The Ink Jade Divine Bamboo was suitable for Ling Na.
The Eight-Petal Immortal Orchid was suitable for Oscar.
Even Ma Hongjun had one prepared for him by Dugu Bo: the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, which suited him perfectly.
There were even two extra Immortal Grade Herbs: the Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone and the Aromatic Silk Beauty.
It was no exaggeration to say that almost every Immortal Grade Herb was here, except for some highly toxic ones, those Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan had already consumed, and the Immortal Herb King, the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, which couldn't be plucked without a special destiny.
Besides those, there were many more rare medicinal herbs that didn't quite reach Immortal Grade, such as the Nine-Grade Purple Ganoderma, the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King, and the Dragon Ganoderma Leaf. There were dozens in all.
Such a generous gift was proof of how much thought Dugu Bo had put into it.
To strengthen their bond, Shen Feng had naturally given the Water and Fire Dragon Kings' reverse scales to Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan as well.
Afterward, Dugu Bo tried them himself and was astonished to discover that the Water and Fire Dragon Kings' reverse scales could actually be refined into a Martial Soul.
However, the reverse scales exerted too much pressure on dragon-type Soul Beasts, so refining them would take a long time.
Dugu Bo estimated that if he and Dugu Yan successfully refined the scales, their Martial Souls might evolve as a result, approaching the level of pure-blooded dragons.
At the very least, they would reach the level of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul among dragon-type Martial Souls.
But these were all just guesses. Until the scales were truly refined, no one could know how far their Martial Souls would evolve.
The night passed uneventfully. Early the next morning, Dugu Bo led Shen Feng and Dugu Yan out of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and into the very heart of Sunset Forest.
"We're here. This is the central area of Sunset Forest. Xiao Feng, take out the Lovesick Heartbreak Red."
Immortal Herbs were rare treasures of heaven and earth. Consuming them benefited humans, and they naturally offered tremendous benefits to Soul Beasts as well.
Shen Feng and the others' plan was to use the precious aura of an Immortal Herb to attract Soul Beasts, saving them the trouble of searching for one.
With the strength of a Titled Douluo, Dugu Bo had brought Shen Feng and Dugu Yan straight to the innermost part of Sunset Forest.
Since the other Immortal Grade Herbs had already been picked, using them carelessly might damage their medicinal properties and lower their quality. That was why they had decided to use the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, which couldn't be plucked without a special destiny.
Shen Feng nodded and took a black stone from the Ruyi Hundred Treasure Pouch.
A white peony grew on the black stone. It had a stem but no leaves, and its flower was no bigger than a palm. Several streaks of vivid red marked its white petals, so bright they looked like blood and stirred the heart at a glance.
This was the Lovesick Heartbreak Red, known as the King of Immortal Herbs. Legend had it that only someone unwaveringly faithful in love could pluck it.
Consuming this herb allowed one to share the immortality of heaven and earth, greatly increased Soul Power, and completely transformed the body.
If someone on the verge of death consumed it, the herb could even bring the dead back to life and restore flesh to bone, breaking the boundary between life and death.
Unfortunately, though the flower's effects were remarkable, Shen Feng, Dugu Yan, and Dugu Bo were all unable to pluck it.
Now that they had taken it out, they could only use its most basic function: rousing its medicinal properties to serve as bait for Soul Beasts.
As Shen Feng took the Lovesick Heartbreak Red from the Ruyi Hundred Treasure Pouch, Dugu Bo took a small jade bottle from his Storage Soul Tool.
He opened the bottle, and a rich medicinal fragrance immediately filled the air. For a moment, it even overwhelmed the Immortal Herb's own scent.
Shen Feng knew this was the Immortal Herb catalyst Dugu Bo had made to ensure their plan went smoothly. He had used fifteen precious medicinal ingredients and spent the entire night preparing it.
If poured onto the roots of an Immortal Herb, it could fully unleash the herb's medicinal properties and even slowly strengthen them. It was exceedingly precious.
Dugu Bo carefully poured a single drop of the catalyst from the jade bottle onto the Lovesick Heartbreak Red's roots, then treasured the rest away in his Storage Soul Tool.
Before long, the Lovesick Heartbreak Red's stem began to sway gently, as if dancing with joy.
The next moment, a dense stream of crimson vapor burst from its flower. Then a fragrance that soothed the whole body washed over them and spread in every direction.
Dugu Bo nodded. "It worked. Nourished by the catalyst, the Lovesick Heartbreak Red can release its fragrance continuously for an hour. It should carry more than twenty li."
"That distance should be enough to attract some decent Soul Beasts. After all, I doubt there's a Soul Beast that wouldn't like the scent of a heavenly treasure."
"If it doesn't work, we can just try another location. The heart of Sunset Forest is vast, and there are plenty of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts. Spending a few more days here should be enough to find something suitable for you two."
There were no Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in Sunset Forest, but there were plenty of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts. At the very least, there were many below fifty thousand years.
Shen Feng only needed a Fourth Soul Ring between thirty and forty thousand years old.
It wasn't that he didn't want a higher-year Soul Ring; his mental strength simply wasn't sufficient.
