The three of them headed deeper into the Rising Spirit Platform. Tang Wulin looked around curiously.
"Boss, what's it like deeper in? Why do I feel like the Soul Beasts get older the farther we go?"
"The three Rising Spirit Platforms are connected. If we keep going, we can leave the Beginner Rising Spirit Platform and enter the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform directly."
"I'm planning to go in and take a look. There's not much point fighting Hundred-Year Soul Beasts." Chen Ye smiled as he spoke.
His current strength was comparable to that of an ordinary Soul King. Under these circumstances, fighting Hundred-Year Soul Beasts really didn't mean much.
"Oh, I see... Then let's go, Boss!" Tang Wulin looked a little nervous. After all, he had little real combat experience.
He could handle ordinary Hundred-Year Soul Beasts, but he felt that he'd only drag them down if they ran into Thousand Year Soul Beasts.
Chen Ye looked at Tang Wulin's nervous expression, his own face turning helpless.
Under normal circumstances, he definitely wouldn't have wanted to bring Tang Wulin along. After all, Tang Wulin was relatively weak.
The problem was, he couldn't very well tell Tang Wulin not to talk to Mu Xi so much.
The kid was already gullible, and on top of that, he and Mu Xi were senior and junior disciples.
Mu Xi could casually ask him a couple of questions, and he might end up telling her about his relationship with Gu Yue.
Then he might get things under control with Gu Yue, only for something to go wrong with Mu Xi. That would really be a loss.
"Wulin, you're my number one underling. I brought you out today to broaden your horizons."
"I'll hunt a Thousand Year Soul Beast for you to absorb later."
"If you run into anything dangerous, just run. The two of us will deal with it."
"Okay, Boss. I understand."
Tang Wulin nodded. The two of them chatted as they continued deeper in, while Gu Yue followed at an unhurried pace behind them, her expression growing increasingly complicated.
Because of her personality, Xu Xiaoyan had been the first person willing to be her friend since she came to the human world.
And she had a Marriage Contract with Chen Ye. Under normal circumstances, she should have kept her distance from him.
But whenever she tried to distance herself from Chen Ye, memories of the two of them over the years would surface in her mind.
"We should be at the Edge Zone now. Gu Yue and I have been here before."
"That Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear was pretty interesting."
Chen Ye smiled and stopped where he was. He could already sense the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear's location.
It seemed to have sensed him as well, and was quickly approaching.
Seeing Chen Ye stop, Gu Yue instinctively stopped too. Then she felt a pair of warm hands settle on her shoulders.
"What are you thinking about, Sister Gu Yue? We're going to the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform, and it's very dangerous."
"Those Thousand Year Soul Beasts aren't easy to deal with."
"Mm... Sorry. I was thinking about something else just now..."
"It's all right. If something's bothering you, you can tell me. If I can help, I will."
Chen Ye smiled as he spoke, then took a small step forward.
At the same time, golden scales instantly covered the left side of his body. His First Soul Ring lit up, and Golden Dragon Blast erupted.
Compared to last time, the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear had barely revealed itself before its hill-sized body was blasted apart.
A vast amount of spiritual energy scattered, but Chen Ye didn't hesitate. He strode forward and headed straight for the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform.
Gu Yue and Tang Wulin followed close behind him. The three of them quickly crossed the Beginner Rising Spirit Platform and entered the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform.
"Warning, warning. You have entered the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform."
"Upon death, your Spiritual Power will be greatly depleted, and your mental state may even be affected."
The electronic voice rang in their ears, but Chen Ye paid it no mind. He casually stepped forward, and a deep Golden Dragon's roar sounded.
The roar was clearly meant to intimidate. As it rang out, two figures nearby lunged toward them.
They were two snakes, their bodies covered in black scales.
Chen Ye had never seen this kind of snake before. He hadn't even heard of one.
But creatures like these were perfectly normal in the Spirit Pagoda—or rather, in the Rising Spirit Platform. Beasts with mixed bloodlines were common here.
Because of the mixing between different creatures, the original Soul Beast catalog had long since become useless.
No one even knew what abilities many of these mixed-breed creatures possessed.
Chen Ye didn't care as the two Black Snakes charged at him. They were roughly four to five thousand years old.
Without hesitation, he raised his hand. His Third Soul Ring lit up, and his already enormous aura surged to an even higher level.
He raised his hand slightly, and the Myriad Swords Diagram turned. The scroll unfurled, revealing dozens of gleaming swords that flashed before shooting forward.
Several swords struck the Black Snakes. They couldn't pierce the snakes' defenses, but they severely slowed them down.
Chen Ye stepped forward and suddenly reached out. Golden Dragon Claw descended, grabbing both snakes.
A terrifying surge of blood energy shook them. Their bodies were badly injured, and Chen Ye casually tossed them to Gu Yue and Tang Wulin.
Tang Wulin's eyes lit up. He raised the Clear Sky Hammer in his hand and brought it down hard.
The Clear Sky Hammer smashed one of the severely injured Black Snakes to death.
A great surge of spiritual energy appeared and flowed into Tang Wulin's body.
Compared to the Beginner Rising Spirit Platform, the Intermediate Rising Spirit Platform had several times the normal absorption rate.
Tang Wulin's Yellow Soul Ring had already evolved into a purple one.
After absorbing a Black Snake that was about five thousand years old, the age of his Soul Ring shifted from pale purple toward a normal shade of purple.
"This isn't going too well, Boss. I think I can only handle four or five thousand years at most right now. I'm already close to my limit."
Tang Wulin looked a little troubled. Without the Golden Dragon King Martial Soul, his upper limit for absorbing a Soul Ring had dropped considerably.
"Absorb it first. Once you reach your limit, leave. You don't need to worry about things here. Gu Yue and I can handle it."
"Mm, you can leave once you're done absorbing it. With the two of us here, you don't need to worry about anything."
Gu Yue nodded too. The Ice Cone in her hand flashed, piercing straight through the Black Snake's head.
After the two of them finished absorbing the energy, they headed straight for the deeper areas.
Outside, Wu Changkong narrowed his eyes as he watched them, but in the end, he said nothing.
He waited a little longer, then saw Xu Xiaoyan and Xie Xie leave the Rising Spirit Platform first.
Their Soul Rings had both reached the thousand-year level. They had reached their limits, so they left early.
After all, for many ordinary Soul Masters, it was difficult to raise a Soul Spirit to the thousand-year level at the Two Rings stage.
The two of them had managed it because they had good talent.
As soon as Xu Xiaoyan came out, she looked around. Then she turned to Wu Changkong in confusion. "Teacher Wu, Sister Gu Yue and Chen Ye haven't come out yet?"
"Keep watching. It looks like they've run into trouble."
Before you continue