As he looked at those familiar ninja outfits, a long-buried memory burst open deep in his mind.
"The Shadowkhan!"
He cried out in shock.
He never expected to see the Shadowkhan from an anime of his Previous Life, Jackie Chan Adventures!
Those ninjas, who had once appeared only on screen, were now standing right before him in his dream!
The next moment...
A figure stepped out from among the countless ninjas.
It was tall.
It wore dark Japanese General Armor and a majestic helmet. Beneath the helmet, a pair of ghostly red eyes glowed faintly.
Its face was shrouded in Shadow. Only its eyes were visible, cold and fervent.
A katana hung at its waist, its scabbard wrapped with a Purple Rope Knot.
It emerged from the world and walked toward Wang Zhi, one step at a time...
Wang Zhi recognized it.
It was General Shendu, the leader of the Ninja Legion, one of the Nine Shadowkhan Legions!
In Jackie Chan Adventures, Shendu, Valmont, and even Jade had all commanded this legion.
And General Shendu was its leader.
General Shendu came to stand before Wang Zhi, dropped to one knee, braced one hand against the ground, and bowed his head.
"General Shendu greets my king!"
His voice was low and hoarse, with the rasp of scraping metal.
Wang Zhi froze.
Before he could ask anything, General Shendu's body began to fade, transforming into a mask.
The mask was deep red, its face fierce and its eyeholes dark and empty. Its top was shaped like a general's helmet.
The mask radiated an eerie, powerful aura.
It became a streak of light and shot into Wang Zhi's body before he could react.
Boom!
The real world.
Wang Zhi, still asleep in bed, suddenly shuddered.
Ten Blank Mask Martial Souls appeared on their own, hovering around him and giving off a faint glow.
One of them began to change.
Patterns appeared across its once-blank surface.
First came the outline, then the features, then the shape of a helmet.
Thin lines spread across the mask like living things, tracing out a fierce face.
Before long, the mask had taken on General Shendu's appearance.
It was exactly like General Shendu in the dream.
Wang Zhi's eyes flew open, and he sat up.
He looked down at himself, then at the masks floating around him. Of the ten, one had changed; the other nine remained blank.
He realized that his connection to the world in his dream—to the Black Shadow Kingdom—had grown much deeper.
The connection felt innate, as if their souls were linked.
He focused his mind.
The Shadow beneath him began to ripple.
One after another, black figures emerged from it, dressed in Black Ninja Suits and wearing masks.
They appeared from every corner of the room...
From under the bed, the corners of the walls, and the Shadows cast by the tables and chairs.
They knelt in unison and saluted Wang Zhi.
Countless figures filled the room.
Early morning.
"Xiao Zhi, get up."
"We're going to the Spirit Pagoda."
Wang Heng called from outside the door, his voice tinged with impatience and anticipation.
Wang Zhi opened his eyes and sat up.
He glanced out the window. The sky was just beginning to brighten, and dawn's first light spilled through the gap in the curtains.
He hadn't slept at all last night.
Ever since he had forged a connection with the Black Shadow Kingdom, he had been too keyed up to rest.
He kept summoning the Shadow Soldiers and sending them back, testing them again and again without tiring of it.
After a whole night of testing,
he had drawn the following conclusions.
First.
The number and strength of Shadow Soldiers he could summon were limited by his Spiritual Power, not his Soul Power.
This was important.
Soul Power could be cultivated over time, but Spiritual Power...
He was only nine years old. His Spiritual Power was still developing, and he couldn't draw on much of it.
With his current Spiritual Power, he could summon only five Shadow Soldiers with the strength of Soul Masters.
Five.
But those five were nothing to scoff at.
The Shadow Soldiers were skilled with all kinds of Hidden Weapons: darts, kunai, and Shuriken. Their technique was practiced, and their aim was astonishing.
On top of that, they could turn into Shadow and move without a trace, while remaining immune to physical attacks.
Ordinary swords and blades passed through them as if they were made of air.
He suspected that even some Two-Ring Soul Grand Masters, or even Three Rings Soul Elders, might not be able to defeat these five Shadow Soldiers.
After all, who would expect their opponent to emerge from their own Shadow?
Second.
He had also gained an ability—
Body into Shadow.
This ability had nothing to do with Soul Skills. It was simply a passive ability he had gained after connecting with the Black Shadow Kingdom.
He could merge his body with Shadow at any time, move freely between Shadows, and become immune to all physical attacks.
For Wang Zhi, it was a useful way to protect himself.
After all, Summoning Style Soul Masters like him were fragile themselves and easy targets.
If an enemy bypassed his summons and attacked him directly, he would be in danger.
But now he could become Shadow and remain immune to all physical attacks, greatly reducing that weakness.
He had spent the entire night studying these abilities and had only managed to tear himself away from them when dawn broke.
Now, hearing his father call, he got to his feet, straightened his clothes, and went out the door.
Wang Heng was waiting outside. He was about to speak when he noticed the look on his son's face.
Wang Zhi looked dazed, his eyes unfocused. He clearly wasn't feeling well.
Wang Heng's face filled with concern.
"Xiao Zhi, what's wrong?"
"Are you all right?"
Wang Zhi shook his head.
"Dad, I'm fine."
"I'm just excited about going to the Spirit Pagoda to buy a Soul Spirit today. I didn't sleep well last night."
He casually made up an excuse.
Hearing this, Wang Heng relaxed, a smile appearing on his face.
"Ha, that's nothing."
"Your dad's got money. Pick whichever Hundred Year Spirit you like."
He waved his hand grandly.
Wang Zhi chuckled.
Besides being a Five Ring Soul King, his father was also a Mecha Manufacturer and designer, with a decent reputation in the industry.
Their family's finances were, without exaggeration, well-off by the standards of the entire Sun Moon Federation.
So they had no trouble affording the one million Federal Currency needed for a Hundred Year Spirit.
"Okay."
"Dad, let's go," Wang Zhi said.
"All right!"
Seeing that his son had returned to normal, Wang Heng was delighted. He patted his son on the shoulder, and the two of them left together.
Hailu City, Spirit Pagoda.
As one of the largest Spirit Pagodas in the East Sea Region, the Hailu City Spirit Pagoda stood in the center of the city, a towering structure that seemed to reach the clouds.
Its surface was covered in intricate Soul Guide Array patterns that shimmered in the sunlight.
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