The Fire Dragon King lowered his enormous head, stirring up a wave of scorching air.
"Boy, did you awaken us because you want our power?"
Xue Tianyu nodded without hesitation.
"I'd like to borrow this treasure trove of yours and take a few Immortal Herbs to help me break through."
"And, while I'm at it, I'd like to borrow the power of your remnant souls."
At those words,
the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings exchanged a glance.
They could clearly sense the unfathomable potential within Xue Tianyu.
Rather than continue sleeping here until their consciousness faded completely,
they might as well entrust their remaining power to this young man before them, whose talent defied the heavens.
"Very well!"
The Ice Dragon King let out a long sigh.
"Since you have the courage, then I shall grant your wish!"
"If you can withstand the baptism of ultimate ice and fire, then take all the power here!"
With that, the remnant souls of the two Dragon Kings turned into countless red and blue specks of light.
They sank back into the waters of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, fully awakening the energy throughout the entire pool.
Having earned the approval of the Dragon Kings' remnant souls,
the aura of the entire lake grew exceptionally gentle, no longer violently rejecting him as it had before.
Xue Tianyu walked to the milky-white spring and fixed his gaze on an Immortal Herb that was pure white from stem to tip.
The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.
A plant of extreme cold, it contained an immense amount of pure ice-attribute energy.
It was just what he needed for his cultivation.
He reached out his right hand, his fingertips covered in a layer of ice, and pulled the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass up by its roots.
Without the slightest hesitation, Xue Tianyu swallowed the Immortal Herb whole.
Then he sat down cross-legged on the spot.
The herb's violent medicinal power exploded inside him in an instant.
An icy energy, as cold as ten-thousand-year-old profound ice, surged wildly through his meridians and coursed throughout his body.
Xue Tianyu closed his eyes and circulated the cultivation technique within him,
guiding the immense energy into his dantian in an orderly fashion.
His breathing fell into a steady rhythm. With every breath, a stream of white, icy mist poured from his nostrils.
The energy within the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well was drawn by the aura within his body as well.
It formed visible red-and-blue whirlpools that surged toward him, converging on his body.
Time passed second by second.
The aura around Xue Tianyu began to rise at a terrifying rate, climbing higher and higher.
The Soul Power bottleneck that had held him at level fifty-eight
was battered by the immense energy of the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
It shattered in an instant, like dead wood swept away by a flood.
Level fifty-nine!
Level sixty!
A crisp cracking sound rang out inside him.
The barrier that had kept him from entering the Soul Emperor realm shattered with a thunderous crash.
Xue Tianyu abruptly opened his eyes.
A beam of ice-blue light, almost solid in form, shot from his gaze and bored a deep crater into the rock wall ahead.
He'd broken through!
A level-sixty Soul Emperor!
The instant his level broke through,
the entire bed of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well resonated once more with a violent rumble.
A dazzling pillar of golden-red and ice-blue light shot up from the bottom of the lake.
It completely enveloped Xue Tianyu.
Having sensed his breakthrough, the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings' remnant souls were offering up their origin power of their own accord.
The immense energy compressed and condensed above Xue Tianyu's head.
At last, it became a strange Soul Ring radiating boundless majesty.
The Soul Ring was a deep, dark red, covered in ice-blue dragon patterns.
A Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring!
It drifted down and settled securely over Xue Tianyu's Martial Soul.
It shone alongside his previous five Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings, radiating a terrifying pressure that left onlookers breathless.
Xue Tianyu stood up, feeling power surge through him like a vast ocean.
The corners of his lips lifted in a satisfied smile.
His Sixth Soul Ring was complete.
At the bottom of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well,
the red-and-blue light gradually faded after the immense energy of the Soul Ring had been absorbed.
Xue Tianyu got to his feet and stretched his limbs a little.
His bones crackled like popping beans.
The surging Soul Power within him was countless times stronger than it had been at level fifty-eight.
He could clearly feel that the extreme ice and fire had tempered his meridians until they were as tough as steel.
The origin power granted by the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring continued flowing through every part of his body.
The Ice Empress stepped forward. Her gaze fell on the dark-red Soul Ring, marked with dragon patterns, and shock flashed through her eyes.
"A God-Bestowed Soul Ring of the Hundred Thousand Year level."
"Even at my peak, absorbing energy of this level would have taken considerable effort."
"Your luck really is the envy of everyone. Even the inheritance of my Far North isn't this outrageous."
Xue Tianyu chuckled, his tone calm.
