Sons of Destiny Gathered, but the Eras Were Misaligned

One look was enough to tell that the ritual had gone extremely smoothly. Skydream Iceworm had successfully fused with Bai Chen.

After several months of waiting, Bai Chen had finally completed his transformation from a Soul Scholar into a Soul Master. If Di Tian's senses were correct, his soul power had leaped straight to Rank 14.

If the previous Scorpion Tiger had been the first Soul Spirit to appear in this world, then Skydream Iceworm was the world's first Wisdom Soul Ring.

As for exactly how much this kid had gained, they would only know after he woke up.

Meanwhile, Bai Chen's consciousness drifted through a haze and sank deep into his Spiritual Sea.

"Mmm, mm, mmmmm..."

The moment he arrived, he saw a gigantic iceworm constantly nodding, seemingly studying something.

Bai Chen's lips twitched as he called out.

"Brother Skydream, what are you doing?"

Hearing his voice, Skydream Iceworm hurriedly turned around.

"Oh, Bai Chen, you're awake? I was looking through your memories."

His eyes sparkled with anticipation.

"Only after seeing your memories did I realize how interesting the human world is. When are we leaving?"

For Skydream Iceworm, whose life had consisted of either the Extreme Northern Icefield or the Star Dou Great Forest, the human world was simply dazzling.

He had long grown sick of that empty, boring life. Now, he could not wait to leave the Star Dou Great Forest with Bai Chen.

External Soul Bone: Skin

Bai Chen said helplessly.

"Brother Skydream, don't rush. First tell me, how did the fusion go?"

"Hehe, you don't trust me?"

Skydream Iceworm immediately laughed smugly.

"Of course it was a complete success! Let me tell you, even the me from that future era might not have done as well as I did now!"

"Oh? Why do you say that?"

Bai Chen grew somewhat curious.

Skydream Iceworm said proudly.

"According to the records, that Huo Yuhao didn't obtain a Soul Bone from me, right? But I brought you one. That proves it."

"..." Bai Chen's mind froze for a moment. Once he recovered, he hurriedly asked, "What kind of Soul Bone is it?"

This was a Million-Year Soul Beast-level Soul Bone. Skydream Iceworm's Soul Ring could provide four soul skills, so what about the Soul Bone corresponding to that Soul Ring?

Seeing how eager Bai Chen was, Skydream Iceworm's vanity was clearly greatly satisfied. He laughed.

"To avoid taking up one of your Soul Bone slots, I specifically condensed an External Soul Bone. I transformed my silkworm skin into a skin-type External Soul Bone, and it has already fused with you."

"..."

For a moment, Bai Chen could not say anything.

There were countless varieties of External Soul Bones, strange and varied in every possible way. Ordinary ones included right palms and left shoulders, while unusual ones included the Eight Spider Lances and Evil Eyes. Yet no matter what kind of External Soul Bone it was, the improvement it brought a Soul Master was enormous.

The Darkgolden Terrorclaw Right Palm Bone possessed by Bai Chen in the Douluo II Era was one of the finest External Soul Bones. It gave Bai Chen tremendous offensive power while also granting him a method of mid-range attack, making it outstanding in both utility and actual combat.

But compared to this Skin External Soul Bone provided by Skydream Iceworm, the Darkgolden Terrorclaw Right Palm Bone seemed utterly weak.

Skin itself was one of the human body's most important organs. Its nature of covering the entire body meant that it was intrinsically tied to a Soul Master's defensive ability.

In Douluo II, Long Aotian, the genius with a Body Martial Soul, possessed skin as his Martial Soul. It was a Silver Rank Body Martial Soul on the same level as the brain and Spirit Eyes. Relying on the unique characteristics of his skin Martial Soul, Long Aotian's combat strength was extraordinarily terrifying, making him a powerful contender for the strongest member of the younger generation aside from the protagonist.

