By then, Zhou Tong's power would rival that of the gods—or even surpass them.
Before leaving, the Thunder God had also left behind the requirements for the Third Trial of the Thunder God Divine Trial.
"The Third Trial of the Thunder God Divine Trial: Within three years, obtain a Ten Thousand Year Thunderous Hell Vine Soul Ring. Upon passing, you will be rewarded with a God-Bestowed Soul Ring."
This trial was even more terrifying than obtaining a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring. It demanded that he acquire a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring at level forty.
And not just any Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring—it had to come from a Thunderous Hell Vine.
This powerful plant-type Soul Beast was a ruler among plant Soul Beasts, no weaker than the Blue Silver Emperor.
Furthermore, absorbing a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring was far more difficult than absorbing one from a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
That was because Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts possessed their own consciousness and could even take human form. Their death throes were absolutely terrifying.
So this was a tremendous test of life and death.
Both his strength and his physical body would be placed under immense strain.
Still, the reward was incredibly generous.
A God-Bestowed Soul Ring could increase its age limit as its Soul Master's cultivation rose. In the end, it might even become a Million-Year Soul Ring.
With such a powerful Soul Ring, Zhou Tong would undoubtedly tower above the rest.
He planned to place the God-Bestowed Soul Ring on the Thunder God Hammer and make the hammer exceptionally powerful.
At that moment, Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan were stunned to see Zhou Tong take down a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast all by himself.
This Zhou Tong was simply unbelievable.
"How is that possible?"
Dugu Yan's beautiful eyes widened. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
A huge dragon corpse lay in front of Zhou Tong.
It was the Thunder Earth Dragon that had been absorbing lightning to temper its body.
Its golden scales were now stained red with blood, and its body was riddled with holes burned by flames. The sight was horrifying.
The worst injury was on its head, where the flames had burned straight through. Bright red blood flowed from the wound.
At that moment, Dugu Bo watched Zhou Tong tensely. If anything went wrong, he would step in and stop the process.
Absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring was far too dangerous.
Even though Zhou Tong had made ample preparations, Dugu Bo was still worried.
As a Titled Douluo, he could forcibly interrupt Zhou Tong's Soul Ring absorption and save his life, but doing so might bring unforeseen dangers.
After all, absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring as his third Soul Ring was utterly reckless.
But the agony he had expected never came. Zhou Tong didn't even show a hint of pain. After only half an hour, a black Soul Ring appeared around him.
Zhou Tong slowly opened his eyes, his face alight with joy.
"I finally absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring."
Seeing this, both of them couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"Zhou Tong, are you all right?"
Dugu Yan stepped forward and gently squeezed Zhou Tong with her slender hands. Only after confirming that he seemed fine did she relax.
"Brat, congratulations. You've set a record by obtaining a Ten Thousand Year third Soul Ring."
"You really are a genius. You're always pulling off one astonishing feat after another."
"What Soul Skill did you get?"
Dugu Bo couldn't help exclaiming.
"Thanks to the Immortal Herb you gave me, senior, I was able to absorb the Soul Ring so smoothly."
Zhou Tong smiled and began to explain.
The Soul Skill he had obtained this time was quite good. It was a long-range attack called Thunder Beam!
As long as he gathered lightning energy and converted it into a beam of light to unleash, it could produce a devastating effect.
"Brat, you actually got such a terrifying Soul Skill. You're one lucky kid."
Dugu Bo said with a laugh.
Just hearing the name made it sound formidable. Lightning was inherently a highly destructive form of energy.
Concentrating it into an attack could indeed inflict tremendous damage.
"I just got lucky. This Soul Skill really is powerful. A single attack can let me fight above my level. Even a Soul King would be seriously injured."
It could let him fight above his level?
The two fell silent.
It was practically a weapon of mass destruction. If Zhou Tong became a Titled Douluo one day, this Soul Skill would still pack a serious punch.
And Zhou Tong had just shown off a flight Soul Skill and a defensive Soul Skill, along with this devastating attack. He was a powerful Soul Master who combined speed, offense, and defense.
It was easy to imagine that Zhou Tong would become a formidable Soul Master.
Not long afterward, the three of them set out to find a third Soul Ring for Dugu Yan.
They headed for the outer reaches of Star Dou Forest.
This was a gathering place for thousand-year Soul Beasts, though a few ten-thousand-year ones sometimes appeared as well.
After several days of searching, they finally found a suitable Soul Beast in a forest.
The forest was thick with vegetation, and an open wetland lay within it.
Countless snake-like creatures writhed in the marsh.
Some even had horns growing from their heads.
"Poisonous Evil Earth Dragons!"
Seeing the creatures slithering beneath the ground, Zhou Tong quickly recognized them.
Poisonous Evil Earth Dragons were burrowing wyrm-snakes. They liked to dig tunnels underground and ambush their prey without warning.
Their bodies also contained potent toxins. They were an excellent match for Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphorus Divine Dragon Martial Soul.
These Earth Dragons were actually a kind of snake, but they also carried a trace of dragon blood. They were half snake and half dragon Soul Beasts.
"Yan Yan, what do you think of this Soul Beast?"
"This Poisonous Evil Earth Dragon is around four thousand years old. It has a trace of lesser dragon blood and is somewhat poisonous, making it a perfect fit for your third Soul Ring."
Dugu Yan spoke up.
Soul Beasts that possessed both poison and dragon blood were rare.
"This one, then. The Immortal Herb transformed me quite a bit, so I can absorb a four-thousand-year Soul Beast."
Dugu Yan nodded.
"Good. I'll capture that Poisonous Evil Earth Dragon, and you can finish it off."
Dugu Bo fixed his gaze on the Dragon King among the Poisonous Evil Earth Dragons and spoke in a low voice.
Most of the Poisonous Evil Earth Dragons were around a thousand years old. The strongest was the Dragon King at the center of the group, which was about four thousand years old.
Dugu Yan could handle one or two Earth Dragons without much trouble, but fighting this whole group might leave her injured. So Dugu Bo decided to step in personally and protect her.
"Eighth Soul Skill, Time Solidification."
"Ninth Soul Skill, Jade Phosphorus Divine Light!"
The next moment, Dugu Bo sprang into action. A beam of white light shot from his body and locked directly onto the Poisonous Evil Earth Dragon King.
Then the Jade Phosphorus Divine Light struck it hard, leaving the creature on the verge of death.
The Poisonous Evil Earth Dragon King lay on the ground, twitching now and then. It looked as if it would die at any moment.
Dugu Bo lightly touched down with his toes and leaped into the wetland, landing beside the Poisonous Evil Earth Dragon.
He seized the Earth Dragon, then leaped back to Dugu Yan's side.
"Yan Yan, hurry and kill it so you can absorb its Soul Ring. I'll protect you!"
Zhou Tong volunteered.
Just then, a cold voice interrupted the three of them.
Before you continue