Fourth Soul Skill, the Two Flatterers

At that moment, the aura around Su Mo suddenly changed, as if he had become a different person.

A red glint lit up in his eyes, an almost demonic blood-colored radiance that inspired fear at a glance.

The temperature of the air around him seemed to drop to freezing, while an air of slaughter burst from his body and spread in all directions like a tide.

At the same time, the demonic patterns on the sword lit up, radiating a heart-pounding pressure.

This was Su Mo's Asura Sword Intent, capable of eroding an enemy's will.

If an enemy was weaker than him, they might not even be able to summon the desire to resist, instantly losing their will to fight.

Not only that, this Sword Intent could greatly enhance his attack power. Every attack carried Asura Power, which would erode the enemy's wounds after inflicting damage, making them difficult to heal.

Su Mo flicked his wrist, raising the sword before him with its tip pointed straight at the sky.

In an instant, blood-colored light surged wildly.

It condensed in midair into an enormous blood-red energy sword.

"Asura Slash!" With a low cry, Su Mo swung his sword down fiercely.

The Green Blade Mantis sensed the deadly danger, and fear appeared in its eyes for the first time.

Ignoring the Sword Feathers, it could only raise its blade arms and cross them over its head, attempting to block the fatal strike of that blood-red giant sword.

Meanwhile, the Sword Feathers continued to tear relentlessly toward its abdomen.

It let out a pained scream. Its abdomen was already covered in dense wounds, and dark green bodily fluid began to seep out.

But it had no time to care about any of that. The aura of the blood-red giant sword above its head made its very soul tremble.

In an instant, the bloody light descended!

Boom—

A deafening explosion echoed through the Star Dou Great Forest.

A vast stretch of trees was destroyed, and a deep gully several yards long appeared in the ground. The scene was a complete mess.

The Green Blade Mantis lay on the ground in the distance, its abdomen rising and falling faintly. Though it was not yet dead, it was barely clinging to life.

Its once-proud blade arms had been severed, leaving only half-stumps hanging limply to the ground. The shell on its back had shattered completely, and dark green blood covered the ground.

Without the slightest hesitation, Su Mo flashed forward and thrust his sword into its vital point, completely ending its life.

Soon, a black Spirit Ring slowly rose from its body.

Su Mo stood with his sword sheathed, breathing slightly heavily as his chest rose and fell. Clearly, the battle had consumed a considerable amount of his Soul Power.

With a wave of his hand, the scattered black-gold Sword Feathers flew back behind him, gathering into a pair of wings before being retracted into his body.

Seeing this, Bibi Dong's lips curled up slightly, and a glimmer flashed through her eyes.

She quickly walked over to Su Mo, naturally wrapping her arms around one of his and lifting her face, her eyes filled with admiration.

"Junior Brother, you're amazing. That was a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, and you defeated it all by yourself."

Yue Guan also walked over with a broad smile, his delicate face full of fawning flattery.

"Indeed. The power of Your Highness's sword just now was simply earth-shattering and ghost-weeping! Slaying a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast head-on with forty levels of Soul Power—throughout the entire Spirit Master world, there are few who could accomplish such a feat. This subordinate admires you beyond measure."

Gui Mei gave Yue Guan a deep look. No, if you said everything, what was he supposed to say?

Why had he never realized before that Chrysanthemum Guan was so skilled at flattery?

After pondering briefly and rapidly organizing his words, he finally spoke.

"Chrysanthemum Guan is right. Looking across the entire continent, who could reach Your Highness's current Soul Power Level at such a young age? Your Highness's talent is truly unprecedented and unmatched by any who may come after."

Su Mo looked at the two of them with a strange expression.

What was wrong with these two? Why were they flattering him like lackeys?

And they were playing off each other so seamlessly. They truly were a pair of best buddies.

"Enough. I'm going to start absorbing the Spirit Ring." He shook his head, too lazy to pay attention to these two clowns.

