Martial Soul Card, Summoning Xinyue Fox

"Another Trash Martial Soul?"

"What can a little slip of paper do? It can't attack or defend."

"And he even has Innate Full Soul Power, but why does he have a Trash Martial Soul, just like that kid who awakened Blue Silver Grass in Holy Soul Village three months ago?"

Su Yuntao looked at the black-haired, golden-eyed child before him and questioned his life.

Was his luck really this bad?

There hadn't been many promising talents this year.

My promotion and pay raise!

"Alas, what a pity."

Su Yuntao sighed, took out a certificate, and handed it to Xu Qing.

"Nuoding City Junior Soul Master Academy opens in a few days. You can go to the school first. The school will arrange Soul Ring hunts for everyone. Once you have a Soul Ring, your Martial Soul might prove useful."

"Thanks, uncle. I understand." Xu Qing took the certificate from Su Yuntao and turned to leave.

He really lives up to his name as the Blind God King.

On Douluo Continent, Innate Soul Power was tied to the quality of one's Martial Soul.

A Trash Martial Soul couldn't possibly have Innate Full Soul Power.

But now he was certain that Little Scumbag would soon arrive in Nuoding City.

"Wait, that's not right! I'm only in my twenties! Who are you calling Feathered Uncle?" Su Yuntao called after him, his face dark with exasperation.

"Hello, Feathered Uncle. Goodbye, Feathered Uncle!"

Su Yuntao: "..."

Xu Qing walked out of the Spirit Hall Branch, his thoughts churning.

In his previous life, while playing Wuthering Waves, he had finally waited long enough for the banner of the big fox he had longed for-Xinyue Fox.

Five golds in one ten-pull.

But

The damned devs always loved adding their little twists.

He could let the past heartbreak and regrets slide.

And now they're doing it again?

Do you think you're funny?

Deliberately tormenting female characters to disgust the players?

Those gacha game devs all had holes in their heads.

Real life was miserable enough, yet games still had to throw in heartbreak and frustration and dance all over people's landmines.

In a fit of anger, he simply made a private server.

He changed the story and kept the characters in good shape.

He prevented Amisius from becoming a ghost no one could see.

He kept Phrolova's appointment and hollowed out the Fractsidus from within.

He saved Xuanqing, stopped Xinyue Fox from being assassinated, and cleaned out the traitors in Mournstead.

Since he was going to be Long Aotian, he would be Long Aotian all the way.

What regrets could Long Aotian possibly have?

Since he was making a private server anyway, he also added special CGs, such as exclusive scenes unlocked by reaching the required affection with female characters and holiday storylines.

The Xinyue Fox Resonator had not died and had remained in perfect condition.

But he still had to bring out Hsin and Suhsin.

One was an emotional clone, the other a rational clone.

After all, Xinyue Fox's authority was [to make one into many, deriving forms and shapes. It allows the physical objects in her grasp, as well as her own consciousness, perceptions, and information, to diverge and extend according to their true nature.]

[Though the fractals each take shape independently, they remain linked to their origin, sharing what they perceive and able to merge back into one.]

This authority could separate out countless clones.

The damned devs had also worked their little twist into this.

So he altered the settings on his private server.

Xinyue Fox's clones could block their senses at will, change their appearance when going out, or take the form of mechanical puppets.

Just after he unlocked a special CG featuring Xinyue Fox, Hsin, and Suxin together,

a pitch-black opening suddenly appeared and swallowed him.

As he passed through the dark passage, something seemed to merge into his body. At the same time, his body shrank, turning him into a child, and he fell into Nuoding City.

After arriving in an unfamiliar world, he had struggled to survive, even fighting dogs for food. The hardships he endured were not something he could tell outsiders.

"But what does this Martial Soul do?"

"Am I going down the Card Master route?"

Xu Qing looked at the blank card in his hand.

Card Master's abilities were pretty good: flying cards, switching attributes, and spatial teleportation.

