Too weak?
A Titan Giant Ape with the ancient Golden Behemoth bloodline, weak?
Leng Yaozhu and Blood Eight both froze, thinking they had misheard.
But the Titan Giant Ape's phantom on the screen had understood.
"ROAR—!!!"
Its deafening roar thundered through the soul-guidance device, making the entire Testing Chamber tremble.
The phantom angrily pounded its chest, every strand of its dark-golden fur standing on end as a blazing fury ignited in its blood-red eyes.
Weak?!
It was a ruler at the very top of the Soul Beast pyramid! It bore the Golden Behemoth bloodline! Countless Soul Masters had once tried to form a Soul Spirit Contract with it, only to retreat in defeat before its unyielding will!
And now, a human infant without even a Soul Ring dared to call it "weak"?!
The Titan Giant Ape's will surged through the screen, its mountain-like pressure spreading through the room. If an ordinary Soul Master had been there, their legs would have gone weak and their mind would have crumbled on the spot.
But Luo Yang merely frowned, finding it noisy.
A glimmer of admiration passed through Leng Yaozhu's eyes.
There was never a shortage of people with extraordinary talent in this world, but those who could truly climb to the peak were few and far between.
Why?
Because many so-called geniuses lacked the invincible will to contend with Heaven and look down on all living beings! They hesitated and feared challenges. No matter how good their talent, they would eventually fade into the crowd.
Yet when this child faced the "Unyielding Soul Spirit," which had even sent the direct grandson of the Qiangu Family home in defeat, his first reaction wasn't to weigh the risks. He simply declared, "Too weak"...
That confidence and pride, rooted deep in his bones, were exactly to Leng Yaozhu's liking!
She admired promising young talents who wouldn't suffer a speck of dust in their eyes and set their sights straight on the peak!
"Why not try first?" she suggested gently. "If it really isn't suitable, we can switch to another."
Blood Eight nodded as well. "This Soul Spirit's quality is indeed top-notch."
Luo Yang fell silent for a moment, but in the end, he agreed. "All right."
Leng Yaozhu gently raised her hand.
The Titan Giant Ape's phantom on the screen seemed to be drawn by an invisible force, sending ripples through space.
The next moment.
A Titan Giant Ape, its form nearly half solid, appeared in the center of the room. This was the Soul Spirit's source projection. Though it had no physical body, it retained its complete will and imposing pressure.
"ROAR!!!"
A deafening roar suddenly exploded through the room. This time, it was no longer a silent image, but the true howl of a soul!
A Titan Giant Ape Soul Spirit, much smaller than before but still over three meters tall, solid as a golden statue, appeared in the center of the room.
Golden light flowed around its body, and its blood-red eyes shone like lanterns.
The instant it appeared, it unleashed the unrestrained, violent pressure of an apex predator, sending it crashing in every direction.
Feeling its substantial presence, Blood Eight's eyes filled with even greater satisfaction. This Soul Spirit's quality certainly lived up to its reputation.
As soon as the Titan Giant Ape Soul Spirit took shape, its furious, defiant blood-red eyes locked onto Luo Yang!
So you're the little brat who doesn't know how high the sky is, the one who dared call me weak?!
Old grudges and new grievances welled up inside it. The Titan Giant Ape Soul Spirit couldn't even be bothered to engage in the usual "clash of wills" that preceded a Soul Spirit Contract.
It would use the most violent soul pressure to teach this brash human infant a lesson he would never forget!
The phantom of a massive fist came crashing down.
But at that very instant—
"Vmmm."
An invisible wave spread outward, centered on Luo Yang.
A gray-white aura quietly filled the room. Wherever it passed, the temperature plunged and the light dimmed.
What was this...?!
Leng Yaozhu's beautiful eyes widened.
This aura was no Soul Skill fluctuation. It was something far more fundamental, a power closer to the laws of the world!
"Domain," Blood Eight explained at just the right moment. A faint, proud smile touched her cold, beautiful face. "This is the innate Martial Soul Domain that came with Luo Yang's awakening: the Calamity Domain."
An innate Martial Soul Domain!
Leng Yaozhu's mind shook. She looked at Luo Yang with such fervor that her gaze could have melted metal!
