"Done! I'll absolutely make it happen!"
When it came to Soul Bone Skills, Tian Meng was in his element.
"I packed in every ability you imagined. There are four Soul Bone Skills in total: Spiritual Detection and Sharing, Spiritual Simulation, Spiritual Manifestation, and Emotion Control..."
Between Tian Meng's explanation and his own experimentation, Su Mo basically understood what each one did.
Spiritual Detection and Sharing was a bona fide limited-edition two-in-one, a god-tier scouting and support skill that combined a bird's-eye view with hotspot sharing.
Spiritual Simulation was a god-tier disguise skill.
Spiritual Manifestation was a god-tier mental skill that could turn intangible spiritual power into tangible objects, allowing it to affect reality.
Emotion Control was a divine skill belonging to the God of Emotion.
However, the Emotion Control Tian Meng provided merely imitated the God of Emotion's authority, influencing emotions through interference on the mental level. At best, it was a knockoff pseudo-divine skill.
"I'll spare you the rest. Both the Soul Ring and the Soul Bone have been sealed at the hundred-year level. Those seals will gradually lift as your cultivation improves."
"All four Soul Bone Skills have room to grow."
"As for your Soul Ring skill, I can't interfere with it, but I can make your Divine Eye evolve."
After Tian Meng finished explaining in a few sentences, Su Mo summoned his Sharingan, then conjured a mirror in the Sea of Consciousness.
Sure enough, the single tomoe had become two.
Su Mo wondered whether the Sharingan's evolution might be tied to the Soul Ring's age.
It started with one tomoe. When Tian Meng's Soul Ring limit rose to a hundred years, it gained two; at a thousand years, it would gain three; at ten thousand years, it would become a Mangekyo; and at a hundred thousand years, an Eternal Mangekyo...
Then could a million years bring it to the level of the Rinnegan?
"I've told you so much. Isn't it your turn to reveal what your Soul skill does?"
The chibi Tian Meng gazed expectantly at Su Mo.
He couldn't even interfere with the Soul Ring he had sacrificed himself to provide, so he was genuinely curious what kind of Soul skill this Martial Soul would give Su Mo.
"Let me check."
Su Mo tried sensing the Sharingan's first Soul skill, and disbelief spread across his face.
"What is it? What is it?" Tian Meng pressed.
"This Soul skill is called Peach and Plum Blossoms Across the World. It contains two ocular techniques, one for each eye."
"Tch, only two Soul skills? That's miles behind my skull bone."
Tian Meng was a little disappointed.
Su Mo gave him a look that said, "You don't know quality when you see it." "The Sharingan's Soul skills aren't affected by Soul Beasts. They have their own unique system. Even if I absorbed a ten-year Soul Ring, I'd still get two ocular techniques."
Hearing how extraordinary the Divine Eye was, Tian Meng immediately grew interested.
"Then what do these two Soul skills... no, ocular techniques of yours do?"
"My left eye's ocular technique is called Return a Peach with a Plum. As long as I've done the target a favor, I can expend that debt of gratitude and forcibly demand repayment without their consent or even their knowledge."
"And my right eye's ocular technique is called Sacrifice the Plum to Save the Peach. It can silently and forcibly transfer or exchange things of the same kind between two targets. The one who loses out will develop resentment toward the one who benefits out of nowhere. If there's a debt of gratitude, it can offset the corresponding resentment."
After hearing Su Mo's explanation, the chibi Tian Meng's eyes instantly turned into tiny dots. "Isn't that just leveraging favors and forcing deals?"
"Uh, that's one way to put it."
Su Mo shrugged. Brother Sky Dream had really hit the nail on the head.
The Sharingan truly lived up to its reputation as the eye that reflected the heart. His mind had been full of ways to screw Tang San over, and he had actually gained ocular techniques for screwing people over.
After getting a basic grasp of the changes brought about by Tian Meng's sacrifice, Su Mo prepared to leave the Sea of Consciousness.
Suddenly, he felt as though something was missing. He scanned the surroundings again, then realization struck. "What a shame. Elder Yi didn't show up this time."
Tian Meng immediately bristled. "Could that old fellow possibly be better than me?"
