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Xu Yuan didn't expect his teacher to be so confident.
However, it seemed reasonable.
Mu Ye's soul power was stuck at level ninety-four, but that didn't mean he couldn't reach the Limit Douluo level.
With the existence of four-word battle armor, Mu Ye could already achieve the strength of a Limit Douluo. His understanding and insight into that level of power were already possible.
This was the era of battle armor.
In fact, some Limit Douluos broke through precisely because they first obtained four-word battle armor, which then "naturally" led to their breakthrough.
Moreover, most Limit Douluos relied on four-word battle armor to take their abilities even further.
Every single quasi-god-level existence undoubtedly depended on four-word battle armor.
Using battle armor to amplify their strength to higher levels allowed them to better comprehend the laws of heaven and earth, thereby improving their cultivation and reaching higher levels.
Xu Yuan carefully calculated in his mind and suddenly realized that his teacher's claim wasn't as exaggerated as it initially sounded.
Ten years…
"What level will I be at in ten years?" Xu Yuan wondered.
In ten years, Xu Yuan would be twenty-four.
By then, would he be able to challenge the limits of a Limit Douluo?
Currently at level forty-nine, if he wanted to reach level ninety-nine in ten years, he'd need to increase his soul power by five levels per year on average.
Xu Yuan let out a wry smile.
It was highly unlikely.
Under normal cultivation conditions, it was already difficult for him to maintain a pace of four levels per year—let alone five.
Unless he encountered some extraordinary opportunity.
"Special opportunities…" Xu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly, contemplating the information he knew.
Achieving the limit within ten years might not be possible, but he still had to strive toward that goal.
Teacher, I won't fall behind you!
---
One month.
Xu Yuan spent a month in Tiandou City.
His soul power still hadn't broken through—it remained at level forty-nine.
Although he felt no lingering side effects from the rapid advancement during the split of his martial soul at the Sea God Pavilion, and even though the bottleneck at level fifty seemed looser, it had been four and a half months since the split, and he still hadn't broken through.
At this rate, how could he possibly challenge the Limit Douluo level within ten years?
Xu Yuan couldn't help but doubt—is cultivation after level fifty really this difficult?
He had heard this conclusion from many elders: cultivation after level fifty would be significantly harder than before.
However, Xu Yuan understood that this was only a relative statement. Many legendary soul masters didn't slow down after reaching level fifty—in fact, some even accelerated.
Take his teacher Yun Ming, for example. His cultivation speed after level fifty was definitely not slow, and before reaching level ninety, he never fell below a pace of four levels per year.
"So, it seems I'm lacking in real-world experience."
Staying cooped up and cultivating alone offered too little stimulation.
"My spiritual power growth has also slowed down considerably. It's been barely a hundred points this month, finally reaching nine thousand, but reaching ten thousand still feels like a distant dream," Xu Yuan reflected. He knew he couldn't rush things.
But knowing that he shouldn't rush didn't make the slow progress any easier to accept.
"The efficiency of spirit ascension in Tiandou City has also decreased. It's time to move on."
The vacation was supposed to last only half a month. The additional one and a half months he spent in Tianhai City were leave days.
When he came to Tiandou City, he was still on leave.
Now, he contacted Wu Zhangkong again to request an extension.
---
Tian Ding City
Tian Ding Starry Sky Soul Academy
"Senior, Teacher Zhao."
Xu Yuan shook hands with Li Zhilong and Zhao Quan, who had come to greet him.
"Hahaha, junior, I didn't expect you to arrive so soon!" Li Zhilong looked delighted.
"How long do you plan to stay at our academy?"
"Half a month."
Li Zhilong thought for a moment and nodded silently.
"Half a month is enough for meaningful exchanges," Zhao Quan added with a smile.
The purpose of Xu Yuan's visit was simple: to discuss with the soul mentors and mech specialists at their academy who specialized in spaceship technology, exploring the direction of condensing spaceship technology into mechs.
Of course, another reason was to continue studying the mysteries of this observatory.
"For the next half month, I'll be troubling the senior members of your academy."
"I've already arranged introductions with some tutors. They're quite interested in this exchange," Zhao Quan said.
---
Observatory
Returning here once again, Xu Yuan was filled with emotion.
This observatory held extraordinary significance for him.
Because of it, his meditation technique gained a soul.
More accurately, it gained a clear direction—a path to imbue his meditation technique with a soul.
Even now, the starry sky map in his sea of spirit remained in a simple self-circulating state, unable to resonate with the stars in the universe.
Over three months had passed since his last visit, and Xu Yuan hadn't neglected its refinement.
Though he had numerous tasks, thanks to the accelerated time in his dreamscape, his cultivation efficiency on each task wasn't inferior to focusing solely on one in reality.
Yet, in three months, he still hadn't found a way to resonate with the stars in the universe.
"It's not about the flow of stellar energy."
He was certain it wasn't related to the structure of his starry sky map.
This was why he hadn't succeeded yet.
As Xu Yuan reflected, Zhao Quan arrived with a middle-aged elder from the Tian Ding Starry Sky Soul Academy.
"Xu Yuan, this is Professor Zhang from our academy. He's a renowned expert in cosmology across the Federation."
"Professor Zhang, this is Xu Yuan, whom I mentioned earlier."
Zhao Quan introduced the two.
Xu Yuan stepped forward and shook hands with Professor Zhang.
"Professor Zhang, thank you for your time."
"No trouble at all. To be honest, I'm very interested in the concept of your 'Stellar Mech,'" Professor Zhang said with a broad smile.
Stellar Mech—he could sense that Xu Yuan had cleverly redefined the concept.
Essentially, it was a battleship.
Strictly speaking, however, it wasn't entirely a battleship; Xu Yuan's design retained characteristics of a mech.
A god-level mech capable of transforming freely—transforming into a battleship form—was theoretically feasible.
This was the ultimate form of what Xu Yuan referred to as the Stellar Mech.
But it was far more than just a simple combination of a mech and a battleship.
The technological requirements involved were incredibly demanding.
What intrigued Professor Zhang?
Naturally, it was Xu Yuan's mastery of four professions simultaneously.
Moreover, since Xu Yuan was willing to collaborate without requiring additional funding, it was simply a matter of mutual discussion and Xu Yuan testing the concepts in practice.
If the Stellar Mech could be successfully developed, the Federation's exploration of the universe could advance significantly.
Although spaceship technology had improved somewhat, it was still insufficient. Spaceships lacked the necessary speed. Introducing mech technology—and achieving the level of formation arrays found in battle armor, as Xu Yuan envisioned—could bridge this seemingly insurmountable technological gap.
At the very least, the upper limit would be broken.
While the precision of the technology couldn't be achieved immediately, raising the Federation's efficiency in exploring the universe solely through Xu Yuan's efforts was still incredibly meaningful.
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