She knew all too well what an innate Domain meant.
In the past ten thousand years, only a handful of Soul Masters had possessed such a talent, and every one of them had become a legend of their age!
And now, that legend stood right before her.
An even more shocking scene unfolded.
The Titan Giant Ape, which had been raging moments ago, froze completely as soon as the Calamity Domain expanded.
The fury in its blood-red eyes ebbed like the tide, replaced first by doubt, then by fear—a fear born of instinct, rising from the depths of its bloodline!
The giant fist halted in midair, then jerked back as if it had been shocked.
Its swaggering attitude from a moment ago—"I'm the greatest under Heaven, and I'll show you what's what"—vanished without a trace.
"Whimper, whimper..."
Its enormous body even curled up slightly. Its golden fur drooped, and a low whine came from its throat. It was nothing like the so-called "Unyielding Soul Spirit" anymore.
It had chickened out.
Completely and utterly.
Leng Yaozhu stared in stunned disbelief.
According to the Spirit Pagoda's records, this Titan Giant Ape had driven seven genius Soul Masters to mental collapse and been classified as a ferocious Soul Spirit that "could not be contracted."
Yet this also proved from another angle just how terrifying Luo Yang's "Calamity Domain" was. It had made such a defiant Soul Spirit submit in an instant. The Domain's level and suppressive force were simply inconceivable.
Leng Yaozhu looked at Luo Yang, her beautiful eyes burning even brighter.
She had never taken a disciple in her life, because no genius had ever been worthy of her notice. But now, she felt the urge to take one.
No, a mere disciple wouldn't be enough!
She would devote the resources of the Leng Family and those at her disposal as Vice Pagoda Master to protect him and raise him well!
"Let's try another one, Aunt Leng."
Luo Yang seemed not to notice the Titan Giant Ape's "cowardly look" as he calmly withdrew his Domain.
Rejected by Luo Yang to his face once again, the Titan Giant Ape Soul Spirit didn't get angry. Instead, it became even more obsequious, carefully extending a giant hand formed of phantom light to try to touch the hem of Luo Yang's clothes.
Its meaning couldn't have been clearer.
Please, choose me. Choose me as your Soul Spirit!
It looked just like a stray dog wagging its tail for all it was worth.
This was the first time either Leng Yaozhu or Blood Eight had seen a Soul Spirit act like such a "bootlicker."
Leng Yaozhu, especially, felt rather conflicted.
Back then, Qiangu Zhangting had tried everything to win this Soul Spirit over. He prepared rare resources, adjusted his condition, and pulled out all the stops. He'd been just like a bootlicker chasing after a goddess, yet in the end, he'd gained nothing.
Now, the roles had been completely reversed...
If that proud young master of the Qiangu Family saw this scene, he would probably be spitting blood...
"Aunt Leng." Luo Yang's voice drew her back to reality. "Let's try another one. It really isn't suitable."
The moment the Titan Giant Ape heard this, it panicked. Its phantom desperately leaned forward, nearly dropping to its knees to kowtow.
"Why?" Leng Yaozhu asked.
"Its bloodline isn't high enough," Luo Yang said bluntly. "No matter how strong the Titan Giant Ape is, it's still not a true dragon. If I encounter a top expert with a dragon-type Martial Soul in the future, it'll be naturally suppressed."
What he didn't say was that Tang Wulin's Golden Dragon King Bloodline suppressed all beast-type Martial Souls.
He didn't want to leave that hidden risk.
Besides...
"I don't like bootlickers," Luo Yang added.
The Titan Giant Ape's phantom froze in place, and the entire ape felt like its world had ended.
Leng Yaozhu laughed. "All right, then let's look at some others."
As she spoke, she sent the Titan Giant Ape Soul Spirit, whose face practically screamed "hurt and unwilling to part," back into virtual space. Then she operated the control console again, and the image on the screen changed once more.
This time, she held nothing back. She went straight to the Spirit Pagoda's most precious Soul Spirit collection.
She believed that with the Spirit Pagoda's ten thousand years of Soul Spirit storage, there was bound to be one Luo Yang liked.