Flender snickered and adjusted his glasses.
"Today, I'll give you a free lesson: acquaintances pay full price, strangers get half off. Want it?"
"Yes!"
Lin Feng shot him an annoyed look, hurried over to the bag of coins, pulled it open, summoned the Blessing Gold Pouch, and began crazily absorbing the coins.
Hmph, what a joke. I borrowed this money fair and square, so why should I pay it back?
He suddenly remembered something, looked up at Flender, and put on a mysterious air.
"Oh, right, Dean. I don't have the money for now, but I know a secret worth over a hundred million Gold Soul Coins. Do you want to hear it?"
"Since we're practically family, I'll give you a bargain price. Let's call it ninety-nine million, nine hundred and ninety thousand Gold Soul Coins."
Flender gave him a contemptuous glance and did not take it seriously.
"You learned quickly enough, but you're still far from mastering that trick."
Lin Feng shrugged indifferently.
"Fine. It's not that big a deal, really. It can increase the age limit for absorbing soul rings."
He paused, then casually added,
"Oh, and I've tested it myself. It's real."
The teasing expression on Flender's face instantly froze. He whirled around with a swish, his gaze unprecedentedly serious as he stared at Lin Feng.
"Don't joke about something like this, brat! Tell me, what is it?"
The corner of Lin Feng's mouth curled up slightly as he adopted a solemn expression.
"Sure. Starting now, you owe me ninety million gold coins."
Before Flender could glare at him, he continued directly.
"Whale Rubber. Those nobles only treat it as an aphrodisiac, but they have no idea what it is really for. It can greatly improve physical fitness."
"I've already tried it. The effects are extremely obvious."
Flender's pupils suddenly contracted, and his entire body shook.
Improving physical fitness meant increasing the limit for soul ring absorption!
If this secret got out, the entire Soul Master world would go completely mad. A river of blood would be the least of it.
His brows drew together, and he lowered his voice.
"Where did you get this information?"
Lin Feng gently shook his head, his tone resolute.
"Dean, don't ask where it came from. I can guarantee that I'm the only one who knows right now."
"Oh, and you should know how serious it would be if this secret leaked. You don't have the ability to keep it safe either. Just you and I knowing it is enough."
Flender's heart pounded wildly, but he still asked again to make sure.
"Really, you're the only one who knows?"
"You still don't trust what I say? I'm one hundred percent sure!"
Lin Feng recalled the outrageously high prices in Suotuo City and secretly gritted his teeth.
"Oh, right. Whale Rubber should be much cheaper in large coastal cities, and the quality should be much better too."
Flender took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the overwhelming shock in his heart.
This secret was too huge, too dangerous. He needed some time to process it.
Golden light flowed through the Blessing Gold Pouch. In just a moment, it swallowed all twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins.
Watching the once-bulging money bag instantly become empty, Lin Feng could not help pursing his lips in pain. Then he focused and sank his consciousness into his sea of consciousness.
Looking at the Crimson Halo that had lain dormant for so long, Lin Feng's heart surged with excitement. With a thought, he directly chose to unlock it.
"Ding!"
A familiar, crisp notification sounded, and Lin Feng nearly laughed out loud.
"Yes, this is the feeling. The genuine article!"
The twenty thousand gold coins he had saved for an entire month were completely emptied out, turning into golden motes of light that wrapped around the Crimson Halo. The flowing radiance was dazzling and magnificent.
He clicked his tongue in admiration.
Not bad. Spending money really was different! It even came with special effects. Damn, it looked good.
As Red Buff was completely unsealed, information about the soul skill flooded into his mind.
Red Sentinel Power! Basic attacks that hit an enemy reduce movement speed by 15%, stacking up to 2 times and lasting 1 second. Basic attacks inflict True Burn damage, ignoring armor and magic resistance. Duration: 2 minutes
Lin Feng looked at Flender, who was still stunned as he processed the secret of Whale Rubber, and helplessly shook his head.
"When people get old, their ability to accept things gets worse. Take your time thinking about it, old man. I'm going to find Uncle Zhao and test my new soul skill."
"Remember to buy me two high-quality ten-thousand-year Whale Rubbers."
