Whoosh!
When the Spirit Ring flew above Bai Mu's head, familiar information surfaced once more in his spiritual world.
[Successfully absorbed the 5,512-year Mirror Shadow Beast Spirit Ring. Obtained Second Spirit Skill: Mirror Copy (using blood as a catalyst, it can copy a target's abilities. It automatically grants 80% of the target's strength when they are of the same level as the user; without blood, it can only grant 50%).] [Resonatable Pokémon Moves available for replacement: Double Team, Mirror Coat, Reflect Type, Mirror Shot, Protect, Reflect, Light Screen, Substitute, Barrier----]
"That's it?"
The Mirror Shadow Beast's Spirit Skill was quite good, and there were plenty of Moves he could resonate with.
Yet after reading the information, Bai Mu frowned.
Although Mirror Copy could give a Trainer as helpless as him some combat ability, it was actually rather useless to him.
When it came to life-or-death battles, he would never personally step onto the field. Instead, he would hide somewhere safe whenever possible.
He would never cause Zygarde even the slightest trouble!
As for the resonatable Moves----
"Why didn't I resonate with that Move?!"
The reason he had chosen the Mirror Shadow Beast as his Second Spirit Ring was to resonate with a Special Move—Transform!
Using that Move, he could transform into a target and perfectly copy part of their information and strength.
In the real world, he could even transform into all kinds of objects. Its practicality was off the charts.
If he could truly learn it, causing trouble with it would be utterly unbeatable!
By then, he could transform into the Grandmaster, stand behind Bibi Dong or Liu Erlong, and say, "Dong'er, Erlong, don't turn around. I'm Xiao Gang!"
Bibi Dong and Liu Erlong probably would not even question his identity!
Unfortunately, the resonance had failed!
"The Mirror Shadow Beast can copy a target's abilities and create mirror-image clones----it can be considered one of the Spirit Beasts in the Douluo World most likely to resonate with Transform."
"Could it be that I chose the wrong Spirit Beast? Should I have chosen some kind of shapeshifting slime?"
"Or is that Move too special to resonate with?"
Bai Mu scratched his head in confusion.
Fortunately, he had long prepared himself for the possibility of not obtaining Transform.
The Moves he had now were quite practical too!
Double Team created illusions to confuse opponents, Mirror Coat reflected special attacks, Reflect Type temporarily changed his own type, while Reflect and Light Screen halved physical or special damage----
In the end, though, his gaze settled on Protect and Substitute.
Protect completely blocked one attack from the opponent, though using it consecutively could easily fail.
Substitute used one-quarter of his maximum Soul Power and HP to create a Substitute that blocked some damage and effects. Under normal circumstances, it could last for five hours. The more Soul Power infused into it, the longer it lasted. It would disappear early when its HP or Soul Power was depleted, when Dynamax was used, or when it was dismissed voluntarily.
Both were godly life-saving Moves. In the games, when paired with Toxic, they formed the classic Toxic stall strategy.
"Protect is good, and Substitute has plenty of room for maneuvering too."
"Which one should I choose?"
Bai Mu's eyes soon became resolute.
As everyone knew, Protect did not necessarily protect, while Substitute offered far more room for manipulation!
So----
"I'll use Mirror Clone to replace Substitute!"
Inside the Ice Forest, Shui Yunxin and Shui Bing'er stood guard beside Bai Mu.
A five-thousand-year Second Spirit Ring was simply too shocking. Even though Bai Mu appeared to be absorbing it without issue, neither of them dared relax in the slightest.
"Awoo~"
Suddenly, Zygarde, who was standing beside Bai Mu and using Jungle Healing, threw back its head and let out a long howl.
Its body shone with green light, and its aura surged sharply upward.
Whoosh!
Bai Mu suddenly opened his eyes.
Soul Power surged through his meridians like a river bursting through a broken dam!
The Soul Power he had accumulated over half a year, combined with the enormous energy of the five-thousand-year Spirit Ring, sent his level skyrocketing!
It broke through one barrier after another without the slightest obstruction, instantly raising his strength to an unprecedented peak!
"How do you feel?"
Shui Yunxin asked with concern.
