Countless leaves were swept from the branches and sent swirling through the air by the fierce wind. All living things nearby began to flee instinctively.
On top of that, the battle between the two Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Beasts had just ended. Not even the faintest insect chirp could be heard anywhere nearby.
Amethyst Imperial Epiphyllum trembled as well, its already weakened body enduring the bloodline pressure that came from its very soul.
On the other side, if Xiangliu had been at full strength, Mu Qian would have had no choice but to retreat for now.
But after the battle earlier, that Xiangliu had to be completely spent by now, right?
Xiangliu's three heads went blank. It could only feel its cultivation and Soul Power rapidly draining away, while the injuries it had forcibly suppressed erupted all at once. The intense weakness made its body feel unbearably heavy.
Most of all, the bloodline pressure that had endured since time immemorial left it completely unable to breathe, as though its soul were about to be devoured.
Mu Qian's lips curled upward. Xiangliu's condition immediately put him at ease.
His First Soul Skill had only one effect.
The Living meant equality among all living things.
In a way, it was a control-type skill, but its terrifying aspect lay in this: anything or anyone shrouded in its sacred light would have all attributes stripped away.
The stripping of Soul Power and elemental attributes reduced every enemy struck by the skill to one of the common masses.
The key was that he could apply its effect according to his own will, avoiding any accidental harm.
And it was guaranteed to take effect!
Unless the enemy's attribute strength exceeded Mu Qian's.
But that was clearly impossible.
Of course, that was only the ideal. Given his current cultivation, Mu Qian couldn't bring this Soul Skill to its full potential.
Having him completely strip a Titled Douluo of their Soul Power was simply unrealistic.
Still, thanks to the words "guaranteed to take effect," Mu Qian's First Soul Skill was worthy of being called heaven-defying.
Even a Titled Douluo would be affected; the only difference was how much of their power was stripped away.
He had tested it before, and for now, the strongest enemies he could completely control couldn't be more than one major cultivation realm above him.
Though he couldn't strip Xiangliu completely, that was more than enough when combined with the natural suppression the Yinglong Origin's aura exerted over all beasts.
If Spirit Masters outside learned what Mu Qian's Soul Skill could do, he doubted anyone would be able to sit still.
The teams sent to hunt him down would probably stretch all the way from the Far North to the southern coastline.
There was no helping it. Just his First Soul Skill alone gave him the strength to stand undefeated among his peers, and even fight above his level as easily as drinking water.
If he were allowed to grow, and eventually reach the cultivation level of a Titled Douluo, he would become a sword hanging over everyone's heads.
However, Mu Qian could only control his opponents for a limited time. The stronger they were, the shorter the duration.
The Soul Power it consumed was also terrifying. Even with a total reserve far greater than others his age, he could use the skill at most three times.
His opportunity would vanish in an instant. He wasn't about to wait for Xiangliu to recover before making his move.
"Second Soul Skill: Return to Void."
At Mu Qian's low call, a pair of enormous blue-gold Dragon Wings suddenly unfurled.
The wings were enormous, each more than ten meters long. A brilliant blue-gold sheen covered them, dotted with countless mysterious, intricate runes.
Now, those runes blazed with dazzling light. As Mu Qian curled his right hand into a fist, the ice element in the surrounding space began to surge.
His Second Soul Skill was just as heaven-defying.
Elemental control.
By sensing the elements around him, Mu Qian could take control of them, then split them apart and reassemble them.
It sounded simple, but the skill's actual potential was terrifying.
Especially when used in tandem with his First Soul Skill...
Countless icicles grew from within Xiangliu's body, and the extreme cold instantly swallowed what little consciousness it had left.
Like a seedling forcing its way upward beneath a boulder weighing ten thousand pounds, the ice pierced Xiangliu's skin from the inside out—and pierced through its life as well.
Mu Qian swept his right hand sharply. The icicles shattered in an instant, and Xiangliu's life came to an end.
When it was over, Mu Qian let out a breath and slowly folded away his Dragon Wings.
The battle was over just like that. Luck had probably played a major part in it.
The Second Soul Skill was called heaven-defying not because of what it could do at present, but because of its terrifying potential for growth.
As he absorbed more and more Spirit Rings, the number of attributes he could control would grow as well.
For now, he could control only two: ice and fire.
Though the Star Forest certainly had natural sources of both, their overall quantity was still a little lacking.
Mu Qian had once thought that ice and water were the same attribute, but Snow Maiden had told him that they possessed entirely different properties. They had some things in common, but they were two separate attributes.
On home ground in the Far North, Mu Qian could have easily defeated even a full-strength Xiangliu with this skill.
If he improved his cultivation in the future, he might even be able to unleash a disaster that swept through the entire food chain.
With a mere gesture, he could control the elements inside his enemies and make their bodies disintegrate naturally.
But once he possessed every attribute, Mu Qian would be the master of this world.
Unfortunately, he had only a shallow understanding of his Second Soul Skill, and he could control only two attributes. The rest were still far beyond his reach.
It was only a hopeful vision of the future. To make it real, he would need to improve his cultivation and find Spirit Beasts with suitable attributes.
"Just like Magneto in my previous life, my Second Soul Skill is made for grand spectacles."
Though he had seen the power of Soul Skills before, Mu Qian still couldn't help sighing in admiration.
"These two Soul Skills of mine are powerful, but they're not easy to reveal in front of other people."
"Looks like I'll have to rely on my physical strength to deal with enemies most of the time."
Mu Qian couldn't help laughing wryly. Having strength he couldn't freely use was a real pain.
But he knew better than to be careless. If the effects of his Soul Skills were exposed, he could easily become the enemy of every Spirit Master on the continent.
Fortunately, Mu Qian was physically powerful too. And if he used only a single attribute with his Second Soul Skill, it wouldn't draw too much attention.
With the battle over, Mu Qian began clearing the battlefield as usual.
Spirit Bones didn't drop easily. After a quick look around and finding nothing unusual, he turned his gaze to the ink-black Spirit Ring that was beginning to form.
Mental Attribute. Once he fused with it, it would become the third attribute he could control.
The other Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Beast, a bird, had also possessed the Mental Attribute. Unfortunately, Mu Qian hadn't killed it, and its attribute duplicated one he already had, so he had no choice but to let it go.
Aside from ice, fire, and the Mental Attribute he was about to gain, whenever Mu Qian thought about the kinds of elements he still lacked, he couldn't help getting a headache.
"A long road lies ahead~"
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