At this moment, Ge Long couldn't help but ask:
"Dear nephew, what exactly is going on here?"
"Are you referring to my martial soul, Uncle Ge?" Lin Rong understood what Ge Long was asking and replied,
"Just a small trick, nothing to mention."
In reality, as long as a Soul Master has a high enough mastery over their martial soul, they can display their soul rings without actually releasing the martial soul.
The reason why only Title Douluo are known to be able to do this in this world is that, generally, only by reaching the Title Douluo realm can a Soul Master's control over their martial soul reach the required level.
Lin Rong had cultivated the Washing Marrow Sutra.
After breaking through to the first major stage of the Washing Marrow Sutra—"Heart Empty, Body Self-Transformed"—Lin Rong had been able to fully control his Nine-Twists Vine Dragon Martial Soul.
Additionally, when Lin Rong reached the thirtieth level and obtained the soul ring of the Sky Blue Vine, his Nine-Twists Vine Dragon completely awakened and gave birth to a dragon soul consciousness that obeyed his commands.
With this dragon soul consciousness, even without the enhancement of the "Heart Empty, Body Self-Transformed" state, Lin Rong could still control his martial soul completely through the dragon soul's absolute obedience.
"Uncle Ge, I know you have some concerns." Seeing that Ge Long did not speak after asking his earlier question, Lin Rong spoke to ease his mind:
"The empire's law strictly prohibits hereditary nobles from involving themselves in military power."
"Therefore, all the previous Marshals of the Empire have been talented Soul Masters from commoner backgrounds, just like you, Uncle Ge."
"However, Uncle Ge, although I've recruited Red Jun, it's indisputable that he comes from a commoner background."
"The most important point is that Red Jun is only nine years old. What could a nine-year-old child possibly have in mind?"
"This..." After hearing this, Ge Long voiced his final concern:
"Dear nephew, let me tell you the truth."
"This child has no issue with his background, and his talent is high enough that, in theory, he could take over my position in the future."
"But the position of the Imperial Marshal isn't something I can just hand over to someone. It requires His Majesty's decree for the appointment."
"This child, though born a commoner, has been trained at your mansion for several years, and I fear that His Majesty might not allow him to take over my position."
Upon hearing this, Lin Rong knew that Ge Long had almost agreed, and now all that remained was to dispel his final concern.
"Uncle Ge, you don't need to worry about that."
"Have you ever heard the saying, 'When a person is supported by the will of the people, no one can block their path!'"
"As long as Red Jun can win the support of the entire army, I believe the wise and martial Emperor will comply with the soldiers' heartfelt sincerity."
"As for why I'm so confident Red Jun will gain the support of all the soldiers, you'll understand once you see for yourself."
With that, Lin Rong turned to Ma Hongjun and said,
"Red Jun, it's time for Uncle Ge to witness your third soul skill. Remember, don't let the range of the soul skill be too wide—just cover this camp."
"Understood!" Ma Hongjun answered sharply, then turned to Ge Long and said,
"Sir, please watch closely!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ma Hongjun's light purple soul ring lit up.
"Third soul skill: Sky Phoenix Mystic Sound!"
Clang Clang
A clear and passionate phoenix cry echoed through the camp.
Upon hearing this phoenix cry, Ge Long immediately felt his fighting spirit soar, his body brimming with strength.
At the same time, a faint warm current flowed through his body, making him feel a kind of indescribable comfort.
After experiencing it for a moment, Ge Long looked at Ma Hongjun and said,
"Child, your third soul skill must have come from a flying soul beast with the bloodline of the Seven-Colored Mystic Sound Bird."
"The battle spirit it raises, the three percent attribute boost, and the faint warm current within you should be a continuous mild healing effect."
"As for whether it has control-breaking effects, I cannot say."
"The Fire Phoenix is indeed a top-tier flying martial soul, but the soul beast's soul ring that absorbed the Seven-Colored Mystic Sound Bird's bloodline, its soul skill effect is almost identical to the legendary Mystic Sound."
"Can you tell me how large the range of your third soul skill is?"
"Since my dear nephew is so confident, I'm sure the range of your soul skill will not disappoint me."
"Hehe." Ma Hongjun scratched his head, smiling as he corrected him,
"Sir, you're mistaken!"
"My third soul ring comes from a genuine Seven-Colored Mystic Sound Bird."
"As for the range of the soul skill, the initial range is one kilometer, but each additional soul ring increases the range by one kilometer."
"Right now, I'm a three-ring Soul Venerable, so the range of my Sky Phoenix Mystic Sound is four kilometers."
Upon hearing this, Ge Long was shocked and quickly calculated in his mind:
The initial range is one kilometer, and when he reaches Title Douluo, with nine soul rings, the range would increase to nine kilometers, totaling ten kilometers.
If he were to release his martial soul's true form, the range of his third soul skill would double—wouldn't that be a twenty-kilometer range?
While still stunned, Ge Long glanced at Lin Rong beside him and sighed,
"Dear nephew, you came well-prepared. I admit, I can't refuse a genius soul master with such a divine skill."
"No wonder you're so confident—given this divine skill, it would be a piece of cake for this child to win the support of the entire army."
"It looks like I won't hold onto the position of Marshal for many more years before this child takes my place."
On the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes. Once they clash, it's either you die or I live.
Every time soldiers go to the battlefield, they walk through the gates of life and death.
Especially the lowest-ranked soldiers, where the chances of survival are slim, describing it as "nine deaths out of ten" would be an understatement.
In such circumstances, Ma Hongjun's third soul skill, Sky Phoenix Mystic Sound, aside from its control-breaking ability when released, has three other major effects.
Whether it's boosting morale, providing a 3% all-attribute increase, or the mild continuous healing, each of these effects on its own could greatly increase the soldiers' chances of surviving the battlefield.
And when these three effects are combined, unless the enemy army is a soul master legion, it will be a complete overwhelming victory.
Ma Hongjun's soul skill greatly increases the chance of survival for the soldiers on the battlefield, naturally earning him the heartfelt admiration and support of the entire army.
At that time, even if he wasn't the Marshal, Ma Hongjun's prestige among the troops would allow him to defy orders and lead the soldiers to openly disobey Emperor Tiandou's commands without fear.
As long as Ma Hongjun doesn't rebel with an army, Emperor Tiandou would choose to turn a blind eye because of his prestige in the military.
Moreover, leading a rebellion would hurt Ma Hongjun's image in the eyes of the soldiers.
Therefore, if Lin Rong wanted to seize the throne of Tiandou, he would have to shift the blame for the downfall of the Tiandou Imperial Family to Qian Renxue.
To avoid retaliation from the Spirit Hall, he would need to shift the blame for sabotaging Qian Renxue's plans onto Tang San, letting him draw the hate and fire from the Spirit Hall.