The Second Soul Ring Is His!

"Need any help?" Yu Xiaogang called out.

"No!" Tang San's voice came from the battlefield ahead, firm and resolute.

He needed to face this Soul Beast on his own.

Not out of arrogance, but because he needed to understand himself through this fight.

He needed to learn the limits of Blue Silver Grass, how its Soul Skill performed in actual combat, what he could manage against a true eight-hundred-year Soul Beast, and what he still lacked.

Tang San took a deep breath and pushed the Mysterious Heaven Skill to its limit. His twentieth-level Soul Power surged through him like a tide.

He stopped retreating and charged toward the Ancient Vine instead.

After its vines had been thrown into disarray by the first wave of attacks, the Life Ancient Vine was reorganizing its assault.

But Tang San gave it no chance.

With Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track boosting his speed to the limit, he streaked through the barrier of vines like a wisp of green smoke and charged straight at the Ancient Vine's trunk.

Blue Silver Grass vines shot from both of Tang San's hands. One lashed left, the other right, wrapping around the Ancient Vine's trunk and a thick branch beside it.

Tang San pulled hard, launching himself into the air. He flipped once, then landed squarely on the Ancient Vine's trunk.

He was in exactly the same position as last time.

He drew a dagger from Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges, pointed its tip down at the junction between the Ancient Vine's trunk and its roots, and drove it in with all his strength.

The dagger sank more than halfway in. Green sap gushed from the wound, carrying a strong scent of vegetation.

The Ancient Vine shuddered violently. In an instant, all its vines went limp and drooped. The green glow on its trunk began to fade, like a lamp being slowly turned off.

A yellow Soul Ring rose slowly from the Ancient Vine's corpse, hovering in midair.

An eight-hundred-and-twenty-year Yellow Soul Ring.

Tang San jumped down from the Ancient Vine's trunk, bent his knees slightly, and landed steadily.

His chest heaved, and sweat covered his forehead. His clothes clung to his back, soaked with sweat and the Ancient Vine's sap, but he didn't sit down. There was one last thing he needed to do.

He had to decide whether to absorb this Soul Ring.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

The eight-hundred-and-twenty-year Life Ancient Vine had life-force attributes, and belonged to the same lineage as the Vine of Life from his First Soul Ring. That meant continuity and synergy between the two Soul Skills.

With two Soul Rings from the same source, their Soul Skills would connect more smoothly. Their combined power would also further strengthen Blue Silver Grass's life-force attributes.

Tang San reviewed every note in Yu Xiaogang's notebook about the Life Ancient Vine, then weighed them against his own sensations and judgment. At last, he made his decision.

This one.

He sat with his back against the Ancient Vine's trunk, steadied his breathing, released his Soul Power, and guided the Soul Ring toward fusion.

The yellow Soul Ring descended slowly, settled around him, and began to rotate.

This time, the process was anything but peaceful.

The eight-hundred-and-twenty-year Soul Ring hit his body nearly twice as hard as the four-hundred-and-thirty-year one had. Its energy surged into his meridians like a river, making his whole body swell with pressure. Every bone cracked and groaned.

But the tempering from his First Soul Ring had left his meridians far wider than they had been a year ago, and his muscles and bones had grown much stronger too.

He gritted his teeth and withstood the wave of force. Using the Mysterious Heaven Skill, he guided the incoming Soul Power to his dantian, then slowly and methodically released it through every limb and bone.

The process lasted about the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

When the Soul Ring finally stabilized and revolved slowly above his ankles, Tang San opened his eyes and let out a long breath.

Level twenty-one.

The Second Soul Ring had pushed his Soul Power from level twenty to level twenty-one.

Tang San raised his right hand, and Blue Silver Grass appeared in his palm.

It had changed again.

Its stalks were nearly twice as thick as before, and their color had shifted from deep emerald to dark green. The leaves were broader, their surface gleaming with a warm, jade-like sheen.

With a thought, Blue Silver Grass vines sprouted from his palm, his wrist, and even his forearm.

Not just one vine, but three.

All three extended from his right arm, swaying freely in the air. Each could be controlled independently without interfering with the others.

Tang San tried sending the three vines in different directions.

One curled around a branch ten paces away, another wrapped around a stone on the ground, and the third formed a spiral defensive ring in midair.

His eyes lit up.

Multiple control.

The Second Soul Ring hadn't merely improved a single Soul Skill. It had brought a qualitative change.

His Blue Silver Grass had gone from "one vine" to "multiple vines."

For now, there were only three. But as his Soul Power grew and he accumulated more Soul Rings, the number would keep increasing.

Six.

Nine.

Twelve.

By then, his Blue Silver Grass would no longer be a single-target control Martial Soul, but a Martial Soul capable of controlling an entire area.

Sitting beside the Ancient Vine's remains, Tang San watched the three dark-green vines in his palm sway gently in the sunlight. A smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

Huang Fei stood nearby, hands tucked into his sleeves, quietly watching it all.

Tang San's Blue Silver Grass had changed.

Its color had shifted from deep emerald to dark green, and it had grown from one vine to three.

He wondered what he would become by then.

Six vines? Nine? Or twelve at once?

What would the system give him?

Huang Fei smiled to himself.

He glanced at Yu Xiaogang and saw him bent over his notebook, writing rapidly.

Yu Xiaogang's expression was focused, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. He was clearly very pleased with Tang San's performance.

Huang Fei looked back at Tang San.

Tang San had already gotten to his feet and was rolling his wrists, testing how the Second Soul Ring had strengthened his body.

He looked energetic, even a little exhilarated, but clear signs of fatigue showed in his body.

Absorbing an eight-hundred-and-twenty-year Soul Ring was a heavy burden, even for someone as strong as he was.

"That's enough. We're done here."

Yu Xiaogang closed his notebook and walked over. "You've only just absorbed your Second Soul Ring. Your Soul Power is still unstable. Once we get back, rest for a few days. Don't rush into training. Give the Soul Ring time to fully fuse with your body."

Tang San nodded and withdrew his Blue Silver Grass.

Huang Fei pulled a hand from his sleeve and patted Tang San on the shoulder.

"Congratulations. You've got your Second Soul Ring."

Tang San smiled. "Thanks."

Three dark-green vines, level-twenty-one Soul Power, and the qualitative change brought by his Second Soul Ring.

Tang San understood better than anyone what it all meant.

It meant his Blue Silver Grass was steadily growing in the direction he'd envisioned.

Yu Xiaogang led the way at the front. Tang San followed behind him, with Huang Fei bringing up the rear.