SPIRIT SOUL

Having slept peacefully, Kyle woke up the next day with a sore body.

Stifling a yawn, Kyle stretched his body before recalling that they had returned to Yasmine's home.

After hunting together, everyone was exhausted.

Even the nurturing through his ability lost some of its potency owing to the repetitive invigoration sessions he gave everyone.

It would take some time before their body would allow the Nurture ability to show its full potency once again.

That and many other reasons made them decide to return to their warm beds and gave them some time to rest and think about everything that had happened so far.

While Kyle had decided to sell the corpses of the beasts they hunted first, the two women had directly returned to the mansion of Yasmine's parents as their mind was overflowing with all kinds of thoughts.

He understood that they were bothered about not knowing what exactly was going on with them.

As such, he didn't think of bothering them as he returned with the loot he had received.

There were numerous cultivation crystals of the three cultivation energies he had obtained, but that was not really something he cared about anymore.

Right now their fortune was more than enough, and the cultivation shards were something that would be used up within two weeks if he were to focus on cultivating with their help.

However, that was not something he planned on doing as of now because there was something else that bothered him a little bit.

'I should start searching for a proper body refinement technique soon!'

A body refinement technique did exactly as the name suggested.

One refined the body with the use of nutrition and the respective cultivation energy, allowing one to reach the best possible physical state with respect to agility, endurance, and strength.

As such, the higher ranked the body refinement technique, the better it was.

If he were to practice with a low-ranked body refinement technique, the use would be negligible, to the extent that cultivating with Soul force would seem better in comparison.

Because of that, he hadn't thought about purchasing, let alone practicing a body refinement technique for now.

However, seeing the current physical condition of both Beatrice and Yasmine, Kyle couldn't help but feel that his decision might have been wrong.

Yet, on the other hand, he knew that his Soul force was unique and that he couldn't just cultivate with any body refinement technique.

There were all kinds of criteria one had to meet in order to refine one's body, and the most important to prevent internal injuries was to have suitable cultivation energy!

Thus, Kyle couldn't use the body refinement technique owned by either Beatrice or Yasmine.

To be precise, this was not possible from the beginning, owing to the fact that the two women had body refinement techniques that were only compatible with the affinities they owned.

As such, their circulation of transmuted energy was much faster, and the output more powerful, which was something Kyle wanted to possess as well.

Thus, his search for a proper body refinement technique was likely to take a while.

With that in mind, he had gone to sleep for a few hours and mentally prepared himself for the journey ahead.

Thinking about their journey to the Sadorla forest, Kyle was glad that they could make use of Horice, the Horse that had been blessed by the God of Wind.

He was still not sure if that was true and not an exaggerated fact, but Kyle knew for sure that Horice was an extremely powerful beast that could control the wind as if it was an extension of his entire body.

That was impressive and gave Kyle the necessary motivation to get up from the bed.

After a simple workout to relax his stretched muscles, he took the wind orb out of his spatial ring and placed it next to Arashi, who was yelping in joy.

Looking at the Horned Tempest Fox, Kyle hoped that Arashi would never grow up to a gigantic beast because he looked so adorable.

However, his gut feeling told him that Arashi would continue growing and reach 30 centimeters in height upon maturing.

Afterward, his future mutations and evolutions would continue to transform Arashi.

In the end, it was quite obvious that Arashi's form wouldn't stay that small after undergoing multiple evolutions.

As such, Kyle had to savor the moments in which his Spirit Soul looked adorable.

Thus, he caressed Arashi's fur once in a while as he was taking short, mandatory breaks between his workout.

When he was done he took a shower and changed into a fresh set of clothes before he tried comprehending a bit more of the wind affinity, but Kyle quickly noticed that he would need some more time of complete focus to gain something from the wind orb.

With that in mind, he decided to carry Arashi and the wind orb with him in the dining hall.

Pulling the chair behind that he had been sitting on since the last few days, he placed Arashi and the orb on his lap before averting his focus on the others who were already seated around the dining table.

They must have arrived just moments before him, but nobody said a single word.

From the looks of it, everyone appeared to be deep in thoughts.

Beatrice and Yasmine seemed to be thinking about the events of the day before, while Yasmine's parents were probably digesting the fact that this breakfast would be the last time they would have a meal with their daughter until she returned home.

This was the most difficult fact to accept for Lyon, who looked at his daughter before letting out a deep sigh after a few minutes had passed.

