Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal
Having just bound the Azure Dragon Clan youth's spatial ring to himself, Rog was checking whether the youth had any other Divine Clones. Since the Azure Dragon Clan fellow was completely finished, the blond youth, the only person who might let the secret slip, would have to go down and join him. After all, only the dead could keep a secret.
He bound the blond youth's spatial ring with a drop of blood and succeeded. Good, neither of them had a Divine Clone. That was normal, though. In this world, without an affinity for the corresponding element, it was difficult to cultivate multiple Divine Clones no matter how gifted one was. Even Dimont, a Super Divine Beast, had only one Divine Clone to this day.
Only after eliminating those future troubles did Rog focus his attention on the black, many-sided crystal.
"A Soul Defense Divine Artifact? It doesn't seem that simple." The blond youth might have lacked experience and assumed that a treasure capable of resisting Soul Attacks had to be a legendary Soul Defense Divine Artifact. But Rog knew that a Soul Defense Divine Artifact was actually composed primarily of soul force. Even if it were damaged, one could repair it with one's own soul force.
"This crystal undoubtedly has terrifying soul defense capabilities, but it definitely isn't a Soul Defense Divine Artifact." Rog didn't know what it was either, but after his soul fused with the mysterious crystal, he instantly discovered its secret!
"Bzzz..." In Rog's Soul Ocean, the main body of his soul took the form of a book, a secret tome. When the many-sided crystal entered his soul, Rog's soul instantly felt a peculiar sense of security. His soul force combined with the crystal, and with the crystal taking the lead, his soul force spontaneously formed a comprehensive defensive system!
"This crystal... It isn't a Soul Defense Divine Artifact, but it's even better than one!" Rog was astonished by the change in his soul. An ordinary god might not have been able to tell the difference between this treasure and a Soul Defense Divine Artifact, but Rog cultivated the Death Rule and had naturally done some research into protecting the soul.
But if Rog's soul defense methods were a simple wooden house, then this mysterious crystal's defense mechanism was an incredibly complex tower of mechanisms. The gap between the two was simply enormous!
What was the reason for this? Suddenly, the memory of a mysterious young beast and its 108 spikes flashed through Rog's mind!
"This feeling... It isn't a matter of the level of the rules, but of how they're applied!" Rog's gaze instantly grew fervent. Though this thing wasn't a Soul Defense Divine Artifact, its special structure alone could guide its user's soul force to form an immensely powerful defense!
"This polyhedron also has 108 faces. It must conceal a considerable secret." Rog was thrilled. A casual stroll had actually brought him such a remarkable treasure.
"Boss? What's wrong?" Dimont and his wife found it strange that Rog had been standing there in a daze.
"Nothing. This Soul Defense Divine Artifact is very ingenious. I want to study it, so let's head back to the city first." Rog made an excuse, intending to study it at his leisure somewhere safe. They hadn't taken any missions on their recent outings, so they were relatively free to arrange their movements.
Dawa City.
In a luxurious estate, Rog's soul was brimming with joy as he excitedly studied the mysterious crystal he had named the Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal. "The material this crystal is made of is truly marvelous. Once it's bound to an owner, it can isolate itself from all other external soul force." Rog didn't know how it accomplished this either.
After some experimentation, he found that he could release Soul Attacks through the crystal normally, though their power wasn't enhanced. But any other Soul Attack aimed at him after he had fused with the crystal would invariably be blocked by it.
"I just don't know the limit of what this crystal can withstand. But I feel that ordinary Seven-Star Fiends and even Asura Commanders would probably find it difficult to break through this defense. The only uncertainty is Paragons.
"Like a child with a beloved new toy, Rog studied the crystal without pausing for a moment. If it really could withstand a Paragon's Soul Attack infused with Willpower, then this Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal was fully comparable to a Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact. "But to me, the most precious thing is still this special, mysterious structure." Whether it was laws or rules, even if two people comprehended the same level, the power they could unleash with it would differ. This involved the method of application.
A sophisticated method of application could multiply one's combat power several times over, and in Rog's view, some of the most exceptional methods amounted to an "Innate Divine Ability." Leisjing's signature skill, for example, was one such "Innate Divine Ability." If the arrangement of his 108 spikes hadn't revealed the ability, no one else could possibly have deduced that ultimate move on their own.
"Deducing an 'Innate Divine Ability' on your own is probably even harder than becoming a Paragon. In terms of Gravity Space techniques alone, even an Earth Grand Perfection probably can't match Leisjing. Of course, in absolute power, a Paragon wouldn't necessarily lose, thanks to the boost from Willpower." Rog suspected that the Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal might also conceal an Innate Divine Ability like that.
That was what made this treasure most precious!
But it certainly wouldn't be easy to study the treasure and work out such a "secret technique" directly from it.
Creating an ultimate move on the level of an Innate Divine Ability from nothing would be absurdly difficult. Even if Rog spent several cycles deducing it, he might not succeed. But with the arrangement of the 108 faces of the Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal and by studying the unique structure inside it, Rog was confident he could replicate the move.
Time flowed steadily by, and before long, a full five hundred years had passed. This was also the longest Rog had ever spent cultivating in one stretch.
On this day, in Rog's Soul Ocean,
Strands of soul force flew out of Rog's soul itself within the book-shaped secret tome. They intertwined like threads, eventually forming 108 much thicker crystalline soul threads. The 108 threads began to arrange and intertwine according to a unique structure, ultimately gathering into a nearly spherical, 108-faced polyhedron.
"Finally, I succeeded!" Rog smiled with joy from the depths of his heart. He drew upon his own soul force, which circulated through the polyhedral soul crystal he had formed, giving him a very stable sense of protection for his soul.
"Although this 'Celestial Crystal' I constructed from my own soul force doesn't have the treasure's inherent ability to isolate soul force, it has still greatly improved my soul defense." Previously, although he cultivated the Death Rule, he had focused on offensive methods like Soul Ray, which directly destroyed souls. Soul defense hadn't been a particular specialty of his, though it had still been comparable to that of an ordinary Six-Star Fiend.
But after five hundred years of study, he had not only replicated this soul defense secret technique by studying the Soul-Suppressing Celestial Crystal, but had also advanced his understanding of the Death Rule itself. Of course, this time, his progress mainly concerned the aspects of the rule related to protecting the soul.
"Even without the Celestial Crystal secret technique, my soul defense should be at the Seven-Star Fiend level. With Celestial Crystal, I can withstand even the Soul Attack of an Asura expert." With this move, Rog basically no longer had to worry about soul defense. Moreover, he no longer needed to use the treasure himself and could give it to Dimont.
"Now Dimont really is going to turn into a huge monster comparable to Hemus." Even Rog himself wasn't sure how strong Dimont would be once he made up for his weakness in soul defense.
"Dimont, come in." After finishing his research, Rog swept the area with his divine sense and found Dimont in the courtyard. He immediately called him inside.
"Master, you've finally finished cultivating." When no outsiders were around, Dimont still respectfully addressed Rog as master. In public, Rog showed him plenty of respect, and the two addressed each other as brothers. Even Dimont's wife, Mina, didn't know the true nature of their relationship.
"Mm, I gained quite a bit this time. You haven't slacked off in your cultivation over the years, have you?" Rog looked at Dimont. This was the subordinate he valued most. Five hundred years ago, Dimont's Path of Collapse and Destruction had been close to the third level. Rog wondered whether he had broken through by now.