The Third Soul Skill: Mirror Clone
Yuhao naturally understood what Xue Wuhen meant, but after all, this incident had occurred because of him.
He shook his head slightly at Xue Wuhen, then his body suddenly erupted with golden light. Golden dragon wings unfolded behind his back, and with a single flap, he soared straight into the sky, disappearing from everyone's sight in the blink of an eye.
Zhao and the others had never personally witnessed Yuhao's true strength before. Seeing this scene, they were immediately struck dumb with shock, their eyes wide open.
"Boss, that boy—"
But before Zhao could finish speaking, Xue Wuhen raised his paw and knocked him on the head with an explosive chestnut.
"That kid… show some respect."
Although others were unaware, Xue Wuhen knew Yu Hao's strength extremely well. From the very beginning, he had understood just how terrifying this seemingly young boy truly was.
Zhao rubbed the spot where he had been hit, looking a little aggrieved. However, he still remembered the urgent situation at hand and quickly continued:
"Boss, we should chase Iron Wolf immediately. If we delay even a little longer, that guy will completely disappear."
However, Xue Wuhen, who had been brimming with murderous intent just moments ago, calmly shook his head and said in an unusually steady voice:
"No need. Didn't you see? Brother Huo has already gone after him."
"Just that little—" Zhao blurted out instinctively. "Boss Huo is still so young. There's no way he can deal with Iron Wolf alone."
Halfway through his sentence, Zhao noticed Xue Wuhen's sharp gaze sweeping over him and hurriedly changed his tone.
Even so, his words still clearly revealed his lack of confidence in Yuhao.
After all, he had no understanding of Yuhao's true strength. In Zhao's view, it was simply impossible for a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old youth to defeat Iron Wolf—someone with abundant real combat experience and a cultivation level that had already reached the Fourth Ring Soul Sect realm.
Yet Xue Wuhen merely shook his head again and said quietly:
"Just wait here."
...
On the other side, Yu Hao was already flying at high speed through mid-air, his Mental Detection fully activated to its maximum range.
At the same time, the familiar voice of the Tianmeng Iceworm echoed within his sea of consciousness.
"Yuhao, what exactly is your third soul skill? Is it the soul skill we expected earlier?"
Hearing Tianmeng Bingcan's question, Yu Hao could not help but reveal a bitter smile.
"Unfortunately… it's not the soul skill we were hoping for."
Originally, the soul skill Yuhao had anticipated was something similar to Oscar's Mirror Image Sausage, a soul skill capable of copying or simulating another person's martial soul.
However, reality clearly did not unfold according to his expectations.
In truth, this was completely normal. Yuhao's martial soul was fundamentally different from Oscar's. Even if they absorbed soul rings from similar soul beasts, the probability of obtaining the exact same soul skill was extremely low.
"Then what kind of soul skill did you obtain?" Tianmeng Iceworm asked again, curiosity evident in his tone.
"You'll see soon enough," Yuhao replied with a soft sigh. "It's just… not very ideal."
At that moment, Yu Hao's Mental Detection suddenly locked onto a rapidly fleeing figure ahead. Upon closer inspection, he instantly recognized the person—it was the traitor, Iron Wolf.
Yuhao did not hesitate in the slightest. Golden dragon wings flared as he sharply altered his trajectory, diving downward like a peregrine falcon locking onto its prey.
Whoosh—
Hearing the sharp sound of air being torn apart, Tie Lang sensed danger from the corner of his eye. Almost entirely on instinct, he pushed off the ground with his toes, his body flipping backward in an instant.
That single reaction allowed him to narrowly avoid what would have been a fatal blow.
"Who's there?!"
After stabilizing himself, Tie Lang raised his head and stared ahead warily.
A slender yet overwhelmingly oppressive figure slowly emerged from the dust and smoke. It was Yu Hao.
"Huo—Brother Huo!"
"A despicable villain who betrays others and stabs them in the back has no right to call me brother."
Yuhao's eyes were icy cold as he spoke in a calm, emotionless voice.
"Hand over your soul bones, then come back with me to face Xue Wuhen."
