I Traveled to Douluo and Split into Five People

Ning Fengzhi had not managed to locate the new mountain gate. According to the report, the Clear Sky Sect members stationed in that village were extremely vigilant, practically jumpy at every rustle of wind and cry of cranes.

"Miss Yuehua, there is a small village three hundred li east of Heaven Dou City that may be a contact point for your sect. Do you need me to send some people to escort you two there?"

The moment he received the news, he came to inform Tang Yuehua. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon had shut itself away, and the Clear Sky Sect had sealed its mountain. Of the Upper Three Sects, only the Seven Treasures Sect was left holding up the front. If Spirit Hall suddenly attacked one day, the Seven Treasures Sect might not be able to withstand it.

Through Tang Yuehua, perhaps he could forge a new partnership with the Clear Sky Sect.

The Upper Three Sects were bound together like branches from the same tree.jpg!

"Thank you for your help, Sect Leader Ning. Once Yuehua returns to the Clear Sky Sect, I will certainly ask my eldest brother to properly thank you."

Tang Yuehua gave a graceful bow, already unable to wait to return to the Clear Sky Sect. With the Clear Sky Sect behind her, she was a young lady of status. Without it, she was merely an ordinary woman of exceptional beauty. With no strength of her own, she did not even dare imagine what she might encounter.

On this journey, she had also owed much to Tang Yin. Though he only had two rings of cultivation, he had still resolved quite a few troubles.

"Sect Leader Ning, then Yuehua shall take her leave."

Tang Yin also rose and cupped his fists. He turned and walked out with Tang Yuehua. As they passed Seven Treasure Plaza, he exchanged a look with Ning Yulin before leaving the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Although Tang Yuehua had declined Ning Fengzhi's escort, Ning Fengzhi still provided them with a carriage.

Watching the two leave, Ning Yulin turned back to continue training Dugu Yan.

"Alright, break time's over! Keep going!"

The sooner she converted all the toxins in her body, the sooner she could be "free."

"Alright, alright, I know."

Her expression was displeased, but Dugu Yan did not lash out. She knew perfectly well who truly treated her kindly.

A mere hundred-year Spirit Ring increased the conversion speed far too little. He still needed to look for one with the same ability but a higher age.

Should he give her a Thousand-Year Second Ring too?

It seemed possible. Publicly, the two of them had the backing of three Titled Douluo. Anyone wanting to uncover the secret of absorbing Spirit Rings beyond one's limit would have to think twice. Still, people would inevitably be alone sometimes. Dugu Bo could not follow the two of them around forever without doing anything else.

This matter still required long-term consideration.

At this stage, suitability was more important than age. If they could not find a suitable Spirit Beast, then they could consider raising the age requirement.

He had already arranged for people to continue searching for Spirit Beasts that were not poisonous themselves but could devour and absorb toxins. Dugu Bo had also dispatched some people to search at the same time.

Chapter 66: Let's Go

When was that old man going to let me into the Mandarin Duck Pot?

Thinking of Dugu Bo's reaction back then, Ning Yulin was speechless. Although Dugu Bo had seen through him, he did not want to appear too eager. The more anxious he seemed, the more flaws he would expose.

For now, they were only engaged. Once they actually married and he won Dugu Yan over, that old man would probably be completely at ease.

But if he waited until then, it would be far too late.

Should he have them search Sunset Forest first?

An Lan was with Qian Renxue, with Jian Mo Qian Jun secretly following them, so that would not work. Tang Yin had said he would come back out after escorting Tang Yuehua home, and there were also Tian Rui and Zhou Xuefeng...

Tang Yin urged the carriage onward with all his strength, hurrying toward the small village that served as the Clear Sky Sect's outpost.

Once he delivered Tang Yuehua there, he would not return to the Clear Sky Sect. It would be difficult to get out again afterward. If he remained trapped in the Clear Sky Sect, his strength would be hard to improve, and he would drag the other four down.

All five of them possessed five Martial Souls. Every Martial Soul was an opportunity to test the effects of different Spirit Ring configurations. With matters weighing on his mind, he could not be bothered chatting with Tang Yuehua. Tang Yuehua herself was lost in thought, wondering what the Clear Sky Sect was like now, and paid no attention to Tang Yin either.

They had left the Seven Treasures Sect in the morning, and only around noon did they catch sight of the little village.

"Stop. Outsiders are not permitted ahead. Please take another route."

Before they could get close, two burly men in sleeveless shirts suddenly leaped out from the grass.

