Chapter 41: Fierce Battle with the Battle Drum Toad King, Part 2
The Battle Drum Toad King glared at the Blue Silver Grass entangling it, rage and frustration flaring in its eyes. It silently vowed that if it escaped, it would eradicate every last one of these vines.
Unfortunately for the toad, it would have no such chance. Before the battle had even begun, Ah Yin had infused her Blue Silver Emperor vines into hundreds of nearby trees, linking them to create a dense network of roots and vines, fortified by her own power. Now, the Blue Silver Emperor vines coiled around the toad's body like countless ropes, anchoring it firmly to the forest floor. Unless the toad could muster a few hundred tons of force, escape was impossible.
Seeing this, Ye Wen realized the opportunity had finally come.
His initial Gravity Creation attack had only tested the toad's defenses. Now, it was time to unleash his full power.
"Gravity Creation Maximum Output!"
Ye Wen's eyes flashed with intensity as he expanded the portals of his space skill to their limit. From within, twenty enormous swords, each as wide as an adult, emerged, spinning rapidly through the air.
These swords weren't merely iron like the ones he'd used before; each was forged from high grade steel, doubling the durability and increasing the weight by several magnitudes. The enhanced swords gained an immense kinetic force that dwarfed his previous attacks. The swords continued spinning, their friction with the air generating a growing heat. Soon, they glowed a faint red, gleaming with lethal promise.
"It's over, Battle Drum Toad King."
With a cold, unwavering gaze, Ye Wen released the space portals, allowing the swords to plunge downwards like meteors, crashing into the immobilized toad. The sheer force of impact, coupled with the weight of the swords, smashed through the toad's thick skin and shattered the body it had spent millennia strengthening.
Blood splattered in all directions as the once lush forest transformed into a scene of carnage, with dark red pools staining the ground.
The Battle Drum Toad King's massive body lay ravaged, half of it reduced to fragments. Its strength fading, it was on the verge of death.
Watching from afar, Ah Yin's eyes softened with a hint of sorrow. She wasn't mourning the toad itself, but rather, the countless soul beasts that had also fallen under the rules of the hunt.
Had it not been for the twist of fate that allowed her to transform into a human, as the Blue Silver Emperor, she too might have met the same fate hunted by powerful human soul masters seeking to harvest her spirit ring.
But that same twist of fate had led her to Ye Wen, who showed her a world that extended beyond the primal laws of survival, one where gentler joys awaited. As she thought of this, a serene smile graced her lips.
Above, Ye Wen saw that the Battle Drum Toad King, even with half its body destroyed, still clung tenaciously to life, refusing to yield its spirit ring.
Ye Wen exhaled, acknowledging the soul beast's resilience. In this world, it was common for creatures to unleash a final, deadly attack upon their killers, a last ditch effort to drag them into death as well.
Noting this, he prepared a final Gravity Creation, targeting the toad's head. With a powerful thrust, the blade pierced straight through, ending its life at last.
A deep, inky black spirit ring formed in the air, floating solemnly above the corpse as Ye Wen finally relaxed.
The two stood over the Battle Drum Toad King's corpse, grateful for their victory.
If the toad had been more cautious and picked up on the strange taste of the bait, it might have escaped the trap. Perhaps it was overconfident in its tolerance for toxins, a natural trait for creatures of its kind. In the end, though, it hadn't anticipated running into an opponent who would poison it with laxatives.
If given another chance, the toad would probably have vowed never to eat unfamiliar food again.
Ye Wen looked down at the body with a hint of regret.
In his past life, the secretion from a toad's skin, known as toad venom, was highly valued in medicine for its detoxifying and pain relieving properties. This was no ordinary toad it was an eighty thousand year old soul beast. The thought of harvesting its venom filled him with excitement.
Unable to resist, he knelt beside the corpse and began to carefully collect the potent venom.
Ah Yin, puzzled, watched Ye Wen ignore the spirit ring, choosing instead to gather what looked like a rather unsightly white liquid. She wrinkled her nose in disgust but decided not to question him, simply standing back to keep her distance.
Ye Wen, however, paid her no mind. Through his Imitation Realm skill, he could tell that this venom was incredibly potent, powerful enough to dissolve even a Soul Emperor's skin on contact.
To him, it was no surprise. Some ingredients in traditional Eastern medicine were indeed rare and sometimes even toxic if used improperly. This venom, properly refined, could potentially serve as an excellent medicinal aid.
After half a day of work, Ye Wen had collected a large container of venom, nearly two hundred pounds in total. In the process, he discovered a striking green soul bone lodged in the toad's skull, gleaming with an almost hypnotic beauty.