The Skin External Soul Bone Skydream Iceworm had given Bai Chen might not be any weaker than Long Aotian's Martial Soul.

After all, External Soul Bones could gradually evolve alongside a Soul Master's growth. Skydream Iceworm's skin Soul Bone had an incredibly high starting point, and with its ability to grow, Bai Chen believed its capabilities would never be inferior to a true skin Martial Soul.

The question was, why had Skydream Iceworm been unable to give Huo Yuhao such an External Soul Bone, yet could do so for him?

Could it really be a matter of technique?

Bai Chen felt that was unlikely.

After thinking for a while, he gradually arrived at a conjecture.

Perhaps the reason lay in the ten thousand years separating the two eras.

In the original Douluo II, Skydream Iceworm had indeed used the power of his cast-off shell. However, after using it once to seal the Ice Empress, that rare treasure had been completely spent.

But in the end, the reason it had been spent was still energy. Aside from Skydream Iceworm's most precious origin energy, nearly all his other energy had been drained by the Ferocious Beasts. It was only natural that his cast-off shell could not be used a second time.

But Bai Chen's situation was different. As far as Bai Chen knew, Skydream Iceworm had not been captured for very long in this era. The energy within him could not be said to be completely intact, but the amount he had lost was insignificant.

Thus, he had sufficient energy to transform his cast-off shell into a Million-Year-level Soul Bone and fuse it with Bai Chen.

Thinking of this, Bai Chen's heart burned with excitement.

This time, he had truly struck it rich.

He hurriedly asked.

"Then, Brother Skydream, what soul skills does this Soul Bone have?"

"Four."

Just as expected!

Bai Chen's eyes lit up.

Skydream Iceworm spoke leisurely.

"The four soul skills are Skydream Armor, Spiritual Prison, Cast-Off Shell Prison, and Simulation."

"Skydream Armor is a passive soul skill. Its effect is simple: it permanently enhances your defense. With it, even if you stood still and let Millennium Soul Beasts attack you, they would find it difficult to injure you."

"Spiritual Prison is a restraining soul skill. It can use your spiritual power to distort space and form an invisible prison. Spiritual Prison imposes crushing spiritual pressure on enemies inside it. Not only will their movement speed be greatly reduced, even their thinking speed will significantly slow. If the gap between their spiritual power and yours is too great, they may even fall unconscious directly."

"Cast-Off Shell Prison is also a restraining soul skill, but unlike Spiritual Prison, it can only be used once a month. Once used, you must wait another month before using it again. However, its restraining power is likewise far beyond anything Spiritual Prison can compare to. With your current strength, you could even forcibly trap a Soul Saint for an hour."

"As for the final skill, Simulation, it is one of our Ice Silkworm Clan's innate abilities. It can create illusions by distorting light, and it can also use spiritual power to simulate an aura. It is an extremely useful soul skill. Most importantly, its consumption is the lowest among these four soul skills, so you must make good use of it in the future."

"..."

Bai Chen fell silent.

Sure enough, soul skills granted by Soul Bones were generally stronger than those granted by Soul Rings...

What was with these four soul skills? This was far too outrageous.

They had raw power, they had mechanics. Even if Yu Xiaogang at the beginning had absorbed this Soul Bone, he would probably have been able to challenge a Soul King head-on.

Skydream Iceworm chuckled happily.

"Well? Scared?"

"Yes, I really am. They're too strong."

Bai Chen took a deep breath and nodded honestly.

Anyone who was not scared would be a ghost.

"Heh heh."

Skydream Iceworm snickered twice, then suddenly transformed into a blond youth. Throwing an arm around Bai Chen's shoulders, he said.

"Let me tell you, this is only the beginning. My cultivation and origin energy have both been brought into your Spiritual Sea. With my help, even if all your remaining Soul Rings were ten-year Soul Rings, I could forcibly raise them to the hundred-thousand-year level. With your talent and my support, becoming a god is absolutely not empty talk!"

