Planning

Seeing that his Martial Soul had changed form once again, Lu Lin showed no surprise.

After acquiring his first Soul Ring, the Pure Fire Green Lotus had transformed into a Blazing Fire Red Lotus when he used his first Soul Skill.

That was when Lu Lin discovered that his Martial Soul could change its external form.

After acquiring the Jade Mantis's Soul Ring, Lu Lin showed no delight.

Instead, he stood where he was, looking thoughtful.

It wasn't that this Thousand Year Soul Skill, Green Lotus Instant Body, was weak. On the contrary, Lu Lin was very satisfied with its effects.

But that wasn't what concerned him.

Just then, "Ji Ming" spoke unhurriedly from the side:

"Twin Martial Souls can't be used at the same time. Likewise, Soul Skills can't be used simultaneously."

"Green Lotus Instant Body is pretty good, but it still can't make up for its lack of offensive power."

"Buddha Fury Red Lotus relies on the fire lotus form of the first Soul Skill. Essentially, it compresses fire elements and Soul Power into the fire lotus, creating an explosion."

"The longer it's charged, the more powerful it becomes."

"But that also means you can't use Buddha Fury Red Lotus while using your second Soul Skill."

"Now, either you shorten the time it takes to switch Soul Skills, using Green Lotus Instant Body and then immediately switching to your first Soul Skill to charge Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus..."

"Or, like you did with Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus, you compress Soul Power into the Glazed White Jade Lotus form of your second Soul Skill and develop a derivative Battle Skill called Buddha's Fury Glazed Lotus."

"But the Glazed White Jade Lotus has no fire element to enhance it. It goes without saying that it won't be as powerful as Buddha's Fury Fire Lotus."

Lu Lin nodded without expression.

What Ji Ming had said was exactly what he was thinking. He had merely voiced it through his avatar.

There was another way to solve the problem: the Nine Treasure Glazed Sect's Heart Separation Control technique.

This secret art allowed a Soul Master to use multiple Soul Skills at once.

But for now, Lu Lin had only learned from Qin He that Ning Shuang, the current heir to the Nine Treasure Glazed Sect, was a third-year student at Shrek's Outer Court.

He hadn't even met her.

Besides, this technique was a secret passed down exclusively within the Nine Treasure Glazed Sect.

Unless he won Ning Shuang over, he wouldn't have a chance of learning it—not even through the window.

Still, if his plan went smoothly...

Lu Lin suppressed his thoughts.

Now that his real body had obtained its second Soul Ring, it was time to move on to the next step of his plan.

Not long afterward, somewhere in the central region of Sunset Forest.

Although Soul Beasts were rare around the outskirts of Sunset Forest, they weren't entirely absent.

This place was different. As far as the eye could see, there were hardly any plants, let alone Soul Beasts.

The culprit was the miasma blanketing the vast area before Lu Lin and his avatar. It was almost everywhere, like a thin mist.

Even standing at its edge, Lu Lin could feel his Soul Power moving sluggishly through his body, and he even felt as though he were being corroded.

This poisonous miasma certainly lived up to its reputation.

One careless mistake, and even a Soul Douluo-level expert might perish here.

This was one reason why the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes had remained isolated from the world in Sunset Forest for nine thousand years.

The Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes was one of the Douluo Plane's three great treasure troves. If not for the miasma, people would have stripped it bare long ago.

Only Lu Lin knew that Tang Shenwang had prepared the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes for Huo Yuhao a thousand years in the future.

For his grand plan spanning ten thousand years, how could Tang Shenwang have failed to leave himself a few safeguards?

By the time Huo Yuhao came here, he was already a five-ring Soul Master—and no ordinary one at that.

On top of that, his Martial Soul had the Extreme Ice attribute, which naturally countered the miasma. He also had the Emperor Beast King Qiu'er, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, the Soul Spirit Snow Empress, and several others helping him.

Even so, when he and Wang Qiu'er entered this "dungeon," they faced danger at every turn.

