Tang San sat cross-legged, staring at the deep purple ring on the ground. The energy fluctuations from a five-thousand-year-old Soul Ring made his scalp tingle. He took a deep breath, released his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, and carefully guided the Soul Ring's energy into his body.
Boom!
The rampaging energy surged into his meridians like floodwaters bursting through a dam. The tearing pain from absorbing a Soul Ring far beyond his limit made Tang San's vision go black. He felt even his bones groaning; what flowed through his veins seemed less like blood than scalding magma. He grunted, veins bulging across his forehead, sweat pouring down him as his body trembled violently beyond his control.
"Hang in there, Xiao San! I believe in you!" Zhu Shen crouched beside him, his tone anxious and his expression "heartbroken." One hand rested "nervously" on Tang San's shoulder, though in truth he was feeling how violently Tang San's body shook under the surging energy—the more agony, the richer the system rewards!
[Beep! Detected Tang San attempting to absorb a five-thousand-year Mandala Snake King Soul Ring beyond his limit, enduring immense pain. Congratulations, host, on thoroughly scamming Tang San once! Reward: Evolution Points +80! Current Evolution Points: 240/100! Dragon God Bloodline purity can be raised to 22%! Raise it?]
Zhu Shen was overjoyed, barely managing to stifle a laugh. Raise it! Absolutely! A surge of warmth, even more powerful than before, swept through his body. His bones crackled, his muscle fibers seemed to be reshaped, and the phantom of golden dragon scales flashed beneath his skin. His strength surged once again. He felt his Dragon God Bloodline growing purer, and even the sight of Tang San convulsing on the ground seemed more pleasing to him—what a fine little cash machine for his master!
"Teacher... This energy... is too overbearing..." Tang San gritted his teeth, forcing the words through them. His face was as pale as paper. The Soul Ring's energy was not only violent but also carried the Mandala Snake King's distinctive, icy venom, which relentlessly corroded his meridians and consciousness. He relied entirely on the steadfast will he had forged over two lifetimes and the Mysterious Heaven Skill to hold on to a sliver of clarity, struggling to guide this destructive force through his body. Each impact felt like a heavy hammer pounding his soul.
"Only by eating bitterness can you become a person above others! Xiao San, think of your father, the Clear Sky Douluo, and his magnificence! What's a little pain like this?" Zhu Shen "encouraged" him, then "tenderly" wiped the cold sweat from Tang San's forehead. Meanwhile, he was calculating: 240 points! If he kept at it, he could raise his bloodline purity another level—maybe even unlock a new form! His gaze swept over the Dragon God Right Leg Bone (10,000 years) he'd just acquired, glowing with a pale golden light in his system space, and he grinned with satisfaction.
Just as Tang San felt his body was about to burst and his consciousness was on the verge of sinking into darkness, a sudden change occurred!
Buzz!
In Zhu Shen's arms, the "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" he kept close to himself shuddered violently without warning! A scorching heat, far stronger than before and impossible to describe, erupted in an instant. It burned Zhu Shen so badly he yelped and nearly leapt straight into the air, clutching his chest with an exaggerated motion like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
[Beep! Warning! Abnormal surge in the "Bibi Dong's Love Letter" item's activity! A special energy resonance source has been detected! Resonance source location: deep in the forest (coordinates being locked)! Warning: This energy source contains extremely strong evil energy fluctuations!]
"Damn it! Again?!" Zhu Shen's face turned green. Why did this lousy item always cause trouble at the worst possible moment? He fumbled to hold down the love letter bouncing in his arms. The thin envelope felt like a red-hot iron pressed against his chest; even through his clothes, its astonishing heat was unmistakable. It throbbed faster and faster, like an awakened heart, pointing toward some place deep in the forest.
Tang San was at the most critical and vulnerable point of absorbing the Soul Ring, his awareness of the outside world reduced to a minimum. But Zhu Shen's yelp and suddenly disordered breathing still made his heart tighten, and the already-rampaging Soul Ring energy inside him nearly spiraled out of control. "Teacher?!" he managed, struggling to spare a sliver of his attention.
