Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear Spirit Bone!

Damaging the heart... injuring the lungs... shattering the liver and intestines... hidden departures... loss of essence... a dazed mind...

The Seven Injuries Fist, empowered by the Seven Absolutes Unification, ignored all defenses with a destructive force that rendered the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's iron-hard fur as flimsy as paper.

"BOOM!"

In an instant, the dark energy surged into its body, exploding with the force of a tidal wave. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's hind leg was blown to pieces; with a wet thud, flesh and bone scattered in every direction!

Roar—!

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear howled in agony, its frenzied eyes instantly clearing. Terror overflowed from its gaze; its primal instincts screamed that this terrifying upright ape was absolutely not to be trifled with!

Run!

Otherwise, death is certain!

It scrambled to flee, but how could it possibly run with only three legs left?

"Want to run?"

Li Jingzhe let out a cold shout. Stepping into the Lingbo Microsteps, his figure became illusory and ghost-like. The intent of the Seven Injuries Fist surged like a tide as he closed the distance—one punch!

"BANG!"

Roar—!

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's scream was piercingly shrill, blood gushing from its maw filled with jagged teeth!

It wanted to escape, but it couldn't. The constant, tearing agony within its body left it paralyzed, wailing in a state worse than death, terrifying the avian soul beasts within a ten-mile radius so much that none dared to land.

Li Jingzhe withdrew his stance and sat to the side, letting the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear suffer under the torment of the Seven Injuries Fist. This was exactly the effect he wanted... In the world of soul masters, there is a widely held belief: the more intense the pain and suffering a soul beast endures before death, the higher the chance it will drop a soul bone upon release!

Since he had encountered a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, there was no reason not to gamble on the chance of it dropping an External Soul Bone Gold Terrorclaw. Even if it didn't drop an External Soul Bone, but rather one of the six major soul bones, the quality would still be exceptional. If taken to the Heaven Dou Auction House, it would surely fetch a sky-high price!

As luck would have it, the Seven Injuries Fist was perfectly suited for this... heart-wrenching... bone-drilling... a fate worse than death!

A full half-hour passed. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's wails grew weaker and weaker, yet it stubbornly refused to die, a testament to just how formidable this beast's constitution truly was!

Looking back at that six-ringed Soul Emperor from before, he hadn't even survived two hits of the Seven Injuries Fist...

Li Jingzhe stepped forward, crouched down, and patted the top of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's head as if soothing a victim. At this moment, the bear's eyes actually revealed a human-like plea for death.

"Be on your way."

As he spoke, Li Jingzhe's fingers tightened around the bear's skull.

"CRACK!"

He crushed the skull, which was three times harder than refined iron, directly into dust. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, already hanging by a thread, went completely limp as a purple soul ring with streaks of black slowly rose.

"God of Gamblers, bless me!"

Li Jingzhe muttered before sitting cross-legged. Absorbing a soul ring on the spot immediately after a beast dies is the safest method; soul beasts in a given area are usually of similar strength, and if one suddenly dies, it signals the presence of a predator capable of killing them. Thus, other soul beasts will not dare approach until the scent of the fallen beast dissipates.

Li Jingzhe silently circulated his soul power. Due to his blocked meridians, the flow was arduous, but after his previous attempts, he had gradually discovered the trick.

The process was like turning a millstone: once it started moving, the rest became relatively easy.

As his soul power circulated, he guided the soul ring to drift slowly onto his body. He operated the Muscle and Tendon Classic and the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique simultaneously. The energy of the soul ring was external, much like the power Dugu Yan had returned to him previously, and it required repeated cycles of circulation to be gradually assimilated by his internal energy and soul power.

Yet, the expected pain never arrived. Under the diversion and guidance of these two top-tier techniques, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's soul ring was as docile as a kitten.

As for the soul shock?

It was over before it even began!

So-called soul shock is not a direct mental attack from the beast's lingering resentment, but rather a psychological haunting that only takes hold when a soul master is struggling and exhausted.

The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique and the Muscle and Tendon Classic kept the soul ring's energy firmly in check. Since the absorption process was effortless, there was no exhaustion or struggle, and the soul shock never had a chance to manifest.

The absorption went smoothly without a single ripple. In just ten minutes, the feeling of incompatibility vanished entirely, and the energy of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's soul ring merged into one with his existing soul power and internal energy.

The feeling of being bound by shackles on his body also eased slightly.

