"I'm sorry..." Tears of blood rolled down Li Ya's face as she let down all her defenses and lowered her guard.
As the ghost fish tore at her body, she did not even think of resisting. Her physical pain paled beside the anguish in her heart.
What kind of despair could make her embrace death amid such pain?
Ming Zhao did not know.
He found it ironic.
A dignified Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, a spirit of the sea and a noble princess of the Mermaid Clan, had actually given up her life because of a group of lowly aquatic creatures no better than ants.
How laughable!
"But that's precisely why you, with that weakness in your heart, died such a miserable, humiliating death!" Ming Zhao threw back his head and laughed wildly. Filthy water swept out, swallowing Li Ya, who had lost the ability to resist, and all her friends.
In the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the eerie sea grew calm once more, and the foul seawater returned to a clear, pure blue.
After the domain of the Martial Soul Fusion Skill withdrew, Li Ya and her friends were nowhere to be seen. All that remained was a blood-red Soul Ring radiating terrifying Soul Power fluctuations, with an azure left arm bone floating at its center.
The hunt for Li Ya, the Hundred-Thousand-Year Sea Princess, had succeeded.
"You... you're twisted, like a beast." The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice, laden with complicated emotions, sounded beside Ming Zhao's ear.
"A beast? Heh heh heh... thanks for the compliment!" Ming Zhao's lips curved upward. He waved his left hand, and the pitch-black Ghost Coffin instantly enveloped the Soul Ring and Soul Bone.
Atop the Ghost Coffin, the ugly Water Vengeful Spirit that had sat upright there had taken on Li Ya's appearance.
She sat sideways on the Ghost Coffin, looking just as she had in life. Her long, beautiful fishtail hung below it, swaying gently. Her upright upper body had graceful curves, and her breathtakingly beautiful face was still captivating.
She gazed quietly at Ming Zhao, her eyes filled with undisguised affection and trust.
"Welcome aboard." Ming Zhao smiled and held out his hand.
"I will fight for you." Li Ya smiled, took Ming Zhao's hand, and bowed her proud head.
Now that Li Ya was dead, her mother, the Sea Princess matriarch, would most likely learn of it at once.
Absorbing a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring took a long time; it could not be done quickly. Ming Zhao needed to take it somewhere safe within the hour before it vanished.
Unfortunately, he had no Soul Tool capable of storing a Soul Ring, or he would not have had to hurry so much.
Fortunately, he had brought Li Ya under his control.
With the Water Vengeful Spirit Li Ya had become, Ming Zhao could move much faster through the water.
And since she retained her memories from life, she knew the Ice Sea better than anyone. She would personally find a secluded, safe place for Ming Zhao to absorb her Soul Ring and Soul Bone.
Li Ya did not lose her memories after becoming a Martial Soul.
The same was true of Zhang Lexuan. Both retained their memories from life and could even use some of the abilities they had possessed. Zhang Lexuan could even use the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Skill she had possessed in life while in her Ghost Bride form.
Ming Zhao simply had no need for her abilities for the time being.
With Li Ya leading the way, Ming Zhao found an underwater cavern before the Soul Ring vanished. He opened the Ghost Coffin and released the Soul Ring and Soul Bone, then sat down cross-legged and guided the Soul Ring onto the Ghost Bride Martial Soul.
He was not at all worried about the safety of this place. After Li Ya and Zhang Lexuan became his Martial Souls, Ming Zhao shared a mental connection with them, giving him complete control over all their thoughts as well as their lives and deaths.
Even though they retained their memories from life, the nature of a Martial Soul made them completely loyal to Ming Zhao.
Not only would they never harbor the slightest thought of harming Ming Zhao, but even if they did think of betraying him, he would know at once. He could then easily wipe them out and switch to another Martial Soul form.
Under Li Ya's protection, Ming Zhao and Zhang Lexuan sat facing each other, encircled by the Soul Ring. Vast amounts of Soul Power poured into Zhang Lexuan, then passed through the connection between their Martial Souls into Ming Zhao's meridians, where he absorbed it.
The energy of a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring was exceptionally vast.
Even with Zhang Lexuan helping him absorb it, Ming Zhao took a full week to completely absorb the energy in the Soul Ring. He broke through the level-eighty Soul Power bottleneck, then advanced another level after reaching level eighty-one.
Like Zhang Lexuan in life, he had reached the Soul Douluo realm, with a cultivation of level eighty-two.
After absorbing the Soul Ring, Ming Zhao wasted no time picking up Li Ya's Soul Bone and pressing it against his left arm.
The Soul Bone was easier to absorb than the Soul Ring, and the process took only three days.
His Soul Power Level broke through again, reaching level eighty-three.
As Li Ya was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who specialized in mental power, her Soul Ring and Soul Bone gave Ming Zhao's mental power the greatest boost.
Ming Zhao's mental realm had already reached the Boundless Sea, and his Sea of Consciousness grew considerably fuller.
After the successive boosts from the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and Li Ya, Ming Zhao's Sea of Consciousness had expanded to nearly three times its previous size.
The stronger his mental power, the more powerful Red and White Colliding Calamities would be when he used his Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
Tian Meng was just a bit weak. If he had done more to increase Ming Zhao's mental power, Ming Zhao would not have needed to resort to underhanded tricks with Li Ya's little friends when hunting her. His Martial Soul Fusion Skill alone could have buried her.
He would never have ended up with a bloody nose from Mermaid Duet.
Tian Meng was weak!
"Time to leave!" Smiling, Ming Zhao drew the eight Soul Rings circling him-two black and six red-back into his body and stretched his somewhat stiff limbs.
His bones cracked, leaving him feeling refreshed all over.
Ming Zhao emerged from the underwater cavern, briefly got his bearings, then turned into a nearly imperceptible ghostly shadow and swam swiftly toward the continent.
Ming Zhao had also carefully examined the four Soul Skills he had obtained from Li Ya's Soul Ring and Soul Bone. Their strength satisfied him greatly, making all the effort he had put into hunting the Sea Princess worthwhile.
Ghost Bride's Eighth Soul Ring: Soul-Seizing Strike, Soul Scream.
Soul-Seizing Strike: Released a mental beam from the eyes that struck directly at the soul. It was a lock-on skill that could not be dodged once the target was locked onto with mental power, and it possessed 30% mental penetration.
Soul Scream: The Ghost Bride began singing the mermaid's song, creating a wide-ranging storm of mental impact. It was the Soul Skill Li Ya had used against Ming Zhao earlier, and its power was decent.
Sea Princess left arm bone: Mermaid Duet, Mermaid's Blessing.
Mermaid Duet: Released the previously used Mental Attribute Soul Skill a second time, at half the cost and with the same power.
Mermaid's Blessing: Passively formed three defensive barriers that protected the Sea of Consciousness and soul. Each barrier could block one mental attack that did not exceed the divine level, and one barrier recharged automatically each week.
Mermaid Duet needed no explanation; it was the Sea Princess Clan's specialty.
Mermaid's Blessing was rather impressive. It actually had the same effect as the Skull of Destiny Wang Qiu'er had sacrificed herself to give Huo Yuhao, providing mental protection.
The recharge time was a little long, though: only one layer per week.
But the flaw did not overshadow the gem. A nearly conceptual defensive ability like that, and a mental one at that, was insanely powerful however he looked at it.