When Lin Yi's Soul Power and spiritual power touched the blood-red Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, which radiated a terrifying aura, it was as if an icy sun had exploded inside him!
An energy far more immense, violent, and overbearing than what he had faced when absorbing the seventy-thousand-year Mystic Ice Emperor Scorpion Soul Ring surged into his limbs like a starry river bursting its banks! It contained not only the terrifying Soul Power accumulated by the Titan Snow Demon King over a hundred thousand years, but also its violent will and unyielding fighting spirit as a ruler of the Far North!
Crack! Crack!
A thick layer of deep-blue ice instantly formed over Lin Yi's body, like the Titan Snow Demon King's ice armor. His meridians groaned under the impact of the surging energy, as if they might burst at any moment! On the spiritual level, it was as if he had been cast into a ten-thousand-year ice prison. The Titan Snow Demon King's domineering creed—"might makes right; crush everything"—turned into countless icy roars and blows, tearing wildly at his Sea of Consciousness!
This was truly a brush with death! The backlash from a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring far surpassed anything he had faced before!
"Guard your mind! Guide the energy and wear down its soul!" Sword Douluo Chen Xin's grave voice rang in his ear like the sound of a sword, carrying the power to steady his spirit and soul.
Bone Douluo Gu Rong also released his full aura, suppressing the ice-attribute energy stirred by the Soul Beast's death. Ning Fengzhi pushed the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda's healing and stabilizing light to its limit. Like the toughest threads, it firmly protected Lin Yi's heart and major meridians, providing him with vital support.
Lin Yi gritted his teeth, his face twisted by unbearable pain, but his eyes remained as unshakable as ten-thousand-year-old ice! He frantically circulated his Soul Power, already at level seventy-four, guiding the violent torrent through his meridians along a set path and refining it! Bolstered by his Wisdom Skull and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's source, his spiritual power held firm at his mind's core like an impregnable dam. He resisted the savage will, wearing it down and absorbing it bit by bit!
The Ice Dragon Martial Soul let out a high-pitched roar within him, actively meeting the energy of the same origin—ice—yet far more domineering, and greedily absorbing and fusing with it! This was more than an infusion of energy; it was a completion and elevation of his very essence!
The process was even more perilous and drawn out than the battle against the Titan Snow Demon King!
One day, two days, three days...
Lin Yi became like an ice statue. Only the collision of the surging, tsunami-like energy and will within him proved the grueling transformation he was undergoing.
It wasn't until sunset on the fourth day that the violent energy finally began to subside. The Titan Snow Demon King's lingering will was completely worn away, becoming the purest spiritual nourishment for Lin Yi to absorb.
Boom—!!!
A terrifying aura several times stronger than before erupted from Lin Yi, like an ancient Ice Dragon awakening from slumber! The deep-blue ice armor covering his body shattered with a roar, turning into pure ice-attribute energy that he drew into himself!
Level seventy-five! Level seventy-six! Level seventy-seven! Level seventy-eight! Level seventy-nine!
The immense energy within the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring had raised his Soul Power by five levels in one fell swoop, sending him straight from level seventy-four to the peak of level seventy-nine! He was only one step away from Soul Douluo!
At the same time, information about the two Soul Skills granted by the Ice Dragon Martial Soul's First Soul Ring was clearly branded into the depths of his soul:
First Soul Skill: Ice Dragon Roar!
Effect: Unleashes the Ice Dragon Martial Soul's source power as a concentrated phantom-dragon shockwave, dealing devastating freezing and physical damage to a single target. The dragon's roar carries extreme cold and draconic might, directly freezing the target's Soul Power circulation and soul, leaving them briefly immobilized and greatly reducing their defense. Its power rises dramatically with Soul Power.
Second Soul Skill: Snow Demon Fury!
Effect: Draws upon the Titan Snow Demon King's bloodline power to form a thick defensive layer over the body, like Titan Ice Armor, instantly increasing the user's defense by a terrifying 250%! While active, it grants extremely high resistance to ice-attribute attacks and reflects part of the physical damage taken back at the attacker. Its duration increases with Soul Power.
One was an extreme single-target offensive Soul Skill! The other was a freakishly powerful defensive enhancement!
