Death... and me
chapter-572

Roan then looked at Frandin before asking.

'Is there a way to measure one's Soul Power?'

Frandin immediately nodded as he replied.

'Of course! Do you remember those Celestial Lands I've talked about? One of the entrance tests there is the measurement of Soul Power according to one's age.'

Roan narrowed his eyes.

'Age? Not cultivation?'

Frandin nodded.

'Exactly. Truth be told, cultivation level has no influence on our Zasfin Race's Soul Power whatsoever. That's why one's talent in Soul Power is based on how strong it is at a certain age.'

Roan didn't expect that.

'In that case, how do you train your Soul Power? You can't be telling me that one's Soul Power is decided by birth with no chance of ever-increasing it, right?'

Frandin nodded as he answered.

'Indeed. It is possible to improve one's Soul Power. In fact, I did train my soul power several times during our travels, didn't I?'

'You did?'

Roan pondered for a bit and finally understood.

'Oh, I see. You are talking about the times when you used your Soul Power during battle.'

Frandin confirmed.

'Correct. The more you use your Soul Power, the stronger it gets. Of course, it isn't so simple as basically discharging your Soul Power. You need the right conditions for that. For example, those battles you had me go through, where I almost died several times, were perfect triggers to increase my Soul Power. My Soul Power had never improved so much before.'

Of course, Frandin would prefer to not have to go through those experiences again. After all, what if he died? His Soul Power would be useless in that case. Still, something told him that Roan won't let him off the hook any time soon.

'I understand. It's pretty much like cultivation. We use battles to help stabilize the energy in our foundation after a breakthrough and keep the foundation sturdy during cultivation. The harder the conditions during fights, the bigger the extracted potential of each individual. Soul Power is very similar in this aspect.'

Frandin agreed with Roan.

'That's basically it. That's why one's Soul Power is measured by how strong it is at a certain age. It shows how much effort each Zasfin has put into training before trying to join a Celestial Land.'

Roan then asked something else.

'The way you are saying it, it seems like even someone without background and an ordinary bloodline purity can make his or her way through.'

Frandin nodded once more.

'That's true. However, I won't lie to you here. The purer your bloodline is, the more potential you can extract from those attempts to increase your Soul Power. In the end, talent is a big deal in our world. That's why you rarely ever see ordinary Zasfins becoming anything in their lives. That's because they have to put twice the effort to get half the result. Don't underestimate the bloodlines' powers.'

Roan didn't mind that.

'The world has never been fair, and it wouldn't start now. First of all, fairness is something that intelligent lifeforms like us invented. Such a word doesn't exist in nature.'

Frandin couldn't agree more with Roan's words.

'Indeed.'

Roan then asked something else.

'Now then. Is it possible to measure Soul Power in this city, or is it only possible in the Celestial Lands?'

Frandin shook his head.

'Don't worry. It can be measured almost anywhere. Only very small cities might not have a Soul Measurement Crystal. It's something that you can buy at any Treasures Hall. Perhaps only small settlements like tribes wouldn't have those for sale. However, it's probably quite expensive, costing around 100 Rank Two Spirit Stones.'

Roan's interest was piqued.

'Soul Measurement Crystal? Is it similar to the Cultivation and Elemental Affinity Orbs?'

Frandin looked back at Roan, puzzled.

'Do you call them Orbs? Well, we call them Crystals. Oh, well. It doesn't matter. The Crystals used to measure ones' Talent and Elemental Affinity are very similar. It's just that it will calculate your Soul Power in numbers instead of colors.'

Roan was quite satisfied by that. He definitely preferred to have some numbers to work with instead of colors.

'Are all Zasfins born with the same Soul Power?'

'No. This is another point where bloodline purity talks. Someone born within an Imperial Family would have a Soul Power several times stronger than a commoner. The commoner would need to train like there's no tomorrow just to catch up to the Soul Power of newborn Imperial Babies. It's not weird to find a fully grown adult Zasfin with a weaker Soul Power than them.'

Roan nodded.

'From what you're telling me, it seems like other than battling, one's Soul Power also increases as they age.'

Frandin confirmed.

