Second Soul Skill, Starlight! (Please Keep Reading)

Far North, outskirts.

The temperature here was extremely low, remaining at a frigid forty-something degrees below zero year-round.

The biting north wind swept ice shards against their faces like a dull knife carving flesh, leaving their cheeks stinging with pain.

However, the extreme climate of the Far North was no more than a slightly cool breeze to Jiang Lan with his innate domain activated.

"Lan'er, for your second soul ring, I recommend choosing a five-thousand-year Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon." Shui Qinghan held a map of the Far North and looked at several marked locations as she spoke.

"The Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon excels in strength and defense. It should provide you with a soul skill that boosts strength and defense."

Shui Qinghan's reasoning was simple. Jiang Lan did not lack mobility, was not afraid of control or debuffs, was immune to attribute attacks, could double his attack power, had an additional 50% damage boost, and could increase both defenses by 50% after being hit, stacking up to 300%. He could even constantly restore health and soul power.

With such an overpowered set of abilities, what else could she say?

He just needed to stack strength and defense as high as possible.

Before the eighth ring, it would be best if all his soul skills were boosts to strength, defense, attack, armor penetration, and the like.

Once he reached the eighth and ninth rings, he could choose offensive soul skills.

By then, with six enhancement soul skills stacked together, paired with a hundred-thousand-year eighth soul skill and the boost that doubled his attack power...

Among soul masters of the same rank, who could withstand a punch from her good disciple?

Forget those of the same rank—even blowing apart a Titled Douluo across ranks might not be impossible.

As for having only enhancement soul skills before the eighth ring and thus lacking offensive capabilities?

Ha~ Didn't he still have soul bones?

As his teacher, she could not just enjoy the benefits her disciple brought her without giving anything in return, could she?

After they returned, she would get Jiang Lan two or three offensive soul bones, each at least thirty thousand years old, no matter what.

Three offensive soul bone skills from soul bones at least thirty thousand years old would be enough for Jiang Lan until the seventh ring.

By the time Jiang Lan cultivated to the seventh ring, she would likely have already broken through to Titled Douluo—perhaps even reached rank ninety-five. Wouldn't it be perfectly normal for her to help her good disciple hunt a hundred-thousand-year soul beast?

"Mm! I'll listen to Teacher in everything." Jiang Lan looked up at Shui Qinghan and replied obediently.

Unfortunately, he would have to disappoint his teacher.

All of his soul skills came from Starlight King's skill pool and would not be affected by the soul beast at all.

As for his second soul skill, Jiang Lan had already made his choice.

Starlight!

In the game, Starlight King was a major PVE powerhouse for free-to-play players and usually carried ordinary Restraint, which could ignore many of a BOSS's damage-reduction effects and deal massive rebound damage.

Starlight, on the other hand, was mostly used only in PVP. Some players even used ordinary Restraint in PVP as well.

But reality was not a game. If he died, he would truly be dead.

He had not yet cultivated to level one hundred, so he had no way to revive on the spot with full health.

Therefore, the guaranteed hit, equal amount of health restoration after damaging an opponent, massive damage reduction, and numerous other effects of Starlight were what Jiang Lan needed most right now.

As for why Jiang Lan chose Starlight as his second soul skill?

It was because Starlight itself had no power. How much damage it could deal to an enemy basically depended entirely on the enemy's own output.

Thus, whether it was a thousand-year soul ring or a ten-thousand-year soul ring, the effects of Starlight would basically be the same.

That was why Starlight was the optimal choice for his second soul skill.

"Good~ Then let's find the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon first." Shui Qinghan smiled faintly, raised a hand to pat Jiang Lan's head, then continued, "As for Bing'er's second soul ring, let's hunt an Ice Spirit Sparrow around three thousand years old. This soul beast possesses a trace of Ice Phoenix bloodline. It excels at stirring up wind and snow, freezing its prey before devouring it."

