An icy chill seeped from the crack. The fissure in the ground seemed to be violently torn open by an immense force, and chunks of earth caved inward.
Immediately afterward, a large white worm slowly crawled out of the hole. It had a pair of huge eyes, a round head, and a body fully seven meters long.
Ten golden markings wound around his body, flaunting his distinctive swagger.
"Don't be scared, don't be scared. Your bro won't... hmm?"
"Human! How is it you?"
Inside, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm felt as though towering waves were surging and churning. At that moment, he finally recognized the person before him.
And the dark figure not far away.
So familiar!
Far too familiar!
Wasn't this one of those humans who had stood by and left him to die back then?
How had he run into him?
This human was actually still smiling.
His smile was smug, giving the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm the feeling that he had been duped.
Had he been waiting specifically for him?
Cao Yu said, "Haha! Tian Meng, long time no see! Finally escaped from those Ferocious Beasts?"
"Don't you want to become my Wisdom Soul Ring? Come on, your bro will grant your wish!"
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was utterly shocked and shouted, "Ah! Human, how did you know what I was thinking?"
"A conspiracy! A conspiracy! This is all a conspiracy!"
Cao Yu neither confirmed nor denied it. "Sure, so what if it is?"
He wriggled his enormous body.
His stubby limbs waved about helplessly.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had never expected this human to admit it, let alone so readily!
"Then why didn't you save me back then? Why insist on waiting until now?"
"Di Tian and the others were clearly wary of you! If you'd saved me back then, I wouldn't have suffered so much!"
"They tortured me and whipped me every day! Every single day was miserable! Boohoo, I had it so terribly!"
Cao Yu walked over then and gently stroked his soft head, comforting him.
"All right, stop crying. Your bro knows how much you suffered. That's why I'm here now, isn't it?"
"It was all my fault for not saving you back then. You suffered so much and were wronged. I apologize. I'm sorry!"
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm asked, "Then why didn't you save me? Were you afraid of Di Tian and the others? You clearly had such a powerful expert beside you."
He gazed into the distance, putting on a profound air.
With his hands behind his back, Cao Yu said unhurriedly, "Because... your bro saw through heaven's secrets! I predicted with certainty that you would escape on your own, so there was no need to act."
"If we could win while lying down, why fight them to the death? Right, Tian Meng? Doesn't your bro have a point?"
He shook his large head, bewilderment in his eyes. Those words had ventured into a blind spot in his knowledge. Although he did not quite understand them, they sounded so reasonable!
Cao Yu urged him then, "Hurry up, Tian Meng. Make it quick. I still have to go to Shrek."
"All right... I'll start, then. Don't worry, I'll be... gentle."
He could only resign himself to his fate.
But after thinking it over carefully, he felt he was not losing out.
In a sense, did this count as hugging a thigh?
With an expert guarding him, he was clearly the best candidate for creating a god!
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm no longer felt so resistant. Instead, he grew inexplicably happy.
His enormous head pressed against Cao Yu's forehead, and his body and golden rings turned into a halo of light that poured continuously into him.
Only when his figure disappeared did everything fall quiet.
Yet the very next second, a strange phenomenon suddenly appeared in the peaceful sky.
Boom!
An enormous thunderclap resounded across the horizon. Darkness shrouded the earth, followed by a terrifying pressure descending from the heavens.
It finally turned into a dark current that burrowed into the back of Cao Yu's head.
"Ahaha, so it wasn't coming for me! That gave me such a fright..."
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was frightened by this mysterious thing that had appeared so suddenly, but then he abruptly realized something.
"Damn! You dare fight me for him!"
"Unforgivable!"
"I'll show you the power of million-year-level mental fluctuations!"
"Hiyah!"
"This is way too powerful, you bastard!"
Then the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was instantly kicked out, followed by an aged yet majestic voice.
"With sun and moon in hand, I pluck the stars; none in this world compares to me. To think that I..."
