Su Chen's words echoed around the edge of the ravaged sinkhole.
Yue Guan and Gui Mei froze at the same time.
They looked at the six-year-old boy before them, who had just folded away his Dark Red Dragon Wings.
Waves of shock surged through their hearts.
He wanted to obtain a second Soul Ring.
That meant Su Chen intended to withstand the energy of two Soul Rings in quick succession.
"His Highness the Holy Son, you absolutely must not."
Yue Guan was aghast.
He hurried a step forward.
"You just absorbed a mutated Soul Ring of two thousand five hundred years, overcoming the usual limit, and fused with a fifty-thousand-year External Soul Bone. The energy inside you may be temporarily suppressed, but your meridians have already reached their limit."
"According to Spirit Hall's records, even the most talented Soul Master needs at least half a year to nourish their meridians before absorbing two Soul Rings in succession."
Gui Mei chimed in as well.
"Yue Guan is right. Your twenty-two levels of Soul Power are unstable. If you force yourself to absorb a second Soul Ring, your meridians could rupture."
Faced with the earnest objections of two Titled Douluo, Su Chen remained calm.
He slowly raised his right hand.
The Chaos God-Demon Art began circulating quietly within him.
A condensed stream of black-and-white Soul Power gathered in his palm.
It formed a gleaming blade of Soul Power, its razor-sharp air blades flickering along its edge.
The blade gave a faint hum.
The surrounding air split into tiny spatial fissures.
"Elders, do you think my Soul Power is unstable?"
Su Chen asked in return.
Yue Guan stared fixedly at the blade of Soul Power in Su Chen's palm.
He couldn't detect the slightest trace of disorder.
The purity of this Soul Power—
It even surpassed that of the fifty-level Soul Kings under his command.
How was this possible?
A Soul Master who had only just broken through level twenty—
His Soul Power was completely free of impurities.
Su Chen dispelled the blade in his palm.
"My meridians haven't reached their limit. In fact, fusing with the External Soul Bone has made them broader and tougher than before."
Su Chen spoke with absolute confidence.
"My body is in the best condition it's ever been. This is the perfect time to obtain my second Soul Ring."
Yue Guan sighed.
He knew he couldn't change Su Chen's mind.
Nothing could sway His Highness the Holy Son once he'd made a decision.
Not even the Pope.
"Since His Highness the Holy Son has made up his mind, I won't try to stop him."
Yue Guan changed tack.
"But I must speak up about the age of your second Soul Ring."
He took a worn sheepskin notebook from his robes.
"Yu Xiaogang may be a weakling, but the theory of maximum age limits he compiled by copying Spirit Hall's confidential records does have some value for lower-level Soul Masters."
"According to his calculations, the maximum age a second Soul Ring can withstand is seven hundred and sixty-four years."
"Your first Soul Ring was two thousand five hundred years old. That was already a miracle."
"To be safe, I recommend that your second Soul Ring be no more than a thousand years old."
"We can find a light-attribute Soul Beast of around a thousand years near the edge of this mixed zone. The danger would also be manageable."
Yue Guan's suggestion was entirely out of concern for Su Chen's safety.
An extraordinary first Soul Ring.
Then a stable second one to build a solid foundation.
That was the most sensible way to cultivate.
Su Chen listened to him.
The corner of his mouth curled into undisguised disdain.
"Seven hundred and sixty-four years. Another load of rubbish from Yu Xiaogang."
Su Chen gave the sheepskin notebook in Yue Guan's hands a cold look.
"Elder Ju, my first Soul Ring started at two thousand five hundred years. If I absorb a thousand-year piece of trash for my second, that isn't playing it safe. It's going backward."
"My Second Martial Soul is Ultimate Darkness, and it already had a perfect start."
"My First Martial Soul is Ultimate Light. It absolutely cannot fall behind my Second Martial Soul."
Su Chen's voice rang through the forest, firm as a hammer striking stone.
"My second Soul Ring must start at five thousand years."
Five thousand years.
At the number, Yue Guan and Gui Mei both stopped breathing.
Five thousand years was the standard for a fourth Soul Ring.
Even a Soul Ancestor had to make thorough preparations before absorbing a five-thousand-year Soul Ring.
And Su Chen wanted to face the berserk energy of a five-thousand-year Soul Beast at level twenty.
He'd also have to endure the Soul Shock released when the Soul Beast died.
This was no longer a matter of exceeding the usual limits.
It was sheer suicide.
"His Highness the Holy Son, that's absolutely out of the question."
Yue Guan panicked.
"The energy of a five-thousand-year Soul Beast is worlds apart from that of a two-thousand-year one. It's an insurmountable chasm."
Just as Yue Guan was about to keep arguing, the system's mechanical prompt sounded in Su Chen's mind.
"Ding. Detected that the host is facing a choice regarding the second Soul Ring."
"The God-Level Choice System has activated."
"Option One: Follow Yue Guan's advice and absorb a light-attribute Soul Beast of around one thousand years. Proceed steadily. Reward: Soul Power increases by one level; ten bottles of basic healing potion."
"Option Two: Slightly break with convention and absorb a light-attribute Soul Beast of around three thousand years. Reward: one high-grade Profound Rank movement technique; ten thousand Gold Soul Coins."
"Option Three: Smash all conventional wisdom and absorb a top-tier light-attribute Soul Beast of over five thousand years, exceeding the usual limit. Reward: light affinity increases to one hundred percent; the Judgment Holy Sword's First Soul Skill automatically evolves into a growth-type divine skill; Soul Power directly increases by three levels."
Su Chen glanced at the pale-blue screen that appeared at the edge of his vision.
He didn't hesitate.
The first two options held no appeal for him.
