Undead Mage: I Have a Skeleton Clone-Chapter 317 - 261: Soul Crystal, Soul Power Reserve Soaring!

Gu Yueyuan narrowed his eyes slightly, carefully sensing the aura fluctuations on the Pearl Bird. He silently estimated its cultivation level.

After a moment, he nodded gently and said, "I’ve learned a bit about this type of Pearl Bird from Liu Diewu. The one in your hand is already close to the upper Apprentice Stage; it just needs one more push to break through. It shouldn’t need too many Insect Food Pills." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

As he spoke, Gu Yueyuan took out three bottles of Insect Food Pills from within his robes and placed them on the table.

"These are all the Insect Food Pills I have on hand. Since they’re useful to you, take them all. They aren’t worth much, but I hope they can help you and your Pearl Bird. Furthermore, this alchemist cultivation journal of mine also contains the formula for Insect Food Pills. By my estimation, this knowledge should be enough to help your Pearl Bird break through to the upper Apprentice Stage."

Although Gu Yueyuan usually gave off an impression of being cold and solitary, he wasn’t completely ignorant of social pleasantries. He knew that for a talented student like Fang Zhou, establishing a strong relationship early on was always beneficial and never a detriment. Thus, he was willing to pay a price to build a good rapport. After all, Fang Zhou’s talent and potential were undeniable.

Upon hearing this, a look of gratitude appeared on Fang Zhou’s face. He looked at Gu Yueyuan sincerely and said, "Thank you so much, Senior Brother Gu."

He didn’t refuse the gesture, accepting Gu Yueyuan’s gifts directly.

Gu Yueyuan nodded, handed the resources to Fang Zhou, and reminded him earnestly, "Junior Brother Fang, I know your talent is exceptional. But the Apprentice Stage is the golden period for cultivation. I hope you can focus more of your energy on improving your main Profession. It won’t be too late to study this alchemist cultivation journal after you break through and become a Black Iron Tier Professional."

After a moment’s thought, Gu Yueyuan took out another book from his Space Storage Capsule and handed it to Fang Zhou. "By the way, Junior Brother Fang, this is a detailed illustrated guide and data compilation on venomous insect-type Demons. As an Undead Mage, the Black Iron Tier creatures you summon are mostly Undead Creatures like Zombies, which contain undead toxins. Although the biological toxins of insect-type Demons are fundamentally different from the undead toxins of Zombies, your exceptional insight and creativity might allow you to find some common ground between these two disparate types of toxins, possibly leading to some unexpected discoveries."

At these words, Fang Zhou’s eyes lit up. He hastily took the information on venomous insects from Gu Yueyuan and skimmed through it, a flicker of joy appearing in his heart.

Fang Zhou mused that although the ’Unknown Talent Skill’ entry in the attribute panel of his Skeleton Clone, derived from a Zombie, was still in the analysis stage, his keen intuition already allowed him to perceive its general outline. It was a skill closely tied to Corrosive Poison. This seemingly ordinary undead creature, the Zombie, appeared to have little of interest besides its fearsome Corrosive Poison. In Fang Zhou’s eyes, however, that was precisely its unique value. Because Corrosive Poison, something others viewed as filth, could, in his hands, be turned from something foul into something miraculous—the key to controlling life and death.

Looking back, from the Skeleton’s Bone Armament skill, he had already successfully deduced a series of Skeleton Series skills for the Undead Mage, such as the Skeleton Flying Spear, Skeleton Wings, and Skeleton Shield. Each skill represented a deep exploration and creative application of skeletal power. And now, it was as if he saw a brand-new path opening up before him. A Skill Tree with Corrosive Poison as its core was calling to him, waiting to be explored and developed. From this perspective, the information on venomous insect-type Demons that Gu Yueyuan provided was indeed the icing on the cake. Perhaps he really could find some additional insights through analogy.

Thinking of this, Fang Zhou looked up and pushed the series of precious items he had taken out earlier—including the unique Frog Drum and the Mental Shock skill book—across the table to Gu Yueyuan.

Then, he said with a serious expression, "I’ll gratefully accept your kind offer, Senior Brother Gu. Please rest assured, if I make any breakthroughs, I will be sure to share them with you."

A stiff smile barely formed on Gu Yueyuan’s typically ice-cold face. He gave Fang Zhou a slight nod, a flicker of almost imperceptible envy in his eyes.

"Junior Brother Fang, with your current strength and growth rate, it probably won’t take you more than a few days to break through to the upper Apprentice Stage, right? Breaking through the bottleneck to reach the Black Iron Tier will probably be as simple as eating and drinking for you. When that time comes, we can team up to explore the areas newly opened to us, like the Fierce Beast Mountain Range and Cave No. 3."

Faced with this sincere goodwill from Gu Yueyuan, Fang Zhou naturally had no reason to refuse.

He nodded in response, saying solemnly, "Alright, Senior Brother Gu. I will look to you for guidance then."

The corners of Gu Yueyuan’s mouth twitched, and the stiff smile seemed to become a bit more natural. He placed the resources he’d received in the trade from Fang Zhou one by one back into his Space Storage Capsule, then gave Fang Zhou a nod.

"The trade is complete. Junior Brother Fang, I won’t take up any more of your time. If you have any questions about the Mirror of the Heart or the other resources I gave you, feel free to come find me anytime."

Fang Zhou raised his hand in a standard military salute, watching as Gu Yueyuan left the logistics department.

Afterward, he tightly gripped the Mirror of the Heart, his eyes glinting with irrepressible joy. His excitement stemmed not only from the Mirror of the Heart’s magical function but also from a thrilling message that had appeared on his attribute panel the moment he truly became the treasure’s owner.

"Detected absorbable Soul Crystals, which can be converted into a corresponding amount of Soul Power. Begin absorption?"

This message sent ripples through Fang Zhou’s heart. Soul Crystals, a term he had never heard of, could be converted into Soul Power!

Fang Zhou had never received this kind of prompt from the attribute panel before, and he couldn’t help but feel a flicker of doubt. It didn’t take him long to figure it out, however.

Evidently, a mysterious resource called Soul Crystals was hidden within the Mirror of the Heart he had acquired from Gu Yueyuan. No matter where these crystals originated, the most important thing now was to use the attribute panel’s power to absorb them and enhance his strength.

Without hesitation, Fang Zhou gave the command.

"Begin absorption."

Under his focused perception, as the attribute panel began to work, the Mirror of the Heart in his hand trembled slightly. Immediately after, a powerful and pure stream of Soul Power surged out from it, pouring into his body like an invisible torrent. At the same time, Fang Zhou clearly saw the Soul Power reserve on his attribute panel climbing at an astonishing speed.

A short while later, the strange activity on the surface of the Mirror of the Heart gradually subsided. The Soul Power reserve in his attribute panel had also increased significantly, quickly rising by more than 100 points.

Fang Zhou delightedly examined his attribute panel, his heart filled with indescribable joy. He never expected the so-called Soul Crystals hidden within the Mirror of the Heart to yield such a massive amount of Soul Power.

Subsequently, he fell deep into thought.

He had never experienced this method of obtaining Soul Power by absorbing Soul Crystals. In the past, he had become well-acquainted with two traditional ways of acquiring it. The first was to spill blood on the battlefield, personally ending the lives of beings with souls and extracting the essence of their souls from their last dying breath. Both his main body and his Skeleton Clone could do this. The second was through Meditation, establishing an extraordinary connection with his loyal Undead Mage Apostles. He could then convert the fruits of their cultivation of the Skeleton King Meditation Method into a vast torrent of Soul Power for himself, like countless streams flowing into the sea.