"That wasn't luck. It was strength."
"Without an absolutely sturdy body, forcibly absorbing this power would only make you explode."
The two left the bottom of the valley, one after the other, and returned to the mountain peak at the edge of the poison array.
Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan were anxiously pacing back and forth.
The earthshaking dragon might that had erupted from the valley, along with the pillar of light that had shot into the clouds, had nearly made the grandfather and granddaughter's legs buckle beneath them.
That godlike pressure, soaring above the mortal realm, was something no ordinary Soul Master could withstand.
Seeing Xue Tianyu emerge unharmed, his aura even deeper and more terrifying than before,
Dugu Bo was shaken to the core. He hurried forward, clasped his hands, and bowed deeply.
"Young master, you... you broke through?"
Xue Tianyu answered casually, his expression indifferent.
"I took a few things and gained two levels along the way. I'm level sixty now."
"This place is nice. From now on, it's my private territory."
"Without my permission, no one is to enter."
Dugu Bo nodded repeatedly, obeying his every word.
All he could think about was that his and his granddaughter's lives were still in the other man's hands. How could he dare defy him?
"Rest assured, young master. This old man will guard the poison array with his life."
"Even if another Titled Douluo comes, they won't get in so much as a step!"
As he spoke, Dugu Bo tactfully pulled a fine green pouch from his robes.
Holding it out in both hands, he respectfully offered it to Xue Tianyu.
"Young master, this is a Storage Soul Tool I carry with me."
"It contains some Gold Soul Coins I've saved over the years, as well as a few medicinal herbs for strengthening the body and replenishing the essence, picked from the outskirts of the poison array."
"It's just a small token of this old man's respect. I hope you won't mind."
Xue Tianyu glanced at the pouch, accepted it without hesitation, and tucked it into his robes.
"I'll take it."
"The poison in your bodies is already under control. Next, circulate your Soul Power using the method I taught you."
"In less than half a month, the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison that's tormented you for years will be transformed into your own cultivation."
Dugu Bo trembled with excitement and pulled Dugu Yan along, about to kneel and thank him.
Xue Tianyu waved a hand, cutting them off.
"That's enough. Spare me the formalities."
"I have things to do. I'm heading back to Heaven Dou City."
With that, he turned and left with the Ice Empress, not looking back. Their figures quickly vanished into the boundless miasma.
Watching Xue Tianyu's departing figure, a strange light shone in Dugu Yan's eyes.
"Grandpa, what kind of monster is he?"
Dugu Bo let out a long breath, his expression growing deeply complicated.
"Never mind what kind of monster he is. As long as the two of us cling to this strong backer, we'll be able to strut across the Douluo Continent."
Night had fully fallen over a remote path on the outskirts of Sunset Forest.
Thick clouds blocked the cold moonlight, leaving the surroundings so dark that one couldn't see a hand in front of one's face.
Only the howling night wind whipped through the treetops, shrieking like wailing ghosts and wolves.
This forest was always full of unknown dangers at night.
The roars of high-level Soul Beasts occasionally rang out from far away, striking fear into everything nearby.
Xue Tianyu and the Ice Empress walked side by side. Their pace seemed slow and unhurried, yet each step carried them a great distance, and they moved swiftly.
Neither of them held back the faint, extreme pressure radiating from their bodies.
The Soul Beasts lurking along the way trembled in terror as soon as they caught their scent, not daring to come anywhere near.
When they reached a narrow valley hemmed in by mountains on both sides,
Xue Tianyu suddenly stopped.
He looked up at the pitch-black woods around them, a dangerous smile curling at the corners of his lips.
The Ice Empress sensed that something was wrong too. Her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, and the temperature around her plummeted in an instant.
"A few rats who don't know when to quit are hiding in the dark."
"I can smell that disgusting killing intent from far away."
Xue Tianyu gave a slight wave of his hand, signaling for the Ice Empress to step aside.
"I just broke through, so stretching my muscles sounds nice."
He lifted his chin toward the dense undergrowth ahead, his voice ringing out through the silent valley.
"Since you're already here, stop hiding like a bunch of turtles."
"Come on out."
The moment his words fell,
a brute force ripped through the thicket ahead, which stood nearly as high as two men.
Several trees thick enough to encircle with both arms were smashed in two, roaring as wood chips flew through the air.
Heavy footsteps, like the tread of a mountain, boomed through the valley.
The ground shook violently with every step, as if a small earthquake had struck.
A giant over two meters tall, his muscles bulging like granite, strode out of the shadows.
