Chapter 5

Outside the Star Dou Great Forest, a carriage came to a stop, breaking the surrounding silence.

Dugu Chen and Dugu Bo stepped down from the carriage. They handed the driver a bag of Gold Soul Coins and let him drive away.

After exchanging a glance with Dugu Bo—

"We'll enter the Star Dou Great Forest directly."

As soon as Dugu Bo finished speaking, nine soul rings appeared around him in an instant—two yellow, two purple, and five black. Behind him loomed a massive Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.

He took Dugu Chen straight into the air and flew toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

From the air, Dugu Chen noticed a small town in the distance. Its residents were looking up at the master and disciple with fearful, uneasy expressions.

The nine soul rings around Dugu Bo were simply too eye-catching.

The Star Dou Great Forest was one of the three most famous Soul Beast habitats on Douluo Continent.

Its area was nearly equal to the entire territory of the Balak Kingdom, spanning the borders of both the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire. Two-fifths of it lay within the Heaven Dou Empire, while the other three-fifths belonged to the Star Luo Empire.

It was an enormous primeval forest with complex terrain, including wetlands, marshes, and more. The Soul Beasts within were exceedingly terrifying. The closer one got to the heart of the forest, the stronger the Soul Beasts became. It was said that there were even Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts within.

Any Soul Master with sufficient strength and good luck could find the soul ring most suited to them there.

As he flew through the air, Dugu Chen recalled the book's introduction to the Star Dou Great Forest. Of course, he knew that it contained not only Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, but also several of the Ten Great Fierce Beasts.

In this era, the Ten Great Fierce Beasts remained hidden, and almost no one knew that Fierce Beasts existed above the Hundred-Thousand-Year level. Dugu Chen guessed that these Fierce Beasts might have been absorbing that giant worm, or perhaps divine miracles still descended in this era. In particular, the Asura God had an inheritance ground on Douluo Continent, so the Silver Dragon King did not dare let them show themselves.

Aside from a few flying Soul Beasts that failed to recognize their betters and were casually blasted apart by Dugu Bo, no Soul Beasts attacked them along the way.

Dugu Bo dared to be so brazen because they did not need to venture into the center of the Star Dou Great Forest this time. The outer region would be enough.

At the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest, towering trees blocked out the sky. Every one of them stood at least twenty meters tall. The dense forest had no paths at all, and layer upon layer of shadows concealed its true appearance.

Beneath a patch of shade, Dugu Bo descended.

"Chen'er, stay by my side at all times. Don't leave my line of sight. As for a suitable Soul Beast, I'll help you find one."

Dugu Bo cautioned him. The Star Dou Great Forest was unlike other places. Most of the Soul Beasts here were exceptionally ferocious. While the outer region was relatively safer, it was still possible for Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts to appear. Even Dugu Bo did not dare be overly careless.

They walked and stopped along the way. As they gradually went deeper, the surrounding trees became increasingly dense. Dugu Bo explained wilderness survival skills to Dugu Chen as they went, while also teaching him about the Soul Beasts they encountered. After all, nothing in a book could leave as deep an impression as seeing the real thing.

As time passed, the sky gradually darkened.

"Looks like we won't find one today. We'll rest here for the night."

As he spoke, Dugu Bo cleared out an open area and set up a Poison Array around its perimeter. He then took out a tent from his Soul Tool and erected it.

Dugu Chen relaxed as well. This was his first time having such an experience, and he had been rather tense. Now, he could finally take a break.

After setting up the tent, Dugu Bo lit a fire. Seeing Dugu Chen's puzzled look, which seemed to accuse him of deceiving a child—hadn't he just said they could not light fires?—Dugu Bo seemed to feel a chill run down his back. He gave a chuckle.

"Isn't it because your teacher is strong? No matter how many Soul Beasts come from the outer region, they'll all die."

Dugu Chen's face darkened at those words. So he had managed to show off again. Truly worthy of being Douluo's number one expert at crushing weaklings.

After that little interlude, they ate some dry rations and both closed their eyes to cultivate. With Dugu Bo's Poison Array in place, there was no need to keep watch.