But before he could finish, a mechanical yet fantastical voice interrupted him.
It was the system's notification!
[Ding, congratulations to the host for completing the main quest!] [Main quest one: Find the Million-Year Soul Beast, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, and fuse with him. 100% complete.] [Main quest two: Fuse with the otherworldly mage, Electrolux. 100% complete.] [Congratulations to the host for receiving the rewards: 100,002,000 Gold Soul Coins, perfect fusion with the Million-Year Soul Ring, Nebula Set, Weak Immobilization Technique.] [Nebula Set: +60% undead summon count, +26% Soul Power damage, +16% Soul Power critical hit rate, -15% Soul Power consumption, +10% movement speed.] [Weak Immobilization Technique: Can be used once per day. Activation phrase: "Freeze!" Duration: 8 minutes. The target cannot move during this period!]
"What the heck! What was that?"
Both the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and Elder Yi were startled. Neither had expected three different voices to exist inside such a small body!
They were the outsiders!
However, Elder Yi gave it no further thought and entered a dormant state the next second.
Only the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm remained there, trembling.
Suddenly, all the vast Soul Power within the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm poured into Cao Yu's body. With the system's help, a brilliant golden Million-Year Soul Ring successfully fused with his primary Martial Soul.
The next second, terrifying mental power spread outward from Cao Yu's body, instantly covering every corner of an area a hundred li in diameter.
Every living creature raised its head and stopped thinking.
But when Cao Yu summoned his Gold Soul Coin Martial Soul again, he discovered that it had undergone a tremendous change.
Flutter, flutter!
This gold coin could actually fly!
A pair of pure white wings had grown on either side, flapping constantly. Like a little sprite, it looked especially cute.
Could his Martial Soul have mutated?
Very likely!
Cao Yu immediately opened his personal information interface.
Name: Cao Yu Cultivation: 36 Martial Souls: Treasure-Felling Coin, Master of Shadows, Ice, Holy Necromancer Soul Rings: Treasure-Felling Coin: brilliant gold (1,000,000 years) Master of Shadows: red (109,009 years), red (120,003 years), red (138,004 years) Ice: none Holy Necromancer: gray Soul Bones: [All unused]: Deep Sea Demon Whale Torso Bone (135,896 years), White-Eyed Cat Left Arm Bone (80,006 years), Red-Eyed Golden Dragon External Soul Bone (285,069 years), Blue Lightning Leopard Right Arm Bone (118,886 years) Talents: Innate Soul Beast Affinity, Tenfold Cashback, Protagonist's Halo, Weak Immobilization Technique Items: Limit Douluo Experience Card ×14, Soul Elder Experience Card ×18, Soul Ancestor Experience Card ×16, Soul King Experience Card ×6, Soul Emperor Experience Card ×11, Soul Saint Experience Card ×5, Soul Power Enhancement Card ×10, Level 6 Soul Tool Milk Bottle ×8, Level 7 Soul Tool Heavenly Thunder Cannon, Black Pallbearers Experience Card ×2, Nebula Set Wealth: 546,800,000 (+100,002,000) Spending Points: 180
"Just as I thought."
"The Gold Soul Coin Martial Soul mutated into the Treasure-Felling Coin, and its accompanying Mental Attribute hasn't disappeared either."
"My Soul Power also rose to rank 36 because of it. Tricky!"
Cao Yu breathed a sigh of relief, then began examining his mutated Martial Soul.
The Treasure-Felling Coin Martial Soul's first Soul Skill was Treasure Felling. It was a hard-control Soul Skill that also carried a measure of the power of laws.
Its target would be forcibly made to drop treasures, but it did not work on weapons.
How great would it be if it could make weapons drop? Then it would become a Soul Engineer's nightmare.
After all, apart from treasures such as Storage Soul Tools, many Soul Tools with offensive capabilities fell into the weapon category.
"Still..."
"Using it to make other people drop their Storage Soul Tools isn't bad either. Hehe!"
(End of chapter)