Lu Chen waved his hand and withdrew his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul. At the same time, the five Spirit Rings beneath his feet-purple, purple, purple, black, black-vanished into the air.
Lu Chen did not leave. He turned to look at the remains of the Demon Spirit Tree. While absorbing its Spirit Ring earlier, he had already sensed it.
Something still lingered within the Demon Spirit Tree's remains, resonating with his Fifth Spirit Ring from afar.
Excitement showed on Lu Chen's face!
Something that resonated with a Spirit Ring was very likely a Spirit Bone.
Lu Chen strode over, raised his right hand, and grasped forward, summoning his Second Martial Soul, the Black Iron Sickle.
Standing before the Demon Spirit Tree's remains, Lu Chen poured Soul Power into the Black Iron Sickle, making it gleam with a chilling light.
Then he swung the Black Iron Sickle and hacked into the Demon Spirit Tree's remains.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The Demon Spirit Tree's remains were quite tough. Lu Chen swung the Black Iron Sickle several times before finally cutting a long, narrow gash in its hard body.
Blood-red light shone out through the gash.
At the sight, Lu Chen's breath caught.
It really was a Spirit Bone!
Lu Chen was extremely excited. This was his first time seeing a Spirit Bone.
He reached into the gash and took out the source of the bloody light.
It felt icy cold in his hand, and he could sense surging fluctuations of energy, though they carried traces of sinister, vicious energy.
Lu Chen opened his palm to look. It was a blood-red Right Leg Bone, not particularly complete, consisting only of the lower leg.
That was normal. After all, the Demon Spirit Tree had only twenty-five thousand years of cultivation. The fact that it had produced a Spirit Bone at all was already a delightful surprise.
There was essentially no point in hoping for anything more.
The most important thing now was to find out what ability this Right Leg Bone possessed.
After absorbing his Fifth Spirit Ring, Lu Chen's mental power had been tempered again. Now, he tried probing this Spirit Bone with his mental power to determine its ability.
The instant his mental power entered the Right Leg Bone, a frenzied will to slaughter erupted from it, seeking to corrode his mind and bring him under its control.
But Lu Chen's will was firm, and he successfully resisted it. As his mental power came into contact with that will to slaughter, the leg bone's ability appeared in his mind.
To avoid being corrupted by the will to slaughter, Lu Chen swiftly withdrew his mental power once he understood the leg bone's ability, not daring to remain in contact with that will for too long.
"Whew..."
Lu Chen let out a long breath and steadied himself before thinking with a frown:
This Right Leg Bone's skill is called Slaughter Absorption. It can devour bones and flesh to improve its host's physique and strengthen their cultivation.
It follows the same line as the Demon Spirit Tree's ability to devour Spirit Beasts' bones and flesh. It's an incredibly sinister ability, and its frenzied will to slaughter can also affect its host's will.
I have no use for a Spirit Bone like this. With my Become Stronger by Breathing Gold Finger, I have no need whatsoever to use Slaughter Absorption to devour the bones and flesh of humans or Spirit Beasts.
Although a Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone from the same Spirit Beast can display their greatest effect when possessed by the same person, I think I'll pass on absorbing this Slaughter Absorption Right Leg Bone.
It would do me harm rather than good, and it might even affect my will. Besides, its age is a little low-it's only a twenty-five-thousand-year Spirit Bone. I'll just keep it as part of my collection. Perhaps it'll be useful someday.
With that thought, Lu Chen put the Slaughter Absorption Right Leg Bone into his Silver White Bracelet.
Having absorbed the Spirit Ring and put away the Spirit Bone, Lu Chen took one last look at the Demon Spirit Tree's remains, then turned and left, fully satisfied.
Half a month later!
Somewhere in the Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Forest!
Lu Chen hid behind a tree, using the patches of Blue Silver Grass around him to conceal his aura with all his might, making himself seem like an ordinary blade of Blue Silver Grass growing by the roadside.
At that moment, he quietly watched a thirty-thousand-year Man Faced Demon Spider use its Spiderweb Bind skill to capture an eight-thousand-year Ice Glaze Deer.
Once trapped, the Ice Glaze Deer panicked and tried to struggle, but the web carried the Man Faced Demon Spider's potent venom.
As the venom ate away at it, the Ice Glaze Deer gradually lost its ability to resist and fell unconscious, barely breathing.
Only after the Ice Glaze Deer passed out did the Man Faced Demon Spider stroll over leisurely and feast on its body.
About half an hour later, the Man Faced Demon Spider had eaten the Ice Glaze Deer's entire body. Only a pool of blood remained on the ground-not even a fragment of bone was left.
Having finished its meal, the Man Faced Demon Spider headed deeper into the forest, fully satisfied.
Lu Chen communicated with the surrounding Blue Silver Grass. Only after confirming that the Man Faced Demon Spider had truly left did he slowly emerge from behind the large tree.
Lu Chen glanced at the bloodstains on the ground, inwardly lamented the cruelty of the Star Dou Forest, then continued searching for a suitable Sixth Spirit Ring.
Having spent so much time in the Star Dou Forest, he had already witnessed Spirit Beasts preying on one another many times.
Fortunately, the evolution of his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul had allowed him to communicate with the countless blades of Blue Silver Grass in the Star Dou Forest. Whether searching for a target Spirit Beast or concealing his tracks when danger arose, this had been an enormous help.
Otherwise, after finishing the Ice Glaze Deer earlier, that Man Faced Demon Spider would certainly have turned around and attacked him.
Spending so much time in the Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Forest, Lu Chen encountered quite a few Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Beasts every day. He had remained safe and sound thanks to the Blue Silver Grass acting as his eyes and ears.
After leaving, Lu Chen followed the Blue Silver Grass's guidance and climbed a majestic mountain.
Upon reaching the summit, he saw a massive pine tree growing there.
The pine towered majestically, thrusting straight into the clouds.
Its trunk twisted with rugged strength, and its branches and foliage grew thick and lush.
Vast Soul Power that set the heart trembling and an aura of life that brought peace to the mind emanated from the pine together.
Lu Chen looked the pine up and down, then said with delighted surprise all over his face:
"Everlasting Evergreen Pine! Haha, I've finally found my Sixth Spirit Ring."
"By my estimate, this Everlasting Evergreen Pine has over forty-eight thousand years of cultivation, very close to fifty thousand. It's just right for my Sixth Spirit Ring."
"The defining trait of the Everlasting Evergreen Pine is its incredibly tenacious vitality. For ten thousand years, it can remain ageless and undying, evergreen throughout."
"Every ten thousand years, it enters a period of decline. Its branches and leaves wither and yellow, and its trunk decays. But as long as it survives this period of decline, life can blossom within its body once more."
"Like rebirth through nirvana, an Everlasting Evergreen Pine that survives its period of decline can swiftly regain its vitality, and the life force within it undergoes a qualitative transformation compared to before."
"Isn't that exactly what I want-powerful vitality that can restore me from the brink of death?"
"A forty-eight-thousand-year Everlasting Evergreen Pine is simply the most suitable Sixth Spirit Ring for me!"