'Correct. Even if a Zasfin never goes to battle, his or her Soul Power will still increase as time passes. Of course, it will never compare to someone who trained their Soul Power.'

Roan had to admit that it made sense. Soul Power was the same as normal body growth for the Zasfins. One's body got stronger as one grows, then so would Soul Power. When a person exercises, they would get a stronger body. The same logic applied for Soul Power.

'Alright. In that case, what would be considered the average bloodline power between ordinary Zasfins?'

Frandin pondered for a bit before answering.

'I'm not entirely sure since I've never cared about it too much. However, my father once told me that my Soul Power was seven times stronger than an ordinary Zasfin baby when I was born. He told me that my total number was 73, so I guess an ordinary Zasfin's Soul Power is measured around 10 or so points.'

'That's good enough to work with. Now, you said you have a Rank Two Bloodline Mark, right? How much does it increase your Soul Power?'

Frandin immediately replied.

'It increases my Soul Power by 20%. Don't look down on this number, though. 20% makes a huge difference the higher your Soul Power becomes.'

Of course, Roan agreed with Frandin. It was the same as their Spiritual Energy Absorption Upgrade. It only increases 5% at each level. However, it made a massive difference the longer time passed.

'Alright. I already memorized the contents of the alchemy books. Let's go out and buy a Soul Measurement Crystal.'

Frandin couldn't help but ask.

'Why do you want it? Could it be you want to know how much I've improved since we started to travel?'

Roan glanced at Frandin and remembered something.

'Now that you said that, I'm quite curious. How much Soul Power did you have before Rean captured you?'

Frandin then showed a prideful expression before saying.

'Hehehe! Lo and behold, I had a total of 236 points!'

Roan narrowed his eyes.

'Is it a lot?'

Frandin's mouth twitched when he heard that question.

'Oh, right! You don't know the standards of Soul Power in our world. I'm only 23 years old and already have 236. That's a lot for someone of my age. For example, I was in 8th place back in Danve City between those at the age of 23. With my Bloodline Mark, I can even reach 283!'

Roan nodded, not looking surprised at all.

'So be it. Let's go out and find that Crystal.'

Frandin couldn't help but ask.

'You still didn't tell me what you want to do with the Soul Measurement Crystal.'

'Isn't that obvious? I want to measure my own Soul Power.'

Frandin was taken aback.

'Your Soul Power? But humans don't have Soul Power.'

Roan glanced at him before asking.

'Have you ever seen a human testing their Soul Power?'

'This...'

Frandin had to admit that he had never seen that before.

'Even if you have Soul Power, it will be useless if you can't use it, no?'

Roan nodded.

'I know. However, I do have a theory as to why humans can't use Soul Power. First, let's see if humans have any Soul Power whatsoever, then I can continue from there.'

Roan was obviously very interested in Soul Power. After all, it could literally increase everyone's combat abilities. He already checked Frandin's power during their travel. Frandin was in the Middle Stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm. His cultivation technique paled in comparison to Calina, Malaka, Qia, or Agis' techniques. Last but not least, his own combat ability and techniques are terrible.

Usually, Frandin definitely shouldn't be able to fight anyone with higher cultivation. However, with his Soul Power alone, he could fight a Late-Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator and at least stay alive against an Initial Stage Three Demon Beast. That's how much Soul Power had helped him.

Frandin shrugged his shoulders and thought it to be a meaningless effort. Still, that was not his problem, so he simply followed Roan.

On their way out, Safran called Frandin, asking if he could meet Frandin's master. Obviously, Frandin had to refuse the idea, much to Safran's disappointment. Safran then had someone following Frandin and Roan to see if he could find something. However, if this kind of thing didn't work with Rean, then let alone Roan. In just a few minutes, Roan and Frandin disappeared without a trace.

Roan's Spiritual Energy bending skill might not be as perfect as Rean's. Still, he can totally make up for it with his own experience.

Around an hour later, Frandin and Roan returned to the workshop where Rean was working. However, they didn't enter the forgery. Instead, they took another free room to not bother Rean's training.

Frandin then took out the Soul Measurement Crystal that Roan had him buy.

"Well, then. Tell me how to test my Soul Power."