Compared with the Soul Beasts he had encountered before.
This Crystal Bear before him was definitely a great boon for him right now!
Although this Crystal Bear had only three thousand three hundred years of cultivation.
The cultivation he could gain by devouring it, however, was a full ten years—far more than he could get from an ordinary three-thousand-year Soul Beast!
Yao Xuan wasn't too surprised by this.
After all, this Crystal Bear was no ordinary creature. It possessed a trace of Dreadclaw Bear bloodline, which naturally made it highly valuable to devour!
Of course, the Dreadclaw Bear bloodline in its body not only made it valuable to devour, but also greatly increased its combat strength.
Although it had only three thousand years of cultivation, even most Soul Beasts with six thousand years of cultivation were no match for it!
Of course, to Yao Xuan, this Crystal Bear wasn't a difficult prey to deal with!
With the bloodline of the Emperor Auspicious Beast, Yao Xuan's cultivation was only six hundred years, but he was no weaker than a six-thousand-year Soul Beast—and naturally, no weaker than this Crystal Bear!
And after fusing with a trace of Golden Dragon King Bloodline, Yao Xuan's life essence had surpassed even that of the Emperor Auspicious Beast, and his combat strength had surged as well!
Together, these two advantages gave Yao Xuan more than enough confidence to hunt the Crystal Bear before him!
Die!
A faint glint of killing intent flashed in his eyes as Yao Xuan unhesitatingly activated his Bloodline Power and unleashed his Bloodline Ability, Golden Dragon Claw!
Even when an eagle hunted a rabbit, it used all its strength!
Besides, this Crystal Bear was a formidable opponent, worthy of his full effort!
At Yao Xuan's thought, a golden gleam flashed over his right claw, transforming into layer upon layer of golden dragon scales and completing its Dragon Transformation!
Then Yao Xuan silently circled behind the Crystal Bear, lunged forward, and swung his Golden Dragon Claw toward the back of its neck!
As Yao Xuan entered combat, the system ability [Stealth] deactivated on its own, exposing his powerful aura and killing intent to the Crystal Bear!
Though utterly startled, the Crystal Bear's strength and reaction speed were far beyond those of the Soul Beasts Yao Xuan had hunted before. It actually managed to react in time!
Facing Yao Xuan's ambush, the Crystal Bear hurriedly turned around and swung its right claw to block his Golden Dragon Claw!
Bang!
With a muffled crash, Yao Xuan's sharp claw slammed directly into the Crystal Bear's crystal-covered one!
Shatter!
With a thought, Yao Xuan activated the [Shatter] property attached to his right Golden Dragon Claw!
At his command, the bloodline energy within his body surged wildly, while mysterious runes flashed across his right claw!
Crack! Crack!
The next moment.
The Star Dou Great Forest, which had been utterly silent, suddenly rang with a series of crisp cracking sounds!
Then.
Cracks appeared in the incredibly tough crystal covering the Crystal Bear's right arm, spreading before their eyes!
In just a few breaths, the Crystal Bear's right arm was covered in savage, startling cracks!
Seeing this, Yao Xuan pressed his advantage, and the force behind his Golden Dragon Claw suddenly surged!
Boom!
The next moment, Yao Xuan smashed the Crystal Bear's right claw to pieces. Crystal and flesh scattered across the ground together!
"As expected of an effect attached to the Golden Dragon Claw. This [Shatter] property really is extraordinary, though it does consume quite a lot!"
Looking at the results of his attack, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Yao Xuan's mouth!
This three-thousand-year Crystal Bear had formidable defenses. The tough crystals covering its body were comparable to fine steel and could even withstand attacks from some Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts!
Yet Yao Xuan's Golden Dragon Claw had shattered its defenses with a single [Shatter] strike, without the slightest resistance!
This was further proof of just how powerful and heaven-defying the Golden Dragon King Bloodline was!
At the very least, Yao Xuan could never have achieved such results so easily with only the Emperor Auspicious Beast's racial talents!
Of course, as powerful as it was, activating the [Shatter] property came at a cost!
That single strike had consumed nearly half the Golden Dragon King Bloodline Power in Yao Xuan's body!
In other words, even at full strength, Yao Xuan could only unleash two Golden Dragon Claw: Shatter strikes right now!
Only after further unlocking and upgrading his Golden Dragon King Bloodline would he be able to wield the Golden Dragon Claw for longer!
But Yao Xuan wasn't in a hurry.
As long as he broke through to a thousand-year Soul Beast, his Golden Dragon King Bloodline would advance again!
And now, the remaining [Shatter] strike was more than enough to finish off the Crystal Bear!
Strike while the enemy is down!
The Crystal Bear's right arm had been shattered, leaving it in such pain that it couldn't focus on resisting. Seizing the moment, Yao Xuan attacked again!
He swung his Golden Dragon Claw once more, once again aiming for the Crystal Bear's weak point—the back of its neck, where its nerve center was located.
This time, however, the Crystal Bear had no way to resist!
Crack!
With a snapping sound, Yao Xuan's claw broke the Crystal Bear's neck in a single strike!
In an instant, the ferocity and hatred vanished from the Crystal Bear's eyes!
In their place was a dull grayness!
Its massive body toppled heavily to the ground!
"Excellent! The hunt was a success!"
Yao Xuan was very satisfied with the sight, but didn't hurry toward the Crystal Bear. Instead, he kept well away!
After all, according to the [Eye of Detection], the Crystal Bear would unleash a final Crystal Impact after it died.
Though he had confidence in his defenses, Yao Xuan wasn't some kind of masochist. Naturally, he wasn't going to put himself in danger.
Just after Yao Xuan retreated, a brilliant yellow glow suddenly burst from the fallen Crystal Bear's body!
The yellow light didn't cover a large area, reaching only about a meter around the Crystal Bear's corpse.
Yet within its range, every living thing—flowers, grass, and insects alike—instantly turned into a layer of dark yellow crystal!
This was the Crystal Bear's final counterattack!
And with that last Crystal Impact, the Crystal Bear's life came to a complete end, its vitality utterly drained away.
Yao Xuan's hunt had been a complete success. All that remained was to digest the spoils, devour, and evolve!
Meanwhile.
In the Soul Hunting Forest where Yao Xuan had once lived.
Not long after Yao Xuan left, Tang San finished cultivating and opened his eyes excitedly!
"Teacher! You were right! Your Soul Beast Mimicry Theory was completely correct, and my Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul has evolved too, Teacher?!"
Tang San stood up, about to share the good news with Yu Xiaogang, but realized Yu Xiaogang was no longer beside him. He quickly looked around.
The next moment, Tang San's gaze fell on Yu Xiaogang, who was lying unconscious in the distance, his face dark and blood covering the area between his legs.
Tang San cried out in shock, then hurried to his side and checked Yu Xiaogang's breath.
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