Ji Ming's Trial

Lu Lin walked up to Si Yuan Ye and said respectfully, "Teacher!"

Si Yuan Ye nodded slightly. "You want to go out and obtain your second Soul Ring?"

Clearly, Si Yuan Ye had heard Lu Lin's entire conversation with Mo Yin just now.

Even though they were twenty miles apart.

Lu Lin needed to use his second Martial Soul to sense Si Yuan Ye and Nan Yun Heng's presence, yet Si Yuan Ye could perceive almost everything.

The difference between them was immeasurable.

"Yes, Teacher," Lu Lin said frankly.

In two years, this current avatar, who was almost nine years old, had grown to over 1.7 meters tall, nearing adult height.

Thanks to the amplification from the Dark Demon Dreadclaw Bear's Super Martial Soul, Lu Lin's seemingly slender body concealed an explosive power that could be considered extreme.

Because Ji Ming and Nan Yun Heng had different Innate Soul Power levels.

Si Yuan Ye adopted two entirely different teaching methods for his two disciples.

Nan Yun Heng's current focus was on cultivation speed, supplemented by various heavenly treasures.

This allowed the eleven-year-old Nan Yun Heng, with a Level 2 Innate Soul Power, to cultivate to the rank of a Level 20 Soul Grand Master.

As for Ji Ming, Si Yuan Ye focused more on solidifying his foundation and grasping the essence of his Martial Soul.

Furthermore, the Body Sect inherently emphasized Martial Soul development and various combat techniques, looking down upon those Soul Masters who only relied on their Martial Soul's Soul Skills.

Therefore, Lu Lin deliberately slowed down the rate of his Soul Power Level progression, spending more time familiarizing himself with and controlling his two Martial Souls.

If not for this, Lu Lin would have definitely reached Level 20 earlier.

Without Si Yuan Ye speaking, Lu Lin didn't know when he would be allowed to go out and obtain his second Soul Ring.

Si Yuan Ye pondered for a moment, looked at his disciple, and slowly nodded.

"Alright, I agree."

"Let Mo Yin take you to hunt for a Soul Ring."

?????

Mo Yin, who was happily savoring the newly acquired fine wine, was startled by this. His expression immediately stiffened, and he wore a look more pained than if he were crying.

He actually didn't really want to go out.

In an unnoticed corner, the corner of the girl's lips curved upwards, revealing a serene smile.

Several dozen days later, Heaven Dou Empire.

The capital city, Heaven Dou City.

Three thousand years ago, the Sun Moon Continent plate collided with the Douluo Continent plate, causing a seismic shift in the Douluo Continent's landscape.

The Star Luo Empire's royal family changed hands, with the Xu family, possessing the Star Crown Martial Soul, replacing the Dai family.

The Heaven Dou Empire was even split into two, dividing into the Heavenly Soul and Dou Spirit empires.

At noon.

The sunlight poured unreservedly onto the majestic city walls. The enormous city gates were open, processing a continuous stream of people.

Nobles in ornate clothing rode Scale Horn Horses, galloping past.

More commoners, Soul Masters, and artisans formed a colorful torrent, surging along the main street, wide enough for eight carriages to drive abreast. They jostled shoulder to shoulder, painting a picture of prosperity.

Seeing this scene, a hint of awe flashed in Lu Lin's eyes.

This was Heaven Dou City, after all.

This city, with its ten-thousand-year history, was truly extraordinary.

Since transmigrating here, this was Lu Lin's first time visiting such a prosperous city.

Both Frostwind City, where his original body was, and the small town that his avatar Ji Ming had constructed from the system panel paled in comparison to Heaven Dou City.

However, it was surprisingly unexpected that he didn't see many new types of Soul Tools in Heaven Dou City.

Not that there were none, but they were very few.

This giant metropolis seemed to carry more characteristics of the Martial Soul Hall era.

And among the Douluo Continent's original three great empires, the Heaven Dou Empire was indeed the one most indifferent to Soul Tools, or rather, the country with the most backward Soul Tool technology.

This was quite similar to the Body Sect's philosophy.

But this also led to the Heaven Dou Empire being the first to fall during the Peerless period, annihilated by Ju Zi.

"Alright, Ji Ming kid, stop looking. Let's hurry to the Heaven Dou Great Soul Arena."

Beside Lu Lin, Mo Yin, clad in black mystic robes, lazily urged Lu Lin on.

He had no idea how many times he'd visited Heaven Dou City; nothing about it was surprising to him.

Lu Lin let out a wry chuckle.

There was, of course, a reason they had come to Heaven Dou City.

Si Yuan Ye had agreed to let his disciple go out and obtain a second Soul Ring.

The condition was that after obtaining the Soul Ring, he had to come to the Great Soul Arena in Heaven Dou City to participate in soul duels.

He could only return to the sect after obtaining the Silver Soul Master badge.

Lu Lin and Mo Yin had just emerged from the Star Dou Great Forest.

His second Soul Ring came from a Golden Mane Lion with a cultivation of seven thousand six hundred years.

With Mo Yin, a Titled Douluo-level expert, escorting him, finding a suitable Soul Beast was incredibly easy.

It was just that absorbing the Soul Ring had been a bit of a struggle.

After obtaining his second Soul Ring, the two of them had rushed to Heaven Dou City without delay, leading to the scene described above.