Suddenly, information flooded into his mind. His eyes lit up, and he hurried home.

It was a small wooden hut on the very edge of Nuoding City.

[Host: Xu Qing.]

[Martial Soul: Card. One card is obtained every 10 levels. By absorbing Soul Rings, the cards can seal all kinds of creatures in the world within them and form contracts with them.]

[Talent: Increases affection gained from humanoid contractees by 30%.]

[Card contract beasts: None.]

Xu Qing looked at the screen before him.

Wasn't this panel the private server panel he had cobbled together?

He hadn't expected it to become his golden finger in this life.

"What a pity. If only I'd added god mode back then, I'd be soaring now."

Xu Qing sighed and slid his finger up and down the screen.

Seal Soul Beasts, form contracts, summon cards, and command Soul Beasts.

The Soul Beasts could also grow, which meant his Soul Rings could improve too.

He was weak now, so he had to lie low and be careful.

His first Soul Beast should be a flying type.

Douluo Continent was too ridiculous.

Only those with flying Martial Souls could truly fly.

Even Titled Douluo merely used Soul Power to hold themselves up.

So obtaining a flying Soul Beast early on would bring the greatest benefits.

"I'll go to the academy first to learn meditation and study Soul Beasts, then see which Soul Beast is better."

If he didn't know a Soul Beast's age and absorbed its Soul Ring at random, things could go badly wrong.

Without a meditation method, how could he absorb a Soul Ring?

How could he cultivate day to day?

"School starts in a few days. Little Scumbag will be here soon, and so will Gangzi."

Without strength, only a fool would join the group and jump around under Haozi's nose. It wouldn't be comfortable at all.

He would lie low at another academy first. He had a Spirit Hall certificate anyway, so he could go to any nearby academy.

Xu Qing's stomach rumbled. He was about to put away the card and cook something to reward his five viscera and six bowels.

The card suddenly flashed. His vision blurred, and he found himself in a pure white space.

"What's going on??"

Xu Qing warily looked around and found a white fox with red ears, a red tail, and red feet curled up in the very center of the space. Her breathing was steady, as though she were fast asleep.

This fox? Why does she look so familiar?

The little fox sniffed gently, her ears twitched, and she suddenly opened her eyes, staring straight at Xu Qing.

Then she gave an excited yip, sprang forward, and plunged headfirst into Xu Qing's arms. She clawed her way up his clothes, her tail whipping back and forth like a propeller.

Xu Qing instinctively caught her. Her fur was soft and fluffy, and she carried a faint fragrance.

The little fox nuzzled his chin, her warm breath brushing his neck. Then a pink tongue licked his face, leaving it wet.

"Wait, stop licking."

Xu Qing was about to stop her when he saw the little fox blink at him.

White light exploded once more, and he instinctively closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, he had already left the pure white space, and the little fox in his arms had vanished as well.

"What just happened? That fox..."

Xu Qing frowned deeply.

What was that pure white space?

Suddenly, he felt the Soul Power in his body surge wildly. He looked down and saw a Yellow Soul Ring circling his body.

"How do I have a Soul Ring?"

Then he caught sight of the card in his left hand. Its once-blank face now bore a silver-haired woman in a black and red dress, with fox ears and a tail, and a full, mature figure.

Those red eyes seemed to look at him through the card, carrying the hint of a smile.

Xu Qing's pupils contracted sharply.

Xinyue Fox.

That little fox had been her fox form.

After all, there was still some difference between a two-dimensional fox and a three-dimensional one, so he hadn't recognized her right away.

Of course, when a two-dimensional paper character became three-dimensional, she could only become more beautiful.

Just then, the card in his hand transformed into red light.

A woman with long, silver-white hair knelt on one knee before him, her full, voluptuous body filling out her black and red strapless gown.

Just above her enormous assets were black and red markings, and a startlingly seductive air spread from her, like a bewitching enchantress who brought ruin to the world stepping out of a myth.

