Lightning Attraction

Two days later, evening.

"Rumble...!" The setting sun burned warmly as mist carried moisture up the mountain peaks, only to be swept into the clouds by the warm breeze. The already somewhat murky Dark Clouds finally buckled under the burden, and pooled water poured down like a vast curtain amid rolling thunder.

Rain and sunset went hand in hand, nature's masterful handiwork unfolding like a painting across the mountain range.

The next day, afternoon.

"Mm." Yang Yunhai slowly woke. "Drip, drip..." Before he even opened his eyes, the patter of rain reached his ears, while a cool gust carrying moisture rushed into his face.

Perhaps because he had slept too long, or perhaps because the cool wind triggered a stress response in his body, Yang Yunhai shot upright. His eyes widened as he looked around. Deep water had already accumulated on the ground near the cave entrance, less than two meters from where he sat.

"Damn, I almost got flooded. Good thing I saw this coming and picked a cave on higher ground. Mountain weather really changes in the blink of an eye!"

Muttering to himself, he looked outside the cave.

"Rumble..." The rain had already weakened, but low, muffled thunder could still be heard in the air.

"This rain has probably been falling for quite a while."

But at least it was still raining, and there was thunder too... Thinking of that, he could not help turning toward the stone wall beside him. A bamboo tube lay at an angle inside the Lead Box, a tender azure sprout extending from its opening.

"Mm?" Yang Yunhai's pupils instantly contracted.

"So it really is conscious?" Frowning slightly, he reached out to pick up the bamboo tube and stared at the sprout, lost in thought.

To be honest, he really wanted to use the bamboo tube to grind the Blue Silver Emperor's main body into a fine pulp and drink it. During the grinding process, the Blue Silver Emperor's soul might dissipate because it could no longer endure, which would undoubtedly make things much safer.

But when he recalled the descriptions of the Shrek Seven Devils consuming Immortal Herbs in the original work, they all seemed to swallow the entire plant whole. Crushing it with external means might cause its potency to dissipate.

That was clearly not something he wanted to see. He truly knew nothing about medicinal properties, nor did he dare gamble on it.

The only thing he knew was that Blue Silver Grass, a plant-type Soul Beast, was indeed nonpoisonous. Eating it would not cause any problems. He had plucked and eaten several stalks back in the village, and nothing had happened.

The village's pigs, sheep, horses, and cattle ate it every day without issue too.

So, he felt that eating the juvenile Blue Silver Emperor in his hand should not poison him. The only thing he needed to worry about was the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's soul hidden inside it.

What if it gave him a Soul Impact after he swallowed it?

If it really did, he definitely would not be able to withstand it! It was the soul of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, while he was still just a child!

So he had to find a way to deal with it!

Consuming it while bathing in lightning was his solution.

They said thunder belonged to yang and naturally restrained yin entities. Lightning should have some suppressive effect on souls separated from their bodies. Besides, most plant-type Soul Beasts were weak against lightning. That was practically common knowledge throughout the Spirit Master world.

Thunder Tribulations in this world only targeted Soul Beasts, and he felt that lightning had a suppressive effect on most Soul Beasts.

Of course, that was only his guess.

However, lightning could temper the body. Having experienced it firsthand, he understood that deeply.

Therefore, in his view, consuming the Blue Silver Emperor's main body while bathing in lightning might even promote the absorption of its medicinal effects and accelerate the evolution of his bloodline. Besides, the Soul Bone he had just absorbed might also fuse more perfectly.

Most importantly, after absorbing the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, his Soul Power had reached level 27, increasing by more than five full levels. His physical strength had also surged, and he had obtained a crucial Soul Bone skill that he believed could support his consumption plan.

A wildfire could not burn it all away; when the spring breeze blew, it grew again!

The powerful healing ability attached to this skill might allow his body to withstand several bolts of lightning in succession.

If one bolt was not enough, then let them strike continuously! That would surely impose greater suppression or even damage upon the Blue Silver Emperor's soul, while also delivering a stronger tempering effect to his body.

As for whether he would live or die afterward, or whether his bloodline could evolve, that would depend on fate. He only knew that this was a rare opportunity, one he had waited far too long for.

No matter what, he had to give it a try!

At worst, he would die. It was not as if he had never died before! He needed to lie low when the time called for it, but when an opportunity came to risk his life, he still had to take it. Such opportunities in life were few and far between... After repeatedly encouraging himself, Yang Yunhai gritted his teeth, sprang to his feet, and quickly slipped out of the cave.

He strode to a patch of grass nearby and sat down directly.