His rugged face was covered in jowls, and his eyes shone with a vicious, bloodthirsty light.
It was Zhao Wuji, sent by Flender to intercept and kill him!
He had spent the entire afternoon lying in wait nearby, trying to track down Xue Tianyu.
His belly was full of pent-up frustration and murderous intent. At last, he had found an outlet.
Zhao Wuji crossed his arms and clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking sharply.
He looked Xue Tianyu up and down as if he were staring at a lifeless corpse.
"Boy, you've got sharp senses."
"Too bad. Even if you sprout wings today, you won't fly out of this valley!"
Xue Tianyu looked at the uncouth fellow, who resembled a bear more than a man, without the slightest change in expression.
"Someone from Shrek Academy?"
Zhao Wuji spread his great mouth, showing a row of bone-white teeth, and grinned savagely.
"So the brat's got a bit of an eye after all."
"I never change my name or surname. I'm Zhao Wuji, the Immovable Wisdom King!"
At the name, Xue Tianyu didn't even raise an eyelid.
His tone was contemptuous, openly dripping with mockery.
"You beat the young ones, then the old ones come looking for revenge."
"Besides yelping in packs like wild dogs, does anyone at Shrek Academy know how to do anything else?"
Those words struck Zhao Wuji right where it hurt.
Tang San and the others had returned in defeat earlier that day, covered in blood and looking too awful to bear.
Shrek's pride had been ground into the dirt.
Flender's furious roar still haunted his mind.
Zhao Wuji's expression darkened. His eyes instantly reddened, and a vicious glint flashed in them.
"On the brink of death, and you still dare to run your mouth in front of me!"
"You grievously injured our Shrek students and forced Little San to kneel in the street and suffer humiliation!"
"You'll pay for that blood debt with your life today!"
He raised his broad, fan-like hand and pointed at Xue Tianyu from afar, spittle flying.
"Boss Fu gave the order. He wants your head so he can take it back and wash away the shame you brought upon our academy."
"I advise you to obediently stretch out your neck and accept your death. If I'm in a good mood, I might even leave your corpse intact."
"If you dare resist, I'll crush every bone in your body, one by one, and make you die screaming in agony!"
Faced with Zhao Wuji's murderous threats,
Xue Tianyu felt not the slightest hint of panic. Instead, he burst out laughing.
"You think you can?"
"A useless nobody who isn't even a Titled Douluo dares to boast about taking my head?"
Those casual words were like a Fire Spark dropping into a barrel of gunpowder.
Zhao Wuji was enraged. His broad chest heaved violently, and two thick streams of white vapor burst from his nostrils.
"You arrogant brat!"
"When I made a name for myself in the Soul Master World as the Immovable Wisdom King, you hadn't even been born yet!"
"Don't think that beating Little San and the others with a bit of talent means you can look down on everyone."
"I'm a dignified level seventy-six Soul Saint!"
"Today, I'll show you with your own eyes what a true gulf in power looks like!"
A thunderous boom shook the heavens!
An extremely violent surge of Soul Power burst from Zhao Wuji's body and shot into the sky.
The powerful current swept up every fallen leaf and loose stone within dozens of meters, sending them flying.
Dazzling ocher light instantly enveloped him from head to toe.
With a deafening, furious bear roar,
the phantom of a gigantic Vajra Bear suddenly appeared behind him, baring its claws and fangs.
Zhao Wuji's already burly body swelled another size, and dense, coarse brown fur sprouted all over him.
His eyes turned blood-red, and his hands became enormous, thick, sharp bear paws.
Seven dazzling Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet, one after another.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black!
The optimal Soul Ring configuration!
The terrifying pressure of a level seventy-six Soul Saint bore down on Xue Tianyu like a solid mountain.
Under that crushing force, the air let out a piercing, strained shriek.
The ground around them began to crack, deep, web-like fissures spreading in every direction.
Watching from the side, the Ice Empress wore a look of disdain.
She took a small step forward, and chill rapidly gathered at her pale fingertips.
"He's just a slightly burly bear."
"He dares bark at you? Let me freeze him into a statue and smash him to pieces."
Xue Tianyu reached out and gently stopped the Ice Empress, holding her back.
"No need to get involved."
He calmly watched Zhao Wuji, who stood fuming in the distance, his gaze as if he were looking at the perfect punching bag.
"I just got my Sixth Soul Ring, and I happen to need a tough target to practice on."
"A level seventy-six Soul Saint should just about do."
Before you continue