External Soul Bone

"Is this... a Soul Bone?" Xu Tianchen could not help asking.

It was a violet-black vertical eye about three inches in diameter. Its pupil was diamond-shaped, its sclera dark gray, and it was covered in dense purple patterns. A faint glimmer seemed to flicker deep within the pupil.

The entire eye was surrounded by a faint purple force field, giving it an oddly imposing presence.

"That's right. This is a Soul Bone, and an extremely rare External Soul Bone at that." Kong Deming sounded somewhat awed.

"You probably know that a normal Spirit Master can only absorb six Soul Bones in their lifetime: a head Soul Bone, a torso bone, and Soul Bones corresponding to the four limbs. Like Spirit Rings, once a normal Spirit Master absorbs a Soul Bone, it cannot be replaced, nor can its age increase further. But External Soul Bones are an exception. They do not count among the standard six Soul Bones, and after being absorbed, they can grow along with the Spirit Master's strength."

Xu Tianchen took the External Soul Bone, his face slightly blank.

As a transmigrator, of course he knew what an External Soul Bone was.

But a mere nine-hundred-year Evil Eye had actually dropped a Soul Bone, and an External Soul Bone at that. Was he really the protagonist?

Just as Xu Tianchen began doubting himself, the Plane Spirit's earlier words suddenly surfaced in his mind. It had bestowed all its remaining fate and Plane Power upon him.

It seemed powerful fate truly had tremendous uses.

After all, what normal person could get a nine-hundred-year Evil Eye to drop an External Soul Bone? Even a regular Soul Bone would have been highly unlikely. No wonder those great powers cared so much about competing for fate!

The benefits were enormous.

Seeing Xu Tianchen stare silently at the External Soul Bone, Kong Deming decided to explain things to his beloved great-grandson.

"Evil Eyes are already among the top tier of soul beasts, and this one was a Mutant Evil Eye that had evolved a top-grade destruction attribute. Although it only had nine hundred years of cultivation, it was still understandable for it to drop a Soul Bone."

"You should know that powerful soul beasts have a much higher chance of dropping Soul Bones than ordinary ones. And strength here does not refer solely to a soul beast's cultivation age; it can also refer to the strength of its bloodline. Clearly, this Mutant Evil Eye belonged to the latter category."

"But honestly, I'm still surprised that this Evil Eye produced an External Soul Bone. It was unexpected, yet perfectly reasonable."

Speaking of this Soul Bone, one had to mention the peculiar race known as Evil Eyes.

Normal soul beasts could produce any one of the six standard Soul Bones. At worst, they might produce an External Soul Bone with their own distinctive traits. Even spiritual-type soul beasts were no exception, though the Soul Bones they produced were more likely to be head Soul Bones than those of other parts.

But the peculiar Evil Eye race could only produce head Soul Bones—or eye-shaped External Soul Bones like the one Xu Tianchen had obtained.

Even if a Spirit Master who already possessed a head Soul Bone killed a hundred-thousand-year Evil Eye Tyrant, the usual rules of the world dictated that a hundred-thousand-year soul beast would definitely drop a Soul Bone, and it would be one the killer did not already possess. But Evil Eye Tyrants were different. Whether you had a head Soul Bone or not, they would drop a head Soul Bone. Absorb it or don't.

See? Wasn't I right, Xiao Huo?

"Since you absorbed this soul beast's Spirit Ring, absorb this External Soul Bone quickly to avoid complications. After all, only when the Spirit Ring and Soul Bone produced by the same soul beast are absorbed by the same person can they achieve an effect greater than one plus one."

After saying that, Kong Deming patted Xu Tianchen on the shoulder and urged him on.

"I understand."

Xu Tianchen nodded, then lifted the eye and placed it against the center of his forehead.

Absorbing a Soul Bone was much easier than absorbing a Spirit Ring. Unless it was a special Soul Bone with attribute restrictions, even a Spirit Scholar could absorb a hundred-thousand-year Soul Bone.

After Xu Tianchen used his soul power to connect with the External Soul Bone, it naturally transformed into a mass of light and shadow, merging directly into the center of his forehead. In the end, it became a purple marking, lending his originally refined face a trace of eerie charm.

Compared to the pressure and swelling pain in his body and meridians when absorbing a Spirit Ring, absorbing this External Soul Bone felt distinctly comfortable. It was as if his entire body were soaking in a hot spring.

This was the sign of compatibility between a Soul Bone and a Spirit Master. When they were compatible, absorption was especially easy and comfortable. If they were incompatible, the opposite would happen. The Spirit Master would suffer immense pain, and it could even result in incalculable aftereffects.

Very soon, Xu Tianchen finished absorbing the External Soul Bone. It could even be said that he had achieved perfect fusion. Unlike Tang San, who had needed to spend a great deal of time controlling the Eight Spider Lance after absorbing it, Xu Tianchen needed no such adjustment.

Once Xu Tianchen had completely fused with the Soul Bone, he mastered it and understood all of its abilities.

"Mm... that felt so good."

After absorbing the Soul Bone, Xu Tianchen opened his eyes, stretched lazily, and could not help letting out a soft exclamation.

"What is the Soul Bone skill?" Kong Deming asked eagerly after seeing that Xu Tianchen had finished.

"Annihilation Soul Tribulation. It can unleash a spiritual attack carrying the destruction attribute. Its power depends on how much spiritual power the user puts into it. If I used all my spiritual power for a full-force strike right now, I could probably injure a Soul King who does not specialize in spiritual abilities," Xu Tianchen replied.

"A very good skill."

Kong Deming was almost numb by now. An absurdly powerful soul skill would have been enough, yet Xu Tianchen had also obtained a Soul Bone—an External Soul Bone, no less. Most importantly, the skill of this Soul Bone was equally outrageous.

Kong Deming could not help wondering whether this Mutant Evil Eye had fallen from the God Realm. Otherwise, how could it provide such a powerful Spirit Ring and Soul Bone?

"Come, test your soul power again and see whether it has increased."

As he spoke, Kong Deming took out that familiar crystal ball again and handed it to Xu Tianchen.

Xu Tianchen's face immediately twitched. He accepted the crystal ball and poured his soul power into it. Instantly, light burst from the crystal ball, and a number appeared at its center.

14.

Although it was only a nine-hundred-year External Soul Bone, together with the residual energy left from absorbing the Spirit Ring, it had still pushed Xu Tianchen to level 14.

After the test, Xu Tianchen was about to return the crystal ball to Kong Deming when Kong Deming waved his hand. "No need. Keep it yourself."

With Xu Tianchen's current level 14 soul power, he might break through to level 20 at the age of eight, perhaps even seven.

Xu Tianran, who was three years older than Xu Tianchen, had only broken through to level 20 not long ago. And that was despite Xu Tianran also possessing Innate Full Soul Power, an exceptionally powerful Purple Radiance Annihilating Heaven Dragon martial soul, and a constant supply of resources from the royal residence.

If Xu Tianchen could achieve it one or two years earlier, then during the few short years of a Spirit Master's golden cultivation period, one step ahead meant every step ahead. Kong Deming even felt that his great-grandson might one day become a god and a legend of the Sun Moon Empire.

Now that the Spirit Ring had been absorbed, the Soul Bone had been absorbed, and both skills had been understood, this soul-hunting expedition had come to a perfect conclusion.

Kong Deming led Xu Tianchen and his grandfather swiftly away from the Evil Demon Forest, flying in the direction of Mingdu.

Their two-day wilderness survival experience had expired. Next came a return to the bustle of the city.