Mo Yin naturally hoped Lu Lin would quickly complete the trial goal set by Si Yuan Ye and return to the sect as soon as possible.

As long as Lu Lin couldn't get the Silver Soul Master badge, he couldn't go back either.

They were in the same boat, so to speak.

A short while later, the Great Soul Arena.

This colossal, circular structure stood at the heart of Heaven Dou City, a symbol of its strength and glory.

After a series of tedious procedures, Lu Lin and Mo Yin finally gained entry into the massive building.

Upon entering, Lu Lin's gaze was instantly drawn to a giant, swirling Soul Tool crystal monument erected in the center of the lobby.

The monument's surface was divided into several distinct areas, with rows upon rows of Soul Master names and points rapidly scrolling.

At the very top, the leaderboard for the Gold Soul Master area had very few names.

In contrast, the names of Iron Soul Masters and Silver Soul Masters occupied most of the monument's surface.

Lu Lin only glanced at it briefly, but the crystal monument quickly scrolled, switching to display leaderboards for two-person, three-person teams, and even seven-person team duels.

It was truly dazzling, almost too much to take in.

Mo Yin's expression remained indifferent, still uninterested in the monument, his mind solely focused on drinking.

To one side of the lobby was the front desk.

It seemed no different from the bank counters in Lu Lin's previous life.

Lu Lin queued up at the counter of a pleasant-looking, calm-faced female staff member in her early twenties, wearing the blue uniform of the Great Soul Arena.

"Name, age, Soul Power Level, Martial Soul."

The staff member asked in a flat, formulaic tone.

"Ji Ming, sixteen years old, Level twenty-one, Martial Soul Claw Bear."

Lu Lin stated calmly, omitting his true age and Martial Soul name.

As long as he didn't say it, who would know what his Martial Soul was called?

The Dark Demon Dreadclaw Bear and the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear only looked similar; if one examined them closely, they were worlds apart.

The staff member in uniform looked at Lu Lin, her brow furrowing almost imperceptibly. Sixteen years old?

After a brief silence.

She took out a crystal ball, handed it through the window, and said concisely, "Test your Soul Power."

Lu Lin placed his hand on it as instructed.

This crystal ball was different from the one used for awakening Martial Souls; it could only test the approximate Soul Power range.

The next moment, the crystal ball emitted a soft glow, indicating the twenty-level range.

Seeing this, the staff member nodded slightly. "Alright."

As she spoke, she retracted the crystal ball and continued to register Lu Lin's information.

A moment later, her voice sounded in Lu Lin's ear at the opportune time:

"Okay, you just need to pick a codename."

Lu Lin calmly uttered two words: "Yan Jun."

A short while later, the staff member handed a standard iron badge through the window, representing Lu Lin's current rank in the arena.

Then, the staff member explained some basic rules to Lu Lin, such as the different types of soul duels, the scoring system, and the rule that only one soul duel could be participated in per day.

In short, after a series of tedious procedures, Lu Lin was finally registered—though the registration fee was quite high, a steep ten Gold Soul Coins.

It made Lu Lin's heart ache.

With the iron badge in hand, Lu Lin could now sign up for soul duels.

Of course, Lu Lin could currently only participate in Soul Elder level and below combat competitions. Just looking at Soul Power alone, a level twenty-one Soul Master would be at a significant disadvantage against a level twenty-nine Soul Master.

"Next, let's welcome the two Soul Masters for this combat—Yan Jun and Blazing Wolf!"

As the host's voice fell, thunderous applause and cheers erupted from the stands.

Lu Lin, dressed in black and wearing a wolf-shaped mask that covered half his face, walked onto the stage. To his surprise, his opponent, whose code name was Blazing Wolf, was actually wearing a bear-themed Soul Beast mask.

He felt a strange sense of unease.

The two appeared one after another.

The host then explained the situation of the two to the audience in the stands, such as the level twenty-one newcomer Yan Jun and the level twenty-six Blazing Wolf, before stepping off the stage and leaving the arena to both contestants.

Blazing Wolf looked at the slender Lu Lin and raised an eyebrow.

Where did this brat come from? Won't one slap from me cripple him?

The audience below the stands largely shared this view, whispering amongst themselves and even feeling a bit bored—level twenty-one against level twenty-six, it was an obvious advantage for Blazing Wolf.

Blazing Wolf let out a sinister laugh. As he activated his Martial Soul Avatar, two yellow Soul Rings already appeared on his body.

First Soul Skill: Blazing Wolf Flame Claw!

Blazing Wolf charged towards Lu Lin with lightning speed.

Lu Lin's expression remained as calm as still water. He calmly released his Martial Soul and two unremarkable purple Soul Rings.

Instantly, the entire crowd was shocked into silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Blazing Wolf's pupils constricted; he could hardly believe his eyes.

Two purple Soul Rings, was this a joke?!

However, he had already activated his Soul Skill and it was too late to change course.

The next moment, he saw the first purple Soul Ring on "Yan Jun" light up. A scarlet flash followed, and his body took a solid hit from a thousand-year Soul Ring Skill. Blood gushed out of him as if it were free, a truly spectacular sight.

Indeed, the outcome of the battle was exactly as he had thought.

Just one claw, and he was already half crippled!