For his first Spirit Ring, Lu Chen had absorbed the Spirit Ring of a thousand-year-old Red Blood Grass. In his view, he could easily absorb this four-thousand-year-old Cloud Mist Tea Tree's Spirit Ring as his second Spirit Ring.
All that stood before Lu Chen now was the lake at his feet. There was no way the Cloud Mist Tea Tree had no companion Spirit Beast nearby.
Looking at the lake's clear, emerald waters, Lu Chen grew extremely wary. This place was definitely not as safe as it appeared.
Lu Chen set down the pack on his back, turned, and walked into the forest. Half an hour later, he returned to the lake carrying the corpses of two Nether Wolves.
Using his Second Martial Soul, the Black Iron Sickle, Lu Chen slit the throats of both Nether Wolves. Blood immediately gushed out, and the smell of blood spread across the entire lake.
He casually tossed the Nether Wolves, blood still spurting from their necks, beside the lake, then turned and hid.
Lu Chen was very patient and would never act rashly.
He remained hidden in the shadows, patiently waiting for over ten minutes.
Finally, ripples spread across the previously tranquil lake, and then an enormous creature floated up from beneath the surface.
Lu Chen sucked in a cold breath at the sight of the enormous creature. It was an Iron Armored Crocodile.
Its powerful limbs, thick scales, and sharp fangs gleaming with cold light made it clear that this Iron Armored Crocodile was definitely not something to trifle with.
After observing it carefully, Lu Chen thought:
This Iron Armored Crocodile is four meters long and has at least four thousand years of cultivation, about the same as the Cloud Mist Tea Tree. It looks like this is the Cloud Mist Tea Tree's companion Spirit Beast.
If I want to absorb the Cloud Mist Tea Tree's Spirit Ring, it looks like I'll have to deal with this Iron Armored Crocodile.
Under Lu Chen's gaze, the Iron Armored Crocodile followed the scent of blood and quickly crawled ashore. It opened its blood-basin maw, clamped the two Nether Wolf corpses in its jaws, and turned to return to the lake.
Of course, Lu Chen would not let it go back so easily!
Once the Iron Armored Crocodile returned to the lake and began whipping up wind and waves, he would have no way to deal with it.
Only while it was on shore could he fight it. Even if he could not kill it outright, he at least had to drive it away.
Seizing his chance, Lu Chen suddenly charged out, caught up with the Iron Armored Crocodile in a few long strides, grabbed its tail, and hauled it back with all his strength.
"Roar!"
Only belatedly did the Iron Armored Crocodile realize someone had grabbed its tail. It hurriedly spat out the Nether Wolves and let out a furious roar.
Then it thrashed wildly, trying to break free of Lu Chen's grip.
Every muscle in Lu Chen's body tensed as he shouted:
"Up you go!"
Who could have imagined that the Iron Armored Crocodile would actually lose in a contest of strength? Holding its tail, Lu Chen swung it in a full circle and hurled it into the forest nearby.
Boom!
Lu Chen threw the Iron Armored Crocodile's enormous body into the forest, where it only stopped after crashing into a large tree. The violent impact left even the Iron Armored Crocodile somewhat dazed.
His expression solemn, Lu Chen quickly pursued it. At the same time, with a thought, he summoned his Second Martial Soul, the Black Iron Sickle.
The vast Soul Power within his body poured into it continuously, making the Black Iron Sickle shine with a cold, eerie light.
While the Iron Armored Crocodile was still dazed, Lu Chen chased it into the forest, swung the Black Iron Sickle, and stabbed it into one of the crocodile's eyes.
"Aow!"
The intense pain instantly snapped the Iron Armored Crocodile awake. Its ferocity fully unleashed, it pushed hard with all four limbs and lunged forward.
Although Lu Chen did his best to dodge, the Iron Armored Crocodile's charge still grazed him, knocking him back six or seven steps.
Grimacing in pain, Lu Chen glanced down at his abdomen. His clothes had been torn apart by the impact, and the skin on his belly had been scraped open, leaving a bloody mess.
Although it was not particularly serious, it reminded him once again that when facing Spirit Beasts thousands of years old, he had to be careful, careful, and more careful still.
