A Show, Successful Absorption, Azure Spring Spirit Jade Skull

"Ah!"

Dugu Yan covered her mouth, staring in disbelief at the three soul rings rising from beneath Li Yu's feet.

Earlier, she had sensed that Li Yu's Soul Power Level was not much higher than her own.

Yet throughout their recent battle, Li Yu had never revealed his soul rings.

In other words, Li Yu had either relied solely on his own soul power from beginning to end, or possessed some means of concealing his soul rings.

In any case.

Whatever the reason, Dugu Yan had subconsciously assumed that Li Yu's Soul Power Level was very high.

But—

When Li Yu revealed his soul rings, and she saw that he was truly just like her, merely a Three-Ring Soul Grandmaster, she felt her understanding of the world completely overturn.

All three soul rings were purple, thousand-year level!

The shock brought by such a soul ring configuration was even greater than the shock of killing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast!

From all she had seen, she had never encountered a Soul Master with such a soul ring configuration!

As she watched Li Yu walk step by step toward that rising soul ring, enormous waves surged through Dugu Yan's heart once more.

Could it be—

Big Sister was actually going to attempt absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring as her Fourth Soul Ring?

Th-this... was that really possible?

Dugu Yan instinctively wanted to stop him.

According to the knowledge her grandfather had taught her, attempting to absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring as one's Fourth Soul Ring was practically courting death.

But the next second, she forcibly suppressed that thought.

Judging by Li Yu's current soul ring configuration, such common knowledge simply did not apply to him at all.

Besides, his first, second, and third soul rings were already purple, thousand-year level. Absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring for his Fourth Soul Ring seemed only natural.

Only then did she suddenly realize.

Li Yu was only absorbing his Fourth Soul Ring now, which meant he had merely just reached level 40 and had not even had time to hunt a soul beast and obtain a soul ring!

Level 40, yet he already possessed such strength?

Dugu Yan instantly felt the gap between herself and Li Yu being infinitely widened.

So wide that even with a Titled Douluo grandfather, she could scarcely hope to catch up.

At the same time.

Li Yu was already seated cross-legged beneath the flickering Black Soul Ring.

After adjusting his breathing slightly, he slowly closed his eyes, his consciousness beginning to connect with the Black Soul Ring.

He was nervous during this process.

According to Xiao Wu and Xiao Sanzi, soul rings produced by soul beasts above the ten-thousand-year level contained the soul beast's "resentment."

This was precisely what made ten-thousand-year soul rings so difficult to absorb!

And the soul ring before him had been produced by a soul beast skilled in Illusion Techniques. The resentment contained within it was likely even stronger than that of an ordinary Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast's soul ring!

Which also made it more dangerous.

But now that things had reached this point, how could Li Yu possibly choose to give up just because there might be danger?

The next moment.

The Black Soul Ring gathered toward Li Yu, gradually enveloping him at its center.

Li Yu kept his eyes tightly shut. As he silently absorbed the soul ring, he also remained vigilant against the "resentment" attack that could come at any moment!

"Yan Yan?"

"Miss Li Yu?"

Dugu Bo stood suspended in the air, his Spiritual Power sweeping across every inch of land within the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, yet he found no trace of the two.

He frowned, his expression grave.

A few minutes earlier, he had been quietly regulating his breathing.

But—

A sudden explosion had "awakened" him!

Of course, an explosion of that magnitude was nowhere near enough to make him take it seriously. It had merely caught his attention slightly.

But immediately afterward, he realized something.

This was his secluded residence. How could such an explosion suddenly occur here?

Moreover.

Although its power wasn't much to speak of, it wasn't something Dugu Yan or Li Yu could have caused.

Could it be... that someone had discovered this secluded place and was attacking it?

They were courting death!

Dugu Bo immediately emerged from his meditative state. With a flash, he arrived above the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

Yet everything before him appeared normal. There wasn't the slightest sign of an attack.

This only left him even more puzzled, and he wanted to learn what had happened from Dugu Yan and Li Yu.

But Li Yu and Dugu Yan had already left, without a trace remaining.

"They left?"

Dugu Bo fell into thought, then his expression abruptly changed.

That explosion had been so close. Could they have encountered some danger?

A hint of panic rose in Dugu Bo's heart, but he soon sensed that the safeguard he had left on Dugu Yan had not been triggered, which calmed him slightly.

Yet in the next moment, he vanished from where he stood. Clearly, he was still worried.

An explosion.

And a violent one at that.

Such an occurrence was uncommon—one might even say rare—in a primeval forest like Sunset Forest.

Whenever it happened, without exception, it meant that humans had come to hunt Soul Beasts!

Which also meant that, to the Soul Beasts, an enemy had appeared!

"Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison!"

Dugu Yan's Third Soul Ring flashed, and purple poisonous mist instantly spread outward.

The Soul Beasts pouncing toward her were immediately tainted by the purple mist.

Then, in only a brief moment, the skin touched by the purple mist began to rot!

"Roar!"

"Grrr!"

Slap! Slap! Slap!

One Soul Beast after another collapsed to the ground, continuously rubbing their bodies against the earth in an attempt to stop the spreading rot.

But it was all useless.

Before long, more than a dozen white Soul Rings slowly rose into the air.

"Damn it!"

Dugu Yan gritted her teeth, her expression grim as she watched the increasing number of Soul Beasts surrounding her.

Though the ones attacking her now were merely Soul Beasts under a hundred years old, and she could take their lives with ease, among the Soul Beasts eyeing her hungrily, she had already sensed quite a few whose auras had reached the hundred-year level, and even the thousand-year level!

Clearly, these Soul Beasts were not mindless.

They understood strategy as well!

At first, a Soul Beast that had only just reached the thousand-year level had attacked her, but she had forcefully slain it.

After realizing how powerful she was, the stronger Soul Beasts began driving the under-hundred-year Soul Beasts to wear her down!

Thus, although she killed them with ease, Dugu Yan's mood grew increasingly heavy.

Half an hour had already passed, yet Li Yu still had not finished absorbing that Soul Ring.

Meanwhile, more and more Soul Beasts had gathered after hearing the commotion.

With her strength, she simply could not hold out for much longer.

And now, her Soul Power was nearly exhausted!

The slightest opening on her part, and those Soul Beasts watching her like tigers would likely swarm her all at once!

At that point, not only she, but Li Yu—who was currently absorbing the Soul Ring—would become bloody prey in the mouths of these Soul Beasts.

"What should I do?"

Dugu Yan could not help asking herself.

All this time, she had been extremely confident in her strength and talent. Otherwise, she would never have become the vice-captain of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy Team.

But she was, after all, a control-type Soul Master.

Faced with such an intense, prolonged battle, she was inevitably beginning to struggle.

Just then.

"Roar!"

Another beastly roar rang out.

Immediately afterward, a group of watchful Soul Beasts seemed to receive some sort of signal and launched an attack on Dugu Yan together!

Clearly, they had realized that Dugu Yan was already at the end of her rope.

Dugu Yan watched this in despair, exhausting all her Soul Power to release one final Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison.

Then she closed her eyes and waited for death to descend.

At the final moment, she murmured inwardly, "If I can die together with Big Sister, perhaps it won't be so unacceptable."

But at that moment.

A commanding voice suddenly rang out:

"Insolence!"

Dugu Yan, who had already fallen into despair, froze before lifting her head in delighted surprise.

A familiar figure was already standing in the air.

Dugu Bo.

"Grandpa!"

The moment Dugu Yan saw Dugu Bo, the tears in her eyes finally began to stream down.

Dugu Bo's heart ached at the sight.

But he knew all too well that he had protected Dugu Yan too well all this time. This was precisely an opportunity for her to gain experience.

Dugu Yan was no longer a child. She needed to learn to face danger on her own!

Otherwise, with his strength, getting here from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well would have taken only minutes.

Why would he have waited so long before appearing?

He had been watching in secret all along. Countless times, he had wanted to intervene, but he had held himself back.

Only when Dugu Yan's Soul Power had been completely exhausted did he finally feel relieved, his tightly wound nerves finally relaxing.

Now, seeing Dugu Yan in such a state, the anger in his heart erupted instantly.

A terrifying pressure descended, and every Soul Beast that had been frenziedly preparing to prey on her exploded to death!

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

One after another, like balloons being punctured.

Crimson, jade green.

Blood of every color burst forth and scattered across the ground.

If not for the pungent stench of blood, the scene would have resembled Flame Flowers blooming in an instant.

The Soul Rings rising one after another made the scene all the more dazzling.

"Grandpa~"

Dugu Yan choked back sobs as she threw herself into Dugu Bo's arms when he arrived before her.

"It's alright now, it's alright."

Dugu Bo did not know how to comfort her, so he could only keep repeating that everything was alright.

He could hardly tell Dugu Yan, "Actually, Yan Yan, you were safe all along. Grandpa was watching the whole time," could he?

Wouldn't that make his own granddaughter hold a grudge against him?

Having traveled the world of Soul Masters for so many years, he naturally would not make such a mistake.

At the same time, seeing how wronged Dugu Yan looked, he inwardly cursed himself as well.

He was already a Titled Douluo. Why did he have to make his own granddaughter suffer?

She could live however she wanted and spend her days however she pleased!

