The Ghost Vine King's Frustrating Death

Yu Yan took an hour longer than expected to absorb the Soul Ring. By the time she finished, it was already close to evening. The master immediately ordered them to camp where they were. There was a river nearby, as well as several large natural trees that could serve as cover.

At the campsite, everyone gathered around to eat Wu Liang's delicious biscuits. The master looked at Yu Yan and asked, "Xiao Yanzi, what Soul Skill did the Sand Sculpture Soul Ring give you?"

At that, Wu Liang and Tang San both looked at her. Yu Yan took a sip of Mana Juice and said, "It's the Sand Sculpture's innate Sky-Ripping Wave, but after fusion, it produced an even stronger Soul Skill called Phoenix Sky Howl Wave. I believe Senior Brother's guess even more now. My Martial Soul might really be an Azure Luan."

"Judging from the name, Phoenix Sky Howl Wave should be an area-of-effect skill, right? Unlike the Sand Sculpture's, which can only attack a single target," Wu Liang asked.

"Yes. Phoenix Sky Howl Wave sends continuous shockwaves in a fan-shaped area in front of me. It's a group attack skill," Yu Yan said.

"Teacher, where are we going next to find Ghost Vine?" Tang San asked.

"Ghost Vine. Downstream along this river, there is a small swamp where Ghost Vine grows. And according to Xiao Liang's judgment, I have already found a target for you: the Ghost Vine King at the center of that swamp, a thirteen-hundred-year-old Soul Beast.

"To be honest, Ghost Vine is a relatively rare plant-type Soul Beast, because it is often food for other Soul Beasts. Very few can grow to a thousand years old. I only learned from an adventurer team, after consulting a great deal of information and intelligence, that there was a thousand-year-old Ghost Vine King there," the master said.

"A Liang, are you really that sure I can absorb a thousand-year Soul Ring?" Tang San asked Wu Liang.

"Get lost, get lost. Little Kanna's first Soul Ring was nearly a thousand years old. After eating my little biscuits for so long, if you still can't absorb a thousand-year Soul Ring for your second one, then you might as well let the Ghost Vine King's Soul Ring burst you apart," Wu Liang said disdainfully.

Tang San fell silent. In truth, he knew very well just how strong his body had become. His abundant stamina and endurance, as well as his increased strength, were all undeniably real.

"The biscuits Senior Brother gives me really do strengthen the body. Every time I eat one, I can feel a warm energy transforming my body, greatly increasing both my endurance and strength," Yu Yan said as well.

"Xiao Yanzi has good taste, unlike certain ungrateful wretches," Wu Liang teased.

"Alright, alright. Once you're done eating, hurry up and sleep. We still have to travel tomorrow. After we return this time, the studies for the two of you should be coming to an end," the master said, looking at his disciples.

Early the next morning, after breakfast, the master led them downstream along the river. The journey was not far, only about half a day. By the time the sun had risen overhead, they reached the edge of the swamp. To be honest, everyone disliked swampland. Not only were there no proper paths, but one wrong step might land them in a pit of rotten mud. Fortunately, the master had a map, saving them a great deal of trouble.

The four of them walked for another hour, and they had now reached the center of the swamp. Strangely enough, there were hardly any Soul Beasts here. The only ones they encountered were some small swamp crocodiles that were only a few decades old. They had not even seen a single snake.

When they arrived at the Ghost Vine King's location, they saw a huge, pitch-black vine-type Soul Beast not far away. It was the Ghost Vine King. No wonder they had not seen any Soul Beasts around—the Ghost Vine King had slaughtered them all nearby. Large piles of bones were scattered around it, some human and some belonging to Soul Beasts.

"Looks like this Ghost Vine King won't be easy to deal with. Its vine network is too developed. I'm certain it has already noticed us," the master whispered to the three of them.

"It's fine. Watch me."

After saying that, Wu Liang released his Heavenly Phoenix Facing the Sun Flower, granting Yu Yan and Tang San fire-attribute attack and resistance. Then he said to Yu Yan, "Xiao Yanzi, have your Martial Soul use Phoenix Sky Howl Wave."

Yu Yan released her Martial Soul and immediately activated her Soul Skill, Phoenix Sky Howl Wave. A fan-shaped firestorm enveloped the Ghost Vine King. Since plant-type Soul Beasts could not move, the Ghost Vine King could only draw in its vines to protect its main body.

Before long, the firestorm subsided. Yu Yan withdrew her Martial Soul and said to Wu Liang, "Senior Brother, with the boost from your Soul Skill, my Phoenix Sky Howl Wave is so much stronger. Even though the Ghost Vine King is a thousand-year Soul Beast, that attack must have hurt badly, right?"

Wu Liang did not answer her. He simply stared at where the Ghost Vine King had been. After the firestorm, even the swamp around the Ghost Vine King had been burned dry. The Ghost Vine King itself had been scorched bare, leaving only its main vine drooping weakly.

Green liquid slowly seeped out around the Ghost Vine King, and its cracked body gradually began to recover. How could Tang San possibly watch it heal? He leaped out from their hiding place, pulled out a large machete from his storage belt, and hacked wildly at the bare Ghost Vine King over and over. With the boost from Wu Liang's Soul Skill, every strike carried scorching flames. Before long, Tang San had forcibly chopped it into a Soul Ring.

A purple Soul Ring floated above the Ghost Vine King, which had been hacked beyond recognition. Wu Liang looked at him speechlessly and said, "Little San, did something provoke you? You chopped it so viciously. Thousand-year Soul Beasts have a chance of producing Soul Bones. You chopped it up like that—how could there be any Soul Bone left?"

"Soul Bone?" Tang San looked at Wu Liang in confusion, then turned to the master and asked, "Teacher, what is a Soul Bone?"

