"But before that, there are still other things to finish!"
A crystal ball materialized in Leilin's hand. Inside it, a small white serpent with blood-red eyes glided through the air, its body as pure as jade.
Bound within the crystal was none other than
Moreover, Leilin was quite confident in his own concealment techniques.
But now, the hatred and stubbornness that once burned in the beast soul's eyes had completely vanished. All that remained was a haze of bewilderment.
Seeing this, Leilin was quite satisfied.
[Ding! Target inspection complete. Hostile intent within the subconscious has been thoroughly eliminated!]The Chip's mechanical notification rang out in his mind.
"Excellent! Nearly a month of work, and I've finally tamed every last trace of hidden resistance!"
Leilin pressed his finger against the crystal ball, releasing the small white serpent from its bindings. The creature coiled around and between his fingers with a nimble grace, and he could even sense a faint feeling of dependency wafting back to him. A month ago, such a thing would have been utterly inconceivable.
"At this level, even if my Soul-Sealing Array is mediocre, I should have at least a fifty-percent chance of success!"
A smile curved the corner of Leilin's lips. "Perfect — I'll complete the seal tonight."
The power system of the Inferno World held a certain appeal for Leilin, and during this period he had more or less mapped out every avenue of power available here.
In the Inferno World, aside from the innate talents of the various races, there were only two mainstream power systems that enjoyed the widest acceptance: the Path of the Priest and the Path of the Beast Soul!
The Path of the Priest depended entirely on the Supreme One. If you earned the Supreme One's favor, even without sufficient piety or offerings, you could receive greater divine power and ascend to a higher priest rank — but the cost was having your entire body branded with the divine power, and the road to the seventh-level realm of Laws was permanently sealed off. Of course, for the devout fanatics, this state of "dwelling with the god" might have been precisely the fulfillment of their deepest desires.
The Path of the Beast Soul was more primitive. It involved hunting colossal beasts, refining their souls, and sealing them within oneself to be commanded in battle.
Though it sounded simple enough, every beast soul seal placed enormous demands on the soul foundation and strength of the Beast Soul Master. Failed seals and soul backlash were commonplace throughout the Inferno World.
The higher the rank of the beast soul, the more terrifying its resistance became. The resentment embedded within the soul itself could prove absolutely lethal for Beast Soul Masters.
Of course, once a beast soul of a given rank was successfully sealed, the Beast Soul Master would automatically advance to that tier.
After sealing a beast soul, the Master could not only command it in combat but also benefit from the soul enhancement it provided. The advantages were numerous.
It was precisely this incentive that drove so many Beast Soul Masters to risk their lives in pursuit of high-rank beast souls, striving to seal them — even though the chances of failure far outweighed success.
Although Leilin's understanding of the Path of the Beast Soul had already grown remarkably deep, beast souls were exceedingly rare. At present, he possessed only a single Gudorike beast soul — an immature, third-ranked one — meaning his Beast Soul Master rank was limited to the third tier.
But no matter. During the Battle of the White River Valley, Leilin had slaughtered Belinda's clan and, in particular, extracted Kende's soul and refined it directly into a beast soul.
A fifth-level Devil White Phosphorus Serpent beast soul — even across the entire Inferno World, such a thing was extraordinarily rare.
Even on the Serpent Plains, fifth-level giant serpents were few in number. Leilin and his companions had never encountered one, and such creatures typically belonged to clan-based groups; touching one meant provoking the entire race.
Moreover, in Leilin's eyes, those giant serpents still fell short of the Devil White Phosphorus Serpent in quality.
"Whether for forging Bloodline Marks or concealing my identity afterward, this beast soul will be of the greatest help to me!"
Leilin gazed at the small serpent in his hand. At this moment, the creature flicked out its scarlet tongue, ceaselessly licking at his fingertips.
He had already collected a great deal of Devil White Phosphorus Serpent bloodline material and was even experimenting with forging a Bloodline Mark — a key to freely entering and exiting the Dream World.
If he personally possessed a Devil White Phosphorus Serpent beast soul, the benefits would be unmistakable: improved efficiency in crafting and wielding Bloodline Marks, and greater advantages in future Dream World exploration. Leilin had always liked to prepare for things from two directions. If his earlier plans failed, the power of the Dream World would serve as his trump card — which was why exploring the Dream World had always been a priority in his research.
Beyond that, for Leilin, who was about to infiltrate the
Although the Dreamless Mask carried traces of bloodline power, and the Filth Bird's chaotic energy provided concealment, Leilin never objected to adding yet another safeguard.
"The composition of any life comes down to two things: bloodline and soul!"
