The entire sequence of battles had unfolded in the blink of an eye.
Hu Liena stood not far away, completely dumbstruck.
She covered her mouth with both hands, her golden eyes wide with shock and frenzied admiration.
He was so strong!
Without using a single Soul Skill—or even having a Soul Ring—he had relied solely on his physical strength and that bizarre domain to kill a Thousand-Year Soul Beast that was fourteen hundred years old with his bare hands!
Was this the big brother she had chosen?
He was a monster!
Hidden in the treetops, Bibi Dong's chest heaved violently, her breathing growing incredibly ragged.
She stared at the six-year-old boy below, standing before the fox demon's corpse with black phantoms swirling around him. Her mind roared.
The instant that black phantom appeared, even her Martial Soul, despite her being a nine-ring Titled Douluo, had trembled violently.
That absolute suppression at the bloodline level filled her with terror.
"What kind of Martial Soul is that? That despairing, murderous aura doesn't belong to this world!"
"And that's not all. He hasn't even absorbed a Soul Ring, yet he can pin a fourteen-hundred-year Soul Beast to the ground and slaughter it single-handedly, relying on his physical strength and Innate Domain."
"If he awakens a First Soul Skill, then a Second Soul Skill... just how powerful will he become?"
Bibi Dong hardly dared to imagine it.
She had lived for so many years and seen countless so-called geniuses, but beside Lin Yuan, every one of them seemed mediocre.
Lin Yuan withdrew his domain and the phantom of the Nine Nether Beast's bloodline. Only then did the oppressive feeling around them fade.
He turned and beckoned to Hu Liena, who was still standing there in a daze.
"Don't just stand there. Come over."
"This fox demon is fourteen hundred years old, and its attributes are a perfect match for your Martial Soul. It's an absolute treasure. Absorb it now."
Hu Liena came to her senses and blinked.
"Fourteen hundred years? Can I... can I absorb it?"
Hu Liena might not have seen much of the world, but she had heard Spirit Hall's instructors say that the limit for a First Soul Ring was around four hundred years.
"If I say you can, then you can," Lin Yuan said calmly, his confidence unmistakable.
After steeling herself, Hu Liena closed her eyes and released her Demon Fox Martial Soul. Using her Soul Power to guide it, she drew the purple Thousand-Year Soul Ring toward herself.
The moment the purple Soul Ring touched her body, a surge of violent energy rushed into her meridians.
Hu Liena let out a muffled groan. Her little face turned deathly pale, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.
The lingering resentment and immense energy left behind by a dead Thousand-Year Soul Beast were far beyond what a Soul Master with only ten levels could withstand.
Seeing this from her hiding place, Bibi Dong was once again alarmed.
But just as Bibi Dong prepared to intervene—
Lin Yuan stepped in front of Hu Liena and unfurled the Nine-Nether Slaughter God's Domain once more.
An incredibly pure power from the domain instantly enveloped Hu Liena.
At the same time, Lin Yuan roused the trace of the Nine Nether Beast's bloodline within him and used its pressure to suppress the unruly purple Soul Ring.
The Thousand-Year Soul Ring's frenzied power touched the Nine Nether Beast's bloodline and instantly became docile, like a rabbit that had come face-to-face with its natural predator.
The fox demon's lingering resentment within the Soul Ring was crushed to pieces by the bloodline's savage aura.
Under the domain's guidance, the vast, violent Soul Power softened into a gentle energy that flowed along Hu Liena's meridians and slowly gathered in her dantian.
Hu Liena's tightly furrowed brow relaxed at once, and the pallor drained from her face.
The fluctuations of Soul Power around her grew steady. The purple Soul Ring settled securely around her Demon Fox Martial Soul and began to fuse with it perfectly.
Bibi Dong witnessed the entire scene.
She stood completely stunned, as if struck by lightning.
Her eyes were wide with shock, and even her breathing stopped.
"She succeeded? She really absorbed a fourteen-hundred-year First Soul Ring? There's no sign of her body bursting apart—not even a hint of pain?"
Bibi Dong's mind reeled. Her long-held understanding collapsed in an instant.
Yu Xiaogang had spent half his life on his research, proclaiming it the absolute truth of the Soul Master World. Yet under the direction of this six-year-old, it had become a complete and utter joke!
"Yu Xiaogang's theory... could it have been wrong all along?"
Bibi Dong stared at the figure below, his back turned to her, and felt a tempest raging in her heart.
Having successfully absorbed the Thousand-Year Soul Ring, Hu Liena's little face brimmed with excitement and delight.
She swung her fist, feeling the surging power within her. Her admiration for Lin Yuan had reached an indescribable height.
Lin Yuan glanced at the steady fluctuations of her Soul Power and didn't linger.
"Let's go. There's plenty of room where the outer forest meets the inner forest. We'll look around somewhere else."
With his hands in his pockets, Lin Yuan looked utterly relaxed, as though he were strolling through his own backyard.
Hu Liena immediately followed close behind him like a little shadow, and the two headed toward another part of the forest.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Soul Hunting Forest—
Two figures, one tall and one short, moved through the dense woods.
The one in front was a tall, thin old man.
His long hair was dark green, and a ghostly green light glimmered in his eyes. A gloomy aura that warned others to keep their distance radiated from him.
This was none other than the world-renowned Poison Douluo, Dugu Bo.
Beside Dugu Bo walked a delicate little girl.
She had a beautiful short haircut and large, bright eyes that held a hint of cleverness and pride. She was his granddaughter, Dugu Yan.
A few steps behind them followed a middle-aged man with a stiff expression and a crew cut.
He wore a gray robe washed nearly white and kept his hands behind his back. It was Yu Xiaogang.
Yu Xiaogang had been wandering around the Soul Hunting Forest for some time.
He had heard that quite a few promising young geniuses had recently entered the forest. Under the pretense of offering guidance, he hoped to find a few talented disciples who could help him verify the theory that had always been ridiculed.
After wandering around, he happened to encounter Dugu Bo, who had brought his granddaughter to obtain her First Soul Ring.
Although Yu Xiaogang had a poor reputation in the Soul Master World, he was still somewhat well known and carried the title of "Grandmaster."
Dugu Bo was well informed and had naturally heard of Yu Xiaogang.
Knowing how crucial his granddaughter's First Soul Ring was, Dugu Bo figured that having another person offer advice couldn't hurt. So he made an exception and let this Soul Grandmaster, whose strength was only at level twenty-nine, follow them.
Walking behind them, Yu Xiaogang saw that Dugu Bo hadn't spoken. He immediately struck a pose of profound wisdom.
He cleared his throat twice and began his long-winded lecture with great solemnity.
"Senior Poison, you must not be careless when choosing your granddaughter's First Soul Ring."
"In the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul that I published, I clearly stated that when a Soul Master absorbs a Soul Ring, the most important thing is the compatibility between the Martial Soul and the Soul Ring."
"Many mediocre people blindly chase after Soul Ring age, believing that the older the Soul Ring, the stronger the Soul Skill. That's complete nonsense!"
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