Only the third—
Only that could draw out the full potential of the Judgment Holy Sword.
One hundred percent light affinity.
That meant using light-attribute skills would cost him far less energy in the future.
Their power would multiply.
"System, I choose three."
Su Chen gave the command in his mind.
"Option confirmed. The reward will be issued after the host successfully absorbs a five-thousand-year Soul Ring."
The screen vanished.
Su Chen turned his gaze back to the two Titled Douluo before him.
"Elders, don't judge me by ordinary standards. I'm destined to tread over every limit held up as truth."
Su Chen raised his right hand.
He summoned the High-Rank Soul Beast Precision Radar granted by the system.
"Activate radar scan."
"Filter out all targets under five thousand years."
"Filter out all targets without the Ultimate Light attribute."
"Filter out all targets with ordinary bloodlines."
With those three commands, the radar interface at the edge of his vision cleared instantly.
The countless dots that had filled it disappeared.
The radar's range began to extend deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest.
One circle.
Then two.
Then three.
At last, the scan covered the entire mixed zone.
It even reached the outer edge of the core zone.
A dazzling golden dot finally lit up on the radar interface.
It blinked in the top-right corner of the screen like a blazing sun.
"Ding. A highly compatible target has been detected."
"Species: Holy Radiant Unicorn."
"Age: six thousand three hundred years."
"Bloodline: top-tier light holy beast. It carries a trace of the Ancient Light Dragon Clan's bloodline and has an exceptional ability to purify all darkness and evil."
"Attribute compatibility: Ultimate Light. Perfectly compatible with the Judgment Holy Sword."
A feverish glint flashed in Su Chen's eyes.
A top-tier holy beast, six thousand three hundred years old.
Not only did it clear the five-thousand-year minimum—
Its attributes were a perfect match.
This was a peerless find, one he might never encounter again.
"Found it."
Su Chen closed the radar interface.
He looked at Yue Guan and Gui Mei.
"Due east, eighty miles away, near the edge of the core zone."
"There's a top-tier light holy beast of around six thousand three hundred years."
"Let's go."
Yue Guan and Gui Mei exchanged a glance.
They found Su Chen's ability to locate high-rank Soul Beasts out of thin air utterly inconceivable.
Even as Titled Douluo, they couldn't sense a specific Soul Beast eighty miles away in the mixed zone.
But Su Chen's earlier actions had proved his judgment was absolutely accurate.
"His Highness the Holy Son, eighty miles away is already close to the core zone. There could be terrifying beings lurking there, at least fifty thousand years old, or even a hundred thousand."
Gui Mei's hoarse voice was grave with concern.
"We must be even more careful."
Su Chen ignored Gui Mei's worry.
His Dark Red Dragon Wings sprang open behind him.
The power of his fifty-thousand-year External Soul Bone exploded.
He drove his feet into the ground.
His whole body shot into the sky, a streak of dark red light, and soared a hundred meters above the ground.
He sped east.
"Follow him."
Yue Guan gritted his teeth.
He put away the sheepskin notebook containing Yu Xiaogang's theory.
A golden chrysanthemum bloomed beneath his feet, transforming into a streak of golden light as he chased after Su Chen.
Gui Mei's body dissolved into a cloud of black mist.
He followed close behind.
The three figures flew at high speed above the Star Dou Great Forest.
Powerful pressure poured out without restraint.
The high-level Soul Beasts in the mixed zone sensed these three terrifying auras.
One after another, they crouched in their lairs.
Not daring to make a sound.
Along the way, they encountered several ten-thousand-year flying Soul Beasts that didn't know what was good for them.
Every one of them was sliced in half in an instant by the golden petals Yue Guan casually sent flying.
A rain of blood fell through the forest.
The eighty-mile distance,
at full flight,
was crossed in less than half an hour.
Ahead lay a vast, strange clearing.
Every tree here was a bizarre, translucent white.
Soft light glimmered from their leaves.
It was as if the forest had been carved from crystal.
The dense light element in the air had almost condensed into a tangible mist.
Su Chen stopped in midair.
He folded away his Dragon Wings.
Then slowly descended to the edge of the Crystal Forest.
Yue Guan and Gui Mei landed as well.
The two immediately shielded Su Chen between them.
They kept a wary eye on their surroundings, wholly alert.
"What a rich light aura,"
Yue Guan exclaimed.
"Only top-tier Soul Beasts with pure light attributes could be born in an environment like this."
Following the radar's guidance,
Su Chen fixed his gaze on a vast lake at the very center of the forest.
The lake water gleamed gold.
It looked as though it were made of liquid sunlight.
At the center of the lake,
a white rock island rose above the water.
A magnificent Soul Beast was resting on the rocks.
Its entire body was snowy white,
without a single mark of another color.
Its limbs were long and powerful.
Two pairs of pure white wings grew from its back.
Most striking of all was its forehead.
A half-meter-long golden horn, twisted into a spiral, grew from it.
Golden arcs of electricity flickered constantly along the horn.
It radiated a pure, sacred aura.
The Holy Radiant Unicorn.
A top-tier holy light beast, six thousand three hundred years old.
Su Chen clenched his fists.
The Judgment Holy Sword Martial Soul inside him was trembling violently.
It was an intense yearning for a power of the same origin.
Just as Su Chen was about to give the order to hunt it,
a sudden change occurred.
The once-calm golden lake abruptly began to churn violently.
Great sheets of water surged into the sky.
A violent lightning-attribute fluctuation erupted from the lakebed.
Within that fluctuation was a ferocious aura that made the heart tremble.
It was absolutely no weaker than that of a top-tier Soul Beast over thirty thousand years old.
Before you continue