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The Azure Serpent struggled more and more violently, its emerald green body twisting and rolling on the grass, sending up a flurry of fallen leaves.
Liquid seeped from the golden markings on its head, wounds caused by extreme water-attribute energy. Yet, the ferocity of the thousand-year-old soul beast remained. It swung its long tail violently, sweeping it towards the rocks by the stream with a whistling sound. With a loud "boom," the rocks as thick as bowls were shattered into pieces.
Jiang Zhen had just steadied himself from the puddle when he saw the snake suddenly turn its head towards him, its blue vertical pupils filled with madness.
Ignoring the injury on its head, its massive body coiled up like a giant green python, and in the next second it suddenly shot towards Jiang Zhen. Its mouth was wide open, and foul-smelling venom dripped from its sharp teeth, instantly burning small holes in the grass.
"Damn it, it's going to take us both down with it!" Jiang Zhen's heart tightened. The condensation of the water bullet had almost exhausted half of his soul power, and the water-based protective membrane on his body had dimmed due to the previous impact, making it unable to withstand this fatal pounce. He subconsciously reached for his waist, his fingertips touching the long knife wrapped in coarse cloth—the self-defense knife given to him by Village Chief Liu!
Without a moment's hesitation, Jiang Zhen abruptly drew his Long Sword, the blade reflecting the dappled sunlight through the forest, carrying the cold, hard quality characteristic of metal.
He pushed off the ground with both feet, advancing instead of retreating, using the momentum to sidestep the snake's mouth, while simultaneously channeling all his remaining soul power into the blade.
When the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique" was activated to its fullest extent, the pale blue soul power spread from the hilt to the blade, condensing into a thin film of water on the edge.
"Drink!" Jiang Zhen shouted, his wrist flicking as he thrust his Long Sword fiercely into the gaps in the scales on the snake's neck—the thinnest part of its scales, and the spot where the water arrow had left a shallow mark!
"Pfft!"
With the aid of the water film, the blade easily pierced the snake's scales and plunged deep into its neck.
The Azure Serpent let out an even more shrill hiss than before, its body convulsing violently, its tail slapping the ground wildly. Jiang Zhen's arm went numb from the shock, and he almost lost his grip on the hilt of his knife.
He gritted his teeth, exerted force on his wrist again, and pushed the long sword half an inch further into the snake's body. At the same time, he condensed the last small ball of water in his palm and pressed it hard against the back of the sword.
"Break it!"
The water sphere exploded on the back of the blade, and the violent water-attribute energy surged into the serpent's body along the blade, instantly destroying its last bit of life force. The Azure Serpent's body stiffened, its blue vertical pupils gradually lost their luster, and its massive body slammed onto the grass with a "thud," becoming completely still.
Jiang Zhen could no longer hold on. He released the hilt of his knife and collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
He was covered in sweat, his clothes were splattered with the snake's venom in several places, burning small holes in them, and his arms and back were still aching from the impact.
The small water ball in his palm had long since dissipated, and his soul power was almost depleted. He even lacked the strength to circulate the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique".
"Finally... done." He looked at the gradually cooling Azure Serpent on the ground, a weak smile appearing on his lips.
This battle was even more difficult than he had anticipated. The physique and ferocity of the thousand-year-old soul beast were far superior to those of the hundred-year-old soul beast. If he hadn't finally found its weakness with his Long Sword, he probably would have really perished here.
He rested for about fifteen minutes before he recovered.
He got up and walked to the corpse of the Azure Serpent, and drew his long sword—the blade was stained with emerald green blood, but it was not dull at all; Li the blacksmith's craftsmanship was indeed solid.
He washed the blade clean with the stream water, wrapped it back in coarse cloth and tucked it back into his waistband. He then examined the snake's corpse: the golden markings on its head were broken, and the wound on its neck was so deep that the bone was visible. It was indeed lifeless.
Just then, a pale purple soul ring floated out from the spirit snake's body and slowly rotated in the air.
Jiang Zhen's eyes lit up, but he quickly became wary again. The Soul Hunter Forest was never short of Soul Masters coveting Soul Rings, and the battle just now had been quite loud; it might have already attracted others. He needed to find a secluded and safe place to absorb the Soul Ring as soon as possible.
