The Martial Soul Skeleton, in Douluo Continent's Bone-Changing Susanoo

Chapter 69 Ossified Susanoo vs. Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex (Part 1)

Just as Xia Liang was about to fuse the energy of the three spirit rings, he suddenly noticed that the shadow of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul was reflected on the gray ground by the light of the spirit rings.

The shadow was shaped like a huge rib and a skull, with a large arm bone attached to the right side of the rib.

The spiritual world is capable of anything, so Xia Liang ran out directly from inside the ribs of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul.

Standing face to face with the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul, less than five meters apart, Xia Liang was surprised to see that a bone from the upper arm had indeed grown out of the right side of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul's dark purple ribs.

But at this moment, he had not activated his first soul skill, so how could his right arm bone have grown back?

The upper arm bone that appeared out of nowhere on the right side of the ribs looked like a skull, as if it had grown out of the necromancer skeleton spirit itself.

This should only happen when a martial soul evolves, right?

After circling the five-meter-tall undead skeleton martial spirit, Xia Liang noticed several rudimentary bone-like structures near the shoulder blades on both sides of the spine. This was likely the growth brought to the martial spirit after absorbing the Bone Dragon Soul Ring.

Logically, since the Bone Dragon Soul Ring is given to the skeleton's left arm, the new bone part that the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul is supposed to grow should be the left arm bone, not the right arm.

After a moment's thought, Xia Liang came up with a possibility: the first soul skill, Netherworld Transformation, could allow the Undead Skeleton Martial Soul to temporarily grow a skeletal right arm.

Could it be that the Soul Ring skill promoted the growth of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul, causing it to gradually grow the bone in its right upper arm?

If that's the case, then in the future, frequent use of the skeleton right and left arms granted by the first and third soul rings might allow the necromancer skeleton martial soul to grow its own left and right arm bones.

Xia Liang nodded firmly. He thought the conjecture was valid. Wasn't the newly grown wing bone near the two shoulder blades proof that the martial soul could grow?

Perhaps before long, the upper arm bone on the right side of the rib of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul will grow into a complete skeleton right arm.

After figuring out the situation, Xia Liang simply stood face to face with the Undead Skeleton Martial Soul, and then used the Fusion Ring as a basis to activate the first form of Bone Transformation Susanoo.

Suddenly, a feeling of mental confusion arose.

Xia Liang felt dizzy and on the verge of fainting.

This is likely due to excessive mental energy depletion caused by simulating in the mental world for too long.

Consciousness emerges from the spiritual world, and the gray space disappears.

Xia Liang, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground, suddenly opened his eyes and gasped for breath as if he had just been rescued from drowning.

His face was pale, and cold sweat kept sliding down his face, giving him a very disheveled appearance.

He stood up weakly, clutching his head. Xia Liang was still somewhat dazed. It seemed he would need to practice using his mental energy more in the future.

Three education commissioners ran over at the same time.

Seeing the terrified look on Xia Liang's face, as if he had just crawled back from the brink of death, Meng Shenji, the education commissioner, asked anxiously, "Master Xia, are you alright?"

"It's nothing. Chief Meng, thank you for your concern." Xia Liang replied, nearly fainting. Fortunately, Bai Baoshan, the Education Commissioner, caught him in time.

"You call this nothing? Ah Liang, do you even know this is already the next morning? It took you a full eighteen hours to absorb just one spirit ring!"

After listening to Bai Baoshan's words, Xia Liang realized that he had been in the mental world for so long.

Could this be the deep meditation mentioned in Douluo Continent II: The Peerless Tang Sect?

"By the way, three education committee members, I've already absorbed the Bone Dragon's spirit ring. Could you also give me the remaining Bone Dragon corpse?"

Xia Liang looked at the huge black bone dragon beside him and said, "I want to boil its bones into soup. The marrow inside the bones would be a great tonic for me."

Upon hearing this, the three education commissioners exchanged brief glances.

