Fireball Technique, Heavenly Thunder Bamboo Leaves, and Azure Origin Sword Ray

"No! I refuse to accept this!

Why was I nothing but mediocre trash?

Why did I never encounter a single opportunity in my entire life?

Why could I only live an ordinary life, with even breaking through to Soul Elder being nothing but a dream?

And you—at such a young age, you actually relied on a lucky opportunity to kill a Soul Grandmaster like me with the strength of a Soul Master!

It would be one thing if a noble had such strength, but you, a mere Work-Study Student—why?!

I refuse to accept this!

I refuse to accept this!

Heavens! I hate you!"

Mo Hen had never imagined that he, a dignified level-twenty-five Soul Grandmaster, would die like this at the hands of a seven-year-old child who had only just obtained his first Soul Ring.

What exactly had that fortuitous encounter been?

How had it made Li Han this powerful?

Countless questions filled his heart, but he would never know the answers.

Amid his furious roars, he exhausted the last of his life force and collapsed helplessly.

Only after seeing that Mo Hen no longer had the slightest trace of breath did Li Han finally let out a sigh of relief.

Hearing those unwilling roars, he could not help feeling somewhat moved as well.

In this world, one's birth and talent determined everything.

For ordinary people to rise up was indeed as difficult as reaching the heavens.

Mo Hen's resentful roars were also the thoughts of countless commoner Soul Masters.

But none of that was a reason for him to harm others.

"Our bond as master and disciple ends here, Teacher Mo Hen."

Li Han murmured softly as the exhaustion from battle washed over him.

He dropped onto the ground and panted heavily.

Though the battle had seemed brief, it had nearly drained all his Soul Power.

He had used his first soul skill four times in a row, one of them being an oversized version. The expenditure of Soul Power was obvious.

Moreover, this had been his first battle of life and death. His mind had been under extreme tension, so he had consumed far more than it appeared.

After all, he had been facing an opponent far stronger than himself.

"Fortunately, this eight-hundred-year Soul Ring was powerful enough. Otherwise, this really would have been dangerous."

Li Han secretly rejoiced.

If his first soul skill had not been so strong, he could only have chosen to flee first and then look for another chance to kill Mo Hen.

But that would have created far too much unnecessary trouble.

"Ding! Congratulations, Host, for completing the check-in: traditional craft—killing one's master. Reward: Fireball Technique."

The system sounded once more, and joy flooded Li Han's exhausted face like rain after a long drought.

"Finally, I got an actual spell."

The Fireball Technique used Soul Power to ignite a flame in one's palm. The power of the flames varied according to the amount of Soul Power invested.

It was an essential spell for home, travel, murder, robbery, and destroying evidence.

After recovering some Soul Power, Li Han walked over to Mo Hen and began searching the body.

As a commoner teacher, Mo Hen naturally did not have anything particularly valuable on him, though the money pouch he carried still contained some funds.

"Two hundred Gold Soul Coins? I couldn't tell, but Teacher Mo Hen was pretty rich."

Li Han's eyes lit up at the sight of the Gold Soul Coins, and he immediately stored them in his Storage Bag.

Aside from the Gold Soul Coins, only a token remained in the pouch.

It was proof of entry and exit for the Soul Hunting Forest. Li Han took it, since he would need it when leaving in a couple of days.

Then he activated his Soul Power, and a fireball immediately appeared in his palm.

"The Fireball Technique isn't too difficult. Let's test its power."

Li Han muttered, then swung his right hand. With a whoosh, the fireball in his palm slammed into Mo Hen's body.

With a boom, Mo Hen's corpse burst into roaring flames.

In only a few moments, the body had completely turned to ash.

"Tsk, it really is perfect for destroying evidence."

Li Han remarked.

Then Li Han turned his gaze toward the eight-hundred-year Lone Bamboo that he had severed.

"Although it no longer has its Soul Ring, it was still an eight-hundred-year Lone Bamboo. The material is quite good.

I'll take it back and see whether I can sell it for some money."

After storing the Lone Bamboo in his Storage Bag, Li Han did not linger. He left the scene and searched for a place to rest.

He did not plan to leave the Soul Hunting Forest immediately, because he still needed to find medicinal herbs.

If he missed this opportunity, who knew when the next one would come.

