist. Please, Master Huai Min, do me this small favor." 

Zhang Huai Min hesitated for a moment, then finally took the 50-yuan coin with a mechanical sigh: 

"Fine, since you’re considered half-family, I’ll only say this once." 

Mad Ye: I just have to say, his proficiency in collecting money... it doesn’t look like it’s his first time. 

Zhang Huai Min checked to ensure there was no one else around, then whispered: 

"Actually, with your Master’s soul perception strength, it’s not a matter of whether he can refine souls in this lifetime. The problem is whether his soul perception will dissipate in the next ten years." 

Yu Ye’s face paled at those words. He had just come to inquire about his Master’s shortcomings in this regard, but he never expected it to be so serious: 

"What did you say?!" 

"Let me put it this way. If the soul perception of an ordinary person is 10, then a typical Qi Refiner's is around 15, and someone with talent could have 18. But someone like you, with a soul perception of 25, is a first for me. As for your Master, his soul perception is only 8—less than that of an ordinary person. It’s completely incapable of refining souls, and I suspect his soul perception may even dissipate before his body dies." 

But Master is such an amazing person... 

Yu Ye couldn’t understand: 

"Why would this happen?" 

"I don’t know either. However, soul perception is mostly innate, maybe it’s just congenital weakness. If we were to use cultivation terminology, it could be a flaw in his spiritual root." 

"Then... is there a way to fix it?" 

Zhang Huai Min put down his work and looked up to explain: 

"Of course, you can compensate through soul refinement methods. The most direct way is soul devouring. You should know that in an open virtual space, devouring and absorbing other soul perceptions can make you stronger. But there are two problems here. First, your Master’s soul perception is too weak—it's like a small fish. If it’s thrown into the ocean, the chances are it’ll get eaten rather than grow. 

Second, devouring other soul perceptions could also consume their remaining memories or even their still-lingering self-awareness. In this case, it’s not impossible for the soul to be seized. Even if successful, the end result may be a new soul, not entirely your Master anymore." 

Mad Ye: I have some say in this. When eating, the soul must be shattered a bit, or else the lingering self-awareness will really get stuck in your mouth. 

"Aside from that, are there any other ways?" 

"For soul replenishment, there are some medical methods. But if we’re talking about cultivation, there’s another one—Yin-Yang dual cultivation." 

Mad Ye: What? Is this some kind of good deal? 

Yu Ye was also surprised: 

"Yin... Yin-Yang dual cultivation can replenish the soul?" 

Zhang Huai Min nodded: 

"Yin-Yang dual cultivation is about the fusion of the body, energy, and soul. It’s a gentler way to replenish the soul. However, given your Master’s soul perception, relying on this slow method to replenish the soul might... " 

"Might what?" 

"Might make you suffer some hardship." 

"What do you mean by that?" 

Mad Ye: It means you'll often be pinned down by your Master like a pile driver. Don't you get it?! 

"..." 

Although they were discussing Master’s soul perception, hearing about Yin-Yang dual cultivation and Mad Ye’s explanation made Yu Ye’s face naturally turn red. 

The topic was already a bit private, and with Zhang Huai Min dressing like a middle-aged woman today, it felt even more like a private conversation between close friends. 

"Does Master know about this?" 

Zhang Huai Min nodded: 

"Of course. No one knows his condition better than he does." 

Yu Ye: I don’t understand. Since Master has known about this for so long, why hasn’t he done something about it? With his abilities, it shouldn’t be that hard, right?

Mad Ye: So, you want to ask why Master, who’s so powerful, doesn’t just become a flower thief and fix his soul? 

Yu Ye: Yeah, just find a red-faced confidant to solve it. With Master’s conditions, it shouldn’t be that hard, right? 

Mad Ye: Since he’s so powerful, his standards for a red-faced confidant must be higher.

Yu Ye: But this might be a life-or-death matter. How could there be no progress after all this time? 

Mad Ye: It’s not like there’s no progress. Didn’t he take in his first disciple for the first time ever? 

Yu Ye: Are you saying Master is preparing... to take me...? No way! No way! With so many opportunities before, if Master really wanted to, there’s no way I would have escaped! 

Mad Ye: Zhang Huai Min said it himself—mutual promotion. Maybe Master just doesn’t want to force you. 

"Master Huai Min, what does Master think about his own situation?" 

Zhang Huai Min shrugged: 

"He doesn’t care at all. He thinks he can last at least another ten years, and if a soul replenishment solution comes along, that’s fine. I’ve given him some suggestions, but he didn’t take them." 

It didn’t sound like the style of a Master who always plans ahead. What exactly was he thinking? 

Yu Ye realized that overthinking this alone wouldn’t get him anywhere. He was afraid Master might discover his secret investigation, so he collected his thoughts and said: 

"Alright, I understand now. Thank you so much, Master Huai Min, for today. But please, don’t tell Master about this, no matter what!" 

"Don’t worry. I would never ruin my own reputation." 

Yu Ye nodded, grabbed the soul refinement technique storage device, and quickly left the building, riding the Night Owl 750 out of the free market. 

Zhang Huai Min finished tidying up, lay back in his metal recliner, and sighed, shaking his head: 

"True enough, they really are alike—both the way they do things and their style."