In such a beautiful place, Shen Feng's consciousness was being relentlessly chased by a red-eyed ox head, which kept ramming him in the butt.
That's right, an ox head. Its eyes were bloodred, and two spiral horns jutted from its forehead. Below its neck was nothing but a hazy black mist.
Shen Feng's consciousness was completely naked, his body faintly glowing gold. He clutched the Leiming Blade in one hand as he fled wildly.
The Ox Dragon's head floated behind him, chasing him relentlessly. Whenever it caught up, it rammed Shen Feng in the butt with its horns.
This was a battle of pure consciousness. Without Soul Power, both sides had lost access to their Soul Skills.
The Ox Dragon had cultivated for 9,999 years, and its soul was solid. Though it was only a head, it was still not to be underestimated.
Shen Feng had lived two lives, and his soul had matured a second time. It was no weakling, and with his Martial Soul protecting him, he could hold his own against the ox head.
He was half a jin, and the ox head was eight liang. (A half jin here is five liang.)
Moo—
The ox head rammed him in the butt again, and Shen Feng's consciousness let out a howl.
"Damn ox head, I'll fight you to the death!"
With a sudden leap forward, Shen Feng spun around and charged straight at the ox head, Leiming Blade in hand.
Thunder Flash—
A flash of lightning suddenly burst beneath his feet, and Shen Feng's speed surged.
Thunder Blade—
A faint glimmer of lightning flickered across the Leiming Blade, as though it had been enchanted.
"Slash!"
They brushed past each other, and Shen Feng brought his blade down hard on the ox head.
"Moo! Moo!"
The ox head let out a terrible wail. A huge wound, crackling with lightning, was carved into the right side of its face.
It stretched from the right corner of its mouth to its right eye. Lightning flashed as tiny specks of spiritual power slowly drifted from the wound.
This was the first time Shen Feng had truly injured the ox head.
Ever since he began absorbing the Soul Ring, the ox head had chased him relentlessly, leaving him nowhere to run, whether in the sky or underground.
If he hadn't been able to replenish his energy from his body during this battle, his spiritual body would probably have collapsed by now.
But the long chase had also taken Shen Feng from awkwardness to familiarity, teaching him a few tricks for gathering spiritual power.
It wasn't nearly as useful as Soul Power, but going from nothing to something made all the difference in the world.
"Haha! Damn ox head, the tables have turned—you're finished!"
Seeing that his attack had worked, Shen Feng immediately gained confidence.
As long as his body hadn't completely collapsed and his sea of consciousness remained intact, he was effectively immortal in this battle.
The Ox Dragon's spiritual power, on the other hand, had no source to replenish it. Every bit it used was gone for good. If he wore it down a few more times and landed a few more blows, he could eventually exhaust it.
Luckily, the Ox Dragon had cultivated for only 9,999 years. If it had been a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast and undergone a transformation of its soul, it could have shattered Shen Feng's sea of consciousness the instant it entered.
At that point, forget fighting back. Shen Feng would be lucky if he didn't explode on the spot—assuming his body was tough enough to endure it.
Night fell. A beam of bright moonlight pierced the clouds that perpetually shrouded Thundercloud Canyon and fell upon Shen Feng below.
The furrow in Shen Feng's brow gradually relaxed, and a faint purple-black glow quietly seeped from his body.
At the sight, Oscar's worried expression changed. Suppressing his excitement, he said, "Teacher Zhao, look! Xiao Feng did it!"
As the purple-black glow of Soul Power bloomed across Shen Feng's body, wisps of purple-black lightning began dancing over his dark red skin, still caked with dried blood.
The corners of Zhao Wuji's mouth lifted slightly, and at last he let out a breath of relief.
"Soul Power leaking out—that's a sign he's about to break through."
"Xiao Feng has already made it through the most dangerous part. Now comes the process of converting his Soul Power."
"Let's take a few steps back and try not to disturb him."
