Nine Heavens Thunderclap

Tang San and Xiao Wu returned to Dorm Seven.

"Xiao Wu, what did Brother Yang Xiu say to you?" Tang San asked. "You look so happy."

"Do you really want to know?" Xiao Wu slowly leaned toward Tang San until they were almost kissing. She didn't know what had made her so bold today. After gazing into each other's eyes for a while, they both blushed. Then she whispered in his ear, "Xiao San, your Sister Xiao Wu isn't telling you!" She ran off with a giggle.

Tang San watched Xiao Wu dart around the dormitory and shook his head helplessly. Her mischief was nothing new. But he had taken her as his little sister, so he had to spoil her.

He took the Elixir Yang Xiu had given him out of the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges and gazed at it quietly, lost in thought. At last, he smiled and put it away. Apart from Xiao Wu, no one had made him smile in a very, very long time.

Yang Xiu had barely begun resting at the hotel when Hong Tian and his son returned. "Sect Master, it's taken care of," Hong Tian told him. "It'll be six or seven days before we can collect the goods, so we'll have to stay here a while longer. What do you think?" he asked uneasily.

"That's fine," Yang Xiu said. "We don't have much else to do, and I still have a few things to handle in Nuoding City. We'll stay." Hong Tian nodded and withdrew without disturbing him further.

Alone in his room, Yang Xiu opened the system and looked at his summoning cards and ten thousand Soul Coins. He decided to check the system shop first. "System, open the shop." A dazzling array of goods appeared before him: Soul Bones, Soul Rings, Immortal Herbs—even the Martial Strength Pill he had already received. There were plenty of trivial items too. But however long he searched, he found no summoning cards. Anything that increased strength was expensive. Even the cheapest Immortal Herbs cost over a hundred thousand. Soul Rings were reasonably priced, at least those under a hundred thousand years old; rings above that started at two hundred thousand. The Soul Rings, Soul Bones, and Immortal Herbs here were all without fixed attributes. Like a god-bestowed Soul Ring, what they became depended on the person who absorbed them. Soul Rings, however, still came with age ranges: 100–999, 1,000–9,999, 10,000–20,000, 20,000–50,000, 50,000–99,999, and 100,000 or more, with no upper limit on the last range. After a long search, Yang Xiu finally found what he wanted: an External Soul Bone in the form of a pair of wings. Flying was a dream, and now he could make it real instead of waiting until he became a Titled Douluo.

It was a ten-thousand-year External Soul Bone and cost only twenty thousand, but he couldn't afford it. Then the system told him that his first purchase came at half price. He had been about to give up and look for a thousand-year External Soul Bone instead, so this was a windfall. Without hesitation, he bought the bone and began fusing with it.

The time it took an incense stick to burn passed.

"I didn't expect fusing with something from the system to be this easy," Yang Xiu said. "System, does the same go for Soul Rings?"

"Anything from this system will feel as though it was yours from birth. There will be no adverse reactions. Of course, if your body can't withstand it, that's not my problem."

Even so, Yang Xiu was pleased. He opened his system panel to read the External Soul Bone's abilities.

Wind-Thunder Wings: Trait: Increases your affinity with the wind in the air, giving you the sensation of becoming wind itself. You can soar through the nine heavens; the faster your body can withstand flying, the faster you can fly.

Skill: Nine Heavens Thunderclap: Forms nine Thunder Dragons that can merge into one and deliver a devastating blow. Ignores part of the enemy's defense. Cannot be dodged.

Forms nine Thunder Dragons that damage enemies within an area, also ignoring part of their defense.

"Huh? Have I just taken off? With an attack like this, I could even kill an ordinary Soul Emperor!" Yang Xiu said delightedly. "No, I need to test it against Hua Xiong."

Yang Xiu left his room and called toward Hua Xiong's. "Hua Xiong, let's go!" Then he strode out of the hotel.

On a remote mountain outside Notting City,

Yang Xiu and Hua Xiong faced each other in midair.

"Sect Master, you even have an External Soul Bone, and a wing-type one at that," Hua Xiong said. "No one below Soul Emperor should be your match." He thought of his own solitary Soul Bone, which he had earned only after a grueling trial in the system space. But all he felt toward Yang Xiu was envy. His loyalty was absolute.

"Only those below Soul Emperor?" Yang Xiu smiled. "Then try taking the skill from my External Soul Bone."

"Come at me, Sect Master."

