A Frog in a Well, Gazing at the Sky, Left Black and Blue

"Enough!!"

Yu Xiaogang suddenly let out a low roar.

The voice was hoarse, like the last struggle of a trapped beast.

He was humiliated and furious at being publicly refuted, and panicked at the thought that his lifelong beliefs had been shaken.

There was also a hint of fear of the unknown that even he himself was unwilling to admit.

All his emotions were mixed together, overwhelming his last shred of reason.

He abruptly raised his finger and pointed at the deep purple Spirit Ring surrounding Lin Qingmo, his fingertip turning white from the force, his voice sharp and strained:

"Lin Qingmo! You've spouted so many grand principles, praising plant-based Soul Beast Spirit Ring, so explain to me what's with the lightning attribute of your Fourth Spirit Ring?!"

He seemed to have grasped at a straw, speaking rapidly with an almost obsessive certainty:

"Lightning attribute? This is an attribute that only animal Soul Beast could possibly possess!"

"Plant-type Soul Beast could never possess the power of lightning. Your Spirit Ring is the best counterexample, proving that your theory is completely untenable and you are contradicting yourself!"

After shouting those words, Yu Xiaogang's chest heaved violently as he gasped for breath and glared intently at Lin Qingmo.

He needs this rebuttal to hold true; it must hold true!

Otherwise, he would truly have nothing left.

Lin Qingmo watched him quietly.

I watched it for several seconds.

Then, he suddenly laughed.

It wasn't a sneer, nor a mocking laugh, but rather a lighthearted, playful laugh, tinged with a mischievous triumph.

He even deliberately dragged out his words, saying slowly, "Yu Xiaogang... when did I ever tell you that my Fourth Spirit Ring didn't come from a plant Soul Beast?"

"..."

The air suddenly froze.

The anger and certainty on Yu Xiaogang's face froze instantly.

He stood there with his mouth agape, still in that accusing pose, as if his entire being had been paused.

"Wh... what?"

He forced out two breathy sounds and staggered back two steps.

My heel hit a rock, and I almost fell.

"Thud."

The Theory Manual he had been clutching tightly finally slipped from his limp fingers and fell to the dusty ground.

He acted as if he hadn't seen her, his gaze fixed intently on Lin Qingmo.

The Tales of Demons and Gods is filled with an incomprehensible sense of absurdity.

"If it's not an animal Soul Beast... then could it be... a plant?"

He muttered to himself, his voice so soft it was as if he were afraid of waking him from a nightmare.

"Of course, it's Plant-type Spirit Beast."

Lin Qingmo's tone returned to its usual calm.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!"

Yu Xiaogang seemed to have been burned by those words, shaking his head violently, the movements so large they were almost frantic.

He bent down, almost lunging forward to pick up the handbook, and hugged it tightly to his chest, his fingers digging so hard they almost embedded themselves in the cover.

"Since the beginning of recorded history in the Douluo Continent, there has never been Plant-type Spirit Beast with the attribute of lightning!"

"Lightning represents Berserk, Destruction, and divine punishment! Plants represent growth, tranquility, and life! These two forces are fundamentally opposed! How could they possibly combine in a single Soul Beast? Your words are completely contrary to the basic theory of Soul Beast!"

He spoke incoherently, as if reciting a textbook or trying to encourage himself.

That manual was his only lifeline at that moment.

Lin Qingmo looked at his almost obsessive appearance and gave a soft "tsk".

This time, the sarcasm in the voice wasn't even bothering to be concealed.

"Yu Xiaogang, isn't your title of ' Theory Master ' a bit of a stretch?"

He took a step forward.

With this step, the person's aura subtly changed.

It no longer has that calm, even somewhat carefree feeling from before.

Rather, it's a subtle, yet sharp, sense of oppression.

It's not a suppression based on Soul Power Level.

Rather, it's a condescending attitude based on one's knowledge and understanding.

How big is the Douluo Continent? How many kinds of Soul Beast are there? Can you count them all?

With each question he asked, he took a small step forward, his tone unhurried yet each word sharp and precise.

"You've probably been to the Star Dou Great Forest a handful of times, haven't you?"

Lin Qingmo stopped, only a few steps away from Yu Xiaogang.

"You, a Soul Grandmaster who has been stuck at level 29 your entire life, dare to assert that a certain kind of Soul Beast 'does not exist' on this vast Douluo Continent, based solely on reviewing records that may not even be complete?"

"My Fourth Spirit Ring comes from a plant-type Soul Beast called ' Thunderous Hell Vine '."

Lin Qingmo's voice, amidst the faint crackling of electricity, clearly reached everyone's ears.

"It doesn't grow in safe, fertile soil, but rather takes root in the core of thunderstorms in certain extreme regions."

"That place is ravaged by natural disasters, with constant Thunder. Ordinary plants, and even many Soul Beast, cannot survive a single day there."

"But the Thunderous Hell Vine has been bathed in Destruction Thunder since its inception."

An unusual respect unconsciously crept into Lin Qingmo's voice.

"It doesn't resist lightning, but rather, through countless cycles of lightning strikes, burning, Destruction, and rebirth, it gradually absorbs and transforms the Berserk power of lightning, making it a part of its own life cycle."

"Lightning is no longer a calamity for it, but nourishment, a source of power that drives its continuous transformation and rebirth."

"Its Spirit Ring gave me not only the power of lightning, but also this powerful life quality of drawing life from Destruction and transforming into new life in desperate situations."

"This aligns perfectly with my Blue Silver Grass's pursuit of the Ultimate Life."

He withdrew his Soul Power and lightning, and all the strange phenomena disappeared.

But his words stirred up a storm in everyone's hearts.

"Holy crap?!"

Ma Hongjun was the first to lose his temper and blurted out a curse, his jaw nearly dropping to the ground.

"Growing up after being struck by lightning? And getting more energetic with each strike? Is this... is this a plant or a monster?!"

Dai Mubai gasped, instinctively clenching his fists, his arm muscles tensing.

He imagined the scene of lightning and thunder all day long, yet a vine stubbornly grows, and the shock in his heart was indescribable.

This was completely beyond his comprehension.

Oscar's mouth formed an "O" shape as he muttered, "Thunderous Hell Vine... That name sounds incredibly cool! Lin Qingmo can even find Soul Beast like that?"

Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong looked at the spirited Lin Qingmo, their beautiful eyes sparkling with admiration.

Zhu Zhuqing remained silent, but her eyes flickered, clearly indicating that she was extremely unsettled.

Dean Flender stared intently at Lin Qingmo, his gaze incredibly complex.

He had long suspected this kid was no ordinary person, but he never imagined he was this extraordinary.

Yu Xiaogang... he froze completely.

His complexion was no longer alternating between pale and green, but rather a deathly ashen.

The arm holding the Theory Manual fell limply to its side, and the manual fell to the ground with a "thud," kicking up a little dust.

His lips trembled violently, and his eyes stared blankly ahead, unfocused.

It felt like countless pages of a book were flipping through my mind, rustling and turning, but I couldn't find a single word or line that matched "Thunderous Hell Vine".

No.

Not a single one.

He devoted his life to theoretical research and had seen too many estimates from the Spirit Hall.

I believe that even if I am not omniscient, I have already grasped seven or eight tenths of the outline of the Martial Soul world.

But now.

A living example.

A kind of unheard-of Soul Beast.

It so easily knocked a huge hole out of the edifice of his carefully constructed theory.

A cold wind blew in, chilling him to the bone.

Never heard of it...

He murmured absentmindedly, his voice dry and hoarse, like sandpaper scraping.

"I really... have never heard of it before..."