Level-Transcendence Absorption, Mutated Soul Bone

The sword was three feet long, made entirely of jade, with golden lightning patterns covering the blade.

The moment this sword appeared, the arcs of electricity clinging to the Thunder Tiger's fur automatically retracted; the grade of the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder within the blade was far too high to be compared with lightning derived from a spirit beast.

As for its pride and joy, its "lightning rod," it charred into black coal the instant it touched the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder, turning the beast into a hairless, slick tiger.

Han Yu pointed the tip of the sword at the Thunder Tiger's eye and thrust it in fiercely.

The Thunder Tiger's body shuddered violently, then completely lost all signs of life.

A moment later, a pale purple spirit ring rose slowly from the Thunder Tiger's corpse.

Han Yu sat cross-legged beside it.

The concentration of spirit power in the surrounding area rose to a level that was slightly visible to the naked eye.

He could feel the Spirit Gathering Array beneath his feet taking effect, as spirit power gathered around him in a steady stream; with just a little guidance, he could easily absorb it into his body.

Han Yu closed his eyes and skillfully drew the spirit ring toward him.

The moment the spirit ring descended from above his head to envelop him, spirit power several times more violent than that of the Spirit-Attracting Butterfly surged into his body, rampaging wildly through his meridians.

It launched a spirit power assault on every part of him as if it had a death wish, seemingly inheriting the Thunder Tiger's will to drag Han Yu down to the grave with it.

Han Yu was in a fluster, desperately mobilizing the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder within his body to put out the fires everywhere; he felt dizzy, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Just then, the sound of a bell rang through his mind, and the dizzy sensation vanished instantly. It was the Soul Calming Array he had unintentionally set up taking effect, and he immediately seized the opportunity to channel his internal spirit power to resist the areas the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder could not reach.

Chen Xin and Gu Rong had been guarding Han Yu's side, carefully observing his every move.

When Han Yu's body began to sway just now, their hearts had hung in their throats, and they had nearly intervened to interrupt the spirit ring absorption.

Fortunately, after a strange sound rang out, Han Yu returned to normal.

A look of doubt appeared on Chen Xin's face as his gaze fell beneath Han Yu's feet.

He had previously assumed that Han Yu's twin martial spirits were dominated by the Green Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, but now, seeing the powerful array that had appeared multiple times as his second martial spirit, he realized he had been wrong—and spectacularly so.

Could a martial spirit with such a high degree of compatibility with an incredibly powerful martial spirit truly be ordinary?

Time ticked by, second by second.

Han Yu had already weathered the most difficult moment of absorbing the spirit ring.

Now, he only needed to wait for his spirit power to stabilize.

But just then, an unexpected change occurred!

Han Yu jerked his head up, clutching his skull with both hands. An unbearable, agonizing pain emerged, making it impossible for him to maintain the stability of his internal spirit power, and the nearly solidified spirit ring began a new round of shocks.

It hurts too much!

That was his only thought now; he felt as if his head were about to explode.

Han Yu bit his lip hard, his face deathly pale, blood trickling down his neck. He fought desperately against the agony, his body trembling uncontrollably, soaked through with sweat.

At this moment, he was filled with a fierce determination; he refused to blink even as sweat slid into his eyes, holding on with astonishing willpower. He was acting like a man possessed.

He had clearly been on the verge of success; to give up now was absolutely impossible.

Beside him, Gu Rong's eyes were filled with worry, and he was about to intervene to prevent Han Yu from suffering severe damage to his foundation.

No one knew how much longer Han Yu could hold on, but in such a critical moment, he had to act; even if it were only a single day of master-disciple relationship, he would not stand by and watch his disciple die before his eyes.

"Old Bone, wait." Chen Xin's expression shifted, and he reached out to stop Gu Rong.

"Wait for what? Han Yu is in too much danger right now!" Gu Rong's brows were tightly knit, his face full of confusion, his voice urgent.

"You, you're always too impatient. Look at that Thunder Tiger's head."

Gu Rong looked in the direction Chen Xin pointed. A crack had split open on the head of the Thunder Tiger's corpse, and deep inside was a hole the size of a fist.

"This is a spirit bone." Gu Rong's tone was filled with disbelief.

Spirit bones were supreme treasures produced when a spirit beast died. Once absorbed by a spirit master, they could significantly improve physical fitness and grant a spirit bone skill. If the spirit bone and spirit ring were absorbed by the same spirit master, the power of the spirit skill and the spirit bone skill would be further enhanced.

Because things are valued for their rarity, the heaven-defying effects of spirit bones meant they were extremely scarce. The prerequisite for a spirit bone to form was that the spirit beast must harbor deep resentment at the time of death, and the higher the age of the spirit beast, the greater the chance of production. These two limitations combined meant that only a few lucky spirit masters could ever possess one.

"That's not right, why would absorbing a head spirit bone cause such an intense reaction?" Gu Rong revealed a trace of worry again, his gaze fixed on Han Yu.

"This is my first time seeing it too, but it shouldn't be harmful." Chen Xin shook his head, looking at the struggling Han Yu. "I can feel that he doesn't want to give up. Trust him."

"Ah—!"

Han Yu snapped his eyes open, his gaze piercing.

Several golden arcs of electricity flashed rapidly through his eyes. He saw several falling leaves descending at a sluggish pace; all objects seemed to have been slowed down.

He turned his head to look at the three people nearby.

Although Gu Rong and Chen Xin's movements were slow in his eyes, their gazes snapped toward him instantly, meeting his eyes.

Ning Rongrong, at the very back, hadn't noticed his gaze at all; her eyes were still red, filled with regret and worry.

Han Yu's mind went blank for a moment, and a wave of dizziness surged into the back of his head.

He hurriedly braced his hands on the ground, struggling to keep his drowsy eyes open, forcing the flow of his vision back to normal.

"You brat, you really are lucky to have survived this." Gu Rong's tone was full of reproach, but he channeled a gentle stream of spirit power to help him regulate his body.

Fortunately, Han Yu had the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder protecting his meridians, so his body suffered no major harm, though his spirit felt somewhat listless.

After Gu Rong carefully examined him and found no hidden dangers, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, his tone tinged with irritation: "You mustn't risk your life like that again. Can't you be a bit more steady, you brat?"

Han Yu responded with a look of pure innocence.

Does he really think I'm not steady enough? he thought. If not for that meddling spirit bone, he would have successfully absorbed the spirit ring long ago without the slightest bit of danger.

However, thinking back to that miraculous insight he had just experienced, Han Yu felt much more balanced; the risk had been worth it.

Chen Xin stepped forward and lightly tapped Han Yu's forehead with his finger.

Han Yu immediately felt a sense of relief, the grogginess in his mind fading away for the most part.

Seeing the eager look in Han Yu's eyes, Chen Xin smiled and said, "I will teach you how to utilize sword intent when we return."

Han Yu nodded.

Chen Xin smiled and nodded back, looking at Han Yu with satisfaction.

His disciple had truly brought him too many surprises today, showing him wonders and strange occurrences he hadn't seen in half a lifetime.