Why didn't they shout Demacia or something?

Without wasting words, he directly summoned his Martial Soul and hurled a hammer at them.

"The Clear Sky Hammer? One of us? Which family are you from?"

The two found Tang Yin unfamiliar, but there was no mistaking the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul.

"You're Tang Jin and Tang Tie?"

Hearing voices, Tang Yuehua pulled open the carriage window and examined the two men blocking the road, her face lighting up with surprise.

"So it's Yuehua."

The two actually knew Tang Yuehua. It seemed they were from the same generation as Tang Hao.

"It's wonderful that we found you... This is Tang Yin. I have him to thank for helping me through this time."

Since they were not outsiders, the two stepped aside. They personally led the way, guiding the carriage into the village. Tang Yin spotted an acquaintance: Tang Kun, who had once led them to hunt Spirit Rings.

"Yuehua, now that we've arrived, I'll take my leave."

Tang Yuehua had not expected that.

"You... aren't returning to the sect?"

"No." Tang Yin shook his head. "Life in the sect was boring enough before. Now the sect is sealing its mountain, so it'll obviously be even more boring. I want to venture out into the world."

"But Spirit Hall is currently after people from the Clear Sky Sect..."

"Yuehua, this is as far as I go."

He raised a hand and cut off Tang Yuehua before she could finish. Tang Yin jumped straight from the carriage, retreated past the village entrance, then turned and ran into the forest, vanishing without a trace. Tang Jin and Tang Tie did not even have time to stop him.

Was it because of me that he didn't want to stay in the sect?

Tang Yuehua's expression dimmed as wild thoughts filled her mind.

"Yuehua, that kid..."

The two men did not understand and looked at Tang Yuehua in confusion. Tang Yuehua opened her mouth, but she could not bring herself to tell them to chase Tang Yin down. Her emotions were tangled, and she let out a sigh.

"Is my father and eldest brother well?"

"The old sect leader passed away a few days ago. Tang Xiao has become the new sect leader."

"What?! My father is dead!"

Tang Yin ran wildly through the forest, nimble as a mountain dog.

The fierce wind rushed against his face, and Tang Yin felt refreshed all over. Of course, he had not left the Clear Sky Sect because of Tang Yuehua. This was not some cliché reality where a failed confession meant they could not even remain friends.

He had come out for Immortal Herbs and Spirit Rings.

He also had to help Ning Yulin research that damned Spirit Forging technique. Trapped in the Clear Sky Sect, he would not be able to accomplish anything, and Tang Yuehua would not let him have any fun. Outside, there were more young girls.

With this face of mine, after cleaning myself up a bit, I'm no worse than Buddha Tang after he gets the Blue Silver Emperor.

After returning to Heaven Dou City, Tang Yin wandered the streets. Zhou Xuefeng had three Little Cats there, so he could not go over. An Lan was at the Spirit Sacred Hall, while Ning Yulin still had to deal with Dugu Yan.

He could only go find Tian Rui.

Only Tian Rui was all alone now.

When Tang Yin came knocking, Tian Rui inwardly cursed his bad luck, but he did not turn him away.

"Come in."

Tian Rui lived alone and had not prepared anything luxurious, only a few basic necessities. Other than that, there were many furnaces of varying sizes and shapes. He was currently focusing on the Golden Feather Luan Bird Martial Soul. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon was not suitable for exposure, so he had prepared a crude Mimicry Environment himself.

"There are plenty of empty rooms. Clean one up yourself."

Tang Yin settled down there for the time being. A few days later, Ning Yulin secretly had someone deliver a Storage Spirit Tool to Tang Yin. Inside were some Whale Rubber, rare metals collected by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and accompanying items such as forging furnaces.

"That guy treats anyone he catches like a workhorse! Just what you'd expect from the young master."

Though he cursed under his breath, his hands honestly sorted through everything. But this was not a suitable place for smithing. Although Tian Rui had chosen a relatively secluded location for peace and quiet, it was still within the city. If it caught the attention of some overly curious person, more trouble would arise.

He could only pack up and leave Tian Rui's residence. He stopped at a small village outside Heaven Dou City and took on the identity of a blacksmith.

"Could I also study Soul Tools?"

"How were Soul Tools made ten thousand years later? Inscribed formations, materials? It should be related to formation patterns too, right?"

"If I could dismantle this Storage Spirit Tool intact and study its internal structure, maybe I could figure something out."

But the urgent task was first helping Ning Yulin research Spirit Forging and forge a Spirit Pagoda that could merge with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul. Even after taking Immortal Herbs, it could still prove quite useful.

