Brother Sky Dream: I Can't Mess with You, You Damn Dog

"This dog is too vicious. I can't mess with it."

"So?" Shen Zhou asked.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm took a deep breath. Though it had no lungs, it still went through the motion.

"So I thought, rather than keep waiting, I might as well... sacrifice myself to you."

"What?" Tang Ya cried out. "A sacrifice? A Soul Beast Sacrifice?!"

Bei Bei's eyes widened as well, unable to believe his ears.

Soul Beast Sacrifices had only been heard of a handful of times throughout the history of Douluo Continent.

Those were beings that had existed for at least a hundred thousand years!

Shen Zhou's expression did not change. He merely raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Sacrifice yourself to me?

Aren't you afraid I'll use you as a Soul Ring?"

"I am." Sky Dream Ice Silkworm answered honestly. "But I'm even more afraid of being taken back by Di Tian.

If I'm taken back, I won't even get the chance to become a Soul Ring. I'll be refined and absorbed directly."

"And besides..."

It looked toward Shen Zhou's right eye. Those Golden Double Pupils held a vastness and profundity it had never seen before.

"Your Heavenly Eye Martial Soul is the most suitable Martial Soul I've ever seen for carrying spiritual power."

"If I sacrifice myself to you, not only can I preserve my consciousness, I can continue existing within your Heavenly Eye.

Once you become a god, I might even get to benefit from your success."

Shen Zhou fell silent for a moment.

His original plan had been for Sky Dream Ice Silkworm to become Huo Yuhao's Soul Ring.

In the original story, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had been Huo Yuhao's first Soul Ring. That Million-Year Soul Ring had given Spirit Eye an unparalleled foundation in spiritual power.

But now, it seemed Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had chosen another path for itself.

It wanted to sacrifice itself to Heavenly Eye.

To Shen Zhou's Heavenly Eye, rather than Huo Yuhao's Spirit Eye.

"Are you sure?" Shen Zhou asked.

"Sure." Sky Dream Ice Silkworm nodded. "Let me ask you this—are you confident you can become a god?"

Shen Zhou looked at it, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.

"I am."

"Then that's enough."

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's body began to glow.

The golden radiance grew brighter and brighter, more and more intense, dyeing the entire meadow gold.

The light was warm and gentle, lacking even a trace of aggression, yet it contained spiritual energy so immense it was suffocating.

"My name is Tian Meng, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm."

"A Million-Year Soul Beast of the Mental Attribute."

"Today, I willingly offer myself as a sacrifice and become your Soul Ring."

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice rang out in Shen Zhou's mind. It was no longer lazy and languid, but solemn and earnest.

A pillar of golden light shot into the sky, enveloping Shen Zhou within it.

Shen Zhou's body was lifted by an invisible force, floating in midair.

He closed his eyes. The Heavenly Eye in his right eye opened on its own, and Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's figure was reflected within those Golden Double Pupils.

Vast spiritual energy surged into his Heavenly Eye like rivers flowing into the sea—mighty and turbulent, yet impossibly gentle.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm poured its million years of Soul Power into Shen Zhou without reservation, every strand carefully refined and perfectly fused with Shen Zhou's Heavenly Eye Martial Soul.

Tang Ya, Bei Bei, and Huo Yuhao stood in the distance, unable to open their eyes under the pressure of that golden light.

Er Ha guarded Shen Zhou's side, his golden dog eyes filled with vigilance as he constantly watched the surroundings.

Time passed second by second.

No one knew how long it had been. Perhaps fifteen minutes, perhaps an hour. At last, the golden light faded.

Shen Zhou slowly descended from the air, his feet landing on the soft grass.

The Heavenly Eye in his right eye had already closed, returning to normal.

But everyone could see that beneath his feet, there was now an additional Soul Ring.

A golden Soul Ring.

No, it was not pure dazzling gold. It was translucent Pale Gold Condensed from Ice Crystals, refracting rainbow halos beneath the sunlight.

