stonecrandall 456. The Secret of Soul Skills
456. The Secret of Soul Skills
The scarcity of soul skills is ultimately due to the fact that the threshold for alchemists is much higher than that for cultivating battle qi, and advancing to the spirit realm is even more difficult. Without a qualified teacher to guide them, they cannot even glimpse the path.
The scarcity of people cultivating soul power makes soul skills extremely rare. There are only so many Earth-rank soul skills in the Pill Tower, which made Xiao Yan quite emotional when he was searching for them.
……
No matter what it is, it's hard to get fat in one bite. The same applies to Su Huo, who is currently attempting to fuse beast fire. Even though Xiao Yan gave him inspiration, the initial fusion of beast fire is still fraught with difficulties.
With a muffled thud, the two balls of beast fire exploded. However, Su Huo was, after all, an elder at the Dou Zun level, and could not allow the two balls of beast fire to have any effect. He dealt with them silently.
Looking up, he saw Xiao Yan already standing before him with two scrolls, quietly waiting for his experiment to finish. Su Huo sighed, "Can't you really let me become your apprentice?"
Xiao Yan offered a different perspective: "Elder Su Huo, since you wish to fuse beast fire to benefit the continent, you should explore a path that is feasible for everyone. If you must rely on my cultivation method, you are inevitably going astray and will not be able to influence the majority."
Xiao Yan's words were sincere, and they were the same feeling he had when he was choosing a soul skill. Because there were few alchemists and it was even more difficult to enter the Soul Realm, there were very few soul skills to begin with.
Su Huo was briefly persuaded by Xiao Yan, and seeing the scroll in Xiao Yan's hand, he asked, "Alright, what did you choose?"
Xiao Yan also placed the two scrolls in his hands in front of Su Huo as he had no way of reading the cultivation methods inside the scrolls without Su Huo's help.
"Frosttail Needle and Soul Flow Black Whirlpool".
Of the two soul skills Xiao Yan chose, Frost Tail Needle is a mid-level Earth-rank soul skill, the only needle-type skill he could find among the Earth-rank soul skills in the Soul Skill Pavilion. Xiao Yan is not a pure alchemist; in battle, he primarily relies on Dou Qi, so he wanted to transform his soul power into a hidden killing move.
The Frost Tail Needle is quite suitable. Needle-type fighting techniques are known for their stealth, and this one is imbued with the power of frost. Its use in battle would undoubtedly be unpredictable. Therefore, even though he was only at the mid-level Earth Rank, Xiao Yan made the choice decisively, because only what suits him best is truly the best.
The other is a soul skill that condenses soul power into a soul vortex, possessing a wide-range control ability. Although its rank is high-level Earth, this wasn't the main reason Xiao Yan chose it. What Xiao Yan valued was its ability to be used in conjunction with the Devouring ability; the two combined would double its power! Moreover, with the Devouring ability acting as a buffer, it remained concealed, perfectly embodying Xiao Yan's understanding of the importance of soul power in battle.
Su Huo looked at the two scrolls, a knowing smile appearing on his lips: "Why not choose two high-level Earth-rank soul skills?"
Xiao Yan truthfully explained, "I really need the stealth of the Frost Tail Needle, so I'm willing to use it even if its grade isn't high enough."
Su Huo nodded: "You are indeed smarter than the average young person, but you are still not smart enough."
Then Su Huo put down the Frost Tail Needle, and with a suction force in his palm, he pulled a scroll from the front row into his hand, which he then handed to Xiao Yan.
"Take a look at this, it's what you need."
Xiao Yan was also somewhat puzzled. It seemed that the scroll was located below the Xuan rank, which was why he hadn't noticed it earlier. However, he didn't rush to ask, but instead used his soul power to scan it.
"Hidden Shadow Needle, High-Grade Yellow Rank. It uses a spirit-condensed needle to conceal its tracks and kill without leaving a trace. Special note: It makes very little noise when used."
Xiao Yan examined it carefully several times and found that the Hidden Shadow Needle was really unremarkable. Apart from being a needle-type soul skill, there was nothing noteworthy about it.
Seeing Xiao Yan's puzzled expression, Su Huo felt a surge of pleasure.
"You don't understand, do you? Actually, the Hidden Shadow Needle is a high-level Earth-rank Soul Skill, and it can be said to be the strongest one in the Soul Skill Pavilion."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan frowned deeply: "How is this possible? And why was it arranged this way?"
If this scroll is of the high-grade Earth rank, why would it be placed in a relatively low position at the front, and why would it be clearly stated that it is of the high-grade Yellow rank?
"This soul skill was created by a ninth-grade alchemist senior from the Pill Tower, aiming for complete stealth and leaving no trace. It seems that he felt that only when the juniors who came to choose the soul skill were completely clueless could it be considered truly stealthy. Therefore, it was clearly stated that it was a high-level Yellow Rank skill and placed in an extremely 'safe location.' Only the guardians of the Soul Skill Pavilion and the giants of the Pill Tower knew about this, and the senior even said that the giants of the Pill Tower should not cultivate this soul skill."
"Huh? Why is that?"
"He was worried that if the giants of the Pill Tower began to cultivate it, it would leak out and hinder his well-thought-out design, so he forbade it. In fact, there are probably no more than a handful of people in the Pill Tower who have truly cultivated the Hidden Shadow Needle technique."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan subconsciously rubbed his forehead and said, "This Pill Tower expert really has a very eccentric personality."
"But he's not allowed to be exposed. Elder Su Huo is doing this now..." Xiao Yan asked with some concern.
"Hey, hey..." Su Huo raised his hand to stop him, saying, "I don't know anything. You chose him yourself. You're not a disciple of the Pill Tower, and I haven't done anything to wrong him."
Su Huo had already made it clear, so how could Xiao Yan not understand his good intentions? And since he did need the Hidden Shadow Needle, he no longer refused and simply accepted it.
Su Huo then took the opportunity to continue, saying, "If you make any new discoveries about flame fusion in the future, don't forget me. You can come here and chat with me from time to time."
Xiao Yan had just made a promise with Haika that he would visit whenever he had time, but he didn't expect Su Huo to be just as eager. However, Su Huo had just given Xiao Yan some pointers, essentially using cheating to help him choose the Hidden Shadow Needle, so Xiao Yan naturally couldn't really refuse Su Huo's request.
"Elder Su Huo, rest assured, we will notify you immediately if Xiao Yan is found."
Xiao Yan had just left the Soul Skill Pavilion and hadn't even gone to the most important Ten Thousand Pill Pavilion in the Pill Tower to look for pills when Xuan Kongzi summoned him. Xiao Yan had no choice; he could see that the Pill Tower was unusually anxious, and since he was being paid, he should do their bidding.
Shortly after Xiao Yan left, another figure entered the Soul Skill Pavilion. Seeing Su Huo fusing two flames, the newcomer grinned, revealing his canine teeth.
"Flame fusion? That's interesting..."