Mavuika's Help!

At Xu Tianming's words, Kong Deming's expression instantly turned serious.

"Tianming, your uncle knows you're ambitious, but this isn't something to joke about. Do you know what kind of backlash you'll suffer if you fail to absorb a Soul Ring? What if you're unlucky and damage your foundations? How am I supposed to explain that to your mother?"

Kong Deming's unreserved concern warmed Xu Tianming's heart.

"Don't worry, Uncle. I'm sure nothing will go wrong. Don't forget, I have the rarest Innate Level 20 Soul Power on the entire continent. The limit that ordinary Soul Masters struggle with—I'll be the one to break it!"

Seeing the determination in his nephew's eyes, Kong Deming's hesitation gradually faded, replaced by a hint of eager, reckless excitement.

"Good! Since you're confident, Tianming, your uncle will go crazy with you this once!"

Just as the uncle and nephew were brimming with confidence, a wolf's howl suddenly rang out not far away.

At the sound, the experienced Kong Deming narrowed his eyes. He waited where he was, listening carefully and judging the sound for a moment. Then a sharp gleam flashed in his eyes.

"Tianming, it looks like you're in luck. If I'm not mistaken, the Soul Beast that howled is a Magic Flame Wolf with around a thousand years of cultivation."

"What are the odds?"

"Well, that's why I said you were lucky. All right, let's get closer and see what's going on before anything changes!"

Hearing Kong Deming, Xu Tianming didn't hesitate. He nodded and followed in his uncle's footsteps.

Led by their uncle, the two quietly approached the Magic Flame Wolf that had howled moments earlier.

But to their surprise, a Raging Flame Bear, its body covered in fiery red fur, stood before the Magic Flame Wolf.

Two thousand-year-old fire-type Soul Beasts were locked in a fight to the death!

Xu Tianming instinctively glanced at Kong Deming, but before he could say a word, his uncle had already made his move. With overwhelmingly powerful Soul Power, he forcefully subdued the two Soul Beasts, leaving them unable to move.

"Tianming, the Raging Flame Bear has fifteen hundred years of cultivation, while the Magic Flame Wolf has two thousand. Go kill the bear first and see if you can withstand the pressure of its Soul Ring. If you can't, we'll find one that's a little weaker."

"Got it, Uncle. Don't worry, I won't push myself!"

After replying, Xu Tianming stepped forward with Judgment in hand. Ignoring the Raging Flame Bear's despairing gaze, he ended its life swiftly and cleanly.

As a pale-purple Soul Ring appeared, Xu Tianming felt his breathing grow shallow.

His very first Soul Ring was fifteen hundred years old—nearly a thousand years beyond the limit ordinary Soul Masters could absorb. Could his body handle it?

Just as the thought surfaced, Mavuika seemed to have guessed what he was thinking and offered reassurance at just the right moment.

"Don't worry. My instincts tell me that this Soul Ring won't threaten your body. In fact, it might even benefit you!"

For some reason, Mavuika's words seemed to carry a certain magic, making people trust her instinctively.

Perhaps that was the unique charm of Natlan's leader.

Brushing away his stray thoughts, Xu Tianming calmed himself, then released his Sun—no, his Dazzling Sun Martial Soul.

Although it looked much like the Sun Martial Soul passed down through the imperial family, Xu Tianming knew they were completely different. So he had simply renamed his two Martial Souls from Sun and Silver Moon to Dazzling Sun and Frost Moon.

After all, those names better suited the powers of Mavuika and Columbina.

Once his Martial Soul appeared, Xu Tianming reached out and touched the Soul Ring before him, slowly guiding it into his body.

The instant the Soul Ring entered him, an indescribable sensation of swelling and splitting spread through Xu Tianming's body. But he had expected this, so he bit down on his lip and did his best to refine the Soul Ring.

He had thought the pain would last a long time. Xu Tianming had even prepared himself for a drawn-out battle. But then, a warmth he had never felt before suddenly burst from his Mental Sea of Consciousness and swept through his entire body.

What was going on?

The question had barely surfaced in his mind when the pain that had filled his body instantly vanished, replaced by an exquisite feeling of comfort.

"I just tried using my own power to absorb the Soul Ring. I didn't expect it to actually work. This shouldn't cause you any problems, should it?"

Hearing Mavuika's voice beside him, Xu Tianming could hardly resist throwing his arms around her and kissing her passionately.

A fiery warmth gradually spread through his body. With his eyes closed, it was as if Mavuika were holding him tightly in her arms.

Xu Tianming had never imagined absorbing a Soul Ring could be this easy!

With no pain to distract him, his thoughts became much more active.

"Mavuika, did what you just did cause you any pain?"

Once his thoughts had returned to normal, this was what Xu Tianming cared about most. If his guess was right, his future path would be no different from taking off into the sky.

"Pain? No. I didn't feel a thing. Absorbing this fifteen-hundred-year Soul Ring put no pressure on me at all... Maybe if it were several times stronger, I wouldn't be able to handle it."

At her words, a sharp gleam flashed in Xu Tianming's eyes.

If nothing unexpected happened, his guess would probably prove true!

Mavuika could bear the pressure the Soul Ring placed on his body, while he would simply take in all the Soul Power it bestowed!

After a surge of excitement, Xu Tianming explained his idea to Mavuika.

Mavuika didn't answer right away. Instead, she thought it over carefully.

"I think your idea could work, but the problem is that I don't know the maximum number of years a Soul Ring I can absorb. If the strength of this Soul Ring doubled, I estimate I could absorb one of around eight thousand years and make sure it didn't affect you. But I've never seen an eight-thousand-year Soul Ring, so I don't know how powerful one really is..."

Mavuika had thought her words might disappoint Xu Tianming. But the moment she said "eight-thousand-year Soul Ring," Xu Tianming had already frozen.

An eight-thousand-year Second Soul Ring!

What did that mean?

In the original setting, the fated son Huo Yuhao had practically eaten enough Whale Rubber to make himself sick. On top of that, his second Soul Ring came from a relative of the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, and he had only just managed to absorb a three-thousand-year Soul Ring.

And soon, he would be able to absorb an eight-thousand-year Second Soul Ring without any pressure...

How could he not be thrilled?

How could he not be overjoyed?

But now wasn't the time to think about all that. He needed to finish absorbing this fifteen-hundred-year Soul Ring first!