Chapter 1685: Fire

"Soul Fire? The name is kind of interesting..."

He subconsciously glanced at the dead Fifth Stage attribute.

Lin An unexpectedly discovered that, although this Fifth Stage individual's other attributes were low, their willpower attribute reached 800 points.

With a high amount of mental power, paired with a rule that sounded decent, he suddenly had high expectations.

After opening it and examining it carefully, Lin An's face soon showed a hint of solemnity.

"Soul Fire (Special Rule)"

"After absorption, the effect is unknown. Using this rule will put you into a Spirit Vision state. In that state, you will gain the ability to observe souls."

"After attacking the target's Soul Fire, it will reduce all attributes and resistance, and lower intellect. When the Soul Fire is extinguished, the target dies. This death effect ignores all defenses and traits of the target!"

"When used on oneself, it temporarily boosts willpower, and this boost can exceed the limit."

A strange description.

Compared to other rules that explicitly state how much damage they deal and what effects they cause, this one has an intuitive explanation.

After Lin An repeatedly examined the effects of Soul Fire, he immediately thought of the few skills he had obtained before.

Withering, facing fear head-on..

Just as vague, it also involves the non-material realm.

To be honest, Lin An felt he had a decent grasp of mental power, but he truly couldn't comprehend the soul.

Even though he had already consumed many soul fragments.

"After attacking the target's Soul Fire, reducing all attributes and resistance... does that mean it's another means of attack?"

"When the Soul Fire is weakened, the main body will also be weakened..."

"If the flame goes out, does the person die along with it?"

As he carefully pondered the meaning of that sentence, Lin An inexplicably recalled the 'Three Flames' described in classical superstitions on Earth.

"When a ghost calls out, don't turn back, or else you'll blow out the fire on your shoulder..."

"When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out..."

Upon thinking of these lines, Lin An's face instantly showed a strange expression.

What is a soul? Does the soul exist in the form of flame? Or are those flames the soul's weakness?

It's hard to imagine that the proverbs from those classical, weird legends actually bear an uncanny resemblance to this rule.

A coincidence? What kind of rule is this, then?

Upon encountering an unknown field, Lin An couldn't find an answer for a while. He could only vaguely think that perhaps some things are universal across the cosmos.

Just like gravity—primitive humans saw it that way, and advanced civilizations see it the same way.

But after setting aside that strangeness, Lin An bitterly realized he didn't even know whether he should absorb this rule.

Looking at the description, this rule is quite bizarre, and its effects are somewhat perverse. Extinguishing the Soul Fire can indiscriminately kill enemies; this terrifying power is practically on par with the three major events.

If graded by power, it would be on the same level as Annihilation.

Perhaps it's even higher?

Even when used on oneself, it is still a powerful amplification effect.

Breaking the limit of the willpower attribute...

Deeply aware that willpower attribute amplifies all rules, this is naturally a huge boost.

But the problem is...

This rule clearly isn't suitable for merging with electromagnetism.

What would it become if merged? Would electromagnetic waves interfere with the soul? Would magnetic field interference appear? Or a ghostly haunt?

"Merged into the Eternal Body?"

In his hesitation, Lin An also couldn't bear to give up this rule.

Among the remaining captives, there aren't many Fifth Stage individuals left. Although a Fourth Stage rule might not necessarily be worse than a Fifth Stage one, after absorption there will definitely be a gap. With a 10% absorption efficiency, unless the effect is extraordinarily heaven-defying, it doesn't require much rule power.

Otherwise, Lin An could imagine what effect absorbing it would have.

Even the Fifth Stage Storm under his control still has the effects of a high-level Fourth Stage, and it can even strengthen his rule.

But a Fourth Stage Storm in his hands would likely become just a gentle breeze on the face, possibly requiring his own rule power to compensate.

"If merged into the Eternal Body, it's more likely to enhance the benefit effect, right?"

"The Eternal Body also carries temporal properties; after merging... what would happen when the soul works with time?"

His brain raced.

Lin An struggled to rely on his knowledge reserves, constantly simulating possible effects.

But after a moment, he had no choice but to reluctantly give up this attempt.

There was too little information; he simply couldn't determine what ability it would be.

"Knowledge is power... I've only just begun to engage with rules..."

He gave a wry smile; Lin An looked somewhat helplessly at the sacrifice panel. If only he could first test what this Soul Fire actually is.

Either directly convert it into Props, or directly absorb it; he couldn't possibly let these Fifth Stage individuals regain their strength and demonstrate it in front of him.

After suppressing his inner agitation, Lin An simply set this rule aside for now.

Converting it into Props he wasn't too keen on; after thinking it over, merging this rule into the Eternal Body should be fine. Even if the effect isn't great, it wouldn't reduce his combat power by much.

After all, at his current stage he hardly needs defense; against those Star-Destroying Level beings, anyone who shows up would instantly kill him.

"Microwave Rule, Tech Side, Material Type."

"Microwave: After using this rule, a microwave field forms around the body, increasing molecular motion speed and chaos. Any attack entering the microwave range will proportionally lose its original structure. You can actively increase the molecular motion speed within the microwave range to produce corresponding effects."

A plain and easy-to-understand explanation.

Looking at this defensive rule, Lin An immediately understood its concrete effect.

This rule is pretty much the same as the Flame Ghost he killed before.

The defensive effect comes from 'heating' the surrounding particles, destroying the structure of incoming attacks, thereby producing a weakening effect.

Put simply, it's just creating a circle of microwave around oneself; incoming arrows, shells, and such will be 'melted'.

Compared to the Flame Ghost's high-temperature rule, there isn't much difference between the two; perhaps the microwave is more concealed, more advanced?

"It appears to be an offensive-defensive integrated rule; once the microwave force field is generated, it can both reduce damage and 'heat' the enemy. But actually..."

Recalling the scene of his battle with the Flame Ghost, Lin An tugged at the corner of his mouth, unable to muster any interest at all.

The efficiency is too low, and it's too mild.

If one says repulsive force is also destroying material structure, it's actually like a bomb directly shattering the structure.

Whether it's microwave or high temperature, essentially it's just a candle slowly roasting; compared, they are not even in the same league.

In addition to disappointment, Lin An wasn't really surprised either.

Those Fifth Stage sent to die are basically cannon fodder; naturally their rules aren't strong.