Yuhao had no intention of killing Iron Wolf. First, he did not want to dirty his hands. Second, he had already promised Xue Wuhen that he would give him a proper explanation.
Hearing these words, Iron Wolf was stunned for a brief moment before bursting into mocking laughter.
"Kid, don't you think too highly of yourself?"
As he spoke, his facial features began to elongate, thick black fur sprouting across his body. His hands and feet transformed into sharp wolf claws, and four soul rings—one white and three yellow—rose beneath his feet.
Martial soul possession!
However, just as Yuhao thought Iron Wolf was about to attack, Iron Wolf's second soul ring suddenly lit up. A fierce wind surged beneath his feet, and his body shot off in another direction.
"Idiot. Did you really think I'd fight you head-on?"
Tie Lang sneered inwardly. It wasn't that he feared Yu Hao, but at this moment, he was desperate to escape. If he got entangled even briefly, Xue Wuhen and the others might catch up.
Yet before he could take more than a few steps, another figure stepped out from behind a massive cedar tree directly ahead.
What was strange was that this person looked exactly like Yu Hao—same face, same aura, even the same clothing.
"Where exactly do you think you're running?"
"You—are you human or a ghost?!"
Tie Lang was shocked out of his wits. He instinctively turned his head back, only to see Yu Hao still standing where he had been, staring at him with a half-smile.
Two Yuhaos.
He couldn't comprehend what he was seeing.
This was Yuhao's newly acquired third soul skill, obtained from the Mirror Beast soul ring—Mirror Clone.
A clone entirely formed from spiritual power, possessing 50.00% of Yuhao's soul power source.
Tie Lang quickly came to his senses, realizing that the Yu Hao blocking his path had to be the effect of some kind of soul skill.
"Boy, since you're courting death, don't blame me for being ruthless!"
Tie Lang snarled viciously as his fourth soul ring flared to life. A razor-sharp aura condensed instantly around his right claw.
Claw Blade—an enhancing soul skill.
In the next instant, Tie Lang lunged toward the mirror clone.
But before he could close the distance, a flash of deep purple light erupted from the clone's eyes.
Boom!
Tie Lang only heard a sharp ringing sound explode within his mind. His vision went blank, and his consciousness froze for a brief instant.
When he finally recovered, a cold presence had already appeared behind him.
It was Yu Hao's true body.
"Since you refuse to come with me willingly," Yuhao said calmly, "then don't blame me for taking you by force."
Before the words even finished falling, Yuhao struck Tie Lang's neck with a precise hand chop.
Even with martial soul possession active, Tie Lang had no remaining strength to resist. His eyes rolled back, and he collapsed unconscious on the spot.
At that moment, the mirror clone walked over as well.
Standing face to face with an exact copy of himself gave Yuhao an indescribably strange feeling.
"Yuhao, is this your third soul skill?" Tianmeng Iceworm's voice echoed once more.
Yuhao nodded slightly and explained, "Yes. The Mirror Clone is entirely composed of mental power and possesses 50.00% of my soul power."
"Hiss—" Tianmeng Iceworm inhaled sharply. "A clone with 50.00% soul power is no worse than a soul skill that copies a martial soul."
Then he paused, puzzled. "If that's the case, why did you say it wasn't ideal?"
Yuhao's expression turned serious.
"The problem is that although the mirror clone has soul power, it doesn't possess a martial soul. That means it can't release any standard soul skills."
"What? It can't release soul skills?" Tianmeng Iceworm was stunned.
Without a physical body or bloodline strength, and with no martial soul to rely on, such a clone would be severely limited in combat.
"But wait," Tianmeng Iceworm suddenly added, "didn't your mirror clone just release a spiritual attack?"
"That wasn't a soul skill," Yuhao explained. "It was a self-created spiritual technique. I combined the Purple Demon Eyes with my mental power. Strictly speaking, it should be considered a self-created soul skill."
Now that Yuhao's mental power had reached a semi-materialized state, and his Purple Demon Eyes had entered the Mustard Seed realm, the two could be fused to produce an effect similar to Soul Impact.
However, compared to a true Soul Impact, its power was still far too weak.
A little… slow.