Toji examined the new Soul Bone in his hand.
The silver-white left leg Soul Bone gave off a faint sheen, with wind patterns seemingly flowing across its surface.
"What I lack right now is offensive power." Toji looked up at Du Busi, his tone slightly skeptical. "I'm already fast enough. Even top-tier Soul Kings can't match my speed."
"On the other hand, with my current means of attack, I can barely break through the protective Soul Power of a Soul King above level fifty-five without a Soul Tool."
"I have my reasons for giving you this Soul Bone. If you can obtain a top-grade spatial Soul Bone Skill, it can only benefit you, not harm you," Du Busi said calmly.
"This Soul Bone also came from a mutated Soul Beast. Other sect disciples wanted it, but I didn't give it to them."
"..." Toji lowered his head and thought for a moment. "All right."
He didn't mind it being a left leg bone. He still had a Ten Thousand Year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Right Arm Soul Bone in his pocket, so his offensive power wasn't too shabby. Absorbing a spatial skill as well would indeed be even better.
"Absorbing a Soul Bone is a difficult process. Are you ready?" Du Busi asked when he saw Toji agree.
"I'm ready."
Du Busi nodded, sat down beside him, and began instructing Toji on how to absorb the Soul Bone:
"To absorb a Soul Bone, you need to circulate the Qi and blood in your body and bring them into resonance with it. First, place the Soul Bone on your left leg. Then guide your Qi and blood into a slow flow using the method I taught you."
"Use Qi and blood in place of Soul Power? I understand."
Realization dawned on Toji. He sat cross-legged, placed the Soul Bone on his left leg, closed his eyes, and began circulating his own Qi and blood.
"Control the fluctuations of your Qi and blood and use them to draw the Soul Bone's presence into your left leg."
Du Busi's voice drifted over softly.
Toji took a deep breath and concentrated, controlling the surge of Qi and blood within him.
Since he had no Soul Power whatsoever and rarely controlled his Qi and blood, the task was difficult at first. It was like asking someone to control wings they didn't have and fly.
But Toji soon got the hang of it. He began releasing his Qi and blood from his body, drawing on the Soul Bone's presence.
"Very good. You got the hang of it in just one minute. You have good comprehension," Du Busi said admiringly. "Take your time drawing in the Soul Bone, take your time-"
Toji followed Du Busi's guidance to the letter, successfully drawing on the Soul Bone's presence and slowly bringing it into his body.
At first, he could still feel the Soul Bone's coldness, but as his Qi and blood flowed, it gradually grew warm, as though becoming one with his body.
As time passed, waves of agonizing pain began to shoot through Toji's left leg, as if countless needles were stabbing into his muscles and bones.
"This is a normal reaction to the Soul Bone resonating with your body. It's like bone replacement surgery."
Du Busi continued.
"Hold on. This Soul Bone is at least ten thousand years old, so the process will be very slow..."
Toji frowned deeply. At that moment, he felt as though a living Gale Demon Leopard had appeared before him, trying to devour him.
He merely snorted and concentrated all his strength on resisting the Soul Bone's counterattack.
The Gale Demon Leopard's presence was swiftly suppressed by Toji.
That terrifying killing aura had become almost tangible, shrouding Toji's entire body in a hazy, blood-red glow.
A while later, the agonizing pain in his left leg began to ease, replaced by a warm, comfortable sensation.
Toji felt as if a powerful force had been infused into his left leg, and his body began to undergo subtle changes.
His muscles grew firmer, his bones harder, and even his senses became sharper than before.
"You succeeded, and so quickly! The strength of your body is simply heaven-defying," Du Busi said, a flicker of pleasant surprise crossing his eyes as he saw the changes in Toji.
"You actually finished absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone in just five minutes?"
"Fortunately, I didn't let you down." Toji stood and shook out his left leg, feeling a lightness throughout his body.
Du Busi was intrigued. "Quick, show me. Did you absorb a top-grade spatial skill?"
"Thank you, teacher. I did indeed." The corners of Toji's mouth rose. Silver light flashed around his left leg, and he vanished from the spot.
The next second, Toji appeared outside the room.
"Is that... Teleportation?" Du Busi's eyes went wide.
A godly skill!
"Is there a cooldown? What's the range of your Teleportation?" Du Busi pressed.
"Using Teleportation once consumed a fifth of my Qi and blood," Toji replied. "There's no limit on the number of uses. As long as I have enough energy in my body, I can keep using it until I die."
"As for the range, I can teleport anywhere within a hundred meters."
"Teleportation combined with your concealment ability makes you a born assassin," Du Busi said with a sigh. "What's more, you're exceptionally strong in a direct fight. I can hardly imagine how strong you'll become in the future."
"Once you've grown, there won't be a single person on the entire Douluo Continent who can escape an assassination you've carefully prepared."
Toji fell silent for a moment. After some thought, he decided to tell Du Busi:
"Teacher, I have another Soul Bone, but its quality is too high, and it's very powerful. I can't tell whether I should absorb it now."
"Oh?" Du Busi grew even more interested. "Let me see."
The fact that Toji was willing to bring it up himself showed that he was being candid with Du Busi.
Naturally, Du Busi had to prove worthy of Toji's trust.
After Toji took out the Ten Thousand Year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Right Palm Bone, Du Busi stared at it in a daze.
"This... where did you get this Soul Bone?"
"I bought it at an auction in Heaven Dou City."
"Good heavens, the quality of this Soul Bone is practically no different from that of a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone." Du Busi rubbed his eyes. "For a little fellow like you to win it at auction, you must have had dog-shit luck."
"Even if you did win it, how did you manage to escape with it under everyone's watchful eyes? Oh, right, your concealment ability..."
"I guarantee the whole of Heaven Dou City is full of people looking for you." Du Busi smiled at him.
Toji said:
"Yes, that's why I ran out of the city right away."
"Hmm... My advice is to wait until after level forty to absorb it. That's your best choice." Du Busi offered his judgment based on his experience. "This is a high-quality Soul Bone that even a Soul Saint would have trouble withstanding. Your body is a little too weak for it right now, even with my help."
"So wait until you reach level forty, then absorb a Soul Ring to strengthen your body. After that, with me protecting you, you'll be able to absorb this Soul Bone. It might even help strengthen your body further."
"Once you have this Soul Bone, you won't be lacking in offensive methods."
"Absorb a Soul Ring?" Toji asked, puzzled. "Can I absorb one even without Soul Power?"
"There are ways," Du Busi said. "Didn't you say you currently have three unusual Soul Skills?"
"Your Martial Soul gave you your first three self-generated Soul Skills. That's an innate ability and talent."
"That proves your Martial Soul has a framework for Soul Rings. What it lacks is energy. Once you reach level forty, I'll take you to the Star Dou Great Forest and make the functions of your Soul Skills controllable, so they won't all be generated randomly by luck anymore."
Du Busi stared straight at Toji:
"At the very least, I'll get you a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."