The Resilient Qilin, Dugu Bo Doubts Life

Ling Yun locked eyes with it, confirming through that gaze that this was the beast he had been searching for.

For a moment, neither side made a rash move.

Dugu Bo also held his breath, secretly gathering his strength; he would not strike unless certain, but once he did, it had to be foolproof.

He was terrified that the slightest disturbance would startle the Qilin away.

The Qilin poked its entire head out, glanced left and right, and upon seeing Dugu Bo, ducked back beneath the soil.

The Yin-Yang Mirror martial soul suddenly shone with brilliant light, and an aura of creation and vibrant vitality enveloped the area.

The Five-Needle Pine retracted the needles it had aimed at Ling Yun, its branches stretching slightly—a clear sign of comfort.

The Yin-Yang Mirror in his mind also stirred, transmitting a stream of information: a Contract Array, and a requirement for Ling Yun's future spirit rings—he must gather the Four Great Divine Beasts.

That is, the Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, and White Tiger, with the Qilin in the center to harmonize the Yin-Yang and Five Elements.

The information stream from the Yin-Yang Mirror indicated that this was tied to his path to godhood.

Sensing the aura of creation blanketing the area, the Qilin poked its head out again, watching Ling Yun.

Ling Yun offered a polite smile, projecting goodwill.

As a beast of auspicious omen, the Qilin was born with the ability to sense the benevolence or malice of others. Ling Yun's goodwill, combined with the aura of creation, made it feel a sense of kinship; it emerged fully from the ground, its large eyes studying Ling Yun.

The Qilin's eyes were filled with curiosity, but when it looked at Dugu Bo, its gaze immediately turned wary, ready to bolt at any moment.

"Qilin, I will not hurt you. With me here, that old man over there cannot hurt you either."

"Come, come here!"

Ling Yun beckoned as he spoke, not worried in the slightest that the Qilin wouldn't understand; a Qilin over two thousand years old possessed the intelligence of a five or six-year-old child. The Qilin looked at Dugu Bo, hesitating slightly.

But it still poked its head out, lifted its hooves, and slowly approached Ling Yun.

Dugu Bo's eyes widened. Is this right? This isn't right, is it?

The Douluo Continent had ultimately become a place he no longer recognized.

Dugu Bo, doubting his own reality, didn't move a muscle. The Qilin grew bolder, running to Ling Yun's side, circling him before rubbing its head against him, displaying pure joy.

Ling Yun examined it closely; it was one meter at the shoulder and two point six meters long, not particularly large.

It was stunningly beautiful: head like a dragon, eyes like a tiger, antlers like a deer, body like a horse, tail like an ox, and scales like a fish—gathering ten thousand spirits into one.

The characteristics of various creatures appeared exceptionally harmonious on its body.

Its color was primarily earthy yellow, with other hues distributed rhythmically across its body, emitting five-colored light as its spirit power circulated.

It was clearly an Earth Qilin that had undergone bloodline awakening to become a Five-Elements Qilin.

Ling Yun slowly extended his hand, and the Qilin did not dodge; his small palm landed on the Qilin's head, stroking it.

The Qilin relaxed completely, eyes narrowing slightly, looking thoroughly satisfied.

"Stay here and wait a moment!"

The Qilin didn't understand, but it obediently stayed put, watching Ling Yun's movements.

Ling Yun began to set up the Contract Array. Before long, a hexagonal array was complete, and the light from the Yin-Yang Mirror shone upon it, causing the array to glow in red and white.

The two colors shifted constantly, and a phantom orb hovered in the center of the array.

"Qilin, are you willing to become my partner? To walk the path to godhood with me? If you are willing, press your forehead against this orb."

The Qilin heard so much, but in its mind, it only grasped one thing: press its forehead to the orb, and they would be partners!

The Qilin stepped into the array and pressed its forehead against it; Ling Yun reached out, pressing his palm onto the orb as well.

The next moment, the array flared with brilliant light, enveloping Ling Yun and the Qilin as they exchanged memories of their lives.

