High in the sky, the Thunder Roc, having suffered a setback, refused to come down no matter what. Its eyes stayed fixed on Han Yu below as it scrutinized him incessantly.
It had already taken a loss once and was now on high alert, adjusting its angle over and over without tiring.
Han Yu watched the Thunder Roc's silhouette. His left hand brushed over the Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords, and four green sword images appeared, hovering on either side of the blades.
During his two years in the sect, his Martial Soul, the Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords, had finished being nourished by his Second Martial Soul. The number of sword images it could split into had increased to four, and each one had thirty percent of the original's attack power.
Crack—.
Han Yu raised his right hand. The five Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords joined tip to tail, forming a ring that began spinning rapidly. Its edge became a brilliant green blade of light.
He swung his right hand violently, and the ring-shaped sword formation shot out like a cannonball, rapidly closing in on the Thunder Roc in the sky.
The Thunder Roc hurriedly dodged, frantically flapping its battered wings as it tried to evade the sudden green ring.
Yet the ring-shaped sword formation seemed alive. It traced a bizarre arc through the air, abruptly wheeled around, and shot toward the Thunder Roc's remaining intact wing.
The Thunder Roc could only turn and brace itself, forced to meet the attack with its dark-gold talons.
Just then, the scales covering Han Yu's body suddenly shone with golden light. He channeled all the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder within him into activating his second Soul Skill, Accumulate Power.
A tremendous force burst through his body. The ground beneath his feet caved into a deep pit, and he rocketed skyward like an arrow loosed from its bow.
"Come, sword," Han Yu murmured.
The Bamboo Cloudswarm Swords' original blade broke free from the ring and flew around the Thunder Roc, returning to Han Yu's hand.
Han Yu flicked his wrist. The sword stood before him, its tip pointing straight at the heavens.
In an instant, countless green sword images converged.
The three-foot blade in Han Yu's hand transformed into a ten-foot giant sword of light. Gripping its hilt with both hands, he brought it down in a mighty slash.
The Thunder Roc sensed that familiar presence, and its eyes filled with terror.
It immediately weighed its options and turned itself around, flying backward and upward as it raised its hardest dark-gold talons to block, trying to stop the enormous green sword, bright with golden patterns.
Meanwhile, the ring-shaped sword formation was savagely shredding its wings.
It let out a piercing shriek, violently beating its battered wings and scattering a spray of scarlet liquid across the sky.
But it had no time to think about that. Its eyes were vacant as it could only watch in despair while the green giant sword crashed toward it.
Boom—.
A tremendous roar echoed through the sky.
A deep pit more than ten meters wide was blasted into the ground.
The Thunder Roc's talons were broken, and its whole body was embedded in the earth, its head lolling limply to one side.
A black Soul Ring slowly rose from its body.
After resting for a while, Han Yu set up several arrays to aid absorption, then sat cross-legged at the edge of the crater.
He closed his eyes and drew the Soul Ring toward himself.
As it descended over his head and enveloped him, an enormous torrent of Soul Power poured into his body like water released from a floodgate.
The violent Soul Power rampaged through his meridians, as if intent on tearing them apart.
A piercing pain struck without warning.
Han Yu's body trembled violently, veins standing out across his forehead. He deftly sent the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder to purge it.
With the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder joining in, the foreign Soul Power's assault weakened somewhat.
Just then, a sudden change occurred.
Han Yu jerked his head up and clutched it tightly with both hands as an unbearable sensation of being torn apart struck him.
The Thunder Roc's resentment formed into a purple phantom within his Sea of Consciousness. It radiated a violent, frenzied aura as it desperately destroyed everything in sight.
Soul Shock.
This was the most difficult hurdle in absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring—and the final step.
Once he endured it, all that remained was the simple absorption of Soul Power.
Golden light flashed in Han Yu's eyes, his gaze sharp.
Several golden bolts of lightning, condensed from his spiritual power, crashed down and formed an electric cage around the Thunder Roc's resentment. The cage snapped shut, and the phantom vanished without a trace.
A relaxed expression crossed Han Yu's face as he let out a soft breath.
But then another warm current suddenly flowed into his body, coursing through him.
Han Yu furrowed his brows and sped up the absorption of Soul Power.
His face was full of disbelief. He had already dealt with the Soul Shock; there shouldn't have been any more obstacles to absorbing the Soul Ring.
Seeing this, Chen Xin tensed up as well.
What was going on? Han Yu had clearly just weathered the Soul Shock. Why did he look troubled again?
Time slipped by quietly.
The Soul Power in his meridians was completely absorbed.
Yet, just as it was about to end—
Another change arose.
Han Yu felt a tearing pain in his back.
He hunched over, face contorted, and collapsed onto the ground. His fingers dug into the earth, leaving deep furrows.
Chen Xin froze. Hardly able to believe what he was seeing, he stepped closer and studied Han Yu intently. Shock appeared on his face.
Han Yu really had struck it rich. A legendary treasure like an External Soul Bone had found him all on its own. It was enough to make anyone green with envy.
Every Soul Master could absorb at most seven Soul Bones.
An External Soul Bone was a special existence beyond the six main Soul Bones.
Its chance of appearing was a thousand times lower than that of Soul Bones from other parts of the body.
Every External Soul Bone could grow, increasing in age and power alongside its Soul Master.
Those who possessed an External Soul Bone were few and far between across the entire continent.
At that moment, Han Yu was enduring torture, as if someone were pulling out his spine one vertebra at a time, only to forcefully shove it back in and twist it from side to side.
Han Yu clenched his teeth, the veins on his forehead bulging. Low groans escaped him as his body trembled violently and his head spun.
"Ah—!"
Han Yu arched his body and let out a long howl. His spirits lifted, and he abruptly opened his eyes.
A sharp crack came from his back.
Silvery-white fissures spread across his shoulder blades, blue lightning flickering within them.
Two wing bones grew from his shoulder blades. One by one, translucent green feathers of wind appeared from thin air, their surfaces covered in fine lightning patterns.
A pair of wings, about three meters long, fully unfurled. Their frames were made of silver crystal, and purple lightning danced between their translucent feathered membranes, occasionally leaving behind streaks of fading electric arcs.
The wings beat fiercely.
A gale swept across the ground.
Han Yu shot straight upward, reaching the sky in an instant.
Feeling the unfamiliar organs on his back, he struggled to control the wings, wobbling from side to side and rising and falling in the air.
Little by little, he adjusted his orientation, trying to remain in place.
Once he could turn freely, he beat his wings with all his might and shot forward, leaving several green feathers behind.
At high speed, he tilted one wing slightly and skimmed past the edge of a towering tree.
His eyes lit up. He tried guiding the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder inside him toward his back.
Suddenly, countless golden arcs of electricity flashed across both wings, and his speed multiplied several times over.
The scenery before Han Yu blurred into streaks of light with trailing tails, then became lines of brilliant light.
A space entrance filled with golden electric arcs appeared before him. He plunged headfirst into it and disappeared.