Martial Soul Mutation! Fishing the Void!

The rare peace and warmth were torn to shreds by a notification that suddenly exploded in his mind.

Li Hao shuddered, the blissful, slack-jawed expression on his face instantly freezing.

Martial Soul Fishing Rod... has undergone an unknown mutation?

He almost instinctively reached out his right hand.

Wait.

He glanced at Xiao Wu, who was sleeping soundly in his arms with a rosy face, and his movements became cautious.

He gently moved Xiao Wu's head from his lap, letting her rest on a soft grass cushion. Only then did he stand up and walk to an open space a short distance away from them.

Cailin had been standing in the shadows, her golden vertical pupils calmly watching his every move.

Li Hao took a deep breath, suppressing the agitation in his heart.

He slowly extended his right hand and gave a low shout.

"Fishing Rod!"

A soft glow emerged in his palm, and a pitch-black fishing rod condensed into shape.

But this time, it was completely different.

The originally unremarkable Tattered Fishing Rod, which looked like it would snap at a touch, was now covered in countless mysterious and intricate golden patterns flowing along its shaft.

Those patterns were as fine as hair, slowly circulating under the night sky as if they contained some profound truth of heaven and earth.

Even more bizarre was the fishing line.

It was no longer an ordinary thread; it had become ethereal, as if woven from pure light, with one end connected to the rod and the other disappearing into the void, its end nowhere to be seen.

Li Hao stared blankly at the Martial Soul in his hand.

Is... is this still my trash Martial Soul with level one soul power that got me expelled from Nuoding Academy?

With these golden, flashy special effects and this vague sense of prestige, it doesn't look like an ordinary item at all!

Could it be... that my golden finger has finally decided to give its host some benefits?

Just as he was mentally ranting, the system notification sounded again.

[Martial Soul 'Karma Rod' has initially awakened.]

[Current ability: Fishing for Luck (Low Tier)]

Karma Rod?

Fishing for Luck?

Li Hao was completely bewildered.

What is all this? It sounds high-end, but I don't understand a single word!

System, speak human! he roared in his heart.

[The host can, within the Paradise Space, perform a 'fishing' action to randomly fish for a sliver of 'luck' from people, events, or objects that have established a 'causal connection' with the host.]

[Note: 'Luck' manifests in various forms, potentially as insights into cultivation techniques, a sliver of soul power, certain materials, fragments of memory, and so on.]

[Note: This ability is currently low-tier; the success rate and the value of the fished item are both random.]

The system's explanation made Li Hao's brain buzz.

Fish... fish for other people's luck?

He instantly grasped the key point.

People who have established a "causal connection" with him...

Doesn't that mean...

The first person he thought of was Tang San, that guy with the protagonist face he had just met today!

At the gate of Nuoding Academy, Xiao Wu mocked his Blue Silver Grass, and the admissions teacher was respectful to him—that definitely counts as a "causal connection"!

If he fished targeting Tang San, what could he catch?

Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record? Purple Demon Eye? Or perhaps the Twenty-Four Bridge Moonlit Night on his person?

An incredibly bold and thrilling idea made Li Hao's heart start pounding uncontrollably.

Do it!

Clutching this reborn fishing rod, he didn't say another word, turned around, and ran to the side of the clear stream.

"Daddy, are you going fishing?"

I don't know when, but Xiao Wu had woken up, rubbing her sleepy eyes and looking at him curiously.

Li Hao gave a vague "hmm" and focused all his attention on the Karma Rod in his hand.

Mimicking his past actions, he swung the fishing line made of light with force into the stream in front of him.

The line entered the water without a sound.

It was as if it hadn't been cast into the stream, but had pierced through some spatial barrier, dangling into another unknown dimension.

Li Hao held his breath, waiting nervously.

One second.

Two seconds.

Ten seconds.

There was no movement at all.

Did I overthink it? Or is my "causality" with Tang San not deep enough yet?