Leilin murmured, "With the replenishment from Belinda's clan, the bloodline reserves previously consumed by the Dreamless Mask have been fully restored. Add this beast soul to the mix, and at the critical moment I can deploy it to impersonate my own soul. Even under the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents' wide-range soul sweep, I'm confident I can pass undetected…"
Substituting a beast soul's aura for one's own soul signature might sound like fantasy for a native of the Inferno World, but for Leilin it posed no real problem. What mattered more was this: beast souls were fundamentally composed of soul energy, so there was no incompatibility whatsoever. And with the Chip's capabilities backing him, Leilin had every reason to be confident.
"Therefore, the Devil White Phosphorus Serpent beast soul is the best possible choice for me!"
A look of resolute determination gleamed in Leilin's eyes. "And once I become a fifth-level Beast Soul Master, my True Spirit should be able to advance to the Half-Moon level as well…"
At a time like this, every increase in strength was invaluable.
[Ding! Beast soul sealing initiated. Deploying fifth-level Soul-Sealing Array!]The Chip's voice rang out as an intricate soul array diagram materialized before his mind's eye.
Though Leilin was currently only a third-ranked Beast Soul Master attempting to seal a fifth-level beast soul — for a native of the Inferno World, this would be nothing short of delusional!
Even fourth-ranked Beast Soul Masters who obtained a fifth-level beast soul would likely lack the courage to attempt it. They would need to seal several more fourth-level souls and allow their spirits to be nourished over centuries before feeling confident enough to try.
A third-ranked Beast Soul Master? The body would probably be unable to withstand the overwhelming fluctuations of a fifth-level beast soul and would simply collapse — potentially exploding into a mist of blood!
But Leilin was no ordinary cultivator. His True Spirit had already reached the Half-Moon level, and his constitution had been enhanced countless times through bloodline power, Multi-Arm power, and other body-refining magical arrays. He had the foundation to back this up.
"Compared to a fifth-level Beast Soul Master of the Inferno World, a fifth-level
In the Inferno World, Beast Soul Masters who had the luck to seal a beast soul could continuously benefit from its nourishment, advancing almost without effort up to the beast soul's own limit, before seeking a new one to seal — and so the cycle continued…
Compared to Wizards, who had to diligently study and improve at every step, the Beast Soul Masters' path might seem infinitely more comfortable, but it lacked the most crucial elements: experience and depth.
In terms of soul mastery, Wizards of the Wizard World could absolutely look down on these Beast Soul Masters. Given a suitable beast soul, a Wizard's ability to adapt to it and perform the seal would far outstrip that of any Beast Soul Master.
"The reason the Path of the Beast Soul never flourished in the Wizard World — apart from differences in the world's rules — may also have to do with the extinction of species on the Central Continent. After all, not every world possesses the rich beast soul resources of the Inferno World…"
Having sorted through his thoughts, Leilin's expression turned solemn.
The Path of the Beast Soul had much to offer that Wizards could learn from. The Soul-Sealing Array alone, and the subsequent beast soul nourishment, and the problem of coordinating soul and body — all of these provided tremendous inspiration for Leilin's experiments.
Though the Path of the Bloodline Sorcerer was his primary道路, Leilin would never discriminate against other paths of power. Even the most seemingly trivial knowledge, if it had survived across the ages, must contain something worth learning.
Only through constant study could the path of the Wizard remain vital.
[Atomic microscope activated. Fifth-level Soul-Sealing Array engraving assistance in progress!]Accompanying the Chip's voice, an intricate magical array began to surface on the back of Leilin's hand.
At the center of the profound array lay a twisted pentagram pattern, surrounded by a multitude of soul symbols that radiated an aura both eerie and primeval. These were the keys to subduing a beast soul — and even to having it nourish the Beast Soul Master in return.
Some of the symbols were so complex that even the Chip could not fully decode them, and could only utilize them to the maximum extent possible.
The array's radiance enveloped the Devil White Phosphorus Serpent beast soul, and the small white serpent gradually rose into the air.
"Hsss… hsss…" Even though it had been tamed, the small white serpent still showed signs of resistance.
But the familiar soul energy emanating from Leilin's eyes was deeply ingrained in the creature's awareness, so its behavior appeared conflicted — resisting and yielding at the same time.
Slowly, the orb of light surrounding the small white serpent drew closer and closer to the array on the back of Leilin's hand.
"Now — Seal!"
At Leilin's low command, the Soul-Sealing Array on his hand blazed with brilliant light, pulling the entire sphere of light into itself.
"Next… comes the battle of souls!"