It was none other than the Sovereign from Wuthering Waves: Xinyue Fox.

"Rover, Rover-"

A pair of soft, jade-like hands cupped Xu Qing's cheeks and pressed her forehead to his. Her voice brimmed with delight.

"You finally came to find meヾ(≧▽≦*)!"

"But you've gotten so little, Rover. How cute."

"Mua..."

"Wait!"

Several red marks appeared on Xu Qing's face in an instant. Once he came to his senses, he pushed Xinyue Fox's face away and looked at the fox spirit before him.

"Which Xinyue Fox are you?"

He needed to figure out whether she was the Xinyue Fox from his private server or a Xinyue Fox from some damned dev's little twist.

Hsin pouted. "Rover, why are you treating me like a stranger? You weren't like this when you had Sister Yuehu, Suhsin, and me pose together for a photo."

Xu Qing was certain now. She was Hsin from the private server he had put together.

After all, the normal version of Xinyue Fox was already dead.

How could there possibly be such a fantastical storyline as Xinyue Fox, Hsin, and Suhsin taking a photo together?

He looked at the panel before him.

Contractee: Hsin [Xinyue Fox's emotional clone.]

Intimacy: 100%.

Abilities: Authority Myriad Forms Fractal, mechanical construction, Moongazer Disguise, Nine-Lived Moongazer...

[Evaluation: The emotional clone of Mournstead's Sovereign Xinyue Fox. She enjoys traveling the world with Rover, is skilled in mechanical construction, and has absolute trust and intimacy toward Rover.]

"I didn't expect to meet Rover before Sister Yuehu and Suhsin."

"Oh-ho-ho..."

Hsin couldn't resist rubbing her cheek against Xu Qing's.

"Let go of me first."

"What state are you in now? And what's going on with that space?"

Xu Qing forcibly steered the conversation back from the joking around.

"I only know that I was missing Rover, and then I appeared in that space."

"Although I'm not as strong as Sister Xinyue Fox, I'm more than strong enough to protect little Rover."

Xu Qing nodded. Douluo Continent was the sewer of xuanhuan worlds.

After becoming a god, Qian Renxue had wielded the divine Angel Holy Sword and drawn upon the sun's divine power for a full-force strike, yet all she had made was a hole five hundred meters across.

A Sovereign's authority in Wuthering Waves affected an entire region.

The Sovereign 'Jue' had once frozen time throughout Jinzhou.

Even the fox spirit Hsin could bring down an entire mechanical city on someone.

Yes, an entire city. That was enough to crush a god to death.

After all, one god couldn't dodge an attack from a Hidden Weapon.

Another god couldn't destroy a mortal city wall with a divine trident.

As for those who stubbornly insisted the wall was exceptionally sturdy...

A wall built by mortals had stopped a god's attack with a divine weapon.

Which one was the real divine weapon?

So hard to guess.

Xu Qing checked his system panel again. The first Soul Ring displayed on his Martial Soul Card was yellow, five hundred years old.

"Hm?"

"What's wrong, Rover?" Hsin asked, cupping Xu Qing's cheeks.

"The stronger the being contracted to my card, the higher the Soul Ring's age. Aren't you at full strength?"

"Surely my Soul Ring should be a golden million-year Soul Ring, at the very least?"

"Master, your body is too weak, so I've restrained my power. Otherwise, your body would explode."

Xu Qing's mouth twitched. He understood.

At the root of it all, his body was too weak.

He couldn't absorb any more power.

It was just like when the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm sacrificed himself to Huo Yuhao and even placed ten seals on him.

As his strength grew, the Soul Ring's age was gradually unlocked.

All right, I can accept that.

Either way, I'm basically a summoner now.

But the summoner himself was the greatest weakness, and summoning each card character consumed some Soul Power.

Once he reached the Titled Douluo level, summoning nine characters alone would consume well over half his Soul Power.

It seemed he would have to grow stronger.

"You have a cultivation technique, don't you?"