Seemingly having made a decision, Zhilin Education Committee reached out with his right palm to grab the corpse of the bone dragon. Countless green vines rose from the ground and wrapped the bone dragon's corpse into a ten-meter-long plant cocoon.

About a minute later, the bluish-green vines on the bone dragon's corpse turned into light and disappeared.

Zhilin Education Committee member shook his head at Mengshenji Education Committee member.

Immediately afterward, Meng Shenji, the Education Committee member, agreed, "Alright, Master Xia. You can take the bone dragon corpse. We old folks don't need it."

"Thank you." After saying that, Xia Liang left Bai Baoshan's support and went alone to temporarily put the bone dragon's corpse into his Ruyi Hundred Treasures Pouch.

Just now, the Education Committee member Zhilin used the Azure Vine Martial Soul to wrap the Bone Dragon's corpse into a giant plant cocoon, presumably to search the Bone Dragon's corpse for any soul bones.

They didn't ask, meaning their own bone dragon's external left metacarpal bone wasn't exposed.

The benefits gained from successfully absorbing the third spirit ring were considerable. Not only did he obtain an external spirit bone and open up his spiritual world, but his spirit power also surged to level thirty-six.

If there's any unexpected surprise, it would be this bone dragon corpse.

Once we get back to the hotel, we'll dig out all the marrow from the bone dragon's corpse and cook it. Eating it will definitely be a great boost to our body's skeleton and the necromancer's spirit.

Moreover, the undead of the bone dragon can be sealed within the undead realm, which may prove very useful in the future.

noon.

Heavenly Dou Royal Academy

Ring ring ring.

The school bell rang, signaling the end of get out of class.

Among the crowd heading to the cafeteria, Yu Tianheng and Dugu Yan, along with the other seven members of the Royal Fighting Team, walked together.

Seeing the longing for the afternoon on Dugu Yan's face, Yu Tianheng couldn't help but ask, "Yan Yan, I heard that recently you've been going to the cave simulation field to cultivate with Master Xia in the afternoons. Is that true?"

Not only Dugu Yan, but even Oslo and Yu Feng, who were walking with her, were slightly taken aback. The gossip about Master Xia and Dugu Yan in the academy was becoming more and more exaggerated. Neither of them had clarified it openly, so they were all very eager to know the answer.

"Who told you that?" Dugu Yan looked at Yu Tianheng with some displeasure.

"If you don't want people to know, then don't do it in the first place," Yu Tianheng said with a hint of sarcasm. "Yanyan, did you really go to see Master Xia for cultivation? Ever since his appearance and body returned to normal, your attitude towards him has changed drastically."

"It's alright. Before his appearance recovered, I was quite close to him too. It's just not as frequent as it is now."

Upon hearing Dugu Yan's words, Yu Tianheng subconsciously clenched his fist. Recalling the scene of Master Xia and Dugu Yan exchanging glances in the cafeteria, he felt inexplicably angry.

Dugu Yan suddenly waved to the front.

Everyone looked and saw Xia Liang walking out of the academy cafeteria.

Xia Liang didn't expect to see the seven members of the Royal Fighting Team right after he finished absorbing his spirit ring and eating. He walked up to them and greeted them with a smile.

Oslo and Yu Feng smiled politely, but Yu Tianheng looked serious, lost in thought.

Ye Lingling's eyes suddenly met Xia Liang's. They had chatted about some famous plant families on the mainland several times when they were learning about plants in the Tiandou Library. They knew each other, so neither of them felt awkward when they suddenly looked at each other. They nodded to each other as a greeting.

Oslo and Yufeng's smiles vanished instantly. It seemed that Master Xia not only had a thing with Dugu Yan, but also got involved with Ye Lingling, this "mute sister"?

Although it was just a simple greeting, Xia Liang could already sense some unfriendly gazes from the seven members of the Royal Fighting Team. Oslo and Yu Feng were fine, but Yu Tianheng, who remained silent and made no comment, gave off a feeling of being a stranger, and seemed to have completely lost his previous composure and calmness.

