Belly Drum

Belly Drum, once activated, consumed half of his vitality to raise his attack power to its maximum.

With a maximum boost of six attack stages, and judging by how Special Attack boosts applied to Soul Power intensity, it should, barring surprises, enhance physical strength.

A full fourfold increase in physical strength was nothing short of outrageous.

If attack truly enhanced his physical strength, then with four times the strength and the amplification from Martial Soul Possession, he would be fully capable of defeating a One-Ring Soul Master, perhaps even facing a Grand Soul Master head-on.

As for how to explain his strength suddenly increasing so dramatically after activating Belly Drum, that was easy enough—he could simply say it was an innate ability of his Martial Soul.

After all, Martial Soul abilities on Douluo Continent came in every imaginable variety. Martial Souls possessing special abilities even before obtaining Soul Rings were hardly uncommon.

He was only a little stronger, nowhere near the point of being sliced open for research.

That left a simple question: just how great was the cost of activating Belly Drum, and how long would Ingrain take to restore his condition?

"It's just using a skill. It can't possibly kill me outright, can it?" Lin Huo muttered to himself, but then quickly calmed his uneasy heart.

Belly Drum had to be tested sooner or later. Trying it now, in the safety of the academy, was better than blindly trying it for the first time when his life was on the line.

Having made his decision, Lin Huo settled himself and focused completely on Ingrain.

He circulated his level-six Soul Power without holding anything back, ultimately extending his roots six meters underground.

The Soul Power and nutrients contained within the earth were being gathered by his root system. Lin Huo closed his eyes and entered a state of deep Meditation, seeking to restore his Soul Power as quickly as possible.

Half an hour later, Lin Huo's Soul Power had fully recovered, and he was back at his peak.

The energy drawn in by his roots had accumulated to the point of nearly overflowing, waiting to pour into him again once his body began to expend itself.

Taking a deep breath, Lin Huo activated Belly Drum.

A mysterious, unknown force of unknown origin caused Lin Huo's Soul Power to boil in an instant.

Immediately afterward, a swelling sensation arose from his internal organs, spreading through his limbs and bones, into every corner of his body.

The aura gathered around Lin Huo surged to an unprecedented peak in the blink of an eye.

Yet that aura was ultimately fleeting, more like something impressive on the outside but hollow within.

Every part of his body except his head was burning, aching, and weak. Waves of exhaustion crashed over him one after another.

Yet the strange part was that, despite the unbearable weakness his body was conveying, another, more tangible feeling told Lin Huo otherwise.

He was incredibly strong right now!

To measure his strength at once, a hundred-jin stone lock had already been placed at his side.

Lin Huo bent down and grabbed its handle, preparing to exert himself, only to lift the hundred-jin stone lock before his mind even registered it.

Not lift, nor pull, but pick up! An action that took no effort at all.

He casually tossed the stone lock back and forth in his hand, and an almost arrogant grin appeared uncontrollably on Lin Huo's face.

It couldn't be helped. This Belly Drum skill was so absurdly overpowered that it was hard not to laugh after using it.

He had not even used Soul Power or Martial Soul Possession yet. If he did, his strength could rise by at least another two levels!

After conducting another simple test with the stone lock beside him, Lin Huo finally confirmed that, by the academy teachers' standards, his strength was at least comparable to that of a Grand Soul Master.

Throughout the test, Ingrain continuously drew vitality from the earth to repair his body.

About an hour later, the tearing pain within his body, the abnormal swelling sensation, and the hollow weakness all vanished without a trace.

Even when he examined himself internally through Meditation, he could find no abnormalities whatsoever.

This allowed Lin Huo to confirm that the cost caused by Belly Drum could be completely compensated for through Ingrain.

To be safe, Lin Huo familiarized himself with his physical strength while accepting the vitality supplied by Ingrain.

Another hour passed. Only when his body once again gave him the same overstuffed feeling as yesterday did Lin Huo finally deactivate Ingrain.

Four times his Soul Power intensity, four times his mental strength, and four times his physical strength empowered his body. The unprecedented sensation of power left Lin Huo feeling refreshed and invigorated.

Lin Huo strode forward and shoved open the training ground doors, then walked toward the fools sitting on the ground amid the staff's surprised stares.

"I have to say, you lot are really persistent. You'd rather bake under the blazing sun than stop blocking my way?"

Seeing their target approach, Huo Yun and his group hurriedly rose from the ground and dusted off their backsides before glaring viciously at Lin Huo.

Huo Yun stepped forward. "Kid! Remember this! My name is Huo Yun! You made us brothers wait outside, and I think you've got some real nerve!

"You can't escape this today anyway. If you know what's good for you, crawl over here and take a beating, then go pack your things and get the hell out of Sister Huo Wu's dormitory!"

The group of eight moved in response to Huo Yun's words, the other seven circling around to surround Lin Huo.

Lin Huo did not care in the slightest about being surrounded. The surging power within him gave him ample confidence.

With his arms folded across his chest, Lin Huo looked down on the leading Huo Yun and said bluntly, "Huo Wushuang doesn't dare show his face himself, so he sent a bunch of worthless trash like you? You've got plenty of nerve, but your brains are just as useless."

"Brat! Watch your damn mouth! Who are you calling worthless trash?"

"Whoever's spewing shit from his mouth is worthless trash."

"You!"

These noble-born children had never seen much of the world. A few words from Lin Huo were enough to make them flush red with anger.

Huo Yun in particular, being cursed out while Lin Huo pointed at his nose, clenched his fists in fury. His chest heaved as he panted heavily.

"I've had enough! Brat! If you've got the guts, come out and fight me one-on-one!"

"One-on-one?" Lin Huo looked around in surprise. These people had made such a big show of it that he had thought they would gang up on him the moment he came out!

But in the end, it was only a one-on-one fight? He had gone to such lengths to prepare, only for it to be a one-on-one fight. It was suddenly rather anticlimactic.

"That's right, one-on-one! What? Don't tell me you don't even have that much courage? Then I think you'd better drop out of the academy obediently!"

Seeing no reaction from Lin Huo, Huo Yun assumed that he was afraid. Without caring whether Lin Huo accepted the challenge, he smugly clenched his fists and prepared to attack.