Final Choice

Choosing to attempt to absorb a ten-thousand-year soul beast as his Fourth Soul Ring had involved many considerations.

First, all of his attributes met the requirements. He had an absolutely solid foundation, enough to withstand a Soul Ring of greater age.

Second, his thoughts actually somewhat aligned with Jing Hongchen's. In terms of martial souls alone, there was a considerable gap between him and those top geniuses.

Although at this stage, he could still keep pace with those top geniuses through doubled effort and sweat.

Ye Luochen knew very well that this was probably only possible at this stage.

Once their Soul Power Levels rose further, the owners of those top-tier martial souls would reveal their higher limits.

Therefore, he needed to find a way to close that gap.

And Soul Rings were one important means of closing it.

If he could absorb a ten-thousand-year Soul Ring at level forty, he would make up a great deal of ground in terms of Soul Rings.

But although he had made this decision and now had the opportunity before him.

There was still one question before Ye Luochen.

That was how exactly he should choose.

Ten-thousand-year soul beasts also varied in strength.

Ten thousand years, twelve thousand years, fourteen thousand years...

All of these were ten-thousand-year Soul Rings, yet the energy within them and the burden they placed upon a soul master differed enormously.

After much consideration, Ye Luochen finally stopped before a cage.

Species: Thorn Vine.

Cultivation: Twelve thousand years.

"Oh? A Thorn Vine?"

Jing Hongchen was somewhat surprised by Ye Luochen's choice.

Because among the many soul beasts over ten thousand years old, it was not outstanding in the slightest.

"Can you tell me why? Why did you want to choose it as your Fourth Soul Ring?"

Facing Jing Hongchen's question, Ye Luochen slowly replied,

"First, the Thorn Vine is a plant-type soul beast. Its energy is far less violent than that of animal-type soul beasts, so the difficulty of absorbing its Soul Ring is naturally lower."

"Second, this Thorn Vine has a cultivation of twelve thousand years, which happens to be the safe limit that, by convention, a Soul King can absorb."

"Taking both factors into account, this Thorn Vine is relatively the most suitable choice."

Jing Hongchen nodded as he listened to Ye Luochen's analysis.

"A very rational judgment."

"But have you thought it through? Even so, this still exceeds what a four-ring soul master should be able to endure.

"Once Soul Ring absorption begins, there is no turning back. If you cannot withstand the Soul Ring's energy, then even I will not be able to save you."

Naturally, Ye Luochen understood this reasoning. Yet he did not waver, instead resolutely pressing the button.

Inside the metal cage, several Soul Tool beams suddenly erupted.

In an instant, the Thorn Vine, which had been wildly swaying and lashing about, became listless and barely alive.

Then, after Ye Luochen opened the cage and personally delivered the final blow.

The Thorn Vine lost all signs of life.

In its place, an inky-black Soul Ring slowly rose from its remains.

After taking a deep breath and adjusting his breathing, Ye Luochen began circulating his Soul Power and slowly drawing the Soul Ring toward himself.

To be honest, he was extremely nervous at this moment.

Of course, he knew that quite a few geniuses had successfully absorbed Soul Rings that surpassed common sense.

It was entirely possible.

Not to mention those great figures who existed only in legend—he had personally seen several such people.

Even back at Shrek, there had been a student named Wang Dong in his batch whose second Soul Ring had already been an inconceivable thousand-year one.

But what sort of person was she?

The Light Goddess Butterfly, a possessor of a top-tier martial soul.

And with just one glance, Ye Luochen could tell that she was by no means from an ordinary family. She definitely had an extraordinary background.

A genius born with a golden spoon in her mouth had likely grown up immersed in heavenly treasures since childhood.

Her physical strength naturally far surpassed that of her peers.

But what about Ye Luochen?

His martial soul was the Dark Iron Blade, utterly ordinary.

He came from a humble background, without any faction or backing. He had to fight desperately for every resource, and it was already fortunate enough that he had not been left with any hidden injuries.

Under such circumstances, how could he not feel uneasy about choosing a twelve-thousand-year Thorn Vine as his Fourth Soul Ring?

And just as his thoughts churned, the Soul Ring finally touched Ye Luochen's body.

After a brief pause, it suddenly transformed into a surge of energy and poured into Ye Luochen's body.

Seeing that the Soul Ring absorption process had begun, Jing Hongchen's gaze immediately fixed tightly on Ye Luochen.

Much like Ye Luochen, the master of Mingde Hall could not help feeling somewhat uneasy at this moment.

This child's talent in Soul Tools was absolutely astonishing, and what was even more valuable was his exceptionally serious attitude toward learning.

If such a promising seedling died because of this matter, it would be an enormous loss for Mingde Hall.

Yet likewise, if Ye Luochen succeeded, he would gain the chance to reach a higher limit, and Mingde Hall would gain more possibilities as well.

"Hang in there, Ye Luochen..."

"Get through this trial, and your future will be boundlessly vast..."

Naturally, Ye Luochen was unaware of the situation outside.

At this moment, he had focused all of his attention on the immense energy flooding into his body.

The instant the energy entered his body, Ye Luochen felt an intense swelling sensation surge through all his meridians, as though they could not bear the impact of such enormous energy.

But once he began circulating his Soul Power and guided the energy through his meridians according to his cultivation method, the swelling sensation quickly began to weaken.

And as it circulated, it began to seep into his meridians strand by strand.

Slowly being refined and absorbed.

Naturally, Ye Luochen's condition could not escape Jing Hongchen's perception.

Seeing Ye Luochen's aura settle after fluctuating briefly, then begin to rise steadily, Jing Hongchen could not help raising an eyebrow.

Well, damn.

He had actually been worried just now, but it seemed he had worried for nothing!

This kid's foundation was truly solid to an excessive degree.

There had not been the slightest bit of exaggeration in the data measured earlier.

Even if a Soul King were brought in to absorb this Soul Ring, their aura might not be as stable as Ye Luochen's.

"Tsk, tsk, what a waste."

He continued watching until the very end. Seeing that the Soul Ring absorption was about to conclude and Ye Luochen had not encountered the slightest mishap, Jing Hongchen finally shook his head and sighed.

"If I'd known, I should have pushed him a little further and tried one with a higher cultivation. I still lack experience in this area, so I inevitably ended up being too conservative."

Of course, despite his words, the uncontrollable smile gradually appearing on Jing Hongchen's face showed that.

The master of Mingde Hall was absolutely very satisfied with Ye Luochen's performance.

And not long after Jing Hongchen finished speaking.

Ye Luochen's aura finally returned completely to calm.