External Soul Bone: Heavenly Spider Claws

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Chapter 19: External Soul Bone: Heavenly Spider Claws

The mutated Shadow Sky Demon Spider, with three thousand years of cultivation, possessed combat strength at least equal to that of an ordinary ten-thousand-year soul beast. Unfortunately for it, its opponent was Zhang Lexuan, a top-tier Seven-Ring Soul Sage from Shrek Academy's inner court.

It was not that it refused to fight to the death with its powerful innate soul skills. Rather, under the suppression of Zhang Lexuan's overwhelming strength, it could not bring its abilities to bear at all.

Zhang Lexuan had a steady temperament. She would never be as overconfident as Xuan Zi.

With such an exceptional soul ring, perfectly suited to Ye Xixuan, she would not give the creature the slightest chance to escape. Her first priority was to reduce every uncertainty to a minimum.

"Xixuan, get ready to absorb the soul ring."

"Oh." Only after hearing Zhang Lexuan's reminder did Ye Xixuan gradually come back to his senses.

Seeing the gentle smile in Zhang Lexuan's eyes, he hurriedly cast aside his distracting thoughts. He condensed the Shadow Long Spear in his right hand and walked toward the Shadow Sky Demon Spider, step by step.

Under the suppression of Zhang Lexuan's martial soul, the Shadow Sky Demon Spider had long since lost the ability to resist. Its eight small eyes brimmed with venomous hatred.

Ye Xixuan raised the Shadow Long Spear in his right hand, then drove it hard into one of the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's eyes, directly shredding the nerves in its head.

After a violent bout of trembling, the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's body went completely rigid. A faint purple glow began to appear above its corpse, gradually condensing into a brilliant, magnificent purple soul ring.

A savage aura filled the space around the soul ring, sending out waves of mental pressure that seemed to warp even the surrounding air slightly.

Although only a ten thousand year soul ring would produce Soul Shock, lingering spiritual resentment like this existed after every soul beast's death. The stronger the soul beast, the stronger the resentment its soul left behind.

Yet upon coming into close contact with the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's lingering spiritual resentment, Ye Xixuan once again felt his martial soul stir. A glimmer of understanding dawned in his heart.

So that was it...

Over the past two years, he had come into contact with Ma Xiaotao. Just as with Tang Ya, the evil aura within the essence of Ma Xiaotao's evil fire phoenix martial soul could also stir his martial soul.

Judging by the situation before him, whether it was evil energy or resentment in the form of thoughts and intent, all of it would likely make his martial soul stir in this way.

Ye Xixuan had experimented with this before, but until now, his martial soul could only sense that evil energy and intent. Now, however, he had a strong premonition that things might change after he finished absorbing his second soul ring. He might not even need to wait until his breakthrough.

Seeing that Ye Xixuan still had not moved, Zhang Lexuan walked to his side and asked with concern, "How is it? Xixuan, are you confident you can successfully absorb this soul ring?"

"Don't worry, Sister Lexuan. There shouldn't be any problem." Ye Xixuan nodded confidently, then sat cross-legged under Zhang Lexuan's gaze and used his soul power to draw in the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's soul ring.

The purple soul ring drifted slowly toward Ye Xixuan. The moment his body touched it, eerie black demonic markings instinctively spread across his skin. The spiritual resentment contained within the soul ring's energy immediately separated and flowed into the mind demon mark of its own accord. Like a superb tonic, it left his entire body feeling wonderfully at ease and confirmed his suspicions.

Without the spiritual resentment, and with the added suppression of its attributes, the rest of Ye Xixuan's absorption proceeded smoothly. His soul power circulated rapidly through repeated cycles, and warmth filled every meridian in his body. Nourished continuously by the soul ring's energy, his body, soul power, and spiritual power all steadily rose to a higher level.

At last, Zhang Lexuan relaxed. She silently stood guard beside Ye Xixuan and nodded slightly.

"Xixuan truly has extraordinary talent. With him protecting the academy in the future, Mu En will be able to rest easy."

Ever since she had avenged her great grudge with Mu En's help all those years ago, Zhang Lexuan had lost her sense of purpose. Whether Mu En asked her to protect Shrek Academy in the future or become Bei Bei's child bride, neither had stirred much feeling in her.

She simply wanted to repay Mu En's kindness and find an emotional anchor that would let her keep living. That was all.

Thus, when Mu En later said those words to her in front of the Sea God Pavilion, her first reaction had instead been an instinctive panic at losing her purpose. Only after she took the opportunity to shift her emotional attachment to Ye Xixuan did she feel somewhat reassured.

Although Mu En had only spoken in anger at the time, how could Zhang Lexuan have failed to hear how highly he valued Ye Xixuan?

If protecting Xixuan as he grew and becoming his child bride could fulfill Mu En's lifelong wish, she was willing to do so. Perhaps she did not necessarily need to live her life for herself. Besides, she genuinely felt tenderness and affection for Ye Xixuan, whose circumstances so closely mirrored her own.

Although the mind demon mark enhanced Ye Xixuan's body and mind, absorbing the three-thousand-year Shadow Sky Demon Spider's soul ring still took quite a long time.

He spent the entire night cultivating in meditation. With Zhang Lexuan standing guard, no soul beast dared intrude.

Only at dawn did Ye Xixuan's aura gradually withdraw inward. A purple soul ring, visibly deeper in color, rose from the ground and finally settled into the position of his second soul ring. Both soul rings pulsed at the same rhythm.

Zhang Lexuan, who had been resting with her eyes closed, sensed something and opened them. Her gaze met Ye Xixuan's black eyes, which gleamed with a strange, unfathomable light. She smiled with her lips pressed together. "Congratulations, Xixuan."

"Thank you, Senior Sister. I never expected it to go so smoothly this time." After absorbing

his second thousand-year soul ring, Ye Xixuan had grown a little taller. His already fair skin had become lustrous and smooth. Perhaps influenced by the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's soul ring energy, his entire bearing had also become more inscrutable.

"And my soul power has reached rank twenty-two. I'm just a little short of breaking through to rank twenty-three."

Just as Zhang Lexuan was preparing to take Ye Xixuan back, the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's body lost the energy sustaining it. Its enormous silver carapace shattered, and two masses of silver light shot out. Powerful fluctuations of soul power instantly scattered the thick mist around them.

They were two unusual objects resembling armored gauntlets. Bright silver halos flowed over their surfaces, with intricate black patterns branded only onto their backs. Their ten long, sharp fingers corresponded precisely to the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's ten legs. Supported by the soul power they emitted, they hovered in the air, bobbing up and down.

Even with Zhang Lexuan's steady temperament, she could not keep shock from filling her face.

"External soul bones?!"

"Are those the soul bones that Shadow Sky Demon Spider dropped? Do these count as spider claws?" Ye Xixuan's eyes widened as well. He had never heard of external soul bones of this type, though gauntlet-shaped external soul bones that covered both hands certainly looked better than a certain God King's Eight Spider Lances.

Zhang Lexuan forcibly suppressed her delight and hurriedly urged Ye Xixuan, "Xixuan, you've just absorbed the Shadow Sky Demon Spider's soul ring, so you won't have any trouble absorbing this pair of external soul bones. A long night invites more dreams-hurry and absorb them before anything goes wrong!"

"Yes!" Ye Xixuan hurriedly steadied his own emotions as well and nodded hard, eager to try.

Fight! Fight! Fight! Hurry and give this little mouse your recommendation votes and monthly votes! Let's have an absolute blast!

(End of chapter)