Despite its impressive quality, Ye Wen showed little interest in the eighty thousand year head soul bone. As a twin martial soul user, he anticipated hunting numerous hundred thousand year soul beasts in the future, rendering this soul bone's appeal relatively minor.
He offered it to Ah Yin, but she declined, citing that the spirit bone didn't suit her attributes.
"Hurry up, Brother. If you don't absorb the spirit ring soon, other soul beasts will come sniffing around," she urged, visibly uncomfortable with his actions.
Apologetically, Ye Wen scratched his head, knowing he could get lost in work and ignore others around him. This was a flaw he'd tried to address for years.
"On it, on it," he replied, quickly activating his Naboo martial soul to guide the spirit ring's dark energy into his body.
The immense power coursed through him, igniting every cell with renewed strength. Thanks to years of meticulous training, his physique could easily handle the overwhelming flood of energy. Still, he knew the real test would come with the mental challenge that followed.
His strength increased rapidly ninety thousand pounds, then a hundred thousand, finally reaching one hundred seventy thousand pounds.
He barely had time to revel in this surge of power before a powerful force pulled him into his mental realm, signaling the final trial.
In his mind, the remnants of the Battle Drum Toad King's spirit glared at him, filled with hatred and anger. Ye Wen smirked, unimpressed.
"After all these years, you're still just a brute. Your spirit is shallow and lacks substance," he muttered confidently.
Thanks to the spiritual training he had undertaken, Ye Wen's mental strength had already reached the level described as the Sea of Spirit, well beyond the Toad King's.
Without further hesitation, he held out a hand, gesturing for the Toad King's spirit to come at him.
I Know You're Angry, but Wisdom Is Power Too"
"I understand that you're furious. After all, my methods were rather underhanded. But wisdom is a form of strength, just like physical power. The law of the jungle is the way of the world. I have no intention of defying nature. So, Battle Drum Toad King, become my stepping stone to greater heights," Ye Wen said mockingly.
Enraged by Ye Wen's taunt, the Battle Drum Toad King opened its massive, bloody maw, lashing out with its tongue.
In this mental space, all soul skills were rendered ineffective. The battle relied solely on pure mental strength and raw combat techniques.
Without its monstrous body or its innate Sonic Cannon ability, the Toad King was left to rely on its most basic instincts for combat something Ye Wen found utterly unimpressive.
The moment the Toad King opened its mouth, Ye Wen anticipated its attack. Using his mental strength to simulate the explosive footwork of Six Steps Instant Flash, Ye Wen closed the distance between himself and the Toad King in an instant.
What followed was a relentless onslaught of strikes, as overwhelming and unyielding as a tidal wave. Each blow targeted the Toad King's joints, leaving it unable to retaliate. Stripped of its venom, the Toad King was powerless against such close quarters combat. After enduring a flurry of attacks, it shattered within the mental space, its fragments dissolving and merging into Ye Wen's spiritual world.
Ye Wen exhaled deeply. His eyes, far from showing exhaustion, gleamed with an even sharper brilliance.
The vastness of his sea of consciousness expanded further, revealing a faint depth that hinted at the next stage Spiritual Abyss Realm.
At this rate, Ye Wen's mental strength would soon reach the level of a Title Douluo. Combined with his physique, now capable of absorbing 100,000 year soul rings, Ye Wen felt confident that he could hunt a 100,000 year soul beast for his seventh ring. Such talent was rare even among the top tier Limit Douluo in Soul Land 2.
At this moment, Ye Wen could truly be considered a peerless prodigy.
"Hey, big brother, did you get the soul skill you wanted?"
Ah Yin's curious question snapped Ye Wen out of his reverie. With a smirk, he replied,
"Step back a bit. Let me show you the power of my sixth soul skill."
Seeing Ye Wen's confident demeanor, Ah Yin grew more curious but obediently moved over a hundred meters away.
Ye Wen's eyes sharpened as his Nabu Martial Spirit wrapped around his hand.
Yellow Purple Purple Purple Black Black!
Six soul rings of extraordinary quality appeared around Ye Wen, defying conventional logic for spirit masters. The deepest black ring, his sixth, shone with a dark, ominous light.
The Nabu Martial Spirit on Ye Wen's hand turned intangible, forming a glowing circle around his fist.
"Sixth Soul Skill: Spatial Shock!"
Ye Wen punched forward with all his might. A fracture, resembling cracked glass, appeared in the air before him.
Ah Yin tilted her head in confusion at the strange phenomenon. With her knowledge, she couldn't identify what these fractures represented.
However, any fan of the seas would recognize them instantly. They were the result of overwhelming shockwaves shattering the atmosphere.
The next moment, Ah Yin witnessed the terrifying effect of the skill.
Starting from Ye Wen's fist, the forest ahead of him was utterly devastated. Trees were uprooted, the ground cracked and shattered, and the once lush greenery became a desolate wasteland stretching hundreds of meters.
