Absorbing the First Soul Ring, Two Thousand Years, First Soul Skill—Illusion!

Deep in the night, one month later.

Emperor Soul Village, dilapidated wooden hut.

Lin Qing sat cross-legged on the bed, his soul power fluctuating violently around him.

The Heavenly Eye Martial Soul manifested automatically between his brows, its vertical pupil opening to emit a faint silver glow.

The Gold of Life lay beside him, a warm aura of vitality lingering in the air.

"BOOM!"

A wave of soul power rippled outward with Lin Qing at its center.

The windows of the wooden hut rattled and hummed.

Level Ten!

He had broken through!

Lin Qing let out a long breath and slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them.

Finally, Level Ten!

He did not delay.

He reached directly into his Relic Space and withdrew the Two-Thousand-Year Illusion Fox Soul Ring.

The moment the soul ring appeared in the room, a dazzling purple light illuminated the entire hut, and the powerful energy fluctuations caused the very air to distort.

Gulp!

Lin Qing swallowed hard.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous.

Two thousand years was far beyond the theoretical limit for a first soul ring.

A normal soul master's first soul ring was at most three or four hundred years old.

But he had consumed four pieces of thousand-year Whale Rubber, and his physical constitution far exceeded that of his peers.

He should... be able to withstand it, right?

To be safe, Lin Qing moved the Gold of Life closer to his side.

The powerful life aura of this item might just save his life at a critical moment.

Everything was ready.

He extended his soul power, slowly guiding it toward the purple soul ring.

"HUM!"

The soul ring shuddered violently upon being drawn.

Then, it transformed into a stream of light, flew toward Lin Qing, and instantly merged into his body!

"URGH!"

Lin Qing let out a muffled groan.

A surge of berserk energy exploded within him!

His veins bulged, and fine beads of blood seeped out across his skin.

His muscles were tearing! His bones were groaning!

Yet, he gritted his teeth and held on with all his might.

At the same time.

The life aura radiating from the Gold of Life beside him suddenly intensified, and a warm, vital force surged into Lin Qing's body, rapidly repairing the vessels and muscles torn apart by the berserk energy.

Destruction, repair.

Destruction again, repair again.

The cycle continued in this manner.

It lasted for an entire hour.

"BOOM!"

The final bit of energy from the thousand-year soul ring was completely absorbed.

Lin Qing slowly opened his eyes.

The Heavenly Eye between his brows now bore intricate purple patterns.

His Soul Power Level had skyrocketed!

Level Eleven, Level Twelve, Level Thirteen... finally, it stopped at Level Fifteen!

"Success!"

Lin Qing felt the surging power within his body and couldn't help but smile.

Of course, what surprised him most was that the first soul skill granted by this soul ring was identical to the soul skill of the twelve-year-old Lin Qing!

[First Soul Skill--Illusion]

Upon activation, it can cast an illusion on the target while simultaneously altering one's own appearance and soul ring colors!

"Change soul ring colors?"

Lin Qing's eyes lit up.

With a thought, the color of the purple soul ring beneath his feet began to shift.

Yellow, the color of a hundred-year soul ring.

Black, the color of a ten-thousand-year soul ring.

And even... red, the color of a hundred-thousand-year soul ring!

"It really works!"

Lin Qing was so excited he nearly jumped; this ability was incredibly practical.

In the future, he could just flash a black or even red soul ring—tsk tsk, wouldn't that be the perfect way to emulate the virtues of Huo Gua and show off?

"What about changing my own appearance?"

He activated the soul skill, the image of Er Ni appearing in his mind.

The next second, his body contours began to shift—height, build, facial features...

In just a few seconds, another "Er Ni" appeared in the dilapidated wooden shack.

Identical, even the look in her eyes was vivid and lifelike.

"Creak."

The broken wooden door was suddenly pushed open.

The real Er Ni walked in carrying a bowl of hot soup.

Seeing "herself" in the room, she froze in place.

The bowl in her hand clattered to the floor, spilling soup everywhere.

"You... you..."

Er Ni pointed at "herself," her lips trembling, unable to form a complete sentence for a long time.

She thought she had encountered some kind of monster.

Lin Qing finally realized what was happening and quickly deactivated his soul skill, returning to his original form.

"Sister Er Ni, it's me."

He scratched his head in embarrassment.

"I was just testing my soul skill."

Er Ni stood there, stunned for a long while, before slowly coming back to her senses.

She patted her chest and let out a long breath.

"Phew... it's Xiao Qing, thank goodness it wasn't some monster..."

"Xiao Qing, you've already become a Spirit Master?!"

She felt happy for Lin Qing.

But soon, her eyes dimmed again.

She felt a sense of loss.

She couldn't even become a Spirit Master herself, so she couldn't help him with anything.

It was a sense of urgency, a feeling that the gap between her and Lin Qing was growing so large that they might eventually become strangers.

Lin Qing stepped forward and gently took her hand.

"Sister Er Ni, you've already helped me a lot. Without you, I might have starved to death long ago."

He paused, looking earnestly into Er Ni's eyes.

"You can still help me with other things, like learning how to manage a shop. I have some money, and once I get a foothold in Suotuo City, I'll open a store and leave it for you to manage."

Hearing this, Er Ni's eyes regained their luster.

"I'll learn! I'll definitely study hard and manage the shop well for you!"

A smile bloomed on the young girl's face, filled with hope and drive.

As long as she could stay by Xiao Qing's side, she was willing to do anything!

The next morning.

At the entrance of Emperor Soul Village.

Lin Qing carried a simple pack, preparing to leave the small village where he had grown up.

Er Ni stood before him, her eyes red.

"Xiao Qing, you must take good care of yourself."

Lin Qing reached out and gently wiped away her tears.

"What are you crying for? I'm just going to study, not heading to the battlefield."

As he spoke, he pulled a small cloth bag from his bosom, which contained ten Gold Soul Coins.

"Help me give this to Aunt Li. Tell her it's my gratitude for all these years, and that she should use it to improve life for you all."

"There is one more thing."

Lin Qing's expression turned serious.

"Sister Er Ni, remember this: if one day Er Gouzi picks up a piece of metal from the mountain—the kind I showed you—you must hide it well. Never let word of it get out."

In the timeline of twelve-year-old Lin Qing, the family of Er Gouzi had died because of the Gold of Life.

Even if he wasn't certain whether that would happen in this world, he could not allow history to repeat itself.

Although Er Ni didn't understand why, she took his words to heart.

Lin Qing took one last look at her, and at the village where he had grown up.

Then, he turned and stepped onto the dirt road leading out of the village.

Er Ni stood at the village entrance, watching his back until he disappeared into the distance.

Inside the carriage heading toward Suotuo City.

Lin Qing leaned back in the cabin, closing his eyes to rest.

In his mind, however, he was rapidly calculating his upcoming plans.

"First, reach level twenty as soon as possible and obtain my second soul ring."

"Second, find an opportunity to deal with that gang of mountain bandits and eliminate the hidden threat."

"Third, go to Suotuo City and establish a firm foothold."

"Fourth, find a chance to slaughter that old pervert, Viscount Priest."

How to kill Viscount Priest?

A cold arc curled at the corner of Lin Qing's mouth.

He could use his first soul skill, Illusion, to alter his appearance and approach that perverted priest with a different face.

Then, he would wait for the right moment to land a killing blow.

As for Tang Hao and Tang San...

Lin Qing opened his eyes and gazed at the scenery flashing past the window, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

"No need to rush. Debts must be settled slowly, and the path must be walked one step at a time."