"Mm..."
Oscar had barely uttered a syllable when a wave of extreme cold nearly knocked him unconscious.
He watched the giant meat worm charge toward him. The next moment, his ability to think was almost completely frozen!
He watched as the ten golden rings around Sky Dream Ice Silkworm seemed to come alive and ripple. Its round head rapidly grew larger before his eyes, until it finally stopped right in front of him.
The ten golden rings quickly enveloped his body, while Sky Dream Ice Silkworm itself dissolved into waves of white light that poured into him.
"Hmm?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's puzzled voice rang out, followed by a note of delight.
"Eh? What's this?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm spoke again, clearly having noticed the Spirit Bone on Oscar!
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wasn't familiar with the aura of this Spirit Bone, but it couldn't miss the trace of a powerful being that lingered on it.
"Forget it, forget it. I'll fix up this Spirit Bone before sealing myself away. Being a Wisdom Spirit Ring really isn't easy!"
Much of its Soul Power had been drained, but some still remained. It poured that remaining power into the Spirit Bone, which came from an unknown Soul Beast. At the same time, Oscar felt a gentle, warm current flowing from the bone.
Meanwhile, as Sky Dream Ice Silkworm poured itself into Oscar, an invisible wave of spiritual energy spread outward from its body. Its terrifying spiritual power covered every corner within a hundred-li radius almost instantly.
As the spiritual wave swept over everything around them, the area fell into a brief silence.
The mental shockwave didn't have much destructive power, but it could rob all living beings of their ability to think for a short time.
At that moment, much of the southern Star Dou Great Forest was eerily quiet.
Just then, the sky, which had been perfectly clear a moment before, suddenly darkened. A thunderous boom rang out high above, and for an instant, darkness completely obscured the sun.
An immense pressure descended from the sky, so oppressive it was hard to breathe!
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, still struggling to merge with Oscar, shuddered violently when the thunderous boom sounded. Its two little golden eyes rolled upward to look at the sky.
A look of shock filled its eyes, along with a hint of bewilderment!
The oppressive force in the sky clearly had nothing to do with it. It was beyond anything it could understand.
Oscar craned his neck to look up as well, staring blankly.
Did fortune and disaster go hand in hand? Or was he getting lucky twice in a row?
A stream of gray energy plunged from the sky as if drawn by an immense force. In an instant, it landed at the back of Oscar's head and began to burrow inside!
"Chaos Gold Lock!"
Oscar activated Chaos Gold Lock, twisting and flipping as he rolled quickly to one side.
"What dares to steal my person from me?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm roared, and its immense spiritual power surged forth in an attempt to drive away the gray stream!
But Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's power had no effect on the indistinct figure!
A hazy figure appeared where Oscar had been standing. An aged voice rang out, carrying an indescribable authority.
"Hmm? What an interesting little fellow and little bug."
He looked directly at the two of them. Just now, for a brief moment, he'd sensed that he had somehow become disconnected from his surroundings.
Oscar crouched on the ground, panting faintly, then slowly straightened up.
Good grief. Using Chaos Gold Lock on that figure just once had nearly left him completely drained. What in the world was this guy?
"With the sun and moon in my grasp and the stars at my fingertips, none in this world can compare to me. I never imagined I'd still have a wisp of my soul left behind."
The hazy, ethereal figure seemed unaffected by anything the two of them did. With a quick whoosh, he darted into the back of Oscar's head and vanished.
Oscar and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm looked at each other, both bewildered and stunned.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm didn't dare unleash another spiritual attack. Oscar's body was in good shape, but after using that ability, he was completely drained and bleeding from every orifice.
With no other choice, it could only let the figure do as he pleased.
But, to their surprise, the figure emerged from Oscar's body again.
"Little fellow, your Sea of Consciousness..."
The figure trailed off. He had seen countless strange Seas of Consciousness, but never one like Oscar's.
Oscar and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm were both taken aback. Sea of Consciousness?
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm thought it over. It was true that Oscar had no Sea of Consciousness. If he had anything that could be called one, it could only be that strange place.
Oscar was confused too. He knew about spiritual power and had heard of the Sea of Consciousness, but a sorcerer's Inner Scene was vastly different from one.
Could that... be his Sea of Consciousness?
"Never mind... Little fellow, when you get the chance, find something that can replenish your life force. I'll build you a second Sea of Consciousness. You'll need to use your current one sparingly from now on."
With that, the hazy figure slipped into Oscar's Inner Scene and became a gray bead no bigger than a soybean. Then he fell silent.
After Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and the hazy figure appeared in his Inner Scene, the whole place started acting strangely.
Oscar still had control over the Inner Scene, but countless orbs of light appeared where the two of them were. Some even showed signs of turning into huge fireballs.
It was like having countless land mines buried in his home. One day, they might explode with a bang, and all three of them would be done for.
"I can't believe my luck. I finally found a human with the Mental Attribute, and now some bastard's fighting me over him. Is this what it means to be cursed for being too talented? I'm so miserable!"
Though Sky Dream Ice Silkworm complained, it didn't slow down for a moment.
The thick white light grew denser and denser, gradually pouring into Oscar's body. Meanwhile, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's own body turned increasingly transparent, and it rapidly shrank in size.
The moment it began pouring its power into Oscar, there was no turning back.
Oscar's body had turned completely white, like jade, just like Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had been earlier. Even the internal injuries he'd suffered from using Feng Hou Qi Gate were gradually healing.
"Stop complaining. Talk to that guy when he wakes up. Try not to let your thoughts run wild. See those orbs of light? If even one turns into a fireball and goes boom, all three of us are finished."
"Hahaha, I know, I know. Anyway, I... little brother is finally free! You bastards who treated me like food—you'll never get the chance now! Hahahaha... Ugh..."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's triumphant voice gradually faded. The immense spiritual power that had covered a hundred-li radius also rapidly contracted and slowly disappeared.
Deep in the Star Dou Great Forest, several terrifying auras stirred violently at once, as if sensing something. But they were destined to come up empty-handed.
Oscar naturally sensed all this too, and understood that the danger the Peerless Dragon and Snake couple had encountered earlier had been connected to this giant meat worm.
Now that he had gained something from the giant meat worm, he'd have to deal with the trouble it had caused himself.
He shook his head. Whatever was meant to be his would come to him eventually, for better or worse. He'd just let things take their course.
Oscar raised his hand. A sausage appeared in it, pure white from end to end and streaked with fine golden lines, like gold inlaid in jade. A purple and a white Spirit Ring appeared around it, circling endlessly.
"Come to think of it, what's a Soul Skill?"