Taking Tang San to Hunt His First Soul Ring

Under the scorching flames, the Shadow Leopard soon breathed its last. A purple Soul Ring rose from its corpse.

"Tang San, come out."

Lin Mu exited his Armor Integration state and spoke without looking back.

Hearing this, Tang San immediately emerged from behind the rock. His expression was grave as he looked at the Shadow Leopard's corpse, every part of it burned black.

If it had been him, there was absolutely no way he could have killed this Shadow Leopard. Even if he had used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to flee, he likely would not have escaped the Shadow Leopard's pursuit.

Yet in his master's hands, it had been so utterly vulnerable.

"Master, is that a Soul Ring?"

As he gazed at the purple Soul Ring floating above the Shadow Leopard's corpse, a flicker of curiosity passed through Tang San's eyes.

As long as he absorbed a Soul Ring, he could become a Soul Master, and the bottleneck of the Mysterious Heaven Skill would be resolved as well.

"That's right. This is a Soul Ring over three thousand years old. Its age is far too high for you. If you forcefully absorb it, you could die from your body exploding."

After a pause, Lin Mu continued, "Generally speaking, the limit for a first Soul Ring is four hundred years. Some Grandmaster researched this limit and determined it to be four hundred and twenty-three years."

"That figure is meaningless. Everyone has a different limit of endurance, so this conclusion can easily mislead people. Besides, those Soul Master records were all stolen by him."

Upon hearing that, Tang San immediately understood.

"It's just a pity. This three-thousand-year Soul Ring is going to waste like this."

"Soul Masters and soul beasts have been irreconcilable enemies since ancient times. Since this soul beast attacked us, killing it is entirely justified. If we let it go, perhaps other Soul Masters would lose their lives to it."

In Lin Mu's view, soul beasts were neither good nor evil.

As the saying went, those not of our kind must harbor different hearts. Soul Masters obtained their Soul Rings from soul beasts; they were natural enemies. Why bother distinguishing between good and evil?

Hearing this perspective, Tang San fell into thought. Unknowingly, his way of thinking began to change.

Suddenly, Tang San thought of a very important question. He raised his head and asked Lin Mu, "Master, was that armor your Martial Soul?"

"That's right. In the eyes of outsiders, my Martial Soul is a piece of metal, but its true form is a suit of armor. It can be considered an armor-type Martial Soul."

Lin Mu merely revealed the type of his Martial Soul and did not tell Tang San about his trump cards.

If it were merely armor, Flame of Nawa would not count as a top-tier Martial Soul. Its true strength lay in its ability to control flames, as well as the weapons that came with the armor.

Although he had already accepted Tang San as his disciple, one could never be too guarded. Besides, Tang San had been deeply influenced by the Tang Sect.

Who knew when he might suddenly blurt out, "You have earned the right to die."

No matter what, being cautious could never be wrong.

"Alright, let's continue. Our target is still some distance away."

Following the map, the two continued onward. They encountered no further soul beast attacks along the way.

After a long while, they arrived before a lake. Their target stood on its shore: a small blade of grass as clear and glittering as a diamond, roughly half a meter tall, with roots that extended down to the bottom of the lake.

Lin Mu had found this soul beast in the Compendium of Soul Beast Species in the Star Dou Great Forest. It was called Ice Crystal Grass, and its Life Force was stronger than that of plants of the same age.

"More than three hundred years. That should be enough."

After confirming the age of the Ice Crystal Grass, Lin Mu picked up a pebble from the ground and flicked it at the plant.

With a sharp whistle through the air, the pebble struck the Ice Crystal Grass's stalk with perfect accuracy.

To Lin Mu's surprise, although the pebble hit the Ice Crystal Grass, it produced a crisp ringing sound, as though it had struck something as hard as a diamond.

"It actually blocked it."

Tang San's eyes were filled with disbelief. He had seen his master's strength before. Although his master had not used his Martial Soul, with the Soul Power of a Soul Ancestor, it should not have been something a mere blade of grass could withstand.

"It seems that besides increasing the Life Force of Blue Silver Grass, it may also grant a decent soul skill."

After marveling at it, Lin Mu slowly walked toward the Ice Crystal Grass. At the same time, he summoned his Martial Soul and completed Armor Integration as he advanced.

When he neared the Ice Crystal Grass, Lin Mu placed his hand over it and released flames to burn it.

Generally speaking, the harder something was, the more it feared extreme heat or cold.

Gradually, the layer of Ice Crystal Cuticle covering the Ice Crystal Grass began to peel away, and drops of juice as large as beans flowed from its stalk.

Before long, the Ice Crystal Grass began to wither. Its Life Force rapidly drained away, and it was nearly dead.

"Tang San, give it the final blow."

"Yes, Master."

After answering respectfully, Tang San took out a small knife and severed the Ice Crystal Grass's roots. The Ice Crystal Grass completely lost its Life Force, and a yellow Soul Ring floated into view.

Immediately afterward, under Lin Mu's guidance, Tang San began absorbing the Soul Ring.

Absorbing a Soul Ring took quite a bit of time, especially for one's first Soul Ring. Three or four hours was entirely normal.

While Tang San absorbed the Soul Ring, Lin Mu had nothing to do, so he searched nearby for some game.

Three hours later.

Tang San slowly opened his eyes. A fragrance of roasted meat, drifting from who knew where, entered his nostrils and stirred his appetite, making his mouth water.

But why was there the smell of roasted meat here?

Turning his gaze, he saw Lin Mu tending a grill not far away. A rabbit was roasting on it, cooked to perfection, its skin golden and crisp. It looked incredibly appetizing.

The ingredients had come from a hundred-year Soft Bone Rabbit.

During his years traveling the continent, it had become one of Lin Mu's favorite foods. It was simple and convenient to prepare, and there were plenty of them. One could casually run into several at a time.

"Master, I've finished absorbing the Soul Ring."

As Tang San spoke, his eyes remained fixed on the roasted rabbit. He could tell just from the scent that it was a rare delicacy.

At home, the most common food was thin porridge. He might not eat meat more than a few times a year, much less such an enticing roasted rabbit.

Seeing Tang San staring unblinkingly at the rabbit, an almost imperceptible mischievous smile appeared at the corner of Lin Mu's mouth.

"Tang San, you're at the age when you need nourishment. This big rabbit leg is for you."

As he spoke, Lin Mu tore off a large rabbit leg and stuffed it into Tang San's hands.

Tang San froze slightly. Looking at the large rabbit leg in his hands, warmth surged through his heart. His master was the person who treated him best.

As a father, Tang Hao was undoubtedly irresponsible. Tang San was thin and frail, clearly malnourished.

No wonder many people in Lin Mu's previous life had said that Tang Hao had noticed his son had been possessed, which was why he had completely neglected him until the appearance of the Clear Sky Hammer finally drew Tang Hao's attention.

Though it sounded somewhat like a conspiracy theory, the possibility could not be ruled out.

If Tang Hao had completely given up on himself merely because of the death of Blue Silver Emperor Ah Yin, to the point of not caring about his own son or even thinking of avenging himself against Spirit Hall—

If that was truly the case, then Tang Hao was far too weak. He was nothing but useless.