Chapter 171: Soul Devourer
This was a rule of death!
The fact that the Shinigami had casually extracted the power of this rule and handed it over to you left you utterly shocked.
Only after asking did you learn that while rule power is rare even for gods, it is not unique:
Given the right environment and timing, paired with a profound understanding of a particular technique—or even the consumption of massive amounts of related materials—it is possible to give birth to rule power...
The Shinigami had once held dominion over the Pure Land, which was home to an astronomical number of souls. Beyond enhancing his own authority and forging divine tools, it was natural that over countless years he'd accumulate some surplus rule power.
Besides, even divine authority isn't necessarily unique.
If, by sheer coincidence, two True Gods were to collect identical rule powers and both condensed divine authority using the same divine energy, it would result in two of the same authorities.
Only when one becomes a Celestial God does divine authority become truly unique—and that's why the birth of a Celestial God cuts off the path of ascension for all the True Gods below them.
...
So, you took the rule of death into your hands, pondering how to make it your own. Failing that, you could at least store it within your Sharingan and slowly harmonize with it over time, just as you had with the rule of Void.
But then your transforming, bones sent a signal. The Shikotsumyaku seemed almost eager for this rule's arrival!
You immediately thought of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's All-Killing Ash Bones.
Without hesitation, you decided to infuse this power into your bones.
A long, bone spear shimmering with metallic luster extended from your body and made contact with the rule power.
Unexpectedly, at the very first, tentative touch, the death rule surged forth like a fish diving into the sea, darting happily into the depths of your marrow.
It coursed along your skeleton, from bottom to top, shooting up through your crown and diffusing outward through your blood vessels and meridians, spreading through your entire body.
Strangely enough, even as the rule power rampaged through you, you felt no pain—only a refreshing, almost soul-soothing coolness and ease.
Seeing your state, the Shinigami nodded with visible appreciation.
Though this rule of death hadn't been branded by him—merely surplus from his stores—it was still not something you had cultivated on your own.
And yet, with this being your very first encounter with a foreign rule, you had already managed to merge it into your body—and not just merge it, but perfectly at that!
A rare feat indeed.
...
Understand this: To reach the level where you can condense divine authority from a rule, you must go through several stages:
First, you must either capture a rule at the moment of its birth or comprehend one through long, painstaking cultivation of a specific art. Both paths demand either incredible luck or unimaginable training.
But merely capturing a rule does not mean you truly possess it.
You must then learn to wield it, let it harmonize with your body and soul, and draw power from it. Only after long-term integration and understanding do you reach a level where you can proceed—
To merge it into your physical body.
As the name implies, fusing a rule into your flesh means binding that power to your very form. This step is fraught with peril. Gentler rules might be tolerable, but a rule of death is anything but gentle.
One misstep, and your body could collapse—or you could be twisted into a god's servant.
Finally comes merging the rule into your soul. The process is similar to merging with the body, but even more dangerous and difficult.
Only upon reaching this stage can you be considered a true demigod, one whose godhood can no longer easily fall.
And yet, even at this point, there's still a great chasm between you and "complete mastery"—that is, syncing your soul and body so that both wield the rule in perfect harmony.
Such opportunities are rarer than rare. This is the true reason why demigods are so many, but True Gods are so few.
Most demigods struggle even to wield the rules they've acquired.
Even those who condensed their rules through mastery in a specific domain can, at best, reach the level of wielding them.
But you—
You immediately merged a freshly acquired rule of death into your body. Not only that, you had earlier condensed a fire rule in an environment completely unrelated—the ocean—and leapt instantly to complete mastery!
Proof beyond doubt—
The one who once struggled even to learn basic ninjutsu and awaken his eyes has now grown into a prodigious powerhouse!
The Ōtsutsuki bloodline… is truly terrifying!
...
As the fusion with the rule completed, your bones transformed from a metallic, gray-white sheen to a black hue, now flecked with glimmers of gold.
The Shikotsumyaku, too, had evolved—gaining a new, deadly technique of its own.
Though this rule power did not boost your body as drastically as the Shikotsumyaku itself, it still significantly increased your physical compatibility with the Eight Gates—bringing you directly to the Seventh Gate. That alone saved you a tremendous amount of training time.
As your consciousness gradually returned, you suddenly sensed something.
Your eyes opened instinctively—not due to the Byakugan stirring again, but because the prototype Divine Tool sealed within had begun to react.
This power, once born from Yin Release, was now spontaneously merging with the power of the death rule.
Acting on instinct, you channeled the Shikotsumyaku into it as well. Soon after, a short-handled scythe appeared in your grasp—crafted from the same material as your altered bones, but even harder and more resilient.
Forged with the rule's mark and your own bones—this Divine Tool was now complete.
At your command, you summoned Susanoo once more. Under your control, the weapon in your hand began to grow, eventually reaching the size of the chained scythe that hung at Susanoo's waist.
Only then did it stop changing.
And then—it fused completely with Susanoo.
...
At the same time, a new bloodline ninjutsu bloomed in your mind, bearing the name: Soul Devourer.
With a single throw of the chained scythe, you could annihilate the enemy's soul, transforming it into energy to strengthen the Divine Tool, your Susanoo—or even your own soul.
And now, with this weapon carrying both the death rule and the Shikotsumyaku's power, any target struck by it—whether in body or soul, even if they wield the power of the Six Paths—would have no chance of salvation.
Not even Edo Tensei would be able to resurrect them…
...
When you dismissed Susanoo once again, you felt that the now-complete Divine Tool no longer simply resided within your Sharingan.
Like Susanoo itself, it had become one with your bloodline, suffusing your entire being.
Thus, your goal—to resurrect the Shinigami and form an alliance—was complete.
The Shinigami withdrew to a remote corner of the Pure Land to secretly recover his former strength and await your next breakthrough.
And you—
You took the Yin Nine-Tails the Shinigami had extracted from your body, and once again activated the Flying Thunder God, returning to the Floating Island!
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