"This... This is..."
"The Ancestor's aura?! How is this possible?!"
The Blue Silver Emperor's voice finally changed, filled with terror and disbelief.
Under that absolute suppression, which came from the very source of its bloodline, the nineteen hundred thousand years of cultivation it had prided itself on seemed like a joke. Every Blue Silver Grass in the valley had betrayed it, bowing in worship to that man.
Gu Yuejin didn't take the opportunity to attack. Instead, he reined in his violent pressure. Golden light flowed through his eyes as his vast Spiritual Power formed an invisible bridge that connected directly to the Blue Silver Emperor's consciousness.
"Don't be nervous. If I wanted to kill you, you'd already be a corpse."
Gu Yuejin's voice rang in the Blue Silver Emperor's mind, cold and assured, as though he had seen through the ways of the world.
"Let's talk about reality."
"Your cultivation has reached a hundred and ninety thousand years, and you rule this valley. But you know perfectly well that your path has come to an end."
"Cultivating as a plant-type soul beast is hundreds, even thousands, of times harder than for an animal-type soul beast. And you're only one step away from the Heavenly Tribulation at two hundred thousand years."
"But that final step is the gate to hell."
Gu Yuejin's words were like a sharp blade, cutting straight into the deepest fear in the Blue Silver Emperor's heart.
"Your foundation is solid, but you lack the baptism of top-tier heavenly treasures, and you have no divine bloodline to protect you."
"When the next Heavenly Tribulation descends, your soul will be scattered and your body reduced to ashes."
"Are you willing to accept that? To linger in this dark valley until you become nothing but ash beneath a lightning tribulation?"
The Blue Silver Emperor's enormous body shuddered violently. The golden patterns on its leaves flickered, making it clear that Gu Yuejin had struck a nerve.
It had lived too long and seen too many of its kind fall beneath the Heavenly Tribulation.
"What... exactly are you trying to say?" The Blue Silver Emperor's voice was hoarse, wavering slightly.
"A deal."
Gu Yuejin laid his cards on the table, his tone full of temptation:
"Sacrifice yourself to me."
"Merge your soul and core essence into my Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul without holding anything back."
"This isn't death. It's another form of 'eternal life' and evolution."
"In return, I, Gu Yuejin, swear this—"
Gu Yuejin raised his right hand, his expression solemn. A terrifying aura of Destruction and Creation stirred faintly within him—the lingering divine essence he had absorbed after seizing the Dragon Soul at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eyes.
"First, I will take you to the divine level! I'll help you transcend mortal tribulations and see the true wonders of the Divine Realm!"
"Second, I'll ensure your descendants thrive! This valley will become my territory, and no one will dare to trespass!"
"Third, I'll use the top-tier resources at my disposal to help your people awaken their intelligence, and even take human form!"
"Follow me, and you'll be a loyal servant of a great power! Stay here, and you'll be nothing but bones in a grave!"
"Choose."
A deathly silence fell over the valley.
The Blue Silver Emperor fell silent.
It sensed the "Divine Potential" within Gu Yuejin, a presence that made even its soul tremble. It was more exalted and more vast than the power it had cultivated over a hundred and ninety thousand years.
It had a feeling this human wasn't lying.
By following him, it might truly be able to break free from its doomed fate.
After a long while,
a faint sigh echoed through the valley, carrying both relief and resolve.
"Very well..."
"The Heavenly Tribulation is too hard to overcome. I have nowhere left to turn."
"Human, I hope you keep your promise and treat my people well."
"I am willing... to sacrifice myself."
The instant its words fell,
BOOM—!!!
A massive blue-gold pillar of light burst from the Blue Silver Emperor and shot into the sky!
Every one of the countless Blue Silver Grass plants in the valley lit up at once, transforming into a dazzling sea of energy.
The ten-meter-tall Blue Silver Emperor began to burn, turning into the purest Life Origin. Like rivers flowing into the sea, it poured wildly toward Gu Yuejin, who stood at the center.
"Excellent!"
Gu Yuejin sat cross-legged and spread his arms, accepting the vast energy without the slightest defense.
At the same time, he thought to himself:
System, claim reward—Three Hundred Thousand Year Blue Silver Emperor Soul Ring!
