"What skill is it?" Seeing the intense joy in Fang Ling's eyes, Dugu Bo couldn't help but ask.
"Blade of Anti-Magic."
Fang Ling uttered those four words, gripped his scythe, and activated the newly acquired ten-thousand-year spirit ring.
A layer of dreamlike, starry light,purple as the base and speckled with black,wrapped around the scythe blade like silk.
This mysterious glow added a deeper, arcane quality to the already razor-sharp weapon.
However, the energy cost was truly shocking.
"Consumes a lot?" Dugu Bo, sensing the sharp drop in Fang Ling's spirit power after activating the skill, asked softly.
Maintaining Blade of Anti-Magic, Fang Ling reflected, "Yeah, kind of. It used up about thirty percent of my spirit power in one go."
Dugu Bo thought for a moment. He activated his Martial Soul, and gently scraped the purple-black aura on the scythe with his green scales.
Sensing the sudden drain of spirit power and the gradual erosion of his scales by the anti-magic force, a flash of surprise crossed his eyes.
Even his Title Douluo-level Martial Soul was being eroded by a ten-thousand-year spirit ring,by a Spirit Ancestor with only four rings. What a powerful anti-magic ability!
He had only read about it in documents before. Seeing it in person was incredible.
Dugu Bo's reaction gave Fang Ling some insight as well.
Moments later, Fang Ling said in surprise, "And if I actually attack with it, the energy consumption increases even more."
"But it's fine. With my combat power, I just need to use it at the right time and end the fight quickly."
The surprise vanished. He waved his hand nonchalantly.
Once Fang Ling understood how to use it and the extent of its power, he felt at ease.
A ten-thousand-year spirit ring is typically something only a Spirit King can acquire. For a Spirit Ancestor to use one, high consumption is expected.
Moreover, this anti-magic skill is truly unique. It can bypass level restrictions and even break through Dugu Bo's defenses. Hoping for both power and low cost is unrealistic.
While it may be unbeatable at the same level, its true value lies in countering heavily defensive opponents or fighting above one's level.
Against those of the same rank, his first three spirit skills were already more than enough.
After all, Weakness Detection Lv7 was his only high-level specialty,it could identify flaws even in early-stage Spirit Emperors. Fighting peers was hardly a challenge.
Besides providing Blade of Anti-Magic, the Doom Mantis spirit ring brought many changes to his attributes.
Excluding his spirit bone and name, every panel had changed.
Martial Soul: Long-Handled War Scythe (Lv4, 30%)
(A scythe Martial Soul that has undergone one evolution… weighs 120 pounds… a mid-tier intermediate Martial Soul)
Dugu Bo's comment had already made Fang Ling suspicious. Sure enough, his Martial Soul had evolved.
His first ring came from a weak Star-Nosed Mole, improving reflexes but offering no real growth to his Martial Soul.
The second ring, from a Spiked Blood Dragonfly, provided temporary damage boosts.
Though it looked intimidating, the creature's material quality wasn't much better than Fang Ling's old farming scythe.
Its real strength lay in sharp perception and synergy with the Cursed Blade source technique.
Again, no meaningful growth to the Martial Soul.
The third ring came from a Silver Emperor Falcon. While the skill was strong, it still didn't enhance the Martial Soul.
But the fourth ring changed everything.
The Doom Mantis ring increased the weight of his Martial Soul by 40 pounds.
He had previously saved 3 evolution points and earned 4 more over six months, spending all 7 to boost his Martial Soul by just 4%.
Absorbing this ring instantly increased that growth to 30%.
While it didn't save him many points, it proved that Martial Souls could indeed grow through appropriate spirit rings.
Perhaps future ring choices should focus on spirit beasts that promote Martial Soul growth?
The thought passed quickly,Fang Ling didn't dwell on it.
There's no point thinking too far ahead. You never know what spirit beasts you'll find when hunting.
Spirit Power: 42 (2%)
His spirit power had just crossed level 41, barely pushing him up to level 42.
At level 40, one is already considered a mid-level spirit master, and his spirit power was indeed much stronger now.
Spirit Rings: …Fourth Ring – 11,057-Year Doom Mantis
A new ring was added. Not much to say,just a record of its existence.
What truly mattered were the specialties!
Specialties:
- Sharpness Lv5 (Inherent to Martial Soul. Gained from the Doom Mantis spirit ring. Your weapon becomes significantly sharper, capable of slicing through refined iron armor with ease.)
- Tenacity Lv5 (Also inherent. Gained from the same ring. Increases the hardness and flexibility of your weapon. Your Martial Soul grows from lower-mid to mid-tier intermediate.)
- Anti-Magic Body Lv4 (Physical specialty. Gained from the Doom Mantis ring. Your body adapts to anti-magic force, reducing spirit power consumption by 50%.)
- Intuition Lv4 (Physical specialty. Gained from the Doom Mantis ring. The mantis is a natural-born warrior. After millennia of honing its instincts, it developed exceptional combat intuition. Within a five-meter radius, you can use a sixth sense to detect sneak attacks from behind.)
The anticipated Will of the Warrior didn't advance to Lv5. The intense mental struggle had brought it to the brink, but it still hadn't crossed the threshold.
Still, Fang Ling wasn't discouraged. He had gained four upgraded specialties.
Sharpness and Tenacity, both Martial Soul specialties, grew from Lv4 to Lv5.
This was likely the normal path of Martial Soul evolution,alongside strength gains, the percentage growth also increased.
However, point allocation was still a faster method.
Since the number of spirit rings is limited, they shouldn't be used solely to improve the Martial Soul.
In Fang Ling's opinion, having one ring per type was enough.
For example, ranged skills can be enhanced using points or replaced by self-created techniques.
Adding too many would deviate from his close-combat path, wasting valuable ring slots.
The upgrades to Martial Soul specialties were a pleasant surprise, but the two new physical specialties were even more so.
First, Anti-Magic Body Lv4.
This specialty improves adaptability, reducing spirit power consumption by 50%.
The 30% spirit power he used earlier had already been reduced.
Without this specialty, the same action would've cost him 60% of his total spirit power,let alone any sustained use afterward.
Second, Intuition Lv4.
This was the most exciting gain of all.
People always talk about instinct,and now, he had true combat intuition.
Its range was small, just five meters.
But with Fang Ling's reflexes, five meters gave him more than enough room to react.
While observing the Doom Mantis hunt, he was shocked to see it dodge and counterattack behind itself without even seeing the incoming threat.
He had guessed a specialty might form,and sure enough, he inherited it.
With Intuition and extreme reflexes, Fang Ling could now try fighting seven opponents at once.
Even in the Slaughter Capital, surrounded by enemies and sneak attacks, he now had full confidence.
Add in Life Drain, Spatial Awareness, and Silver Emperor Flash, and he could fight with unmatched calm.
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