Chapter 29: The Book of a Thousand Souls

It was just past noon, the lunch hour, yet the demon soul market was crowded.

Lei En activated his Soul Eye and scanned the area; not seeing was ignorance, but seeing made him jump in shock.

Looking around, nearly a third of the people nearby were the extraordinary; their souls had undergone Soul Transformation, resembling clusters of unique light drifting everywhere.

"Does Longshande have this many extraordinary?"

Lei En couldn't help but sigh, truly like attracts like; the demon soul market might be the place with the most extraordinary in the whole city.

He strolled through the market while covertly observing for a while, and saw many extraordinary professions.

Iron Guard, Shadow Warrior, Ranger and Gunner were the most common, accounting for over sixty percent of the extraordinary; next were Berserker, Fighter and Demonkin Hunter, these three a bit fewer, roughly twenty percent of the total; the least numerous were casters, including Cultivators, Warlocks, Engineers and Wizards, making up about fifteen percent.

There were also a few church extraordinary, such as the Holy Swordsmen and Earth Nuns of the Empire's Three-God Church; Lei En also spotted a Nightwatcher who worships the Moon Goddess, and out of curiosity, took a few extra glances.

However, there were also extraordinary whose professions Lei En could not identify, perhaps a rare vocation unknown to outsiders.

In just over an hour, his horizons were greatly broadened.

Besides the extraordinary, Lei En also witnessed all sorts of demon souls—those that flew in the sky, ran on the ground, swam in water, and many more nameless ones of unknown origin—feeling as if he had entered a zoo, dazzling his eyes.

After seeing many, Lei En gradually realized that the demon souls in the market, especially the living ones, were mostly demon beasts, and their ranks were all initial stage; Mid-stage ones were rare.

These initial-stage demon beasts were mostly not captured from the wild, but artificially bred.

The Empire's demon soul farms are a highly mature industry, focusing on various demon beasts, especially demon souls of several common professions, which basically all come from the farms.

For example, the Iron Guard's "Xuanbu Rock Rhinoceros", the Berserker's "Kodie Island Rampant Bear", the Gunner's "Night Owl", the Ranger's "Long-Arm Xiu", have long formed a complete breeding process: from reproduction to rearing, then maturation, Element identification, and finally delivery to the market for slaughter to obtain demon souls, the whole process taking only five to seven years.

Because of a stable supply, these demon souls are relatively cheap, with merchants' prices ranging between twenty and thirty Gold Shield.

Demon beast varieties beyond those are rare, so their prices jump, usually above fifty Gold Shield.

According to sellers, these uncommon demon souls generally come from the Empire's western Death Forest Sea.

It is a massive primeval forest, situated in a super basin the size of two or three provinces, three sides of the basin surrounded by the Shi Jie Shan Mai and plateaus, with only a narrow plain on the east stretching over two thousand li, leading to the Empire's interior.

Many extraordinary on their first outing to hunt demon souls choose to go to the Death Forest Sea, but only the outskirts, never venturing deep inside.

In markets across the Empire's cities, the majority of demon souls come from the Death Forest Sea.

The feathered serpent seen earlier was painstakingly captured by a soul-hunting squad from the Death Forest Sea and brought back to Longshande.

In a demon soul shop, Lei En wandered casually.

The shop was small, had no living creatures, only dealt in Soul Stone transactions, so it was relatively tidy and quiet.

Hundreds of Soul Stones were displayed on several shelves for viewing; the shelves were cast of metal, their lower parts firmly anchored to the floor, and the surfaces etched with rune sigils that periodically emitted energy, evidently using magic to protect the Soul Stones from theft.

Each Soul Stone was about the size of a pigeon egg, an irregular polyhedron.

Soul Stones are alchemical creations; their raw material is a white crystal that is transparent when not containing a demon soul, indistinguishable from a glass sphere.

After containing a demon soul, a Soul Stone's color changes with the internal demon soul, becoming multicolored like precious gems.

When close to a Soul Stone and observing carefully, one sees inside a paint-like mass constantly swirling and flowing, displaying the demon soul's strange form and fleeting Element runes.

Soul Appraisers discern the demon soul's condition precisely through these chaotic shapes and Element runes.

With the aid of his Soul Eye, Lei En needs only a glance to grasp the true information within a Soul Stone.

These Soul Stones have all been examined by Soul Appraisers, then priced; the vast majority of the pricing is accurate, with only a few minor errors whose deviation from true value is not large.

Although Lei En could still pick up bargains and earn some margin, it paled in comparison to that Mid-stage feathered serpent; to avoid drawing attention, he refrained from acting.

After viewing the Soul Stones, there was another shelf nearby, unprotected by rune sigils, holding only books.

Lei En's gaze swept over, and a book caught his attention.

"Hmm? 'The Book of a Thousand Souls – Summary Edition'."

