Ring Fusion

Yue Guan and Gui Mei were just about to leave when they noticed Lin Ze'an standing motionless, staring absently at the Soul Ring that was about to fade away.

"Hmm? What's wrong, my apprentice?" Yue Guan stopped and asked in confusion. "Do you feel it's a shame to waste it? There's nothing we can do. Your level isn't high enough, so we..."

Before he could finish, Lin Ze'an lifted his head. A trace of uncertainty showed in his eyes as he said, "Master, I think... I'm feeling something strange."

Under the increasingly puzzled gazes of Yue Guan and Gui Mei, Lin Ze'an focused his thoughts and summoned his Martial Soul. A faint green glow quietly appeared.

What happened next made both Chrysanthemum and Ghost Douluo's pupils contract. They could hardly believe their eyes!

Lin Ze'an slowly reached out his tender little hand and pinched the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear's Soul Ring.

That was right—he pinched it. His seemingly fragile fingers touched and grasped the Soul Ring, which should have been an ethereal, intangible mass of energy!

"Bzzz—!"

The instant Lin Ze'an's fingers touched the Soul Ring, the energy that had been violent and restless, brimming with a savage aura, suddenly became docile.

Behind him, the green glow flowing around Mo Ruier brightened slightly, and an all-encompassing aura of life quietly spread through the air.

Yue Guan's eyes flew wide open, and his mouth fell slightly agape. "Th-this... how is this possible?! My apprentice, you...?!"

Even Gui Mei, who usually showed little emotion, was stunned. "You touched a Soul Ring with your bare hands?"

As far as they knew, Soul Rings were pure energy. They could only be drawn in with Soul Power and absorbed with spiritual power. This was the first time they had ever seen someone pinch a Soul Ring in their hand.

Lin Ze'an himself stared at the Soul Ring in his hand, somewhat dazed.

Yue Guan came over too and reached out to touch the Soul Ring Lin Ze'an was holding.

Yet his fingers passed through the seemingly solid ring without obstruction. It was no different from every Soul Ring he had known for the past century.

"This...?" Yue Guan withdrew his hand and looked from his empty palm to his apprentice's little hand, which was indeed holding the Soul Ring. His face was filled with confusion.

Lin Ze'an was even more confused by his master's reaction.

Was this... because of Mo Ruier's power?

He moved his fingers without thinking and lifted the Soul Ring, even swinging it casually through the air.

The energy in his hand remained stable, showing no sign of dissipating.

Yue Guan stared fixedly at Lin Ze'an's hand, then looked at Mo Ruier behind him, who was radiating an aura of life.

After thinking for a moment, inspiration suddenly struck him. He drew in a sharp breath. "I understand! It's life!"

He looked at Mo Ruier and said excitedly, "My apprentice, your Martial Soul is of far too high a quality.

"Although a Soul Ring is a mass of energy, at its core, it is a condensation of a Soul Beast's life energy."

"If my guess is right, your Martial Soul has an incredibly powerful control over life."

"That's why, before you, it's like a subject before its king. You can touch it and even control it directly."

Yue Guan hurriedly turned to Gui Mei. "Old Ghost! Did you see that?! This is my apprentice!"

At his words, Gui Mei fell silent for a moment before rasping out a few words. "Unheard of."

Listening to his master's guess and looking at the docile Soul Ring in his hand, Lin Ze'an's heart surged like a storm-tossed sea.

Seriously? Who said his master was an idiot? He was way too clever.

He'd guessed the power of Mo Ruier, the Otherworld Elf King, so easily... 666. He wasn't even trying to hide it.

Lin Ze'an looked up at his excited master, and a bold idea suddenly flashed through his mind.

He said, "Master, could you summon your Martial Soul?"

Hearing his apprentice's voice, Yue Guan's excitement subsided a little. Though he didn't understand why, he still nodded. "All right."

He focused his thoughts. Golden light flashed, and the gorgeous, sharp Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum appeared in his hand.

At the same time, nine Soul Rings appeared beneath his feet and slowly revolved: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black, black.

"My apprentice, what are you trying to do?" Yue Guan asked curiously. Gui Mei, standing nearby, also watched him with an inquisitive gaze.

"Master, I was wondering..." he said softly, his eyes fixed on the Soul Ring. "Whether my theory will work..."

As he finished speaking, he gently pinched the Soul Ring between his fingers.

A miraculous sight unfolded!

The solid, complete black Soul Ring burst apart, then turned into a stream of pure energy that slowly flowed toward Yue Guan's Soul Rings.

The four Soul Rings below ten thousand years seemed to sense the nourishment. Their light brightened slightly as they accepted the pure energy of their own accord.

Watching this unfold, Yue Guan was stunned. Then he stared wide-eyed at his apprentice.

"This... what is this...?!" He could clearly feel the age of his Soul Rings increasing, and they showed no sign of rejecting the energy.

The increase wasn't much compared to the massive foundation of a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, but it was a genuine improvement.

"My apprentice! You... you can directly convert a Soul Ring's energy into energy..."

This power could no longer be described as heaven-defying. It was a miracle.

It was a power that would drive the entire Soul Master World mad!

A moment later, Yue Guan's two original Yellow Soul Rings had evolved into thousand-year Purple Soul Rings.

His two original Purple Soul Rings had even crossed the boundary and become black Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings!

Though the newly advanced Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings were somewhat pale in color and low in age, there was no doubt that they were Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings.

Seeing that his bold theory had actually worked, Lin Ze'an broke into a delighted smile.

He looked up at Yue Guan, expecting his master to be just as excited.

Instead, he saw Yue Guan and Gui Mei wearing grim expressions—so grave they were practically solemn.

The smile froze on Lin Ze'an's face. Confused, he asked, "Master? What's wrong?"

Yue Guan snapped back to his senses. He drew a deep breath and instantly withdrew his Soul Rings.

He gripped Lin Ze'an's shoulders and warily scanned their surroundings. Only after making sure no one was watching did he speak. "My apprentice! Listen carefully! You must never use this power again!

"Not even for me, and not even for His Holiness the Pope. Don't reveal it to anyone! Do you understand?!"

His master's sternness startled Lin Ze'an. He nodded instinctively, but couldn't help asking, "Why? Didn't you get stronger, Master?"

"Stronger?" Yue Guan gave a bitter laugh, his eyes filled with conflicting emotions. "My apprentice, do you know what this power of yours means?"

"It means you can create powerful people out of thin air! You can shatter the ironclad law that has ruled the Soul Master World for tens of millions of years!"

"If this gets out, every faction on the continent, every Soul Master, will go mad over you!"

"They'll stop at nothing to capture you. They'll either lock you away and force you to work for them, or destroy you completely before you have the chance to grow stronger!"

Even though he was on the Pope's side, he knew far too well what kind of person the Pope was.

His apprentice had power, but no fighting strength yet. He couldn't protect himself.

If she found out that Lin Ze'an had this kind of power...