Martial Soul Fusion Skill

He took stock of his meager possessions.

After a year of frugal living, supplemented by his work-study stipend and occasional odd jobs for the academy, he had saved about ten Gold Soul Coins.

"This time, we're on our own."

Lin Ming said to Little Lei Yi, who was perched on his shoulder, poking at the Star Dou Great Forest on the map with its finger.

"Yi!"

Little Lei Yi looked up, its small face full of seriousness. It nodded vigorously, a tiny arc of electricity flashing across its body as if to say, No problem.

Lin Ming smiled and began his final preparations.

In Nuoding City, he had commissioned a blacksmith to craft several thin but durable throwing knives, along with a short sword.

His only requirement for the short sword was that it be extremely sharp.

The short sword alone cost him five Gold Soul Coins.

He spent another three Gold Soul Coins on essential supplies for ten days and a more detailed map of the Star Dou Great Forest's outskirts.

He carefully sewed the remaining money into the lining of his clothes, just in case.

He hadn't told anyone where he was going.

For a ten-level Soul Master to venture alone into a Soul Beast forest sounded like a suicide mission to anyone who heard it.

On a relatively open clearing on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

The air was thick with the smell of scorching and a faint hint of blood.

Lin Ming leaned against a large tree, his chest heaving, sweat and dirt mingling on his forehead and trickling down his cheeks.

His coarse cloth clothes bore several scorched rents, revealing slightly reddened skin beneath.

Ten meters in front of him, a Soul Beast, nearly two meters long and reaching his waist in height, crouched low, emitting guttural growls.

It resembled a leopard but was covered in short, dark blue fur with silver spots. Its streamlined body exuded explosive power, and its four paws crackled with fine blue electrical arcs. A whip-like tail ended in crackling electrical energy that refused to dissipate.

A Lightning Leopard, around four hundred and thirty years old.

This was the target Lin Ming had been desperately searching for for two days.

A lightning-attribute Soul Beast known for its speed and ferocious electrical attacks, its Soul Ring quality was considered top-tier among Soul Beasts of the same age.

The battle had been raging for nearly fifteen minutes.

Lin Ming had used almost every trick up his sleeve, except for his trump cards.

Little Lei Yi hovered to his front-left, maintaining its combat stance. Its golden light was slightly dimmed, and the once lively electrical arcs had become sparse.

Its small chest rose and fell, and the lightning patterns on its forehead glowed faintly.

The Thunder Sacrifice had been unleashed three times, only managing to paralyze the Lightning Leopard for less than half a second. The beast had extremely high resistance to electricity.

Swift as Lightning allowed Lin Ming's speed to barely keep up with the Lightning Leopard, but it consumed a massive amount of Soul Power.

Raikiri, affixed to his throwing knives and short sword, had only managed to inflict a few shallow wounds on the Lightning Leopard, instead thoroughly enraging the beast.

The Lightning Leopard was too fast!

Just like its name.

Its attacks were as swift as lightning.

Each pounce left afterimages and a shrill tearing sound that seemed to rip through space. Its claw strikes, imbued with electricity, could easily tear through tree trunks.

If not for Lin Ming's predictions and Little Lei Yi's interference, he would have been disemboweled long ago.

"Hoo... hoo... I can't drag this out any longer."

Lin Ming's eyes were sharp.

A prolonged battle was disadvantageous for him. His Soul Power was draining too quickly, and the commotion and smell of blood could attract other Soul Beasts.

The Lightning Leopard also seemed to be losing patience. Its deep blue beast eyes locked onto Lin Ming, its body shifted back slightly, and its muscles tensed.

Stronger electrical sparks erupted from its fur, clearly indicating it was gathering power for a decisive blow.

Now!

A fierce glint flashed in Lin Ming's eyes, and he decisively thought, Little Lei Yi!

"Yi!"

Little Lei Yi, connected to him by thought, let out a high-pitched, crisp cry.

Its small body erupted with an unprecedented golden radiance, transforming into a beam of golden lightning. It wasn't an attack, but a selfless charge towards Lin Ming.

The Lightning Leopard froze for a moment. The two small creatures that had been fighting it were now attacking each other, causing its mind to falter.

But this brief moment of hesitation was...

Enough for Lin Ming.

As Little Lei Yi's figure transformed into golden lightning, Lin Ming had already closed his eyes, concentrating his mind and pouring all his Soul Power into his left palm.

At the same time, he communicated with the origin of Lei Yi deep within his soul.

The instant Little Lei Yi surged into his body, a profound, ancient tremor, as if originating from the very source of thunder, awakened within him.

"Martial Soul... Fusion."

Lin Ming roared, his eyes snapping open, golden lightning exploding within them.

He opened his left palm, and a golden lightning bolt, capable of piercing the heavens, suddenly flared.

Hum!

Space seemed to tremble.

An indescribable, majestic aura erupted from Lin Ming, spreading outwards.

This was not Soul Power pressure, but a higher-level aura, imbued with the will of judgment and destruction.

The lightning in Lin Ming's left hand rapidly stretched.

He firmly grasped a spear about 1.2 meters long, forged entirely from flowing, liquid golden lightning.

The spear was not solid, but a dazzling ball of golden lightning.

Its mere presence distorted the surrounding air, emitting faint crackling sounds.

Behind Lin Ming, a blurry golden phantom appeared. Its silhouette resembled Lei Yi's but was different. It also held a lightning spear, looking down indifferently.

[Self-Created Martial Soul Fusion Skill: Wrathful Thunder God's Judgment · Lei Yi (Extremely Incomplete)]

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

The Lightning Leopard, which had been preparing to pounce on Lin Ming's main body, showed extreme fear born of instinct in its eyes for the first time.

Its fur bristled, and its beastly instincts screamed at it.

Run!

Escape immediately!

But it was too late.

Lin Ming felt all his Soul Power and spirit being frantically drawn into the "Spear of Judgment" in his hand.

He knew he could only maintain this form for an instant.

No hesitation, no fancy moves.

He poured all his strength into throwing the lightning spear at the Lightning Leopard, which was stunned by the pressure and frozen in place.

The golden lightning spear left his hand without a sound, as if it had directly torn through space and vanished from its original position.

The next instant.

A golden light appeared precisely in the center of the Lightning Leopard's forehead.

BOOM!

Not a loud sound, but a dull roar, like thunder exploding.

The Lightning Leopard froze in place, its eyes instantly losing all their light.

A thumb-thick, charred hole, pierced through from front to back, appeared on its forehead.

No blood flowed.

The violent lightning energy within its body was judged by a higher-level lightning and instantly annihilated and calmed by this strike.

Thump.

The corpse of the 430-year-old Lightning Leopard slumped powerlessly to the ground.

A yellow Soul Ring slowly emerged.

"It succeeded."

Lin Ming gasped for air, his vision blurring.

Little Lei Yi was forcibly ejected from his body, landing beside him and weakly emitting a sound.

"Yi..."

Lin Ming looked at the 400-year-plus Soul Ring, a flicker of joy in his eyes.

But then he warily scanned his surroundings. The commotion had been too great; he had to absorb the Soul Ring and leave immediately.

He sat down cross-legged and was about to guide the Soul Ring when his ears twitched slightly.

Faint but clear footsteps could be heard from the southeast, more than one person, along with the indistinct sounds of girls talking.