Although condensing the Water and Fire Dual Soul Cores had made his physical strength comparable to a Seven-Ring Soul Sage, his physical defenses comparable to an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo, and his meridians comparable to those of a Titled Douluo, he was still only a Level 40 Quasi-Soul Ancestor. His mental strength had only just reached the point where he could project it outward, and it couldn't support him absorbing a Soul Ring of an even higher level.
A Soul Beast between thirty and forty thousand years old, whose strength was comparable to a Soul Saint's, was already his limit.
As for the Immortal Herb from the original story that could increase mental strength, the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, Dugu Bo had given it to Dugu Yan as soon as he'd figured out its properties.
But Shen Feng didn't feel it was a shame. After all, once Dugu Yan had absorbed it, she'd managed to absorb a 6,500-year Fourth Soul Ring beyond the usual limit.
It was only 1,500 years over the Fourth Soul Ring's absorption limit, but those 1,500 years were more valuable than Tang San successfully absorbing a Ten-Thousand-Year Fourth Soul Ring after refining the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew in the original story.
Of course, this wasn't meant to slight Tang San. Dugu Yan was one of their own, after all. Any benefit that went to one of their own was worthwhile, even if it was only a single extra year.
The Lovesick Heartbreak Red's precious fragrance spread rapidly. Before long, Shen Feng and Dugu Bo sensed Soul Beasts approaching.
Shen Feng's strength was lower, so he couldn't sense them clearly. He looked up at Dugu Bo.
Dugu Bo furrowed his brow. "Most of them are Hundred-Year Soul Beasts. No use to us."
As he spoke, Dugu Bo vanished from where he stood. Only then did his voice slowly reach them.
"Wait here for a moment. I'll set up a poison formation to keep out Soul Beasts below ten thousand years."
Watching Dugu Bo disappear before his eyes, Shen Feng stared in surprise. "The old man's gotten even stronger. I could only make out the afterimage of him leaving."
Dugu Yan looked at Shen Feng in disbelief. "Grandpa broke through to Level 93 after absorbing the Earth Dragon Golden Melon, and you could still see him leaving?"
"You monster. You really are a monster."
Shen Feng shook his head with a wry smile. Good thing the old man values loyalty. At that speed, if he'd really had bad intentions yesterday, I'd probably have had to hide in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well and refuse to come out.
No Titled Douluo is easy to deal with. I can't get carried away; I still need to keep a low profile and grow stronger.
But what do I do about Qian Renxue's invitation? Should I refuse? She has two Titled Douluo by her side, too.
Now that she's sending me an invitation, she's probably already sent people to Soul Hunting Town. She may even have investigated my background thoroughly.
Should I risk everything and expose her? Or ask the old man to eliminate those two Titled Douluo?
Never mind whether the old man could take on two opponents of the same rank and kill them both. Exposing her wouldn't let me kill her, either, and I'd still have to guard against her revenge in the future.
More importantly, her undercover work in the Heaven Dou Empire poses no threat to me. If I expose her recklessly, I won't gain much, and I'll only put myself in danger.
What a pain.
Forget it. I'll deal with whatever comes, and if worse comes to worst, I'll ask the old man to stay with me a little longer and protect my hide.
Surely she won't pay much attention to a nobody like me. She won't... right?
"Xiao Feng, what are you thinking about? A suitable Soul Beast is coming."
At some point, Dugu Bo had returned and roused Shen Feng, who had been lost in thought and distracted.
Shen Feng looked up in the distance and saw a huge brown bear, more than seven meters long and nearly three meters tall at the shoulder, with a white crescent mark on its chest. It was drooling and glaring furiously at Dugu Bo, yet didn't dare approach. Drawn by the Lovesick Heartbreak Red's precious aura, it lingered nearby, unwilling to leave.
"A Moonlight Savage Bear, around thirty thousand years old. What do you think? Do you want it?"
Shen Feng considered for a moment. "Its age is a little low, and its attributes aren't a great fit. Let's keep it as a backup for now. If we don't find anything better, we'll choose it."
Dugu Bo nodded without asking anything more. Soul Power surged within him, and he waved his hand, summoning four walls of earth veiled in emerald-green poisonous mist. They trapped the Moonlight Savage Bear inside.
"Roar!"
The Moonlight Savage Bear, which was over thirty thousand years old, managed only one furious roar before the poison Dugu Bo released knocked it flat. The inside of the earthen walls fell quiet at once.
Shen Feng gave Dugu Bo a thumbs-up. "Old man, you've got even more tricks up your sleeve now."
Dugu Bo laughed heartily. "Thanks to you, after refining the Earth Dragon Golden Melon, I now have both earth and poison attributes."
"I'm just not very familiar with controlling the earth element yet, so I have to combine it with the poisonous mist to restrain my opponents."
"Once I get the hang of it, my control, defense, and attack will all undergo a tremendous change."
Whenever they talked about Martial Soul Evolution, Dugu Bo was delighted. He would boast to Shen Feng without pause, even telling him all about his strengths and weaknesses.