If Ning Yulin's idea succeeded, and such external objects could make up for the limit on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's number of levels, it would become his greatest bargaining chip in taking control of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. It might even set off a storm among all Tool Martial Souls.

Space Meeting.

It had been very quiet lately, with nothing worth discussing.

Ning Yulin said, "When you go add Spirit Rings, see whether you can find the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well while you're at it. Who knows when Dugu Bo will come looking for me again."

An Lan, Tang Yin, and Tian Rui had broken through level thirty several days ago and needed to add new Spirit Rings. An Lan still had not given up on a Weaponization Skill. Although he had already achieved considerable results by using the First Spirit Skill, Energy Gathering Ring, to train his ability to condense objects, it still could not compare to the power of a direct Weaponization Skill. Tang Yin had nothing particular to say; a strength-type Spirit Beast would do, preferably one with an unusual bloodline.

As for Tian Rui, after switching to the Golden Feather Luan Bird, his First Spirit Skill had some weaponization effects and could ignore twenty percent of a target's energy and physical defense. His Second Spirit Skill was an energy shield that reduced damage by fifty percent and reflected twenty percent back.

For the Third Spirit Skill, an amplification-type skill would be best.

Whether it was one or not did not matter too much. The five of them would only truly begin choosing Spirit Rings once they could withstand Ten Thousand Year Spirit Rings. For now, they were merely exploring Spirit Ring configurations.

Chapter 67: Sunset Forest, Tian, Tang, and An's Third Rings

After forging for more than ten days, he could not make heads or tails of this Spirit Forging business.

Relying on the Clear Sky Hammer's traits, Tang Yin had only managed Hundred Refinements purification. Beyond that, it felt as though something was missing. He did not know whether he had reached the material's limit, his own technical limit, or whether the environment was affecting him.

"It's time to head out."

He had arranged to hunt Spirit Beasts with Tian Rui. With their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, they could deal with stronger Spirit Beasts.

Smithing had been secondary during this period. The main focus had been digesting Whale Rubber and adapting to the improvements it brought. According to Master Yu's theory, the public limit for a third ring was 1,760 years, but Tang Yin estimated that absorbing a three-thousand-year Spirit Ring would not be a problem for him.

"Should I borrow two Spirit Bones from Tian Rui or Zhou Xuefeng and absorb them?"

The two had acquired several Spirit Bones in the Star Dou Great Forest. Although their ages were somewhat low, using them to improve his physical condition and support a higher-age Spirit Ring sounded quite good.

After absorbing the Spirit Ring, he could chop off the limbs that had absorbed the Spirit Bones and have Ning Yulin or Zhou Xuefeng reconnect them using the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's Second Spirit Skill.

Perfect!

He was tempted.

But then another problem came to mind. The two should have no issue reconnecting severed limbs, but stripping off Spirit Bones seemed to lower one's Soul Power Level. Tang Hao had lost a great deal of Soul Power after stripping away the Clear Sky Sect's inherited Spirit Bones from his body.

"Seems like you can cultivate it back, right?"

He should discuss it with the others.

He left a message in the Space Meeting and waited for the others to gather.

"You people always come up with the strangest ideas. Let me first test whether severed limbs can truly be reattached."

This idea was just as shocking and reckless as Zhou Xuefeng's earlier suggestion to shatter the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul before absorbing Spirit Rings. But if it could truly speed up the five of their cultivation, it was indeed not a bad idea.

As for the pain of severing limbs, a dose of anesthetic would make it completely irrelevant.

About a week later, Ning Yulin gave the others the experimental results.

At the current strength of his Second Spirit Skill, severed limbs belonging to the person themselves could be reattached perfectly. But if it was something else that did not belong to the person's body, it could still be attached, yet it would fall off once the Spirit Skill's duration ended, and it would cause the recipient intense pain.

He did not know whether the power of a Ten Thousand Year or Hundred Thousand Year Spirit Ring could transform it into a permanent effect, or whether they would have to wait until the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul evolved into nine levels.

"Then does the anesthetic work well? It really won't hurt much?"

Though Tang Yin had proposed the idea himself, he was now starting to worry. He was afraid of pain.

"If it doesn't work, forget it. Absorbing high-age Spirit Rings, then stripping Spirit Bones, leveling up, and then losing levels again—going back and forth like that might not be as good as cultivating on our own."

An Lan had read so much information in Spirit Hall that he felt this method was not very reliable.