First Soul Ring, Red?

"Father, if there is nothing else, this son will take his leave."

Dai Mobai looked at the Star Luo Emperor and gave a slight bow.

"Mm."

Having received the Star Luo Emperor's permission, Dai Mobai hurried out of the hall.

He feared that if he delayed even a moment longer, he would be unable to suppress the surging blood energy within him and would erupt on the spot.

"Your Highness."

The guard standing straight as a pine watched Dai Mobai hurry past and bowed in salute.

Dai Mobai nodded without slowing down.

"Stand guard for me. No one is to step within half a step of my bedchamber. Kill any violators without mercy."

Dai Mobai spoke to the empty air.

No figure appeared, yet a woman's voice suddenly answered from within the empty bedchamber.

"Alright."

Dai Mobai was not surprised. Without even taking off his shoes, he jumped onto the bed and sat cross-legged.

Without his deliberate suppression, the blood energy accumulated within him finally found an outlet, erupting from Dai Mobai's pores like a geyser.

Fine strands of blood energy intertwined in the air, forming a floating mass above Dai Mobai's head in an instant, like a blood-red cloud.

"After suppressing it for so long, it has still reached the critical point."

Dai Mobai looked up at the blood cloud drifting overhead, his face devoid of joy or sorrow.

"So be it. Let's see what age Soul Ring the blood energy I've accumulated over these six years can condense for me."

Dai Mobai exhaled and formed a hand seal.

"Roar—"

A tiger's roar sounded within him. Amid rising blood flames, his second Martial Soul, the Blood Prison Demon Tiger, silently possessed him.

He raised a hand and struck with his palm. Scarlet Soul Power burst from his body and sank into the blood cloud floating above his head.

The blood cloud churned before exploding with a bang several breaths later, turning into countless dense strands of blood energy once more.

With Dai Mobai guiding it, the blood energy was no longer as disorderly as before.

Under his control, the dense blood energy rotated clockwise, accelerating faster and faster.

"Condense!"

At a certain moment, Dai Mobai shouted lowly and clenched his joined palms into a fist.

The rapidly spinning blood energy above his head suddenly trembled, releasing a blinding red light that filled the entire room.

Three breaths later, the red light faded. The blood energy mass above Dai Mobai's head had vanished, replaced by a flawless scarlet ring.

"Red... a hundred thousand years?"

Dai Mobai froze for a moment. His spiritual power left his body and enveloped the blood-red Soul Ring above him.

"As expected, I was overthinking it."

Dai Mobai tugged at the corner of his mouth and withdrew his spiritual power.

Though this Soul Ring was also red, its color was its only similarity to a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring.

Dai Mobai had already sensed its age just now. It had only barely crossed the ten-thousand-year mark.

"As a first Soul Ring, it'll do, barely."

Dai Mobai curled his lips, not particularly satisfied.

The air in a corner of the bedchamber rippled, faintly revealing a tall and graceful outline.

A gaze fell on Dai Mobai's face before swiftly moving away, carrying the urge to hit him.

He could not demand too much. After all, this was Douluo One, not some legend where Twin Martial Souls were everywhere and hundred-thousand-year Soul Rings were as common as dogs. Besides, he could continue absorbing blood energy in the future, allowing the Soul Ring to keep increasing in age. Sooner or later, it would grow into a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring.

Thinking that, Dai Mobai felt somewhat better. After exhaling a breath of stale air, he began drawing in the blood-energy Soul Ring above his head.

In less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the blood-energy Soul Ring had appeared beneath Dai Mobai, rotating steadily in rhythm with his breathing.

Dai Mobai slapped the bed and shot into the air. After flipping once midair, he landed firmly on the ground.

He clapped his hands and looked down at the blood-red Soul Ring beneath his feet.

"Honestly, the color is pretty intimidating. Looking this red, who wouldn't get a jolt from seeing it?"

Dai Mobai raised an eyebrow, withdrew his Soul Power, and exited the Martial Soul Possession state.

"You can stand down now. I'm going to take a bath."

With that, Dai Mobai turned and headed toward the bathroom.

"Oh, and don't peek."

"Pah—"

A soft spit was his only response from within the room.

At the same time, Dai Mubai, who had recovered after receiving treatment from a healing Soul Master, also returned to his own bedchamber.

The moment he entered, Dai Mubai grabbed the teapot from the table and smashed it to the floor.

With a crisp bang, the teapot shattered into pieces. The spilled tea soaked into the carpet, dark as blood.

"Dai Mobai is a Soul Elder, but I've achieved that too. Where am I inferior to him?"

Veins bulged on Dai Mubai's forehead, and his breathing quickened.

"Why? Why does everyone favor Dai Mobai? Father does, and so does Duke Spirit Cat!"

He tipped back the remaining tea in his cup and drank it in one gulp.

The cold tea slid down his throat, but it could not extinguish the rage rising in his heart.

"You all think I'm no good, do you? Then I'll make you look at me in a new light!"

Dai Mubai fiercely smashed the teacup in his hand onto the table, producing a thunderous thud.

"Guards! Bring You Lian here!"

Dai Mubai looked toward the door and growled.

Before long, without the sound of any footsteps, a graceful shadow appeared on the floor.

"Your Highness, You Lian requests an audience."

A gentle voice drifted into the room, soft as two feathers brushing across the body.

Dai Mubai's pupils constricted slightly. His hand trembled almost imperceptibly, startling him.

"Come in."

Having calmed his breathing, Dai Mubai looked toward the doorway.

In his sight, a seductive woman in a black cheongsam, slit up to her waist, swayed inside.

A black veil covered her face, revealing only a pair of gorgeous purple eyes that brimmed with charm.

"Your Highness."

You Lian bowed, exposing the snow-white fullness before her chest.

A flicker of heat passed through Dai Mubai's eyes, but when he recalled her identity, it was as though a bucket of cold water had been dumped over his head, bringing both his heads back to their senses.

"You Lian, how long has it been since I saved you?"

"Three years, Your Highness."

You Lian lowered her head, her voice tantalizing.

"Three years. I never expected so much time to have passed. Do you still remember the promise you made back then?"

Dai Mubai looked at You Lian, his voice low.

"You Lian remembers. From the moment Your Highness saved You Lian, You Lian's life has belonged to Your Highness."

You Lian answered decisively, without the slightest hesitation.

"Good! I knew I had not misjudged you."

"Now, it is time for you to repay me."

A satisfied expression appeared on Dai Mubai's face as he stared intently at You Lian, finally revealing his dagger.

"You Lian is ready at any time."

"I want you to meet Dai Mobai in my name, under the pretext of apologizing on my behalf, and then—"

"Kill him!"

Dai Mubai gritted his teeth, his face twisted with ferocity.

"As you command, Your Highness."

You Lian accepted in a low voice.

"Go. I'll wait for your good news."

Dai Mubai waved his hand, signaling for You Lian to leave.

As he watched You Lian's graceful figure depart with a heated gaze, Dai Mubai's expression gradually turned cold.

"Dai Mobai, I hope you like this gift of mine. Whether it is the throne or Zhu Zhuqing, both belong to me, Dai Mubai, and only to me!"

Dai Mubai clenched the teacup before him. Veins bulged on the back of his hand. With a crack, the warm jade teacup shattered in his grip, turning into jade fragments that fell through his fingers.

"This servant, You Lian, has come on behalf of the Third Prince to apologize to the Second Prince. Please trouble the general to announce my arrival."