The Strongest Talent Tree

Down in the Ice Valley, a wisp of ethereal blue light darted about like a sprite among the jagged icicles.

Meanwhile, Feng Hao and his four companions were frantically trying to corner this ball of ethereal light for one simple reason: it was an Ice Attribute Magic Soul.

The value of a Magic Soul was beyond question. Even the worst one could sell for hundreds of billions, let alone one with an attribute.

Of course, with Xiyue Frost around, this particular Magic Soul would obviously not be sold.

"Sister Tiao, hurry up! Don’t let it get away!" Houhuiyao was too slow and could only trail behind, worrying anxiously.

Man Tiaotiao, hot on the Magic Soul’s trail, snapped, "You think I’m not trying? This little thing is just too fast!"

"Just do your best to stall it. The boss and the others are on their way."

"Don’t worry," Man Tiaotiao snorted. Her legs pumped frantically as if they were spring-loaded, and her speed suddenly exploded.

At the same time, Xiyue Frost arrived, greatsword in hand, cutting off the Magic Soul’s escape route from another direction. Her Ice Domain unfurled instantly, enveloping her in a hazy, cold mist.

HUM~! HUM~!

The darting, ice-blue Magic Soul emitted a barely audible sound as it nimbly dodged everyone’s pursuit.

By the time Feng Hao and Solos arrived, the Magic Soul had already been cornered by the two women amidst a dense cluster of icicles. Seeing its path blocked on all sides, the Magic Soul wavered and shot upward, about to fly out of the Ice Valley in an instant.

"Solos, it’s up to you!" Feng Hao said in a low voice, turning his gaze to Solos.

There was no other way. The Magic Soul was now too far away vertically, and of the five of them, only Solos had ranged attacks.

"No problem." Solos smiled confidently, an ethereal glint flashing in his azure eyes. The crude Magic Staff in his hand shook rapidly, quickly forming a wall of fire high in the air that blocked the Magic Soul’s path.

The ice-blue Magic Soul was clearly afraid of fire and subconsciously tried to go around the wall. But unfortunately for it, Solos’s Divine Sense was incredibly powerful—he could even detect Feng Hao in his shadow-cloaked state, let alone control a wall of fire.

Just like that, under the relentless pressure of the pursuing fire wall, the Magic Soul was forced lower and lower until Feng Hao easily captured it in a crystal vial.

"You’ve got no power, yet you still try to run. If you weren’t a Magic Soul, I’d have destroyed you myself," Feng Hao grumbled to himself, glaring fiercely at the crystal vial.

As if it understood, the blue specter in the vial timidly hid in a corner at the bottom, its light dimming considerably.

"What are you doing? Don’t scare it," Xiyue Frost said, exasperated.

Feng Hao was secretly taken aback. "Ahem," he said awkwardly, "this little thing is pretty intelligent."

"Of course," Xiyue Frost explained. "A Magic Soul is a quasi-lifeform, after all. Its intelligence isn’t much different from that of a small animal."

Just then, Houhuiyao and Man Tiaotiao gathered around, their eyes full of excitement. "Quick, let’s see what its stats are!"

Feng Hao chuckled and nodded. He subconsciously extended his Divine Sense into the crystal vial and soon received the Magic Soul’s data:

[Crystal Fang Soul] (Secret Skill Soul)

Magic Power Cost: 50 Spiritual Energy

Magic Soul Ability: A fang condensed from Extreme Ice Power, possessing extremely strong ice attribute penetration.

Buff Effect: Ice Attribute Strength +12, Ice Attribute Penetration +10%

"Whoa, these are some powerful stats," Feng Hao couldn’t help but exclaim.

Compared to this Crystal Fang Soul, his three Dark Moon Souls were nothing. It was like the difference between a common white-tier item and an epic purple one.

"It really is a Crystal Fang Soul. Xiaoshuang is so lucky," Man Tiaotiao said enviously.

