Zhu Ziyang collected his smile and put away the Stillness Fate Ending Scythe, beginning to organize his gains.
Following the increase in his soul power and the evolution of his martial soul, came the 100,000-year soul ring from the Silver Dragon Wolf. This soul ring granted his Heavenly Frost Holy Dragon two soul skills: one was the Frost Dragon Claw he had already used, allowing Zhu Ziyang to boost his strength by three to four times its limit in an instant—an incredibly powerful attack. The other was an even more formidable control-type skill.
In addition to the 100,000-year soul ring, a 100,000-year soul beast would always leave behind a soul bone. The Silver Dragon Wolf's soul bone was a right arm bone. Zhu Ziyang named it: Silver Dragon Wolf Right Arm Bone.
This soul bone came with two soul skills as well. One was a control-type skill, Time Freeze—releasing the absolute-zero power of Ultimate Ice to halt time within a five-meter radius for three seconds. Currently, it could only be used once every three days. The other was an offensive skill, Dragon Wolf Polar Break—gathering the extreme cold of Ultimate Ice into a freezing beam capable of freezing all it touched. This was one of the Dragon Wolf's signature abilities.
Because of the fusion with both a 100,000-year soul ring and a 100,000-year soul bone, Zhu Ziyang's physical strength had improved dramatically. He could now withstand the pressure of a 10,000-year soul ring with ease. Once he reached the four-ring Soul Ancestor level, he could directly consider hunting 10,000-year soul beasts.
Finally, according to the inherited memory of the Silver Dragon Wolf, having sacrificed itself to Zhu Ziyang, the fate and fortune it carried would also be passed on to him.
Fate—a mysterious and elusive concept. While many scholars across the continent had studied it, there were still no definitive conclusions. Where it originated from, how it could be measured, or what laws governed it—these were all unanswered mysteries. Apart from a few oral traditions preserved within ancient, powerful sects, the soul master world knew next to nothing about it.
Zhu Ziyang had once read in a classical text from the Church Era that one of the previous Supreme Pontiffs of Spirit Hall described fate like this: "Fate leans toward the soul beasts. Only in vast soul beast territories could an auspicious beast bearing fate be born. All soul beasts within the region of such a beast would be blessed by heaven and earth."
Those were words that seemed to say something, but actually explained nothing. Still, it helped Zhu Ziyang grasp one important point: auspicious beasts could bless other soul beasts around them.
What exactly was a blessing from heaven and earth? It was a special state—one that enhanced cultivation speed, eased bottlenecks, and allowed for breakthrough opportunities far beyond the norm. A rare and treasured enhancement.
So what would happen if a human inherited the fate of such a beast? Zhu Ziyang fell into thought.
After a while, he shook his head and decided not to dwell on it for now.
After finishing his mental review, Zhu Ziyang steadied himself and extended his right hand, palm up. His gaze focused, and a beam of light slowly emerged in his palm.
Staring at the light, Zhu Ziyang smiled faintly. With a thought, the light vanished and was replaced by a thin layer of frost.
"Not bad at all." He lifted his hand, scattering the frost. A smile appeared on his face.
As a wielder of Ultimate martial souls, his Light Element Affinity had just reached ninety, while his Ice Element Affinity had reached ninety-five.
Light Affinity at ninety was the baseline threshold for Ultimate Attributes. Don't underestimate that single digit—countless exceptional geniuses had spent their lives trying and failing to go from eighty-nine to ninety. That one step was the difference between heaven and earth.
Now that both his Light and Ice Affinity were above ninety, Zhu Ziyang could control these elements as naturally as breathing—an instinctive ability only those with Ultimate martial souls possessed. His earlier demonstration was proof.
With everything wrapped up, he prepared to return home. Only then did he remember he had been naked the whole time. Unfazed, he calmly pulled out a change of clothes from his Emerald Jade Bracelet. While dressing, he noticed the outfit felt a bit tight, but he didn't think much of it and quickly set off for North River Village.
He'd been gone all night. Liang Ying was probably already furious. Better to head back quickly.
Before long, he arrived home.
Just as he stepped inside, Liang Ying walked up and said, "Zhu Ziyang, look at you! Staying out all night now? Think becoming a Soul Elder means you're all grown up? Hmph! Don't think I won't beat you just because your soul power's caught up to mine!"
Liang Ying had recently broken through to Soul Elder, reaching Level 32 after acquiring her third ring, hence her confidence. What she didn't know was that her son had already reached Level 35.
"Heh heh! No, no! It's not like that! I had a sudden breakthrough last night and didn't want to interrupt it!" Zhu Ziyang quickly offered an excuse, then smartly added, "Mom, I was wrong. It won't happen again!"
"Hmph! At least you know you're wrong!" Liang Ying grunted in satisfaction, but then she suddenly fell silent, eyes fixed on Zhu Ziyang with a strange look.
That intense gaze, like she was staring at a stranger, made him uncomfortable. He touched his face and asked, "Mom, is something on my face? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"I didn't even realize… my son's already grown so tall, and so handsome!" Liang Ying muttered, a mix of pride and affection on her face.
"Maa, don't suddenly praise me like that! You're embarrassing me!" Zhu Ziyang laughed smugly.
"I didn't even notice your clothes don't fit anymore!" Liang Ying walked up and tugged at his sleeves, feeling guilty.
"How can I blame you? It's my fault I grew so fast!" Only now did Zhu Ziyang realize how much taller he had become overnight. Instead of thinking too much about it, he put his arm around Liang Ying's shoulders and smiled.
"Ugh! You're such a rascal!" Liang Ying rolled her eyes and lightly smacked his shoulder, then said, "Come with me. We'll find some of your dad's clothes for now. I'll make you a few new outfits today."
"Got it!" Zhu Ziyang followed behind obediently.
Once he changed clothes, he stood in front of the mirror and was stunned to see his reflection.
He was now taller than 1.7 meters, nearly 1.75. His refined facial features, affected by the evolution of his martial soul, carried an elegant charm and a cool aura—enough to captivate any young girl just entering adolescence.
'Damn, I really am getting more handsome!' Zhu Ziyang thought to himself, somewhat vainly, as he admired the mirror.
Later, he went to find Jiang Nannan.
"Nannan!" He found her in her backyard.
The girl was practicing soft-body techniques, a combat style refined by generations of Soft Bone Rabbit soul masters—a legacy dating back to the legendary Soft Bone Douluo. These techniques could fully utilize the flexibility of the Soft Bone Rabbit martial soul. When pushed to the limit, they could even achieve the power to overcome strength with finesse.
Though Jiang Nannan didn't walk the traditional path of Soft Bone Rabbit soul masters, the style still greatly benefited her unique combat method.
"Ah! Ziyang-ge, you're back!" Seeing him, Jiang Nannan lit up with joy. But then she blinked in surprise. "Ziyang-ge… why do you feel different?"
Zhu Ziyang spent the rest of the day at her house.
—
That night, he sat on his bed, preparing to cultivate.
Just as he began meditating, a hoarse, ancient voice echoed in his ear:
"Grasp the sun and moon, pluck the stars. In all the world, none are like me. I never imagined this trace of my soul would survive!"
(End of Chapter)
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