Soul Land 2: Golden Dragon King

"Golden Dragon, huh? Boss, your martial soul is just ridiculously powerful!" Zheng Xiaolong exclaimed in genuine admiration.

Compared to Lin Yun's martial soul, his own had practically zero combat power—it would be crushed instantly.

"I wish I had a martial soul as strong as Boss's..."

"It's alright, I guess. With my dual buffs, I can easily take on a Soul King head-on." Lin Yun waved his hand dismissively, speaking in a casual tone. "Alright, your turn."

"My martial souls are the Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron and the Nine Phoenix Melody Flute. My soul power level is twenty-one. My first martial soul has two soul rings attached—both are control-type skills. My second martial soul doesn't have any soul rings yet, so it's not combat-effective." Xiao Xiao explained.

"Twin martial souls?!" Zheng Xiaolong's eyes widened in shock. His face was full of disbelief.

So, monsters only gather around other monsters, huh?

"This is the first time I've ever seen twin martial souls. I never expected you to have them, Xiao Xiao. No wonder you're always by Boss's side!" Zheng Xiaolong gave a thumbs-up.

"W-What do you mean 'always by his side'... Don't say weird things!" The little loli's face turned red, and she quickly stole a glance at Lin Yun before looking away.

Absolutely adorable.

Lin Yun chuckled, ruffling Xiao Xiao's little head before turning to Zheng Xiaolong. "Alright, Dragon Boy, tell us about your martial soul."

"Got it, Boss! My martial soul is called Lucky Coin, and my soul power level is eighteen!" Zheng Xiaolong nodded and stretched out his right hand. A flash of silver light later, a coin, about the size of a gold soul coin, appeared in his palm.

The coin hovered over Zheng Xiaolong's palm, spinning slowly, allowing Lin Yun and Xiao Xiao to clearly see both sides.

On the front of the coin was an image of a saintly young girl with a compassionate expression, rendered in gold. The back of the coin, however, depicted a middle-aged woman with a strange, unsettling smile, shaded in purple.

"This martial soul of yours… it's kinda interesting!" Lin Yun stared at it, visibly surprised.

What the hell kind of martial soul is this?

"Alright, show me what it can do!" Lin Yun extended his hand in a 'go ahead' gesture.

The coin landed lightly in Zheng Xiaolong's palm. Grinning, he explained, "Boss, my martial soul is pretty simple. All my soul skills are support-type. Each of my soul rings corresponds to one side of the coin."

"For example, my first soul ring is linked to the front of the coin, so my second soul ring must be linked to the back. The third soul ring will link to the front again, and so on."

"Every time I activate a soul skill to assist someone, I have to flip the coin first. If it lands on the side linked to the corresponding soul ring, my support effect is doubled. But if it lands on the other side, the effect is reduced to just 20% of the original."

"For instance, my first soul ring boosts your attack power by 30%. If I flip heads, the effect increases to 60%. But if I flip tails, the effect drops to just 6%."

A 60% boost versus a 6% boost—a tenfold difference!

If Zheng Xiaolong got lucky with his coin flips, his support abilities could rival the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda. But if he wasn't lucky? His support would be weaker than even the most basic auxiliary-type martial souls.

After hearing Zheng Xiaolong's explanation, Lin Yun felt completely numb.

The Douluo Continent had all sorts of bizarre martial souls, but this was the first time he had ever seen one this ridiculous!

This was straight-up… gambling addiction?!

"There are kids who cry every day, but no gambler loses every day!" Zheng Xiaolong clenched the Lucky Coin in his hand, his face full of defiant confidence. "Boss, you have to believe in my luck—Lady Luck is on my side!"

"Yeah, yeah, sure..." Lin Yun responded absentmindedly, his tone as perfunctory as possible.

Luck?

Relying purely on luck was no different from sending yourself to your death!

No wonder Zheng Xiaolong didn't even get a name in the original story—turns out his martial soul was this abstract.

"Alright, I'll be honest, Boss." Zheng Xiaolong suddenly deflated, his expression turning bitter. "My luck... isn't that great. If I can get a buffed effect even once out of ten attempts, that's already considered lucky. Sometimes, I go through ten soul skill activations without landing a single buffed one."

"Boss, I really appreciate you choosing me as your teammate, but I know I'll just drag you and Xiao Xiao down. My family elders told me that the freshman assessment is extremely important—you should really find another teammate instead."

After pouring his heart out, Zheng Xiaolong seemed a little relieved. His eyes still held some helplessness, but there was no reluctance.

He understood his own flaws. In the world of Douluo Continent, martial souls were set at birth—unchangeable from the moment of awakening at six years old, remaining with a soul master for life.

Compared to Lin Yun and Xiao Xiao, his disadvantages were too overwhelming—not just in terms of his martial soul but also in raw soul power.

Lin Yun had a supreme dragon-type martial soul and was already at an astonishing Level 37. Xiao Xiao's martial soul might not be as broken as Lin Yun's Golden Dragon, but she was a rare twin martial soul wielder, capable of eventually equipping nine ten-thousand-year soul rings on her second martial soul.

And Zheng Xiaolong? What did he have? He was just dead weight.

He was self-aware enough to recognize this—but the way his hand gripped the Lucky Coin so tightly, knuckles turning white, told a different story.

"What the hell are you saying? Do I look like the kind of person who goes back on his word?" Lin Yun smacked Zheng Xiaolong on the head with a half-annoyed, half-amused expression. "As long as you stick with me, you'll be the undisputed number one support in the outer court!"

"Do you even understand how valuable my Golden Dragon martial soul is?!"

Number one support in the outer court…

A martial soul as useless as his—was it really possible for someone to recognize it?

Zheng Xiaolong slowly lifted his head, looking at Lin Yun's smiling face. The pressure of his own teeth biting into his lower lip brought a faint taste of iron.

His family wasn't well-off. The recommendation letter from their main city had cost his family nearly everything—they had gone bankrupt just to buy him a chance to become a powerful soul master.

Zheng Xiaolong didn't want to let his family down. That was why he swallowed his pride, adopting a smooth, sociable personality to get along with others.

But at the end of the day, they were all just teenagers—who didn't want to be acknowledged?

"Thank you, Boss." His voice was a little hoarse, but this time, when he called Lin Yun 'Boss,' it was completely sincere—from the bottom of his heart.

Maybe, at first, Zheng Xiaolong had just been playing along with Lin Yun's over-the-top antics.

But now… he felt like he was really getting into it.

To have a boss like this—why not give it everything he's got?

"Stop overthinking. Just focus on training. If you believe in yourself, then Lady Luck will turn her gaze toward you." Lin Yun chuckled, reaching out to pat his shoulder in encouragement.

"If even you don't believe in your own martial soul, why would the goddess of luck favor you?"

Lin Yun wasn't a mind reader—he didn't know exactly what was going through Zheng Xiaolong's head.

But he could tell that this kid was in a complicated, fragile state of mind right now.

Offering a little bit of help didn't cost Lin Yun anything.

But for some people, even a few words of encouragement and recognition—insignificant to others—could become the brightest light in their lives.

(End of Chapter)

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