Blessing in Disguise

Xiao Tianyang, still in a state of cultivation, had no idea what was happening outside.

Yet Xiao Tianyang vaguely sensed that something seemed to have appeared within his body, though it was hazy and impossible to explain.

Suddenly, Xiao Tianyang's eyes snapped open, bright flames seeming to flash through them.

Driven by instinct, Xiao Tianyang let out a low growl like a beast. His terrifying Aura formed airwaves that swept outward, blowing the shrubs—which had nearly formed a circular nest—askew in every direction.

After several seconds, Xiao Tianyang gradually calmed down only after closing his eyes, inhaling, and exhaling.

"That was really a close call. I was this close to dying..."

"Ding!"

"Congratulations, Host, for completing the Side Quest, [First Soul Ring]!"

"Reward obtained: Lottery Draws ×300!"

To be honest, Xiao Tianyang had originally felt that his Exotic Fire Martial Souls were somewhat underwhelming.

After all, in terms of potential, these exotic fires with their individual traits were indeed difficult to improve unless he gathered them all.

But at this moment, Xiao Tianyang felt somewhat fortunate. The traits of his three Martial Souls complemented one another, producing the result he had now.

The Crimson Lotus Karmic Fire purged the resentment within the Soul Ring, turning it into nourishment for himself while also nurturing his spirit!

The Spirit of the Flame kept his vitality from withering and could also heal his wounds!

Three Thousand Blazing Flame was undying and indestructible, ensuring that he would not perish!

Without any one of them, Xiao Tianyang felt that he would have at least been crippled today.

Xiao Tianyang came back to his senses and looked up, only to be startled by the sight of a face right in front of him, leaned in extremely close.

"Teacher Miao, what are you doing?"

Only after realizing it was someone he knew did Xiao Tianyang breathe a sigh of relief, unable to stop himself from complaining.

"Kid, don't be resentful. If it weren't for me, you'd have died long ago!"

Miao Zhenshan raised a brow. "Besides, when I told you to act on your own and hunt a Soul Beast, I meant that Vine Armor Dragon Turtle. But you went straight for that Blazing Nightmare instead. Who's to blame for that?"

"You mean...?"

Xiao Tianyang seemed to understand, but he was not entirely sure.

Miao Zhenshan looked as though he wanted to blow his beard and glare. "I initially told you to go trouble that three-thousand-year Vine Armor Dragon Turtle!"

"But what did you do? You just had to set your sights on that seven-thousand-year Blazing Nightmare. What am I supposed to say to you?"

"Seven thousand years?!"

A trace of realization appeared on Xiao Tianyang's face.

No wonder he had wondered why, with his physique, he had still needed to use the power of his exotic fires in the end. The Soul Ring's age had exceeded the limit by far!

No, this could no longer be called exceeding the limit. It had utterly shattered the ultimate limit!

Xiao Tianyang looked embarrassed again. "But you didn't explain it clearly. Besides, why could a three-thousand-year Soul Beast suppress and beat a seven-thousand-year Soul Beast? I acted based on my instincts."

"This... I didn't take that into consideration."

Miao Zhenshan looked awkward for a moment, but then his expression darkened. "But as a student, aren't you ashamed of not knowing such basic knowledge?"

"Teacher Miao, I'm a new student. I enrolled less than three days ago."

Xiao Tianyang reminded him.

This left Miao Zhenshan speechless. Every sentence Xiao Tianyang said struck right at his heart, leaving him too powerless to refute it.

"Fine, fine. This time, let's count it as my mistake as your teacher, all right?"

Miao Zhenshan first admitted his mistake, then continued, "However, although your Martial Soul is special and underwent a mutation midway, ensuring that you survived, a seven-thousand-year Soul Ring is still not something you can bear."

"Then what should I do?"

Xiao Tianyang was somewhat helpless as well.

"Actually, I don't know either, because there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with your body."

Miao Zhenshan pondered. "While you were cultivating just now, I examined your body and found that your bones, internal organs, and even your internal organs had all been reforged. Not only have they become tougher, but they're also brimming with vitality."

"So, does that mean there's nothing wrong with my body?"

Xiao Tianyang stood up and hopped twice, feeling that there was indeed nothing wrong.

In fact, from Xiao Tianyang's own perspective, with the Spirit of the Flame present, it was impossible for him to retain any hidden injuries.

But Xiao Tianyang could not truly pretend that nothing had happened and act completely fearless. That would easily arouse suspicion.

Though he had already exposed more than enough in front of Teacher Miao...

"This matter needs to be considered carefully. There's no need to rush."

In the end, Miao Zhenshan shook his head. "Let's leave first. The commotion just now was quite big. Once I return to the academy and look through some materials, we'll see what to do next."

Miao Zhenshan did not believe that Xiao Tianyang was fine. After all, having one's First Soul Ring reach seven thousand years was simply too shocking.

This had nothing to do with miracles or potential—it was common sense that could not be defied!

Xiao Tianyang did not say much. He could not explain it either, so he could only follow behind Miao Zhenshan as they left the Soul Hunting Forest together.

However, after seeing Miao Zhenshan back to the academy, the man who was about to leave suddenly stopped and turned to look at Xiao Dao. "My earlier negligence nearly got you killed. Tell me, what do you want? If it's within my ability, I'll do my best to satisfy you."

Xiao Tianyang froze at those words. He truly had not expected Miao Zhenshan to say something like that.

But Xiao Tianyang was thick-skinned, so he naturally would not turn down someone else's offer. Looking slightly bashful, he said, "If possible, I'd like to enter the Soul Hunting Forest often for training, but going there requires..."

Before he could finish, something was thrown toward him.

It was palm-sized, and Xiao Tianyang instinctively reached out to catch it.

Yet before he could see what it was, he heard Miao Zhenshan's voice fading into the distance.

"This is a Spirit Hall pass. With it, you can enter the Soul Hunting Forest whenever you wish."

The corners of Xiao Tianyang's mouth lifted slightly as he lightly tossed the token in his hand. "Quite a haul. Not bad at all!"

After turning around and storing the token in the Nether Sea Ring, Xiao Tianyang headed toward the teaching building.

His lack of knowledge about Soul Beasts today had caused him to suffer badly. If Xiao Tianyang had not been lucky, he would likely have become a cold corpse by now.

So, for his future safety, it was best to make more preparations. Leaving every life-or-death matter to luck's judgment made Xiao Tianyang feel rather uneasy.

Of course, before that, Xiao Tianyang still had something more important to do: draw the lottery!

"An eight-pull draw... Even if the items are complete trash, there should be at least one that I can use, right?"

Thus, Xiao Tianyang was in an excellent mood. As he walked down the road, he could not help humming a tune.

It could not be helped. In just one morning, not only had he resolved his First Soul Ring, but he had also turned disaster into fortune, raising what had originally been a two-thousand-year Soul Ring into a seven-thousand-year one!

The process had been a little dangerous, but fortunately, there had been no real harm.

Then he had obtained a "permanent admission pass" to the Soul Hunting Forest and still had an eight-pull draw waiting for him. How could he not be happy?