Chapter 82: Surge of Power

In the third‑floor room of the villa at Vige Manor.

Lei En sat at the table, took out both soul stones, and placed them on the table.

The soul of the Thunder Lizard resembled a pale blue cloud, occasional tiny bolts of lightning flashing, three Elements drifting within the soul, occasionally revealing the shape of a massive creature.

The Crystal Giant Lizard was like colored paint, seven hues constantly shifting and swirling, four Elements hidden within, exuding a chilling aura—an effect of the dragon bloodline.

Lei En carefully compared the two magic souls.

Undoubtedly, the Crystal Giant Lizard was stronger, and its future potential was limitless.

Thunder Trample is fine, but under the lure of the Dragon Power Technique and the Rainbow Light Ray, Lei En did not hesitate much and made a decision.

"It's you, then."

Lei En picked up the Crystal Giant Lizard's magic soul, sat cross‑legged, pressed the soul stone to his forehead, opened his phone interface, and activated the ability to fuse magic souls.

In the next second, the swirling soul power in his mind generated a suction.

The Crystal Giant Lizard within the soul stone was instantly drawn out, passing through the flesh of his forehead and directly entering Lei En's soul.

The World Tree quivered immediately and began to grow taller.

The Crystal Giant Lizard's magic soul appeared beneath the roots, merging into a strand of soul power that nourished the entire World Tree, while a colorful lizard‑shaped magic soul climbed upward along the trunk.

However, the sole branch on the tree was stimulated and began to sway violently.

It was transformed from the magic soul of a Gold‑eating Ant, and seemed hostile to the newcomer, trying to prevent it from sprouting a new branch on the trunk.

Lei En realized in his heart that this was a manifestation of magic‑soul conflict.

The thing all transcendants despise is that during magic‑soul fusion, existing and incoming magic souls clash due to differing natures.

The last time he fused the Gold‑eating Ant, because it was the first Main Soul, there was no interference from other magic souls, and it completed smoothly.

This time it wouldn't be that easy.

If the fusion cannot be completed in time, letting the two magic souls consume each other, the Elements carried by the Crystal Giant Lizard could be lost, possibly causing fusion failure.

Lei En had long been mentally prepared, meditated with full concentration, his soul power vibrated, the World Tree emitted a faint golden glow, stabilizing that branch.

At this moment, the Soul Fusion Seed forged from golden fruit began to take effect.

The World Tree's light steadied the entire interior of the soul.

Lei En had a perfect Soul Transformation; his soul power far exceeded that of peers, and he easily withstood the soul's shaking impact, with the Crystal Giant Lizard suffering no loss.

In just a few dozen seconds, the magic‑soul conflict was forcibly suppressed.

The Crystal Giant Lizard's magic soul rose along the trunk, quickly reaching the branch's position, halted on the opposite side at the same height, and immediately sprouted a new branch.

The second branch emerged at a visible speed, rapidly lengthening and extending outward.

Four leaves budded on the branch, each bearing an Element rune.

Meanwhile, the entire World Tree continued to grow taller.

Half a quarter‑hour later, the Crystal Giant Lizard's magic soul fully merged with the World Tree, the light gradually contracted, and the fusion was finally complete.

Lei En opened his eyes and let out a long sigh.

He rose and looked into a mirror, seeing the vivid World Tree within his soul; the two branches moved without wind, seven leaves shimmered, and he couldn't help but smile happily.

"Ultra‑high fusion rate!"

"An almost perfect fusion, successfully resolving the magic‑soul conflict; the Crystal Giant Lizard suffered virtually no damage, no Elements were lost—awesome!"

Lei En swung his fist and immediately felt a change within himself.

The soul power brought by the Crystal Giant Lizard fully merged into him.

This fusion differs from mere absorption charging; the efficiency gap exceeds tenfold. Though it is only a novice dragon‑born magic soul, it boosted his energy by 30%, equivalent to absorbing a fifth‑level transcendent's soul!

Lei En saw the second battery at 33% charge and could not be more satisfied.

Moreover, he noticed a detail.

Both the Gold‑eating Ant and the Crystal Giant Lizard magic souls contain the "Strength" Element; each of the two branches also bears a leaf representing "Strength".

However, those two leaves actually count as only one Element.

Furthermore, "Strength" is a physique‑type Element that can stack after fusion.

Lei En's previous Strength was level two, the lower progress bar at about 14%; after stacking, it surged to 56%, the bar now over half!

