Rebirth: Supreme Soul Master

William knew that the fire must have been stopped by a monster lurking in the forest. Otherwise, it would have continued to spread and eventually engulf large areas of the forest.

However, he had achieved his goal. Finally free to move around, he stepped out of the protective shield and began to examine the world around him.

Utter silence! There was no sign of life in the area. William wasn't keen on destruction, but he had no other choice.

"It's time to reap the rewards." Having achieved his goal, he wandered around, collecting monster materials.

His left hand still throbbed slightly. He used a piece of his white clothing as a bandage to temporarily stop the bleeding. But what he missed was his extraordinary healing ability, a privilege of being a powerful Soul Master.

Such a wound would take several days to heal, if not a week. But that wouldn't stop him from claiming the reward. After all, he had taken that into account when he caused the wound, which is why it was on his left hand, not his right.

However, he never expected that something else would happen when he started collecting monster materials.

The first monkey he encountered was charred, covered with a layer of black, hardened bark. It seemed the monkey had no time to react when the fire came.

Many of the dead monsters here were in the same state, but William didn't care. He simply struck the shell-like layer with his sword, revealing the fur underneath.

Fur wouldn't be affected by such heat, otherwise it would be considered worthless in this world.

With just a few strikes, the black layer was shattered, revealing thick, bright red fur. He used the tip of his sword to cut in places, then skinned the monster and stored the pelt in his bag.

He was considering how to fit all the loot into his bag. After all, he was certain there were over three hundred monsters here. He wouldn't hesitate to drag it all away, no matter how difficult it might be.

He would never keep what originally belonged to him.

After obtaining the pelt, he found the tail stinger, then opened the body and took out the monster's core.

The core resembled a spirit crystal, yet it was filled with red and black colors. William knew that the red was the monkey's soul power, and the black was the residual soul power within the core.

As soon as he held it in his hand, he felt a strange resonance, as if something buried deep in his soul had been stirred at that moment.

"What's wrong?" He frowned. He had never experienced anything like this before. He held a sword in his right hand, a backpack on his back, and a demon core in his blood-stained left hand.

Then, without warning, he felt a surge of heat within his body, his blood boiling for some reason. Then the wound he had been trying to control was torn open again, causing his blood to gush out, covering his core in large patches of red.

But this is not over yet.

Within just a few breaths, the core emitted a series of hissing sounds and began to be crushed. To William's astonishment, the core he had just retrieved turned to dust, mixing with his blood, and then a strange phenomenon occurred.

The blood receded as if drawn by a hidden force upon contact with the red powder. The wound began to heal strangely, while his body inexplicably became burning hot.

“This…” William examined his body and was even more surprised. “My soul power… has increased slightly… how…?!?” At this moment, he felt like a frog at the bottom of a well.

All the knowledge he possessed in his past life was of no use at this moment. He knew something was happening within his body. Not only was his soul power slightly increased, but his physical strength was also slightly enhanced.

“I need to test it again,” he said, leaping to the next monkey. Ignoring the fur, he cleaved the corpse in two with his sword, eager to experience that wondrous sensation once more.

He knew of many ways to use demon cores to enhance soul power. However, they all required extensive preparation and more resources. Not to mention, they paled in comparison to what he had just experienced.

This wasn't simply a matter of utilizing the monster's core and converting it into power. It was as if his body had devoured the entire core, using all the soul power stored within to strengthen his own soul power and body.

This time he was even more focused, even closing his eyes, trying to feel every tiny detail. The same thing happened again, and this time he saw it even more clearly than before.

"This...isn't this the legendary damned fox's devouring ability?" As he noticed what was happening inside his body, his brain began to rapidly connect the missing pieces. He had a strange sense of familiarity with this technique.

As his mortal enemy, William studied the nine-tailed fox's unique abilities. To defeat an enemy, one must fully understand its characteristics and abilities; this was something his master had always told him.

One of these unique abilities, and the main reason why the nine-tailed fox is so powerful among demons, is its incredible ability to devour.

He can devour monsters and use their soul power for his own benefit. This is like cheating in the spirit world, even among demons. This is one of the reasons why the fox is not only an enemy of humans but also feared by monsters.

"Damn it! I accidentally gained his power... Damn it!" This time, William was truly excited and thrilled. If he had such power, then his previous plans were off the table. All he had to do was consume the monster's core; his power would decrease with each jump and each pound.

But this also means his profits will suffer a huge loss. The price of 100 crystals per monkey will now be reduced to about 20 crystals.