"Yes, Your Highness!" The two immediately replied, retreating several steps in unison.

Su Mo sat down cross-legged on the spot, adjusted his breathing and condition, then closed his eyes and focused his mind.

The instant the Spirit Ring descended upon him, an enormous surge of energy rushed into his body like a breached dam, violent and turbulent.

Thanks to the formidable physique tempered by Immortal Herbs, his body merely trembled slightly before stabilizing. He did not even reveal much pain.

However, at that moment, a sudden change arose within his Spirit Sea.

The resentment of the Green Blade Mantis condensed into a phantom filled with intense unwillingness and violence, attempting to shatter his Spirit Sea and perish together with him.

This was the final struggle of a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, as well as one of the most dangerous trials of absorbing a Spirit Ring.

If he could not withstand the spiritual shock, he would become crippled at best and die on the spot at worst.

Su Mo sneered inwardly. A mere remnant soul's resentment dared to run wild within his Spirit Sea?

With a thought, a Blood Sword condensed from spiritual power abruptly formed within his Spirit Sea.

The Blood Sword slashed down through the air with unstoppable force. The remnant will of the Green Blade Mantis could not even resist before it was cut apart by a single strike, turning into specks of light that vanished without a trace.

The spiritual shock had only just begun, yet it was already over.

Time quietly passed.

After a long while, the Soul Power around Su Mo suddenly surged.

He abruptly opened his eyes, and a red glint flashed through them.

At this point, his Soul Power had reached level forty-seven.

The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and Infernal Delicate Apricot primarily enhanced physical constitution and did not significantly increase Soul Power.

His current Soul Power was thanks to the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well's environment, which accelerated cultivation, as well as the surplus energy from the Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Ring.

"Junior Brother, what is your fourth Soul Skill?" Bibi Dong leaned closer and asked curiously.

Su Mo rose to his feet and smiled faintly. "My fourth Soul Skill is called Asura Rending Slash. It can unleash a sword aura that ignores defense."

More precisely, it condensed the Asura Power on the blade and released it as sword aura, ignoring defense and possessing powerful penetrating damage.

After the sword aura inflicted damage, the remaining Asura Power would also invade the enemy's body and continue eroding their meridians.

Yue Guan cried out in surprise, "Ignore defense? Your Highness, this... this is far too heaven-defying! Wouldn't the defenses of those defense-type Spirit Masters become mere decorations before you?"

Gui Mei said, "That's right. No matter how formidable the opponent's defenses are or how sturdy their Soul Skills may be, before this Soul Skill, they are no different from paper. As long as the enemy's strength does not differ too greatly from Your Highness's, they certainly won't be able to block this sword."

Even Golden Crocodile Douluo, who was usually calm and taciturn, could not help being slightly moved upon hearing this.

Su Mo glanced at Yue Guan and Gui Mei. "All right, let's go. Next, it's time to hunt Spirit Rings for you two."

Upon hearing this, Yue Guan immediately beamed. "Thank you for troubling yourself over us, Your Highness."

Gui Mei nodded as well.

The group immediately set off toward the depths of the Core Zone.

Yue Guan and Gui Mei needed their ninth Spirit Rings. Only the Core Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest could provide Spirit Rings of sufficient age and superior quality.

The deeper they went, the denser the surrounding Soul Beast auras became. Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were everywhere.

These Soul Beasts occupied their respective territories, maintaining a delicate balance with one another.

To prevent any foolish Soul Beasts from attacking them, Golden Crocodile Douluo simply stopped concealing his aura.

The older the Soul Beasts, the greater their intelligence. Upon sensing Golden Crocodile Douluo's powerful and terrifying aura, they all fled in panic, not daring to approach in the slightest.

Their journey went very smoothly, and they encountered almost no obstacles.

Along the way, they came across several Soul Beasts with suitable attributes, but they were only around seventy thousand years old. Though that was already a respectable age, with Golden Crocodile Douluo present, they naturally had to choose something better.