The night passed without incident.

Three days later, in the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest, Dugu Chen and his teacher were still searching for a suitable Soul Beast. Dugu Chen could not help becoming somewhat impatient.

"Roar!!" An angry roar came from ahead.

Dugu Bo's eyes lit up as he said happily, "Looks like Chen'er's soul ring has finally been found."

With that, he grabbed the excited Dugu Chen and rushed toward the source of the roar.

With the surrounding trees blocking his view, Dugu Chen could not see what was happening ahead. However, judging from that roar, it should have been a powerful Soul Beast.

Before long, the two arrived at the scene. A giant bear roughly five meters long was lying atop a Nether Wolf even larger than itself, feeding on it.

Seeing such a bloody scene for the first time, Dugu Chen felt somewhat uncomfortable. He took several deep breaths before calming himself.

Dugu Bo stared at the giant bear ahead, his brow furrowed.

"It's an Earth Splitting Bear. What a pity—it's already close to five hundred years old. Otherwise, it would definitely be very suitable for you, Chen'er."

Hearing this, Dugu Chen also frowned. The Earth Splitting Bear was a top-tier Soul Beast in both offense and defense. It could absorb Earth Power to restore its Soul Power and heal its injuries. At the thousand-year level, it dared to go head-to-head with Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts. As long as it was not killed in a single blow, it could wear down an opponent until they doubted their own life. It was almost a perfect match for him.

After pondering for a moment, he grabbed Dugu Bo's hand and said firmly, "This one, Teacher. My physique has been strong since childhood, and this Earth Splitting Bear only exceeds the limit by a little. I can do it. Otherwise, who knows when we'll encounter such a suitable Soul Beast again?"

Hearing that, Dugu Bo looked into Dugu Chen's determined eyes and said, "Alright. Teacher believes in you. But if you feel any discomfort midway through, I'll step in and stop it."

"Thank you, Teacher." Dugu Chen thanked Dugu Bo excitedly.

Since they had decided on this Soul Beast, Dugu Bo did not waste any time. His powerful aura instantly enveloped the Earth Splitting Bear. Then he flashed forward and drove a fist straight into the bear's confused face.

The Earth Splitting Bear instantly closed its eyes in utter peace. Only its short legs, which twitched from time to time, showed that it was still alive.

Dugu Chen only saw a blur before his eyes, and then the battle was over. It had taken less than five seconds. His teacher was far too fast.

"Get over here already. What are you standing around for?"

Dugu Bo's voice came over, and Dugu Chen hurried over, lest the unlucky bear die before he got there.

Standing before the Earth Splitting Bear, Dugu Chen did not hesitate. Activating Martial Soul Possession, his strength reached a terrifying level under its enhancement. Coupled with the sharpness of his Dragon Claw, his right hand, transformed into a dragon claw, instantly pierced through its neck.

After he pulled out the bloodied Dragon Claw, a bright Yellow Ring slowly emerged from the Earth Splitting Bear's body.

The ring still faintly carried the Earth Splitting Bear's ferocious aura.

Since Dugu Chen had chosen to absorb its Soul Ring, he did not dwell on anything else.

He directly used his Soul Power to draw the Soul Ring over himself, lowering it from above.

Other than feeling slightly unaccustomed at the beginning, there were no other issues.

His martial soul bloodline firmly suppressed the Earth Splitting Bear, and he did not feel the slightest pain during the absorption process.

Instead, he felt a warm energy continuously nourishing his body. Every aspect of his physical attributes rose rapidly.

In less than half an hour, Dugu Chen easily absorbed the Earth Splitting Bear's Soul Ring. With his eyes closed, he carefully sensed the skill this Soul Ring had brought him.

He opened his eyes excitedly and exchanged a glance with Dugu Bo, who had been guarding him nearby, before eagerly speaking.

"Teacher, I want to try out my Soul Skill."

Seeing that his disciple was unharmed, Dugu Bo was relieved. There was no reason to refuse, so he stroked his beard and nodded with a smile.

