Void God Leopard

Twelve days later

Outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest

A young boy held a silver spear as he battled a Great Bear covered in dense gray fur, as though it wore a suit of armor.

The boy was Yang Ming, who had ventured out with his grandfather, Yang Wudi, to obtain his First Soul Ring.

Nearly two weeks had passed since they entered the Star Dou Great Forest, yet Yang Ming still had not found a suitable Spirit Ring. That was normal when hunting Spirit Rings, especially since he needed one with the Space Element. During this time, they had found an Ethereal Python, but it was over a thousand years old and completely unusable.

Today, not long after Yang Wudi and his grandson began their search, they encountered an Ironclad Bear.

Yang Ming thrust the silver spear in his hand straight out without any flashy movements. This plain, unadorned strike stabbed directly into the right paw the Ironclad Bear had swiped at him.

"Clang!"

The spear and right paw collided with a crisp ringing sound. Yang Ming felt as though his strike had hit a steel plate, while the Ironclad Bear did not budge in the slightest.

Yet the Ironclad Bear was not as calm as it appeared. The instant spear and paw collided, its mind descended into chaos! It felt as though the spear had not struck the iron armor it took pride in, but its very spirit. In that moment, it felt that this strike was irresistible and should not be resisted, just as when facing a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. When the ruler decreed a minister's death, the minister had no choice but to die!

Blood immediately flowed from the Ironclad Bear's seven orifices, and it slowly collapsed, falling unconscious on the spot. Seeing that it could no longer rise, Yang Ming let out a long breath. Yang Wudi nodded in satisfaction from the side. Although he had watched Yang Ming defeat Spirit Beasts over five hundred years old more than once in recent days, every sight still shook him deeply, and he could not help but sigh.

"My grandson Yang Ming possesses peerless talent!"

Hearing his grandfather's praise, Yang Ming suddenly felt as though something had been added to his shoulders. Unease rose in his heart, but it soon settled into a strange calm. After all, in his previous life, Yang Ming had been among the strongest of the Level 99 Heaven-Reaching Douluo. He could handle a little jinx like that.

Yang Wudi glanced at the Ironclad Bear, its face smeared with blood, and clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Ming Er, your 'Absolute Dominance' truly deserves to be called one of the Number One Under Heaven's most extraordinary techniques!"

"Absolute Dominance" was the name Yang Wudi had given Yang Ming's "self-created" Meditation Method. It was simple and direct, yet it pointed straight to the method's core. As for Yang Ming's spear strike just now, it was a combat application of Absolute Dominance that he had discovered in recent days. Absolute Dominance had no fixed moves; every strike and every stance could embody Absolute Dominance. It harmed not only the body, but also the spirit.

Hearing his grandfather's praise, Yang Ming feigned modesty.

"Grandfather, you flatter me. It's nothing special!"

Seeing Yang Ming's expression of "calling it nothing special while looking utterly proud," Yang Wudi smiled. Only at times like this could he see Yang Ming's childish side. He did not expose him and continued.

"The paws of this Ironclad Bear are exquisite in texture. The meat is tender, rich, and delightfully chewy, while also being highly nutritious. They are among the finest of all bear paws. Looks like we're in for a treat, grandson."

Yang Ming's eyes lit up when he heard Yang Wudi's assessment of the Ironclad Bear's paws, and anticipation stirred within him. It was not that he cared much for indulgence in food. Rather, after cultivating Absolute Dominance for several days, Yang Ming had discovered one drawback—or perhaps a prerequisite—for cultivating this Meditation Method: it consumed a great deal of Spiritual Power and vital energy, requiring resources to replenish what was spent. The most practical way to restore vital energy was to eat nourishing, nutrient-rich food. Judging from how he had eaten one small or medium-sized hundred-year Soul Beast each day over the past few days, the consumption was quite substantial.

One hour later

Yang Ming swallowed as he looked at the bear paw roasting over the campfire, crispy on the outside and tender within, fragrant and golden-brown. The color and aroma were simply irresistible. As expected of a top-quality bear paw. Just as it was nearly done and Yang Ming reached out to take it, suddenly! A black shadow shot out of the forest, heading straight for the bear paw.

Yang Ming's mind had not yet reacted, but his body moved on its own. He summoned the Atlas Spear, stepped forward, and thrust it out. A Skyward Thrust flowed forth in one smooth motion. The timing, angle, and force were flawless. That casual strike seemed utterly natural and pleasing to the eye as it struck the black shadow directly.

