A Man Who Longed for Freedom

Fang Yuan was a man who longed for freedom.

The immortality he pursued meant living freely in this world, unconstrained by lifespan or external enemies, transcending all things.

There was no such thing as innate freedom in this world.

Soaring birds were imprisoned by the seemingly free sky. Once they landed, they lost their broad view and the speed they took pride in, making survival difficult. Fish in the water were imprisoned by the seemingly vast sea; once deprived of water, they would suffocate and die.

People were the same. Upon the boundless earth, people suffered the most constraints. Throughout their lives, they were constantly fighting and competing against hunger, lifespan, rules, and other people, limited at every turn.

Where there was oppression, there was resistance. The less freedom people had, the more people would walk the path of pursuing it.

The steps taken in pursuit of freedom were destined to tread upon thorns, making every stride arduous.

Even if people could not obtain complete freedom for the moment, they could still freely choose their attitude toward reality.

The freedom people gained might bring them a better life, or it might mutate toward a worse outcome.

On the path of pursuing freedom, people had to adapt to an ever-changing external world and learn flexibility.

Three Soul Rings flew and circled through the air before merging into Fang Yuan's back. Their radiance enveloped him, releasing an immense aura.

The light suddenly condensed and turned blood-red, trailing behind Fang Yuan and transforming into a gigantic crimson cape.

The cape fluttered in the wind like a scarlet war banner snapping in the breeze.

Second Soul Skill, Attitude.

Third Soul Skill, Mutation Gu.

Fourth Soul Skill, Adaptation Gu.

When Attitude, Mutation Gu, and Adaptation Gu were activated at the same time, an astonishing transformation immediately occurred.

The three Soul Skills merged into a single fusion Soul Skill. On the Douluo Continent, neither theoretical scholars who specialized in Martial Souls nor Limit Douluos with cultivation reaching the heavens could possibly comprehend the mysteries of this move.

However, in Fang Yuan's previous life, this move had a resounding name.

Immortal killer move—Incomplete Freedom Transformation!

Incomplete Freedom Transformation could not grant Fang Yuan freedom directly, but it could give him the power to pursue freedom and become the foundation of that pursuit.

The blood-red cape was reflected in Dugu Bo's eyes, mirroring the astonishment within them.

He could sense that with the appearance of that blood-red cape, the young man before him had undergone a heaven-shaking change in aura.

This situation was somewhat like a powerhouse above the Soul Saint rank activating a Martial Soul Avatar, granting themselves an enormous enhancement.

But Dugu Bo was knowledgeable and experienced. No Martial Soul Avatar he had ever seen could possibly provide such a massive boost as the one displayed by this young man.

A six-ring Soul Emperor, enhanced by some method, had erupted with an aura that even startled a Title Douluo.

How was that possible?

"Was the enhancement truly this terrifying, or did this brat's Soul Skill have the ability to disguise and imitate?"

Fierce light flickered uncertainly within the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's triangular eyes, its heart filled with suspicion and speculation.

Dugu Bo himself had experienced countless battles and seen much of the world. He could laugh and talk with those Title Douluos from Spirit Hall, yet he had never seen any Soul Skill or Martial Soul Avatar capable of such an enormous enhancement.

"Brat, let me weigh your worth! Let's see whether you're just putting on a show!"

The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor opened its enormous mouth, spewing out a stream of poisonous gas that had nearly condensed into substance. It shot toward Fang Yuan like lightning.

Though this poisonous gas was not a Soul Skill, it had condensed from the fierce poison contained within the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Martial Soul. Empowered by the Soul Power of a Title Douluo, its might far surpassed the attacks of Soul Douluo-level Soul Skills. As for its vicious toxicity, it could kill a Soul Douluo-level powerhouse in a single strike.

The poisonous gas silently streaked through the air, yet it moved like lightning. In an instant, it reached Fang Yuan and flew straight at his face.

Yet Fang Yuan showed no fear in the face of an attack more powerful than a Soul Douluo's. His expression remained unchanged as he merely raised one hand before him.

"Pssh."

With a soft sound, the poisonous gas struck Fang Yuan's raised left hand head-on. Yet the terrifying force contained within it failed to slow his steps in the slightest.

Fang Yuan's palm was like a sturdy barrier. He scattered the toxic beam spewed from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's mouth with a single slap, as though it were merely an ordinary stream of water!

The pupils in the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's triangular eyes contracted slightly.

The scattered poisonous gas turned into a cloud of emerald mist and drifted away. The hand Fang Yuan had used to block the attack was revealed—and it was completely unscathed!

From that exchange alone, Dugu Bo could tell that this brat's defensive power had absolutely reached the level of a Title Douluo.

Moreover, judging from the fact that his attack had not even been able to slow Fang Yuan's advance, Fang Yuan's strength had clearly far surpassed the level of his cultivation.

"Could this really be possible? Was it some secret technique that burned one's life force?"

The suspicion in the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's eyes grew even heavier. At this moment, it finally regarded its opponent as a powerhouse on the same level as itself.

No matter what secret technique the other party had used, or whether he was blatantly cheating, it did not change the fact that he already possessed combat power capable of threatening a Title Douluo.

Beneath the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor, a Soul Ring as black as ink slowly rose. Dugu Bo discarded his contempt and began gathering power for his Soul Skill.

At the same time, the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's thirty-meter-long body suddenly turned with astonishing agility. Its bowl-thick tail traced an arc through the air and lashed toward the approaching Fang Yuan like a long whip.

"Crack!"

A thunderous boom split the air from the tip of its tail, warping the air in ripples. The terrifying force carried by that strike could easily split mountains and shatter rocks.

Fang Yuan faced it without hesitation. He clenched his right fist and viciously punched toward the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's tail tip.

"Boom!"

A blast of air erupted from the point where Fang Yuan's fist collided with the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's tail, and an astonishing storm swept across the mountaintop.

Flowers, grass, and shrubs were uprooted, while trees snapped in half at their trunks.

A cry of pain came from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's enormous maw. The collision between its tail and Fang Yuan's fist felt as though an ordinary person had struck steel with their frail flesh, sending piercing pain through its body.

The Soul Skill the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor had been preparing immediately went out of control, and the black Soul Ring turned into specks of light that vanished into the air.

By then, its opponent had already closed in.

Fang Yuan wrapped his left arm around the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor's head, clenched his right hand into a fist, and hammered three heavy blows into its serpentine body. Bang! Bang! Bang!

The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor let out a pained roar. Its massive body writhed and struggled frantically, and only after exerting every ounce of strength did it finally break free from Fang Yuan's grasp.

When it looked at Fang Yuan again, its eyes carried a trace of shame and anger.

It was a mighty Level 91 Title Douluo, yet after activating its Martial Soul Avatar, it had been beaten into such a state by a six-ring Soul Emperor?

The shame and fury in its heart drove the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor to lunge forward once more. Poisonous mist seeped from beneath every scale, its fangs gleamed coldly, and its forked tongue flickered restlessly as it tangled with Fang Yuan again.