"Fair enough. If Elder Yi were here, he'd probably tell me to let go of my hatred."
Su Mo sighed, then left the Sea of Consciousness.
Once outside, Su Mo discovered that the Infinity Gauntlet and Froggy had already returned to his body.
Fortunately, Tian Meng's spiritual barrier had prevented Xiao Wu from seizing the opportunity to ambush him.
Noticing the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone by his feet, Su Mo's eyes lit up. Now that Spiritual Simulation could conceal the Soul Bone's aura, he could absorb it without worrying that Tang Hao would notice.
Picking up the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, Su Mo contacted Tian Meng mentally. "Brother Sky Dream, help me suppress this Soul Bone."
"Easy." Tian Meng readily agreed.
With his previous experience absorbing a Million-Year Soul Ring and Million-Year Soul Bone, coupled with the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone's relatively gentle nature, the absorption process naturally went without a hitch.
It took only ten minutes or so to absorb it successfully.
"Two Soul Bone Skills: one for flight, and one for healing and recovery. I'll call them Flying Over Grass and Unending Vitality."
Naturally, Su Mo wouldn't use the names Tang San had chosen.
"Tsk, tsk!" Tian Meng's astonished voice rang out in his mind.
"A six-year-old with triple Martial Souls, a level-eighteen One-Ring Soul Master, one Million-Year Soul Ring and two heaven-defying ocular techniques, plus four million-year Soul Bone Skills and two hundred-thousand-year Soul Bone Skills. Your starting hand absolutely blows little Yuhao's out of the water!"
Su Mo silently added-
My triple Martial Souls also come with seven innate traits.
"Looking at it that way, even gaining five levels in one day hardly counts as a big deal." In the Sea of Consciousness, Tian Meng circled around as he marveled.
Huh, five levels?
Su Mo was slightly taken aback. Did that mean he had already been level thirteen before Tian Meng sacrificed himself?
That doesn't make sense!
Tang San had only shot up to level thirteen thanks to the Mysterious Heaven Skill. Froggy had absorbed a four-hundred-year Soul Ring, which should have brought him to level twelve at most.
Su Mo quickly thought of the travel halo's hidden effect.
Previously, he had speculated that Froggy could ignore the restrictions on Martial Souls and travel freely. Now, it seemed he might also be able to absorb Soul Power on his own.
Back then, the two Soul Beasts had left behind Soul Rings. Froggy had absorbed one, while the other gradually dissipated over time. Froggy had then absorbed that dissipating Soul Power, bringing Su Mo to level thirteen.
Otherwise, how could Froggy stay outside my body for so long?
And even use Soul skills?
Doesn't conservation of energy deserve a little respect?
"Oh, I almost forgot. There's still a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone set."
Only then did Tian Meng remember the little girl inside the spiritual barrier. "This little one should be Xiao Wu, right? What are you planning to do with her?"
At his words, Su Mo turned to look at Xiao Wu.
By now, Xiao Wu had collapsed helplessly onto the ground, weeping like pear blossoms drenched in rain. Her tear-filled eyes were brimming with terror, uncertainty, and bewilderment.
First, she had witnessed Tian Meng's sacrifice, then watched Su Mo absorb a Soul Bone.
She suspected that her identity had already been exposed.
She was terrified that she would be next.
Especially when Su Mo turned his gaze toward her, she nearly lost her soul from fright.
Her lips moved faintly, as though she were begging for mercy.
However, with the spiritual barrier blocking the sound, Su Mo couldn't hear anything.
Still, that heart-rending expression did soften his heart for a moment.
In the end, however, he refused to let his emotions lead him around by the nose. Instead, he considered how to deal with Xiao Wu in a way that would maximize his gains.
With Tian Meng present, he didn't want to show a cruel side toward Soul Beasts.
He didn't want to leave a bad impression.
And precisely because Tian Meng was here, simply killing the rabbit for her bone would be far too wasteful. Whether she sacrificed herself directly or became a Wisdom Soul Ring, either option offered better value.
Of course, the most important reason was-
He had suddenly thought of a brilliant way to screw Tang San over.
But it required Xiao Wu.