"Don't you usually come to the simulation field to cultivate in the afternoon?" Dugu Yan looked at Xia Liang and asked tentatively, "Why are you here so early today? Did you make an appointment with someone?"

"How could that be?" Xia Liang explained, "After absorbing my third spirit ring in the back mountain of the academy, I just had lunch and was too lazy to go back to the hotel to rest, so I thought I'd go straight to the cave simulation field to cultivate."

"You've broken through to the third ring of Soul Master?"

Not only Dugu Yan, but also Oslo, Yu Feng, and others, even Yu Tianheng, who had been silent to the side, cast surprised glances at Xia Liang.

Only Ye Lingling remained silent, her expression unchanged, quietly listening to everyone's conversation.

"Congratulations." After saying that, Dugu Yan suddenly remembered, "Does that mean I'll never be able to beat you again?"

"Not necessarily, you can give it a try." Xia Liang looked at Dugu Yan, then changed the subject, reminding her, "However, if you lose, you'll have to keep your bet. From now on, whatever I say, you'll have to do."

Dugu Yan scoffed, "Then forget it. I don't want to give it away for nothing."

"I don't want it yet." Xia Liang glanced at Dugu Yan intentionally.

Dugu Yan was a little angry. "You look down on me?"

Seeing how well the two got along, Oslo and Yufeng probably knew that even if the gossip in the academy wasn't true, it wasn't far from becoming so.

They all subconsciously looked at Yu Tianheng, and couldn't help but feel sorry for this captain and leader.

Back in the Great Soul Arena, Dugu Yan did not accept Master Xia's challenge, which was beyond her level. The fact that the two became friends after a fight was entirely due to Yu Tianheng's efforts.

Thinking of this, Yu Feng and Oslo exchanged a glance, both seeing the helplessness on each other's faces.

Yu Tianheng himself was even more helpless.

He couldn't understand why, even after spending a year with Dugu Yan, he couldn't compare to Master Xia, whom he had only known for a few months.

Could it be that because he didn't take the initiative, Dugu Yan thought he wasn't interested in her?

But Master Xia doesn't seem to be very proactive, does he?

Or perhaps Dugu Yan has a strong-willed mentality, only admiring strong members of the opposite sex who have never suffered a defeat?

Thinking of this, Yu Tianheng cut to the chase, "Master Xia, you just got your third spirit ring. Don't you want to test the effectiveness of your third spirit skill in a real battle?"

Xia Liang nodded. "I have thought about it. But there are too many spectators in the Grand Soul Arena. If we fight there, it's inevitable that people will study our soul skills."

"That's easy, I can be your sparring partner right now."

Yu Tianheng smiled and said, "I was really surprised after watching your and Yan Yan's battle spirit. I didn't expect that besides the Shi brothers' Xuanwu Turtle Martial Soul, the Skeleton Martial Soul would also have such amazing defensive capabilities."

"We Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex Soul Masters are known as the strongest offensive beast spirits. Master Xia, don't you want to test whether your skeleton's defense is superior, or my Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex's attack is more powerful?"

"No, I don't think so?" Xia Liang said with some concern. "You are the grandson of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's sect leader. If I accidentally hurt you during the Soul Battle, I'm afraid the powerful figures from your sect will come knocking on my door."

"Don't worry, people from our sect value their reputation highly. If we lose, we'll win it back ourselves. We'll never ask for help. If you're worried, I promise you this in front of everyone. We're just having a friendly spar. Winning or losing doesn't matter. Even if you break all four of my limbs, I won't let anyone from the sect make things difficult for you."

At this point, Yu Tianheng glanced at Ye Lingling and said with a smile, "Besides, we still have Lingling. Her healing soul skill is always ready. It won't be easy for us to die."

Xia Liang glanced at Ye Lingling.

Ye Lingling nodded, indicating that she would take responsibility.

Dugu Yan tugged at Xia Liang's hand, trying to persuade him not to accept Yu Tianheng's invitation to a battle.

