Simp, Yan

They had to strike as quickly as possible, inflicting a grievous wound on the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear while maintaining an absolute advantage.

"They're working together more and more seamlessly."

Qian Yu watched the four of them battle. He could see that after spending this time together, Hu Liena and the others had set aside their pride, while Snake Lance Douluo and the others had let go of their prejudices.

Now that they truly relied on and understood one another, their teamwork was remarkably smooth.

Together, they displayed far more than the sum of their individual strength.

"Rumble!"

"Rumble!"

A series of dull booms rang out as the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was repeatedly wounded and driven back.

But the beast's vitality was simply too formidable.

Killing it would be incredibly difficult.

"Now's the time!"

Hu Liena seized her opportunity, using a Soul Skill to attack the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's mind. Then she moved in close, intending to pour the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water into its body.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was an almost perfect, immensely powerful Soul Beast. Apart from its weak mental strength, it seemed to have no other weakness.

Since Hu Liena was a mind-type Soul Master, this difficult task had been left to her.

"Nana, watch out!"

Just then, Yan suddenly shouted, his voice brimming with worry.

Having fought the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear head-on the whole time, he could keep a close eye on its condition.

Just before Hu Liena tried to control it mentally, the beast had gone berserk.

After Yan's warning, Hu Liena also noticed its frenzied state.

But she was this close to pouring the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water into its body. How could she let an opportunity like this slip by?

"I'll risk it!"

Hu Liena didn't take the chance to retreat. Completing the plan came first.

At the same time, Qian Yu and Xie Yue also sprang into action.

One activated a Soul Skill, the other a Soul Bone Skill. Both were healing abilities.

But they had different targets.

Xie Yue's target was his sister, who was in danger, while Qian Yu's was Yan, who had nothing to do with him.

"Bang!"

A dull impact rang out as the enraged Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear struck one of them.

The tremendous force tore through everything. If that person hadn't had a powerful physique and a Spirit Bone to protect him, the blow would have ripped him to shreds.

Fortunately, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water had made it into the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's body.

It had also used its berserk ability. Now, all they had to do was keep it occupied and wait for it to weaken before killing it.

The person who had been sent flying wasn't Hu Liena, but Yan.

At that critical moment, Yan pushed himself beyond his limits and reached Hu Liena at top speed, shielding her from the lethal blow.

The price was a grievous injury to himself.

Fortunately, Qian Yu's healing had come in time.

"Sure enough, I still can't match you."

Xie Yue was genuinely surprised by what had happened.

He had never imagined that Yan could reach his sister in time under those circumstances and block such a fierce attack for her.

So he had been certain that his sister couldn't dodge. That was why he'd sent his healing power into her body.

"It's fine. Yan has a powerful Torso Bone, and his Martial Soul's defenses are far superior to Hu Liena's. Under those circumstances, his decision was the best one."

After checking Yan's condition, Qian Yu let out a slight sigh of relief. Thanks to his timely treatment, Yan hadn't suffered any serious complications.

Qian Yu had no comment on Yan's actions.

To him, Yan was nothing but a simp—a clown.

But Yan was happy to play the fool, wasn't he?

Besides, with things as they were, his lovesick decision had actually been the best one.

With Hu Liena's physique, taking that blow would have left her disabled, if it didn't kill her.

This was the best outcome they could have hoped for.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear had grown even stronger after going berserk. Neither Snake Lance Douluo nor Porcupinefish Douluo dared to fight it head-on. On top of that, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well's spring water was still wreaking havoc inside its body.

All they had to do was wait quietly and keep it occupied.

As time passed, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear soon began to weaken.

Xie Yue seized his chance and struck the beast a fatal blow.

A black Soul Ring appeared, marking the successful Soul Hunting.

Then the two Titled Douluo also dismissed their Martial Soul Avatars.

While Xie Yue absorbed his Soul Ring, Qian Yu went to the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's corpse to search for a Spirit Bone.

But the moment he saw the bone, a dark line seemed to appear across his face.

This Spirit Bone was exceptional—truly top-notch.

Qian Yu had never seen one this good, whether in quality or completeness.

It was practically equivalent to two Spirit Bones.

And that was exactly where the problem lay.

It was a Right Arm Bone connected to a palm bone.

If it had been only a palm bone, he would have swallowed it.

The problem was that it was connected to the Right Arm Bone, which he couldn't use at all.

"I wonder if this Spirit Bone can have its age increased."

Qian Yu examined the bone in his hand, clicking his tongue in amazement.

He'd never heard of a Right Arm Bone connected to a palm bone before.

"That kid Xie Yue really is lucky!"

Snake Lance Douluo walked over, and when he saw the Spirit Bone, he couldn't help feeling envious.

By now, they'd reached an understanding: any Spirit Bone produced when a Soul Beast was hunted would naturally go to the person who obtained its Soul Ring.

Any other Spirit Bones would go to whoever was the best match for them.

Though they were envious, neither Snake Lance Douluo nor Porcupinefish Douluo harbored any ulterior motives.

They both already had several Spirit Bones. In the past, they wouldn't even have dared to dream of such a thing.

Qian Yu put the Spirit Bone away, planning to give it to Xie Yue after he finished absorbing his Soul Ring.

Then Qian Yu looked toward Hu Liena and Yan, who were farther away.

As it turned out, Yan's effort to shield Hu Liena from that lethal blow hadn't been in vain.

At the very least, he'd earned her concern.

For him, even spending a month or two bedridden would have been worth it.

As for winning Hu Liena's heart just by doing that? That would be difficult.

After all, her heart already belonged to Tang Yin.

Qian Yu didn't pay much attention to this sort of thing. For now, these people were all just allies who could help him.

He did have feelings for them, but not many.

Of them all, he was closest to Hu Liena, since they'd known and understood each other the longest. Next came Xie Yue, whom he simply admired.

After that came Yan and Porcupinefish Douluo.

Snake Lance Douluo came last.

It took Xie Yue a full two days to successfully absorb his Soul Ring.

His Eighth Soul Ring came from the seventy-three-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.