It was obvious at a glance that the ritual had gone extremely smoothly. Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had successfully fused with Bai Chen.
After several months of waiting, Bai Chen had finally completed his transformation from Soul Scholar to Soul Master. If Di Tian's senses were correct, his Soul Power should have leaped straight to Rank Fourteen.
If the Scorpion Tiger had been the first Soul Spirit to appear in this world, then Sky Dream Ice Silkworm 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.
At that moment, Bai Chen's consciousness sank hazily into the depths of his Spiritual Sea.
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm..."
As soon as he arrived, he saw a massive Ice Silkworm repeatedly nodding, as though studying something.
Bai Chen's mouth twitched as he called out, "Brother Sky Dream, what are you doing?"
Hearing his voice, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm hurriedly turned around.
"Oh, Bai Chen, you're awake? I was looking through your memories."
His eyes gleamed, and he looked full of anticipation.
"I only realized after seeing your memories that the human world is so interesting. When are we leaving?"
For Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, whose life had consisted of either the Extreme Northern Icefield or the Star Dou Great Forest, the human world was simply too dazzling.
He had long since grown sick of that empty, boring life, and he now desperately wanted to leave the Star Dou Great Forest with Bai Chen.
External Soul Bone: Skin
Bai Chen said helplessly, "Brother Sky Dream, don't rush. Tell me first—how did the fusion go?"
"Hehe, you don't trust me?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm immediately laughed smugly.
"Of course it was an absolute success! Let me tell you, even the me from that future era might not have done as well as I have now!"
"Oh? Why do you say that?"
Bai Chen was somewhat curious.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm 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 brain froze for a moment. Once he recovered, he hurriedly asked, "What Soul Bone is it?"
This was a Million-Year Soul Beast-level Soul Bone. The Soul Ring Sky Dream Ice Silkworm provided could grant four Soul Skills, so what about the Soul Bone corresponding to that Soul Ring?
Seeing Bai Chen so eager, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's vanity was clearly greatly satisfied. He laughed. "To avoid taking up one of your Soul Bone slots, I specially condensed an External Soul Bone. I turned my silkworm skin into a skin-type External Soul Bone, and it has already fused with you."
"..."
Bai Chen was speechless for a moment.
There were countless varieties of External Soul Bones, strange and bizarre in every way. Common ones included the right palm and left shoulder, while unusual ones included the Eight Spider Lances and Evil Eye. Yet regardless of their type, every External Soul Bone brought an incomparably enormous boost to a Soul Master.
The Darkgolden Terrorclaw Right Palm Bone Bai Chen possessed in the Douluo II Era was one of the finest External Soul Bones. It gave Bai Chen formidable offensive power and also granted him a means of mid-range attack, excelling in both utility and actual combat.
But compared to this Skin External Soul Bone provided by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, the Darkgolden Terrorclaw Right Palm Bone seemed utterly inferior.
Skin itself was one of the human body's vital organs. Its ability to cover the entire body meant it was closely tied to a Soul Master's defensive capabilities.
In Douluo II, the Body Martial Soul of the genius Long Aotian was skin. It was a Silver Rank Body Martial Soul on the same level as the brain and Spirit Eyes. Relying on the unique traits of his Skin Martial Soul, Long Aotian's combat strength was extraordinarily outrageous, making him a strong contender for the number one figure of the younger generation aside from the protagonist.
The Skin External Soul Bone Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had given Bai Chen might not necessarily be any weaker than Long Aotian's Martial Soul.
After all, an External Soul Bone could gradually evolve alongside a Soul Master's growth. The Skin Soul Bone Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had brought already had an extremely high starting point, and with its ability to grow, Bai Chen believed its power would never be inferior to a true Skin Martial Soul.
The question was, why had Sky Dream Ice Silkworm been unable to give Huo Yuhao such an External Soul Bone, yet could do so for him?
Could it really have been a matter of technique?
Bai Chen thought that was unlikely.
After pondering for a while, he gradually came to a conjecture.
Perhaps the reason lay in the ten thousand years separating the two eras.
In the original Douluo II, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had indeed used the power of his cast-off shell. But after using it once to seal Ice Empress, that priceless treasure had been completely ruined.
Ultimately, though, it had failed because of an energy issue. Aside from his most precious origin energy, nearly all of Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's 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 he knew, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had not been captured for very long in this era. The energy in his body could not be called completely intact, but the loss was insignificant.
That was why he had enough energy to transform his cast-off shell into a Million-Year-level Soul Bone and fuse it with Bai Chen.
At this thought, Bai Chen's heart burned with excitement.
This time, he had truly struck it rich.
He hurriedly asked, "Then, Brother Sky Dream, what Soul Skills does this Soul Bone have?"