His sigh was clearly audible in the pin-drop silence of the dining hall and made everybody look at him in confusion.

Clearing his throat to avoid the embarrassment he added in a cheerful voice,

"Let's not stay idle for too long. All of you, eat your fill! It might take a while before you can eat in such a calm and comfortable manner again!"

His voice sounded normal, but his eyes were clearly reflecting agony and sadness, indicating that he hated to part with his lovely daughter.

Yasmine's mother could only suppress her chuckle and amusement seeing this side of her husband, feeling that he was adorable and lovely.

She didn't seem to be that sad about Yasmine's departure, but that was something obvious.

After all, a Phoenix was supposed to be free and roam through the world until he or she wanted to settle down at a place.

However, even then a Phoenix would never forget about their journeys and experiences and would hold them dear to their heart, missing them once in a while.

Today was such a day in which she reflected on her past, missing the days in which she wasn't bound to a place, able to roam the vast world the way she wanted, but looking at her husband, this sadness quickly dispersed.

Thus, instead of showing her envy, it was much easier to be happy for her daughter.

"Sweetheart, once…or if you ever return, you have to tell us everything you did. I'm already eagerly waiting to hear from you about your adventures!"

Smiling brightly at her daughter, it took her a few moments before she averted her attention to the other two.

"I hope you two will have a great journey with my daughter. And please take care of her…I heard her bloodline had shown signs of awakening.

It's quite early for this to happen, but I believe it has to do with the two of you. As such, please support her!"

Hearing her genuine concern, Beatrice and Kyle nodded their heads in unison, but they didn't say anything.

Something prevented them from promising Yasmine's safety, which made them feel like they would be lying if they were to say even a single word of reassurance.

As such, they used their silence and resolute nodding in order to show their sincerity.

This was more than enough and much better than making promises one was uncertain of keeping.

Too many things could happen on their journey, and it was better to stay realistic than to behave as if nothing would ever happen, just because they had each other's support.

In the end, they were not special, and living beings that would bleed and die just like everyone else.

Each individual was the protagonist of their own story, yet, many of them died without a happy end and a lot of unfulfilled wishes.

With that in mind, it was better to stay vigilant and to never promise anything one couldn't be sure about.

This was what being honest and transparent was truly worth for those Cultivators who were old enough to have witnessed the cruelty of the Universe.

After Yasmine's parents had voiced out their opinion and concerns before their daughter parted ways with them, everyone focused on eating their fill.

While discussing all kinds of things, Kyle spoke about random topics for the first time, ignoring the fact that he could also speak about topics that had to do with becoming stronger.

However, releasing all the pressure that had been weighing him down for once, even if it was only a short period, was not only important but also necessary.

He felt really good and could leave the dining hall with his heart at ease.

Thus, he didn't even return to his room as he had everything packed already.

Instead, he walked to the ranch, hoping to encounter Horice before their departure.

Using the Nurture ability to see all kinds of hues, Kyle didn't even need half a minute to find Horice, who was resisting being harnessed by neighing loudly.

The old man, whom Kyle had met a week ago was struggling to calm down the horse, but nothing he did seemed to be helpful.

This should have worried Kyle as it might mean that Horice didn't want to help him anymore.

However, that was not the case, and he calmly looked at the situation that unfolded in front of him.

Holding Arashi and the wind orb, Kyle saw them both release subtle fluctuations that indicated their connection to the essence of wind.

However, because Horice was giving the old man a tough time and preventing him from harnessing himself, the horse didn't notice the Spirit Soul or the wind orb.

It was much more important for him to prevent getting attached to the chariot that was standing next to him, after all.

Minutes passed, and the old man was just about to give up and resign from his job when Horice suddenly stopped moving.

It was out of nowhere that the horse suddenly went still, and upon looking up, he noticed that Horice was looking at something behind him.

Turning around, the old man saw Kyle, holding a Horned Tempest Fox, and a greenish orb whose contents were swirling in it.

Horice and Kyle were gazing into each other's eyes, not moving at all.

Staring at them for a moment, the old man almost cursed out, only to use the element of surprise to harness Horice, before moving the huge chariot towards him.

Finally, he was able to finish the task that he had been struggling to complete for a while.

Sighing in relief, he gave Kyle a thumbs up before moving away and sitting down on a bench that was a bit farther from the horse so as to prevent Horice from releasing his anger on him the moment the horse realized what was going on.

'I can just let them fight, right?'