A two-thousand-year Thunder Hell Vine Soul Ring!
Tang Yin sat cross-legged without hesitation. His Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul appeared on its own, and the purple Soul Ring seemed drawn by an unseen force, slowly descending toward his head.
The moment the Soul Ring settled around him,
"Boom!"
It was as if thousands upon thousands of thunderbolts had exploded inside him all at once. A torrent of wildly violent lightning energy and life energy burst into his meridians like a breached dam.
Tang Yin furrowed his brows, his body trembling slightly despite himself. Xiao Wu watched from the side, deeply worried, her hands clenched tightly around the hem of her clothes.
Time passed by, bit by bit.
The aura around Tang Yin was at times as violent as thunder, at times as faint as a thread. But as time went on, it gradually calmed.
Before sunset,
the Soul Power surging over Tang Yin's skin abruptly drew inward, finally disappearing completely into his body.
He slowly opened his eyes. A sharp purple flash of lightning seemed to flicker in his pupils and vanish.
"Crack, crack! Crack, crack!"
Tang Yin stretched his limbs. A deep-purple Soul Ring rose steadily from beneath his feet, shining in tandem with the two yellow Soul Rings above it.
Xiao Wu had been meditating with her eyes closed beside Tang Yin. Feeling the commotion he made, she quietly opened her bright, limpid eyes.
When she saw Tang Yin with two yellow Soul Rings and one purple one, her eyes lit up. "Tang Yin, you really did it!"
At her words, Tang Yin looked back and smiled. "I'm now a level-thirty-two Tool Soul Elder!"
Xiao Wu gave him an adorable eye-roll, planted her hands on her hips, and let out a huff. "Don't get so cocky. I'll break through level thirty soon, too!"
The commotion also caught Lei Wuya's attention. Seeing that Tang Yin had successfully advanced to Soul Elder, he let out a long sigh of relief.
"Dean, thank you." Tang Yin placed one hand over his chest and bowed.
"No need to thank me. You're the most outstanding and talented Soul Master I've ever met. Even though your Martial Soul is only Blue Silver Grass, you still have to work hard. Who knows? You might become the first ever Titled Douluo with Blue Silver Grass as his Martial Soul!" Lei Wuya smiled and patted Tang Yin on the shoulder.
Tang Yin smiled. "I'll take your word for it. I'll keep working hard."
Lei Wuya nodded with a smile. "I won't say any more. Let's head back. We'll rest in town for the night and set off for the academy tomorrow."
"All right!" Tang Yin nodded.
As they left the valley, Xiao Wu instinctively glanced back toward the Star Dou Forest.
The three of them traveled without incident.
Perhaps it was because they had spent so little time in the Star Dou Forest.
Or perhaps it was because they were already far away.
Tang Yin had been worried the whole way that the Titan Giant Ape might come looking for Xiao Wu, but fortunately, it never appeared.
At an inn in town,
Tang Yin led Xiao Wu into a room, then turned around and locked the door.
"Tang Yin, why are you acting so mysterious?"
Xiao Wu blinked her bright eyes and instinctively pressed her lips together.
"Xiao Wu, I've got a big treasure to show you!" Tang Yin looked back with a smile.
"A big treasure?" Xiao Wu blinked in confusion.
The next moment, Tang Yin started taking off his clothes. First his outer robe, then his inner layer, until he was left in only his undershirt.
"Ah! Why are you suddenly taking your clothes off?"
Xiao Wu's eyes flew wide open. She stared fixedly at Tang Yin's upper body.
Tang Yin raised his right arm and held it out to Xiao Wu. "Look! When I absorbed the Thunder Hell Vine, I seem to have gained an incredible treasure!"
"What treasure? I don't understand!" Xiao Wu furrowed her brows and poked Tang Yin's right arm.
Unlike before, his right arm was now covered in golden lightning patterns, just like the golden markings on the Thunder Hell Vine.
Tang Yin slowly closed his eyes and channeled Soul Power into his right arm. The golden patterns suddenly lit up and began to gather toward his palm.
Xiao Wu's mouth fell open in surprise. "H-how can this be?"
A vine whip covered in golden lightning patterns gradually appeared in Tang Yin's right palm. It looked much like the Thunder Hell Vine's main stem, and arcs of electricity occasionally crackled across its surface.
"Crack!"
Tang Yin swung the Thunder Whip. The roar of thunder echoed through the room as lightning flashed in every direction.
"Ah!"
Xiao Wu cried out, startled by Tang Yin's sudden movement.
Seeing her reaction, Tang Yin scratched his head awkwardly.
Xiao Wu, meanwhile, examined the Thunder Whip in his hand up close, her eyes full of curiosity.
"Is this your Soul Skill?"
"But that can't be right!"
"You didn't even release your Martial Soul or Soul Ring!"
Tang Yin looked thoughtful as he mused, "My guess is that this is a kind of External Soul Bone. I can feel that this Thunder Whip is part of my body. Once I summon it, both my attack power and speed increase by fifty percent. That's an effect only Soul Bones have."
"An External Soul Bone? What's that?" Xiao Wu asked in surprise.
"An External Soul Bone is a type of Soul Bone outside the body's six main Soul Bones. It can keep evolving as the Soul Master's own strength increases," Tang Yin explained.
Xiao Wu exclaimed, "Then that means this Thunder Whip is incredibly valuable!"
Tang Yin smiled. "More importantly, this Thunder Whip itself seems to be very powerful, and it can merge with me. It's convenient to use and carry around. Other people won't think it's a Soul Bone, so they won't get the idea to 'kill me and take my treasure.'"
Xiao Wu pondered. "The way you put it, this Thunder Whip is even more valuable."
Tang Yin nodded with a smile, eyeing the Thunder Whip. "I'm going to call it the Thunder God Whip."
"Xiao Wu, don't tell anyone about the Purgatory Thunder Whip," Tang Yin cautioned her after putting away the Thunder God Whip.
"Don't worry. I'll keep it under my hat!" Xiao Wu smiled cutely, feeling especially happy inside.
"Oh! By the way, what's your third Soul Skill?" Xiao Wu asked curiously.
"Forest Purgatory Thunder Prison. It's a large-area attack Soul Skill, so there's no room to use it here. When we get back to Suotuo City, we'll go to the Soul Fight Arena and I'll show you," Tang Yin said with a smile.
"Okay!" Xiao Wu nodded eagerly.
"It's getting late. I'm going back to sleep." Tang Yin quickly put his clothes back on. His sleeve happened to cover the golden lightning patterns on his right arm.
Even if they were exposed, though, others would only think they were tattoos and wouldn't suspect an External Soul Bone.
"Thunder God Whip... It really is a fine treasure. They say the Thunder Hell Vine does possess the bloodline of the Thunder God. I wonder if that's true," Xiao Wu muttered.
The next morning, after Tang Yin, Xiao Wu, and Lei Wuya had breakfast, the three of them set off for Suotuo Intermediate Soul Master Academy.
Meanwhile,
in Spirit City,
at the Martial Soul Academy,
inside a dorm room, Tang San... though perhaps he ought to be called Yue San or Ju San now.
"Voom!"
Waves of Soul Power rippled out from Tang San, growing stronger and stronger.
The next moment,
Tang San abruptly opened his eyes, the corners of his mouth lifting. "I've broken through!"