Lin Yan let out a long breath. The battle had ended even more smoothly than he had expected. He did not immediately absorb the Soul Ring, but instead looked around warily, making sure the battle had not drawn any other dangers.
After regulating his breathing for a while and returning to peak condition, Lin Yan walked over to the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's corpse and sat cross-legged. He extended his right hand, and his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul quietly appeared. With his spiritual power, he guided the thousand-year Soul Ring slowly down toward it.
Come on! Lin Yan shouted inwardly.
Drawn by his guidance, the thousand-year Soul Ring trembled slightly, then turned into a streak of light that instantly slipped around Lin Yan. It rapidly contracted, tightly encircling the space around his body as tremendous energy began pouring madly into him.
Boom-!
How overbearing was the energy of a thousand-year Soul Beast! Even though the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern was not known for its offensive power, the Soul Power it contained still far surpassed that of a hundred-year Soul Ring. The instant the energy entered him, Lin Yan felt as though countless red-hot steel needles were piercing every meridian in his body. The intense pain made him grunt, and fine beads of cold sweat instantly seeped from his forehead. This energy was immense, and once inside his body, it began rampaging through his meridians.
I was still too overconfident. Even after pushing my physical condition to its limits, absorbing a fourteen-hundred-year Soul Ring is still too difficult. Fortunately, the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's Soul Power is relatively gentle, and I have the Life Origin to support me. Otherwise, I'm afraid my body would have burst and killed me.
Lin Yan gritted his teeth, keeping his mind clear as he circulated the Supreme Purity Breathing Technique with all his strength. He guided the immense energy along a specific route, refining and purifying it bit by bit, converting it into Soul Power of his own.
Time passed second by second. Lin Yan's body trembled slightly, and light occasionally flashed across his skin, a sign that the Soul Ring's energy was merging deeply with him. His consciousness sank into his body, and he seemed able to see subtle changes taking place in his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul as it received this energy. The originally slender blue blades seemed to grow tougher, and the light flowing through their veins became increasingly lustrous. More importantly, beneath the edges of the blades, some extremely tiny particles shimmering with iridescent light were faintly condensing and forming-the beginnings of the spores unique to the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern.
An unknown amount of time passed. When the final surge of violent energy was completely tamed and obediently merged into the Qi sea in his dantian, Lin Yan's whole body suddenly shook. The purple Soul Ring encircling him abruptly stabilized, its color becoming deep and subdued as it merged perfectly with the fluctuations of his own Soul Power.
A presence far more powerful than before rose from Lin Yan!
Lin Yan's Soul Power also leaped straight to rank fifteen! Moreover, this improvement was incomparably solid. His Soul Power was condensed, without the slightest sense of instability.
Lin Yan slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath of stale air. Feeling the tremendous sense of strength brought by the surging Soul Power within him, he could not help smiling with delight.
"It worked!"
He eagerly began examining the brand-new Soul Skill he had obtained.
With a thought, the deep purple Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet and circled his body. Lin Yan focused, trying to "communicate" with it. Sure enough, a feeling of commanding it as naturally as his own limbs welled up within him. The Soul Ring's color began changing according to his will-from deep purple, it gradually faded to pale purple, then turned yellow, finally even settling into the bright yellow appearance of a hundred-year Soul Ring!
"Soul Skill: Illusory Color Concealment!" Lin Yan murmured, voicing the skill's name and core function.
This Soul Skill's core ability had two aspects:
First, color disguise. He could freely control the color this Soul Ring displayed to the outside world. Whether thousand-year purple, hundred-year yellow, or even ten-year white, he could simulate any Soul Ring color he had seen. This perfectly achieved his original goal-concealing the fact that he possessed a thousand-year Soul Ring. At crucial moments, it could play a key role in confusing opponents and allowing him to keep a low profile.
Second, concealment of the Martial Soul itself. After activating the Soul Skill, not only would the Soul Ring's color change, but his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul itself could enter a peculiar state of "invisibility" lasting roughly ten minutes. This invisibility was not disappearance, but something similar to the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's mimicry, blending closely with the surroundings and greatly reducing the chance of detection by sight and certain forms of Soul Power perception. This had immeasurable value for reconnaissance, lying in wait, surprise attacks, and even retreat.
Beyond that, as the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's signature ability, this Soul Skill also came with a secondary effect: hallucinogenic spores. While the Martial Soul was invisible or attacking, he could deliberately shake loose the tiny spore powder formed along the edges of its blades. These spores could also display various colors and cause mild mental disorientation and visual confusion in a target. Although the effect was weak and short-lived, at a critical moment, it was enough to disrupt an opponent's rhythm and create an opening.