As a dignified Titled Douluo, what kind of trouble could a Three-Ring Soul Grandmaster possibly cause that he could not resolve?

He could not think of any!

And as for the future?

The poison in his body now had a possible cure. As long as he cultivated diligently and raised his level, perhaps he might even live longer than Dugu Yan.

Cough, cough!

At that moment, Dugu Bo awakened!

What Hardship Education? To hell with that!

With that thought, Dugu Bo was about to say a few words to comfort his granddaughter.

But before he could speak, Dugu Yan had already calmed down first.

Dugu Yan pulled away from Dugu Bo's embrace and asked worriedly, "Grandpa, Big Sister is absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring as her fourth soul ring. Isn't that a little too risky?"

Hearing this, Dugu Bo turned his gaze toward Li Yu, who still had not finished absorbing it.

Instead of answering Dugu Yan right away, he introduced Li Yu first. "Her name is Li Yu. She's indeed a little older than you, so just call her Yu-jie!"

"Li Yu? Yu-jie!"

Dugu Yan blinked, only then realizing that after spending so many days together, she really had not known the other girl's name.

"Ordinarily, absorbing a soul ring produced by a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast as one's fourth soul ring is no different from seeking death!"

An unreadable emotion flickered in Dugu Bo's eyes. "But Miss Li Yu is different!"

"Her talent is simply too high, and her Spiritual Power is astonishingly strong!"

"She even managed to break free from the Illusionary Realm created by this Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast that specialized in Illusion Techniques. She still has a chance of absorbing this Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Dugu Yan. "Even if she can't absorb it, with me here, I can still ensure her safety."

Hearing that, the tension in Dugu Yan's heart finally eased.

She happily linked her arm through Dugu Bo's. "Grandpa is the best!"

Dugu Bo's mouth twitched. He did not respond, but the emotions in his eyes were somewhat complicated:

Yan Yan's feelings toward Miss Li Yu... seemed to have changed in nature!

What should he do about this?

Sigh!

Shaking his head, Dugu Bo could not think of any solution for the moment and could only hope he was overthinking things.

Afterward, his gaze toward Li Yu became complicated, with a hint of envy.

There was no need to say more about the complicated part.

As for the envy—

Aside from Li Yu's soul ring configuration, what he had not told Dugu Yan was that Li Yu had actually finished absorbing the soul ring long ago!

The reason he was still maintaining this state was partly because Dugu Bo had asked him to play along.

But more importantly, Li Yu was currently absorbing the Soul Bone produced alongside that Ten Thousand Year Vine Soul Beast!

At this moment.

Li Yu had indeed finished absorbing that Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring long ago.

Before absorbing it, he had been on guard against a possible "resentment" attack.

Yet even after the absorption was complete, the so-called "resentment" never appeared.

As for the reason, Li Yu felt that it might have been because he had broken the Illusionary Realm cast by the Soul Beast before its death, making it "submit wholeheartedly."

And Dugu Yan's staged siege had indeed been arranged with Dugu Bo beforehand.

Naturally, he was willing to give a Titled Douluo that much face.

So he had continued pretending that he had not finished absorbing it, while in reality, he had already begun absorbing the Soul Bone produced by that Vine Soul Beast.

It was a skull.

It had been born from the Vine Soul Beast's core Emerald Crystal.

Its name was: Azure Spring Spirit Jade Skull.

Its ability was to nurture Spiritual Power, while also creating an Illusionary Realm based on his thoughts or the fears within an enemy's heart!

It was quite an excellent skull.

And after completing the absorption, Li Yu's Soul Power Level finally broke through:

Level: 43

Free Allocation Years: 8000 years

Cube Schedule: 4/10

Soul Rings--

...

Fourth Soul Ring Black (10500 years)

Life Element Control: Can control the power of life elements, affinity increased by 70%

Soul Bone--

Azure Spring Spirit Jade Skull—Ten Thousand Years

Azure Spring: Nurtures Spiritual Power and can independently, or based on the fears within the opponent's heart, create an Illusionary Realm.

Looking at his status panel, Li Yu was quite satisfied.

After absorbing the Vine Soul Beast's Soul Ring, coupled with the accumulation from "detoxifying" Dugu Yan, his Soul Power had leaped to level 43.

The newly acquired skull bone was also an exceedingly rare treasure.

It could be said that this haul had been remarkably abundant.

Yet the newly obtained Life Element Control left him somewhat baffled.

Life element?

It sounded rather unimaginable.

"Guess I'll have to find time to study it slowly!"

Li Yu shook his head slightly, then opened his eyes and slowly rose to his feet.

The moment he moved, Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan's gazes fell upon the four Soul Rings flashing around him.

Purple! Purple! Purple! Black!