Chapter 43: Devour

As his consciousness delved deeper, Xu Yuan's spirit essence once again surfaced within his mind.

The floating particles had now spread across every corner of his spirit essence, densely packed, layered upon layer, surging in waves like autumn wheat fields in a harvest breeze.

This spirit essence technique, paired with the Blood Essence Heart Ruin Decree, was remarkably straightforward in its method of combat. Though many details had been discussed, at its core it boiled down to just two principles.

Cut and consume.

Shape the refined spirit essence into blades, sever the enemy's detected spirit essence, then use a special secret method to absorb and refine it.

The first method was exceedingly difficult—without innate brilliance and perfect comprehension, no one could master it simply by learning.

Yet, in the current situation, Xu Yuan did not need to employ the first method at all. These floating particles, perhaps for the sake of concealment, had already been ground down and delivered to his very lips.

All he now needed to do was to practice with these floating particles.

Xu Yuan carefully controlled his spirit essence, attempting to activate the secret technique.

The innate soul body possessed an acute and precise sensitivity to the will-soul, and as soon as it began to function, several drifting particles vanished silently among the "waves of wheat." Xu Yuan carefully enveloped them, guiding them along the secret method's prescribed route, beginning to refine and absorb them.

As he absorbed, he observed the movements of the drifting particles on the surface of his will-soul.

The quantity of a few particles seemed to have drawn no attention from the woman beside him; the rhythmic pulsing of the "wheat waves" on his will-soul remained unchanged.

Once the absorption was complete, those particles transformed into a barely perceptible thread of pure will-soul, entering Xu Yuan's awareness sea, subtly strengthening the "defense" on the surface of his will-soul.

This process repeated several times, and Xu Yuan no longer felt as inexperienced with this secret technique as he had at first.

He made a rough estimation of the rate at which these drifting particles were grinding against the surface of his will-soul.

If he were to open himself up and consume them all, Su Jinxuan would have no way to counter his refined innate soul body. Yet Xu Yuan did not choose to provoke her.

For he still did not know the true limits of Su Jinxuan.

Su Jinxuan was indeed helpless at present, but Xu Yuan could not be certain whether she possessed the means to annihilate herself in return.

The number of these insects clinging to the surface of his will-soul was incalculable—should Su Jinxuan have the ability to trigger their self-destruction...

Calming his mind, the cautionary tale of his own arrogance still flickered before him—better to tread softly.

Over and over again, Xu Yuan subtly tested Su Jinxuan’s perception through the stealthy theft of floating particles.

A few, then a dozen, then tens, then hundreds—until, at last, when Xu Yuan absorbed over a thousand floating particles at once, the tiny ants clinging to his inner soul stirred, twitched, reacted.

Having roughly gauged the limit, Xu Yuan ceased his insatiable hunger. From then on, he carefully selected between seven hundred and eight hundred floating particles each time, distributing them evenly across the surface of his inner soul.

And time, in this endless cycle, slipped away...

Su Jinxuan seemed truly incapable of being far from him. For several consecutive days, she kept him bound within her room, using the floating particles to control his movements.

Whether he was using the restroom or washing himself, Su Jinxuan never allowed him to stray beyond ten meters of her.

As days passed, the number of floating particles Xu Yuan consumed accumulated. Su Jinxuan’s face, once lush and rosy, began to grow pale.

Another dawn arrived.

Xu Yuan was just about to select another hundred lucky ones for breakfast when Su Jinxuan's resentful voice, soft and quiet, drifted from beside him:

"Third Prince, what did you do to me last night?"