Just as he felt a wave of disappointment and prepared to reel in his line, a sudden, extremely faint tug came from his hand!

It bit!

Li Hao's spirits soared, and he jerked the fishing rod backward with all his might!

Splash!

Water sprayed everywhere.

Something was forcibly dragged out of the water by him.

It wasn't a fish.

It was a fist-sized orb of light, radiating a hazy white glow.

The orb traced an arc through the air and flew straight toward the center of Li Hao's forehead.

Li Hao instinctively tried to dodge, but the orb was too fast; he had no time to react.

Hum.

The orb sank into his body, instantly transforming into a cool stream of information that merged into his limbs and bones.

At the same time, the system's notification sound rang out for the third time.

[Successfully fished a sliver of 'Tang San's' fortuitous destiny.]

[Obtained: Mysterious Heaven Skill cultivation insights (trace amount).]

Almost the instant the notification faded, a set of execution methods and tips regarding a peculiar internal energy technique appeared out of thin air in Li Hao's mind.

Though that insight was insignificant, it was incredibly profound, as if an expert who had practiced this technique for many years had forcibly instilled a portion of their own experience into him.

Li Hao froze in place.

Mysterious Heaven Skill...

It really was the Mysterious Heaven Skill!

He had actually... really fished over something that belonged to Tang San!

Even if it was just a tiny bit of cultivation insight, it already proved how heaven-defying this fishing rod was!

Meanwhile.

In the woodshed of the blacksmith shop in Holy Soul Village, Tang San, who was sitting cross-legged and struggling to break through a bottleneck, suddenly shuddered without warning.

He snapped his eyes open.

An inexplicable sense of palpitation welled up in his heart for no reason.

It felt as if... he had lost something very important.

Yet, he carefully checked himself; his soul power was full, his spirit was vigorous, and the Twenty-Four Bridge Moonlit Night hidden in his belt was safe and sound.

Nothing was missing.

"An illusion?"

Tang San frowned, muttering to himself.

He shook his head, suppressed this strange feeling, closed his eyes again, and sank back into his cultivation.

But he did not notice that his understanding of the Mysterious Heaven Skill had inexplicably developed a trace of imperceptible obscurity and stagnation.

In the Soul Beast Paradise.

After half a minute of stunned silence, a massive, indescribable ecstasy swept through Li Hao's entire body like a volcanic eruption!

He looked at the fishing rod in his hand, which flowed with golden patterns, trembling with excitement.

Trash Martial Soul?

The hell kind of trash Martial Soul is this?

This is practically a god-tier cheat! It's a causality-law weapon capable of crossing planes to forcibly snatch away fortuitous destiny!

With this, what the hell do I have to fear from Martial Soul Hall!

As long as I have enough time, I could fish the entire Douluo Continent dry!

Li Hao's breathing became incredibly ragged, and a more insane notion bubbled up, impossible to suppress.

Tang San's opportunities could be fished.

What about an enemy's?

For instance, Martial Soul Hall, with whom he had just forged a blood feud!

The jade pendant crushed by the Purple Poison Sect leader before his death had definitely established a "causal connection" with Martial Soul Hall!

If he were to cast toward Martial Soul Hall...

What could he fish out?

A Title Douluo's soul skill? A spirit bone? Or perhaps Bibi Dong's private stash?

Once this thought took root, it could no longer be contained.

Blinded by immense greed and excitement, Li Hao didn't even think twice before raising the Karma Rod in his hand once again.

This time, his intent locked firmly onto that massive organization, overflowing with malice, which had just been spying on this place.

"Martial Soul Hall!"

He let out a low growl and, using every ounce of his strength, whipped that line of light fiercely into the void!

However, the moment the fishing line vanished.

The rod in his hands began to vibrate violently, nearly tearing itself from his grip!

A terrifying aura, a hundred times more horrific than when the Purple Poison Sect leader descended—filled with evil, coldness, chaos, and slaughter—surged back along that invisible line, rushing toward him with an unstoppable momentum!