"N-no... nothing! Focus on absorbing it! Your master's here!" Zhu Shen forced himself to stay calm. He used his Soul Power to suppress the love letter bouncing wildly against his chest while "devoting his full attention" to "protecting" Tang San. In truth, his eyes darted around nervously, scanning the shadowy forest. The coordinates marked by the system stood out on his mental map, deeper in the valley. The icy, evil fluctuations were growing clearer, carrying a nauseating, viscous quality utterly unlike the Mandala Snake King's poisonous mist. They felt more like... the presence of some living thing? What were those maniacs from the Evil God Temple doing in this godforsaken place?
"Hiss... roar..." A low, muffled, inhuman and inhumanly bestial roar came faintly from deep in the forest, accompanied by the crack of trees snapping under immense force. The ground seemed to tremble faintly. The evil energy fluctuations suddenly surged!
In Zhu Shen's arms, the love letter's heat instantly spiked to its limit!
Pfft!
At this critical juncture, Tang San's body suddenly shuddered, and he spat out a small mouthful of dark-red, stagnant blood. Immediately afterward, the rampaging Soul Power around him settled rapidly like the ebbing tide. The deep purple Soul Ring settled firmly around his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, its light drawing inward. From the head of the enormous Mandala Snake King's corpse beneath him, an inconspicuous, diamond-shaped bone glowing with a faint purplish-black light slowly emerged and quietly fused with the back of Tang San's head.
Success! Tang San was ecstatic. A five-thousand-year Soul Ring! He felt his Soul Power Level surge wildly, breaking straight through the level-thirty threshold, while his physical strength underwent a qualitative leap. Even more astonishing, a peculiar coolness spread from the back of his head, as if he'd gained an invisible eye. His awareness of his surroundings instantly sharpened several times over! Could this be... an External Soul Bone? A snake's... spiritual-type Soul Bone? His overwhelming joy swept away the boundless pain of absorbing the ring.
[Beep! Tang San has successfully absorbed a five-thousand-year Mandala Snake King Soul Ring beyond his limit! Soul Power has broken through to level 33! Gained External Soul Bone: Mandala Eye (five thousand years)! Effect: Greatly enhances mental perception, grants a minor mental shock and resistance to illusions.]
Hearing the system notification, Zhu Shen stared at the faintly visible purple diamond-shaped phantom behind Tang San. His eyes nearly popped out of his head. An External Soul Bone?! And a mental-type one at that! What a cheat... He was jealous! But the system's next notification immediately made him feel better.
[Congratulations, host, on indirectly helping Tang San obtain a five-thousand-year External Soul Bone! Your disciple-trapping was a resounding success! Reward: Evolution Points +100! Dragon God Bloodline purity can be raised to 23%! Special item obtained: Dragon God Essence Blood (one drop)!]
A hundred points! And Dragon God Essence Blood! Zhu Shen nearly laughed out loud, but forced himself to hold it in, twisting his face into a grimace. Worth it! This scam had been so worth it! He'd just started to inspect the Dragon God Essence Blood when the scorching love letter in his arms suddenly jerked!
Whoosh!
A streak of pink light shot out without warning from between the fingers Zhu Shen had clamped over it, fast as lightning, straight toward the source of the evil energy deep in the forest! It moved so quickly that Zhu Shen couldn't react in time. He only felt his hand suddenly go empty.
"Holy crap! My love letter!!" Zhu Shen was beside himself. That thing was essential for raising Bibi Dong's affection for him! He instinctively started after it.
"Teacher?" Tang San had just opened his eyes, still unsteady, when he saw a streak of pink light vanish into the dense forest—and Zhu Shen wearing the exaggerated expression of someone who'd lost a priceless treasure, beating his chest and stamping his feet. Utterly baffled, he asked, "What... just flew past?"
Zhu Shen froze in place, his outstretched hand suspended in midair, his expression caught between "heartbroken" and "completely bewildered." He looked at Tang San, then toward where the love letter had vanished, then at the red dot on the system map drawing closer and closer, radiating a dense aura of evil. He felt the astonishing heat still lingering against his chest, and finally his gaze fell on the faint purple diamond-shaped mark behind Tang San's head.
An ominous premonition, cold as a venomous snake, instantly coiled around his heart. Bibi Dong's Love Letter... the source of the evil energy... deep in the forest... He'd just opened a gigantic can of worms!