This gesture of holding hands left everyone stunned for a moment. Yu Tianheng's blank face turned red with anger.

Dugu Yan's face also flushed slightly. She realized that her gesture of holding hands was too intimate, so she immediately let go of Xia Liang's hand and kindly reminded him, "You'd better not fight. Tian Heng and I are different. Your ribcage defense can block my poison even if it's a level higher, but it might not be able to block his lightning dragon claw."

"Yanyan, why are you taking the side of outsiders?" Yu Tianheng said, somewhat displeased. "I challenged Master Xia to a soul duel to save face for you. Now that you've lost, how can I, as the team leader, remain silent?"

Upon hearing this, Dugu Yan fell silent. She and Xia Liang did indeed have a past conflict, but that was before.

Now that Xia Liang is willing to spend time teaching me to comprehend the Fusion Ring talent, wouldn't I be repaying kindness with enmity if he still harbored any resentment?

But Yu Tianheng did this to save face for himself, out of consideration for his teammates.

Xia Liang patted Dugu Yan on the shoulder, signaling her not to overthink it.

How could Dugu Yan not overthink it?

Because of her, Dugu Bo caused trouble for Xia Liang before, and now Yu Tianheng is causing trouble again, making her feel like a burden and a jinx.

"Everyone's eating at this time, so no one should be going to the back mountain. Master Xia, let's have our Soul Battle at the back mountain of the academy." After saying that, Yu Tianheng turned and walked towards the back mountain of the academy.

Oslo, Ye Lingling, and others followed along.

"Xia Liang, I'm sorry," Dugu Yan said with deep remorse.

Xia Liang smiled. "I was the one who provoked you in the Great Soul Arena back then, so I expected this outcome. You don't need to apologize to me. Yu Tianheng and I were just sparring, not a life-or-death duel. Let's go."

Dugu Yan stood still and didn't move.

Xia Liang teased, "You held my hand earlier, right? What, now you want me to hold your hand before you'll leave?"

Upon hearing this, Dugu Yan felt a surge of heat. She felt somewhat ashamed now, no matter how decisive she was, for suddenly making such an intimate gesture of holding hands in front of everyone.

After calming herself down, Dugu Yan said seriously, "Xia Liang, I can't tell you about Tian Heng's soul skills. If you want to fight him in a soul battle, you'll have to rely on yourself. I hope you can win."

"Aren't you and Yu Tianheng teammates?" Xia Liang asked, puzzled. "Why would you want me to win?"

"Because of the two previous battles where I was defeated by opponents of higher levels, you made me lose terribly. One day I will personally make you taste the bitterness of defeat."

At this point, Dugu Yan crossed her arms and said confidently, "Before that, of course I don't want you to lose to anyone else."

"Okay. I'll try my best not to lose. Give me your hand." Xia Liangchao extended his hand to Dugu Yan.

"What?" Dugu Yan asked, puzzled.

Xia Liang explained, "Of course we're in a hurry. Yu Tianheng and the others have already gone far ahead. If we don't catch up with them, we'll be the subject of gossip again."

"What does being on the road have to do with giving you my hand?" Dugu Yan was even more puzzled.

Xia Liang was too lazy to explain. He simply grabbed Dugu Yan's hand, and his third soul ring lit up. The two of them disappeared from their original spot. The next moment, they actually crossed a distance of three hundred meters and silently appeared behind Yu Tianheng and the others.

The sudden relocation left Dugu Yan bewildered. She looked at Xia Liang with surprise and asked softly, "Is this the effect of your third soul skill?"

Xia Liang nodded, not bothering to hide anything since he would be using the spatial jump ability later.

"Teleportation?" Dugu Yan continued to ask in a low voice.

Yu Feng, who was walking ahead, suddenly turned around. Seeing Xia Liang and Dugu Yan holding hands, his eyes became playful. "You two..."

Xia Liang and Dugu Yan immediately released each other's hands.