"Great! Better than ever!"
Bai Mu calmed himself and carefully sensed his condition, only to be startled.
He tried hard to suppress the turmoil in his heart and said as calmly as possible, "I think my level is definitely no lower than 25."
That was a lie!
Just from the feeling alone, he knew his true level was likely as high as level 28!
Even so, that was enough to leave the mother and daughter frozen in place.
"Level 25?!"
Shui Yunxin carefully recalled that it had taken her nearly a year and a half to rise from level 20 to level 25 back then!
Yet Bai Mu----had used only one Spirit Ring!
"I've already been surpassed so quickly?"
Shui Bing'er could not hide her shock either.
She was only level 24 now. Bai Mu, who had not even become a Spirit Master a year ago, had actually overtaken her?
"Mm, after all, it was a five-thousand-year Spirit Ring."
Bai Mu did not explain further.
He released his power, and one yellow and one purple Spirit Ring rose and fell beneath his feet.
Among them, the Thousand-Year Purple Spirit Ring looked incomparably mysterious.
Second Spirit Skill!
As the Spirit Ring lit up, Bai Mu felt nearly half the Soul Power and stamina in his body being drained in an instant.
The next moment, a Substitute identical to him appeared in front of him.
Its appearance, aura, expression, and eyes----were no different from his own!
Judging by appearances alone, no one could tell which was the real body and which was the Substitute!
"It's actually a Clone Spirit Skill?"
Shui Yunxin said delightedly, "These kinds of Spirit Skills are very rare. When used in battle to coordinate with a clone and attack an opponent, they can often produce excellent results. Xiao Mu, you're so lucky."
"That's great. Your Second Spirit Skill is a clone."
Shui Bing'er smiled faintly, sincerely happy for Bai Mu.
"No! This isn't a clone. It's a Substitute."
Bai Mu shook his head with a smile. "Although it can attack too, it only has one-quarter of my main body's strength. Other than being more realistic, it can't compare to a true clone Spirit Skill in battle."
"That's right. It can block attacks for me, but if I'm asked to attack, I can probably only beat Spirit Masters."
Substitute Bai Mu spoke.
"Huh~!? It can talk too!"
A strange glimmer flashed through Shui Bing'er's ice-blue eyes. Unable to resist, she reached out and touched Bai Mu's Substitute, finding it incredibly realistic.
Even its body temperature and texture were exactly the same as a real person's!
"Mm, when heaven closes a door, it always opens a window."
Substitute Bai Mu took Shui Bing'er's hand and placed it against his own face, letting her pinch it. "What do you think? Realistic, right?"
"Mm----it's exactly like a real person. You can't tell it's fake at all."
Shui Bing'er withdrew her hand, her pretty face turning red as she spoke softly.
"It's really this realistic!"
Seeing this, Shui Yunxin could not help reaching out to touch Bai Mu's Substitute as well, and she was instantly astonished.
Clone Spirit Skills were uncommon. Most were attacking phantoms or afterimages, and even those with physical forms could usually be identified as fake at a glance.
But a Substitute like Bai Mu's, with every aspect of the skill focused on "realism," was practically unprecedented.
She could not help asking, "A Spirit Skill this realistic must have considerable limitations, right?"
"Mm, it requires roughly one-quarter of my maximum Soul Power and stamina, but it's easier to control than I imagined."
Bai Mu felt that the Substitute was like an AI-perfect simulation of himself.
He and the Substitute could also communicate through Telepathy. As long as he gave an order in his mind, the Substitute would imitate his actions----and beyond that, he could personally control it more precisely.
"Xiao Mu, your Spirit Skill----is very special."
Shui Yunxin carefully chose her words. "If you develop it well in the future, it may become one of your core tactics."
"At the very least, during a battle, your real body and Substitute can stand on opposite sides. No matter which one the opponent attacks, they'll have to hesitate!"
"That's what I was thinking too."
A sunny smile appeared on Bai Mu's face.
During battle, he could hide himself and leave the Substitute behind to fight.
The enemy could exhaust all their strength trying to blast it apart, only to discover they had merely destroyed a Substitute. Their mentality would absolutely collapse!
Before you continue