Night fell.

Li Han hid in a tree, chewing on food he had prepared in advance and stored in his Storage Bag.

Two hours had passed since the battle. His Soul Power and physical strength had mostly recovered.

"It's inconvenient to move around at night. I'll rest first and search for medicinal herbs tomorrow morning.

With this token, I can stay in the Soul Hunting Forest for three days. That means I still have two days.

Once I get the herbs, I'll return directly to Nuoding Academy and report to the headmaster that Mo Hen was eaten by a soul beast.

That way, there shouldn't be any problems.

After all, plenty of people die every year while hunting soul beasts.

Mo Hen's relationships at the academy were simple. He had no family and no friends, so no one should stand up for him.

For now, Nuoding Academy is still safe for me.

Besides, Tang San and Xiao Wu will be arriving soon. The system might recognize them as someone else and give me rewards.

I can't miss that."

After analyzing the situation, Li Han made his decision.

After dinner, he sat cross-legged in the tree and summoned the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo.

After absorbing the hundred-year Soul Ring, the newly grown bamboo leaves on the Heavenly Thunder Bamboo had become quite special.

"Heavenly Thunder Bamboo Leaves contain the power of Divine Lightning.

Once it evolves to the Golden Thunder Bamboo level, these leaves can be used to make Golden Gang Demon-Extinguishing Thunder, whose power is even more outrageous than Evil-Warding Divine Thunder.

However, refining it is extremely troublesome. Not to mention my current self—even if I reached the pinnacle of this world, I might not be able to do it.

Aside from that use, these Heavenly Thunder Bamboo Leaves can also be fed to spirit beasts, causing them to mutate."

Thinking this, Li Han plucked the bamboo leaves from it.

"They're small and exquisite, quite distinctive. Although I can't refine Golden Gang Demon-Extinguishing Thunder, I can try other approaches later.

It would be good if I could refine a one-use Dharma Artifact similar to a Heavenly Thunder Bead.

And according to the information transmitted by my Martial Soul, if these leaves are plucked, they can grow back within a day. It only costs some Soul Power.

That makes them renewable, just like Oscar's sausages.

In that case, I should collect a batch first. They might be useful in the future.

Perhaps the system will reward me with a secret technique for controlling spirit pets later. Then I can raise some spirit pets too. After all, this world has plenty of soul beasts."

Thinking this, Li Han placed the plucked Heavenly Thunder Bamboo Leaves into his Storage Bag.

After finishing this, Li Han began cultivating the Azure Essence Sword Art.

Aside from cultivating Soul Power, the Azure Essence Sword Art also came with several divine abilities and spells.

With Li Han's current second-layer cultivation, he could cultivate the Azure Origin Sword Ray.

The Azure Origin Sword Ray instantly condensed a green sword ray in one's palm and slashed it out. Its power was quite remarkable.

For Li Han, who lacked powerful offensive techniques, it was undoubtedly a highly practical spell.

At once, he activated the Azure Essence Sword Art and gathered Soul Power in his palm.

The next moment, he swung his right hand, and a one-meter-long green sword ray immediately slashed out from his palm, striking a branch some distance away.

The bowl-thick branch snapped in response and fell to the ground.

Its cut was extremely smooth, as though it had been severed by a sharp blade.

"So this is the Azure Origin Sword Ray? Its power isn't bad.

If I had known this move earlier, I might have been able to kill Mo Hen instantly."

Li Han's face brightened, and he was extremely satisfied with the power of this move.

After checking the Soul Power it had consumed, his smile faded slightly.

"It actually consumed one-fifth of my Soul Power. In other words, I can only use it five times at most right now..."

Powerful attacks came at the cost of great consumption. Li Han naturally understood that principle.

Judging by the Azure Origin Sword Ray's power, the expenditure was acceptable.

"It seems that aside from finding the materials to refine Yellow Dragon Pills and Golden Marrow Pills, I also need to refine some Energy Recovery Pills. In battle, pills that can restore Soul Power could be the key to turning things around.

Right, I can also refine some Essence Nourishing Pills to heal injuries.

Once I refine all these pills, then unless they have a top-tier support Martial Soul like the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, ordinary support-type Soul Masters and food-type Soul Masters will be completely dispensable to me."