Fusing...
HUM—!
Within his body, another force of Soul Ring energy surged into existence out of thin air: the Three Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, imbued with the even more domineering power of the system's laws.
One force within and one without, the two terrifying energies began carving themselves into his Second Martial Soul under Gu Yuejin's guidance.
"What... What is this?!"
The energy fluctuations drove Ye Guyi back again and again. Her eyes were wide with shock.
She had never seen a sight so magnificent.
Countless blue-gold specks of light filled the sky, like countless dancing sprites, all rushing to enter that man's body.
Gu Yuejin's aura was climbing at a speed visible to the naked eye!
Level seventy-eight... level seventy-nine... level eighty!
A bottleneck?
Before the terrifying energy of the One Hundred Ninety Thousand Year Sacrifice and the system's Three Hundred Thousand Year reward, the so-called bottleneck was like a sheet of paper—one poke was all it took to break through!
"AAAH—!!!"
Gu Yuejin threw back his head and roared, releasing a rush of power with sheer exhilaration.
The enormous surge of life energy made his meridians ache and swell, but for a body strengthened by Ice Fire Golden Body Refinement and the Dragon King Soul Bone, it was well within what he could endure.
The vast vitality was even nourishing his body, pushing his Life Origin to a new height.
No one knew how much time had passed.
The dazzling light gradually faded.
A translucent Blue-Gold Leg Bone, seemingly brimming with the vitality of an entire forest, slowly merged into Gu Yuejin's left leg.
The One Hundred Ninety Thousand Year Blue Silver Emperor Left Leg Bone!
"Whew..."
Gu Yuejin slowly opened his eyes.
In that instant, his eyes turned a pure azure blue, as if they held a sea of stars.
He slowly rose to his feet.
BOOM—!
The terrifying pressure of an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo erupted!
Behind him, the Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul surged in the wind.
Two deep crimson Soul Rings, so dark they seemed ready to drip blood, slowly appeared and began to revolve around him.
Red! Red!
Two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Rings!
The second one was especially striking, its color a sinister dark red, with a ring of strange blue-gold patterns flowing across it—the mark of a Three Hundred Thousand Year Ferocious Beast Soul Ring!
"Eight-Ring... Soul Douluo."
Gu Yuejin clenched his fist, feeling the power inside him, like a volcano ready to erupt at any moment.
"This feeling... is amazing."
"C-congratulations, senior!"
Ye Guyi stared at the figure before her, as imposing as a god or demon. Her voice trembled.
Two Hundred Thousand Year Soul Rings!
Was he even human?!
He was practically a walking humanoid Ferocious Beast!
"Let's try out the new skills."
Gu Yuejin's lips curved as he looked toward a boulder in the depths of the valley.
The first crimson Soul Ring on his body suddenly lit up. It had come from the Blue Silver Emperor's One Hundred Ninety Thousand Year Sacrifice!
"Blue Silver Overlord Spear!"
He didn't summon a physical spear or armor!
Countless Blue Silver Grass vines instantly gathered, forming a blue-gold spear a hundred meters long. Wrapped in unmatched penetrating power and the majesty of an emperor, it pierced through the boulder in an instant, blasting a bottomless hole through the mountain behind it as well!
"Excellent single-target burst damage, with an added suppressive effect. Not bad."
"Blue Silver Overlord Armor!"
Countless strands of Blue Silver Grass gathered around him, forming pale blue armor that shimmered with every breath!
"Not bad-looking, and it even comes with a healing effect. Nice."
After giving his verdict, Gu Yuejin looked toward the second, darker crimson Soul Ring. This one was the system's Three Hundred Thousand Year reward!
"Eternal Forest: Heaven Devourer!"
HUM—
The space within a hundred meters instantly darkened.
Countless black vines emerged from the void. They were no longer plants, but seemed like tentacles from the depths of hell.
Everything they touched—rocks, soil, even the remnants of Soul Power—was devoured, transformed into pure energy, and fed back to Gu Yuejin.
This was the combined Soul Skill granted by the Three Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring!
A top-tier domain skill for control and sustained combat!
"So powerful..."
Huo Yuhao watched, his blood boiling, his admiration growing even stronger.
Before you continue