Although the Strength Element remains level two, his physical strength increased greatly.

When he first became a level‑one Wizard, Lei En could lift roughly two thousand pounds; later, as his soul power grew to level two, his lifting capacity increased by five hundred pounds.

Now his Strength has grown again; Lei En hasn't tested it, so he doesn't know the exact increase.

Based on previous sensations, it should exceed three thousand pounds!

"Three thousand pounds... I wonder if it can rise further?" Lei En stared at the progress bar beneath the "Strength" icon, a upward arrow appearing beside it.

He calculated the energy consumption and pressed the button.

The energy level began to drop rapidly, and as it decreased, the progress bar advanced.

Starting from 56%, within seconds it surpassed 70%, 80%, 90%...

Lei En's muscles and bones tightened as if invisible energy flooded his body; each second reinforced him, swelling and itching, yet delivering an indescribable pleasure.

After a dozen seconds, finally the progress bar hit 100%; at that instant it flashed, the tiny number "2" turned into "3", then the bar instantly cleared, reverting to its prior state.

On the World Tree, the two leaves bearing the "Strength" Element gently quivered, emitting golden light.

Lei En immediately sensed the change.

"Level‑3 Strength!"

"And it upgraded from a common Element to a rare Element!"

Lei En felt great joy, raised his hand and lightly clenched his fists a few times, as if he possessed endless power, wishing there were a stone or something in front of him to punch out his excitement.

After finally calming down, he realized that raising Strength to level three consumed about eighteen energy units; the second battery still had 15%, a bit less than expected.

"Time to test it in the training arena."

Lei En immediately went downstairs, exited the villa through the side door, and entered a building not far away.

The house had only one floor, about three hundred square meters in area, divided into two sections: most of it was an indoor training arena, and the other side a magic laboratory.

Lei En, carrying his war hammer, walked into the training arena.

This had once been the place where Viola's father, a legendary Demon Hunter, practiced swordsmanship; the floor was paved with hard stone slabs, and the facilities and equipment were complete.

He didn't rush to test; first he loosened his muscles and bones for a few minutes, adapting to his newly enhanced body.

A series of crackling sounds rang out from within his body.

After he was sufficiently warmed up, he walked toward the equipment at the edge of the arena, where a whole row of massive iron blocks stood, ranging from light to heavy, each larger than the last, similar to the style in Zuo Er Tan's courtyard; the heaviest weighed ten thousand pounds!

Lei En chose the three‑thousand‑pound iron block.

Gripping the block's handle, he spread his feet slightly, adjusted his stance, and tensed his whole body to exert force.

The massive iron block was lifted instantly, leaving the ground.

Lei En tried walking a few steps and found it easy; clearly his strength now far exceeded three thousand pounds, so he placed the block back and moved to the four‑thousand‑pound one.

This time it wasn't as easy, but he could still lift it and walk.

After several tests, Lei En discerned his current strength ceiling.

Around four thousand six hundred pounds!

Lei En was surprised himself; Ai Lun E Si's pound was roughly equivalent to a jin on Diqiu, and although he couldn't compare precisely, the error should be small.

Four thousand six hundred pounds is more than two tons on Diqiu!

If he reverted to his former self, he could easily lift a small car and even run with it…

"That's still not my strength limit."

Lei En's mind shifted; the soul energy flowing through the World Tree sparked the leaf representing the Dragon Power Technique.

Light blossomed, and a phantom dragon head emerged above Lei En's head, roaring skyward with a majestic bellow, then descended and merged into his body.

An ethereal layer of scales covered Lei En's skin, from head to neck, extending down to his chest, abdomen, and limbs, eventually enveloping his entire body without leaving any gaps.

In the end, the scales fused perfectly with his skin and vanished.

Lei En examined himself closely and saw a faint glimmer flowing beneath his skin, dreamlike and illusory.

At the same time, he sensed his strength surge again, his blood coursing faster, his spirit exhilarated, as a massive energy surged within, seeking an outlet to release.

"This is the feeling after the Dragon Power Technique is applied…"

Lei En looked at his hands, exhaled, and found even his breath carried a scorching aura.

He walked to the five‑thousand‑pound block and lifted it with a slight effort.

Bang!

He dropped the block, switched to the six‑thousand‑pound one—no problem either, but only up to this point.

