Far North Land!

The path of cultivation had always been difficult. Without sufficient experience, one would be like a flower raised in a greenhouse.

As for why he did not simply have Du Busi capture one for him and absorb it himself—

He could certainly do that, but there was no need. It would defeat the purpose of gaining experience.

"We're close. The cave ahead should be the Howling Cave marked on the map!"

Looking at the low caves in the distance, Han Yu said with some excitement.

The Howling Cave was covered by heavy snow, with only a single entrance exposed. Snow Demons likely frequented it often; otherwise, it would have long been buried beneath the snow.

Snow Demons were social soul beasts. Once they reached a hundred years of cultivation, they would dig caves outside. Upon reaching a thousand years, they would seek a mate and make a larger cave.

The size of a cave entrance could be used to judge the age of the Snow Demon inside.

The older the Snow Demon, the larger its body, and naturally, the larger its cave entrance.

Following the age-identification method Du Busi had described, Han Yu selected one of the outermost caves.

Its entrance was not large—indeed, it was the smallest among them. It could be judged to be the home of a Snow Demon around a hundred years old.

It was probably still single. He just did not know its exact age.

Han Yu slowly slipped into the cave. The chill he had expected did not intensify; instead, the temperature actually rose considerably.

The cave was not long. After taking a few steps and turning a corner, Han Yu saw a snow-white soul beast floating in midair.

This soul beast was quite petite, with purple skin. Its head resembled a sideways teardrop, with two ice crystals and several holes on top.

It had no feet. Its arms hung beside its head like ears, while its wrists glowed with blotches of pale blue.

Seeing Han Yu arrive, the Snow Demon froze slightly, seemingly unable to understand why a human was here.

"About five hundred years. Its age is quite suitable."

Han Yu carefully examined the Snow Demon before him. Though his physical constitution had improved considerably, overall, it could only be considered normal.

Du Busi had tested him and determined that the age range Han Yu could absorb was roughly five to six hundred years. This one happened to be just right.

Shing~!

Han Yu did not hesitate. He closed his eyes, then abruptly opened them. The deep pupils in his eyes suddenly turned scarlet, a single tomoe slowly rotating within them as a chilling aura spread out.

The moment the Sharingan activated, Han Yu felt everything around him slow down.

With a flash from his Storage Soul Tool, an exceptionally sharp Tachi-shaped soul tool appeared in his hand.

He had specifically asked Du Busi to get it for him. His body was too weak, so he could only use better equipment to improve his combat strength.

Screech!

The Snow Demon cried out. Sensing danger from Han Yu, its small eyes warily fixed on his scarlet gaze.

Han Yu gripped the Tachi tightly and swept to the Snow Demon's side in an instant, raising it high before bringing it down directly upon its head.

The Snow Demon's ear-like arms suddenly straightened and directly blocked the strike.

Bang!

Han Yu retreated slightly, a trace of gravity flashing through his eyes. He had not expected this harmless-looking Snow Demon to possess such tremendous strength.

The hand gripping his Tachi was actually trembling slightly. Han Yu took a deep breath, circulating the Soul Power within his body and pouring it into the Tachi in his hand.

The Tachi lengthened slightly, and a blade aura extended from its blazing white edge.

"Let's see if you can still block this!"

Han Yu's Sharingan stared fixedly at the Snow Demon as he pushed his Spiritual Power to its limit.

"Slash!"

Han Yu's low, resounding shout echoed through the icy space. Empowered by the full force of his strength, the sharp Tachi swept forward.

The blade flashed in a dazzling arc, splitting the Snow Demon in two—yet no blood flowed out.

"What? It was an afterimage!"

Han Yu was slightly startled. The instant he struck, he had sensed something was wrong. His mind seemed to have wavered for a moment, causing his attack to miss its mark.

Screech!

The Snow Demon let out an angry shriek as an invisible ripple spread outward.

"Not good, it's the Snow Demon's Mental Tremor."

Sensing powerful Spiritual Power rushing directly toward him, Han Yu furrowed his brows, the tomoe in his eyes spinning rapidly.

He opened his eyes wide and glared fiercely!

Mental Impact!

Shing!

Two invisible ripples collided!

The Snow Demon's body trembled as though it had suffered a heavy blow. Its aura instantly weakened, and its body, which had been floating in midair, fell limply to the ground.

"Hmph! Compared to me in Spiritual Power, you're still a little lacking!"

Han Yu's face was somewhat pale. The cold sweat that had just seeped from his forehead instantly turned into tiny ice crystals.

Although he did not currently possess any powerful offensive skills, he had relied on his formidable Spiritual Power.

He had barely managed to devise a small soul skill: condensing his Spiritual Power and launching it at an enemy.

As long as the opponent's Spiritual Power was lower than his, they would find it absolutely difficult to resist.

Although the Snow Demon was a five-hundred-year soul beast, if they fought head-on with real weapons, Han Yu might not necessarily have been able to defeat it.

Yet with Spiritual Power comparable to that of an ordinary Soul Elder, he had actually brought down the Snow Demon in an instant.

"Mental Attacks are this terrifying? The only problem is that they consume a bit too much!"

Han Yu panted heavily, a trace of excitement flashing through his eyes. He was very satisfied with the results of his first real battle.

Soul masters on Douluo Continent generally did not have strong mental defenses, which was extremely advantageous for him.

A One Tomoe was already this powerful. He wondered what the Two Tomoe and Three Tomoe would be like.

The Sharingan's basic abilities were insight, copying, and illusion techniques.

Only the Three Tomoe could be considered a true Sharingan. As for the Mangekyo above it, it was even known as God Power!

He walked up to the Snow Demon, whose mind had suffered a devastating blow, and swung his Tachi, ending its evil life.

A faintly dark-yellow soul ring rose from the Snow Demon's body.

"This should be a soul ring. How amazing!"

Seeing the soul ring rise with his own eyes, Han Yu's face filled with astonishment. He sat cross-legged and began absorbing the soul ring according to the Soul Ring Attraction Method Du Busi had taught him.

As his Soul Power stirred, the dark-yellow soul ring on the Snow Demon seemed to be drawn by something. It slowly floated toward Han Yu and soon settled around his body.

"Not bad. He killed a five-hundred-year Snow Demon with his own strength. It seems the Sharingan truly is powerful."

Du Busi muttered to himself from the shadows.

He had watched the battle with perfect clarity. Several of the Snow Demon's attacks should originally have struck Han Yu, but under the Sharingan's powerful insight, Han Yu had dodged them in an instant.

From his perspective, Han Yu seemed able to foresee the future, as though he knew where the next attack would land and evaded in advance.

"Looks like it's time for the second stage of training. I hope the brat Han Yu won't blame me. I've prepared a huge surprise—perhaps it might even allow his Sharingan to evolve!"