Green looked at Su Ming's resolute expression.
He immediately stopped wasting his breath. It was all written into the contract anyway. Even if Su Ming died, it had nothing to do with him.
"Third Soul Skill, Ghost Eagle Wind Residual Kill!"
Green let out a low shout, and the two yellow and one purple Soul Rings beneath his feet lit up.
The Ghost Shadow Eagle phantom behind him beat its wings violently, transforming into countless densely packed black wind blades that swept toward the Nine-Nether Demon-Faced Owl like a tidal wave.
"Caw!"
Sensing the threat, the Nine-Nether Demon-Faced Owl flapped its wings, spreading a vast swath of black mist in an attempt to resist.
But it was, after all, a Soul Beast less than eight hundred years old. Against a level-thirty-six agility-type Soul Elder, the overwhelming difference in rank quickly left it at a disadvantage.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The wind blades tore through the black mist in an instant, leaving several wounds so deep on the Demon-Faced Owl that bone showed through.
The giant bird let out a mournful cry. Its enormous body plummeted from the sky and crashed heavily to the ground with a thunderous boom.
It was still thrashing wildly, but had already lost the ability to fight back.
"That's enough! Hurry and kill it!" Green shouted, standing guard out front.
Su Ming walked forward without expression.
He pulled out a pitch-black dagger and plunged it into the Demon-Faced Owl's head.
"Squawk!"
The Demon-Faced Owl shrieked. Then its head drooped, and it breathed its last.
Hum.
Threads of dense energy converged, and a deep yellow Soul Ring slowly took shape above the corpse.
Without the slightest hesitation, Su Ming sat cross-legged beside the Demon-Faced Owl's body.
He drew upon his Soul Power, and the enormous deep yellow Soul Ring settled steadily above his head.
Boom!
The violent energy surged into his body, trying to tear him apart.
"Hmph. Settle down!"
Su Ming roared inwardly.
He frantically circulated his Soul Power, and at the same time, a powerful aura burst from his body.
Behind him, the phantom of a colossal phoenix, wreathed in strange red-and-black flames, slowly emerged.
The instant the phoenix spread its wings, the surrounding space visibly stretched and warped across a vast area.
Green, keeping watch nearby, glanced over and froze in place.
"Th-this is a phoenix?! No, what kind of Mutated Martial Soul is this?!" Green knew about the Phoenix Martial Soul.
He knew of the Ice Phoenix and the Fire Phoenix.
But this was the first time he had ever seen a phoenix burning with black-and-red flames.
Green stared at Su Ming in deep shock. At last, he understood why Su Ming had dared to risk absorbing a Soul Ring at the limit. With such a top-tier Martial Soul, perhaps he really could succeed!
Green couldn't help growing tense.
Meanwhile, inside Su Ming's body, his Soul Power continued to circulate wildly.
At first, the Demon-Faced Owl tried to attack Su Ming. But as his powerful mental strength bore down on it and Evil Devour began to operate, its energy was instantly overwhelmed.
Evil Devour could consume any kind of energy. That was what gave Su Ming the confidence to absorb a Soul Ring beyond his limit.
After all, when he'd crossed over, he'd been an ordinary person with no resources. He knew that things like Whale Rubber could improve one's physique, but he hadn't had the money to buy any.
He'd had no choice but to train his body relentlessly, and that was what let him dare to exceed the limit by a little.
Devour! Transform!
The Demon-Faced Owl's energy was torn to pieces, then continuously converted into the purest source energy, which frantically nourished Su Ming's body.
Watching from the side, Green felt his heart leap into his throat.
From where he stood, Su Ming's face turned from pale to bluish-green. Yet after only half an hour, the violent energy had completely subsided.
Boom!
An aura far surpassing that of an ordinary level-twenty Soul Master burst from Su Ming's body.
Su Ming slowly opened his eyes. A faint glimmer flickered deep within them, then vanished.
Reinforced by the vast energy, his Soul Power surged forward like a hot knife through butter. He rose two levels in one go, reaching level twenty-two and becoming a Soul Grandmaster!
Two Soul Rings quietly pulsed up and down beneath Su Ming's feet.
One was four hundred years old, the other eight hundred.
Green looked at Su Ming as if he were a monster wearing human skin.
Absorbing an eight-hundred-year Soul Ring as his second Soul Ring completely shattered the ironclad rule of the Soul Master World.
Even the Saintess of Spirit Hall probably couldn't do that, could she?
Where had this guy come from?
Su Ming then stood up and felt the surging power within his body.
He clenched his fist.
At the same time, his second Soul Skill was engraved in his mind.
Second Soul Skill: Evil Phoenix Falling Feather Kill!
It was a group attack skill.
When used, thousands of feather blades shot toward the enemy like a torrential downpour!
Every feather blade was wrapped in clinging Evil Fire. Anyone struck by one would suffer bone-deep agony!
As long as the Evil Fire burned, the pain would not fade!
This Soul Skill also had a second-stage recall effect. The feathers that missed their target would remain on the ground for a time instead of vanishing. When recalled in the second stage, any that struck an enemy would trigger a binding effect!
This move would leave an opponent completely off guard!
"Deacon Green, thank you for your help. We can head back now," Su Ming said.
Only then did Green come back to his senses. Seeing Su Ming's great increase in strength, he said with a slight tremor in his voice, "Little brother, you went out alone to hunt for a Soul Ring, so I imagine you're not very close with your family. I wonder if you'd consider joining Spirit Hall? I could recommend you."
Spirit Hall?
Su Ming thought it over. "I'll consider it."
Green felt a little disappointed. If Su Ming joined Spirit Hall, he, as the one who recommended him, would receive a great deal of benefits.
"Spirit Hall would certainly welcome you," Green said.
With that, he escorted Su Ming away.
In a remote village outside Suotuo City, the dormitory area of Shrek Academy was deathly silent.
Su Ming pushed open the dormitory door.
The moment he stepped inside, he felt a heavy pressure bearing down on him.
Flender sat with a dark expression on the only bench, his eyes fixed on Su Ming, his entire aura cold.
Ma Hongjun, meanwhile, cowered obediently to one side, not daring to make a sound.
"Su Ming, where have you been these past few days?" Flender asked. His voice was as gloomy as his expression, like a volcano on the verge of erupting.
"I haven't gone anywhere. I just went to a nearby forest and got my second Soul Ring," Su Ming replied calmly.
At those words, Flender could no longer hold back.
He shot to his feet, and the chair beneath him shattered to pieces!
"I knew it! I knew this would happen!"
"I warned you in my office, and then you went and acted first and told me afterward?!"
"Su Ming, do you even have any respect for me as the dean?!"
"Tell me, did you go and find another evil-attributed Soul Beast? You're digging your own grave!!"
Faced with Flender's furious roar, Su Ming barely reacted. He'd already guessed Flender would respond this way.
He calmly said, "Dean, I did this precisely because I don't want to dig my own grave."
"What do you mean?" Flender froze.
Su Ming didn't waste words. Instead, he revealed his Martial Soul directly.
Hum!
In an instant, an Evil Fire Phoenix wreathed in red-and-black flames appeared behind him!