A Million-Year Soul Ring.

This was the first Soul Ring in Douluo Continent's history to be formed through the sacrifice of a Million-Year Soul Beast.

Shen Zhou opened his eyes.

His left eye remained unchanged, but a pale golden gleam had appeared within the pupil of his right eye.

He could sense that Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's consciousness was sleeping deep within his Heavenly Eye.

"Tian Meng," he called silently in his heart.

"I'm here." A lazy voice sounded. "I'm tired. I need to sleep for a while.

Your Heavenly Eye Martial Soul is too powerful. My million years of spiritual power almost wasn't enough to fill it."

"Sleep well."

"Mhm... Oh, right. My Soul Ring gave you two soul skills, both of the Mental Attribute. Figure them out yourself.

Also, your second Martial Soul, Heavenly Eye, now has its first Soul Ring. You can absorb a second one now, so don't waste it..."

The voice grew softer and softer before finally falling silent.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had fallen asleep.

Shen Zhou took a deep breath, feeling the surging power within his body.

Though his Soul Power Level had not increased, he could feel that his spiritual power had risen by at least tenfold.

This was the amplification brought by a Million-Year Soul Ring.

"Master!" Huo Yuhao ran over, his eyes full of shock and reverence. "You... you really absorbed such a powerful Soul Ring?"

"Yes." Shen Zhou nodded and raised his right hand. Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's golden Soul Ring slowly emerged, glittering brilliantly beneath the sunlight.

"This is what a truly powerful Soul Ring looks like."

Shen Zhou spoke softly.

He looked at the two Soul Rings beneath Huo Yuhao's feet—the colorless Million-Year Soul Ring and the yellow Hundred-Year Soul Ring—and paused slightly.

"Yu Hao, what's going on with that Colorless Soul Ring beneath your feet?"

Huo Yuhao lowered his head to look at it, equally bewildered.

"I... I don't know either.

After I absorbed Illusion Pupil Bird's Soul Ring, two Soul Rings appeared.

Was the first one something I already had?

No, that can't be right. I didn't have any Soul Rings before."

Shen Zhou thought for a moment, and a guess formed in his mind.

When Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had appeared earlier, its Mental Wave had covered the entire meadow.

While Huo Yuhao was absorbing Illusion Pupil Bird's Soul Ring, he might have accidentally come into contact with Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's residual spiritual power, causing a "pseudo Million-Year Soul Ring" to condense.

But it was not a real Million-Year Soul Ring. It was merely a blank Soul Ring formed from the spiritual power dispersed by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. It possessed no soul skills and only increased Huo Yuhao's upper limit of spiritual power.

"Don't worry about that Colorless Soul Ring. It won't do you any harm." Shen Zhou patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder. "When Tian Meng wakes up, I'll ask him what happened."

Huo Yuhao nodded. Though he was still somewhat puzzled, if his master said it was fine, it should be fine.

Tang Ya and Bei Bei walked over, the way they looked at Shen Zhou now completely changed.

A Million-Year Soul Ring.

They understood better than anyone the weight carried by those words.

This young man, who looked only a few years older than them, was actually a Titled Douluo with a Million-Year Soul Ring.

"Brother Shen, you... who exactly are you?" Tang Ya asked haltingly.

Shen Zhou smiled.

"Dean of Martial Soul Academy, Shen Zhou."

"Martial Soul Academy?" Bei Bei frowned. "I've never heard of it."

"You will soon."

Shen Zhou raised his head and gazed into the distance. His eyes passed through layer after layer of treetops before settling on the academy rising from the ground.

He had obtained a Million-Year Soul Ring, and Martial Soul Academy also needed to recruit students far and wide.

These two young people might be the opportunity for Martial Soul Academy to draw in its first batch of students from Shrek.

After all, that Zhou Yi from the outer school, Huo Yuhao's original first homeroom teacher, was no good person.

"Let's go. It'll be dark soon. We should head back."

Shen Zhou turned and walked toward the edge of the forest.