The First Soul Skill, Nether Flame

A bright yellow spirit ring pulsed around Mo Li's body, its surface shimmering with a rich, thick radiance.

Behind him, the Nine Nether Sparrow, which had previously been quite small, had undergone a dramatic transformation. Not only had its body more than doubled in size, but the flames burning upon its black frame seemed to have grown significantly more ferocious.

It held its proud avian head high, a strange light flickering within its beastly eyes, while the feathers on its constantly flapping wings flowed with a deep, dark luster.

After absorbing this spirit ring, Mo Li's spirit power had naturally reached level twelve, and he was now only a single step away from breaking through to the next level.

Furthermore, he could clearly feel several changes within his body; it was evident that this over-limit spirit ring had brought him no small amount of benefit.

"You... you actually succeeded."

Liu Erlong's eyes sparkled with excitement, and she couldn't stop her pleasantly surprised gaze from scanning Mo Li up and down.

"Success is all that matters; it makes the time I spent guarding here worth it."

Mo Li scratched his head in embarrassment, but just as he was about to speak, Liu Erlong raised a hand to stop him.

"If you're going to thank me, don't bother. It's been like this since you were little, and I'm tired of hearing it. Why are you always so polite?"

Liu Erlong smiled at him. "Isn't this what I should be doing?"

"Sister Erlong..."

Mo Li looked at Liu Erlong, his expression somewhat complex.

He was always so courteous, perhaps because he lacked a true sense of belonging in this world. Even though he knew the story arcs of most people, this world still felt like a strange place to him.

In the original work, Liu Erlong had a fiery personality and was usually cold and unapproachable, but whenever Mo Li was with her, he could always feel many different emotions—warm, sincere feelings buried beneath a painful exterior.

Mo Li felt as if he were starting to like this world. Whether coming here was a blessing or a curse, for him right now, the future was something worth looking forward to.

"What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and tell me what the effect of your first spirit skill is!"

Standing opposite him, Liu Erlong stood with her hands on her hips, urging the dazed Mo Li.

She was naturally very curious about the spirit skill granted by this six-hundred-year, over-limit spirit ring.

Seeing Liu Erlong's expectant look, Mo Li, having regained his senses, felt a sudden urge to play around. He coughed lightly and deliberately kept her in suspense.

"Sister Erlong, spirit skills are a spirit master's secret. How can I just tell someone so easily..."

Before he could finish, Liu Erlong's fist landed on his head. The force was light, but it still made Mo Li wince in pain.

"A secret? I don't know how many times I saw you bare when you were little; what secrets could you possibly have in front of me?"

Liu Erlong stood with one hand on her hip and waved the other in a threatening gesture, a playful smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

Mo Li rubbed his head, feeling aggrieved, and shot a resentful look at the fist she had used to hit him.

"Sister Erlong, you're too overbearing. At least let me keep you in suspense for a bit."

"Suspense my foot, hurry up and tell me!"

Under Liu Erlong's coercion, Mo Li sighed helplessly.

"Fine, my first spirit skill: Nether Flame."

The yellow spirit ring circling Mo Li's body flared with light, and black flames surged forth. This layer of dark fire clung to his palms, as if he were wearing a pair of flaming gauntlets.

"While the skill is active, it increases my speed by fifty percent and my attack power by fifty percent. Plus, every time I level up by ten, there will be an additional ten percent increase."

As a Spirit Saint, Liu Erlong was incredibly experienced and saw through Mo Li's changes at a glance.

Her gaze turned solemn as she watched Mo Li wreathed in black flames. In her perception, the fire around him was much more potent than before.

A first spirit ring that provided an amplification-type skill—the potential was truly immense!

This would be of great benefit to his future development.

"I didn't expect your first spirit skill to possess the dual effect of amplifying both attack and speed."

Hearing the shock in Liu Erlong's voice, Mo Li leaned in with a grin and asked, "Sister Erlong really has eyes like torches. Did you notice anything else?"

"I didn't see anything else, just a little brat whose tail is about to wag up to the sky."

Liu Erlong knew Mo Li was leaning in on purpose to get her to acknowledge his prowess, so she retorted with a huff.

"Don't tell me your first spirit skill has other abilities?"

"It does, Sister Erlong, it really does."

Mo Li smiled slyly. These two buffs alone were already considered excellent.

But the surprises this over-limit spirit ring brought him went far beyond that. After obtaining the Fire Spirit Kite spirit ring, his physical fitness had also improved significantly.

He figured that the next time he absorbed a spirit ring, his limit would be pushed even higher. It could be said that being one step ahead meant staying ahead at every turn!

"Sister Erlong, look at this."

Mo Li extended his palm. Within it, the rising black flames grew deeper in color, eventually revealing a hint of crystalline purple!

Liu Erlong stared fixedly at Mo Li's palm, then suddenly realized: the final effect of Mo Li's spirit skill was—Flame Amplification!

"Flame Amplification?"

"That's right, one hundred percent flame amplification," Mo Li said, looking quite proud.

Liu Erlong sighed inwardly; the aura radiating from this flame, tinged with a hint of purple, was clearly superior to the pure black flames from before.

If facing an opponent of the same rank, Mo Li's mysterious black flames would be sufficient, but against a soul master of a higher tier, even Mo Li's many tricks would be constrained.

This flame enhancement, however, could be said to grant him an incredibly powerful offensive tool, one that could serve an unexpected purpose in many situations.

Thinking of this, the gaze Liu Erlong cast upon Mo Li grew increasingly satisfied.

Mo Li felt somewhat uncomfortable under Liu Erlong's stare, so he withdrew his soul power and said with a smile, "Sister Erlong, it's about time, shouldn't we head back to the academy?"

Liu Erlong glanced at Mo Li and laughed heartily.

"Let's go, let's head home!"

By the time the two left the Sunset Forest, it was already afternoon.

On the way back, Liu Erlong no longer cared about disturbing the soul beasts; once they emerged from the core zone, she summoned her martial soul and carried Mo Li at full speed.

As a result, it took them less than half an hour to leave the core area of the Sunset Forest and return to the outskirts of Heaven Dou City, a level of efficiency far surpassing their journey that morning.

Just as Mo Li was sighing in relief and about to enter the city, a commotion from a secluded corner outside the city gate caught his attention.

He instinctively looked toward the sound, and in a hidden spot, a few people were surrounding a girl with blue hair.

Mo Li frowned as he watched for a moment, and then his expression turned one of surprise.

He hadn't expected to run into such an unexpected person here.