Shen Feng knew this was entirely a sign of Dugu Bo's trust in him.
"Hmm? Yanyan, your Soul Beast is here."
Dugu Bo's face suddenly lit up as he spoke. He turned to look at the nearby thicket.
Shen Feng and Dugu Yan followed his gaze.
A yellow python with a triangular head, as thick as a thigh and nearly twelve meters long, slowly emerged from the bushes.
The air seemed to grow a little more pungent, with a faint sweetness and a hint of tea fragrance.
The moment Dugu Yan saw the yellow python, her eyes lit up. "Grandpa, that's the one! I want it as my Fifth Soul Ring!"
It was no wonder Dugu Yan was so excited. The creature before them was a Datura Snake.
Datura Snakes had extremely potent poison. Not only could it paralyze its victims, it could also severely damage their nervous systems. It was one of the most terrifying poison-attribute Soul Beasts.
Their bodies were incredibly tough, impervious to ordinary blades, and they were extremely fast—among the best of all snake-type Soul Beasts.
According to the Soul Beast Guide (Kuaidong Encyclopedia): before reaching a thousand years of cultivation, a Datura Snake's body was dark green, and it grew one meter every hundred years. As it neared a thousand years, it could grow to almost ten meters long.
Once it broke through a thousand years, however, its power would condense, and it would shed its skin repeatedly. Its body would turn from dark green to pink, and its length would shrink back to one meter. It would then grow another meter every hundred years.
After reaching two thousand years of cultivation, it would shrink again, and its pink color would deepen.
A Ten-Thousand-Year Datura Snake turned yellow, and its body would break through its limits. From ten meters onward, it grew another meter for every additional ten thousand years, taking on a gigantic form.
The one before them was bright yellow and nearly twelve meters long. It was a Ten-Thousand-Year Datura Snake that hadn't yet reached twenty thousand years.
Although it was somewhat beyond the limit of twelve thousand years for a Fifth Soul Ring, Dugu Yan had already absorbed an over-limit Fourth Soul Ring. Absorbing this Datura Snake, which was still under twenty thousand years old, should be no problem for her.
With Dugu Bo, a Level 93 Titled Douluo, there, taking down a mere twenty-thousand-year Datura Snake was easy.
To keep Dugu Yan from being disturbed while she absorbed the Soul Ring, Dugu Bo set up another poison formation around the area where the three of them stood.
Then Dugu Yan sat cross-legged and began absorbing the Datura Snake's Soul Ring, while Shen Feng and Dugu Bo continued waiting for a Soul Beast suited to him.
An hour passed in the blink of an eye. The Lovesick Heartbreak Red's precious fragrance gradually faded, but Shen Feng still hadn't found a suitable Soul Beast.
Several Soul Beasts between thirty and forty thousand years old had been drawn over by the Lovesick Heartbreak Red's fragrance, but none of them matched him as well as the Moonlight Savage Bear.
At least the Moonlight Savage Bear was strength-type. The others were, well, hard to describe.
"How about we try again somewhere else after Yanyan finishes absorbing her Soul Ring?" Dugu Bo suggested.
Shen Feng shook his head. "Forget it. How often do Soul Masters find a Soul Beast that's a perfect match for their Soul Ring?"
"Even a fifty percent match is already pretty good. The Moonlight Savage Bear has decent strength, too. It should give me a good Soul Skill."
Dugu Bo furrowed his brow. "You're sure you don't want to think it over? For other Soul Masters, a fifty percent match would indeed be pretty good."
"But with your talent, settling for a fifty percent match would be such a waste."
"How about I ask Yanyan to find that kid from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan? He can take you to the Thunder Mountain Range, which is under their control. It's full of lightning-attribute Soul Beasts. We're sure to find one that suits you."
Shen Feng gave a wry smile and shook his head. "Old man, look at my Soul Ring Configuration and the ages of the Soul Rings I'm supposed to absorb."
"Do you really think I could return in one piece if I went to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan with Yu Tianheng?"
Dugu Bo fell silent, unable to think of what to say.
Given the way the great powers on Douluo Continent operated, if they found a talented Soul Master they couldn't recruit, they would undoubtedly try to eliminate them first.
If Shen Feng had only had Innate Full Soul Power, that would have been one thing. Dugu Bo was a Titled Douluo, after all, and could easily protect him.
But the ages of the Soul Rings Shen Feng had absorbed were truly too shocking.
If those great powers learned the details of Shen Feng's situation, then even if he survived, he would never know peace again.
"Fine, we'll do as you say. You have too many secrets; taking risks really isn't wise."
"After all, only a living genius is a genius. A dead one is just a pile of dirt."
Shen Feng smiled faintly. "You're right, old man."
"In that case, please release the Moonlight Savage Bear."
Dugu Bo nodded and sent out a burst of Soul Power. The earthen wall trapping the Moonlight Savage Bear collapsed with a crash, revealing the bear asleep inside.
Soul Power surged. At Dugu Bo's command, a huge hand made of earth took shape, seized the Moonlight Savage Bear, and carried it in front of Shen Feng.
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