Three Self-Created Soul Skills

Four months later, in the deep sea west of the Western Li Stone Kingdom, Ji Wuming stood on the water far from the islands, gripping the Blood Thunder Battle Spear as he warily watched a Spine Overlord Sea Urchin that had only recently reached the Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast level.

He braced his rear leg, sending a spray of waves up from the soft seawater beneath his feet as he charged rapidly toward the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin.

Having been forced to serve as a living punching bag these past few days, the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin had long since reached its limit. It immediately rolled its body and charged at Ji Wuming.

Ji Wuming swiftly unleashed the Sea-Treading Mountain River Steps he had perfected during this time. This footwork feared not the waves created by Sea Soul Beasts when they attacked, allowing him to race as wildly as if he were on level ground.

As Ji Wuming rapidly circled the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin, it had already learned the three-stage attack that this human would use next.

It immediately used the pressure of the seawater to leap from the surface, spinning wildly as countless spines spread into a wide-area attack and shot toward Ji Wuming.

"Do you really think I'll still use the same move as before?"

As Ji Wuming raced at high speed, his laughter grew louder. Then his steps abruptly stopped as he fixed his gaze on the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin's best point of attack.

"Windy Rainy Night: Extreme Thousand Mile Penetration!"

Ji Wuming continuously swung the Blood Thunder Battle Spear with both hands. The Blood Slaughter Qi within rapidly condensed, and the battle spear flew from his grasp, blasting toward the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin with overwhelming killing intent.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Several spines aligned in a straight line were split in half by the battle spear. Even though the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin's defense had greatly increased while spinning at high speed, it was still useless.

"Whoosh—"

The battle spear directly pierced through the sea urchin's hard spiny shell and penetrated its heart. The spear then dissipated and returned to Ji Wuming's hand.

The Spine Overlord Sea Urchin crashed heavily into the deep sea. Some condensed blood crystals remained around the hole in its body, and its internal organs had been completely shredded.

However, at that moment, a Golden Giant Sea Crab lurking in the shadows leaped from the water, intending to kill Ji Wuming while his defenses were lacking.

"Bloody Sea Stench: Raging Wave Triangle Defense!"

Ji Wuming immediately swung the Blood Thunder Battle Spear in his hand, spinning it continuously. The condensed bloody battle spear became like a crimson shield, blocking three directions around him at once.

The Golden Stone Giant Crab's two massive claws struck the spinning spear shield, forcefully knocking its entire body back more than ten meters. It fell into the deep sea, and just as it sensed something was wrong and hurriedly swam deeper into the ocean—

Ji Wuming leaped into the air. Hovering briefly, he looked down at the Golden Stone Giant Crab in the sea.

"My training Soul Beast wants to kill me and still run away? Do you really think you can escape?"

"Sea Wave Deception: Empty Resonance Overturning Sea Kill!"

The battle spear plunged into the deep sea and shot toward the Golden Stone Giant Crab, which had been marked by the blood energy entity from his Second Self-Created Soul Skill. Centered on the spear tip and extending ten meters in radius, the powerful Blood Slaughter Qi formed a target-locked vacuum zone within the sea.

Within it, the movements of any living creature would slow by half, as though they were floating in a vacuum with nothing to push against.

The Golden Stone Giant Crab, which had been fleeing into the deep sea, turned around and looked back. Its eight legs stretched with all its strength as it swam in terror toward the ocean depths.

"Screech—"

In an instant, the Golden Stone Giant Crab's shell, as hard as iron and gold, was pierced through. Its entire body seemed to become incomparably light, no longer able to feel pain. Its crab eyes grew vacant, its eight legs went limp, and arcs of electricity charred its body black. Before long, its whole body began to float upward!

Ji Wuming looked at the floating corpses of the Spine Overlord Sea Urchin and Golden Stone Giant Crab ahead. He walked over, tied up the two Soul Beasts, and stored them in his Soul Tool, saying helplessly,

"Ah, what a pity. I killed these two Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts so badly that some of their meat can't be eaten anymore!"