Oscar nodded excitedly and cautiously backed away a few steps, keeping his eyes fixed on Shen Feng.
"Mm..."
Just as Zhao Wuji and Oscar thought the worst was over, Shen Feng's relaxed brow suddenly furrowed. A pained groan escaped his throat.
Sitting cross-legged, his body convulsed violently. His chest thrust upward, his entire upper body arched, and his arms spread unnaturally, palms facing up. His fingers stiffened into claws, making for a terrifying sight.
"Xiao Feng!" Oscar cried out in alarm.
Zhao Wuji was startled too, his heart contracting sharply. Had something gone wrong again?
Crackle—
As the two stared in shock, a purple-black arc of electricity suddenly burst from Shen Feng's body.
The arc shot out, and amid a rising chorus of crackling pops, it quickly transformed into lightning snakes as thick as thumbs. They coiled around his body, slithering and writhing wildly.
As the lightning snakes danced, the dried blood on Shen Feng's skin shattered and peeled away, turning to dust in midair.
Suddenly, an unnatural black glint flashed across Shen Feng's body. The moonlight and lightning caught it just right, reflecting it into Oscar's eyes.
"Teacher Zhao, what's that?"
At Oscar's call, Zhao Wuji quickly noticed the strange change on Shen Feng's body too.
Shen Feng seemed to be in great pain, his body twitching nonstop. Fine beads of blood broke through his skin again, soaking his clothes.
"Kh... kh..."
Painful growls kept rising from his throat as Shen Feng's body convulsed.
In the next instant, countless black scales began appearing across Shen Feng's body, bursting through his skin and reflecting strange glimmers in the moonlight and lightning.
"What is that? Scales? Armor?" Zhao Wuji cried out.
Shen Feng was now covered in black scales of all shapes and sizes, which covered nearly his entire body.
Even the sides of Shen Feng's face had sprouted a few fine black scales.
The many black scales, varied in size and shape, overlapped in some places and lined up neatly in others. Miraculously, they formed what looked like a suit of armor over Shen Feng's body.
In the moonlight and lightning, the black armor shimmered with an array of strange colors, giving off an indescribably eerie feeling.
As soon as the scales had all grown in, Shen Feng's body suddenly relaxed. His pained expression gradually eased, and the lightning snakes crawling across his skin withdrew, returning to his body.
"Dragon Martial Soul Possession? Isn't Xiao Feng's Martial Soul the Leiming Blade? Since when did he get a Dragon Martial Soul?"
Seeing Shen Feng's strange appearance, Zhao Wuji immediately thought of Dragon Martial Soul Soul Masters.
Oscar shook his head. "No, there are no horns on his head. It shouldn't be Dragon Martial Soul Possession."
"Besides, Teacher Zhao, look at those scales on Xiao Feng. Don't they look like the Ox Dragon's?"
Zhao Wuji stared blankly for a moment, looking at the Ox Dragon lying dead on the ground, then at Shen Feng, sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed and his body covered in black scales.
"Now that you mention it, they really do."
"Could it be that he has an Ox Dragon Martial Soul instead of a Dragon Martial Soul?"
Oscar was dumbfounded. He stared at Zhao Wuji, at a loss for words.
Zhao Wuji laughed. "I was joking. Just trying to lighten the mood."
Oscar rolled his eyes and said seriously, "Teacher Zhao, that wasn't funny at all."
Zhao Wuji sighed, looking somewhat helpless. "Xiao Feng's condition is definitely beyond my understanding. Then again, this kid has been constantly expanding my horizons from the very beginning."
"An 800-year first Soul Ring, a 2,700-year second Soul Ring, and now an 8,000-year third Soul Ring."
"Honestly, even if you told me Xiao Feng was a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Dragon Soul Beast, I wouldn't be surprised. I'd just admit it outright: 'That's right, look, he's even grown scales.'"
"Uh..." Oscar was speechless. For a moment, he really couldn't find anything to say in response.
