Entering the Star Dou Great Forest, Plans for the First Soul Ring

A few days later, inside the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Xiaochen, what are your plans regarding the age of your first spirit ring?" Yu Yuanzhen asked while leading Yu Tianchen through the outer perimeter of the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Naturally, I want it to be as high as possible, within the limits of what my body can withstand."

"Grandfather, how many years of spirit ring do you think my current physique can handle?"

Yu Tianchen did not make a rash decision himself, but instead turned the question back to Yu Yuanzhen.

According to his own estimates, after so many years of training, followed by medicinal baths with herbs, and frequently consuming small portions of Whale Rubber over the past two years to strengthen his physique, he had built a solid foundation.

On the way here, he had also successfully opened the second and third meridians of his Great Sun Thunder Body, further increasing his physical strength.

With so many buffs stacked up, absorbing a spirit ring just over a thousand years old shouldn't be a problem.

Of course, this was Yu Tianchen's own estimate, and its accuracy wasn't particularly high.

Therefore, Yu Yuanzhen should know much better than he did exactly how many years of spirit ring he could absorb.

After all, a Title Douluo is capable of assessing a person's constitution.

"You little rascal."

Hearing Yu Tianchen's question, Yu Yuanzhen immediately understood his intentions.

He laughed and patted Yu Tianchen on the head, saying, "Try to estimate it yourself first. I can help you once or twice, but can I help you every single time?"

"With your aptitude, Xiaochen, you are destined to make a name for yourself on the continent in the future."

"Therefore, you must have a clear judgment of yourself to avoid blind arrogance."

"Speak boldly; I want to see what kind of judgment you have regarding your current physique."

These words made it clear that Yu Yuanzhen intended to test him.

Yu Tianchen pondered for a moment and then explained his assessment of his own physique to Yu Yuanzhen.

After listening to Yu Tianchen's account, Yu Yuanzhen nodded with satisfaction: "Not bad. Given your current physical quality, the limit of the spirit ring age you can withstand is just over a thousand years."

"Therefore, as long as the spirit beast is over 950 years old, it will be suitable as your spirit ring."

"There is no need to overload yourself for your first spirit ring. Your body is still in a growth phase; if you suffer any damage because of this, the loss will outweigh the gain."

Long before entering the Star Dou Great Forest, Yu Yuanzhen had already examined what kind of spirit ring Yu Tianchen's current constitution could absorb.

To be honest, when he determined Yu Tianchen's constitution, even Yu Yuanzhen was startled.

Normally, the general limit for a spirit master's first spirit ring is around four hundred years.

Of course, this basis does not rely on the Ten Core Theories of Martial Souls plagiarized by Yu Xiaogang.

Basically, every sect has records of the average spirit ring age that spirit masters of various levels can withstand.

A 400-year first ring is the average, not the limit; the absorption of the first ring depends on an individual's physique and willpower.

Moreover, different types of spirit rings have different levels of difficulty when it comes to absorption.

Yu Yuanzhen knew that Yu Tianchen maintained training year-round and had used Whale Rubber to improve his physique, so the age of the first ring he could absorb would certainly far exceed that of other ordinary spirit masters.

But he never expected that the limit of the first spirit ring Yu Tianchen could withstand would reach a thousand years!

A thousand-year first ring!

What kind of concept was that?

In the history of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, and even the entire continent, this was in a league of its own!

If possible, Yu Yuanzhen naturally hoped that Yu Tianchen could make history.

But absorbing a hundred-year spirit ring and a thousand-year spirit ring were ultimately not the same concept.

Yu Yuanzhen was still a bit worried: would absorbing a thousand-year ring be too much of a stretch for Yu Tianchen?

Therefore, as a compromise, he suggested an age of 950 years.

Unless they happened to encounter a spirit beast that was just over a thousand years old but not exceeding 1050 years, Yu Yuanzhen was not prepared to let Yu Tianchen take the risk of attempting a thousand-year first ring.

"Understood, Grandfather."

Hearing Yu Yuanzhen's plan for his first spirit ring, Yu Tianchen nodded.

The pace of the grandfather and grandson through the Star Dou Great Forest was not fast.

With the intention of teaching, Yu Yuanzhen stopped whenever they encountered different types of spirit beasts along the way to carefully explain them to Yu Tianchen.

For example, the strengths and weaknesses of different spirit beasts, and how to specifically distinguish the age of these spirit beasts.

And so, stopping and starting along the way, the two arrived at their destination.

Thunder Pattern Cliff, a unique environmental zone located near the outer perimeter of the Star Dou Great Forest mixed region.

Thunderbolts frequently struck here, and because the cliff face had been weathered by lightning for years, the natural electrical discharges had carved countless peculiar patterns imbued with thunder energy into the rock.

This was how Thunder Pattern Cliff got its name.

Because the Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lion favored consuming thunder energy, this place was a frequent haunt for them.

In other words, it would be no exaggeration to call this their territory.

As they approached, Yu Tianchen noticed several deep blue lions with a single purple pattern etched onto their bodies, wandering aimlessly not far away.

"Grandfather, those must be the Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions, right?"

Yu Tianchen pointed at the lions and asked Yu Yuanzhen.

"Correct."

Yu Yuanzhen nodded.

"Little Chen, can you determine their age?"

"They are all over one hundred years, but no more than one hundred and fifty."

After observing them for a moment, Yu Tianchen spoke to Yu Yuanzhen.

The age of an Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lion is determined by the purple patterns on its body.

For every fifty years of age, a half-pattern appears on the Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lion; only upon reaching one hundred years does the half-pattern become complete.

The Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions before them had only one full century-level pattern and no fifty-year half-pattern.

Therefore, their age range was certainly between 100 and 149 years.

"Correct."

Yu Yuanzhen nodded.

"There are relatively strict territorial divisions between soul beast groups, and these are usually defined by the age of the soul beasts."

"Those active on the edges of Thunder Pattern Cliff are mostly Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions under five hundred years old; those over five hundred generally do not appear here."

"Let's go. Since you can already accurately distinguish the age of the Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions, we can pick up the pace now."

With that, Yu Yuanzhen scooped up Yu Tianchen with one arm, circulated the soul power within his body, and soared into the air, flying toward the depths of Thunder Pattern Cliff.

From the air, Yu Tianchen could easily see a cliff face covered in fine patterns, emitting a faint purple luster in the hazy distance.

After flying for only a moment, Yu Yuanzhen returned to the ground.

"Roar!"

The moment Yu Yuanzhen landed, the Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions active in the vicinity immediately discovered these two uninvited guests and let out a series of roars.

"Hmph!"

Yu Yuanzhen let out an angry snort. Nine soul rings—two yellow, two purple, and five black—appeared one by one. The soul power pressure belonging to a Super Douluo instantly pinned all the surrounding soul beasts to the ground, leaving them unable to move and whimpering incessantly.

"Alright, Little Chen."

Yu Yuanzhen set Yu Tianchen down and said with a smile:

"Go and see if any of these Azure Thunder Purple-Patterned Lions are suitable to be your soul ring."