Junior Brother Knows No Shame

Bibi Dong said with a look of surprise.

"I never expected to find a Crystal Mysterious Turtle in this Soul Hunting Forest. I thought this type of Spirit Beast had already gone extinct."

"It doesn't matter; it will be extinct again today."

Shang An looked at the Crystal Mysterious Turtle in the hands of Chrysanthemum Douluo and said, sensing that this creature was a perfect fit for him.

"Xiao An, the Crystal Mysterious Turtle is a top-tier Spirit Beast. It is said to contain the bloodline of the Xuanwu, and a thousand-year Crystal Mysterious Turtle is comparable to an ordinary ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast."

"This turtle's shell is the size of a millstone, so its cultivation should be around eleven hundred years. Xiao An, are you sure you want to absorb this Spirit Ring?"

Bibi Dong stared intently at Shang An. When he first told her he intended to absorb a thousand-year Spirit Ring for his first one, her immediate reaction was to refuse. After all, according to the theories of that man, the limit for a first Spirit Ring was only four hundred and twenty-three years. For Shang An to attempt a thousand-year ring right out of the gate—wasn't that just asking for death?

As his teacher, she naturally could not let Shang An throw his life away.

However, Shang An had presented a whole heap of twisted logic, and instead of her convincing him, he had ended up convincing her.

He spoke of his innate full spirit power of level twenty and his god-tier martial soul, which were things never seen before.

He spoke of his iron-willed determination and his naturally powerful physique, and so on.

Bibi Dong was unmoved at first, but Shang An had worn her down over the past few days with his persistence. Furthermore, after she personally examined him, she confirmed his physique was indeed far superior to his peers. For some reason, she had then impulsively agreed to let him try. But now that the moment had arrived, she was still full of gravity, repeatedly questioning him.

Chrysanthemum Douluo also chimed in to persuade him.

"Xiao An, why not keep looking? Let's find a hundred-year Spirit Ring for your first one. A thousand-year ring is still too dangerous."

Shang An took a deep breath, bowed to Bibi Dong, and said.

"Teacher, Elder Ju, I would never gamble with my own future. My martial soul tells me this turtle is perfect for me, and I want to try."

Shang An would naturally never joke with his life. Through comparison, he knew that his physique, having cultivated the Taiyi Immortal Origin Body, was no weaker than that of Hu Liena, who was already a Soul Elder. Moreover, with the Great Freedom True Scripture to anchor him, he felt confident in handling a mere thousand-year Spirit Ring.

Seeing this, the others stopped trying to persuade him. Chrysanthemum Douluo threw the Crystal Mysterious Turtle onto the ground, pinning it down with a burst of spirit power so that its neck was exposed and unable to retract. Shang An pulled a dagger from his Soul Tool and walked slowly toward the creature.

"Xiao An, make your move. This is something you must experience."

"Spirit Masters and Spirit Beasts are natural enemies. You need not feel pity. A Spirit Master needs Spirit Rings to advance, so you are destined to be enemies. To a Spirit Beast, humans are nothing more than food, so it is only natural for humans to hunt them."

Bibi Dong said to Shang An.

Shang An nodded. He felt no pity; in a world where the strong prey on the weak, being weak was a sin, which was why he needed to become stronger.

Looking at the blue-crystal neck of the turtle, he struck with lightning speed. His dagger was incredibly sharp, and with a single thrust, the turtle lost its life instantly. Its resentful eyes gradually lost their luster, and it closed them in resignation.

A purple light ring condensed from the body of the Crystal Mysterious Turtle. It hovered above the creature, emitting a misty purple glow that looked quite mysterious.

"Xiao An, are you truly sure?"

Bibi Dong could not help but ask one more time.

"Junior brother..."

Hu Liena also looked on with worry, her words catching in her throat.

Shang An winked at them to put their minds at ease, then sat cross-legged to the side. He raised his right hand, and the Taiyi Bead appeared. Today, he would truly step onto the path of cultivation, the first step toward his own enlightenment.

He steadied his mind, focused his attention on his martial soul, and channeled his spirit power into his palm to attract the Spirit Ring. The ring responded to his pull, flying toward him. The purple ring contracted, moving to encircle his Taiyi Bead martial soul.

A surging force poured into his body, threatening to tear him apart. It was truly worthy of a top-tier Spirit Beast like the Crystal Mysterious Turtle. However, this power was quickly suppressed by his formidable physique and then channeled into his meridians. As he circulated the Great Freedom True Scripture, the spirit power was rapidly absorbed and converted.

At the same time, Shang An carefully sensed the power of the Spirit Ring. When he had watched Hu Liena absorb hers, he had only been a bystander seeing the surface; by experiencing it himself, he might discover the secrets of the Spirit Rings.

Beside him, Bibi Dong and Hu Liena watched with concern as he absorbed the ring.

"Will junior brother be alright?"

Hu Liena didn't wait for an answer before muttering to herself.

