Soul-Turning Secret Technique

On the thirteenth day of the Ten Thousand Beasts Assembly, the vast Ten Thousand Beasts Space remained as lively as ever.

On a patch of low grassland, Xiao Yan casually killed a sixth-tier magical beast. The score on the back of his hand rose as usual, but he was somewhat dissatisfied. For some reason, his hunting points seemed to have dropped over the past few days.

He had evaluated his own hunting score, and over the last three days, his earnings had fallen by around thirty percent. Accordingly, his ranking on the leaderboard had dropped to seventh.

Xiao Yan knew that the geniuses nurtured by the various major powers had begun to exert themselves. Although Lu Zhi was not on the leaderboard, Lu Mingzhe had taken his place and occupied third place, behind only Xu Yingwu of the Echo Sect and Wan Qing of the Heroes Alliance. Xiao Yan knew that, aside from Heavenly Snake Mansion, the other five major powers had begun using their influence to farm points. Their influence spoke for itself, and countless people were willing to follow them. More importantly, more people meant more information, so the five major powers had already pulled far ahead.

Xiao Yan felt a growing headache as he looked at the leaderboard scores. Although Yang Lingyan had also done his utmost to secure their points, the gap had now exceeded three thousand points and would only grow larger. Xiao Yan had considered recruiting people through Heavenly Snake Mansion, but their quality was truly hard to praise. After all, everyone knew of Heavenly Snake Mansion's predicament. Many would rather trust a rising star like Splendid Flower Tower than put their faith in Heavenly Snake Mansion.

Xiao Yan could only cast aside the distracting thoughts in his mind. It was still the early stage, and there would be plenty of opportunities. Once Qing Lin, Zi Yan, and Xun Er all arrived, they might yet overtake the others from behind.

Xiao Yan picked the herb guarded by the magical beast, a "Mist-Swallowing Fruit," and placed it in his Storage Ring. Though he had only given the ring a casual sweep, he immediately sensed that something was wrong inside it. Something had changed. With a thought from Xiao Yan, a jade slip appeared in his hand. It was incomplete, with more than half missing, but its name was still clearly visible: "Soul-Turning Secret Technique"!

After checking the contents of his Storage Ring, Xiao Yan immediately understood the issue. The yellow clod of earth he had bought that day was gone, replaced by this jade slip. A trace of surprise rose within him. This should have been that thing's true form. Though he did not know why it had changed, it proved that the reminder from that voice had indeed been correct.

Xiao Yan found a secluded place, focused his mind, and scanned the jade slip.

"The Soul-Turning Secret Technique is a secret art created by myself. Those in later generations who are fated may obtain it. This secret art is a technique for enhancing soul power."

The more Xiao Yan read while holding the jade slip, the more delighted he became. This secret art was incredibly wondrous. It could convert his own Dou Qi into temporary soul power. Dou Qi was comparatively easy to cultivate, while methods of increasing soul power were exceedingly rare. Normally, it could only grow gradually as one's level rose.

The only regret was that the secret art was incomplete. The most important portion—how to use this converted soul power to attack—was missing. Xiao Yan had no solution for that. Based on the changes he had experienced, he guessed that this thing likely needed to absorb the power left behind after killing magical beasts in the Ten Thousand Beasts Space before it could be unsealed. It had previously been extremely fragile, and part of it had been damaged in his hands. That merchant had likely tried repeatedly as well, so the most crucial part had ultimately been lost.

Even so, Xiao Yan could not contain his excitement. Though it lacked an offensive method, the Soul-Turning Secret Technique was still extraordinarily meaningful to him. After all, the soul perception converted from his Dou Emperor-level Dou Qi could greatly improve his hunting efficiency.

Xiao Yan then called Chu Qun and Yang Lingyan over from outside and told them about it. Upon hearing this, Yang Lingyan and Chu Qun were overjoyed as well. The problem of slow hunting speed also lay before them, and they had never expected it could be resolved so easily.

"Since that's the case, the three of us can learn this secret art together!" Xiao Yan said.

Yang Lingyan and Chu Qun were both startled upon hearing Xiao Yan's words, then deeply moved. After exchanging a glance, Chu Qun forced himself to say, "Thank you for the offer, but we truly would feel too embarrassed to learn this secret art!"

Yang Lingyan nodded as well. In the end, this was Xiao Yan's personal gain and had nothing to do with them.

Xiao Yan smiled. "What does that matter? We're all acting together, so there's no need to divide things so clearly. Without the two of you, I probably wouldn't even have joined the Small Market. How would I have had the chance to obtain this secret art?"

As he spoke, he handed the jade slip to Chu Qun. The two could only accept it. After all, they knew Xiao Yan's character well enough. Since he had said it, he surely meant it sincerely.

But the moment Chu Qun focused his mind and scanned the jade slip, he opened his eyes in confusion. "Huh? There's nothing inside!"

Hearing Chu Qun's words, Yang Lingyan took it and tried as well. "There really is nothing."

When Xiao Yan tried it himself, the cultivation method for the Soul-Turning Secret Technique was clearly inside. After withdrawing his perception and looking at the two of them, Xiao Yan was also at a loss.

"Could this thing have some kind of restriction? Maybe only the first person to see it can learn it?" Chu Qun guessed as he looked at the jade slip.

Yang Lingyan gave a helpless, bitter smile. "That is most likely the case. Xiao Yan, it seems only you have this fortune."

Neither of them doubted Xiao Yan in the slightest. After all, if Xiao Yan had not told them, the two of them would never have known anything about it.

"Go ahead and cultivate. We'll stand guard for you!"

Xiao Yan no longer hesitated and focused on learning the method of converting Dou Qi into soul power.

Xiao Yan guided the Dou Qi within his body along an entirely new route. Though it was incomparably sluggish at first, he sensed that as time passed, his soul power gradually began to change.

Two days later, Chu Qun and Yang Lingyan, who had been dutifully guarding Xiao Yan, suddenly sensed a change in the person beside them. Xiao Yan had vanished in an instant... Not from sight—he was still sitting there perfectly fine—but from their soul perception. In the area where Xiao Yan sat, there was simply nothing.

Both of them showed astonishment. Then Yang Lingyan said, "To directly block the perception of two Dou Emperor experts standing so close by... isn't this secret art far too terrifying?"

Xiao Yan, who had been cultivating with his eyes closed, slowly opened them. Chu Qun even felt an invisible pulling force in Xiao Yan's eyes that made him shudder.

With the Dou Qi throughout his body nearly depleted, Xiao Yan slowly rose to his feet. Relying on his terrifying soul perception, he surveyed the vast world centered around himself. The locations of every magical beast were impossible to hide.

Xiao Yan looked at the two beside him and declared confidently, "Now, it is time to hunt!"