Talent Revealed! The First Soul Ring is a Thousand Years!

The four elders below the stage were unaware of the conversation taking place.

At this moment, the two of them stood facing each other, their gazes clashing like sparks of flint, ready to erupt into a fierce battle at any second.

Taking a step forward, Bei Bei let out a low shout.

"Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, possess!"

Following a low dragon roar, Bei Bei's entire body swelled in size, and his hands transformed into dragon claws covered in blue dragon scales.

Electric arcs flickered across them...

A yellow soul ring rose slowly from beneath his feet, Bei Bei's gaze burning like a torch.

"Bei Bei, Martial Soul Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, level 14, please!"

Xue Mingqing smiled faintly. Sensing the intense battle intent radiating from Bei Bei, almost to the point of overflowing, a flicker of thought crossed his eyes.

He raised his hand, and as the snow wind whistled, a three-foot Snow Sword wreathed in green flowing wind appeared in his palm.

"Xue Mingqing, Martial Soul Snow Sword, level 14, come."

As he spoke, a pale purple soul ring emitting a magnificent, brilliant light rose slowly from beneath Xue Mingqing's feet.

Seeing that jarring flash of purple, Bei Bei froze instinctively. Once it registered, his pupils contracted violently as if he had seen a ghost, his face filled with shock.

"Wait, your first ring is... a thousand-year one?! How is that possible?!"

According to the theories of the soul master world, the maximum limit for a first soul ring was 432 years, a theory proposed by a certain "Grandmaster."

But in reality, anyone with experience and insight treated the Grandmaster's theory as a joke.

The limit of a soul ring was clearly determined by the individual constitution of the soul master.

Take Bei Bei, for example; he had intentionally tempered his body before awakening his Martial Soul, consuming all sorts of precious treasures as if they were meals, which allowed him to absorb a first soul ring of over 600 years.

Yet even so, 600-plus years was already the limit for Bei Bei.

To push it any higher was not impossible, but the time and resources required would double, making it not worth the effort.

But what about Xue Mingqing?

They were both six years old, yet his first soul ring was a terrifying thousand-year one. Was his cultivation different from everyone else's?

Xue Mingqing coughed awkwardly and rubbed his nose. "Just good luck."

It wasn't until he left Blizzard City and spent time with the mercenary Ning Yurong and the others that Xue Mingqing realized just how heaven-defying his thousand-year first ring truly was!

To put it in perspective, Sea God Tang San, at Xue Mingqing's age, had a first soul ring of only four hundred-plus years.

Comparing the two, didn't that make Xue Mingqing an ultimate prodigy on the spot?

At first, Xue Mingqing thought he had succeeded because of his own month of grueling training.

But now, looking at the bright yellow soul ring beneath Bei Bei's feet, he realized how laughable that thought was.

What, did he think he was the only one who knew that tempering the body could increase the soul ring limit? Did other families and sects not know?

No, they knew—they absolutely knew!

But if they knew this, why hadn't they produced any genius disciples with a thousand-year first ring?

The answer was obvious: it was all because Feng Qingyang had been backing Xue Mingqing.

He had first used Hurricane Body Tempering to significantly improve Xue Mingqing's innate talent and physical strength, then implanted a Soul Bone Seed into him.

This allowed his body to withstand the strain when absorbing the thousand-year soul ring.

The massive soul power brought by the thousand-year ring was also largely siphoned off by the Soul Bone Seed, preventing it from bursting Xue Mingqing apart.

Combining these two factors was what created the monster that was Xue Mingqing with his thousand-year first ring!

Realizing that 70% of his success was due to Feng Qingyang, Xue Mingqing just wanted to shout: "Teacher is amazing!"

As for the remaining 30%? That was, of course, Xue Mingqing's own iron will; otherwise, the Hurricane Body Tempering alone would have washed him out.

At this moment, as Xue Mingqing revealed his Martial Soul and soul ring, Elder Lin and the others below the stage froze instinctively. Once they reacted, they turned their heads in unison, staring at Mu En with faces full of horror.

However, the moment they turned, they discovered that Mu En's face was also filled with astonishment.

Seeing such an expression on Mu En, how could these three elders, all at least a hundred years old, fail to understand?

Before Xue Mingqing revealed his soul ring, even Mu En himself must not have known the true extent of Xue Mingqing's talent!

Ordinary people might only feel shock at seeing a thousand-year first ring, never grasping the deeper implications.

But they were different. As the strongest figures of the current era, how could their vision be so shallow?

What did a thousand-year first ring signify?

It meant that as long as Xue Mingqing didn't die prematurely, his future was guaranteed to be that of a Limit Douluo, and even reaching the legendary God Realm was not entirely impossible!

One had to remember that even someone as strong as Mu En, a level 99 Limit Douluo and one of the strongest in the world, had a first soul ring that was merely a standard yellow one.

Xue Mingqing's first ring was purple; the difference in talent was clear at a glance.

As for whether Xue Mingqing's first soul ring was forced into existence with treasures and drugs?

That was even more impossible. They might not know Xue Mingqing, but did they not know those people from the Sun Moon Empire?

The ones who love popping pills to trade for strength have always been that crowd from the Sun Moon Empire.

Because their innate talent is insufficient, they can only frantically consume pills, burning away their future potential in exchange for short-term gains.

In the short term, they can indeed reach a level of cultivation that surpasses their peers, but the strength gained in return is unstable.

To put it bluntly, their entire aura is floaty and unsteady—they are just scrawny weaklings with no solid foundation.

But what about Xue Mingqing?

His vitality is vigorous and full, and the soul power fluctuations he emits are as calm as an ancient well, steady as a rock.

His cultivation could never have been obtained by popping pills!

The four of them remained silent for a long time, not saying a word. Finally, it was Mu En who spoke: "I think... we need to hold a Sea God Pavilion meeting..."

Under the golden rays of dawn, a fresh morning breeze swept across the robes of the four elders, carrying with it the chill of the Soul Fighting Platform.

Once that breeze passed, there were no elders left here; all that remained were the two youths standing upon the Soul Fighting Platform...

On the platform, looking at the pale purple soul ring at Xue Mingqing's feet, Bei Bei fell silent for a few breaths.

His reason was screaming that this was an unwinnable battle, but the pride of a genius did not allow him to simply concede!

Even if he were to lose, he would lose with his head held high!

Clenching his fists, Bei Bei's gaze turned sharp once again.

"Come on! Let me see what kind of power your thousand-year first ring possesses!"

Xue Mingqing smiled, spinning his Snow Sword in a stylish flourish, and then—

He slowly gripped the Snow Sword with both hands: "Not bad courage... Then, Hurricane... Flash!"

This was not a move from the Hurricane Sword Art, but merely a sword strike Xue Mingqing executed using the principles of the Hurricane Sword Art; to put it plainly, this was just Xue Mingqing's basic attack.

To fight Bei Bei, Xue Mingqing did not even need to use his soul ring skills.

The moment the word "Flash" fell, Xue Mingqing's entire body shot forward in an instant!

He had transformed into a cyan-green hurricane, slashing rapidly toward Bei Bei!