"Junior brother will be fine."

Bibi Dong opened her mouth but said nothing. A thousand-year first ring—even with her vast experience, she had never seen such a thing. Whether Shang An could succeed, she did not know.

Although she had only recently taken him as a disciple, she had truly come to recognize him as her student, and she was naturally deeply worried about his situation.

She stared at him without blinking, ready to intervene the moment he showed signs of failing. While it might damage his foundation, it was better than losing his life.

Fortunately, Shang An's face did not show a hint of pain. Throughout the process, he appeared to be in no difficulty at all, as if the absorption were going incredibly smoothly.

Another quarter of an hour passed, and the aura around Shang An rose to its peak. The absorption of the Spirit Ring was nearing its end.

Bibi Dong and Hu Liena both let out a sigh of relief.

Just then, "Bang!"

"No!"

Bibi Dong cried out in alarm. A burst of spirit power erupted from where Shang An sat, kicking up a cloud of dust as several scraps of clothing flew out from the center.

"Junior brother!"

Hu Liena screamed in grief.

Bibi Dong flew forward, ready to check on Shang An's condition.

"Cough, cough, Teacher, I'm fine."

Shang An opened his eyes to see Bibi Dong standing before him, her palm condensed with spirit power as if she were debating whether to strike him down. He hurriedly spoke up.

He was only joking; he hadn't failed the absorption, and he certainly didn't want to endure that palm strike.

Hu Liena also stepped forward.

"Junior brother, what is this..."

As the dust settled, Shang An stood up. He was clad in a form-fitting blue-gold suit of armor that clung to his body, with joints connected by a fabric-like material. The design was flawless, looking as if it did not belong to the mortal world.

The armor emitted a faint glow, appearing like the battle gear of a deity. Worn by Shang An, and paired with his perfect features, he looked like a young god.

Looking at the little boy in battle armor, Hu Liena's fox-like eyes were practically sparkling, and even Bibi Dong's expression was one of astonishment. Chrysanthemum Douluo, however, was the first to react.

"Young Master Shang An, has your first Spirit Ring been successfully absorbed?"

"Yes."

Shang An nodded. The Taiyi Bead manifested, and a purple ring wreathed in violet mist hovered above it, further accentuating the extraordinary nature of the bead.

"Hiss."

Chrysanthemum Douluo gasped. A thousand-year first ring—he never expected to truly witness the birth of a thousand-year first ring today. Although he had been prepared for it, seeing it with his own eyes was still shocking. Young Master Shang An truly had a limitless future and must be befriended; Chrysanthemum Douluo silently made this decision in his heart.

"Xiao An, this armor of yours... could it be an External Soul Bone!"

Bibi Dong also regained her composure. Looking at the battle armor on Shang An, she spoke with some uncertainty, as she had never heard of such a peculiar External Soul Bone.

Hu Liena also stared at Shang An with wide, curious eyes.

"Teacher, I don't know either. This armor just suddenly appeared within my body after I finished absorbing the Spirit Ring."

"Hmm, it must be a special type of External Soul Bone. It seems your luck is quite good, Xiao An."

Bibi Dong did not doubt him; what kind of schemes could a six-year-old child possibly have?

In truth, calling it an External Soul Bone wasn't entirely wrong. Shang An had created this armor himself. While absorbing the Spirit Ring, he discovered that the Spirit Beast itself contained a vast amount of spirit power, while the Spirit Ring was only a small fraction of it.

Shang An theorized that the formation of a Soul Bone was the condensation of a Spirit Beast's spirit power, bloodline, and soul. Since Soul Bones contained the original spirit skills and a portion of the spirit power of the beast, it was highly likely related to bloodline and spirit power. Furthermore, since the chance of a Soul Bone forming increased when a Spirit Beast died in a state of jealousy or resentment, it was also likely related to the soul.

Thus, Shang An guided the residual spirit power and bloodline within the Crystal Mysterious Turtle, used his power of the mind to knead the turtle's residual soul into shape, and tossed it into the turtle shell. At the same time, he attempted to infuse his own power of the mind into the shell.

And so, it became what it was now. It could be said that Shang An's bold idea had indeed succeeded, though he would need to experiment a few more times if he wanted to mass-produce Soul Bones. However, he couldn't tell Bibi Dong any of this, or it would be impossible to explain, so he simply let them misunderstand.

With a thought, Shang An shifted the armor to black. It was less divine than before, but looked even more imposing. With another shift, the armor transformed into a white garment with gold trim. The material was soft and the style elegant; the white base was adorned with golden lines forming patterns, making him look low-key yet luxurious—a truly dashing young nobleman.

Shang An nodded in satisfaction. It seemed that after integrating his power of the mind, this External Soul Bone was indeed quite convenient. He then attempted to retract it back into his body.

"Ah, junior brother, how shameless!"

Hu Liena hurriedly covered her eyes with her hands, though for some reason, she left a one-centimeter gap between her fingers.