"Mm."

Bai Chen already knew this.

In the original Douluo II, even though Skydream Iceworm's origin had nearly been blown apart by the Snow Empress in the Clear Sky Sect, he had still retained enough strength to help Huo Yuhao condense his First Soul Core.

The total amount of energy contained in his origin was no trivial matter. This was the power of a genuine Million-Year Soul Beast. In terms of sheer quantity alone, even Di Tian and the Evil-Eyed Tyrant Ruler might not have been able to compare with him.

Future Prediction

"Alright, let's leave it at that for now. If I keep chatting with you, those bastards outside might start getting anxious."

Skydream Iceworm released Bai Chen's shoulder and waved at him.

"You should go out first. Remember to cultivate to Rank 20 quickly. By then, I'll have the ability to help you obtain an ice-attribute second Martial Soul."

As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Chen felt his vision distort. When he came back to his senses, he had already returned to the Core Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest.

He blinked, sat up from the ground, and walked out of the cave where Skydream Iceworm had originally been imprisoned.

"You're awake."

Di Tian had been sitting at the cave entrance waiting for him. Seeing that he had awakened, Di Tian asked calmly.

"What did you gain?"

"A lot, but I haven't used these soul skills yet, so..."

At this point, Bai Chen suddenly had an idea and asked.

"Senior, may I spar with you?"

The best way to familiarize himself with his abilities was to fight a strong opponent, and there just happened to be one standing before him.

Di Tian would not take his life anyway, so he was perfectly suited to be a sparring partner.

"Oh? Me?"

Di Tian stared at him with a faintly amused expression for a moment before standing up.

"Very well. Let me see what you have gained. I will suppress my strength to the same level as yours. Do not disappoint me."

"Yes. Please excuse my offense!"

Bai Chen took a deep breath. A crimson third eye opened on his forehead, while both his hair and eyes turned golden. At the same time, a golden Soul Ring slowly rose around him.

"Hm?"

Golden?

Skydream Iceworm's lazy voice sounded in his mind.

"It is golden, that's right. This is the unique Soul Ring color of a Million-Year Soul Beast. When you're outside, just use Simulation to conceal it."

"...Understood."

Bai Chen steadied his emotions and activated the first soul skill Skydream Iceworm had given him: Spiritual Detection.

The four soul skills granted by Skydream Iceworm's Soul Ring were the same as in the original work: Spiritual Detection, Spiritual Sharing, Spiritual Disturbance, and Soul Shock.

These four soul skills were all simple and practical. Even after Huo Yuhao became a god, the four soul skills granted by Skydream Iceworm remained among his favorite abilities to use.

However, the moment Bai Chen used Spiritual Detection, he discovered that his Spiritual Detection seemed somewhat different from Huo Yuhao's.

Two images actually appeared in his mind at once.

For some reason, he immediately understood that the two images showed the "present" and "future" that he had detected.

"Wait a moment, Senior. Let me share my soul skill with you."

"Hm? I do not mind."

Hearing this, Di Tian lowered his spiritual defenses.

Bai Chen shared Spiritual Detection with him and asked.

"Senior, how many images appeared in your mind?"

"One. Why?"

Hearing Di Tian's immediate answer, Bai Chen sank into thought.

So Spiritual Sharing could not share these images of the future with others...

According to his senses, his Spiritual Detection could detect scenes one second into the future.

Moreover, his instincts told him this was not "future prediction," but "future precognition."

In other words, what he saw was a future that had already taken shape, not an uncertain answer derived through prediction. As long as he did not actively change the future he saw, that scene would definitely occur.

Huo Yuhao had not possessed such an ability in the original work. This unusual mutation was clearly brought about by his Three-Eyed Golden Lion Martial Soul.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's unique destiny attribute gave him a certain ability to perceive fate, causing his Spiritual Detection to undergo a mutation as well.