Lu Chen took a deep breath and charged forward again, gripping the Black Iron Sickle. As he dodged the Iron Armored Crocodile's bites and lunges, he swung the Black Iron Sickle, hacking at every part of its body.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Iron Armored Crocodile's scales were absurdly hard. When Lu Chen's Black Iron Sickle struck them, it did nothing but send sparks flying, completely unable to break through its defenses.
Ultimately, this was because Lu Chen's Black Iron Sickle had no Spirit Rings attached. As an ordinary Martial Soul, it lacked attack power.
In the forest, the man and crocodile fought fiercely, neither able to break away. In the end, Lu Chen seized an opening and used the Black Iron Sickle to stab out the Iron Armored Crocodile's other eye.
With both eyes blinded, the Iron Armored Crocodile finally grew afraid. It roared in a show of bravado, then fled in a blind panic.
Having finally driven off the Iron Armored Crocodile, Lu Chen breathed a sigh of relief. He withdrew his Second Martial Soul, the Black Iron Sickle, and summoned his First Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass.
As a blue halo gradually shone, a blade of Blue Silver Grass with blood-colored markings grew out of thin air in his palm.
Faint fluctuations of Soul Power spread out, and a magnificent purple Spirit Ring slowly rose beneath his feet.
"First Spirit Skill, Blue Silver Revival!"
Lu Chen activated his First Spirit Skill. His Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul swayed gently, releasing streams of blue misty light. Bathed in that light, his injuries rapidly healed.
A short while later, Lu Chen's minor injuries had healed completely.
With his injuries healed and the Iron Armored Crocodile driven away, it was finally time for Lu Chen to reap his harvest.
He walked to the lakeside, entered the water, and swam to Lakeheart Island. Eagerly approaching the Cloud Mist Tea Tree, he summoned his Second Martial Soul, the Black Iron Sickle, once more and chopped down the tree, which had no power to resist.
With a boom, the Cloud Mist Tea Tree fell. Its life reached its end, and streams of rich purple light emerged from its trunk. After several transformations, they finally condensed into a purple Spirit Ring.
Lu Chen's spirits lifted at the sight, but he did not absorb the Spirit Ring immediately. Instead, he took a packet of powder from inside his clothes. It was a powder that could repel snakes, insects, rats, and ants.
Although the Iron Armored Crocodile was not dead, he had already stabbed out both its eyes.
Lu Chen sprinkled the powder in a circle around him. This would interfere with the Iron Armored Crocodile's sense of smell, leaving it unable to find its way back here.
Only after finishing these preparations did Lu Chen sit cross-legged on the ground, practice his Meditation Method, connect with his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, and begin absorbing the Cloud Mist Tea Tree's four-thousand-year Spirit Ring.
The magnificent deep-purple Spirit Ring floated over, encircled the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, and rapidly contracted, merging into it.
Soul Power brimming with vitality spread out, making the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul tremble violently. It began growing at a rate visible to the naked eye, undergoing another evolution.
At the same time, immense Soul Power flowed back into Lu Chen's body, traveled along his meridians, and finally gathered in his dantian.
Under the suppression of his own Soul Power, however, it caused no trouble. Once refined and absorbed, it merged completely with his own Soul Power.
After roughly forty to fifty minutes, Lu Chen finished absorbing his second Spirit Ring.
He opened his eyes and first checked his own Soul Power. Sure enough, it had surged to rank thirty, and he could absorb a third Spirit Ring immediately.
Then he summoned his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, and two magnificent purple Spirit Rings slowly rose beneath his feet.
His first and second Spirit Rings were both purple. If he told anyone about a Soul Ring Configuration like this, probably no one would believe him.
As for his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, after its second evolution, its roots and stems had grown thicker, and its leaves broader. Besides its blood-colored markings, it also gave off a faint, unusual fragrance and brimmed with a rich aura of life.
Lu Chen nodded in satisfaction:
"It's changed a lot. My Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul used to be just a low-level Martial Soul. Now it's at least a mid-level Martial Soul. Two millennium plant Spirit Rings have been an enormous help in its evolution."
"And my Second Spirit Skill, Blue Silver Grace, can eliminate fatigue and restore energy, including stamina, Soul Power... it can restore all of those."
"My First Spirit Skill provides health recovery, and my Second Spirit Skill provides mana recovery. For my next one, the Third Spirit Skill, I should add a buff ability."