After absorbing the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, he had already reached his peak condition. There was no need for further adjustment.

He raised his head to look at the sky. Dark Clouds still blanketed it densely, so he immediately lowered his head and opened the bamboo tube, revealing the Blue Silver Emperor within.

Then he summoned his martial soul and activated his Thunder Attribute.

After years of practice, he could already restrain his martial soul's aura and avoid being struck by lightning accidentally. In other words, drawing lightning had become one of his active skills.

His Heart Separation Control training had not gone to waste either.

"Boom!" Not long after the Soul Power in his body began to circulate, an arm-thick bolt of lightning fell straight down, striking Yang Yunhai squarely in the back. Every blade of grass around him stood on end.

As though it sensed something, the Blue Silver Emperor beside him began to twist unnaturally, as if frightened.

Yang Yunhai turned to look at it, his face filled with a sigh. "Sorry, I have no choice! More accurately, after coming into this world, there are many things neither of us gets to choose."

"Who told you to be a Soul Beast, while I'm human?"

With that, Yang Yunhai grabbed the bamboo tube, dug in with both hands, and pulled the Blue Silver Emperor out by the roots. He then carefully washed its roots in a small puddle beside him.

The next moment, he gathered the roots into a clump, opened his mouth, and swiftly stuffed the whole thing inside. He chewed and swallowed at the same time, a faint sweetness instantly filling his mouth.

At the same time, his Soul Power began circulating faster.

"Boom!" The clouds overhead responded. As Lightning Snakes writhed within them, an arm-thick bolt of lightning instantly crashed down.

Then came the second bolt, the third, the fourth...

"Ah!" Peals of thunder rang in his ears, while pained groans echoed in his mind. He could not tell whether they were his own or someone else's, only vaguely making out what seemed to be a woman's voice.

Needle-like pain swept through his entire body, as though the meridians throughout him were about to tear apart. Yet soon, a cool sensation followed, easing the agony in his body and meridians somewhat.

But pain remained the predominant sensation.

It was so painful that he forgot everything else.

He could only focus on what was happening within his body while barely splitting his attention to activate the Soul Bone skill, Wildfire Burns Incessantly, Spring Breeze Brings New Life.

"Rumble..." When the sixth bolt of lightning struck him, Yang Yunhai could clearly feel the tearing pain turn scorching hot. It was not just his meridians and muscles—every blood vessel in his body seemed to be burning, especially around his heart.

Is it working? The searing pain gave him a different sensation from before. Though it was even more agonizing than before, it also gave him greater courage to face it.

"Rumble!" Another bolt of lightning descended, striking Yang Yunhai's body, whose skin had already turned crimson and begun to emit a faint mist. "Rip!" The next moment, his skin split inch by inch, and streams of black fluid seeped out.

At the same time, the pain coming from his internal meridians seemed to change. The needle-like stabbing pain continued to spread, reaching places it had never reached before.

It was as though a force of spear cavalry was charging through his meridians, breaking through camps and strongholds, bringing an inexplicable sense of unobstructed flow.

The next moment, "Boom!" another bolt of lightning fell. Intense stabbing pain shot from the back of his head and cervical spine through all four limbs, accompanied by continuous crackling sounds of bones grinding.

"Pfft!" Unable to suppress it, a mouthful of blood surged into his mouth, only for Yang Yunhai to grit his teeth and swallow it back down.

I can't hold on much longer! He could clearly feel his physical body nearing its limit. Violent Thunder Attribute energy surged through every part of his meridians, about to fill his entire body.

He felt as though he was about to explode!

If that truly happened, then even with his immensely powerful healing-type Soul Bone skill, he would never be able to save his own life.

Fortunately, the scorching sensation within his body seemed to be fading. An inexplicable coolness rose from his heart, barely holding back the invading Thunder Attribute energy.

Then, without warning, an even cooler aura suddenly shot from his lower abdomen into his right leg.

It vanished immediately afterward.

"???" Yang Yunhai instantly had a bad feeling. It seemed that the soul of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast could reside within a Soul Bone—Da Ming and Er Ming had done so in the original story.

And this Soul Bone of his had come from the Blue Silver Emperor, whose original body he had just swallowed.

That lightning didn't disperse it?

The thought had barely surfaced when "Boom!" another bolt of lightning struck, landing directly on the side of his upper thigh.

Yang Yunhai's mind instantly went blank.

His entire body shuddered, and he fell straight onto his side.

The Lightning Snakes in the air gradually dispersed, while the rain continued to patter down, splashing against Yang Yunhai's charred body.