Third Soul Skill: Fallen Wings

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Chapter 32: Third Soul Skill: Fallen Wings

The soul's resentment contained within the Dark Swan's Soul Ring was separated out, then swiftly merged into Ye Xixuan's Martial Soul Origin through the Mind Demon Marks covering his body.

With the enhancement provided by the Mind Demon Marks, he could now fully withstand the impacts on his spiritual power and Soul Power during the absorption process.

The Soul Power inside him surged violently through his meridians as though boiling, yet Ye Xixuan focused inward, calmly assimilating and absorbing it little by little. Although his bones, muscles, and meridians ached and swelled to varying degrees, his expression remained unchanged.

Mu En observed Ye Xixuan from beside him, only withdrawing his attention once the boy's aura had completely stabilized.

Talent was one thing, but possessing such composure at Ye Xixuan's age was equally rare.

As a top-tier Soul Beast comparable to the Emerald Swan, the Dark Swan's Soul Ring was far from easy to absorb. Its attributes and energy were worlds apart from those of other Soul Beasts, and absorbing it inevitably brought pain beyond what an ordinary person could endure.

Had it been another Darkness Attribute Soul Beast, Ye Xixuan might even have been able to attempt absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

His third Soul Ring, a deep, rich purple with a certain density to it, pulsed up and down around Ye Xixuan's body. Black-purple light gradually disappeared into him, while he remained seated and motionless.

Absorbing this Soul Ring took longer than either of his previous two. From morning until evening, the process lasted more than twelve hours, far exceeding the time a Soul Master normally needed to fuse with a Soul Ring.

Unlike ordinary Soul Masters, Ye Xixuan was an Ultimate Attribute Soul Master. From the moment his Martial Soul awakened, the Soul Power within him would compress itself as he cultivated. This compression reached an almost outrageous degree between Level 30 and Level 70, laying deep foundations for an explosive rise in his later cultivation.

Of course, benefits and drawbacks always went hand in hand.

Although Ultimate Attribute Soul Masters cultivated slowly during this stage, they encountered no bottlenecks. Once they accumulated enough, they could break through with ease.

The real reason Ye Xixuan had spent so long absorbing the Dark Swan's Soul Ring was that he was converting his existing Soul Power into its extremely compressed form. Refining and transforming his Soul Power required time.

Night fell once more, and the silver moon seemed to hang directly above the Sea God Pavilion. Cool moonlight shrouded the clearing before the pavilion, casting crisp shadows of the Golden Tree's lush branches and leaves across the ground, where they swayed gently in the breeze.

Ye Xixuan's Soul Power had been contained within him just moments earlier, but his entire aura suddenly grew restless. The instant he opened his eyes, three magnificent purple Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet, flashing one after another like ripples on water.

An uncanny light flickered in his eyes, and every movement carried an indescribable air of mystery. He rose lightly from the ground, like a proud black swan stretching its body.

Then, in the very next moment, a pair of ink-black feathered wings grew out of thin air behind Ye Xixuan.

His wings beat sharply, carrying him into the sky in an instant. A thick layer of black-purple light coated their feathers. Suspended beneath the silver moon, he resembled a fallen angel descended into the mortal world, cold and sinister as he looked down upon all living beings.

"Fallen Wings..." Through the spiritual imprint in his mind, Ye Xixuan had already learned the details of his third Soul Skill.

Flight was merely one of its secondary effects. The primary function of Fallen Wings was to gather pure Darkness Attribute elements, accelerating his Soul Power recovery and greatly enhancing the power of his Soul Skills.

It was unquestionably an extremely powerful enhancement-type Soul Skill.

Its ability to accelerate Soul Power recovery was the rarest benefit of all. It was almost equivalent to a weakened Soul Core, greatly improving his ability to sustain prolonged combat.

With that gap filled, Ye Xixuan finally had no weaknesses left.

Yet little of a smile appeared on his face. Instead, he frowned slightly, then focused his attention on the black wings spread behind him.

The Dark Swan's innate ability should have been Dark Wings. His third Soul Skill was called Fallen Wings because pure evil had been blended into its Darkness Attribute foundation.

That evil naturally came from Ma Xiaotao's Evil Fire.

Although Ye Xixuan himself had suffered no effects, that evil had remained deep within his Martial Soul Origin. Every time he helped Ma Xiaotao dispel her Evil Fire, it left another trace there.

At last, it had manifested when he acquired his third Soul Ring.

While using Fallen Wings, Ye Xixuan could clearly feel the evil, fallen aura influencing his emotions. However, his heart remained exceptionally pure, so it was not enough to affect his personality.

At most, his conduct in battle would take on a sinister edge.

With Fallen Wings active, he looked exactly like someone who truly possessed a fallen angel Martial Soul.

With a thought, a Dark Demon Sword engraved with intricate patterns appeared in Ye Xixuan's right hand. Enhanced by Fallen Wings, the sword flickered with black-purple lightning, seemingly distorting even the space around it.

"Won't people really mistake me for an Evil Soul Master like this?"

Ye Xixuan withdrew his Martial Soul and drifted down from the sky, the corner of his mouth twitching despite himself.

His Darkness Attribute Martial Soul had already been enough to invite misunderstandings. Now he had a Soul Skill like Fallen Wings on top of that.

With those thoughts on his mind, Ye Xixuan slowly entered the first-floor hall of the Sea God Pavilion.

A rich golden radiance suffused the hall, and he immediately spotted Mu En reclining in a wooden chair.

"Mu En, my third Soul Skill..."

"Has been tainted with evil, has it?" Mu En opened his cloudy eyes and smiled faintly, seemingly unsurprised.

"I sensed it the very first time you helped Xiaotao dispel her Evil Fire. This is a characteristic of your Martial Soul, as well as a talent with which you are uniquely blessed. The dark, evil aura within your Martial Soul is the exact counterpart to your pure physique of light and holiness. As long as the two remain balanced, you will suffer no ill effects. Once you reach the Seven-Ring Soul Sage realm in the future, you will understand everything, and this will no longer trouble you."

"But won't people misunderstand?" Ye Xixuan asked instinctively.

Mu En smiled calmly. A rare, indescribable pride and confidence shone through his gentle voice, as though the Dragon God Douluo had returned to the spirited days of his youth.

"What misunderstanding? As long as Shrek Academy stands, no one will dare say a word. Besides, the evil aura within your Martial Soul will not affect you personally. What I'm saying may sound pragmatic, but that is simply how things are. As long as you are strong enough, you can disregard the rules-or even make them with your own hands."

(End of chapter)