"A Soul Bone is an extremely special thing. Or rather, it is the item Spirit Masters most desire in their dreams. Like Soul Rings, Soul Bones also come from Soul Beasts. But they differ greatly from Soul Rings. The chance of a Soul Bone appearing is only one in a thousand, perhaps even lower. Generally speaking, only Soul Beasts of extraordinary strength, and those that experience certain special circumstances at the moment of death, may produce a Soul Bone after dying. It is not like Soul Rings, which every Soul Beast possesses. Therefore, Soul Bones are extremely rare and precious. That Ghost Vine King was slaughtered so brutally by you, yet it still did not drop a Soul Bone. Your luck is truly terrible.

"Another difference between Soul Bones and Soul Rings is that, unlike Soul Rings, only the person who kills the Soul Beast can use them. Soul Bones can even be sold after they are obtained, and one can purchase the Soul Bones they need in certain special places. Any Soul Bone, no matter how ordinary, is worth a fortune, and even then they are rarely available.

"Soul Rings grant Soul Skills. Although they also enhance a Spirit Master's attributes, their primary function lies in the Soul Skills they provide. Soul Bones are the opposite. A Soul Bone may not grant a skill, but it greatly strengthens the Spirit Master's body. The potential for growth possessed by Soul Bones is even more precious than that of Soul Rings. The skills granted by Soul Rings increase along with Soul Power, but the age of the Soul Ring limits that increase. Soul Bones are different. A Soul Bone is not limited by the age of the Soul Beast that produced it. It only evolves as the Spirit Master grows stronger. In other words, the earlier one obtains a Soul Bone, the longer it has to evolve. Generally speaking, there are only several types of Soul Bones one can absorb: the four limbs, the head, and the torso. In other words, an ordinary person can absorb six Soul Bones, just as a Spirit Master can absorb nine Soul Rings. The quality of a Soul Bone and its effects on a Spirit Master mainly depend on how early it is absorbed and whether its attributes are compatible with the user.

"Alright, hurry up and absorb your Soul Ring."

"Teacher, let me add something. External Soul Bones are the most special and also the rarest kind of Soul Bone. They are special existences beyond the six major categories of Soul Bones. Their value is nearly comparable to that of top-tier Soul Bones. In the Spirit Master world, there is a ranking of the things Spirit Masters desire most, called the Spirit Master Dream List. External Soul Bones have always ranked second on the Spirit Master Dream List, surpassed only by the first-ranked hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring, which is almost impossible to exist. The most special thing about External Soul Bones is that they evolve along with their owner's Soul Power. So, the earlier one absorbs an External Soul Bone, the better. If ordinary Soul Bones have a one-in-a-thousand chance of appearing from a Soul Beast, then the chance of an External Soul Bone appearing is not even one in ten thousand.

"The condition for absorbing an External Soul Bone is this: one must absorb the Soul Ring of the Soul Beast that dropped the Soul Bone, and one must absorb the Soul Ring first before absorbing the Soul Bone.

"Teacher has mentioned Bai Qi's giant sword before, right? That is an External Soul Bone, one from a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast," Wu Liang said with a smile.

"What?" x3

"Your little brother Bai Qi's giant sword is an External Soul Bone? Xiao Liang, you must never tell anyone else about Bai Qi's External Soul Bone. Otherwise, it will cause enormous trouble," the master said sternly to Wu Liang.

"Relax, relax. I won't go around telling people. I only told you because I trust you. It's better for Little San to understand how Soul Bones and External Soul Bones are formed, as well as the conditions for absorbing them, as early as possible," Wu Liang said carelessly.

After hearing this, Tang San calmed himself before sitting cross-legged and beginning to draw in and absorb the Ghost Vine King's Soul Ring.

Yu Yan listened from the side in complete confusion, but that did not stop her from being a beautiful vase beside them.

Just as Wu Liang had guessed, Tang San had no trouble at all absorbing a thousand-year Soul Ring. He finished in only two hours. His Blue Silver Grass became slightly darker, but aside from that, there were no major changes. This Ghost Vine King had truly died an unjust death. It had actually been quite terrifying: its vines were covered in spikes and neurotoxin, and it also possessed the ability of Parasite. But after Yu Yan struck it with a firestorm enhanced by Wu Liang's Soul Skill, all its Ghost spores and vines were burned bare. Then, while it was healing its injuries, Tang San took the chance to hack it to death. Of course, since the wrongfully slain Ghost Vine King still had not dropped a Soul Bone, that could only be blamed on Tang San's terrible luck.

After Tang San finished absorbing the Ghost Vine King's Soul Ring, he clenched his fists and said to Wu Liang, "A Liang, it really is just as you said. Absorbing a thousand-year Soul Ring was ridiculously easy for me. I feel that the maximum age Soul Ring I can absorb right now is around four thousand years. I miscalculated this time."

"You should be secretly celebrating. It's also because your luck is bad. Otherwise, today you would have obtained the first Soul Bone of your life. By the way, the skill from your Soul Ring is probably Parasite, right?" Wu Liang said with a curl of his lips.

At that, the master and Yu Yan also looked toward Tang San.

"That's right. The Soul Ring's Soul Skill is the Ghost Vine King's Parasite. The Ghost Vine King's Soul Ring also transformed my Blue Silver Grass. It does not look much different on the outside, but it has gained neurotoxin. Though it cannot kill, it greatly improves its control capabilities. The Blue Silver Grass's toughness has also increased considerably," Tang San said with a smile.

"Alright. Since the purpose of this trip has been accomplished, let's hurry back toward Notting City before night falls and see whether we can find a good place to camp," the master said, calling everyone to head back.

Their Soul Rings are settled, but Teacher's matters are only just beginning, Wu Liang thought as he walked.