The second soul skill, Shadow Attack, was activated once again. With the enhancement from the Shadow Grave Domain, the attack power, speed, and duration of Shadow Strike increased by 10%.
Continuing at his fastest speed downstream, Lü Buliang kept his unusual eyes sharp, monitoring the changes in the ice and fire energy contained within the spring water.
He noticed that the deeper he went, the stronger the ice and fire spiritual energy released by the extreme cold and heat spring waters became. Perhaps this was because he was getting closer to the Ice and Fire Dragon King's body, and the ice and fire properties here were purer and more powerful.
After all, the well is capable of nurturing all things, thanks to the energy transformations of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings.
In a sense, the spring waters of the well were products of the extreme ice and fire properties from the two dragon kings.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot were also nurtured by the Ice Fire Dual Eyes.
The Ice and fire energy within Lü Buliang's body came from absorbing these two celestial herbs.
In comparison, the extreme ice and fire energy within Lü Buliang's body was insignificant in the face of the spiritual energy released by the Ice Fire Dragon Kings.
If Lü Buliang continued to dive deeper, the ice and fire energy in his body might not withstand the force of the deeper spring waters, potentially causing the previously calm ice and fire energy to spiral out of control, leading to a catastrophic explosion.
As Lü Buliang had predicted, when he went deeper, he finally felt the intense pain of being burned by fire and frozen by ice. His ice and fire energy was no longer able to protect him from the overwhelming impact of the deeper waters.
Continuing any further could lead to unforeseen danger.
Lü Buliang returned to his human form from the shadow state, floating in the water as he helplessly gazed at the endless abyss below.
With a soul power of level 37, it meant that his ice and fire energy could only withstand forces of similar level. Clearly, he wasn't yet strong enough to endure the pressure from the Ice Fire Dragon King's power deep below.
Perhaps only once his soul power reached a higher level could he attempt to get closer to the Ice Fire Dragon King's remains.
He sighed In regret, feeling a slight sting in his hands, as if poisoned by cold and fire. His body was burning with heat but also freezing cold.
He realized that the effects of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot hadn't fully integrated with his body yet. The once gentle ice and fire energy inside him began to become chaotic due to the powerful ice and fire spiritual energy, and if he didn't leave soon, he would surely die.
Lü Buliang's thirst for power rivaled anyone else's. He wasn't ready to give up, but he couldn't afford to go deeper into the spring.
In his frustration, he recalled another ability of the Shadow Grave Domain.
Aside from suppressing enemy shadows and enhancing his own, the Shadow Grave Domain had another unique effect: it could seal and summon the shadows of the dead.
Lü Buliang could seal the shadow of a deceased person in the Shadow Grave Domain and then use a special object to bind the shadow, thereby obtaining the deceased's abilities. He could also summon the shadows of the dead and create dark soldiers fused with darkness.
Currently, there were no deceased shadows sealed within the Shadow Grave Domain, but as the domain's master, Lü Buliang's shadow could freely travel between the domain and the outside world.
This meant he could call upon the darkness in his heart, combine it with his shadow, and summon dark soldiers based on his own form.
Lü Buliang focused his mind and began calling upon the darkness within. The Shadow Grave Domain allowed the darkness inside him to merge with his shadow, and through his focused spirit power, eerie black shadows began to appear around him.
These shadows twisted and transformed, gradually taking the form of black-robed figures. These figures looked eerily similar to Lü Buliang, as if his entire body had been covered in a layer of pitch-blackness, with only his blood-red eyes visible.
It was a success!
Lü Buliang's heart leapt with joy as he scanned the twenty or so black-robed figures. These dark soldiers, based on his form, were summoned from the darkness. They were called Ghost Shadow Soldiers.
The Ghost Shadow Army was Lü Buliang's first Shadow Army.
The Ghost Shadow Army soldiers were perfect servants and formidable opponents. They had the ability to act independently, could be summoned endlessly, and never tired. They also inherited Lü Buliang's soul skills and 30% of his power, without consuming any of his soul power.
However, the Ghost Shadow Army had one weakness: their bodies were fragile and could easily be destroyed by a single powerful strike.
Additionally, the Ghost Shadow Army could share information and knowledge with their master through communication between shadows.
They could take on tasks such as gathering intelligence, scouting, tasting poisons, and hunting soul beasts, while Lü Buliang could focus solely on cultivating, receiving all the knowledge and experience directly into his brain.
"Continue downwards, find the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' corpse."
Upon hearing Lü Buliang's command, the twenty or so Ghost Shadow Soldiers nodded in unison without hesitation. They turned into black shadows and quickly sped deeper into the spring.
Since the Ghost Shadow Soldiers shared their vision with Lü Buliang, all he had to do was wait for the reports from his soldiers.
Unfortunately, after the Ghost Shadow Soldiers descended a few hundred meters, the vision sharing suddenly cut off. This meant the soldiers had vanished, likely obliterated by the violent ice and fire energy deep within the spring.
The twenty Ghost Shadow Soldiers were crushed in an instant by the spiritual energy of the spring.
The vision sharing ended abruptly, and Lü Buliang gritted his teeth. As expected, the deeper he got to the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' remains, the more tyrannical the ice and fire energy became. The Ghost Shadow Army was created from his own form, meaning they inherited his Water and Fire Immunity.
If they could be destroyed by the ice and fire energy down there, Lü Buliang would suffer the same fate.
Summoning the Ghost Shadow Soldiers didn't cost soul power, but it did require mental energy. After summoning them, Lü Buliang had already exhausted too much mental power, and his consciousness began to fade.
Only one thought remained in his mind: escape. He could not remain in the abyss any longer.
Just as he turned to swim back to the surface, something strange happened.
The spiritual energy from the extreme cold and heat spring waters seemed to sense Lü Buliang's soul power and began to swirl together in a vortex. It eventually formed a red-blue gemstone that hovered before him, radiating a brilliant light.
"Could this be the Dragon Kings' inner core?" Lü Buliang suddenly recalled that in the original story, some divine beasts produced inner cores after death.
Inner cores were formed from the energy of living creatures.
The ice and fire energy in the waters had originated from the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' death. So, Lü Buliang's first thought was that the red-blue gemstone before him was the inner core formed by the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' energy.
After all, he was now deep beneath the well, very close to the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' body. The surrounding energy was vast enough for an inner core to form, so it wasn't surprising.
In the original story, Tang San never encountered the inner core of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings because he was unaware of the dragon kings' corpse being buried in the abyss.
This was Lü Buliang's advantage—being well-versed in the original story, his knowledge was far broader than Tang San's, and he reaped the benefits of his greater insight. Unfortunately, he had yet to see what the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings looked like.
Lü Buliang also remembered that inner cores could be absorbed by soul masters to form soul rings.
For example, when Ma Hongjun absorbed the inner core of the Ten-headed Blaze Snake, he formed a corresponding soul ring, and his evil fire phoenix martial soul evolved, making him more handsome.
So, if Lü Buliang absorbed the inner core of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings, wouldn't he undergo a similar transformation?
With his body already strengthened by the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot, what would happen if he absorbed the Ice Fire Dragon King's soul ring?
Would his shadow martial soul undergo another evolution after his body became even stronger?
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