After all, sometimes even he felt that Shen Feng was simply inhuman.
Where on the entire Douluo Continent could you find a Soul Grandmaster who killed Soul Elders as easily as chickens?
And what other Soul Master could absorb Soul Rings beyond his level like Shen Feng?
If Shen Feng hadn't looked so much like the married couple Shen Rui and Ling Na, Oscar might have wondered if he was a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast too.
Zhao Wuji gave Oscar a grin. "Don't overthink it. What's happening to Xiao Feng right now is beyond the two of us, no matter how hard we rack our brains. And that's not even getting into his other secrets."
"He'll be waking up soon anyway. If you're curious, just ask him when he does."
"Ask me what?"
Shen Feng's voice suddenly rang out, startling Zhao Wuji and Oscar, who were standing not far away.
Oscar immediately turned around, cutting off his conversation with Zhao Wuji. He looked at Shen Feng with delight. "Xiao Feng, you're awake! How do you feel?"
Shen Feng slowly got to his feet, and a series of sharp cracks came from the bones in his body.
He moved his hands and feet a little, then nodded with satisfaction. "Not bad. I feel strong. All that suffering wasn't for nothing."
"Especially my butt. It's still in perfect condition."
Shen Feng reached down and squeezed his butt, then froze. Why was it so hard?
He squeezed again, unconvinced, but it still felt wrong.
Glancing down at his hands, Shen Feng was shocked.
"Holy crap, what happened to me?"
Only then did Shen Feng realize that his body was covered in black scales.
He flipped his hand and took a mirror from his wrist guard, examining the black armor all over himself for a long while. In the end, he couldn't hold back his excitement and burst into wild laughter.
"Hahaha! Hahaha! Fate is on my side! Fate is on my side!"
Seeing Shen Feng suddenly go wild, Oscar and Zhao Wuji stood frozen in place. They exchanged a glance and saw the same deep confusion in each other's eyes, along with a hint of worry.
"Xiao Feng, are you all right?"
At Oscar's call, Shen Feng gradually calmed down. His face was full of delight. "I'm fine. What could be wrong with me?"
"Right now, I could take on ten Soul Elders at once without breaking a sweat."
Zhao Wuji sucked in a sharp breath. "Xiao Feng, you've never been one to lie. You're not lying this time, are you?"
Shen Feng smiled confidently, flipped his hand, and took a steel saber from his Soul Tool. He drove it hard toward his chest.
Clang—Crackle!
In a flash, the tip struck the scales on Shen Feng's chest. A wildly powerful purple-black current erupted, knocking the steel saber out of his hand.
"With this Thunder Armor, a three-ring Soul Elder can't break through my defenses."
"The only way they could beat me would be to find a way to drain all my Soul Power before I killed them."
"Hiss..."
Zhao Wuji drew in a sharp breath. "Invincible among your peers? Good heavens!"
"Back when I was a Soul Emperor, I once fought sixteen Soul Emperor priests from Spirit Hall on my own. I don't even know how much suffering I went through before earning the title of Immovable Bright King in the Soul Master World."
"And with nothing but the scales on your body, you might surpass me and reach a level of defense that's invincible among your peers."
"Tsk, Xiao Feng, tell me honestly: what exactly is this freakish armor of yours?"
"Is it Dragon Martial Soul Possession, or the Third Soul Skill you got from absorbing the Ox Dragon's Soul Ring?"
Shen Feng shook his head slightly. "Teacher Zhao, is it possible that this is a Soul Bone?"
"A Soul Bone?" Zhao Wuji furrowed his brow and studied the scales on Shen Feng's body for a long while.
"Beasts can produce six types of Soul Bones: the Head Soul Bone, the torso bone, the left and right arm bones, and the left and right leg bones. But none of those seem to take the form of scales."
Shen Feng chuckled. "Teacher Zhao, you're not wrong. You're just missing a few details."
Before you continue