"Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears! And two ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears at that!"
When Shrek's group ventured deep into the Star Dou Great Forest, everyone was horrified. Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears were top-tier spirit beasts. A ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear was no weaker than an ordinary Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. Facing two of them was no different from facing two Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.
It was not as though they had absolutely no chance of fighting them with their current lineup. Tang Tong, who led the group, possessed Soul Power at level ninety and an eighty-thousand-year eighth soul skill. With him at the center, supported by numerous Soul Masters in the seventieth and eightieth ranks, they could not be said to be completely incapable of fighting two ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears. But if they truly fought, they would likely suffer grievous losses. Besides, what they needed were not ten-thousand-year soul rings.
Yet just as everyone hesitated, unsure how to retreat, an aura that had previously been completely absent from their senses suddenly erupted. It belonged to Xuan Zi, whose Soul Power had reached level ninety-eight.
Xuan Zi suddenly appeared before them. Then, without releasing either his martial soul or his soul rings, he strode up to the two Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears and slapped each of them twice.
"Scram! If it weren't for the fact that my students don't need you two stupid bears for soul rings, I'd be having bear meat hotpot today."
The pressure of level ninety-eight Soul Power descended upon the two ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears. No longer creatures driven solely by instinct, the two bears could understand human speech, and they immediately cowered.
They did not even dare roar at Xuan Zi. After taking those slaps, they fled timidly. Their bedraggled appearance bore none of the majesty expected of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears, the top spirit beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest, leaving Shrek's students dumbfounded.
"E-Elder Xuan, those were Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears, top-tier spirit beasts! They can fight Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts once they reach ten thousand years, yet you just slapped them twice and sent them running?"
One student spoke in disbelief. Those were Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears—ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears! Normally, whenever they encountered one in the Star Dou Great Forest, there was only one word for it: run!
Even if the teacher leading the group was a powerful Titled Douluo, the moment they encountered a ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, that teacher would undoubtedly lead them out of the area. Even if the region contained spirit beasts they wanted, they had to flee as soon as they encountered one.
But this time, they had not only encountered ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears, but two of them. Yet they had not fled. In fact, if they had needed mere ten-thousand-year soul rings, those two bears could have become their soul rings.
How could such a stark contrast not shock them? How could they not marvel at Xuan Zi's overwhelming strength?
"They're only ten-thousand-year spirit beasts. What's there to make such a fuss over?" Xuan Zi glanced at the student, then strode away as though the beasts he had just slapped into fleeing were merely ordinary ten-thousand-year spirit beasts, rather than the overlords of the Star Dou Great Forest.
The twelve elite Shrek students looked at one another, unable to recover from the display of strength Xuan Zi had shown for a long while.
In the end, Tang Tong, Shrek's Senior Disciple Brother and the leader of the group, was the first to come to his senses. "All right, junior brothers and sisters. Elder Xuan is the vice master of Shrek Academy's Sea God's Pavilion, a level ninety-eight Super Douluo with the strongest soul ring configuration. It is only natural for him to possess such strength."
As Tang Tong spoke, he could not help yearning for Xuan Zi's power.
But once that longing passed, he immediately realized a problem: he might never be able to reach Xuan Zi's realm.
It was not because he lacked diligence in cultivation, but because of an issue with his soul rings.
As for martial souls, his Soaring Ancient Tree Spirit was a top-tier martial soul that combined control, defense, and life. Perhaps it could not compare to a true Taotie, but Xuan Zi's martial soul was merely a Godly Taotie Bull, not an actual Taotie.
But there was indeed a serious problem with his soul rings. According to the agreement between Shrek and the Star Dou Great Forest, Shrek was not permitted to casually hunt Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings in the forest.
Thus, the goal of this trip was a ninety-thousand-year ninth soul ring.
Originally, that would have been good enough. But after personally witnessing a peak powerhouse with Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings, he felt a trace of unwillingness at the thought of obtaining only a ninety-thousand-year ninth soul ring.
Martial souls were innate, while soul rings were acquired. Since ancient times, no Titled Douluo with two yellow, two purple, and five black soul rings had ever cultivated to level ninety-eight. Level ninety-seven was already the limit for Titled Douluo who lacked the strongest soul ring configuration, and even Shrek was no exception.
He truly wanted a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring. But constrained by the agreement between Shrek and the Star Dou Great Forest, if he wanted one, he would have to search the sea for Sea Spirit Beasts. The problem was that his martial soul was the Soaring Ancient Tree Spirit!
A Sea Spirit Beast would pair well enough with something like a Taotie, since both were living creatures, and the sea also contained spirit beasts with dragon blood. But a Sea Spirit Beast paired with his Soaring Ancient Tree Spirit? An incompatible soul ring would likely provide him with little improvement.
Because incompatible soul rings offered limited gains, and because the sea was far too dangerous, hunting a Hundred-Thousand-Year Sea Spirit Beast was excessively difficult. The possibility of obtaining a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring from the sea was thus immediately dismissed.
He was destined to obtain his soul rings from the Star Dou Great Forest. Yet constrained by the agreement between the forest and Shrek, he could not actively hunt Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Rings there.
Wait, actively?
While Tang Tong worried over his inability to obtain a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring, a thought suddenly struck him.
He could not actively hunt a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, but what if a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast provoked him?
If a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast provoked him and seriously injured him, then Xuan Zi could kill it in anger and turn it into a soul ring. If the Star Dou Great Forest came to demand an explanation, they would have grounds to say that the spirit beast had attacked first and they had merely counterattacked.
And as it happened, he already knew of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that was highly suitable for him.
They merely needed to happen upon the lair of that Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, then show a little weakness. So long as the beast was tempted and decided to attack them, everything afterward would be easy.
There were three key points to accomplishing this. First was his injury. Only if he were beaten until he had not the slightest ability to resist, unable even to use his martial soul, could they ensure that they stood on the moral high ground when killing it.
That would not be difficult. Shrek had a habit of letting its students hunt their own soul rings. They had only avoided the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears because they did not need their soul rings and the bears were too powerful. If they encountered only one Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, Xuan Zi likely would not interfere as long as the group could handle it. Tang Tong would only need to hold back a little during the battle.
Second, it had to be an accident. They had to stumble upon that soul beast by chance. That would not be hard either, since only he knew about it, and he was the Senior Disciple Brother leading the way. As long as he said nothing, it would be an accident.
Third, and most importantly, they had to ensure that the soul beast dared to attack. That depended on Xuan Zi, but it was the point Tang Tong worried about least.
Not long after Xuan Zi dealt with the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears, his aura vanished once more. It disappeared so completely that even Tang Tong, a level ninety Soul Master, could not sense the slightest trace of Xuan Zi's presence, as though Xuan Zi were no longer beside them.
If he did not have absolute trust in Xuan Zi, Tang Tong would truly have suspected that Xuan Zi had already left them.
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