"It’s all thanks to the boss’s decision, or we would have missed it," Houhuiyao said, sucking up. "Oh, and we have to thank Solos, too. That fire wall just now was amazing."

Solos gave a faint smile and said nothing more.

Seeing the expectant look in Xiyue Frost’s eyes, Feng Hao chuckled and handed her the crystal vial. "Here, it’s yours!"

"Thank you, everyone." Xiyue Frost lowered her head, a little shyly, her eyes filled with joy.

"Are you going to merge with the Magic Soul now, or...?" Feng Hao asked with a smile.

"No rush." Xiyue Frost smiled, pressing her lips together. "The Crystal Fang Soul is an outstanding Ice Attribute Magic Soul. It would be best to construct a Secret Technique specifically for it. That’s the only way to bring out its full potential."

Feng Hao asked in surprise, "Constructing a Secret Technique just for a Magic Soul? Do you really have to be so serious about it?"

"What do you know?" Man Tiaotiao said with her usual disdain. "Powerful Magic Souls all need specially constructed Secret Techniques. Otherwise, what do you think those Magic Pattern Masters are for?"

"Is that so?" Feng Hao nodded thoughtfully. It was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing.

He had only known that Magic Pattern Masters helped people design the framework for Secret Techniques; he never imagined they could also tailor the design to a specific Magic Soul’s characteristics.

’It seems that next time I construct a Secret Technique, I should consult a powerful Magic Pattern Master. It might produce some amazing results.’

After dealing with the swarm of Snow Demons and capturing the Ice Attribute Magic Soul, there was no longer any reason to stay in the Ice Valley.

After disposing of the Snow Demon corpses, the group left the Ice Valley, and Solos logically joined their party.

Xiyue Frost and the other two seemed very interested in Solos, pestering him with all sorts of questions along the way and nearly driving him crazy.

What Feng Hao found most amusing was that the other three perceived Solos’s broken Chinese as merely a unique accent.

Xiyue Frost wasn’t as talkative as the other two. After asking a few simple questions, she looked at Feng Hao with a questioning gaze. "You’re not from the Ancient Cang Realm?"

"Mm." Feng Hao didn’t hide it. He nodded calmly and said, "Coming to the Ancient Cang Realm was an accident."

Xiyue Frost fell silent for a long time, her expression complex. "Will you leave someday?"

"Maybe," Feng Hao sighed, tilting his head to gaze at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, looking for all the world like a brooding, artistic youth.

"What about Yaoyao?" Xiyue Frost asked with a frown.

"We’ll see when the time comes." Feng Hao lowered his head in thought. "Maybe I’ll take Yao Girl with me when I leave."

Xiyue Frost gritted her teeth and snorted coldly. "If you take Yaoyao and leave, what about the rest of us?"

"Uh..." Feng Hao was stunned and fell silent.

It couldn’t be helped. The Ancient Cang Realm was a special place; it was easy to get into, but hard to leave. If he left with Yao Girl, there was no telling when, if ever, they would be able to return.

The glacier was fraught with danger, and as the five of them traveled onward, they were still unable to find their way out of the icy land.

After seven days of adventuring, Feng Hao could clearly feel that the Spirit Beasts here were growing stronger, far more so than those in the First Secret Realm.

Of course, with Solos on the team, their combat effectiveness skyrocketed. After just a few battles, Xiyue Frost, Man Tiaotiao, and Houhuiyao were left completely stunned.

A Magic God was a Magic God, after all. His endless array of flashy maneuvers completely overturned the trio’s impression of what a Magic-type Mage could do.

Additionally, under Solos’s guidance, Houhuiyao’s skills as a Priest had improved significantly. After all, Feng Hao played as an Assassin and didn’t know much about Priests, whereas Mages and Priests had much in common.

"Your healing abilities are good, but you’re lacking in offensive power," Solos earnestly analyzed for Houhuiyao.

Houhuiyao listened attentively to the advice, looking like an obedient student.