"Four."
Just as expected!
Bai Chen's eyes lit up.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm said unhurriedly, "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 just stood there and let Millennium Soul Beasts attack you, they would have a hard time hurting you."
"Spiritual Prison is a restraining Soul Skill. It uses your spiritual power to distort space and form an invisible cage. The Spiritual Prison places immense mental pressure on enemies inside it. Not only will their movement speed be greatly reduced, even their thinking speed will drop significantly. 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, this one can only be used once a month. Once used, you must wait another month before using it again. In return, its binding strength is 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 Simulation, it is one of the innate abilities of our Ice Silkworm Clan. It can create illusions by distorting light, and it can also use spiritual power to imitate auras. It is an extremely useful Soul Skill. Most importantly, it consumes the least among these four Soul Skills. You must make good use of it in the future."
"..."
Bai Chen fell silent.
Sure enough, the Soul Skills provided by Soul Bones were generally stronger than those from Soul Rings...
What was with these four Soul Skills? Wasn't this completely ridiculous?
They had raw power, they had mechanics. Even if Yu Xiaogang had absorbed this Soul Bone at the start, he would probably have been able to challenge a Soul King directly.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm chuckled happily. "Well? Scared?"
"Yes, I'm really scared. They're too strong."
Bai Chen took a deep breath and nodded honestly.
Anyone who was not scared would have to be insane.
"Hehe."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm chuckled twice, then suddenly transformed into a blond-haired 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 are Ten-Year Soul Rings, I can forcibly raise them to the hundred-thousand-year level. With your talent and my support, becoming a god is absolutely no empty boast!"
"Mm."
Bai Chen already knew this.
In the original Douluo II, even though Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's origin had nearly been blown apart by Snow Empress in the Clear Sky Sect, he still had enough power left 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 compare to him.
Future Prediction
"Alright, let's stop here for now. If we keep chatting, those bastards outside might start getting anxious."
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm released Bai Chen's shoulder and waved at him.
"Go out first. Remember to cultivate to Rank Twenty quickly. Once you reach that point, 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. By the time he came back to himself, he had returned to the Core Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest.
He blinked, sat up from the ground, and walked out of the cave that had once imprisoned Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.
"You're awake."
Di Tian was sitting outside the cave entrance waiting for him. Seeing that he had awakened, he asked calmly, "What did you gain?"
"A lot, but I haven't used these Soul Skills yet, so..."
As he spoke, 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 he happened to have one standing before him.
Di Tian would not take his life anyway, so he was perfectly suited to serve as a sparring partner.
"Oh? Me?"
Di Tian stared at him with an amused smile for a while, then stood up.
"Very well. Let me see what you have gained. I'll suppress my power to your level. Don't disappoint me."
"Yes. Please forgive any offense!"
Bai Chen took a deep breath. A crimson third eye opened atop his head, while the tips of his hair and his eyes both turned golden. At the same time, a golden Soul Ring slowly rose around him.
"Hm?"
Golden?
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's lazy voice sounded in his mind.
"That's right, it's gold. This is the unique Soul Ring color of a Million-Year Soul Beast like me. When you move around outside, just use Simulation to conceal it."
"...Got it."
Bai Chen steadied his emotions and activated the first Soul Skill Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had given him: Spiritual Detection.
The four Soul Skills granted by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's Soul Ring were the same as in the original work: Spiritual Detection, Spiritual Sharing, Spiritual Disturbance, and Soul Shock.
All four were simple and practical. Even after Huo Yuhao became a god, these four Soul Skills given by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm remained among his favorite abilities to use.
However, the moment Bai Chen used Spiritual Detection, he discovered that his Spiritual Detection seemed a little different from Huo Yuhao's.
Two images actually appeared in his mind at once.
For some reason, he instantly understood that the two images represented the "present" and the "future" he had detected.
"Please wait a moment, Senior. Let me share my Soul Skill with you."
"Hm? That is fine."
Upon hearing that, Di Tian lowered his mental defenses.
Bai Chen shared his Spiritual Detection with him and asked, "Senior, how many images appeared in your mind?"
"One. Why?"
Hearing Di Tian's immediate answer, Bai Chen fell into thought.
So Spiritual Sharing could not share this image of the future with others...
According to his senses, the range of his Spiritual Detection extended 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 an already-formed future, not an uncertain answer produced by prediction. So long as he did not actively alter the future he saw, that scene would certainly happen.
Huo Yuhao had not possessed such an ability in the original work. This unusual mutation had clearly been brought about by his Three-Eyed Golden Lion Martial Soul.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's unique Fate Attribute had granted him a certain ability to perceive fate, causing his Spiritual Detection to undergo a mutation as well.
Before you continue