He understood his disciple's mindset; he had been the same back then. Besides, he also wanted to see what Soul Skill this Earth Splitting Bear had bestowed upon his disciple.

In his view, it would definitely be powerful. After all, this was the first Soul Ring beyond its proper age limit that he knew of. Even now, he found it somewhat unbelievable.

Seeing his disciple itching to give it a try, he took Dugu Chen into the air and headed farther toward the outskirts.

Under Dugu Bo's Spiritual Power perception, the two quickly found a suitable target.

It was a ten-year Nether Wolf. As a common sight within Soul Beast forests, Dugu Chen knew it quite well.

Dugu Bo was worried that Dugu Chen would not know how to handle his first battle, so he deliberately found him a ten-year Nether Wolf. This Soul Beast could not break through his disciple's defense, so there was no need to worry about Dugu Chen getting injured.

Dugu Bo directly placed Dugu Chen in front of the Nether Wolf, while he concealed his aura in midair.

The instant he landed, Dugu Chen had already completed Martial Soul Possession.

The Soul Mark on his forehead shone with Gold-Red light, accompanied by an angry roar.

A layer of fine scales covered his body, his hands transformed into Dragon Claws, and his body instantly expanded.

Even his originally short black hair instantly became a head of long golden hair, with flames flickering between the strands. A tail resembling an ox's tail trailed behind him, its tip wreathed in fire.

A bright Yellow Ring pulsed around his body.

Dugu Chen's eyes had also turned one red and one yellow, giving him an especially demonic appearance.

Seeing the little runt before it, the Nether Wolf immediately tensed its hind legs, opened its savage maw, and pounced at Dugu Chen.

"Just what I was waiting for."

Rather than angered, Dugu Chen was delighted. He tensed his arms and crossed them defensively, blocking the attack head-on. He was forced back several steps, then looked at his arms. The Nether Wolf's pounce had not left a single mark on him.

At this point, Dugu Chen knew that Soul Beasts below a hundred years would likely be unable to break his defense. He stopped testing it, kicked off with both feet, and rapidly closed in on the Nether Wolf in an explosive burst. Flames coiled around his Dragon Claws as they sliced open the Nether Wolf's abdomen in one stroke.

Blood splattered everywhere, but Dugu Chen had deliberately avoided it, so none of it landed on him.

The Nether Wolf collapsed to the ground, already on its last breath. The flames that had caught on its body instantly engulfed it.

Dugu Bo descended in surprise and exclaimed, "Chen'er, your martial soul really is terrifying. In your teacher's opinion, even the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon may not compare to you."

Dugu Chen smiled in satisfaction at those words. He, too, was very pleased with his martial soul.

Under the enhancement of his first Soul Skill, Kirin Power, his attack, defense, and strength all increased by one hundred percent. As long as he stood on the ground, he could also draw upon Earth Power to restore his Soul Power and injuries.

This Soul Skill was practically better than the Third Soul Skill of an ordinary Soul Elder.

However, Dugu Chen still could not bring out this Soul Skill's true might.

Only after obtaining an offensive Soul Skill would he be able to truly experience just how terrifying it was.

Of course, powerful skills also consumed a great deal.

With Dugu Chen's current Soul Power reserves, he could maintain it for no more than five minutes.

That was without actively restoring himself. If he actively recovered, combined with his Innate Domain, then once his level rose in the future, it would be a completely different story.

Do you understand the value of the continent's most enduring man, a Soul Skill turret?! The fake invincible-on-land: Tang Chen. The true invincible-on-land: Dugu Chen.

Just as Dugu Chen was indulging in his daydream, Dugu Bo came before him, knocked him on the head, and scolded with a smile.

"Don't get cocky. We should head home too. We haven't seen Yan Yan for two months. I wonder if Yan Yan missed this old man."

Whenever Dugu Bo mentioned Dugu Yan, the doting affection in his eyes was impossible to conceal.

In less than an hour, master and disciple arrived at a small town fifty kilometers from the Star Dou Great Forest.

Amid the awestruck gazes of the crowd, the pair calmly hired a carriage and set off in the direction of Heaven Dou City.