"Yes~" Shui Bing'er nodded.

Following the map's directions, the three searched the outer region of the Far North for several days in a row, visiting several marked locations.

At last, at the final marked location on the map, they found the target of their journey—the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon.

The Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon was a sub-dragon soul beast with spines growing from its back, a frost-white body covered in scales, and the head of a dragon atop the body of a crocodile.

However, the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon they encountered was not alone, but part of a small Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon clan.

The leader of this small clan was a six-thousand-year Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon. Its mate was only a little over four thousand years old. Around them were seven or eight clan members that were two to three thousand years old, along with several cubs under a thousand years old.

"This male Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon is six thousand years old, which exceeds the limit by far. Yet this female Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon is only a little over four thousand years old, nowhere near your limit." Shui Qinghan frowned slightly as she looked at the small Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon clan.

"Teacher, have you forgotten how I absorbed my first ring?" Jiang Lan said with a smile.

Shui Bing'er blinked. What did her junior brother mean?

"This..." After hesitating for a moment, Shui Qinghan still nodded. "Then let's try it."

She still chose to trust Jiang Lan.

After all, she had personally witnessed Jiang Lan forcibly absorb a thousand-year soul ring with the 300% dual-defense boost from his innate domain.

"You two lie here and don't move." Shui Qinghan had the two hide in the snow, while she activated her martial soul possession and charged toward the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon clan.

This group of Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragons, whose oldest member was only slightly over six thousand years old, naturally had no ability to resist a veteran Soul Douluo with profound soul power. Shui Qinghan knocked the six-thousand-year Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon unconscious on the spot and hauled it away.

After a brief period of panic, the remaining Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragons suddenly began fighting among themselves for mating rights.

Before long, Shui Qinghan returned and tossed the nearly two-zhang-long, one-meter-tall, six-thousand-year Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon onto the snow.

"Lan'er, stab through its eye to kill this Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon." Shui Qinghan took a sharp dagger from the storage bracelet on her wrist and handed it to Jiang Lan.

"Yes, Teacher~" Jiang Lan accepted the dagger and cleanly ended the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon's life.

A deep purple soul ring slowly emerged from the Ice Thorn Crocodile Dragon's corpse, radiating a magnificent glow.

After lightly bumping his fists together three times to stack his dual defenses to the maximum, Jiang Lan immediately sat cross-legged. The Lord of Tides martial soul directly possessed him, and he used his soul power to draw the six-thousand-year soul ring slowly onto his body.

"Mom, isn't Junior Brother's absorption limit for his second soul ring only five thousand years? Will he really be okay absorbing this six-thousand-year soul ring?" Shui Bing'er watched Jiang Lan, seated cross-legged as he absorbed his second soul ring, and could not help asking worriedly.

"Lan'er's innate domain can grant him a 300% defense boost, enough to let him endure the extra thousand-plus years." Shui Qinghan immediately explained.

"So that's how it is..." Shui Bing'er finally let out a breath of relief.

In just over two hours, Jiang Lan successfully absorbed the soul ring, which was more than six thousand two hundred years old.

At the same time, Jiang Lan chose Starlight from Starlight King's skill pool as his second soul skill.

Starlight: Guaranteed hit; rebounds twice the damage to the opponent and restores an equal amount of health to oneself; if the damage dealt is lower than 200, the damage one receives next is reduced by 300 points.

Of course, those were only the skill effects in the game.

As for the actual effects...

Starlight manifested as an invisible shield around his body, absorbing the enemy's soul skills and attacks before converting them into his own soul power.

The converted soul power could be used to heal his injuries or transformed into his own strength, allowing him to unleash an even more powerful blow. The stronger the attack he received, the greater the power he could unleash.

As for breaking the shield?

Unless his opponent's attack was powerful enough to instantly burst him apart with soul power, his shield could not be broken at all.

Furthermore, any opponent counterattacked by his second soul skill would have the power of their next attack reduced by 30%.