Tang Wulin was only nine years old, and the word "death" didn't seem to frighten him all that much.
"You're not joking, are you?" Tang Wulin's face still paled.
Old Tang looked at Tang Wulin without speaking. His deep blue eyes seemed to grow even more profound.
"He's not lying to you!"
Yao Lao spoke up from nearby. "There really are eighteen layers of seals in your body. They're incredibly powerful, so you can imagine how violent the power sealed within them must be."
Tang Wulin dropped onto the bed. The little bottle containing the Soul Spirit rolled to one side, and the little snake inside slowly slithered out. It stretched its slender tongue and licked Tang Wulin's callused palm.
One piece of bad news after another was beginning to get to Tang Wulin.
"But I'm here to help you deal with those eighteen layers of seals. As long as you follow my method, you might survive. This is both a crisis and an opportunity. Once you've fully absorbed the essence of the Golden Dragon King, your future will know no bounds." Old Tang's hazy figure moved closer to Tang Wulin and reached out to rub his head.
For some reason, Tang Wulin felt an inexplicable warmth toward the Old Tang before him, as though he were talking to family. They had only just met, yet Tang Wulin trusted him completely.
"What do I need to do? I just turned nine, so I have another year!"
The Golden Dragon King's power in the first nine seals wasn't that violent. As for the first seal...
Old Tang fell silent for a moment. Then three objects, formed from swirling clouds, appeared before him.
"A Century Ice Crystal Fruit, a Century Red Flame Fruit, and ten drops of blood from a century-old dragon-type Soul Beast. As long as you gather these three things, the first seal shouldn't be a problem."
"I've never heard of any of these, especially the blood from a dragon-type Soul Beast. How am I supposed to find that? There are hardly any Soul Beasts left on Douluo Continent." Tang Wulin looked at the three objects before him, his heart sinking.
Old Tang fell silent again, as if he didn't know how to answer Tang Wulin's question.
"I can take care of those two herbs for you," Yao Lao suddenly said.
"Oh?"
Tang Wulin and Old Tang both turned to look at Yao Lao.
"After all, I've been draining this little rascal's life force for three years. If I don't offer some compensation, people will think I bully children!"
Yao Lao raised a fingertip slightly, and a pale white flame danced upon it.
Old Tang saw the flame. Though his face was indistinct, he seemed surprised. "Your flame is unusual. Its exterior is freezing cold, yet within it burns tremendous heat. That interplay of cold and heat reminds me of an old place."
"In my realm, I was a top alchemist. At a glance, I can tell those two herbs are meant to temper his body with extreme cold and scorching heat, then use the so-called dragon-type Soul Beast blood to absorb the power inside the first seal," Yao Lao said with confidence.
"Your flame would work better than those two herbs, but he'd have to endure even more pain. Tang Wulin, can you bear it?" Old Tang asked.
"Old Tang, those two herbs you mentioned sound very precious. If Yao Lao's flame can replace them, I can bear it." Tang Wulin's expression was serious. He wasn't joking.
Old Tang sighed softly. "In that case, first find a way to gather those ten drops of dragon-type Soul Beast blood. There's no need to rush once you have it. Your first seal will start to loosen within a year, and it'll be better to absorb the power then."
Tang Wulin nodded firmly.
Old Tang turned to Yao Lao. "As for him, you can trust him. A being in a soul state like his is more substantial than one in a divine sense state like mine. You can consult him whenever you have questions. But it's best not to tell anyone about our existence. I'm going into hibernation and won't appear often."
Before he'd finished speaking, Old Tang transformed into a streak of golden light and merged with Tang Wulin's body.
"All right, little rascal. That old fellow won't be showing up for a while. You've got a whole year, so there's no need to rush. I'll give you a little welcome gift first!"
With that, Yao Lao stepped closer to Tang Wulin. The pale white flame in his hand began to sway violently.
Seeing this, Tang Wulin leaned back a little. "Yao Lao, what are you doing? Didn't you say there was no rush?"
"What are you thinking, little rascal? I'm going to improve the quality of your Soul Spirit." Yao Lao pointed to the little snake curled up on the bed.
Hearing this, Tang Wulin was delighted. "Really? A Soul Spirit's quality can be improved?"
"It should be possible. These so-called Artificial Soul Spirits are similar in some ways to alchemy. I should be able to improve it a little with the Bone Spirit Cold Flame." Yao Lao was quite confident about this.
"Sorry for the trouble, Yao Lao!" Tang Wulin nudged the little snake forward. He didn't expect it to reach any particular level; he just hoped it would no longer be defective.
Yao Lao nodded slightly, quickly condensed the Bone Spirit Cold Flame into a pinpoint on his fingertip, and gently tapped the little snake.
In an instant, the docile little snake began writhing violently. The Bone Spirit Cold Flame burned inside its body, tempering it as well.
Watching this, Tang Wulin felt a little nervous. He was afraid the little snake might die. After all, he'd spent three years' worth of savings to obtain this Soul Spirit.
About ten minutes later, the little snake finally began to calm down.
Yao Lao smiled faintly. "It seems to have gone smoothly. Its quality should have reached the century level—nine hundred and ninety-nine years. Unfortunately, it can't withstand a higher quality right now. Otherwise, I'd have raised it to the millennium level."
"A century-old Soul Spirit!" Tang Wulin felt as if he were dreaming. "A century-old Soul Spirit costs a million Federal Coins!"
But Tang Wulin hadn't been happy for long before worry returned to his face. "Yao Lao, you may not know this, but a Soul Master's First Soul Ring can usually only withstand a Soul Spirit of around four hundred years. So I might not be able to fuse with this one."
Yao Lao tapped Tang Wulin on the head. "Don't worry. I'm not that foolish. You're right that ordinary people can only withstand a Soul Spirit of that age for their First Soul Ring, but you're different. You have the Golden Dragon King's essence inside you, and your vitality is exceptionally strong. You'll have no problem absorbing this Soul Spirit."
"Really?" Tang Wulin still wasn't entirely convinced.
"Rest assured. If I meant you harm, that old fellow inside you would come charging out to fight me. Hurry and fuse with it. I'll protect you myself." Yao Lao smiled.
Only then did Tang Wulin put aside his doubts. He sat cross-legged on the bed and began fusing with the Soul Spirit.
Perhaps because it had been tempered by the Bone Spirit Cold Flame, the little snake didn't resist at all. The fusion went exceptionally smoothly.
Half an hour later.
Tang Wulin slowly opened his eyes. Blue Silver Grass emerged from his hand once more, and a yellow Soul Ring appeared beside him. At the same time, a little snake covered in golden scales, with a few white ones mixed in, appeared beside his Blue Silver Grass.
"It really is a century-old Soul Spirit!" Tang Wulin looked at the Soul Ring beside him, his voice thick with emotion. He stood and walked over to Yao Lao, then bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Yao Lao!"
Yao Lao casually waved his hand. "I told you, it's a welcome gift. All right, I need to rest my soul now. Oh, and the ring where I'm storing my soul is in the drawer. Wear it from now on; it'll be more convenient."
As soon as he finished speaking, Yao Lao transformed into a streak of white light and entered a drawer.
Tang Wulin hurried over and opened it. Inside was indeed a ring. He'd found it on the beach one day three years ago. At the time, he'd thought it was pretty, so he'd kept it.
Tang Wulin looked at the little snake in his hand and smiled. "From now on, I'll call you Golden Scale!"
Golden Scale seemed to understand him. It gently nudged Tang Wulin's palm with its head.
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