It was called a summary edition, yet the book was as thick as a brick; Lei En stepped forward, lifted it, and felt it heavy, not much lighter than an actual brick.

He opened to the pages; the author was a legendary Wizard named Tai Mandora, who was also a Title: Master of Soul Appraisal, devoting his life to studying demon souls.

The Title: Master's work, the Book of a Thousand Souls, meticulously records data on over a thousand demon souls, including their classification, rank, habits, weaknesses, distribution areas, possible Elements, and the Elements' forms, names, functions, strengths, and so on. The book's content is extremely detailed; each demon soul and Element is accompanied by exquisite illustrations, all hand-drawn by Tai Mandora Title: Master.

"Whoa, this is insanely awesome!"

Lei En was overjoyed; this book was exactly what he needed.

He has a Soul Eye, allowing him to see through a soul inside and out, as well as Element information, but he does not know what these Elements are called, unable to match them with the Elements known by others.

Lei En flipped through the pages ravenously, and he did not forget to photograph each page with his phone for preservation.

According to Tai Mandora Title: Master's research, the known demon souls worldwide are divided into sixteen major categories.

The most numerous are not demon beasts but insects, followed by fish; demon beasts rank third. The others include birds, plants, aquatic, spirits, aberrations, Elements, undead, humanoids, giants, Demon, demon species, dragon‑born, true dragons, making thirteen categories.

Each major category is further subdivided into many sub‑categories based on differences, totaling several hundred types.

Lei En sighed in awe; this is essentially a work of biological taxonomy.

Of course, if one uses pre‑world biology as a standard, Tai Mandora Title: Master's classification would be utterly chaotic and baseless.

However, this is a demon soul classification, not a biological one; the two have no relation.

Lei En saw the feathered serpent's entry in the book, cross‑referenced it, and immediately recognized several Element names of the market's feathered serpent: "Air Cutting", "Cyclone Technique" and "Rapid Recovery", the affinity with the wind Element being obvious.

The whole book spans several hundred pages; reading it all would take at least a day.

Moreover, this is the summary edition, introducing just over a hundred common demon souls, still far from the thousand claimed in the title.

Lei En closed the book and approached the counter, asking, "Owner, how much is this book?"

The shopkeeper was a wiry old man; he glanced at the title and said, "The Book of a Thousand Souls – Summary Edition, 299 copper coins."

That's basically three hundred!

Lei En muttered a complaint, not expecting a parallel world to use such price‑gap sales tactics, but he honestly pulled out three hundred‑copper bills from his wallet.

A book selling for three hundred copper coins is indeed pricey, almost as outrageous as robbery, but knowledge is priceless, and he was willing to pay.

After receiving a copper coin change from the shopkeeper, Lei En asked, "Is there a full version of the Book of a Thousand Souls?"

"The full version consists of twelve volumes, only available at specialized bookstores or large libraries," the shopkeeper shook his head, gave Lei En a glance, and explained, "The entire set costs over ten Gold Shield, is cumbersome to carry, and few customers buy it, so we have no stock, sorry."

Lei En imagined that twelve hefty volumes stacked together could fill an entire suitcase; even a cursory skim would take a long time, and very few have the patience to read them all, let alone spend money to purchase them.

"Alright, thanks for the info," Lei En said, leaving with the book.

After strolling in the market for a while longer, Lei En felt it was enough, his stomach was a bit hungry, so he decided to eat lunch outside the market and then return.

Halfway there, someone at a shop doorway shouted, "Gambling Soul, Gambling Soul!"

"Today the shop received a new batch of Gold-Eating Ants, all alive, each sold for one Gold Shield."

"Buy now, kill now; as long as it yields a Power Element, it's a top-quality Sub Soul, fetching at least fifty Gold Shields. Stock is limited, so hurry if you want to buy."

Lei En stopped in his tracks, quite interested in this Betting Soul, which sounded similar to the gambling stone from his previous life.

He just didn't know if it was real or fake, whether there was a cheating scheme.

He entered the shop and saw several large tables covered with glass jars—two to three hundred of them—made of specially crafted thick glass, tightly sealed with only a small vent hole.

Inside each jar was a ferocious-looking ant, its body jet‑black like ink, faintly glowing, its angular form seeming forged of iron, baring fangs and claws, exuding an intense sense of power.

The bottom of each jar held a thick, translucent solution—likely a special potion—so the ants soaked in it became limp and weak, and they scrabbled at the glass with their forelegs, producing a series of sharp, piercing noises.

"Ants this big!"

Lei En jumped in fright; he recalled that the largest bull ant on Diqiu was only about three to four centimeters long.

These Gold-Eating Ants before him were each at least a dozen centimeters long, the largest exceeding twenty centimeters, and massive—weighting hundreds of times a bull ant's. A single bite could Tear off a large piece of flesh, even snapping a finger off.

If a swarm of Gold-Eating Ants attacked, the outcome would surely be gruesome.