Ah Yin stood there, wide eyed and speechless.
For someone who hadn't even awakened their Martial Soul True Body, to cause such large scale destruction was astonishing. This sixth soul skill was far too powerful.
Then she remembered Ye Wen's sixth soul ring wasn't just any ordinary one for a Soul Emperor. It was a top tier ring, even worthy of being the ninth ring of a Title Douluo.
In other words, Ye Wen's attack was equivalent to a strike from a Title Douluo.
Looking at the devastation before her, Ah Yin couldn't help but shudder. If that attack had struck a person instead of empty air, even a Title Douluo caught off guard might have been torn to shreds.
Ye Wen, observing the destruction he caused, let out a hearty laugh.
Every support type spirit master secretly dreams of being a powerhouse.
While Gravitational Creation was a mighty technique, its long charge up time made it unsuitable as an offensive soul skill.
In contrast, Spatial Shock was instantaneous. Moreover, with Ye Wen's robust foundation, he estimated that he could unleash it four times in a single battle. This effectively made him a one man earthquake.
Ah Yin walked over to Ye Wen, offering her heartfelt congratulations.
In her eyes, Ye Wen wasn't like her, who had grown strong by relying on the innate advantages of a 100,000 year soul beast's foundation. Ye Wen's achievements were built on his intelligence and determination, breaking past the limits of ordinary spirit masters step by step.
Jealousy? Not at all.
After tidying up briefly, the two began their journey back.
It's worth mentioning that after absorbing this high level soul ring, Ye Wen's Martial Spirit Storage Space expanded to 1,000 cubic meters an epic level improvement.
Ye Wen speculated that after his next soul ring, it might grow to 2,000 cubic meters, as every soul ring absorption significantly increased the storage capacity.
Initially, Ye Wen had considered capturing a few thousand year Battle Drum Toads to test if they could be domesticated. However, spirit beasts were notoriously stubborn. They had immediately chosen to self destruct rather than be tamed.
Clicking his tongue in frustration, Ye Wen lamented how challenging it was to domesticate spirit beasts. He had thought Yu Xiaogang's claims in the original story were mere exaggerations, but now he understood.
Still, by the time of Soul Land 2, a full industry for spirit beast domestication had been developed, with even a beast taming department established at Shrek Academy.
Ye Wen didn't dwell on it too much. The materials he had gathered were sufficient for now. Domestication could wait for another day when he had the time and interest.
Back at Tiangxing Academy, now shrouded in an ethereal atmosphere, life returned to its usual tranquility.
During this period, Ye Wen established a Tiangxing Medical Clinic in Nuoding City.
With Ye Buyi's connections, he spread word of the clinic to over a hundred surrounding villages.
The business thrived not because of high fees, but due to the lack of accessible medical care in such remote areas. Ye Wen wasn't in it for profit. The clinic was more of an experiment to see if his medical research could benefit this world.
Too many lives were lost yearly to diseases among the lower classes, a sight that disturbed Ye Wen deeply.
Ye Wen didn't consider himself a good person, but he believed in helping others within his capacity.
Though the clinic's fees were modest, it still earned around ten gold spirit coins a month. Ye Wen handed this small income directly to Lan Lan and Su Qiaoqiao as their personal savings.
The clinic's daily operations relied on these two: one using a needle based martial spirit for stitching external wounds, and the other leveraging the life giving properties of Blue Silver Grass to aid recovery and prescribe medicine.
During this time, many of Ye Wen's former subordinates visited him, and he greeted them warmly.
To the outside world, Ye Wen was now a strong Soul Sect with four rings, thanks to a fortuitous encounter. While this was partially a cover, it was also a necessary deterrent.
Tiangxing Academy's fame had attracted numerous arrogant spirit masters eager to test their strength. Unfortunately for them, they were swiftly dealt with by the Blue Silver King.
To avoid further trouble, Ye Wen flaunted his four ring strength. In such a remote region, this made him a local powerhouse, discouraging others from challenging him.
In Nuoding City, Ye Wen's influence grew steadily. Even his former "strongest little brother," Xiao Lie, paid him a visit.
Xiao Lie had matured considerably, shedding his youthful arrogance and adopting a noble demeanor. His brother had tragically died during a hunt for a soul ring, leaving Xiao Lie as the family's heir.
Now 21, Xiao Lie had reached the rank of Soul Elder, thanks to Ye Wen's past guidance. While unimpressive to Ye Wen, this progress had made Xiao Lie the city lord's chosen successor.
Thus, Ye Wen had become a towering figure in Nuoding City, respected across both noble and common circles.
As for the city lord's first wife? Rumor had it she'd gone mad.
(End of Chapter)
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