Dugu Yan forcibly turned Yu Feng's head back, and said fiercely, "What are you talking about? You stinky birdman, watch where you're going!"

The hill behind the college.

In the center of the open space on the mountaintop.

Xia Liang and Yu Tianheng faced each other, about thirty meters apart.

The referee for this Soul Battle sparring match is Dugu Yan.

As a healer, Ye Lingling stands beside Dugu Yan. When either of them suffers serious injuries in the battle, she will activate her healing soul skill in advance to ensure their safety.

With Ye Lingling as their protector, Xia Liang and Yu Tianheng felt much more at ease, and the two released their respective martial souls and soul rings.

Two yellow and one purple, the same soul ring configuration appeared.

The difference was that, at Yu Tianheng's location, an eight-meter-long blue lightning tyrannosaurus coiled around his body, and the surrounding ten-meter radius was instantly covered by a terrifying lightning field, with blue and white currents surging across the ground.

The area within a ten-meter radius of Xia Liang's location became somewhat gloomy.

A five-meter-tall, dark purple rib cage enveloped his entire body, and a chilling, dark light instantly enveloped Yu Tianheng's location.

Before the two even started fighting, their martial souls began to compete in terms of quality.

To Yu Tianheng’s surprise, Master Xia’s skeleton martial soul actually had an aura comparable to the top-tier beast martial soul Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex. Could it be that the skeleton martial soul, like the Xuanwu Turtle, is also a top-tier defensive martial soul?

Although Dugu Yan is the referee, she is not responsible for calling out "Battle Spirits Begin".

Yu Tianheng had long wanted to use his Thunder Dragon Claw to shatter Xia Liang's skeletal defense. So once both sides had activated their Martial Souls, he immediately launched his offensive.

Amidst the thunder, Yu Tianheng rushed towards Xia Liang's location, his right hand suddenly expanding three times its size, transforming into a dragon claw wreathed in lightning.

This is precisely the unique talent of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Soul Master: Dragon Transformation.

The appearance of a dragon-transformed right arm will grant increased lightning power and attack strength.

As his first spirit ring lit up, Yu Tianheng suddenly swung out his right hand, a dragon claw crackling with lightning, aiming straight for the dark purple ribs blocking Xia Liang's path.

As thunder ripped through the air, Yu Tianheng suddenly realized that Xia Liang, along with the entire massive blackish-purple ribcage, had vanished into thin air, and his Thunder Dragon Claw had missed its target.

"Boss, behind us!" Osro couldn't help but shout.

Yu Tianheng quickly took a step forward, turned around to look behind him, but Xia Liang was nowhere to be seen.

"Behind us! Boss, behind us!"

Upon hearing Oslo's reminder, Yu Tianheng turned around to look behind him, but still couldn't find Xia Liang's whereabouts.

"Boss, behind us!"

Before Oslo could finish speaking, Yu Tianheng shouted sharply, "Leopard, shut up!"

Oslo immediately shut his mouth. It wasn't really his fault for providing false information.

What he just said is true.

Xia Liang always appeared behind Yu Tianheng, but when Yu Tianheng turned around, he used the spatial attribute of his third soul skill, Bone Dragon Transformation, to perform a spatial jump. Therefore, in Oslo's view, Xia Liang always appeared behind Yu Tianheng.

Seemingly having found some trick, Yu Tianheng first turned his body around, and then slammed his right Thunder Dragon Claw down hard onto the ground.

The sudden burst of lightning spread outwards along the ground.

Xia Liang had just made a spatial jump to Yu Tianheng's back when he was stabilized in place by the surging lightning energy coming from the ground, and was unable to move for a moment.

When Yu Tianheng activated his third soul skill, Thunderous Fury, his entire body was enveloped in a dense layer of lightning. This was an amplification-type soul skill that allowed him to enter a berserk state, greatly increasing the power and attack strength of his lightning.

If you don't actively stop releasing Thunder Fury, it will continue to consume stamina until you run out of stamina, at which point the amplification effect of Thunder Fury will be removed.

