"Heh heh, truly a spiritual object, though its sentience is still rather weak." Suddenly, Qingyue's voice chimed in.

"Oh?"

Nie Kong's gaze settled on the crimson cylinder. The intricate lines etched upon it had all converged at the apex of the column, fluctuating violently, seemingly poised to surge upward. "Qingyue, is the true form of the Battle Spirit really the red robe on that giant?"

Though Qingyue usually held a high opinion of herself, when it came to matters of this nature, she, as a millennium-old Medicine Spirit, naturally possessed more authority than Nie Kong.

"That's right."

Qingyue chuckled playfully. "It should merely be a wisp of aura that radiated from that red robe. Judging by the preceding events, someone must have imbued it with an instinct—the ability to select the most suitable Spirit Art for individuals by probing their bodies and minds. In the War Clan’s terminology, this is called 'Spirit Listening'!"

Nie Kong nodded subtly. "So, the method by which the red robe acquired this instinct might be akin to 'Memory Inheritance.' This bears some similarity to the situation with the guardian spirit beast, the 'Soul-Eater Eagle King,' within the 'Underworld Fire Dark Spring,' though the resulting applications after receiving the 'Memory Inheritance' are different."

Qingyue smiled like a cunning little fox: "Precisely. When it comes approaches, Granny here will communicate with it and see if we can coax out one of the War Clan's finest Spirit Arts. Hmm, I have quite high hopes."

"That won't be necessary," Nie Kong said with a smile. "'Spirit Listening' is merely its instinct. Now that we've confirmed it won't expose my secret, we should just let it follow its nature. Forcibly interfering might instead arouse suspicion from the War Clan members."

Seeing Nie Kong dismiss her suggestion, Qingyue huffed sullenly: "So boring! Wasting Granny's time."

Nie Kong paid no mind to Qingyue's complaint, offering only a slight smile. Since his previous speculation had been confirmed, there was no need for further worry. He simply wondered who had bestowed that instinct upon the spirit in the red robe—was it the giant? Or perhaps a War Clan ancestor?

With that thought, Nie Kong relaxed his body and sat cross-legged upon the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform," allowing his true spirit's consciousness to unfold bit by bit.

Seeing this, Zhan Yunlan, Zhan Tianlun, and the others finally breathed a hidden sigh of relief. Since the appearance of the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform," very few people had managed to keep the "Battle Spirit" waiting for so long. Now that Nie Kong had finally taken his seat, it seemed his emotions had calmed.

"Hoo!"

The instant Nie Kong's consciousness fully opened, the ball of crimson light eagerly burst from the top of the cylinder, twining itself around Nie Kong before rapidly dispersing, resembling a robe as red as blood, enveloping him.

A warm sensation surged over him. In a flash, Nie Kong felt a thread of red energy separate from the "red robe," pierce into his body, and then seep into his bones, meandering slowly like a spiritual serpent through his marrow.

Immediately following it, came the second, the third...

...

After nearly two minutes, the separation of the red energy finally ceased. Nie Kong secretly counted; there were a full eighty-one strands, perfectly matching the number of the complete "Heart Drum Battle Tones." At this point, Nie Kong vaguely understood that the quantity of red energy secreted from the red robe should correspond to the number of Battle Tones he had perceived.

"Buzz!"

A low hum finally resonated from beneath the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform," signaling that the Spirit Art suitable for Nie Kong was about to manifest. In that instant, everyone, including Zhan Yunlan, stared fixedly at the base of the column.

Moments later, there was movement at the pillar's base.

However, what stunned the assembled crowd was that what bloomed from there was not a color representing any specific Spirit Art, but a sphere of incredibly dense crimson light, like a dazzling red cloud, swiftly floating upwards.

In the blink of an eye, the red cloud rushed out of the cylinder and, just like the initial mass of red energy condensed from the lines, wrapped itself around Nie Kong.

Instantly, the soft luminescence emanating from the "red robe" seemed to multiply countless times, becoming like a thick, crimson mist that saturated the entire "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform," even completely obscuring the figure of Nie Kong seated upon it.

It was as if a brilliant, crimson sun had appeared in this space, its dazzling light too intense to look at directly. The onlookers, forgetting their astonishment, instinctively squinted their eyes. After a while, they managed to adjust.

"What is going on?"

Doubt filled the minds of the crowd. "Spirit Listening" had already taken such a long time; logically, the Battle Spirit should have selected a Spirit Art based on Nie Kong's condition and should now be imprinting it directly onto his spirit.

But what appeared was not a Spirit Art, but a mass of red energy. This phenomenon was not just unseen; it was unheard of.

Unconsciously, the gaze of the crowd shifted to the Clan Leader and the two Supreme Elders. Perhaps only they could now explain the reason for this anomaly, yet the three individuals they looked toward were all frowning and silent.

Zhan Yunlan and the others were also deeply perplexed. They could surmise that this was related to Nie Kong having listened to the complete Eighty-One Battle Tones, but since the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform" was isolated from the outside world, they too were unaware of what this red light—replacing the Spirit Art—actually was.

If not for the fear of disturbing Nie Kong, Zhan Yunlan and the two Supreme Elders would surely have already entered the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform" to investigate.

