Next, Yue Guan turned to the scout and asked, "Are there any suitable five-thousand-year-old evil-attribute Soul Beasts nearby?"
"Yes, there are."
The scout pointed toward the depths of the Dark Withered Forest.
"Twenty li ahead, there's a desolate place shrouded in mist all year round. There's a solitary peak there, where a Hell Soul Yama Vulture lives. It's exactly five thousand years old."
Yue Guan flicked his sleeve. "You few, lead the way!"
"Yes!"
About a quarter of an hour later,
the group arrived deeper within the Dark Withered Forest.
The mountain path grew more treacherous with every step. All the plants around them had vanished, and the exposed rocks were a strange, inky black.
"Elder, Lord Su Ming, the Soul Beast is right here." The scout looked up toward the solitary peak.
But the mist was so thick that nothing could be seen.
Just then, the Soul Beast atop the peak seemed to notice Su Ming and the others. A sharp, piercing cry suddenly rang out.
Screee!
Along with that cry, a dense, bone-chilling evil aura crashed down from overhead, like Mount Tai bearing down upon them.
Everyone went on guard!
Su Ming looked up.
The black mist above was torn apart as two enormous wings, each spanning more than ten meters, spread wide.
The Soul Beast's wings blotted out the sky. Its entire body was covered in black feathers that glinted with a cold sheen, as if they had been forged from metal.
Its talons were like steel hooks, still stained with dark-red blood that had yet to dry.
Most eerie and terrifying of all was its head. It had no feathers at all, leaving its entire skull exposed to the air. It looked both dead and alive!
The Hell Soul Yama Vulture!
Seeing humans trespassing on its territory, it didn't hesitate. It suddenly beat its wings, unleashing countless blades of wind formed from black evil aura. They swept toward the group like raindrops.
"Hmph! How dare a beast act so insolently!"
Chrysanthemum Douluo struck!
Boom!
With a muffled roar, the Soul Power within Yue Guan erupted.
A gigantic martial soul, a golden chrysanthemum radiating an air of nobility, appeared behind him. It was none other than the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black, black!
Nine dazzling Soul Rings unfurled beneath his feet and began to revolve. The overwhelming aura of a Titled Douluo scattered all the black mist within several li in an instant.
Yue Guan raised his right hand and pressed it forward. The fifth black Soul Ring beneath his feet blazed with light.
Countless golden petals instantly gathered in the sky. In the blink of an eye, they became a golden blade dozens of meters long, reaching up to the heavens.
The blade carried a force like mountains toppling and seas overturning. It tore through the air and slammed into the Hell Soul Yama Vulture's chest.
"Get down here!"
Bam!
The dull crash of flesh colliding with energy echoed through the valley.
Faced with such an overwhelming gap in strength, the five-thousand-year-old Soul Beast didn't even have time to scream before it was defeated.
Blood sprayed everywhere as its massive body plummeted helplessly, crashing into a pile of rocks and smashing a huge crater into the ground.
The Hell Soul Yama Vulture lay in the center of the crater, its body convulsing violently. Great mouthfuls of blood mixed with pieces of its organs poured from its beak. It was clearly gravely wounded and on the verge of death.
"Su Ming, finish it!" Yue Guan shouted, his face dark.
Su Ming didn't hesitate for a moment.
He tapped the ground with his toe and appeared at the edge of the crater in an instant.
Looking down at the Ferocious Beast still struggling to take flight, Su Ming's expression turned cold. Extreme Evil Soul Power gathered in the palm of his right hand.
Smack!
He brought his palm down, instantly crushing the Hell Soul Yama Vulture's skull.
The Hell Soul Yama Vulture's huge body stiffened, then slumped completely in its pool of blood, never to breathe again.
Buzz!
A few seconds later, specks of starlike energy seeped out of the Soul Beast's corpse.
The energy swiftly gathered and coalesced in midair. At last, a deep-purple Soul Ring slowly appeared.
"Phew..."
Su Ming let out a long breath.
Without the slightest hesitation, he sat cross-legged beside the Ferocious Beast's corpse.
Guided by his will, the Soul Ring slowly entered his body.
Boom!
The instant the Soul Ring entered him, a wildly violent surge of energy rushed through his meridians and into his body.
Su Ming gritted his teeth, his expression steely.
His powerful physique displayed its overwhelming resilience at that moment.
His meridians swelled violently, but held the energy fast. Not a single one showed the slightest sign of rupturing.
Not only that, but as the five-thousand-year Soul Power surged through him, the medicinal power still lingering in Su Ming's body began refining itself once again!
As time passed, the energy within Su Ming gradually settled. But another vast, controllable surge of energy began to soar!
This was his Soul Power Level!
Level thirty-one!
Level thirty-two!
He surged forward like a bamboo splitting through obstacles!
Level thirty-five!
The energy was simply too vast. It surged out almost explosively, leaving Su Ming on the verge of losing control.
Fortunately, Su Ming had prepared for this in advance.
Finally, after three hours, the energy slowly settled!
Yet Su Ming's Soul Power Level had shockingly reached level thirty-nine!
After absorbing a Soul Ring, he had gone from Soul Grandmaster to Soul Elder and risen nine levels!
How terrifying was that?
Nobody would believe it if they heard.
But this wasn't the effect of the Soul Ring alone. It was the combined boost of the Soul Ring, the Ice and Fire Golden Body, and the Immortal Herb!
Su Ming slowly opened his eyes. Two solid-looking beams of pure black light flashed through the depths of his pupils and vanished.
Chrysanthemum Douluo, who had been guarding him nearby, stood frozen in place.
He'd absorbed one Soul Ring, and his Soul Power had shot up nine levels?
Was this even human?
His eyes were wide as saucers. His lips trembled, but for a long while, he couldn't say a word.
Su Ming rose to his feet.
He rolled his wrist, feeling the terrifying, earth-shattering power within him, but his expression remained calm.
"Let's test the power of my third Soul Skill."
Su Ming's black eyes narrowed. The pure-black Evil Phoenix martial soul appeared behind him, and its wings beat once.
At the same time, the third Soul Ring he had just absorbed flared with purple light.
The evil-attribute energy throughout Su Ming's body began to rush toward the palm of his right hand.
Buzz!
Black energy gathered and compressed without end!
In the blink of an eye, a circular blade of light several feet across took shape in his right hand, radiating a chill of death.
Third Soul Skill: Evil Phoenix God-Slaying Slash!
Su Ming's eyes turned cold. He swung his right hand, slashing downward toward the slope ahead.
Ssshh!
The circular blade of light shot from his hand. Everything in its path within a hundred meters—earth and air alike—was instantly vaporized.
The earth split in two!
A hundred-meter-long, bottomless black chasm was left behind.
Along its edges clung black flames, thick and viscous, still corroding the rock.
Seeing this, Su Ming nodded with satisfaction.
This strike concentrated all its offensive power into a single point.
There was no flashy, wide-area bombardment—only the most extreme armor-piercing, corrosive, and soul-rending effects.