The combined amplification from Dragon Transformation and Thunderous Fury, along with the terrifying destructive power of his first soul skill, Thunder Dragon Claw, was enough for Yu Tianheng to defeat an early-stage Soul Master despite being of a higher level.

And it took him less than a second to complete all the enhancements.

Xia Liang, who was held in place by the frenzied lightning, was caught off guard and struck by Yu Tianheng's twice-amplified Thunder Dragon Claw. It was unclear whether he was unable to escape or doing so intentionally.

However, it wasn't the person who was hit, but rather the dark purple ribs that were blocking the way.

The terrifying Thunder Dragon Claw couldn't even shatter the dark purple ribs; Xia Liang was merely sent flying backward by the attack.

Just then, a disdainful look appeared on Yu Tianheng's lips. He stepped off the ground and soared into the air, unleashing his second soul skill, Thunderous Might, in the form of a ray from his mouth.

Bang! Boom! Boom! Boom!

A devastating bolt of lightning, accompanied by intense flashes, struck Xia Liang, who was still flying backwards. The area within a radius of tens of meters was covered by a dense mass of blue-white lightning.

It must be said that the soul skills of the Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Soul Master are indeed powerful, since they are all soul ring skills obtained by absorbing sub-dragon soul beasts.

Xia Liang was first knocked away by the double-amplified Thunder Dragon Claw, and then hit head-on by the double-amplified Thunderous Might. His chances of survival were slim.

Yu Tianheng thought so too. When he landed safely on the ground, he had already figured out how to lecture Xia Liang in the manner of a victor.

But as the blue-white lightning that covered an area of ​​tens of meters subsided and visibility gradually returned to normal, a scene that shocked everyone appeared.

Despite being hit by two powerful offensive soul skills in succession, Xia Liang suffered no harm whatsoever. The massive ribs that had been covering his body remained completely undamaged.

"This is impossible!" Yu Tianheng blurted out the words subconsciously, glaring angrily at Xia Liang inside his ribs.

Looking back at Yu Tianheng's gaze, Xia Liang smiled knowingly. He had intentionally stood still and let Yu Tianheng hit him. His purpose was to test the limits of his ribcage defense.

It seems that after absorbing the third spirit ring from five thousand years ago, the rib defense of the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul has been enhanced again. Even with the amplification from the third spirit skill, Bone Dragon Transformation, it was able to withstand three spirit skills from the top-tier beast Martial Soul, the Blue Lightning Tyrannosaurus Rex, without shattering.

If the first form of Ossification Susanoo is activated, to what extent will its defensive power increase?

"Master Xia, is this really necessary?" Yu Tianheng misunderstood the smile on Xia Liang's face, mistaking it for a dismissive smile of ease, and said somewhat displeased, "Although we're sparring, we still need to fight seriously. Please show us your full strength!"

"Okay." With a reply, Xia Liang's three spirit rings lit up simultaneously.

The dark purple ribs covering him were suddenly wrapped by dark purple iron wire energy bodies, becoming even larger and more fleshy.

To Yu Tianheng's surprise, the huge, dark purple ribs that were covering Xia Liang had sprouted a dark purple skull that exuded an oppressive aura.

Moreover, on either side of the dark purple ribs, a slender skeletal arm slowly grows out.

Wrapped in the dark purple iron wire energy, the two slender skeletal arms transformed into massive, fleshy skeletal hands.

All of these martial soul form changes are completed within three seconds.

When the Necromancer Skeleton Martial Soul reappeared before everyone, it had transformed into a complete, eight-meter-tall, blackish-purple half-skull.

Xia Liang was enveloped by this enormous half-skull.

Dugu Yan was stunned and stood there. How could she have imagined that the two times she fought against Xia Liang in spirit battles that were above her level, she was actually fighting against such a huge monster spirit?

This chapter is a combination of three chapters, totaling 6000 words.

I just typed it out and haven't edited it yet.

I'll look at it and make changes as I go.

(End of this chapter)