He looked around, his gaze landing on a hillside not far away—there was a dense thicket of bushes, and behind the bushes seemed to be a cave.
He shouldered half a sack of wheat cakes and a water bag and strode towards the cave.
The cave is not large, about the size of two adults, and the entrance is hidden by vines.
Jiang Zhen entered the cave and carefully checked it over to make sure there were no other soul beasts inside before he felt relieved.
After preparing, Jiang Zhen sat cross-legged deep in the cave, took out a low-level Soul Power Pill from his system backpack, and put it in his mouth.
The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, and a gentle energy flowed down his throat into his body, quickly nourishing his depleted meridians.
He closed his eyes, activated the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique," and began to guide the soul rings in the air.
With his will, the remaining soul power within his body slowly surged out, forming a pale blue guiding line that flew towards the soul ring at the cave entrance.
As if summoned, the pale purple spirit ring slowly drifted into the cave and finally stopped above Jiang Zhen's head.
Jiang Zhen took a deep breath, tightly connected the traction line to the spirit ring, and then slowly pulled the spirit ring down—the moment the spirit ring touched the top of his head, a huge amount of energy surged into his body!
"Hmm!"
Jiang Zhen groaned, cold sweat instantly beading on his forehead.
This energy was more violent than he had imagined. Although it was water-attribute, it carried the wildness unique to thousand-year-old soul beasts, frantically impacting his dantian and martial soul along his meridians.
His meridians felt like they were about to burst, and he experienced waves of throbbing pain, making it difficult even to circulate the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique".
"Hold on!" Jiang Zhen gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and continued to guide the energy into his martial soul.
He knew that this was a necessary process for absorbing a spirit ring, especially a thousand-year spirit ring, which would have a greater impact on the body.
Fortunately, he had been tempering his body with body-tempering liquid since he was three years old, and the toughness of his meridians far exceeded that of ordinary soul masters; otherwise, he would probably have been overwhelmed by the energy by now.
He gradually tamed the violent energy by following the cultivation method of the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique".
Time passed slowly, and only Jiang Zhen's heavy breathing and the "buzzing" sound of energy flowing remained in the cave.
A pale blue halo gradually appeared on his body, interspersed with specks of purple soul ring energy, making him look exceptionally strange.
After an unknown amount of time, when the last trace of violent energy was absorbed by the martial soul, Jiang Zhen suddenly opened his eyes!
The small water ball in my palm instantly burst into a dazzling blue light, becoming a size larger than before, with the water ripples on its surface becoming finer and more dynamic, as if it had come to life.
He could clearly feel that his control over the water element was more than twice as strong as before—the water-attribute energy in the surrounding air seemed to have become a part of his body, which he could control at will with just a thought.
He tried activating his soul skill, letting out a low shout: "Nourishing All Directions!"
Pale blue soul power surged from his body, and the small water ball in his palm instantly spread out, forming a semi-transparent water curtain that enveloped the entire cave.
With a thought, the water curtain instantly condensed into three sharp water arrows, which hovered in front of him, their tips gleaming with a cold light.
With another movement, the water arrow transformed into a water shield, blocking his path. The water ripples on its surface flowed slowly, exuding a solid aura.
"Such strong control!" Jiang Zhen couldn't help but exclaim.
Previously, he could only barely condense water arrows, and their power was limited. Now, with the support of his soul skill, he can not only control multiple forms, but also precisely control the range and power!
In addition, he felt that his own attributes should have been increased by 200%!
As expected of a thousand-year-old soul skill!
Jiang Zhen stood up, stretched his limbs, and felt the changes brought about by the surging soul power and soul skills within his body. He couldn't help but smile.
From this day forward, he will no longer be a "half-finished" Soul Master with only innate full Soul Power, but a true one-ring Soul Master with Soul Skills!
He walked to the cave entrance, put away the warning water droplets, and parted the vines to look outside—the sky was gradually darkening, and sporadic chirping of insects and roars of beasts could be heard from the forest.
"It's time to head to Nuoding City." Jiang Zhen slung his pack over his shoulder and gripped the long sword at his waist. With his first soul skill and the "Mysterious Water Enlightenment Technique," he was confident he could handle the dangers along the way.
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