Even his Phoenix Wings Ascending to Heaven — which could dramatically enhance his flame effects and grant him brief flight — was unable to meaningfully boost his offensive power. As an Assault-type Soul Master, this had always been a painful limitation plaguing Fatty.
But now, the fourth Soul Skill that Fatty unleashed, the Phoenix Heaven-Crushing Strike, had completely turned the situation around. Amplified by his second and third Soul Skills simultaneously, the devastating power of this single strike made even Flandre, Zhao Wuji, and Liu Erlong's pupils contract involuntarily. Among the Shrek Seven Devils, even Dai Mubai — who possessed the highest Soul Power — admitted he could not have walked away unscathed from such an attack.
The shrill shriek of the 'Pink Queen' cut off abruptly within the phoenix flames. As the dazzling fire phoenix in the sky slowly dissipated, Fatty drifted lightly down to the ground. His complexion was somewhat pale, but his expression was brimming with excitement.
Boom — the Pink Queen's body crashed heavily to the ground. Its once crystalline form had turned completely dark red, and a foul, acrid stench of char rose from its entire body. Aside from the faintest twitching, it could no longer move.
If Fatty hadn't deliberately restrained the intensity of his flames, that single strike would have been enough to kill it outright.
What puzzled Fatty was that the web binding the Pink Queen was still intact — though it had turned a fiery red. It hadn't been reduced to ash.
However, he was still riding the high of having executed his fourth Soul Skill and didn't think much of it.
The Great Master suddenly spoke up. "Oscar, quickly. Kill it — its weak point is at the eyes — and absorb the Soul Ring immediately."
Oscar was momentarily stunned, but the moment he saw the urgent light in the Great Master's eyes, he understood. He rushed forward in three bounding steps, not even pausing to thank Ma Hongjun, and pulled a dagger from his waist. He drove it downward in a single thrust. At rank forty, while his Soul Power didn't grant him any meaningful offensive capability, his strength was still far greater than that of an ordinary person.
The Pink Queen's outer shell had already been softened by Ma Hongjun's phoenix flames, and he ended the Soul Beast's life without difficulty.
Oscar sat cross-legged beside the 'Pink Queen' and immediately began the process of absorbing the Soul Ring.
By now, the large swarm of 'Pink Ladies' surrounding them had already retreated like a receding tide. It wasn't merely the death of the Pink Queen that drove them back — more importantly, it was the overwhelming pressure radiating from Fatty's phoenix flames.
Flandre walked over to Ma Hongjun and gave him a solid smack on the back of his fat head. "Stop admiring yourself already. Sit down and start recovering your Soul Power."
Ma Hongjun stuck out his tongue from the blow and hurriedly plopped down near Oscar, settling into silent cultivation.
Though his attack had been dazzlingly spectacular and devastatingly powerful, the simultaneous use of his second, third, and fourth Soul Skills had been an enormous drain on him — especially considering he had only just broken through to rank forty-one by obtaining his Soul Ring.
On top of that, to achieve the perfect visual effect of the flames, he had spared no effort in etching out that flawless phoenix form in the sky, expending at least seventy percent of his total Soul Power.
Ning Rongrong murmured, "Each time you gain a new Soul Skill, it really is a qualitative leap. I wonder what my fourth Soul Ring will bring. Great Master, why did you have Oscar absorb that Pink Queen's Soul Ring? This Soul Beast, while its cultivation age is decent, isn't particularly strong in terms of combat ability."
The Great Master said gravely, "For a Soul Master in need of a Soul Ring, there is no strongest Soul Beast — only the one most suited to you. For Oscar, this 'Pink Queen' is more valuable than any other Soul Beast could be. If I'm not mistaken, once he obtains this fourth Soul Ring, it will boost your team's overall offensive capability."
Tang San had been trained by the Great Master from the very beginning, so he was the quickest to grasp his teacher's train of thought. A spark of understanding crossed his mind. "Master, you mean to say that Xiao Ao's fourth Soul Skill will incorporate the excitability toxin from the Pink Queen's poisonous mist?"
The Great Master nodded. "Precisely. Oscar possesses a Food Type Martial Soul. Even if he absorbs a poisonous Soul Beast, his Soul Skills will not produce poison. Therefore, the ability that originally belonged to the Pink Queen will undergo a certain transformation once absorbed by him. The effect should be to temporarily elevate one's state of excitement. I can't be certain of the degree, but it should provide an all-around attribute boost. Much like the berserker state your old team, the Mad Team, once entered as a whole. His version will also come with a backlash, but I believe it won't be as extreme or uncontrollable as the berserker effect."
An all-around attribute boost? Just those few words were enough to make the Shrek Seven Devils' hearts race.
Ning Rongrong's reaction was the most visible of all.