Riot Period Spirit Ascension Platform World

The hatch slowly closed.

The instant darkness fell, countless streams of data poured into his consciousness like a galaxy.

When Lu Jun opened his eyes, a lush green forest filled his view.

Ancient trees soared from the ground, their dense canopies blocking most of the sunlight and leaving only dappled patches of light on the soft earth.

The air was filled with the fresh scent of grass and trees, and now and then, he could hear distant birdsong and the low roars of Spirit Beasts.

This was the simulated outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Most of the Spirit Beasts here were between ten and a thousand years old.

"Gu Yue Na isn't nearby?" Lu Jun looked around, confirming that there was no sign of her nearby. "Looks like we were teleported randomly."

He was not worried about her safety.

With Gu Yue Na's strength, she would hardly encounter any fatal threat in the outer region of the Primary Spirit Ascension Platform.

Even during the Riot Period.

What concerned him was finding suitable Spirit Beasts as soon as possible and raising his Ice Dragon Soul Spirit to a thousand years.

Lu Jun took a breath, the forest air mixed with the scent of branches and leaves filling his nostrils.

"Perfect. With her not around, the pressure's a lot lower."

Thinking about it, he did not even want to meet up with her.

Lu Jun slowly exhaled a breath of white mist. His right hand closed loosely, and the Ice Abyss Sword Martial Soul condensed in his palm. The blade was crystalline and translucent, shrouded in cold air, with a faint icy gleam flowing along its edge.

Two yellow Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet and circled the sword, giving off steady Soul Power Fluctuations.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping across his surroundings like a blade.

Ancient trees rose into the sky, their branches and leaves intertwined, blocking most of the sunlight and leaving only mottled shadows on the damp soil.

The air carried the fragrance of vegetation, but beneath that tranquility lurked the presence of countless Spirit Beasts.

"Rustle—"

The bushes to his left trembled slightly. With a flick of his wrist, Lu Jun silently pointed the Ice Abyss Sword toward the source of the sound.

A ten-year Soft Bone Rabbit burst out in panic. Its ruby-like eyes glanced at him warily before it vanished into the depths of the grass.

Lu Jun did not lower his guard. Lightening his steps, he slowly moved forward.

The chill of the Ice Abyss Sword left a thin layer of frost on the ground, both to detect hidden Spirit Beasts and to mark his route so he would not lose his way.

After traveling for a while.

Crack.

The crisp snap of a dead branch sounded beneath his foot.

Lu Jun stopped abruptly, holding the Ice Abyss Sword across his chest.

Ten meters ahead, an ordinary-looking vine suddenly began to writhe. Its dark green tendrils reared up like venomous snakes, and a crimson maw split open at the tip.

"This is... a Hundred Year Mandala Snake."

Having learned about it in class, Lu Jun recognized the Spirit Beast at a glance.

"A hundred years? Fine, it'll do."

"Let's see if I can cordon off this Primary Spirit Ascension Platform during the Riot Period."

He had immense confidence in his own strength.

Hiss!

The Mandala Snake shot toward Lu Jun, so fast it almost left an afterimage!

Lu Jun's gaze turned cold as the First Soul Ring beneath his feet burst into brilliant yellow light.

First Soul Skill, Ice Abyss Domain.

He drove the Ice Abyss Sword into the ground with a backhand motion. The instant the blade touched the soil, a wave of Extreme Cold Power swept outward in all directions.

Crack, crack...

Ice Crystal spread rapidly over the ground. Wherever it passed, grass and trees froze, while moisture in the air condensed into frost.

Centered on Lu Jun, the area within a radius of twenty meters instantly transformed into an Ice and Snow World, the temperature plunging dozens of degrees below zero.

Even the dust floating in the air froze into tiny grains of ice and fell in a soft flurry.

The Mandala Snake's crimson pupils contracted sharply. Its lightning-fast ambush became sluggish within the Extreme Cold Domain, as though it had fallen into a swamp.

