Great Terror, the Dead End of Humanoid Transformation

Thud~

Chrysanthemum Douluo, who was leading the students in search of suitable Soul Beasts, suddenly heard the sound of something heavy hitting the ground behind him.

He turned around warily and was instantly shocked.

"Old Ghost, Old Ghost, what happened to you?"

The figure that had crashed to the ground was none other than Ghost Douluo, who had left not long ago.

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo were inseparable friends, close enough to wear the same pair of pants.

Seeing Ghostly lying on the ground with blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, his fate unknown, Chrysanthemum Douluo was frantic.

"Old Ghost, you can't go. If you go, what am I supposed to do?"

Xie Yue, Yan, and the others gathered around as well, each of them wearing a look of shock.

Ghost Douluo was an Elder of Spirit Hall, a powerful Titled Douluo. Who could have injured him so severely?

"I... cough, cough, I'm not dead yet. Why are you mourning me?"

Ghostly patted Yue Guan, who was holding him, and said irritably.

The moment Yue Guan came into contact with Ghost Douluo, he knew that although Ghost Douluo's injuries were serious, his life was not in danger.

"Old Ghost, what did you encounter? How did you end up like this?"

A deep terror surfaced in Ghostly's eyes.

"There is a great terror in the Star Dou Great Forest. We need to leave the Star Dou Great Forest immediately. If we delay, we may be in danger."

Chrysanthemum Douluo knew the situation was urgent. With no time to ask for details, he called for the students to return the way they had come at once.

On the way back to Spirit Hall, Chrysanthemum Douluo finally learned from Ghostly what he had encountered.

"You're saying you didn't even see the Soul Beast that injured you, yet you ended up like this?"

Not only Chrysanthemum Douluo, but Xie Yue and the others, who had been listening closely beside them, were all dumbfounded.

From such a great distance, it had casually gravely wounded a Titled Douluo. What kind of terrifyingly powerful Soul Beast was that?

Hu Liena and the others exchanged glances, gaining an entirely new understanding of just how dangerous the Star Dou Great Forest was.

They had thought that with two Titled Douluo protecting them, they could roam freely through the Star Dou Great Forest.

Yet not long after entering the Star Dou Great Forest, Ghost Douluo had been injured so badly that he could no longer even protect himself.

Chrysanthemum Douluo asked solemnly:

"Old Ghost, if we joined forces, do you think we could handle that Soul Beast?"

When Ghost Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo joined forces, their strength was far more than a simple one plus one.

The two of them could jointly use the Martial Soul Fusion Skill—Two-Yi Static Domain. Its control effect was immensely powerful, capable of restricting space and time to a certain extent.

Ghostly weakly shook his head.

"I advise you not to entertain that thought. Even if the two of us joined forces, I'm afraid even if His Holiness the Pope or the Grand Pontiff took action, they might not be able to defeat that Soul Beast."

"Was it really that strong?"

"It really was that strong."

Chrysanthemum Douluo fell silent for a while, then continued:

"The injury on your chest isn't too serious. That Soul Beast's attack wasn't that powerful, was it?"

Ghostly hesitated before saying:

"The injury on my chest wasn't caused by that Soul Beast. It was caused by another Soul Beast."

Chrysanthemum Douluo was even more shocked.

"Could there be another Soul Beast whose strength is comparable to that one?"

"No." Ghostly looked rather embarrassed.

"I wasn't struck directly by that powerful Soul Beast's attack. I was only caught in its aftermath, yet I was gravely injured. If it had hit me directly, I probably wouldn't even have ashes left by now."

"As for my chest, when I was fleeing back, I wasn't paying attention and got hit by a Five-Colored Star Butterfly that wasn't even Ten-Thousand-Year."

To Ghostly, being struck by a Soul Beast that was not even Ten-Thousand-Year was far more humiliating than being injured by that unknown powerful Soul Beast.

It was the kind of disgraceful incident that, if it got out, would make the other Spirit Hall Elders laugh at him for decades.

To save face, Ghostly explained:

"I was focused solely on escaping at the time, and I slapped that Five-Colored Star Butterfly. It definitely won't survive."