Lin Yi slowly opened his eyes. An Ice Dragon seemed to coil within his gaze as the majesty and icy aura of a top-tier powerhouse radiated naturally from him. Feeling the level-seventy-nine Soul Power surging inside him like a mighty river, along with the heart-stirring strength conveyed by the Ice Dragon Martial Soul, his heart swelled with pride!
Now, the number of Soul Skills he possessed had reached an astonishing total:
Snow Lotus Martial Soul (Seven Rings):
1. Healing Light (healing, dispelling)
2. Ice Lotus Protection (shield, converts damage into healing)
3. Extreme Cold Domain (area buffs/debuffs)
4. Breath of Ice Sealing (defense, freezes on contact)
5. Pure Lotus Bloom (group healing + Soul Power recovery)
6. Ice Lotus Blessing (increases speed and Soul Power recovery)
7. Snow Lotus True Body (doubles the effects of all Soul Skills; absorbs 50% of attacks and converts them into Soul Power)
Ice Dragon Martial Soul (One Ring, Hundred Thousand Year, Two Soul Skills):
1. Ice Dragon Roar (single-target offense, freezing)
2. Snow Demon Fury (increases defense by 250%)
On the surface, he now possessed nine Soul Skills!
And that was far from all the trump cards he held. Deep within his right palm, his third Martial Soul, the Ice Phoenix, along with its Million-Year Soul Ring and three powerful spiritual Soul Skills—Ice Phoenix Feather Garment, Ice Spirit Impact, and Spirit Detection—remained carefully concealed, his final weapon for facing desperate situations!
A level-seventy-nine Soul Saint with Twin Martial Souls in plain sight and nine Soul Skills, one of them at the Hundred Thousand Year level! Such a combination was unprecedented in the entire history of the Douluo Continent!
"How do you feel?" Ning Fengzhi asked as he stepped forward, unable to hide his astonishment. Advancing five levels in one go—such a rate of improvement was unheard of!
"Better than ever!" Lin Yi clenched his fist, feeling power flow through his fingers, his confidence surging. "Thank you for your help, Sect Master, Teacher, and Senior Gu Rong!"
Sword Douluo Chen Xin looked at his transformed disciple, a trace of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. He gave a slight nod. "Your foundation is solid, with no signs of instability. Good."
Bone Douluo Gu Rong chuckled. "I knew you were a monster, kid! You're already level seventy-nine. Absorb a few more Soul Rings and you might just catch up to us old-timers!"
He had successfully obtained the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, and his strength had soared. Their mission had been accomplished in full.
The group did not linger. They immediately set off for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
On the journey back, Lin Yi's outlook had changed. At level seventy-nine, he was only one step away from Soul Douluo. Once he broke through, his strength would undergo another qualitative leap.
Now that the Ice Dragon Martial Soul gave him powerful offense and defense, complementing the Snow Lotus Martial Soul's peerless support, he was confident he could stand his ground even against an ordinary Titled Douluo!
The winds of change across the continent were growing ever fiercer, and he now had the means to begin stirring up a storm.
His next step was to break through to Soul Douluo and... find a suitable second Soul Ring for the Ice Dragon Martial Soul!
The news that Lin Yi had successfully absorbed the Titan Snow Demon King's Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and soared to level seventy-nine caused a huge stir—and great excitement—among the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's upper ranks.
But their joy did not last long. A bloodstained, urgent military report from the Heaven Dou Empire's border shattered it completely!
The report had been delivered at great risk by an outer sentry of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, drenched in blood and with his Soul Power nearly exhausted. Its contents were horrifying:
Spirit Hall's Pope, Bibi Dong, had personally led four elders and two thousand elite Hall Guard Knights, all at Soul Saint level or higher, in a surprise attack on the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's stronghold!
The entire Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, from its sect master, Yu Yuanzhen, down to its ordinary collateral disciples—over a thousand people in all—had been wiped out. Only a handful who happened to be traveling outside had escaped by sheer luck. The clan's stronghold had been reduced to scorched earth. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, with its ten-thousand-year legacy... had been destroyed!
When the news arrived, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect fell into complete silence.
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