"The Battle Spirit itself has come over; it seems a mere wisp of separated aura wasn't enough!" Nie Kong chuckled inwardly.

After separating the eighty-one strands of energy, the "red robe" had grown quite weak. Just as Nie Kong pondered how it would continue the task of "Spirit Listening," the red-robed Battle Spirit arrived in person.

Indeed, when the Battle Spirit fully merged, the "red robe" covering Nie Kong's body instantly thickened several dozen times. The aura of the "red robe" shifted from gentle to domineering, and the eighty-one red threads permeating his bones, bolstered by this strong backing, abandoned their previous listlessness and began to undulate fiercely, like waves.

Soon, the oscillations generated by the eighty-one red threads merged into a continuous wave, echoing between the marrow of Nie Kong's four limbs and hundred bones. Thus, within mere seconds, that undulation spread from the bones to the muscles and organs, even causing Nie Kong’s own consciousness to ripple and rise.

"Hoo?"

As the fluctuation brushed past a Spiritual Acupoint, a simple syllable suddenly sounded within Nie Kong's consciousness, carrying a hint of inquiry. Nie Kong paused, then realized the sound was being transmitted from the "red robe" on his surface.

After a brief pause, another wave of fluctuation brushed past the Spiritual Acupoint.

"Hoo?"

The questioning sound followed. Clearly, the Battle Spirit had failed to detect anything unusual in Nie Kong's Spiritual Acupoints. However, the Battle Spirit did not become discouraged; it actually passed over the acupoint a third time.

Sensing the Battle Spirit's actions, Nie Kong felt no worry, only a sense of resignation.

Nie Kong's vibrant, mutated Wood Spiritual Power had already been transferred to his "Second Avatar" back in Shuiyun Town. Without the support of Wood Spiritual Power, the Spiritual Acupoints, which were formed from condensed Wood Spiritual Power, were fundamentally incapable of being revealed.

Now, let alone a Battle Spirit with insufficient spiritual strength, even a Ninth-Tier expert from the Netherworld Earth would only sense the Death Qi Nie Kong had cultivated recently; they would never discover his Spiritual Acupoints.

If it were a Spiritual God like the "Great Evolution Spirit Venerable," Nie Kong wouldn't dare guarantee anything. After all, back in the Tree Heart Space of the Wood Ancestor, that Wood Ancestor, who had lived for over ten thousand years, had discovered Xiangxiang hidden within his "Jade Pool Acupoint."

"Hoo?"

The third probe yielded no results, and the Battle Spirit muttered suspiciously, repeating the previous action a fourth time...

Then, a fifth time, a sixth time...

"Hoo?"

"Hoo?"

"..."

In Nie Kong's mind, the "Hoo-hoo" sounds of the red-robed Battle Spirit rose and fell incessantly. Meanwhile, around the "Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform," after continuous waiting, the War Clan disciples and affiliated disciples were growing increasingly restless.

"..."

"What is taking so long? Has 'Spirit Listening' not ended yet?"

"It's been almost fifteen minutes—enough time for ten 'Spirit Listenings'! Why hasn't that Nie Kong obtained a Spirit Art?"

"..."

"Could the 'Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform' be malfunctioning?"

"Nonsense! It hasn't failed in thousands of years; why would it break down for no reason today?"

"Perhaps that fellow is too nervous, hasn't relaxed his body, and hasn't opened his consciousness, which is why 'Spirit Listening' can't proceed!"

"..."

The murmuring discussions started quietly, but as time wore on, the voices grew louder.

"Clan Leader."

Zhan Tianlun approached Zhan Yunlan with obvious concern, his voice like a thin thread reaching his ear, "The 'Spirit Listening' has gone on for so long. Perhaps I should go up and check? If this continues, Nie Kong might run into trouble."

On the platform, staying possessed by the Battle Spirit for too long could potentially damage one's spirit. Nie Kong was not only his sworn brother but also the second person in the War Clan to hear the Ninety-Nine Battle Tones. For the clan's sake and his own, Zhan Tianlun did not wish to see any accident befall Nie Kong.

"Wait, just wait a bit longer!"

Zhan Yunlan hesitated slightly, waving his hand gently.

In this space, only Zhan Yunlan, Zhan Tianlun, and the two Supreme Elders knew the truth. Since they knew Nie Kong had listened to the complete eighty-one Battle Tones yesterday, their thoughts naturally were not as superficial as those of the surrounding disciples.

Seeing that Zhan Yunlan did not agree with his suggestion, Zhan Tianlun could only suppress the anxiety in his chest and remain silent.

Time flew by. On the Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform, that dense, mist-like red luminescence continued to undulate fiercely.

"..."

"It must be half an hour by now; it's still not finished!"

"Lasting this long, Nie Kong probably won't receive a good Spirit Art after 'Spirit Listening' ends. What a pity."

"As expected, on this 'Battle Spirit Spirit Listening Platform,' we who possess War Clan bloodlines still have the advantage. What good is an affiliated disciple, even if he manages to hold on until the final note of the 'Six-Nine Battle Tone' like Qingzhu, if he can't acquire the most suitable Spirit Art?"

"..."

Below the platform, various discussions continued without end...