"It really works!"

A flash of joy crossed Li Jingzhe's eyes. With the completion of his first soul ring, not only did the Muscle and Tendon Classic, Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique, and Lingbo Microsteps all reach the peak of the second level, but the feeling of restriction lessened, and his soul power flowed much more fluidly.

But when he calmed his mind to sense the changes in his soul power... What the hell?

Li Jingzhe's expression changed instantly!

Surprise... bewilderment... confusion... This, this isn't right, is it?

After completing the absorption of his first soul ring, his soul power hadn't increased; instead, it had dropped from level fifty-nine and a half to level fifty-six!

Soul power decreasing instead of increasing after absorbing a soul ring?

What kind of legendary absurdity is this?

He had wondered why his soul power felt so much smoother—it turned out the volume had decreased!

It wasn't until he circulated his soul power for three full cycles, inspecting it like a fine-tooth comb, that he finally discovered the anomaly.

The look of bewilderment and confusion on Li Jingzhe's face faded, replaced by disbelief and a wry smile.

With a single thought, a layer of dark gold armor enveloped his entire body!

External Soul Bone!

This was the reason his soul power had decreased instead of increasing!

Simply put, his previous hunting method of torture followed by release had been effective, with immediate results; it had indeed dropped a soul bone, an External Soul Bone at that, which was absorbed simultaneously during the process of absorbing the soul ring.

But that was precisely where the problem lay!

A soul bone absorbed during the soul ring process could only be an External Soul Bone, and if a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear produced an External Soul Bone, there was a high probability it would be the Dark Gold Terrorclaw.

According to the descriptions in Douluo Dalu II, the absorption process for the External Soul Bone Dark Gold Terrorclaw was excruciatingly painful, as if one's hand bones were being shattered inch by inch, fused, and then regrown; Xiao Xiao in Douluo Dalu II had been unable to endure the agony of absorbing the Dark Gold Terrorclaw, ultimately letting Huo Yuhao benefit from it instead.

However, he was different. Having been tempered layer by layer by the medicinal powers of the Bosi Qu Snake Gallbladder and the Vermilion Fruit, and repeatedly strengthened by the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique and the Muscle and Tendon Classic, his bones were sufficiently hard, his physical constitution was high enough, and his tolerance for pain was incomparable to that of an ordinary person.

Thus, he had felt not the slightest discomfort during the absorption of the External Soul Bone, remaining completely unaware of it...

As for why this suspected Dark Gold Terrorclaw External Soul Bone had transformed into a suit of Dark Gold Armor covering his entire body... Li Jingzhe pondered, and a vague guess began to form.

It was most likely due to the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique and the Muscle and Tendon Classic!

Firstly, External Soul Bones differed from mainstream soul bones; mainstream soul bones were solid with fixed structures, so after being absorbed by a soul master, they could still be dropped if the corresponding limb was severed or the soul master was killed.

External Soul Bones, however, could be understood as gaseous or liquid with unfixed structures, so after being absorbed by a soul master, they would fuse completely with them, making it impossible to drop the External Soul Bone even if the soul master were killed.

Yet, before an External Soul Bone fully solidified, it was possible to alter its structure under specific conditions. Tang San's Eight Spider Lances evolving into the Sea God Eight Wings after passing his divine trials was likely a similar principle; divine power had granted the Eight Spider Lances the opportunity for a secondary structural change!

Next, one had to consider the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique and the Muscle and Tendon Classic he practiced.

These two top-tier cultivation techniques—one strengthening physical fitness and the other improving bone marrow—both provided comprehensive, balanced enhancements. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw, however, only strengthened the palms, breaking that balance. Therefore, it was highly probable that this suspected Dark Gold Terrorclaw External Soul Bone had triggered the underlying logic of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique and the Muscle and Tendon Classic during the process of absorption and fusion.

The Muscle and Tendon Classic transformed the tendons and forged the bones, improving his constitution and granting the Dark Gold Terrorclaw the possibility of structural change.

The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Technique then spread the structurally altered Dark Gold Terrorclaw across his entire body, forming this suit of Dark Gold Armor, returning him from an imbalanced state back to equilibrium.

But energy is conserved, and transformation comes at a cost; the soul power he lost during this process had naturally become the fuel and the nourishment!

"Heh..."

Li Jingzhe chuckled softly.

"What is this? The Dark Gold Terrorclaw turned into Dark Gold Terror-Armor?"