With that, he excitedly strode toward the door.
Flender instantly came back to his senses. How could he possibly stay seated? He quickly lifted his foot and chased after him.
"Wait for me! I want to see what soul skill those twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins bought."
On Shrek's spacious little training ground.
Lin Feng's Soul Power surged, and a yellow soul ring abruptly rose.
"Red Sentinel Power!"
A brilliant Crimson Halo steadily encircled Dai Mubai.
Runes flowed across the halo, mysterious and domineering, leaving Dai Mubai staring at it in amazement.
This was the first time Dai Mubai had seen Lin Feng's martial soul ability since Lin Feng had enrolled.
Zhao Wuji crossed his arms, his expression solemn as he did not dare let down his guard in the slightest.
Although Dai Mubai was only a Soul Grandmaster, Zhao Wuji had witnessed the terror of Lin Feng's Blue Buff. Now that he faced this crimson power capable of ignoring all defenses, even as a Soul Saint, he did not dare underestimate it at all.
"Teacher Zhao, be careful."
Dai Mubai shouted lowly. His martial soul instantly possessed him, White Tiger claws appearing as his body flashed forward. He charged before Zhao Wuji and drove his fist, carrying a fierce gust of wind, hard into Zhao Wuji's broad chest.
At almost the exact instant of impact, pale red flames of True Burn suddenly erupted, instantly enveloping Zhao Wuji's entire body.
"Pain?"
Zhao Wuji felt a distinct burning sting. His pupils shrank as he looked at the flames covering his body in disbelief.
He was a level seventy-six Soul Saint! His body was incomparably strong, yet he had actually been injured by a Soul Grandmaster?
Even more terrifying, he felt his body suddenly grow heavy, his movement speed forcibly reduced by nearly thirty percent.
In a life-or-death battle, every second was crucial to determining victory or defeat. It was no exaggeration to say that this eerie Red Sentinel Power could directly reduce the odds of victory for a Soul Saint like him by twenty percent in battle.
Dai Mubai was stunned as well. He lowered his head to look at his fist, his face full of astonishment.
"Flames? What a strange ability!"
For the first time, his gaze toward Lin Feng carried intense curiosity. Just how many trump cards did this fellow, who usually appeared and disappeared like a dragon, have hidden away?
"The flames last two seconds."
Flender stared intently from the side, silently counting the time as he adjusted his glasses.
"So this is the soul skill bought with twenty thousand gold coins. Worth it! Absolutely worth it! It's a divine skill!"
After receiving Lin Feng's blessing of Red Sentinel Power, even an ordinary person could cause Zhao Wuji enormous trouble.
He did not dare imagine how terrifying it would be if an entire legion were blessed with both Blue Sentinel Power and Red Sentinel Power.
One person could determine the outcome of a war or even an empire!
Zhao Wuji's expression turned grave as he said in a deep voice,
"Mubai, keep attacking. Don't stop!"
Dai Mubai immediately understood. His fists and kicks rained down continuously upon Zhao Wuji like a storm.
Zhao Wuji tried to circulate his Soul Power to disperse the flames around him, but after trying several methods, the red flames clung to him like maggots on bone and did not budge at all.
As long as Dai Mubai's attacks did not stop, the flames refreshed every two seconds, and even Soul Power could not disperse them.
After the round of testing ended, Lin Feng looked at Zhao Wuji, whose face was full of frustration after being Tormented by Red Buff, and smiled as he consoled him.
"Uncle Zhao, look at it from another angle. What if you brought Red Sentinel Power to fight someone else?"
"The burn damage of Red Sentinel Power increases with cultivation level. If you used it, even opponents two or three levels above you would not get any advantage."
He had personally experienced how disgusting Red Buff was. One hit reduced speed by thirty percent, and it came with defense-ignoring True Burn. If it fell into the hands of a ranged Soul Master, the opponent would have no chance at all.
Come to think of it, this world did not seem to have many archer-type martial souls.
After reconsidering it, Zhao Wuji immediately beamed and rubbed his hands together with a chuckle.
"That makes sense. When the time comes..."
Before you continue