Wonderful! This effect is even more perfect than I expected! Lin Yan was thrilled. This Soul Skill had extremely high practical and strategic value, far surpassing ordinary Soul Skills.
Amid his excitement, Lin Yan turned his attention to his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul. He summoned it, and a Blue Silver Grass plant appeared in his palm, sturdier than before, with broader, thicker blades and a deeper azure color. Looking closely, he saw that a layer of nearly invisible iridescent spores, shimmering faintly, was indeed attached beneath the edges of its blades. This was precisely the beneficial mutation brought about by absorbing the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's Soul Ring.
What delighted Lin Yan even more was that he could clearly sense that his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul's Life Origin had been greatly strengthened! That vigorous vitality was almost overflowing. With a slight thought, he tried pouring Soul Power into the Blue Silver Grass.
The blades of Blue Silver Grass in his hand seemed to come alive, beginning to grow and lengthen at a speed visible to the naked eye! Originally only about a foot long, the blades extended several meters in just a few breaths, and they were exceptionally supple and tough. Lin Yan tried controlling these lengthened blades. They danced like nimble snakes, easily winding around a nearby sapling and continually tightening, displaying considerable binding strength.
"This... this is practically a weaker version of the 'Entanglement' Soul Skill!" Lin Yan was both astonished and delighted. Although it might not be as tough as Tang San's Blue Silver Grass Entanglement or carry its poison, this was undoubtedly a tremendous breakthrough! It meant that his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul was no longer merely the representative of trash Martial Souls, but had begun showing potential as a Control System Martial Soul! This strengthening of its vitality was not only reflected in the growth of its blades. He felt that the Martial Soul's recovery speed and resistance to harsh environments had also improved significantly.
"It looks like choosing the path of strengthening the Life Origin was right!" Lin Yan clenched his fists, his eyes filled with the light of hope.
During the process of absorbing the Soul Ring, that tremendous energy seemed not only to have widened his meridians, but also to have faintly stirred some invisible barrier within his body.
He had a vague feeling that the upper limit of his Soul Power cultivation... had been raised!
Previously, restricted by the innate quality of his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, he had felt that even with a lifetime of cultivation, he would probably reach, at most, the realm of a rank twenty-nine Soul Grandmaster, unable to cross the threshold of rank thirty. Now, however, he clearly sensed that the once-unbreakable barrier that had inspired such despair seemed... to have loosened a little! Although it remained indistinct and difficult, he now had a faint confidence-a rank thirty Soul Elder might no longer be an unreachable dream!
Although the improvement is extremely limited, perhaps only enough to turn an absolute impossibility into a sliver of hope, this is still a beginning! Lin Yan felt invigorated. This proves my conjecture was right! By absorbing Soul Rings from Soul Beasts containing the Life Origin, I can gradually make up for the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul's innate shortcomings and raise the ceiling of its potential bit by bit!
He believed that as long as he continued seeking suitable, powerful life-type Soul Beasts for his Soul Rings, constantly nourishing and evolving his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, breaking through rank thirty, rank forty, and even reaching higher realms would not be entirely impossible! Although this path was difficult, it at least let him see a direction forward and hope. This brought him more joy than simply obtaining a powerful Soul Skill.
After calming his excitement a little, Lin Yan knew he should not linger here. He stood up and stretched his body, which had grown somewhat stiff from sitting for so long, feeling the abundant Soul Power and newfound strength within him.
He first familiarized himself with switching "Illusory Color Concealment," ensuring that he could change his Soul Ring's color instantly. Then he tried activating its invisibility effect. The Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul in his hand rapidly faded in color, finally almost merging with its surroundings, impossible to notice without looking closely. He took a few steps and discovered that while invisible, his movement speed was slightly affected, but the concealment was excellent. Even his own presence became extremely faint.
Next, he tested the Blue Silver Grass blades' growth and entangling abilities. He selected a tree as thick as the mouth of a bowl. With a thought and a surge of Soul Power, the Blue Silver Grass blades instantly shot out like several blue vines, swiftly winding around the trunk several times and slowly tightening, displaying decent strength. Although they could not yet strangle the tree until it snapped, restraining a beast Soul Master of the same rank for a while should not be a problem.
"With this ability, my fighting style will be more flexible. I can be a Control System Soul Master now." Lin Yan nodded in satisfaction.
Finally, he carefully collected some of the essence-containing spores that had yet to dissipate from the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern's remains, along with some of its rhizomes. These materials might prove useful in the future, whether for research or trade.
Having finished all this, Lin Yan did not dare linger any longer. He checked his bearings and changed his Soul Ring's color to the ordinary yellow appearance of a hundred-year Soul Ring. Then, with a movement of his body, he left this swamp borderland like a phantom, stealthily making his way toward the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest.