The golden light radiating from Ye Xing’s back slowly condensed, manifesting two razor-sharp, feather-like golden blades sprouting directly from his shoulder blades.
An External Spirit Bone—a miracle of nature with an absorption chance lower than one in a hundred thousand.
Xu Xuandong stood frozen, his eyes fixed on those metallic wings.
Wait a second…
His internal monologue screamed in utter disbelief.
In literally every Soul Land fanfic I’ve ever read, the protagonist ALWAYS gets an external spirit bone for their first soul ring!
Spider legs, phantom wings, bone blades—it’s practically a canon event to the main character!
And here I am, watching my lucky encounter sprout from someone else’s back just because I let the spirit beast go?!
That bone should have been mine!
Suddenly, he felt a heavy, suffocating gaze upon him.
Senior Ye Guan was staring at him intensely, his sharp, golden eyes searching Xuandong’s micro-expressions for any flicker of jealousy, resentment, or murderous intent.
Xuandong took a long, deep breath, letting the icy forest air cool his racing thoughts.
He forcefully suppressed the sting of loss and calmed his mentality.
“Congratulations, Ye Xing!” Xuandong said, a warm, genuine smile breaking across his face.
“A dual breakthrough and an External Spirit Bone!
Rest assured, I will keep this a complete secret for you.” I can’t antagonize them, Xuandong reminded himself sharply.
What I need right now are allies, not extra enemies.
I already have my uncle and the Holy Ghost Church lurking in the shadows.
Pissing off the Angel Clan over spilled milk would be absolute suicide.
Ye Guan kept his gaze locked on the boy, the guarded tension in his posture melting into profound warmth.
“Your Highness…
I shall remember your generosity.” Xuandong nodded politely, though inside, a small part of his soul was still shedding tearless blood.
My lucky encounter…
gone.
He shook his head, mentally slapping himself.
Stop it.
There’s no point worrying about what is lost.
What truly matters is getting stronger.
He looked deeper into his own mind, feeling a sudden wave of self-directed shame.
Why was I acting like the universe owed me a debt?
This isn’t a fanfic or a power fantasy novel—this is real life.
Everyone has their own share of fortune and misfortune.
Resolving not to let his mindset sink so low again, Xuandong vowed to make the absolute best out of every resource he possessed.
Ye Xing finished consolidating his soul ring, the golden wings retracting seamlessly into his shoulder blades as he opened his eyes.
Moving quickly toward Xuandong, he bowed his head deeply.
“Thank you, Your Highness!
If not for your help—” “It belonged to you,” Xuandong interrupted with a friendly pat on his shoulder.
“There’s no need to thank me.
Come on, before we say anything else, we still need to find my spirit ring.” As they resumed walking through the metallic canopy, Ye Guan stepped up beside Xuandong, looking slightly hesitant.
“Your Highness…
regarding the spirit bone earlier—” “Senior Ye, there is no point in explaining,” Xuandong cut him off smoothly, his voice calm and unyielding.
“That is his fate.
I am not so petty as to make a fuss about something like this.
If I compare myself with others over things I don’t have, I will never find peace.
Everyone has their own encounters; even if we swapped places back then, I might not have gained the bone anyway.
The only one I need to compare myself to is the me of yesterday.
As long as I improve by even one step, that is what truly matters.” Ye Guan stopped briefly in his tracks, gazing at the six-year-old prince in absolute wonder.
Seeing the unshakeable resolve shining in Xuandong’s eyes, the Super Douluo respected him with all his heart, genuinely believing that this child’s terrifyingly mature mentality would one day allow him to reach the absolute top of the continent.
A few hours later, deep within a misty valley, Ye Guan raised his hand to signal a stop.
Lairing in the clearing ahead was a pack of Elemental Silver Wolves.
A extraordinarily rare species, the Elemental Silver Wolf is renowned for its hyper-intelligence and unique bloodline that allows it to freely manipulate multiple elemental attributes—ranging from elements like Light, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, and Lightning—making its spirit ring exceptionally versatile for non-traditional martial souls.
“Your Highness,” Ye Guan whispered, analyzing the pack.
“There are two wolves that fit your requirements.
One is four hundred years old, while the other is around two hundred and ninety, bordering three hundred.” Xuandong pondered for a brief moment.
In standard lore, the limit for a first soul ring was four hundred and twenty-three years.
Given that he had eaten spirit beast meat daily, consumed multiple royal heavenly treasures, and possessed both dual martial souls and a top-tier dragon bloodline, his physical body could handle the strain with room to spare.
“I’ll take the four-hundred-year-old one,” Xuandong decided.
With a swift flick of Ye Guan’s finger, a beam of holy light pinned the four-hundred-year-old wolf to the ground, completely paralyzing it.
Xuandong drew a small silver dagger and stepped forward, but as he stood over the beast, his hands hesitated.
His breath grew short.
In both of his lives—twenty-plus years on Earth and six years as a prince—he had never slain a single living creature; he hadn’t even killed a chicken!
Now, having to personally take a life, a natural revulsion gripped his heart.
Ye Guan observed the boy’s hesitation from behind.
While standard soul masters might criticize a child for being soft, Ye Guan felt immense relief.
True power without empathy created monsters; seeing that the Crown Prince valued life only proved his noble character.
Xuandong grit his teeth, suppressing his instinctual hesitation.
End it fast.
Don’t let it suffer.
With a swift, precise plunge, he thrust the dagger into the wolf’s heart, taking its life cleanly.
A dense, shimmering yellow soul ring floated upward from the corpse.
Sitting cross-legged, Xuandong calmed his mind and began guiding the four-hundred-year ring into his Steam Deck.
While Xuandong was absorbed in meditation, Ye Xing leaned toward his grandfather, asking softly, “Grandpa…
do you think His Highness will get a soul bone too?” Ye Guan shook his head gently while patting his grandson head.
“An external spirit bone is a miracle among miracles, Xing’er.
The chances are practically non-existent…
but we shall leave it to fate.” Time trickled by.
An hour later, the dark metallic frame of the Steam Deck absorbed the yellow ring completely.
Xuandong opened his eyes as a surge of warm energy swept through his meridians.
Thanks to six full months of thick accumulation, high-tier supplements, and the abundant energy of a four-hundred-year beast, his soul power didn’t just reach Rank 11—it leaped straight to Rank 15!
“Congratulations, Your Highness!” Ye Xing cheered.
“Rank 15!
Phenomenal accumulation!” Ye Guan praised warmly.
“Thank you, Senior Ye, brother Ye , for guarding me,” Xuandong nodded, standing up.
Though a tiny pang of disappointment lingering over not getting a spirit bone flashed in his mind, he quickly focused on his new soul ring to inspect his first soul skill.
The moment he connected his mind to the ring, an overwhelming torrent of complex information hit his consciousness like a tidal wave.
Xuandong stumbled, clutching his head as his vision blurred.
“Your Highness!” Ye Xing reacted instantly, rushing forward to catch him by the arm.
“I’m fine…
thank you, brother Ye ,” Xuandong rasped, remaining absent-minded as his brain processed the absurd data dump.
Ye Guan stepped closer, eyebrows furrowed.
“Is something wrong, Your Highness?” “My first soul ring is…
a bit special,” Xuandong offered a wry, distracted smile.
“I will need to experiment with it later.” The grandfather and grandson pair were deeply curious, but knowing it was grave etiquette to pry into another soul master’s soul skills, they refrained from asking.
“Since our hunt is complete, we should prepare to return,” Ye Guan said, glancing at the twilight sky.
“Night is falling.
Let us set up camp here.
I shall go hunt some wild game for dinner.” Once Ye Guan left the campsite, Xuandong retreated into his tent and pulled out the Steam Deck.
He closed his eyes, thoroughly reviewing the rules of his martial soul’s ability: Game Unlocking: For each soul ring added to the Steam Deck, a new game will unlock.
The user plays as himself inside the game.
Soul Power Fuel: The Steam Deck runs purely on soul power.
The stronger the player character is in-game, the more soul power it consumes to operate.
Skill Mirroring: All in-game character progress—combat experience, weapon mastery, spells, and tactics—reflects directly on the user into his real-life muscle memory and mind in the real world.
Stat Integration: In-game stat increases raise real-world talent and potential rather than raw instant power.
Maxing out Strength won’t let him throw boulders like baseballs right away, but it allows him to build dense muscle tissue in weeks rather than years.
Abstract stats (like Luck and Charisma) increase instantly in real life.
Sensory Feedback: In-game damage is felt in real life (pain, scorching heat, impact), but the user suffers no actual physical injuries, burns, or scars in reality.
Death Penalty: Dying in-game does not kill the user in real life, but it causes soul-tearing agony and drains 100% of their soul power.
Consumables: Consumables (potions, food, buffs) can be extracted from the game and used in the real world.
Item Manifestation: Equipment cannot be extracted freely.
To manifest gear, the user must transform the Steam Deck itself into the desired item.
Items are lore-based (not stat-based), limited to one active item per soul ring, and must exist in the player’s in-game inventory.
Passive Gear Buffs: When activating the martial soul and running the game, any gear equipped on the in-game character passively applies its stat buffs and magic effects to the user in real life, without altering their physical clothing.
Xuandong stared at the glowing black screen in stunned silence.
This…
this isn’t just a martial soul.
That a system in the form of martial soul!
Suddenly, the tent flap opened softly.
Ye Xing stepped inside, looking extremely hesitant and nervous.
Xuandong snapped out of his trance.
Instinctively, he wanted to tell Ye Xing to forget about the spirit bone, but he knew better.
An External Spirit Bone was a priceless treasure capable of birthing deep resentment even between lifelong allies.
To prevent a rift from forming in their relationship, he had to address it immediately.
“Ye Xing,” Xuandong said gently.
“If there is something on your mind, just say it.” Ye Xing hung his head, clutching his fists in deep guilt.
“Your Highness…
I’m so sorry.
Because you gave up the Sun-Devouring Scavenger to me, I…
I robbed you of the chance to get that External Spirit Bone.” Xuandong listened silently until he finished.
Then, he shook his head with a soft chuckle.
“You don’t need to apologize, Ye Xing.
It was my own choice to give up the beast.
That bone was fated with you.
Even if we swapped places, I wouldn’t have gained it.” Seeing Ye Xing open his mouth to argue, Xuandong cut him off with a calm question.
“Did you see any wings on that Sun-Devouring Scavenger when we fought it?” Ye Xing froze, blinking in confusion.
“…No.
It didn’t have wings.” Xuandong smiled at his shocked expression.
“Exactly.
External spirit bones are special.
Unlike the six main body bones that remain physically after death and can be inherited, an external spirit bone is a special form of energy manifested from a beast’s unique bloodline.
When fused, they vanish permanently upon the soul master’s death.” Xuandong leaned back, his tone turning informative.
“The reason you obtained that spirit bone is because your Holy Angel martial soul has a connection to the sun.
Since the Sun-Devouring Scavenger absorbs yang energy from both sunlight and yang attribute metals, its bloodline power was extraordinarily compatible with your Holy Angel martial soul—a synergy my martial soul could never achieve.
That bone was meant for you from the start.” Ye Xing stood rooted to the spot, looking at the young Crown Prince with overwhelming awe and gratitude, every trace of lingering guilt completely washed away.
After a few more minutes of quiet conversation, Ye Xing bade his leave, his heart entirely at ease.
Left alone once more inside the quiet sanctuary of his tent, Xu Xuandong took a deep breath and activated his first soul ring.
The dark glass screen of the Steam Deck flared to life, illuminating the dark tent with a warm, ambient glow as the iconic opening menu of Baldur’s Gate 3 booted up.
Xuandong’s jaw dropped.
“Are you kidding me?!” he whispered in utter disbelief.
The rendered protagonist standing in the center of the character creation screen wasn’t a generic avatar—it was an exact, high-definition mirror image of himself, right down to his facial structure, with his own name proudly displayed above the character pane.
Suppressing his excitement, Xuandong dove into character creation.
He selected the Dragonborn race, picking the Gold Dragon subrace for its fiery heritage, assigned the Outlander/Survival background, and selected the Druid class.
Satisfied with his build, he pressed ‘Done’.
Dragonborn Lore & Characteristics Origins: Hailing from the world of Abeir (and later Toril/Forgotten Realms), Dragonborn were originally born from the dragon god Io.
They were created as a race of noble, proud warriors destined to serve—and eventually rebel against—their draconic masters.
Honor and Clan: A Dragonborn’s honor and loyalty to their clan supersede all else.
They possess an innate drive for self-improvement, mastery of their crafts, and personal excellence.
Physical Traits: Standing tall with powerful, heavily muscled builds, they lack tails but bear dense, scaly hides reflecting their draconic lineage, complete with sharp claws and terrifying breath weapons tied to their specific dragon ancestor.
Gold Bloodline: Descendants of Gold Dragons inherit an innate resistance to fire, a majestic golden sheen to their scales, and a natural affinity for radiant, fiery breath weapons.
The moment he confirmed his creation, a sudden, searing wave of heat violently surged through Xuandong’s veins!
Snap!
An audible sensation broke deep within his meridians.
Gasping for air, Xuandong instinctively summoned his secondary martial soul.
The tyrannical dragon scales that materialized along his arm were no longer purely purple—slender, brilliant golden scales were now seamlessly interwoven with the deep purple, radiating an ancient, primordial heat!
It mutated my dragon martial soul?!
Xuandong’s eyes widened in sheer shock.
I thought choosing Dragonborn would just grant me the passive fire resistance stat!
I didn’t expect it to physically rewrite my bloodline and turn me into a half-lizard in real life!
Before he could process the shift further, a subtle, profound change settled over his mind.
Closing his eyes, he could suddenly sense the gentle hum of the forest around him—the pulse of the ancient trees, the whisper of the wind through the leaves, and the subtle ebb and flow of natural energy felt intimately close.
The Druid class’s connection to nature had instantly taken root in his soul.
“Apologies for taking so long, Your Highness,” a voice called out as the tent flap opened.
Ye Guan stepped inside, carrying a bundle of fresh wood and prepared meat.
“It is quite alright, Senior,” Xuandong replied smoothly, stashing his surprise away.
In truth, Xuandong knew the Super Douluo was lying about the delay.
Ye Guan had been standing just outside the tent the entire time, listening intently to his conversation with Ye Xing to ensure the Crown Prince held no lingering malice over the external spirit bone.
Furthermore, both the Sun-Devouring Scavenger and the Elemental Silver Wolf possessed top-tier, highly nutritious meat—with the Scavenger’s yang-infused flesh rivaling that of a thousand-year beast—meaning Ye Guan had likely spent time meticulously preparing it to maximize its cultivation benefits for the boys.
While Ye Guan roasted the meat over a campfire outside, Xuandong sat nearby, holding his Steam Deck to dive straight into the game.
The screen zoomed in on a dark, fleshy Nautiloid ship.
Xuandong guided his character forward, encountering a small, winged Imp.
Alright, let’s start with a basic attack!
Xuandong clicked to strike.
A stark crimson 1 flashed on the screen.
CRITICAL MISS!
Before he could react, the in-game Imp lunged, slashing its jagged claws directly across his character’s chest!
“AAARGH!
HOLY CRAP THAT BURNS!” Xuandong shrieked aloud, clutching his chest in agony as a wave of ghost-scorching heat tore through his nerve endings.
Ye Guan instantly spun around, his Rank 96 spirit power flaring in alarm.
“Your Highness!
What happened?!” Xuandong panted, rubbing his completely unblemished chest as the phantom pain subsided.
He looked up, deciding to reveal a carefully tailored half-truth to cover his tracks.
“Senior…
my martial soul allows me to simulate realistic combat environments within itself for training,” Xuandong explained, catching his breath.
“While I don’t suffer real physical injuries inside, I feel one hundred percent of the sensory feedback and pain.” Ye Guan’s eyes widened in utter astonishment.
A mental simulation realm?!
The Super Douluo’s mind raced.
This meant the Crown Prince could undergo endless, grueling combat training and gain years of real battle experience without drawing the attention of Prince Xu Gongfeng or the court spies!
It was the ultimate, undetectable cultivation cheat!
Ye Guan immediately turned to his grandson, his face deadly serious.
“Xing’er, you did not hear a single word of this.
If a whisper of His Highness’s soul ability leaks out, I will break your legs myself.” Ye Xing gulped nervously, nodding frantically.
“I swear on my martial soul, Grandpa!” Calming himself, Ye Guan turned back to Xuandong with an approving nod.
“A brilliant ability, Your Highness.
But…
if someone asks, what official Soul Skill will you register with the imperial court?” Xuandong grinned, a mischievous glint flashing in his eyes.
“I’ll just tell them it’s a Charm skill.” Ye Xing blinked in confusion.
“But Your Highness, if you register it as Charm, won’t you be exposed the moment someone asks you to demonstrate it?” “Who said I don’t have it?” Xuandong snickered.
Ye Guan felt his heart drop into his stomach.
Wait…
don’t tell me…
Before the old man could stop him, Xuandong focused his intent and cast the Druid spell Charm Person directly onto Ye Xing!
A faint, invisible ripple of magical energy washed over the young boy.
Ye Xing’s eyes suddenly went blank, losing all focus as he turned his head and began staring at Xuandong with vacant, utterly infatuated adoration.
Thwack!
Ye Guan landed a sharp, heavy smack straight onto the back of his grandson’s head, breaking the spell’s hold instantly.
Ye Xing stumbled forward, rubbing his head in total disorientation.
“How…
how did you do that?!” Ye Guan asked, utterly bewildered.
“You didn’t even use a soul ring skill!” Xuandong wiped an imaginary tear of laughter from his eye.
“The simulated realm inside my martial soul doesn’t allow standard spirit rings, so I had to invent a few ‘Self-Created Soul Skills’ to survive inside!” Ye Guan opened his mouth to press further, but the sheer absurdity of a six-year-old casually whipping out a Self-Created Soul Skill stunned him into silence.
He took a long, weary breath, rubbing his temples.
“Very well…” Ye Guan sighed heavily, looking at the young prince with profound wariness.
“Just…
try not to use that on any noble ladies in the capital.” Xuandong looked at the grand Super Douluo with an overly innocent, wide-eyed gaze—a look that practically screamed, ‘You just gave me the best idea ever.’ At that exact moment, watching the mischievous Crown Prince smirk, Senior Ye Guan felt a sudden wave of deep, chilling regret for ever investing his clan’s future in this absolute menace of a prince.