Ji Wuming carefully examined the Blood Thunder Battle Spear in his hand. These three Self-Created Soul Skills had been created based on Chen Jianjun's insights into Sword Intent. After seeking advice from Dali, the Old Village Chief, and other villagers of the Western Li Stone Kingdom, he had developed them according to his Martial Soul's methods of attack.

Their power had originally not been as great as it was now. The first and third Self-Created Soul Skills both relied primarily on straight-line throws, and their drawbacks had been considerable.

But through his continued development, he had actually been able to mobilize the Blood Slaughter Qi previously absorbed by his Martial Soul. Once an enemy was tainted by the condensed killing aura of his battle spear, the Blood Slaughter Qi would gain the additional effect of marking them. Thus, he could bring out the greatest power of the First and Third Soul Skills.

Not long after, Ji Wuming returned to the village, and the two Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts crashed heavily onto the ground.

"Boss Ji brought back two more Soul Beasts! These ones are even bigger than the last batch!"

At that moment, the village children swarmed around Ji Wuming, jumping about excitedly. Several children even leaped directly onto the two Soul Beasts and began cutting them apart with their sword Martial Souls.

Looking at the six- and seven-year-old children around him, Ji Wuming said gently, "Take only as much as you can cut. Children shouldn't be too greedy; know your limits, understand?"

"Understood!"

The children answered in unison.

Just as Ji Wuming headed toward the stone house he had built, an eleven-year-old boy walked up to him.

"A'man, what else do you want to know about the continent?"

During his half year in the Western Li Kingdom, A'man had often come to his residence, curiously asking about the customs and events of the eastern continent. He had also indirectly given Ji Wuming some guidance on techniques related to Self-Created Soul Skills.

Through their continued conversations, Ji Wuming had come to greatly appreciate A'man. Although his comprehension was indeed somewhat lacking, his diligence and hard work far surpassed those of his peers. Most importantly, his ideas centered on integration—the so-called dual development of Soul Ring Masters and Self-Created Soul Skills.

A'man furrowed his brows. After hesitating for a long time, he finally spoke slowly. "Boss Ji, I want to follow you out into the world and see what lies beyond, to become a Soul Master like Master Chen and you!"

"Huh?" Ji Wuming stared at A'man in astonishment.

"Boss Ji, is that not possible?"

A'man lowered his head and turned away in deep disappointment. Just as he was about to leave, Ji Wuming stopped him.

"A'man, your request isn't impossible. If you want to become a Soul Master, you need to leave the village and venture outside, where you can meet more people. Only then can you grow stronger faster."

"Uh, I never thought about that. I only wanted to become a Soul Master, obtain Soul Rings, and help the Village Chief protect our village properly. Going out into the world is still far too dangerous."

A'man scratched his head and spoke with complete innocence.

Ji Wuming looked at A'man and sighed. He had thought he might be able to take a swordsmanship prodigy with him to roam the continent. It seemed he had indeed been thinking too much.

"Fine. During this time, I'll do my best to tell you everything I know about Soul Masters. If others in the village share your thoughts in the future, you can help them become Soul Masters as well."

Ji Wuming then took out a blue Crystal Ball and said, "This is a Crystal Ball that can test Soul Power Levels. It can accurately display the level of Soul Power in your body!"

Ji Wuming patiently explained the process of Martial Soul awakening. Years ago, when he had fought in the Black Market Soul Arena, he had already learned how Martial Souls awakened and how to help others test their Soul Power.

"Alright, just place your hand on it and focus on pouring that energy in your body into this blue stone!"

A'man confirmed once more. After seeing Ji Wuming nod, he stretched out his right hand and placed it on the blue Crystal Ball.

In an instant, dazzling blue light illuminated the entire stone house.

"This, this is..."