Chapter 44: Soul Upgrade, Rusted Sword Transforms into the Sky Azure Sword

Watching the Sky Azure Bull Python, who seemed determined to never submit, Lu Yunzhou smirked, his lips curling into a subtle arc. A disdainful smile appeared on his face as he casually spoke up, "Little worm, don't rush. The night is still young, and we have plenty of time to talk."

Upon hearing the term "little worm" again, the Sky Azure Bull Python frowned in displeasure, but it didn't retort. After all, in front of Lu Yunzhou, it was indeed no more than a little worm.

Nearby, hearing that Lu Yunzhou intended to enhance the quality of his martial soul, allowing it to evolve or perhaps upgrade, the Devil Bear, Ghost Leopard, and Qian Renxue all subconsciously held their breath, their focus intensifying as they became even more absorbed in the situation.

The quality of a martial soul was considered a fixed trait, one determined at birth. It was something unchangeable—at least on the continent, no one had ever heard of a martial soul evolving, upgrading, or improving its quality.

However, Lu Yunzhou was claiming to elevate his martial soul's quality, to allow it to evolve or upgrade. This extraordinary claim immediately captured the attention and interest of everyone present.

The quality of one's martial soul determined their potential. If the quality of a martial soul could be freely improved, it would mean that the person possessing such a method could create a continuous stream of powerful Soul Masters. As such, the significance of this method was not lost on Qian Renxue, Devil Bear, and Ghost Leopard,

who were now eagerly anticipating the upcoming developments.

After Lu Yunzhou spoke, the Sky Azure Bull Python sneered in disdain.

"Human, don't waste your breath. No matter what you say, I will not help you evolve your martial soul…"

But as the Sky Azure Bull Python spoke, Lu Yunzhou couldn't help but recall the stubborn King Jingze, who had rather starve than eat, and the Titan Giant Ape with its obstinate nature.

Slowly coming back to himself, Lu Yunzhou took out a strand of hair.

The moment the hair appeared in his palm, a familiar aura caused the Sky Azure Bull Python to pause, its eyes focusing on the hair. After a moment, the Sky Azure Bull Python let out a regretful sigh and said, "Six years without seeing you... I never expected that when we meet again, it would be... across the realms of life and death."

As it spoke, the Sky Azure Bull Python's face showed a clear expression of melancholy and unresigned sorrow.

"Who told you she's dead?" Lu Yunzhou scoffed as he responded and then snapped his fingers sharply.

In the next moment, a cloud ship descended slowly from the sky under Lu Yunzhou's direction.

Following this, Dugu Yan and Ye Lengleng appeared, carrying a heavily bound and unconscious Xiao Wu, stepping down from the cloud ship in front of the Sky Azure Bull Python.

Looking at the enormous, nearly sky-blocking Sky Azure Bull Python lying wounded on the ground, Dugu Yan couldn't help but speak up, "I thought the Sky Azure Bull Python would be so formidable, but it doesn't seem that impressive now, does it? It's not even as powerful as my brother."

The Sky Azure Bull Python: "…"

It had no words to respond to that. Four against one, and they still won—did they still have the face to gloat?

In silence, the Sky Azure Bull Python turned its attention to Xiao Wu.

Seeing that she seemed relatively unharmed, it let out a sigh of relief.

Slowly, the Sky Azure Bull Python understood. Lu Yunzhou was using Xiao Wu as leverage to force it into submission.

"If I'm not mistaken, you're planning to use her to threaten me, aren't you?" the Sky Azure Bull Python asked, its gaze fixed on Lu Yunzhou, seemingly knowing the answer already.

"Submit to me, cooperate with me, and I'll spare her life," Lu Yunzhou replied coldly. "Otherwise, if you resist, I will make her life worse than death."

"You have no right to make conditions with me. Make your choice quickly. It will be good for both of us," Lu Yunzhou declared, his tone final.

At this point, there was no escaping death for the Sky Azure Bull Python. Were it not for Xiao Wu, it would never cooperate with Lu Yunzhou.

A look of unforgettable sorrow surfaced in its eyes, and after a long pause, the Sky Azure Bull Python finally spoke, making its decision:

"Human, I hope you're not deceiving me."

With those words, the Sky Azure Bull Python began its sacrificial offering.

Seeing this, Lu Yunzhou's eyes gleamed with satisfaction.

"Soul Fusion, begin."

As Lu Yunzhou spoke, his hands began to move rapidly. At the same time, he continued to chant, "Rat and Ox combine to form Earth, Tiger and Boar combine to form Wood, Rabbit and Dog combine to form Fire, Dragon and Rooster combine to form Metal, Snake and Monkey combine to form Water, Horse and Sheep combine to form Earth."

The moment the final phrase left his lips, the Sky Azure Bull Python, mid-sacrifice, suddenly felt an overwhelming force pulling at it.

This force was stripping everything from it—its cultivation, lifespan, flesh, and soul.

At the moment the force appeared, the Sky Azure Bull Python instinctively tried to resist, but when it thought of Xiao Wu, it ultimately gave up on that idea.

Just like that, under Lu Yunzhou's "Soul Fusion," the Sky Azure Bull Python was transformed into a pure, concentrated energy and entered Lu Yunzhou's martial soul, the Rusted Sword.

With the nourishment of the 100,000-year-old Soul Beast, the Sky Azure Bull Python, the Rusted Sword immediately underwent an astonishing transformation.

The sword now measured 4 feet 3 inches in length, 3 inches in width, and had a 1-foot 2-inch hilt. The blade glowed with a deep azure blue, occasionally crackling with purple electric arcs that danced around it.

Moreover, a dragon-shaped image was etched into the blade, with dragon qi surrounding it.

"Unexpectedly, this 'Soul Fusion' didn't even reach the level of a high-grade artifact. It's only equivalent to a mid-level artifact. Well, no matter. One can't be too greedy—better to take things step by step. Next time, I'll find an opportunity to upgrade it further."

After glancing at the beautiful long sword in his hand, Lu Yunzhou gave it a name: "Sky Azure, from now on, you shall be called the Sky Azure Sword."

[Mid-level: Top-tier Soul Weapons—Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, Haotian Hammer, Nine Hearts Begonia, Seven Killing Sword, Soul Piercing Spear of this level]

[High-level: Divine Weapon]

[Top-tier: Super Divine Weapon]

"That's Lu Yunzhou's martial… or rather, his personal treasure? It really upgraded! And judging by its aura, it seems even more powerful than my Serpent Spear!"

Looking at the sword in Lu Yunzhou's hand, Serpent Spear Douluo Yu Long couldn't help but swallow hard, still in disbelief at the sight before him.

Nearby, Devil Bear Douluo almost dropped his jaw in astonishment.

"To think... that souls can actually be upgraded! My goodness, what other secrets do cultivators possess that we don't know about?"

At that moment, Devil Bear Douluo could only think of cultivators as gods—high above and untouchable, beings not to be offended.

"It's such a pity. I didn't learn that technique from earlier. If I had, I would've upgraded my martial soul too. Oh well... forget it. I didn't even understand it when I saw it," said Ghost Leopard Douluo, shaking his head in disappointment.

Upgrading one's martial soul, improving its quality—this was something that everyone wanted to learn. If anyone didn't, they were surely fools...

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