How Can Life Be Balanced?
The ancient tree exuded a deep and profound aura, while the aura of a 300,000-year-old Soul Beast created an insurmountable sense of oppression.
Tang San stopped in his tracks.
He glanced down at Ye Lingling, who was still in a daze in his arms. She was curled up in his arms, her face still flushed with that intoxicating blush.
Tang San gently placed her on the grass beside him and took out an outer robe from his Storage Soul Tool to cover her.
"You've finally arrived. I've been waiting for you for so long. I never imagined you could resist the assimilation of the extreme life force on the Paradise Road."
The ancient tree's voice was ancient and slow. It continued, "You saved me during the previous trials, granting me immense life force and restoring me from the brink of death. However, the more you give me, the greater the obstacles I will face in this trial."
Tang San asked, puzzled, "Senior, may I ask why?"
"Because only by killing me can you truly leave this place."
The ancient tree's voice was calm and serene, carrying a sense of composure born of weathered history.
"The giving of life should not be unlimited, but balanced. This is the final lesson of the Forest of Life; how to achieve balance will be a question you ponder in the future!"
Upon hearing this, Tang San's pupils contracted slightly.
He remained silent for a moment.
"I understand. Thank you for your guidance."
Tang San's voice was firm. He summoned his Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul, and seven Soul Rings— yellow, purple, black, red, and red—rose up.
The Fifth Soul Ring shone brightly, Blue Silver Overlord Spear condensed in his right hand, its tip pointing diagonally at the ground, golden light slowly emanating from the spear.
The ancient tree's canopy suddenly trembled, and countless vines shot out from the trunk, like giant green pythons, sweeping towards Tang San.
Tang San charged forward through the overwhelming vines, his Blue Silver Overlord Spear transforming into a golden streak of light.
The battle lasted for a full day and night.
When the Blue Silver Overlord Spear finally pierced the last section of the ancient tree's trunk...
"Boom!!"
A deafening roar shook the entire valley.
The ancient tree's trunk broke completely at the crack, its massive crown swayed in the air for a moment, leaves fell like snowflakes, and then it slowly and heavily collapsed.
The ancient tree's voice rang out one last time. "Very good... you've passed..."
The sound grew fainter and fainter until it finally dissipated in the wind.
A bright red Soul Ring slowly rose from the remains of the ancient tree.
It was a 300,000-year-old Soul Ring, radiating a chilling sense of oppression.
Tang San knelt on one knee, his Blue Silver Overlord Spear planted in the ground to support his body, panting heavily.
He was covered in sweat, his hands were split open, his arms were trembling slightly from exhaustion, and dozens of wounds all over his body were slowly healing under the influence of the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone.
Although his previous battles had been extremely difficult, he ultimately prevailed.
Just then, a soft, somewhat bewildered murmur came from behind.
"Third Brother... where... where are we?"
Tang San turned around.
Ye Lingling slowly sat up, and the outer robe covering her slipped down, revealing her fair shoulders.
She looked down at her naked body, then at Tang San.
Then her face flushed bright red.
"I... we..." Ye Lingling's memories were gradually returning, and the scenes of infatuation and fusion on Paradise Road flooded back into her mind.
Tang San smiled, put away the Blue Silver Overlord Spear, walked over and squatted down beside her, gently rubbing the top of her head. "It's good that you're awake."
Ye Lingling buried her face in her robes, her voice muffled. "I... I completely lost my mind... I'm sorry, Third Brother..."
Tang San shook his head. "It's alright, I almost got caught up in it too."
He paused, then said weakly, "Get dressed. I still need your treatment."
Upon hearing this, Ye Lingling immediately stood up and got dressed.
Then she immediately focused all her efforts on treating Tang San to speed up his recovery.
A quarter of an hour later, with the restoration of his Heart of Life and the support of Ye Lingling's treatment, Tang San quickly recovered to his peak condition.
He slowly stood up, walked to the remains of the ancient tree, and sensed the 300,000-year-old Soul Ring.
Its immense energy and pure quality far surpassed any Soul Ring he had ever seen before.
Even the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring he received when the Life Ancient Tree sacrificed itself paled in comparison to this 300,000-year Soul Ring.
Tang San sat down cross-legged, took a deep breath, and slowly extended his mind toward the Soul Ring.
The Soul Ring seemed to sense his presence, trembled slightly, and then slowly floated down, falling from above his head and encircling his body.
The moment they made contact, an overwhelming surge of energy rushed into Tang San's body.
The energy was immense, like a life-giving river that had flowed for 300,000 years, carrying the power of the ancient tree's entire life, roaring into his meridians.
Tang San's body jolted violently, veins bulged on his forehead, and sweat instantly soaked through his robes.
But he opened his mind and allowed that energy to surge, flow, and permeate within him.
The Soul Ring contains not only Soul Power, but also the life force of the ancient tree over 300,000 years.
Tang San felt that his body was undergoing some profound change.
The energy of that Soul Ring is deeply merging with the Life Force within his body. His already enormous life force is undergoing a qualitative transformation under the infusion of this energy.
The meridians are widening, the bones are strengthening, and the muscles are becoming denser.
His Soul Power Level rose steadily, like the rising tide.
Two days later, when the last trace of Soul Ring energy merged into Tang San's body, his aura surged dramatically, and his Soul Power steadily stabilized at level eighty-five.
The purity of both Soul Power and life force has been greatly improved.
More importantly, the ancient tree also dropped a Head Soul Bone, which Tang San absorbed as well.
The Head Soul Bone is one of the rarest parts of the Soul Bone, with a grade as high as 300,000 years. It shares the same origin as the Eighth Soul Ring, and the absorption process is extremely smooth.
The Head Soul Bone greatly enhanced his Spiritual Power, and Tang San's Spiritual Power has probably now surpassed that of Peak Douluo at level 95.
Tang San closed his eyes and sank into the depths of his consciousness to sense his eighth Soul Skill.
The first Soul Skill, Myriad Wood Dominion.
Once activated, Tang San can instantly control all plants within a radius of several thousand meters and endow them with the same characteristics as his Blue Silver Emperor.
At this moment, Tang San is the master of all trees. Any plant or Plant-type Martial Soul Master will obey his command and become his weapon and eyes and ears to sense, attack, and control the enemy.
Vines will Entanglement enemies, tree roots will stab from the ground, branches will lash out as nimbly as arms, and leaves will transform into flying blades to attack.
The enemy, trapped within, is like someone caught in a cage made up of an entire forest, surrounded by attacks from all sides, with nowhere to escape.
The terrifying aspect of the Myriad Wood Dominion is that it doesn't require much Soul Power to maintain itself, because those plants possess their own vitality.
Moreover, the denser the forest environment, the more terrifying this skill becomes.
The second Soul Skill Myriad Wood Assimilation.
Once activated, Tang San can transform himself into pure life energy and merge with any plant in the surrounding environment.
As long as there is a single plant within a radius of a hundred miles, it cannot be truly killed.
The enemy destroyed his body, but he could choose to reassemble it through a tree or a blade of grass a hundred miles away.
Within a radius of a hundred miles, any plant can become his "resurrection point".
This Soul Skill is somewhat different from the Blue Silver Emperor Undying Avatar. One involves re-forming a physical body through another life form, while the other involves restoring the body to its original state.