Yang Xiu activated Nine Heavens Thunderclap at once. Hua Xiong already knew his other Soul Skills and how he fought, so there was no point testing the waters. Nor did Yang Xiu shout the skill's name like someone in an animated show, as if he wanted everyone to know what was coming.

Thunderclouds rolled above Yang Xiu. The sky darkened in an instant as lightning gathered, forming nine thunder dragons in the blink of an eye. Hua Xiong showed no reaction at first. But when the nine dragons began to merge, his expression changed. He had underestimated the Sect Master. Though he knew the attack posed no real threat to him, he released his Martial Soul. A Demon Bear appeared behind him. The nine dragons had already become one, identical to the divine dragon that was the totem of the Yanhuang people and brimming with majesty. It plunged toward Hua Xiong. He had thought it could not hurt him, but he immediately activated his Martial Soul Avatar, transformed into a Demon Bear, and roared at the dragon. He could feel that this skill could not be dodged. He had to take it head-on. The impact drove him back two or three steps in midair before he dispersed its force. He was breathing a little hard. He had been careless, and he had been unable to dodge.

After testing the skill, Yang Xiu and Hua Xiong landed.

"Sect Master, your Soul Skill locks onto its target, and it ignored part of my defense," Hua Xiong said. "A weaker Soul Emperor would die the moment it hit. Even a Soul Saint would be injured, perhaps badly if caught off guard. I underestimated you."

Yang Xiu smiled at Hua Xiong's somewhat bedraggled appearance. He was very satisfied with his External Soul Bone's skill. Now he was no longer especially weak in the world of Douluo.

But then his expression turned stern.

"Hua Xiong, do you remember how you died in your last life? Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit. I don't want you dying from carelessness again. You need to change that habit. Show some respect for the unknown."

Hua Xiong's expression shifted, and he fell silent. He remembered that last time. If he hadn't been careless, how could he have...

"Thank you, Sect Master. I understand," Hua Xiong said with unusual solemnity.

"No need to thank me. You came here because of me, and the system gave you a chance to live again. Treasure it and train hard. There are still plenty of challenges waiting for us."

"Yes, Sect Master."

Hua Xiong quietly followed Yang Xiu as he walked away, his gaze growing resolute.

Back at the hotel, Hua Xiong went straight to his room. Their conversation had made him aware of many of his shortcomings, and he began training in earnest.

Yang Xiu returned to his room. In his excitement over the External Soul Bone, he had forgotten his summoning cards. Now he prepared to use them.

"Wonder if I'm lucky enough to hit the jackpot? No, I'd better wash my hands first." Yang Xiu hurried off to do just that.

"Right, system, let's start with a Random Summoning Card and see how my luck holds." "Congratulations, host! Fortune smiles upon you. You have drawn a Top-Tier military unit: the Eighteen Riders of Yan."

"Washing my hands really worked!" Yang Xiu grinned. "System, show me the Eighteen Riders of Yan's attributes."

Name: Eighteen Riders of Yan

Martial Soul: Full Moon Scimitar

Soul Power: Levels 75–91 (the strongest is a Titled Douluo; there is one Titled Douluo, ten Soul Douluo, and seven Soul Saints. All have optimal Soul Ring configurations.)

Martial Soul Fusion Skill: Eighteen identical Soul Bones serve as the focus of a formation to achieve fusion. (In the system space, the eighteen lived together year after year, eating, sleeping, and fighting side by side. Each trusted the others with his back. Their perfect coordination allowed them to pass the trial and develop a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. Together, they form a giant thirty-three meters tall. He wears winter clothes, a scimitar at his waist, a mask over his face, and a black scarf around his head that leaves only his eyes visible. A long black cloak hangs from his shoulders. He wears steppe-style boots with daggers attached, carries a great bow and eighteen arrows on his back, and wields a Full Moon Scimitar. He can contend with a Peerless Douluo. His eighteen arrows allow him to use Nine-Star Alignment twice. He can slaughter anyone below a god.)

Yang Xiu practically drooled. "Damn, am I invincible now? I want to go wipe out Spirit Hall. No, no, I have to hold back. System, summon them!"

Eighteen voices spoke in unison.

"We pay our respects, My Lord."

Eighteen powerful figures radiating terrifying killing intent appeared before Yang Xiu. (They wore the same outfits as their fused form. As for why they had this equipment: the system did not preserve their gear from their previous lives. Instead, it provided reinforced equipment. Though it could not compare to divine artifacts, it had one trait: it could not be destroyed. Every summoned person received the same treatment and had access to a system space. That was how Hua Xiong had produced his weapon seemingly out of nowhere earlier.)