Chapter 17 – Third Soul Skill: Bi-Phosphorus Poison Ring

With Dugu Bo leading the way, this miasma-filled swamp was no different from open ground to them.

From time to time, Yun Yibai even spotted rare medicinal herbs growing here, and he casually picked them along the way.

Dugu Bo, naturally, pretended not to notice.

"You know medicine?" Dugu Bo asked blandly as he saw Yun Yibai occasionally gathering herbs.

"Medicinal baths," Yun Yibai replied calmly.

"Refining the essence of bone through medicine—tempering the body with it."

"A strong physique is one of the reasons I'm able to absorb my third soul ring."

"Is that so?" Dugu Bo responded with no further comment.

Facts proved that as long as a suitable soul beast existed and one was willing to invest the time, success was only a matter of when. Sure enough, after seven days of searching, Dugu Bo finally led the two of them to the outer edge of the swamp where they found a soul beast with a suitable cultivation age.

The outer area of the swamp still had solid ground, though it was shrouded in poisonous miasma.

However, with Dugu Bo by their side, the toxins posed no threat at all.

"This Purple Nether Soaring Flood Serpent is five meters long, and its cultivation age is roughly fifteen hundred years. What do you think, Dugu Yan?"

Although it was called a "flood serpent," this soul beast looked more like a snake. However, its head showed slight draconic features. Just from its name alone, one could tell it was fast.

Dugu Yan nodded. "It'll do!"

"Then let's begin!"

Two soul rings appeared—one yellow, one purple—representing the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon and the Bi-Phosphorus Snake.

"First Soul Skill: Bi-Phosphorus Crimson Poison!"

A buff-type soul skill activated and enveloped Yun Yibai. His Martial Soul's true form emerged—golden thunder claws shimmering with power. With a light step, he launched forward.

"ROAR!"

The Purple Nether Soaring Flood Serpent let out a furious roar and spewed a dense purple mist.

"Careful, it's poisonous!"

Crackling! Thunder roared and echoed through the quiet swamp.

"Thunder Dragon!" Yun Yibai clenched his fist and punched forward. A bolt of lightning exploded from his fist, incinerating the poisonous fog on contact.

Lightning, being fierce and direct, was the perfect counter to sinister toxins.

Seeing its attack fail, the serpent attempted to flee—or rather, to reposition and strike from the shadows. After all, this was its territory.

"Trying to escape? Hmph!"

Back when he was just a Grandmaster-level Soul Master, Yun Yibai could already match average Soul Elders. Now, with his third soul skill and Dugu Yan's support buffs, he wasn't about to let a mere thousand-year beast slip away.

His first, second, and third soul rings lit up in sequence.

He was currently at his peak condition.

He dashed forward like an arrow, lightning gathering around his right fist.

"Collapse Fist!"

"ROAR!"

The serpent howled in pain, once again breathing out purple mist—but Yun Yibai, surrounded by lightning, was fully protected.

With lightning enhancing his speed, he moved even faster than the Purple Nether Flood Serpent.

BANG!

Even though it tried to escape, it still took a direct hit from Yun Yibai's punch, crashing to the ground.

The serpent let out a shrill, anguished cry.

"Breath of Thunder!"

After obtaining his third soul ring, Yun Yibai's control over lightning improved significantly.

"Roar of the Thunder Dragon!"

A golden wave of thunder burst forth with destructive force, obliterating everything in its path. Trees shattered and burned to charcoal under the violent surge of electricity.

"This kid…"

Dugu Bo could sense from that strike that Yun Yibai's power far surpassed that of a typical Soul Elder. Fearing he might accidentally kill the serpent outright, Dugu Bo intervened slightly to preserve its life.

Off to the side, Dugu Yan's cherry lips parted in awe. She had seen Yun Yibai unleash powerful attacks before—but this time, the transformation was palpable.

The golden thunder struck the serpent dead-on with precision.

Without stopping, Yun Yibai charged again, vanishing into the mist and smoke.

Moments later, he emerged, his right claw gripping the unconscious Purple Nether Flood Serpent.

He approached Dugu Yan and casually tossed the beast over.

"Finish it."

"O-oh!"

Dugu Yan was still a bit dazed by the scene she'd just witnessed.

She pulled a sharp dagger from her soul tool and ended the soul beast's life cleanly.

"This kid from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan… that strike just now was already beyond what a normal Soul Elder should be capable of."

"If his soul power reaches the upper ranks of Soul Elder, won't he be able to challenge even Soul Ancestors?"

"What dumb luck that clan has, to produce such a talent."

"Heh… and to think those old fools cast him out. Tsk tsk."

Thinking about the day he'd get to see the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan eat their own words, Dugu Bo felt deeply satisfied.

Yun Yibai stayed close to Dugu Yan, patiently waiting for her to absorb her soul ring.

Dugu Bo quietly stepped away as the process began.

"Kid, that move just now—was that your third soul skill?" Dugu Bo asked casually, eyes still on Dugu Yan.

"No," Yun Yibai replied.

"My third soul skill is called Wrath of Thunder. It boosts soul power attack effectiveness by over 50%, and lightning-type power is doubled. All attributes are enhanced, and soul power becomes far more explosive."

"So that earlier strike… was a self-created soul skill?"

"Correct."

"You can create your soul skills, and those old geezers from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan don't even know?" Dugu Bo raised an eyebrow.

"Forget it. They probably don't," he muttered.

If they had known just how terrifying this kid was, even the most stubborn elders wouldn't have cast him out so easily.

Yun Yibai had been hiding something from his former clan.

Dugu Bo said no more.

About an hour later, the fluctuations of soul power around Dugu Yan began to stabilize.

After waiting a little longer, she opened her eyes, joy sparkling in them.

"Grandfather!"

"Yan Yan, how do you feel?"

"Grandfather, the soul skill I obtained is called Bi-Phosphorus Poison Ring. It releases a toxic fog unique to the Bi-Phosphorus Snake. Within its area of effect, all my Bi-Phosphorus Snake's venom becomes significantly stronger. It deals continuous damage to enemies and slows their movement."

"This soul ring perfectly suits my needs. It's both offensive and controlling."

"Hahaha!"

Hearing this, Dugu Bo was extremely pleased. Dugu Yan's third soul skill was far superior to his third skill back in the day.

"Kid, not bad at all!"

At this moment, Dugu Bo looked at Yun Yibai quite favorably… though who knew how long that would last?

"Let's go."

Dugu Bo led the two of them away from the area.