Second Martial Soul Awakening!

Pitch-black mist spread from Luo Ling's body, while his eyes erupted with scarlet light, making him look like an evil ghost from hell!

"Y-You... what are you?" Zhang Lang was stunned senseless by the sight before him. He was only a Soul Grandmaster—when had he ever seen anything like this?

Luo Ling stared fixedly at the assistant instructor before him, the killing intent in his heart swelling to its peak. He raised a hand, as though countless threads were connected to the depths of darkness.

Not far away, black mist rose around the Scarecrow as well, and the entire Scarecrow underwent a complete transformation.

The straw on its body turned into pitch-black feathers. The entire Scarecrow seemed to melt into the darkness, becoming illusory. From within the darkness, the cries of Crows could faintly be heard.

Luo Ling waved his hand. In the next instant, the Scarecrow turned into a black shadow and swiftly appeared behind Zhang Lang. Then...

Squelch!

A strange sound rang out as a savage claw burst through Zhang Lang's chest like breaking through a window, carrying filthy fragments of organs and blood.

Zhang Lang had never expected to be attacked from behind. He could only struggle to turn his head.

Behind him, a shadowy figure was smiling at him. Within the darkness was Luo Ling's illusory face.

A full moon hung high in the sky.

A tall figure stood beneath the moonlight, silver hair falling to his shoulders, his handsome face seeming almost divine.

Luo Ling stood before a pool of water, staring at his reflection with a strange expression.

Zhang Lang's corpse lay on the ground, already reduced to a dried husk.

The Scarecrow had mutated and drained Zhang Lang's Life Force and Soul Power, which had also healed Luo Ling's chest wound.

"Did I undergo a Second Martial Soul Awakening?" Luo Ling touched his incomparably flawless face, an involuntary look of surprise appearing on it.

He had thought he was going to die, yet something like this had happened.

Second Martial Soul Awakening!

This was something one could only encounter by chance. Tang San's Blue Silver Grass had undergone its second awakening with the help of the Blue Silver King, but Luo Ling had nothing at all!

Looking at that devastatingly handsome face in the water, Luo Ling felt immensely satisfied.

He had gained greatly from this Second Martial Soul Awakening. The change in his appearance was only one aspect; more importantly, his Martial Soul had changed.

Luo Ling looked toward the illusory black shadow beside him. The former Scarecrow had completely changed and was now a shadow.

Its indistinct features in the darkness resembled Luo Ling's, and several Crows perched on its shoulders.

But that did not seem to be all.

Luo Ling frowned and carefully sensed it. The next second, the shadow before him entered his body.

He could clearly feel his body becoming even stronger!

Martial Soul Possession?!

Luo Ling was startled, but he soon noticed something unusual.

This was not Martial Soul Possession. The mutated Scarecrow had fused with something inside his body.

There was another kind of power within him!

Luo Ling closed his eyes. Several seconds later, he opened them again.

The mutated Scarecrow emerged from his body. As he focused slightly and recalled the scene of Zhang Lang's death, his eyes instantly turned blood-red!

"Twin Martial Souls? No, my Soul Power has actually reached a bottleneck and can no longer increase?"

Luo Ling frowned. Recalling the original setting, he suddenly thought of a possibility.

Twin Martial Souls!

As the name implied, two Martial Souls were born together. The Soul Rings obtained would be shared between the two Martial Souls, but Luo Ling's situation was different.

He could clearly sense that his Soul Power had been locked. He needed to add a Soul Ring to his second Martial Soul before he could continue improving. This was unlike Twin Martial Souls sharing Soul Rings!

"Sigh!" With a helpless sigh, Luo Ling recalled the mutated Scarecrow into his body.

At that moment, he deeply understood what it meant for knowledge to be power. At the same time, he felt even more disdain for Yu Xiaogang's act of plagiarizing Spirit Hall's materials and claiming them as his own!

At the thought of Yu Xiaogang, Luo Ling's handsome face actually became somewhat ferocious.

Since he had survived, then Yu Xiaogang, were you ready to experience fear?

Notting Academy, teachers' office.

Yu Xiaogang paced uneasily before the office door, occasionally glancing outside as if waiting for someone.

On a tree outside, a pitch-black Crow watched Yu Xiaogang below with scarlet eyes.

Luo Ling hid in the bushes not far from the tree, using the Crow's eyes to observe everything Yu Xiaogang did.

This was a new ability born after the Scarecrow's second awakening. It could use Darkness Attribute power to form Crows and control them as his eyes and ears.

On his way to Yu Xiaogang's office, Luo Ling had already gained a basic understanding of his new "Scarecrow" Martial Soul.

The new "Scarecrow" Martial Soul was entirely condensed from Darkness Attribute power and could transform darkness into Crows.

Not only that, its First Soul Skill had become an ability that could control Darkness Thread: Darkness Weaving.

Like a puppeteer, Luo Ling could use Darkness Thread to control his new "Scarecrow" Martial Soul. At the same time, he could weave the Darkness Thread into various forms to restrain and bind enemies. The Darkness Thread also possessed the ability to draw out Life Force and Soul Power.

Beyond that, it had an even more terrifying ability!

Luo Ling withdrew his attention from the Crow's vision and looked down at his feet.

Zhang Lang's corpse lay quietly beside his feet when the darkness suddenly rippled.

Within Luo Ling's body, the newborn "Scarecrow" slowly emerged, then gradually transformed into Zhang Lang's appearance on the ground.

Simulated Phantom!

This was the final ability of the newborn "Scarecrow."

It could transform the Scarecrow into any person or object he could imagine.

It was no different from the real thing, except that it had no soul. It could be considered a doll...

"You're no longer a Scarecrow. From now on, you'll be called the Raven Shadow Puppet." Looking at the shadow before him, which was almost identical to Zhang Lang in life, Luo Ling's lips curled slightly.

"Why did you take so long to return?"

Inside the office, Yu Xiaogang, who had been waiting for Zhang Lang, immediately breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him.

He had sent Zhang Lang to kill Luo Ling. The agreed time had already passed, but at least the man had returned.

"Grandmaster, just to be safe, I lured that little bastard to the Back Mountain. That's why I came back a little late," Zhang Lang answered obsequiously.

"You're sure he's dead?" Yu Xiaogang asked nervously.

"Of course! What could an eleventh-level Waste Martial Soul master possibly do?"

"Good! I'll give you the reward I promised." Yu Xiaogang nodded and took a package from the drawer.

"The fifty Gold Soul Coins are all in here."

A strange glint flashed through Zhang Lang's eyes, but it quickly faded. A delighted expression appeared on his face as he eagerly took the package.

"Then thank you, Grandmaster!"

"This is what you deserve." Yu Xiaogang waved his hand, resuming his superior manner. "Remember, don't let anyone else know what happened today. Otherwise..."

"Rest assured, Grandmaster! No one else will ever know about what happened today!" Zhang Lang promised, thumping his chest.

Yu Xiaogang said nothing more. He shook his head and turned around, convinced that Zhang Lang would not dare speak carelessly.

He was merely an assistant instructor, with neither power nor influence. Even if he spoke out, Yu Xiaogang could turn the accusations around on him!

Between a publicly recognized Martial Soul Theory Grandmaster and an assistant instructor, whose words would carry more weight went without saying.

Just as Yu Xiaogang lowered his guard, the instant he turned around, Zhang Lang behind him quietly raised a hand.

His right hand instantly transformed into a sharp claw and viciously struck Yu Xiaogang's neck.