As expected, it turned out like this…
Nanfusheng looked at the semi-transparent worm wriggling in his hand.
Third Soul Spirit: The Spirit Worm.
Ability: Control spiritual power, weaving it into invisible threads to manipulate others—or directly erase their souls, turning them into puppets. These puppets can still use all the abilities they possessed while alive.
(Note: Spirit threads are intangible and nearly impossible to detect.)
By any standard, it was a pretty good ability. At least, it was exactly the kind of offensive method Nanfusheng currently lacked. But…
"Damn it, I'm already half a god. With the Castle of Origin, I can freely borrow the Marionettist's power to control spirit threads anyway…"
In short, the ability was a bit redundant. It might be useful for his avatars hanging around Tang Wulin and the others, but for his main body, it wasn't much of a gain.
"My soul power has reached Rank 37 now. The sealed energy is almost completely consumed… I'll need to find a time to replenish it." Nanfusheng muttered to himself.
At that moment, the Spirit Worm in his hand suddenly pulsed with mental fluctuations, expressing its dissatisfaction:
"What, you're not satisfied with the ability I've given you, Master? >_<"
Then came a stream of nagging complaints—
"We're all Nanfusheng, you can't discriminate against one of us!"
"I was just a lowly millennium silkworm before this. Giving you a skill like this is already pretty impressive, okay? Don't make it hard for me!"
"Anyway, your first three soul skills are locked into powers from the Fool, Error, and Door paths. Even if you fused with other soul spirits, the results would be about the same. We should be looking further ahead!"
…Great. Even his soul spirits turned out to be chatterboxes.
Ever since ascending to demigodhood, Nanfusheng had begun parasitizing his soul spirits, turning them into avatars as well. This gave him some insight into their composition, especially after cross-referencing with data from the Heavensea City branch of the Spirit Transmission Tower.
"Alright, how's that little project coming along?" he asked.
"There are results. Come take a look."
Qian Gu Bubai (Invincible), the Tower Master of Heavensea City's branch and one of Nanfusheng's most valuable avatars, led him to the Spirit Ascension Platform.
The staff—also avatars—immediately understood his intentions, typing rapidly on the control panel. A live feed appeared on the screen.
The view dropped into the depths of a dormant volcano inside the platform. At first, it was pitch black, but soon the walls began to glow with a faint white light, illuminating the scene.
What the screen showed was… gore. A horrific, blood-soaked cavern.
Normally, when soul masters die in the Spirit Ascension Platform, their bodies dissolve into motes of light. But the soul beasts inside? They could devour one another without restriction.
At the bottom of the cavern was a lake of blood, bubbling with ominous froth—something alive lurked within.
"Release the test subject." Qian Gu Bubai ordered.
The "staff" snorted: "What's the point of ordering me? We're all Nanfusheng here."
Nevertheless, a few keystrokes later, a ten-thousand-year Groundfire Dragon was dropped into the blood lake.
This beast resembled a quadrupedal dinosaur from Nanfusheng's past life. A subspecies of dragon, it had evolved from the Groundfire Lizard upon breaking into the ten-thousand-year threshold.
Any soul beast with "dragon" in its name was not to be underestimated. Even as a pseudo-dragon, the Groundfire Dragon's strength ranked high among ten-thousand-year beasts. It could hold its own even against creatures with two or three times its cultivation.
The dragon splashed into the lake, thrashing violently before managing to plant its four massive legs on solid ground. Covered in crimson scales like armor, it bared its jagged teeth and let out low, wary growls.
Then the blood lake boiled.
With a thunderous splash, a pillar of blood erupted skyward, and a vague silhouette rose within.
When the spray dispersed, the monster's form was revealed.
The Groundfire Dragon stiffened, its whole body trembling, sparks flickering in its maw as it prepared to attack.
Even through the monitor, Nanfusheng could see it.
A hulking creature, ten meters tall. Its upper body was that of a bear, coated in dark-golden fur that radiated unyielding defense. But its lower body bore the four limbs of a tiger, connected at its abdomen—where an enormous, gaping maw yawned open grotesquely.
Bear's torso. Tiger's legs. A giant mouth on its belly. A beast stitched together from nightmares.
Worse still, its paws glowed with crystalline blue light—claws inherited from a Crystal Bear, entirely mismatched with the dark-golden pelt of the bear's body.
Qian Gu Bubai smirked.
"Well, Master? The body of a Darkgold Bear, the claws of a Crystal Bear, and the speed of a Ghost Tiger. Its cultivation is only about five thousand years, but even a ten-thousand-year Groundfire Dragon is no match for it."
Nanfusheng nodded in approval.
"Not bad."
The Darkgold Bear was a subspecies of the infamous Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear. It lacked the signature dreadclaws but retained the unparalleled defensive pelt.
The Crystal Bear's claws, meanwhile, carried its crystallization ability.
And the Ghost Tiger? "Where dragons coil, tigers prowl." Known for its ghostly swiftness, its limbs guaranteed this hybrid's speed would be terrifying.
A beast born from splicing and fusing—crafted by Nanfusheng himself.
He gave it a name: The Chimera Soul Beast.