Chapter 10: Testing for a Spiritual Core
Editor: Atlas Studios
At the end of the day, she was still a child. After Wang Ping used a small spell to console her, the little girl quickly stopped crying and led him to her house.
As expected, the girl's house was now in ruins. However, after Wang Ping had Xiao Feng sniff what was inside, they soon found the "culprit" that was likely the cause of the toads' attack.
It was a palm-sized yellowish-black mud-like substance that was emitting a rich fragrance. Wang Ping could feel strong spiritual energy from it.
"This looks like Ambergris, but it also contains a considerable amount of spiritual energy. Could it be the spiritual fragrance emitted from whale-type demon beasts?"
"If that's the case, it makes sense that the two Alligator-Tailed Toads would be attracted to this strange fragrance."
Wang Ping carefully examined the object in his hand. He quickly deduced an answer that brought him closer to the truth, judging from its appearance.
Of course, whether or not the answer was really correct was no longer important.
In any case, since he had already killed the two Alligator-Tailed Toads, he had avenged the little girl's parents. This unknown spiritual fragrance was now in his hands too.
This matter could be wrapped up there and then.
However, Wang Ping did not leave immediately. Instead, he lowered his head to look at the girl beside him and asked, "Little girl, Big Brother is leaving. Are you willing to stay in this village and live with your other relatives, or follow Big Brother to the city and let Big Brother help you find a kind family to adopt you?"
To his surprise, upon hearing his words, the little girl hugged his thigh tightly and exclaimed, "I don't want to stay here. I don't want to go to other people's houses either. Big Brother, can you teach me spells? I want to become an Immortal Master as powerful as Big Brother and kill all those man-eating demon beasts!"
"You want to learn the path of Cultivation?"
Wang Ping was slightly taken aback. He did not expect such an answer from her.
Then, he looked at the little girl who was staring at him with her eyes full of desire. After muttering to himself for a moment, he smiled, nodded, and said, "Little girl, you are quite ambitious, but whether or not you can become a cultivator like big brother, you will have to let big brother see if you possess a spiritual core constitution."
Without a spiritual core, one could not become a cultivator. This was the hard-and-fast rule of the cultivation world.
If the little girl really had a spiritual core constitution, regardless if it was the same mixed spiritual core constitution that he had, Wang Ping would not mind teaching her the path of cultivation, giving her hope.
However, if the little girl did not possess a spiritual core constitution, Wang Ping could only let her choose from the two choices he had previously laid down for her.
Of course, he wouldn't tell her all of that as of now. Instead, he smiled and extended his hand, saying, "Come, give Big Brother your hands. Big Brother will help you test if you have a spiritual core."
Upon hearing this, the little girl, who had no idea what a spiritual core was, immediately extended her hands and placed them on his palms.
When Wang Ping saw this, he grabbed the little girl's palm and reminded her, "You may feel some swelling and discomfort later on, but you have to endure it. You must not pull your hand away, understand?"
Hearing this, she immediately nodded her head vigorously. "Big Brother, don't worry. Xiao'e isn't afraid of pain. She will definitely endure it."
Seeing the earnest expression on her face, Wang Ping smiled. He immediately sat down cross-legged and met the girl's palms with his. Then, he started the circulation of his cultivation technique, absorbing the Spirit Qi from outside.
When the Heaven and Earth Spirit Qi gathered around his body, Wang Ping did not refine or expel them. Instead, he guided them into the little girl's body.
If the little girl really had a spiritual core constitution, the Spirit Qi pertaining to her elements would stay in her body for a period of time.
If the little girl did not have a spiritual core constitution, the Spirit Qi would not enter her body at all.
This was the easiest way to test for a spiritual core constitution. It was also the only method that Wang Ping could use, given his current cultivation.
Everything went smoothly. Among the Spirit Qi that Wang Ping had guided over, the metal-type and wood-type Spirit Qi were infused into the little girl's body easily. The Spirit Qi of other elements were unable to enter her body.
This led Wang Ping to believe that the little girl had a rare metal-wood-elemental spiritual core constitution.
However, he quickly sensed that the metal and wood Spirit Qi had actually fused together after entering the little girl's body.
Among the five elements, metal countered wood. How could the metal-elemental Spirit Qi fuse with the wood-elemental Spirit Qi?
Wang Ping was in disbelief, believing that he had sensed it wrongly.
However, just as he was about to sense it again, that small bit of Spirit Qi in the little girl's body actually disappeared.
This made Wang Ping very uneasy. He stopped the circulation and opened his eyes to look at the little girl. He then asked, "Little girl, can you still bear with it? Can we try again?"
Hearing this, the little girl immediately clenched her fists and declared, "Big Brother, don't worry, go ahead and try. I'm not afraid of pain!"
Of course, Wang Ping could tell that the little girl was actually feeling a little uncomfortable. However, what had just happened was a little too strange, he had to get to the bottom of it.
Thus, although he had hesitated for a moment, he eventually nodded and said, "In that case, do bear with it a little longer. Big Brother will be done soon."
As soon as he finished speaking, he immediately exchanged palm strikes with the little girl again to start the circulation.
This time, after focusing and checking, he discovered that his senses weren't wrong. After the metal-elemental and wood-elemental Spirit Qi had entered the little girl's body, they did indeed fuse with each other.
Upon confirming this, he stopped circulating his internal energy immediately so as to not burden the little girl any further.
After he was done, he let go of the little girl's hands and smiled. "Xiao'e, you should take a rest. Big Brother wants to ponder about something. When Big Brother has thought it through, I'll bring you out of here."
Then, he lowered his head and plunged into deep thought.
Regarding the spiritual core constitution of cultivators, Wang Ping was only able to truly grasp its concept after becoming a cultivator and interacting with the other wandering cultivators on Golden Pearl Island.
According to those cultivators he had interacted with, the majority of the spiritual core constitutions possessed by cultivators would be chosen among the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Even those geniuses with single-elemental spiritual cores were not exempted from this.
However, there were a very small number of people who possessed a variant spiritual core constitution. These people were also known as 'variant spiritual core' cultivators. They were different from ordinary cultivators with the five elemental spiritual core constitutions.
These "variant spiritual cores" were formed from the fusion of two or three types of spiritual roots.
For example, those who had a metal-water-elemental spiritual core constitution could have their spiritual core morphed into a wind-elemental spiritual core, one of the "variant spiritual cores."
As for those possessing a metal-wood-elemental spiritual core constitution, their spiritual core could morph into a thunder-elemental spiritual core.
There were also those who possessed a water-gold-earth-elemental spiritual core constitution. It was possible for the spiritual cores in their bodies to morph into an ice-elemental spiritual core.
The wind, thunder, and ice were the most famous and more common types of "variant spiritual cores." As for how many types of "variant spiritual cores" there were exactly, that was not something that ordinary cultivators could know.
The results of the test on the little girl, Lin Xiao'e, led Wang Ping to suspect that she might have the extremely rare thunder-type spiritual core. Her "variant spiritual core" constitution was, in terms of rarity, not one bit inferior to a single-elemental spiritual core constitution!
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