Fourth Soul Skill, Simulated Illusion

"Haven't Wang Hong and Huo Yuhao arrived yet..." At this moment, Tang Shan led the team, his eyes locked firmly on the movements of the century-old Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine.

This was the fifth time today their team had caught up to it. If they lost it again, given the intelligence of this Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine, it would surely realize something was amiss and flee far away, never again giving them such an easy chance to approach.

If that happened, finding this creature again would be far from easy.

"What on earth is Wang Hong doing..." Tang Shan was growing impatient. After all, the agreed-upon time had passed an hour ago, and they should have cleared the path they were traveling on; there shouldn't have been any insurmountable obstacles.

"Don't be anxious. Huo Yuhao and the others must have run into something. Besides, Uncle Wang Hong is very close with Brother Bei Bei; he wouldn't intentionally drag things out."

Tang Ya was quite patient at times like this. Although she was looking forward to obtaining a new soul ring, to her, this wasn't a situation she couldn't wait through; it just required a little bit of patience.

"You're certainly calm, Miss..." Tang Shan sighed helplessly. Since Tang Ya had said so, he didn't press the matter further, simply continuing to exercise his patience.

However, just at that moment, a wave of spiritual power suddenly surged from behind them. Due to the unique nature of her martial soul, Tang Ya was particularly sensitive to this ripple of spiritual energy.

She immediately grabbed Tang Shan's wrist and pinched down hard. In her mind, such an unprovoked wave of spiritual power was definitely an attack from an unknown spiritual-type soul master or soul beast. If they didn't react instantly, they would immediately fall into danger.

"Hiss... Miss, you..." However, what reached Tang Ya's ears wasn't a sound of confusion, but Tang Shan's wincing, puzzled voice.

Tang Ya was stunned, and then she felt a hand suddenly rest on her shoulder.

Appearing beside her was none other than Wang Hong, who spent almost every day by the side of her Big Brother Bei Bei.

An illusion-based spiritual attack... That was Tang Ya's first reaction. After all, she had just said that the two were nowhere to be found, and now, Wang Hong had appeared alongside an inexplicable wave of spiritual power. This was definitely something only an illusion-type soul skill could achieve.

Tang Ya instinctively adopted a defensive posture, but the next moment, Wang Hong, as if he had known something all along, pinched Tang Ya's cheek with an "as I thought" expression. A sharp, though not intense, pain radiated from her face.

Tang Ya was momentarily dazed. Pain—this was the most effective way to judge an illusion-type soul skill. Generally, to ensure the victim remains fully immersed in the illusion, such skills do not produce feelings of pain or sorrow, unless the illusion itself specifically requires those emotions as seasoning.

"Sorry, Sister Tang Ya, I seem to have startled you." Huo Yuhao smiled apologetically. Immediately after, a thousand-year soul ring with four sharp corners appeared behind his head, and the surrounding spiritual waves vanished instantly. Tang Ya naturally sensed this change.

Only now did Tang Ya realize that the source of that spiritual power was the small boy standing before her.

"Good heavens... it really is a thousand-year soul ring..." At this point, Tang Shan also noticed the arrival of Huo Yuhao and Wang Hong. Looking at the thousand-year soul ring behind Huo Yuhao's head, he immediately forgot his intention to scold the two of them.

After all, compared to seeing a super genius with one's own eyes, the frustration of waiting was nothing.

"Long time no see, Brother Tang Shan. Sorry for making you wait so long," Huo Yuhao said with a smile, then pointed to the soul ring behind his head.

"There was a slight accident, but you could say... it was an opportunity. My first soul ring underwent a mutation, allowing me to use spiritual power to do things I couldn't do before."

Huo Yuhao blinked, and the next moment, Tang Ya suddenly found herself standing inside the Crafting Bureau, but after only a few seconds, she was back in the Star Dou Forest.

Although it lasted only an instant, Tang Ya realized that Huo Yuhao had just created a simple illusion.

Even though it was brief, that illusion could be called flawless; even she, with a martial soul highly sensitive to spiritual power, couldn't find a single flaw.

"This soul skill... is truly exquisite!" Tang Ya couldn't help but exclaim, but then she realized something was wrong.

She remembered her father saying that Huo Yuhao did indeed possess a thousand-year first soul ring and a very powerful first soul skill, but that skill had absolutely nothing to do with illusions!

What was going on with this illusion-creating skill of Huo Yuhao's?

"Cough, cough. I will explain the specifics to Sister Tang Ya later, but for now, Sister Tang Ya, you should prepare to harvest your second soul ring."

The next moment, Huo Yuhao performed an action that surprised everyone except Wang Hong: he walked straight out of their cover and headed directly toward the century-old Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine.

Tang Ya, Tang Shan, and the others in the squad widened their eyes. They didn't know why Huo Yuhao would do such a thing; it was truly inconceivable.

But seeing that Wang Hong showed no intention of stopping him, and instead wore an expectant expression, the group could only stay where they were and watch what Huo Yuhao intended to do.

By now, Huo Yuhao had reached the side of the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine. The vine noticed him, and almost instantly, it reacted. One of its branches suddenly opened its tip, flashing a dazzling light directly into Huo Yuhao's eyes.

Based on the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine's control over spiritual power, Huo Yuhao, with only one ring, should have fallen directly into a violent illusion. But he didn't; he simply looked calmly at the silver-gray branch before him, his soul ring already manifested.

Just then, a gray-white light erupted from Huo Yuhao's eyes, shooting directly toward the main body of the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine.

That light held no offensive power; contained within it was the soul power that had belonged to that thousand-year Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine, as well as the... illusions it was capable of creating.

Like a weary traveler, the Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine closed all the "eyelids" on its branches and quietly fell asleep.

Huo Yuhao turned his head and smiled slightly toward Tang Ya.

"Target neutralized, Sister Tang Ya. Come and harvest your soul ring."

At this moment, Tang Ya's gaze shifted back and forth between the smiling Huo Yuhao and the seemingly unconscious Soul-Pulling Ghost Vine, completely unable to comprehend what had just happened.

Huo Yuhao... had made a soul beast that specialized in spiritual power and illusions fall into an illusion?