Ling Yun's life on the Douluo Continent appeared in the Qilin's mind, while the Qilin's memories from birth to the present appeared in Ling Yun's.

When this Qilin had first broken its shell, it was merely a Qilin subspecies with a keen interest in everything; its curiosity was immense, and it would eat anything. In the process, it had eaten poisonous herbs several times, struggling on the brink of life and death, never learning its lesson.

Between life and death lay great terror, but also great fortune.

Its bloodline was triggered under these circumstances, and after experiencing nine brushes with death, its bloodline transformed, turning it into an Earth Qilin.

At that point, it gained the ability to tunnel through earth and became even more resilient.

Some of the food that had once caused it excruciating pain actually tasted excellent. Driven by the philosophy of "if it doesn't kill me, I'll eat it to death," the Qilin couldn't resist the temptation of its appetite—that sensation of dancing on the tip of its tongue.

It continued to open its mouth to poisonous food.

The result was obvious: once the quantity of poisonous herbs increased, no matter how tough it was, it couldn't handle it, and the Qilin was once again jumping back and forth on the line between life and death.

It was lucky; after experiencing this eighty-one times, the bloodline hidden deep in its genes underwent another transformation, and the Earth Qilin became a Five-Elements Qilin.

Ling Yun digested the Qilin's memories, caught between laughter and tears; this path of evolution truly opened his eyes!

If nothing else, this Qilin's luck was absolutely heaven-defying; even the God of Death wouldn't dare claim it.

Ten breaths later, the light shield dissipated. A purple spirit ring appeared on Ling Yun's Yin-Yang Mirror, and the Qilin's body turned into specks of light, merging into the spirit ring before appearing within the Yin-Yang Mirror.

The Yin-Yang Mirror used the divine power of the Ice and Fire Dragon King to open a small plane, the environment of which was that of the Sunset Forest.

Combined with the Yin-Yang Mirror's ability to create all things, the interior was teeming with life.

Perhaps due to the divine power, the Qilin felt incredibly comfortable inside, galloping about and playing to its heart's content.

The creatures inside were all mere beasts, not a single Soul Beast among them, and they were chased everywhere by the Qilin.

Outside.

Ling Yun began testing the skill of his second soul ring, and the results left him extremely satisfied; the soul skill was named Five Elements Divine Light, a manifestation of life and death in a single thought.

When the Five Elements flowed in harmony, the light possessed the effect of bringing the dead back to life and regrowing flesh and bone, further stimulating the capabilities of the Yin-Yang Mirror.

When the Five Elements reversed, the light converged into a beam of destruction, a destructive ray that possessed absolute certainty and ignored all defenses.

To counter this move, only energy-based attacks would be effective; engaging in melee combat would simply be asking for trouble.

The soul power within the soul ring flowed like a river into the sea, merging with Ling Yun's original soul power with unparalleled smoothness.

Ling Yun focused on circulating the Universe Creation Art, refining this influx of external soul power.

The cultivation of the Universe Creation Art was, in essence, a simulation of the great universe of heaven and earth, a process of constructing a microcosm within the body.

The two-thousand-year Five-Elements Qilin soul ring acted as a catalyst, accelerating this process.

As the soul power circulated, it nourished Ling Yun's internal organs, with the strengthening effect being more than double what it had been before.

The distinct aura fluctuations of a breakthrough appeared, and under the watchful gaze of Dugu Bo, Ling Yun's soul power soared all the way up, finally coming to a halt at level 23.

The process of absorbing the second soul ring was exceptionally smooth, concluding perfectly in less than half an hour.

Ling Yun had grown a little taller again; he would need to buy new clothes!

Dugu Bo had witnessed this incredible scene from start to finish, his expression one of complete collapse of his worldview!

Without hunting a Soul Beast, and unlike the legendary sacrifice of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, could a soul ring really be produced this way?

He could not comprehend it!

Furthermore, since the Qilin had transformed into points of light to merge with the soul ring, did that mean the Qilin was dead?