But then Yang Ming saw a faint dark glow light up around the black shadow. His Atlas Spear overlapped with it, and he felt no sensation of striking anything solid, only a bizarre resistance.

"Awooo~"

The black shadow's body also shuddered as it let out a pained roar. It had likely had its technique broken by the Atlas Spear. After forcibly blocking Yang Ming's spear, the black shadow slowed slightly, but it continued racing toward the bear paw.

Yang Ming quickly understood what had happened and cried out in surprise.

"Space Element Voidification?!!"

Just as the black shadow was about to touch the bear paw, Yang Wudi moved as well. With a cold snort, he summoned the Soul Breaking Spear, and the Soul Power pressure of a top-tier Weapon Spirit Soul Douluo erupted in full.

"Hmph!"

Yang Wudi had seen the instant clash between the black shadow and Yang Ming. Hearing Yang Ming's cry, he understood what kind of Soul Beast it was. He did not use any fancy techniques and simply unleashed his Soul Power pressure at full force, suppressing the black shadow.

Then Yang Ming heard the black shadow roar.

"Awooo!"

The black shadow's limbs stiffened, and inertia sent it rolling far away, kicking up a cloud of dust. Only after the dust settled could Yang Ming clearly see its appearance.

It was a small leopard. Unlike ordinary leopards with bright fur covered in black spots over yellow coats, this little leopard was entirely black. Looking closely, one could see faint Silver Strange Patterns across its body. Gazing at those patterns felt like glimpsing the true essence of space.

"Void God Leopard?"

Yang Wudi also cried out in surprise as he looked at the little leopard. The Void God Leopard was the king among Leopard Soul Beasts, holding a status equivalent to that of the Titan Giant Ape among the Ape Race and the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear among the Bear Race. However, unlike Super Soul Beasts such as the Titan Giant Ape and Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, which excelled in every aspect and followed the Grand Orthodox Path, the Void God Leopard was the Extreme of Bizarre.

Its strength, defense, and physical constitution only reached the average level of Advanced Leopard Soul Beasts. Only two aspects were exceptionally powerful: its Talent Abilities, Space Rending and Voidification, especially the latter. Space Rending guaranteed the Void God Leopard's killing power, while Voidification not only granted it the ability of Void, but also greatly enhanced its survivability, making it impossible to hit or catch. Thus, in the Soul Beast World, the Void God Leopard was also known as the "Bizarre" God Leopard!

Space Rending and Voidification made the Void God Leopard one of the kings among Soul Beasts. If it had been a little more bloodthirsty by nature, it would have been an even more terrifying top-tier Soul Beast Hunter than the Man Faced Demon Spider.

The Void God Leopard before Yang Ming had only been suppressed because it had carelessly taken Yang Ming's Soul Breaking spear strike and suffered a minor injury, then encountered Yang Wudi's unique Soul Breaking Soul Power pressure. These two coincidences led to its current predicament. Otherwise, the Soul Power pressure of an ordinary Soul Douluo would have had little effect on a Void God Leopard. It could only be said that encountering Yang Wudi and his grandson was this Void God Leopard's destined calamity.

When Yang Ming heard what his grandfather called the little leopard, his eyes immediately lit up. Whether it was Voidification or Space Rending, both were a perfect match for the Atlas Spear!

If he could obtain a Voidification soul skill, not only would his previous idea become reality, but he would also gain a life-saving ability! He could directly merge into space, switch between solid and intangible, and turn reality into illusion!

Before Yang Ming could speak to Yang Wudi, Yang Wudi saw his interest and told him directly.

"This Void God Leopard is close to six hundred years old!"

Perhaps Yang Wudi felt that this Spirit Ring suited Yang Ming too well. Or perhaps he had witnessed the extraordinary qualities Yang Ming had displayed since his Spirit Awakening, as well as his trust in the Super Spirit Atlas Spear. In any case, he did not reject the idea outright.

Hearing his grandfather's assessment of the Void God Leopard's age, the heat in Yang Ming's heart cooled somewhat.

In this era, the Soul Master World still believed that the limit for a Soul Master's First Soul Ring was four hundred and twenty-three years. Whether he should absorb the Spirit Ring of a nearly six-hundred-year Super Soul Beast, the Void God Leopard, as his first ring left Yang Ming deep in thought.

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