Absorbing a Thousand-Year Soul Ring, Qian Renxue's Shock

Three days later.

Soul Hunting Forest, dusk.

Gu Linyuan did not linger on the outskirts. Instead, he headed straight into the depths.

He had no interest in ordinary Soul Beasts.

What he wanted was one nearing a thousand years of cultivation.

With his current level-twenty Soul Power, he should theoretically only have been able to absorb a hundred-year Soul Ring at most.

But the Ancient Tree of Life within him gave him a strange intuition: he could endure more.

The essence of life lay in breaking through limits.

And he had been born to shatter the rules.

Over the years, he had endured pain that ordinary people could not bear.

The Power of Destruction and the Power of Life had continuously transformed his body, giving Gu Linyuan physical qualities far beyond those of an ordinary person.

That transformation from a few days ago had remade him completely.

Now, he could fully absorb Soul Rings of an age that ordinary people could never endure.

As he ventured deeper, the surrounding trees grew taller and denser, while the light became ever dimmer.

The air was filled with the damp scent of earth, mingled with a faint trace of blood.

Gu Linyuan slowed his pace.

Then, he stopped.

Not far ahead, a massive black serpent was coiled atop the crown of an ancient towering tree.

The serpent was as thick as a water barrel, its entire body covered in fine scales that glimmered coldly beneath the moonlight.

A pair of short horns grew from its head, while four fleshy bulges could vaguely be seen beneath its belly, as though something were about to burst forth from within.

Most striking of all were its eyes—one gold, one silver. Two completely different colors shone with an eerie radiance in the darkness.

Gu Linyuan's pupils abruptly contracted.

"Underworld Serpent."

"I saw records of this Soul Beast in ancient texts before. It is an exceedingly rare mutated Soul Beast with a trace of Dragon Clan bloodline."

"Legend says that once it cultivates for over ten thousand years, the fleshy bulges beneath its belly will develop limbs, completing its transformation from a serpent into a flood dragon. I never expected to find such a strange Soul Beast here."

"Judging by its condition, this Underworld Serpent should have between eight hundred and a thousand years of cultivation."

"You'll do."

The corners of Gu Linyuan's lips lifted slightly.

The Underworld Serpent seemed to have sensed the danger as well. Its heterochromatic slit pupils fixed tightly on the youth beneath the tree, its forked tongue flickering as it let out a hissing warning.

Yet it did not attack first.

Its instincts told it that this human was powerful.

Gu Linyuan no longer hesitated and raised a hand to summon the Scepter of Destruction.

The pitch-black scepter appeared in his hand out of thin air. Its shaft was black as ink, and a dark-red gemstone was embedded at its tip, resembling congealed blood and smoldering embers at once.

This was the first time the Scepter of Destruction had truly appeared in battle.

The moment that terrifying aura of destruction was released, the Underworld Serpent's body stiffened violently.

It was fear that came from deep within its bloodline.

It was not fear directed at itself, but at the thin trace of Dragon Clan blood within it.

Even true dragons had to bow before the aura of the Scepter of Destruction, let alone a serpent that did not even qualify as a flood dragon.

"Unfortunately, you still don't understand what true fear is."

Gu Linyuan gave the Underworld Serpent no chance to flee.

He raised the Scepter of Destruction. The dark-red gemstone suddenly lit up, and a black ray shot from its tip toward the Underworld Serpent's vital point.

The Underworld Serpent let out a shrill hiss and violently twisted its enormous body, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow.

The blackish-purple light grazed its scales, leaving behind a charred mark.

"Destruction truly deserves to be called the highest and most powerful attribute in the world. Even without a Soul Skill, merely wielding the Scepter of Destruction can unleash destructive power no weaker than that of a Soul Elder."

A gleam flashed through Gu Linyuan's eyes.

The intense pain aroused the Underworld Serpent's ferocity.

It no longer tried to flee. Instead, it opened its bloody maw and lunged at Gu Linyuan.

A cloud of dark-green poison mist spewed from its mouth. Wherever it passed, grass and trees withered, and even the air sizzled as it was corroded.

Gu Linyuan's expression did not change. He extended his left hand, and the phantom of the Ancient Tree of Life appeared behind him.

A gentle aura of life enveloped him. The instant the poison mist drew near, it was purified by the Power of Life and dissipated into harmless vapor.

This was the perfect coordination of life and destruction.

One was responsible for destroying everything, while the other protected himself.

His six years of perseverance had not been in vain. His control over these two powers had already reached the point where he could wield them as naturally as his own limbs.

The battle did not last long.

Although the Underworld Serpent was fierce, every one of its attacks was easily neutralized under the suppression of the Scepter of Destruction.

Gu Linyuan was like a seasoned hunter, calmly and steadily wearing down its strength.

Finally, in the seventh exchange, Gu Linyuan seized his chance.

The dark-red gemstone on the Scepter of Destruction suddenly erupted with blinding light. A black beam three times thicker than before blasted forth and struck the Underworld Serpent directly in the head.

BOOM!!!

The Underworld Serpent's enormous body crashed heavily to the ground, sending dust flying.

Those gold-and-silver slit pupils gradually lost their luster.

Gu Linyuan put away the scepter, walked to the Underworld Serpent's corpse, and drew a deep breath.

Purple motes drifted out from the Underworld Serpent's corpse, slowly gathering into a purple Soul Ring.

Gu Linyuan looked at the purple ring and frowned slightly.

Purple represented a thousand-year Soul Ring.

This Underworld Serpent's cultivation was even higher than he had anticipated.

The difference between eight hundred and nine hundred years might not have been great, but going from a hundred years to a thousand years was a qualitative leap.

Theoretically, a thousand-year Soul Ring required Soul Power above level thirty to absorb.

And he was only level twenty.

He did not hesitate. Sitting cross-legged, he released his Scepter of Destruction Martial Soul.

As if answering a summons, the purple thousand-year Soul Ring slowly drifted toward the Scepter of Destruction.

An incomparably violent surge of energy flooded into Gu Linyuan's body like water bursting through a collapsed dam.

The purple energy rampaged through his body. Wherever it passed, his bones let out teeth-grinding creaks.

Gu Linyuan clenched his teeth, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

He activated the Ancient Tree of Life Martial Soul. Rich life energy surged from within him, frantically repairing his damaged meridians and bones.

Destruction and life once again formed a delicate balance within his body.

Destruction, restoration, destruction again, restoration again.

With every cycle, his meridians widened slightly, and his bones grew a little tougher.

"Could it be him?"

"Gu Linyuan? Wasn't he rumored to be incapable of cultivation? How could this be?"

At that moment.

A golden figure silently descended from above the Soul Hunting Forest.

It was a woman.

She wore a luxurious golden gown. Her long hair cascaded to her waist like a waterfall, her skin was as white as jade, and her features were so exquisite that she seemed inhuman.

Most striking were the pair of golden wings spread behind her back.

The aura of the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul was noble and imposing, as if she had been born to look down upon all living beings.

Qian Renxue looked toward Gu Linyuan with her beautiful eyes. Her chest rose and fell sharply, and her heart was filled with shock.

Ning Fengzhi was her teacher, so she naturally recognized Gu Linyuan, the genius who had awakened Twin Martial Souls six years ago.

However, ever since Gu Linyuan had awakened his Martial Souls, he had always seemed utterly ordinary. As a result, she had nearly forgotten that he even existed.