"Indifference"

The Silent Form Mouse currently before Jiang Ci'an was the largest Silent Form Mouse King he had encountered after searching through eight different packs over the past month.

Its cultivation was nearing five hundred years, which was effectively the limit of what Jiang Ci'an could absorb at his current level.

"This soul beast's ability is very suitable for me," Jiang Ci'an stated earnestly.

Xiao Shan did not know how to respond for a moment.

The choice of a soul ring would accompany a soul master for their entire life, so every soul master hoped that every ring they absorbed would be as perfect as possible.

He desperately wanted to advise his junior against it; after all, in his decades of experience, almost no one ever used a Silent Form Mouse as a soul ring.

However...

When he thought of his junior's martial soul, named "World," and the boy's characteristically calm demeanor, he swallowed the words that had reached his lips.

This child was not the type to joke with his own future.

Xiao Shan remained silent for a moment before finally nodding.

"Very well, I will guard you."

Jiang Ci'an understood and raised his hand, ending the mouse's life peacefully.

A clear yellow soul ring emerged from the mouse's corpse. Without hesitation, Jiang Ci'an sat cross-legged and began the absorption process.

The soul ring was drawn toward him, circling his body as the clear yellow light gradually seeped into his frame. A faint ripple of soul power permeated the surroundings, steady and calm.

The others began to spread out to provide protection, with two Soul Kings taking positions to the left and right to keep watch.

Xiao Shan stood guard at the closest point, his gaze restrained, ready to deal with any sudden emergencies at a moment's notice.

Xiao Xiao sat not far away, hugging her knees, her emerald eyes fixed unblinkingly on Jiang Ci'an, her small face full of seriousness.

Time slipped away, drop by drop.

One hour.

Two hours.

The entire process was unexpectedly smooth; Jiang Ci'an did not show the slightest sign of discomfort and appeared quite relaxed.

At a certain moment, the aura around Jiang Ci'an faltered slightly, then settled into an even more composed state.

He opened his eyes.

A golden light flashed through his pupils before vanishing. He looked no different than before, yet his faint, lingering sense of presence seemed to have dimmed.

It was as if a conspicuous piece of jade had been wrapped in a stone casing and tossed into a pile of rocks, becoming unremarkable.

But after only a moment, this feeling naturally dissipated, and everything returned to normal, as if it had only been an illusion.

Jiang Ci'an slowly lowered his gaze to look at the clear yellow soul ring quietly circling his body.

His golden pupils shimmered with light.

Elder Xiao had long since hurried over, his expression tinged with nervousness.

"How is it? What is the soul skill? Did any problems arise?"

Jiang Ci'an snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the anxious Elder Xiao, saying gently:

"Don't worry, Elder Xiao, I'm fine. There were no issues."

"That's good..."

Xiao Shan let out a soft sigh of relief, his tense shoulders visibly relaxing, but he couldn't help but press further.

"Well? What soul skill did you obtain?"

Jiang Ci'an smiled and said softly:

"Indifference."

One day later.

On the carriage returning to Shrek City.

The wheels ground against the main road, emitting a rhythmic rumbling. The light inside the carriage was soft, and the scenery outside the window shifted from dense forests to fields, and from fields to the gradually thickening outlines of buildings.

Shrek City was not far off.

Jiang Ci'an leaned against the carriage wall, looking down at the clear yellow soul ring slowly rotating before him, his gaze filled with contemplation.

His first soul skill was named "Indifference."

Its ability was not complex to describe; in short, it was...

To erase his own sense of presence.

In this state, everyone else would turn a blind eye to him.

This was not invisibility; invisibility was a disappearance from sight, whereas "Indifference" was a disappearance from existence.

After using "Indifference," even if his figure were standing right there, right in front of others...

Yet, other people's brains would automatically ignore his existence, treating him like an unremarkable stone in the background or a leaf of no consequence.

Even if he reached out to touch someone or did something even more excessive, that person would not have any reaction.

As for the other effects... he could answer that in two words.

Anything goes.

Of course, this soul skill was not invincible.

For those whose soul power level far exceeded his own, such as the Spirit Douluo-level Elder Xiao, it was basically of no great use; the other party could still clearly perceive his existence.

And for experts at the Spirit King level, the effect would be greatly diminished.

Although the other party would indeed easily overlook him, it would not reach the point of turning a blind eye, and they would still be able to detect him.

But if he were to use it on Xiao Xiao, who was of a similar level to him...

Then there would be no flaws at all.

Jiang Ci'an withdrew his gaze, unable to stop himself from grumbling inwardly.

Should he say it was worthy of being "World Modulation Mode"? It was truly improper; the ability just sitting there invited one to commit crimes...

As Jiang Ci'an thought this, his golden pupils shimmered slightly, though he unconsciously cast his gaze to his side.

At this moment, Xiao Xiao was sitting beside him, eyes closed, meditating.

The petite girl sat upright, her breathing long and steady, her dark green hair draped over her shoulders, and her light cyan short shirt rising and falling gently with her breath.

Under "X-ray Vision," everything about Xiao Xiao was laid bare.

Of course, this referred to the flow of soul power within Xiao Xiao's body.

After absorbing his first soul ring, the "X-ray Vision" that was originally limited to himself had been enhanced, and it could now cover a range of two meters around him.

Within this distance, he could perceive the flow direction, strength changes, and the trajectory of soul power within others.

For instance, right now, he could clearly see the soul power within Xiao Xiao's body flowing steadily along her meridians, nourishing her body bit by bit.

It seemed that with the increase in his level and the absorption of soul rings, his martial soul would continue to strengthen gradually.

Jiang Ci'an was thoughtful, but he withdrew his gaze, closed his eyes, and with steady breathing, entered a meditative state as naturally as Xiao Xiao beside him.

A familiar sensation of falling washed over him, like a pebble dropping into deep water, sinking silently into another dimension.

Soon, everything around him became clear.

Beneath his feet was a soft lawn of Blue Silver Grass, in the distance were the gray-white stone walls of Notting Academy, the air held the faint scent of grass, and the sunlight spilled down gently.

Jiang Ci'an opened his eyes, his golden pupils lighting up within this conscious world.

Having entered this world many times, Jiang Ci'an had already grown accustomed to this sense of disorientation.

He first looked around, and after confirming there was no one else nearby, he immediately attempted to summon his soul ring.

The next moment, seeing the clear yellow soul ring emerge around his body and rotate slowly, Jiang Ci'an felt a little more at ease.

This proved one more thing: in this virtual world, his strength was a complete replica of his real self, and his soul skills could be used as usual.

This meant that the room for maneuver he had in this world had increased significantly.

"Then next, it's time to test this."

Jiang Ci'an murmured, his soul ring shimmering at his side.

"Indifference" activated.