Look, a Magnet

Soul bone drop rates were very low, and the lower the age, the lower the drop rate. That was true enough.

But there was another way to increase the drop rate of soul bones on Douluo Continent: make the soul beast die with enough resentment, and its chances of producing a soul bone would rise considerably.

But even then, a soul beast with an increased soul bone drop rate would not necessarily drop one every time it was killed. It still depended on luck.

Making a soul beast feel enough resentment before death was actually very difficult.

If a Five Ring Soul King came along and brutally beat a Hundred Year Soul Beast to death, it would be useless. Soul beasts believed most firmly in the law of the jungle.

Eating the weak and being eaten by the strong was simply the natural order of things.

As for torturing a soul beast first and then killing it to increase its resentment—

The truth was that most soul beasts did not have pain receptors anywhere near as sensitive as humans.

Any soul master who carefully observed the Soul Beast Forest would notice this.

Many herbivorous soul beasts could have half their rear ends missing, their intestines dragging outside their bodies, and still survive for ten days or half a month.

Those soul beasts might not even understand what pain was.

Only raiding the nests of high-age, somewhat intelligent soul beasts with offspring produced decent results.

But it was fine if such root-cutting methods were done secretly. If the Shrek Inspection Team found out, they would respond at lightning speed, and Iron Fist would come crashing down within minutes.

The Shrek Inspection Team was not only used to crack down on Evil Soul Masters. As long as something threatened the foundations of the entire soul master world, the Inspection Team would respond at lightning speed.

The reason the Shrek Inspection Team fought Evil Soul Masters so desperately was fundamentally because Evil Soul Masters needed to harm ordinary people to cultivate, and ordinary people were the foundation upon which the soul master world was built.

Ordinary people busy in cities, ordinary people farming in the fields, ordinary families that gave birth to soul masters with Innate Soul Power—these were all necessities for keeping the soul master world functioning healthily.

Once they were gone, the soul master world would collapse in a very short time.

That was the real reason Evil Soul Masters deserved to die.

Not only did they commit acts that enraged both heaven and man, they were also Sacrificing the future of the entire soul master world in exchange for their own strength.

That was precisely why it had been so difficult for Chen Ping to obtain this soul bone.

This soul bone had dropped because the resentment in this Little Touch Dragon King's heart had truly been completely ignited.

It had started with it peacefully sleeping, only to suddenly swallow two Incendiary Bombs.

Then it had targeted the wrong enemy and gnawed its own Evil Pincer Bug bodyguard to death.

Finally, it discovered that Chen Ping, that bastard, had been stirring things up from behind the scenes. Before it could retaliate, Chen Ping stabbed it more than a dozen times and directly stabbed its Soul Ring out of it.

For a Little Touch Dragon King with limited brain capacity, that was truly no small amount of resentment.

Chen Ping instinctively glanced at Bei Bei, but quickly turned away again.

That was the good thing about being friends with rich people: you did not have to worry about them getting ideas about murder and robbery over a somewhat large sum of money.

Chen Ping did not believe that bullshit about poverty breeding treachery while wealth nurtured kindness.

But he had to admit that for poor bastards like himself, plenty of people really would consider murder and robbery over a sum worth several tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins.

For Bei Bei, the comparison was simple: would he kill a newly acquainted friend, a promising and interesting Junior, over a little pocket money?

Taking out his dagger, Chen Ping carefully pried the soul bone out through the Touch Dragon King's wound. His eyes immediately lit up.

This soul bone was of exceptionally good quality.

As everyone knew, the quality of a soul bone often depended on its age, the level of the soul beast that produced it, and finally, how complete the soul bone was.

Other than losing out in terms of age, this soul bone was absolutely up to standard both in the level of the soul beast that produced it and in its completeness.

It was a Right Arm Bone. Although it only included the forearm and not the humerus, the ulna, radius, and Hand Bone were all remarkably complete, with no damage or missing portions.

Even Bei Bei felt that he had seriously underestimated this soul bone's value.

A soul bone in such pristine condition was fully qualified to be purchased by wealthy collectors. Breaking through One Hundred Thousand Gold Soul Coins was entirely possible.

Chen Ping understood this as well, and a flash of delight immediately crossed his face.

Compared to absorbing this soul bone, Chen Ping wanted more to sell it outright and buy a batch of medicinal ingredients so he could continue Using Potions.

A soul bone could at most give him one level of soul power, along with a Hundred Year Level skill and a certain increase in physical fitness.

It looked good in the early stages, but after Level Thirty, its significance would become very small.

But if he exchanged this soul bone for One Hundred Thousand Gold Soul Coins, that money would be enough to keep Chen Ping from worrying about finances until he became a Soul King.

But before Chen Ping could put away the soul bone, his Willow Staff Martial Soul appeared in his hand on its own, despite not being summoned.

"Hm?"

Not just Bei Bei—even Chen Ping himself wore a face full of shock.

"My Martial Soul seems to be telling me that it desperately wants this soul bone. What does that mean? Is it telling me that this soul bone is very important to me, and that I should not sell it?"

Chen Ping spoke hesitantly, hoping to get some help from Bei Bei, a top student from Shrek.

Bei Bei had never encountered such a situation either. He stroked his chin and thought for a long while before stammering, "Maybe, maybe... that. Right!"

As though he had suddenly remembered something, Bei Bei slapped his palm. "I heard that it is best for soul masters to absorb soul bones that drop together with their Soul Rings. The effects are optimal that way."

"Perhaps that is why your Martial Soul reacted on its own."

"Other than when a Martial Soul awakens and tells us soul masters its name, it is very rare for a Martial Soul to produce any sort of reaction on its own."

"Only when an opportunity for something like Deep Meditation appears, or when some other great opportunity arises, might a Martial Soul react."

"Although absorbing a Hundred Year Level soul bone like this may take up one of your future soul bone slots, it is indeed rare for a Martial Soul to react on its own."

"The final decision is still yours to make."

After Bei Bei finished speaking, Chen Ping's gaze as he held the arm bone in his left hand became somewhat complicated.

Was he really going to give up several tens of thousands, perhaps even One Hundred Thousand Gold Soul Coins, just to absorb a soul bone like this?

It feels like such a loss!

But Bei Bei was right too. It was far too rare for a Martial Soul to react on its own. If he hesitated even slightly, he might miss out on a fortunate opportunity.

Gritting his teeth, Chen Ping made up his mind. It was only One Hundred Thousand Gold Soul Coins. He refused to believe he could not earn it. It was just a tiny Right Arm Bone—he would absorb it!

With a ruthless resolve, Chen Ping pressed the Right Arm Bone toward the right arm holding his Willow Staff.

But in the next instant, just like when it had absorbed the Touch Dragon King's Soul Ring, the Willow Staff snapped the soul bone from Chen Ping's hand and drew it over, where it clung tightly to the staff.