"Why are you wasting so much time talking, you brat? Hurry up—we're in a rush." Xuan Zi blurred into motion, grabbed Bei Bei by the collar, and hoisted him up.
An ocher-yellow light enveloped them, turning into a streak of light that flew toward the Star Dou Great Forest.
Shrek City was very close to the Star Dou Great Forest. In fact, it had been built right beside it.
At Xuan Zi's speed, they reached the outskirts of the forest in no time.
Along the way, Bei Bei even saw warning signs planted beside the road.
"The Soul Beasts on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest and their habitats have all been documented after countless years of work by the academy," Xuan Zi explained as they walked. "Mu En said your Soul Rings should come from Light Attribute Sub-Dragons if possible. Even if you can't find those, it'd be best to choose a Sub-Dragon with the Thunder Attribute."
Bei Bei didn't dare stray even half a step from Xuan Zi. Even though the old man's robe was greasy, he clung to it tightly.
He didn't want to turn around and find Xuan Zi gone, leaving him all alone on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Listening to Xuan Zi, Bei Bei nodded repeatedly. "That's what I was thinking, too."
The Light Attribute of his Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul was extremely close to Ultimate Light. If all his Soul Rings came from Light Attribute Sub-Dragons, he would have a great chance of achieving a second evolution and reaching the Ultimate Light Attribute.
Though the Star Dou Great Forest was vast, its area had noticeably shrunk over the past ten thousand years. Soul Beasts with Dragon bloodlines were already rare, let alone Light Attribute Dragons of a specific age.
Under Xuan Zi's guidance, they soon arrived at the territory of some Light Attribute Sub-Dragons.
Xuan Zi pinched Bei Bei's right arm, then sent his Soul Power through Bei Bei's meridians to examine them.
He nodded. "Your constitution's pretty good. Looks like those two pieces of thousand-year Whale Rubber didn't go to waste. You can handle a Soul Ring of around nine hundred years."
Xuan Zi withdrew his hand, leaving a dark handprint on Bei Bei's fair arm.
Bei Bei couldn't understand how anyone could be so filthy.
Even if Xuan Zi squatted by the roadside pretending to be a beggar, no one would have doubted him.
Being something of a neat freak, Bei Bei couldn't stand it and wiped the print clean.
He couldn't help missing Sister Lexuan. She was soft and smelled lovely. Hugging her was so comfortable.
Xuan Zi either didn't notice Bei Bei's little gesture or simply didn't care. He looked over the Soul Beasts ahead.
When he found none of a suitable age, he grabbed Bei Bei by the collar and flew toward the next area inhabited by Light Attribute Sub-Dragons.
After moving from place to place several times, Xuan Zi finally found a Light Attribute Sub-Dragon of a suitable age.
The Sub-Dragon lay alone on the spot, its body radiating intense light. It had curled itself into a ball, with the Dragon Scales on its back spread open.
Xuan Zi was a little puzzled about what it was doing, but since its age was suitable, he didn't think much of it or investigate further.
Ocher-yellow light burst from around Xuan Zi. The earth trembled and abruptly split open, forming a great maw that swallowed the Light Attribute Sub-Dragon underground.
The soil in front of Bei Bei churned, and the Light Attribute Sub-Dragon was spat back out from beneath the ground.
"This Sub-Dragon is only a little over nine hundred years old. It definitely hasn't reached a thousand. Kill it and absorb its Soul Ring!" Xuan Zi pulled out a chicken leg. He'd gone too long without one, and he was craving it badly.
Bei Bei stepped forward and carefully examined the Soul Beast. The Light Attribute Sub-Dragon wasn't very large, measuring just over a meter long. Its two forelegs were thick and sturdy, its body covered in fine white Dragon Scales, and a gentle white light shone from it.
But it was unconscious. Bei Bei noticed lightning-like patterns on its Dragon Scales.
Could it have mutated? Bei Bei wasn't sure.
He took an ornate dagger from his Storage Soul Tool and plunged it straight into the Sub-Dragon's tightly shut eye.
A stream of energy slowly floated out of the Sub-Dragon's body, condensing above its corpse into a deep-yellow Soul Ring, its color so rich that it seemed to glimmer with purple light.
Seeing that it was a yellow Hundred-Year Soul Ring, Bei Bei finally relaxed. He sat down nearby and summoned his Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul.
Before absorbing the Soul Ring, Bei Bei still couldn't put his mind at ease. He turned to Xuan Zi, who was eating meat and drinking noisily, and reminded him, "Xuan Zi, don't you dare leave while I'm absorbing the Soul Ring!"
"Relax, you brat. With me here, no Soul Beast within several miles would dare come near. Hurry up and absorb your Soul Ring!" Xuan Zi grumbled, looking exasperated as he chewed on his chicken leg.
Bei Bei let out a soft breath and steadied himself. He began using his Soul Power to draw the Soul Ring toward him, and it slowly floated above his head.
A powerful force poured continuously from the Soul Ring into Bei Bei's meridians, rampaging through them and making his body jolt.
Just then, something unexpected happened.
A glimmer of purple light suddenly rose from the yellow Soul Ring above Bei Bei's head. The entire ring transformed into a purple Thousand-Year Soul Ring.
At the sight, Xuan Zi spat out the wine he'd just swallowed.
He rushed to Bei Bei's side, unable to believe that the Hundred-Year Soul Ring had turned into a Thousand-Year Soul Ring.
Xuan Zi quickly understood. No wonder that Sub-Dragon had seemed so strange. It had been in the middle of transforming into a thousand-year Soul Beast.
He couldn't help regretting it. If only he'd observed it first—then this mistake would never have happened.
As Bei Bei absorbed the Soul Ring, he suddenly felt the energy inside him grow much more violent. If it had been a stream before, now it had become a great river, pounding his meridians until they ached.
Blood seeped from the pores of Bei Bei's skin, leaving him in a terrible state.
A thousand-year Soul Ring exceeded Bei Bei's limit. If he couldn't withstand the impact of its energy, he could very well explode and die.
Xuan Zi didn't want anything to happen to Bei Bei. He was just about to dispel the Soul Ring Bei Bei was absorbing.
At that moment, the Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul in Bei Bei's hand suddenly let out a high-pitched Dragon's cry.
An immeasurable Dragon's might surged from it. The Thousand-Year Soul Ring seemed suppressed, trembling incessantly, and the energy it released grew much gentler.
Only then did Xuan Zi stop. The Light Sacred Dragon was a true Dragon, so dealing with a Sub-Dragon like this was child's play.
Several hours passed in the blink of an eye, and the Thousand-Year Soul Ring settled firmly around Bei Bei.
Bei Bei's breathing steadied. He slowly opened his eyes.
He could feel that his Soul Power had grown much stronger, but his limbs ached and tingled all over, as though someone had beaten him black and blue.
"Xuan Zi, I did it! My First Soul Ring... why is it a thousand-year one?" Bei Bei summoned his Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul, only to see a purple Soul Ring rise beneath his feet.