The shop had seven or eight customers, all gathered around the jars, carefully observing and selecting the ants they wished to buy.

"Do these Gold-Eating Ants really eat metal?"

Lei En asked, noting he had never seen such ants before and hadn't read about them in the Thousand Soul Book.

"Of course," replied an enthusiastic middle‑aged man who seemed to be the shop owner. "Gold-Eating Ants are raised on iron ore; this batch bit three miners to death in the northern city's mine tunnels a few days ago. The mine owner hired an Intermediate Alchemist to handle it, then packaged them for us. The whole colony is here; not a single one escaped."

"Young man, want to buy a few and try your luck?" the shop owner said, his face full of smiles.

Lei En gave no answer.

Assuming Lei En was hesitating, the shop owner launched into a nonstop pitch: "Young man, don't underestimate Gold-Eating Ants. Individually they're indeed weak, but they're true insect monsters; their souls have a certain chance to generate Elements, and specifically a highly useful 'Power' Element!"

"Do you know how strong an ant's power can be? They can lift objects hundreds of times their own weight. If that power were placed on a human, it would be scarier than a giant's—truly limitless potential!"

"Many melee classes crave Power Elements; they might not be ideal as a Main Soul, but they're perfect as a Sub Soul."

"Just now a customer bought a Gold-Eating Ant containing a Power Element and sold it on the spot for fifty Gold Shields. If you don't believe it, ask around."

The shop owner pointed to a few customers selecting ants; two or three voiced agreement, confirming his words were true.

Lei En muttered under his breath, realizing these people were obviously shills—could they really be that easy to deceive?

Perhaps Gold-Eating Ants can indeed yield Power Elements, but the shop owner's claims were untrustworthy; the rhetoric about ant power had bored him since elementary school in his past life.

He had already activated his Soul Eye, scanning each ant one by one.

Seeing Lei En's indifferent reaction, the shop owner stepped away to attend another newly arrived customer.

Lei En examined twenty to thirty ants in a row, finding no Elements, and their souls were so weak that two or three ants together could only match a single ordinary Demon Soul.

"Sure enough, it's just a scam—selling a busted ant for a Gold Shield..."

He muttered that the shop owner was a swindler, but when he saw over sixty ants, his gaze froze and he exclaimed internally, "Whoa, it really has a Power Element!"

This Gold-Eating Ant looked similar to the others, perhaps slightly larger but not the biggest, yet it contained an Element.

Lei En sensed carefully and confirmed it was a Power Element.

He contemplated whether to buy it and snag those fifty Gold Shields, when the glass jar holding that ant was lifted by a long‑robed Wizard and handed to the shop owner.

"Damn, too slow to act."

Lei En pursed his lips in frustration; the other was a Level 3 Wizard, whose keen sight made him clearly a formidable Soul Appraiser.

The shop owner gladly took the Wizard's Gold Shield, fetched an iron hammer, poured the Gold-Eating Ant out of its jar onto an iron anvil, and, while it was still dazed, struck it with a hammer.

Boom!

A loud blast rang out; the hammer seemed to hit an iron block and rebounded, yet the ant on the anvil kept moving.

Having long witnessed the tenacity of Gold-Eating Ants, the shop owner swung the hammer several times, hammering as if forging iron, finally crushing the ant into a piece of meat resembling an iron pancake, then placed a blank Soul Stone onto it.

In Lei En's view, the ant's soul flew out, seeming to head toward him.

The soul just emerged, only to be captured by a nearer Soul Stone; the two entered a tug‑of‑war, the soul faintly about to be Tear.

"Oops."

Lei En had forgotten that he could absorb souls.

Fortunately, he had previously tinkered on his phone and discovered a 'disable charging' option in the battery icon, so he quickly selected it.

Sure enough, after disabling charging, the ant's soul was instantly absorbed by the Soul Stone, the white crystal turning as if ink had been poured in, becoming dark and deep.

Holding the Soul Stone, the shop owner saw a red rune appear, then vanish.

His smile instantly froze.

The surrounding customers also saw the anomaly in the Soul Stone and shouted, "Power Element!"

Only Lei En had known beforehand, feeling unsurprised. The Wizard's face lit up as he took the Soul Stone from the shop owner and continued selecting glass jars.

Several customers, spurred on, each chose a Gold-Eating Ant and handed it to the shop owner; as each ant was smashed, none yielded an Element.

The Wizard bought two more, also without result.

Lei En ignored everyone else, proceeding at his own pace, observing each ant one by one.

Yet after examining over a hundred Gold-Eating Ants, he still hadn't found any with a Power Element. He then patiently checked dozens more, still to no avail.

Until only about thirty remained; just as Lei En, losing hope and assuming they were ordinary Gold-Eating Ants, suddenly saw three runes flash before his eyes.

"Damn! Damn damn damn damn..."

(End of Chapter)