Chrysanthemum Douluo did not even know what to say.

Why compare yourself to a Soul Beast that was not even Ten-Thousand-Year? Did that make you seem impressive?

"Let's report this to His Holiness the Pope and ask him to decide."

"Little Qi, is it over?"

"It's over."

Lin Qi absorbed his Second Soul Ring even more smoothly than he had absorbed his first.

"It's an enhancement-type Soul Skill, right?"

A Five-Colored Star Butterfly's Soul Ring could generally provide five different types of enhancements, but the Soul Master absorbing it could only obtain one of them.

Master Meng did not ask Lin Qi which one he had obtained.

Being experienced, he knew that asking would be pointless.

The answer was surely that he possessed all five enhancements at once.

Sure enough, Master Meng's prediction was correct.

"My Second Soul Skill is called Five Elements Protection."

As the Second Soul Ring lit up, Lin Qi's aura increased severalfold, while five-colored light flowed over his skin.

Of the five elemental enhancements, the Wood Attribute enhanced recovery, the Metal Attribute enhanced attack power, the Fire Attribute enhanced explosive power, the Water Attribute enhanced endurance, and the Earth Attribute enhanced defense.

Depending on the age of the Soul Ring and the degree of compatibility, the enhancements obtained by each Soul Master could vary greatly.

Lin Qi clenched his fist, feeling the enhancement brought by his Second Soul Skill.

"How many times did it increase them?"

Lin Qi answered, "After using my Second Soul Skill, all five attributes are enhanced threefold."

"Threefold? That degree of enhancement is already extremely strong. It has even surpassed the limit of a Thousand-year Soul Ring."

Master Meng appeared calm and composed, but his trembling beard betrayed the turmoil in his heart.

"There's more," Lin Qi continued.

"When all five elements gather, if I am gravely injured and on the verge of death, I can immediately recover to my peak condition at the cost of being unable to use my Second Soul Skill for three days."

Master Meng stroked his beard with a trembling hand.

"Is that so? You are the first Soul Master to obtain all five elemental enhancements at once. I have never heard of this ability before."

At that moment, the Battle Saint Ape and the Six-Winged Golden Mantis offered their congratulations.

"His Highness possesses peerless talent. Ascending to the pinnacle and becoming the God of Ten Thousand Beasts is within reach."

After speaking, the Battle Saint Ape glared at the Titan Giant Ape and Sky Azure Bull Python.

"His Highness has made a breakthrough, and you're just standing there watching?"

The Titan Giant Ape and Sky Azure Bull Python brothers immediately understood their leader's meaning and hurriedly offered their congratulations.

The Battle Saint Ape nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Xiao Wu.

"That rabbit, you actually chose the crooked path of Humanoid Transformation. If not for your good fortune in luckily following His Highness, I would have slapped a traitor like you to death."

Xiao Wu shrank back in fright.

"Se... Senior, how is Humanoid Transformation a crooked path? I haven't betrayed the Soul Beasts. I only wanted to avoid the Heavenly Tribulation."

The Six-Winged Golden Mantis sneered.

"Did you think the curse preventing Soul Beasts from becoming gods would leave such a huge loophole?"

Xiao Wu asked in surprise, "Isn't that the case?"

Didn't everyone say that only after Soul Beasts underwent Humanoid Transformation could they gain a sliver of a chance to become gods?

"Foolish. This is a trap specifically laid for Soul Beasts."

The Six-Winged Golden Mantis had always seemed gentler than the Battle Saint Ape, but now, the gold in his eyes was filled with brutality.

"Soul Beasts cultivate painstakingly until they reach Hundred Thousand Years. As long as they survive the Heavenly Tribulation, they can still possess a long lifespan."

"But once they choose Humanoid Transformation and voluntarily abandon their hard-earned strength, their fate is worse than dying while resisting the Heavenly Tribulation."

Xiao Wu's pupils shook violently.

It's over, it's over. Humanoid Transformation was actually a dead end?

Hadn't she chosen her own path to death?