Anyone else would have perished here long ago.

Lu Lin only knew that the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes was located in Sunset Forest. Without a map, he and his avatar had wandered around the forest like headless flies, searching for it.

Fortunately, persistence paid off, and they had finally found it. After all, Sunset Forest wasn't all that large.

Lu Lin and his avatar stood one in front of the other at the edge of the miasma, lost in thought.

Normally, there was no way he could get in.

But his avatar had the Body Sect behind him. With Si Yuan Ye's abilities, he could enter the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes without hindrance.

And that was the "gift" Lu Lin intended to offer the Body Sect. After all, he couldn't use all those Immortal Herbs by himself.

Ji Ming—or rather, Lu Lin—had entered the Body Sect at the age of six.

The fact that he already had three rings at that age showed just how much the Body Sect had invested in him.

Lu Lin's feelings for the Body Sect ran deep.

Unfortunately, he knew all too well that during the Absolute Tang Dynasty era, the Body Sect would suffer devastating losses in its alliance war against the Sun Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult, leaving it severely weakened.

Before Du Busi died, he had entrusted the Body Sect to Huo Yuhao. But after Huo Gua ascended to the Divine Realm, how could he still look after the Body Sect?

After that battle, the Body Sect's decline was inevitable.

In some ways, the Body Sect's fate was rather similar to the Tang Sect's.

The difference was that after the Tang Sect fell into decline, Huo Yuhao, a child of destiny, became its leader and restored its fortunes. The Tang Sect then stood tall on the Douluo Continent for tens of thousands of years.

The Body Sect, however, continued to decline.

By the time of Dragon King Legend, it had fallen to its lowest point, no longer resembling its former glory.

Lu Lin believed that with the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes in its possession, the Body Sect wouldn't repeat the original story's fate.

As for Shrek, well, Shrek would be just fine without the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes.

Besides, Lu Lin didn't feel much attachment to Shrek yet.

After locating the poisonous miasma, "Ji Ming" returned to the sect as planned to fetch Si Yuan Ye.

Lu Lin stayed behind to wait for the arrival of the Body Sect's leader.

Sunset Forest was located in the southeastern part of the Heaven Dou Empire, and the Body Sect's territory was also within the empire.

Ji Ming wouldn't need long to make the round trip.

Just a few days later, three visitors arrived once more at Sunset Forest, a place seldom visited by anyone.

They were Si Yuan Ye, Ji Ming, and Nan Yunheng.

This was also the first time Lu Lin had met Si Yuan Ye and Nan Yunheng in person.

"This junior, Lu Lin, greets the sect leader."

Lu Lin suppressed his emotions and bowed slightly.

Si Yuan Ye, dressed in gray and carrying himself with refined elegance, looked at Lu Lin and nodded gently. Smiling, he said:

"You needn't be so formal. Ji Ming has already told me what happened."

"...Huh?"

Si Yuan Ye had walked to the edge of the miasma. He stared at it, his face full of surprise, and didn't even finish his sentence.

With his experience, he could tell this place was anything but ordinary.

Lu Lin kept a close eye on Si Yuan Ye's expression, but noticed nothing unusual.

The Incarnation Game panel, the source of his Golden Finger, showed no reaction.

That meant that even someone as powerful as Si Yuan Ye hadn't noticed the connection between him and Ji Ming.

Reliable!

The thing Lu Lin had worried about hadn't happened, and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Ji Ming, dressed in black, and Nan Yunheng stood quietly at Si Yuan Ye's side.

The young woman still had short black hair cut to her ears, skin as white as jade, and an ethereal, otherworldly air.

Her eyes shifted. She glanced at Lu Lin with clear eyes, then looked away.

"This miasma really is extraordinary. Good thing the two of you didn't rush in."

"Ha. The three of you, be careful and stay behind me."

Si Yuan Ye spoke in a calm tone, but a formidable, undeniable confidence radiated from him!