Fine Ice Crystal formed over the scales on its body, while its muscle fibers stiffened and turned brittle in the freezing cold.

Even more terrifyingly, Ice Walls rose from the ground around it, forming a frigid cage that completely sealed off every escape route.

Lu Jun knelt on one knee, his right hand still pressed against the sword hilt.

He slowly raised his head. The white mist from his breath condensed into frost on his eyelashes, and his eyes reflected the frozen Mandala Snake.

He pulled the Ice Abyss Sword from the frozen earth, sending ice chips flying into the air. Spinning, Lu Jun swung his sword, and a vast surge of ice rushed forward like an enraged tide.

This was a variation he had developed from his First Soul Skill. It was no longer limited to domain control; instead, it compressed and released the chill of Ultimate Ice, forming a devastating ice storm.

Before the Mandala Snake could struggle, it was completely swallowed by the howling Ice Wave.

A crystalline layer of ice rapidly spread from its tail, freezing it into a lifelike Ice Sculpture in the blink of an eye.

Lu Jun watched the completely frozen Mandala Snake Ice Sculpture with an indifferent expression.

The crystal-clear ice preserved the hundred-year Spirit Beast's final savage posture forever. Its body was twisted, its fangs bared, and its crimson eyes still glared at him through the ice as if filled with unwilling hatred.

Without hesitation, Lu Jun lightly turned his wrist, and the Ice Abyss Sword carved a chilling arc through the air.

The instant the blade touched the Ice Sculpture, fine cracks spread across it like a spiderweb.

The next second, the entire Ice Sculpture exploded with a boom. Countless Ice Crystal Shards refracted dazzling light beneath the sun, like a cloud of diamond dust bursting apart.

As the ice shattered, the Mandala Snake's body disintegrated into powder. Not a single drop of blood splashed out.

A wisp of pale green Soul Beast Spiritual Power rose from the shattered ice like a wavering firefly, slowly drifting toward Lu Jun's brow.

He closed his eyes slightly and felt the Ice Dragon Soul Spirit within him let out a pleased cry as it devoured the wisp of spiritual power whole.

The Soul Spirit's age increased by a tiny amount. Though almost imperceptible, it was indeed growing stronger.

"The efficiency is still too low." Lu Jun opened his eyes, his ice-blue gaze sweeping over the surroundings. "Hundred-year Spirit Beasts provide too little spiritual power."

He needed prey with higher cultivation.

To raise his Soul Spirit to a thousand years, he would have to kill a hundred hundred-year Spirit Beasts.

But if they were thousand-year Spirit Beasts, killing ten would be enough.

Still, this was only the Primary Spirit Ascension Platform. Where was he supposed to find that many thousand-year Spirit Beasts to kill?

"Looks like I really do need to cordon off the area—and steal other people's Spiritual Power too."

Lu Jun did not put away the Ice Abyss Sword and continued onward.

This time, he no longer slowed down.

Instead, he raced arrogantly through the forest, the chill of the Ice Abyss Sword freezing a path beneath his feet and making every step feel as though he were walking on level ground.

Before long, he sensed violent Soul Power Fluctuations ahead.

Vast Spiritual Power surged toward him like a tidal wave, mixed with several unfamiliar Soul Master presences, as well as... the aura of Gu Yue Na's Silver Dragon Martial Soul.

"She ran into me this quickly?"

Lu Jun was somewhat startled.

"Looks like she really is nearby, but... it feels like she's run into trouble."

Reason told Lu Jun that he should turn around and leave, staying far away from Gu Yue Na.

But a massive amount of spiritual power was coming from Gu Yue Na's location.

That was exactly what he needed to raise his Spirit.

Not to mention, he was planning to cordon off the area anyway.

Lu Jun frowned. After weighing the pros and cons, he suddenly accelerated.

"I can't let this much spiritual power slip away."