Successful Absorption

The next morning, Snow Empress and Ice Empress packed up the few things they had in the village, then took Lang Lei directly into the sky and flew toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

Although their current location was closest to the Extreme North, for several reasons, Snow Empress and Ice Empress were not particularly eager to hunt spirit beasts for Lang Lei there. Not only were they the sovereigns of the Extreme North, meaning most spirit beasts there were technically their subjects—making it hard to strike down their own people—but also because the spirit beasts of the Extreme North were mostly tied to ice and water elements, clearly unsuitable for Lang Lei. The Star Dou Great Forest, on the other hand, boasted a wide variety of spirit beasts, so there was no worry about failing to find a suitable one.

Moreover, a thousand-year spirit beast didn't require venturing too deep, so they likely wouldn't disturb the other ferocious beasts of the Great Danger Zone. Of course, even if they did, they wouldn't back down. As long as no more than two came at once, they could protect Lang Lei. Even if all of them came, they could still escape safely with him.

Furthermore, Lang Lei's future development would be better served in larger places. Staying forever in a border region like this made it hard to broaden one's horizons effectively. As the saying goes, traveling ten thousand miles is better than reading ten thousand books—Snow Empress and Ice Empress quite agreed with that sentiment.

Soon, Snow Empress and Ice Empress landed with Lang Lei in the Star Dou Great Forest.

Unlike other Soul Hunting Forests, the spirit beasts here were all completely wild, with no need for permits, so they could enter directly.

Once inside the Star Dou Great Forest, Snow Empress and Ice Empress suppressed their auras, pretending to be ordinary people. This wasn't about playing the fool to catch the tiger or slapping faces for show. It was simply that spirit beasts' instinct to avoid danger had become second nature. If Snow Empress and Ice Empress walked in without any concealment, they likely wouldn't encounter a single spirit beast—they'd all flee from miles away.

Though... they certainly wouldn't escape, it was still good to minimize trouble.

In his past life, Lang Lei had seen all kinds of primeval forests, and some planets were entirely forest worlds, brimming with the breath of nature. Yet the Star Dou Great Forest before him still gave him a strange feeling.

Listening to Snow Empress and Ice Empress's explanations, the entire composition of this forest felt abrupt, as if it had been forcibly nurtured into existence...

But what exists is reasonable, and Lang Lei didn't dwell on it. There were plenty of absurd things in the universe; if he had to be shocked every time he saw one, he'd spend his whole life in astonishment.

"Let's go a bit deeper. This area is the outermost part of the Star Dou Great Forest, mostly just a gathering place for ordinary century spirit beasts."

"Alright."

On this continent, he was still a fledgling newcomer, so it was only natural to listen to the locals. His past experiences in pioneering and hunting had taught him that blindly trusting his own experience and applying it to a new environment often led to wasted effort or even stumbling. Besides, these two locals had been doing their utmost for him, so there was no reason for him to be stubborn.

Of course, except for that one time...

"Lang Lei, do you understand the nature of your martial soul?" As the three traveled, Snow Empress suddenly asked.

"Destruction and life—two completely opposing forces that seem to have fused into a single whole. It's hard for me to judge what exactly it is." Lang Lei answered without hesitation.

It was his own power, so of course he would study it carefully, lest he be controlled by it or become its slave. But this time, two opposing forces had actually merged completely into a new power...

It was as absurd as the Destruction Star God Nanook fighting side by side with the Preservation Star God Kliper, the Erudition Star God Boshizun arm-in-arm with the Mystery Star God Misi, or the Hunt Star God Lan and the Abundance Star God Yaoshi going on a honeymoon together...

"Destruction and life, huh?" Snow Empress mused. "In that case, let's attach a spirit beast with destructive attributes for your first spirit ring."

"There are spirit beasts with that attribute?"

"There are." Snow Empress nodded and asked again, "But they're mostly spirit beasts with higher bloodlines. Absorbing their spirit rings is far more difficult than ordinary ones. Lang Lei, are you sure you still want a thousand-year spirit ring?"

"Mm. That's what makes it challenging, isn't it?"

"Alright. Then Ice and I will focus on finding spirit beasts with a destructive aura for you. Of course, thunder-type—a more violent attribute—would also work."

"Good. Thank you, Sister Xue and Sister Bing."

--

Lang Lei was lucky. In less than three hours, a Cloud Tribulation Leopard happened to "pass by" in front of them.

Ice Empress's eyes lit up. With a wave of her hand, the Cloud Tribulation Leopard turned into an ice leopard.

"Xue'er, what do you think of this one?"

Snow Empress glanced at it and frowned slightly.

"Twelve hundred years... a bit high. But the attribute is indeed suitable. If only its age were a little lower."

Although Snow Empress had agreed to Lang Lei's decision to absorb a thousand-year spirit ring for his first, she wished she could find a spirit beast exactly one thousand years old for him to absorb, to reduce the danger.

"How about I give it a try?" Lang Lei suddenly spoke up. His intuition told him he could manage it.

Over the years, his intuition had never deceived him, so he trusted it quite a bit.

"Lang Lei, are you sure?"

"Mm, I'm sure!" Lang Lei replied with a firm tone.

Seeing the resolute look on Lang Lei's face, Snow Empress was slightly moved and, almost inadvertently, nodded.

The moment Snow Empress nodded, Lang Lei swiftly condensed a crystal arrow and pierced it straight through the immobilized Cloud Tribulation Leopard's lower jaw. The leopard died on the spot, and a purple spirit ring slowly floated out.

Afraid Snow Empress might change her mind, Lang Lei immediately sat cross-legged, using his spirit power to draw the ring onto himself.

Snow Empress and Ice Empress watched him anxiously. This was, after all, an unprecedented attempt. Even knowing Lang Lei was no ordinary person, they still worried.

Of course, mixed in with their worry was a hint of anticipation—hope that Lang Lei could truly accomplish this feat, something no one had ever done before.

The process was not much different from an ordinary person absorbing a spirit ring; in fact, it was even smoother. Throughout it all, Lang Lei didn't even furrow his brow, and the spirit ring was absorbed successfully.

Shock was written all over Snow Empress and Ice Empress's faces. They both knew what this meant—it showed that Lang Lei clearly had more than enough capacity, and could even absorb a spirit ring of a higher age!

But at this point, the absorption was nearly complete, so saying too much was useless.

Once the two women's hearts settled, immense joy followed.

Lang Lei had actually done it!

Just then, Lang Lei slowly opened his eyes, and the purple spirit ring was drawn back into his body.