Lei En lifted a three‑thousand‑pound iron block in each hand, performing the usual training lift; after a few minutes he was lightly sweating and his skin reddened.

He quickly returned the blocks to their places; after another two or three minutes, the sensation of power flooding his body faded.

The glimmer beneath his skin also vanished.

Lei En glanced at the time and thought, "The casting time of the One-ring Dragon Power Technique is about two seconds, its effect lasts eight minutes five seconds, and it consumes four units of energy."

Then he cast the Dragon Power Technique on himself again, and the spell effect was identical to the previous one.

Thus he confirmed the spell can be stacked continuously without side effects.

Lei En roughly estimated that the One-ring Dragon Power Technique could boost his strength by about fifteen hundred pounds, but he didn't know what effect it would have on others.

Would it directly add fifteen hundred pounds to the target, or increase the ceiling proportionally based on the individual's existing strength?

Unfortunately no one else was present; otherwise a test would have revealed it.

"I'll try it again when I get the chance later."

Lei En shook his head, stopped pondering the Dragon Power Technique, and shifted his focus to another spell, the Rainbow Beam.

He concentrated, raised his left hand, and pointed forward.

Soul energy surged rapidly in his mind, igniting the Element; a rainbow‑like orb of light formed at his fingertip, and after one second the orb emitted a straight beam, like a sharp sword piercing the air with a faint sound.

The beam flashed and vanished, lasting less than half a second.

The rainbow light in Lei En's hand also dissipated.

He withdrew his hand, curiously observing it; in fact, casting doesn't always require a corresponding gesture—reaching out is merely subconscious.

Using gestures to accompany casting serves as the caster's self‑suggestion, enhancing focus and slightly shortening casting time.

If one doesn't seek faster casting, the spell can be released even while lying down, without any movement.

Lei En steadied his mind, letting his hands hang naturally at his sides, his gaze fixed ahead.

Soon a rainbow light orb materialized before him, and after a second of brewing it emitted a beam.

"Without a gestural guide, casting is about 0.3 seconds slower, and the beam's direction is hard to control," Lei En found it fascinating.

It was the first offensive spell he had learned, and he tried releasing it repeatedly for study.

Each Rainbow Beam consumed roughly one unit of energy.

As previously known, the beam's range is short—under five meters—and its duration is about half a second.

The beam's diameter is about three centimeters, its penetration power considerable, capable of boring through a stone slab as thick as a brick with a single strike.

However, striking a steel plate yields a weaker effect.

To test the true power of the Rainbow Beam, Lei En applied the Dragon Power Technique to himself and fired one at his own palm.

Whoosh!

The rainbow light flashed before him, and Lei En inadvertently got hit; his eyes were dazzled and he saw nothing.

At the same time a pang of pain shot through his hand.

After a few seconds his vision returned; Lei En lifted his hand and saw a few strands of fresh blood flowing from his palm, with a vague scar as if struck hard by an electric drill.

"This penetration power is a bit impressive..."

Lei En was a bit surprised.

He has a body of steel, his whole form hard as iron, and the Dragon Power Technique has increased his magical resistance, yet the rainbow light ray pierced him, leaving a wound; if it were someone else, they'd probably be shot straight through.

It's a bit short, but it's strong and powerful, very useful.

Lei En flicked the blood from his hand, the wound slowly healed, and after a few minutes only a shallow scar remained; by tomorrow even that scar would be completely gone.

A casting time of one second is still a bit slow; from now on he must practice often, aiming to shorten the casting to under half a second. Also, he must overcome reliance on gesture guidance—point and fire—so that in battle he can strike unexpectedly and achieve better results.

Lei En set up his spell training schedule for himself, and finally tried the Charge Element.

He took a step forward, his body lowered slightly, assuming a running stance.

Swish—, the whole body like an arrow released from a bow, his tall frame cutting through the air, wind howling at his ears, scenery on both sides rushing backward, and in an instant he surged dozens of meters ahead.

"Whoa, so fast!"

A charge consumes stamina; the burst of power is a heavy burden on the body, so it cannot be performed continuously without pause, otherwise the body cannot endure and will collapse halfway.

I have to say, the charge skill is truly exhilarating.

This sudden, fleeting sensation makes one feel exhilarated and blood‑boiling.

Lei En's figure darted around the training ground, charging once every few seconds, feeling the thrill of high‑speed running while controlling his whole body with his phone's gyroscope, trying to change direction and start/stop during the charge.

(End of chapter)