First Soul Ring

First Soul Ring

In the end, Ma Xiuno and Su Yuntao agreed to the plan.

However, when Su Yuntao asked who would lure the Profound Pool Ice Serpent away, he found Yin Hao and Ma Xiuno both looking at him.

Same old question—there were three people here: an old man and a child. If you didn't go, who would?

In the end, Su Yuntao grabbed the backpack and left, cursing under his breath.

The moment he stepped out from beneath the trees, Su Yuntao was completely exposed to the Profound Pool Ice Serpent's sight.

Looking at the blue serpent floating in the air before him, Su Yuntao swallowed hard. Yin Hao, you brat, you'd better not screw me over. Otherwise, even if I die, I won't let you off.

Then, gritting his teeth, he took out the Dragon Luring Grass from his bag and crushed it with Soul Power, releasing its scent. He clenched the crushed herb in his hand and waved it twice at the Profound Pool Ice Serpent.

"Come on, you big idiot!"

Because of its child, the Profound Pool Ice Serpent had not left the cold pool even when people approached. But the instant Su Yuntao crushed the Dragon Luring Grass, its two draconic eyes turned red upon catching the scent. Forgetting all about its child, it twisted its body and flew toward Su Yuntao.

"Holy shit!"

Su Yuntao had not expected that little grass to work so well. Seeing the Profound Pool Ice Serpent rushing at him without hesitation, he jumped in fright, grabbed the backpack beside him, and ran deeper into the forest.

But how could he possibly outrun the Profound Pool Ice Serpent? After barely a hundred meters, it was about to catch him. Su Yuntao hurriedly pulled a Soul Power Bomb from his bag, injected a thread of Soul Power into it, and hurled it behind him.

Fortunately, the thing was useful. Not only did it halt the Profound Pool Ice Serpent's advance, it even forced it back slightly. Though it caused no real damage, it bought Su Yuntao four or five seconds to escape.

Once he entered the forest, even someone as powerful as the Profound Pool Ice Serpent would have its movements hindered by the trees.

It was worth mentioning that the Dragon Luring Grass did more than make the Profound Pool Ice Serpent chase after him recklessly—it nearly drove it mad. Otherwise, one breath of dragon breath would have ended Su Yuntao right there.

The scent of the Dragon Luring Grass had been blocked by the water's surface, so the little ice serpent had not smelled it. By the time it realized its mother had flown away and emerged to investigate, the scent had already vanished without a trace.

The instant the Little Profound Pool Ice Serpent flew out of the water, Ma Xiuno seized the opportunity. The Third Soul Ring and Fourth Soul Ring beside him lit up at once, and he shot toward the little ice serpent at incredible speed.

"Fourth Soul Skill, Eagle Strikes the Sky!"

The little ice serpent was still looking around for its mother. By the time it noticed the incoming attack, it was too late. Ma Xiuno's claw seized its neck, and several bone-deep wounds instantly appeared there, blue blood streaming down.

If an ordinary four-hundred-year soul beast had taken such a blow unprepared, its entire neck would likely have been severed. Yet under the protection of its scales, the little ice serpent suffered only minor injuries. Its defense was clearly formidable.

But the stronger it was, the more determined Yin Hao became to make it his First Soul Ring.

Feeling the pain in its neck, the little ice serpent roared angrily at Ma Xiuno, who had attacked it. Then, a blast of dragon breath erupted from its mouth.

Ma Xiuno had been prepared for that move. The moment it opened its mouth, he was ready to dodge, so the little ice serpent's dragon breath hit nothing but air.

Ma Xiuno knew Su Yuntao could not hold out for long. He had to end this quickly, so regardless of the Soul Power expenditure, he unleashed the Fourth Soul Skill once more.

If the little ice serpent had not been injured, then with its powerful bloodline, despite being only a century-old soul beast, it might have been able to contend with Ma Xiuno. Even if it were suppressed, preserving its life would not have been a problem.

But unfortunately, there were no ifs. The several bone-deep wounds on its neck constantly tormented its nerves, and blue serpent blood dripped onto the water with soft pattering sounds.

White mist constantly spewed from its nostrils. It could no longer hold on...

Yet Ma Xiuno had no intention of letting it go. Another claw descended, adding several more wounds to its already battered body. The little ice serpent gave a resentful roar before it could no longer maintain its balance and fell from the air.

Seeing this, Ma Xiuno hurried forward and caught the little ice serpent, which still had one breath left, bringing it ashore. Then he called out to Yin Hao.

"Little Yin Hao, hurry! Your Brother Su Yuntao can't hold on much longer. We have to make this quick."

As he spoke, he took out a knife from his Storage Soul Tool and handed it to Yin Hao.

Yin Hao took the knife and looked at the little ice serpent lying on the ground. Without the slightest hesitation, he stabbed it in the neck.

Even Ma Xiuno was stunned by how clean and decisive his movements were.

But this was not the time to ask about that. After Yin Hao finished off the little ice serpent, a yellow ring of light slowly formed above its body.

Ma Xiuno hurriedly said, "Quick, child. Summon your martial soul and absorb this Soul Ring."

"Mm."

Yin Hao nodded, and the Blue Silver Emperor instantly appeared in his hand.

Drawn by Yin Hao, the yellow ring of light began drifting toward him.

Yin Hao quickly sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began absorbing the Soul Ring.

The four-hundred-year Soul Ring contained no spiritual shock, and it did not exceed Yin Hao's absorption limit, so absorbing it was not particularly difficult.

Ma Xiuno, on the other hand, watched their surroundings with a tense expression, remaining vigilant at all times. The moment he detected any sign of the larger ice serpent returning, he would immediately interrupt Yin Hao's absorption and take him away.

At most, that would only injure Yin Hao's spirit somewhat. With time, he could recover. But if the larger ice serpent saw Yin Hao absorbing its child's Soul Ring, what awaited them would be the fury of a Profound Pool Ice Serpent that had cultivated for over two thousand years.

Fortunately, in less than half an hour, Yin Hao had finished absorbing it. Ma Xiuno finally smiled in relief.

"Child, you've finished absorbing the Soul Ring."

Yin Hao smiled and nodded. At that moment, he seemed to feel a chill coming from his left chest. Just as he was about to reach over and touch it, a roar sounded from not far away.

Hearing that sound, Ma Xiuno's expression changed drastically. With no time to continue speaking to Yin Hao, he grabbed him and sprinted away at top speed in the opposite direction of the roar.

Just as the two of them left, the Profound Pool Ice Serpent from before returned.

Even now, it did not know what method that weak human had used to make it lose its mind and chase after him so desperately.

By the time it regained its senses, it had already left the cold pool by several thousand meters. But just as it was about to catch that hateful human, the human used some unknown method and suddenly became extremely disgusting. The Profound Pool Ice Serpent was revolted as well, so it stopped caring about the human and turned back toward its home.

But when it returned home, it found that its child had become a corpse. Its eyes instantly turned red, and it released a long howl toward the sky.

"Roar!"

That roar was heard across dozens of kilometers. Yin Hao and the other two, who had already escaped the Soul Hunting Forest, naturally heard it as well.

But Yin Hao did not care. He had never considered himself a good person. In this world where the strong preyed on the weak, if he did not grow stronger as quickly as possible, he would eventually become someone else's prey. So... if anyone was to blame, it could only blame its own bad luck...