Fule Beats the Iron-Spine Shark, Luo Chen Fails to Capture?

Yet, within a few breaths, the Golden Starfish that had intended to flee surfaced, and a bright yellow spirit ring emerged from its corpse.

It was dead!

Luo Chen understood. At that moment, the Golden Starfish had been in a state of paralysis from the Evil Eye Gaze and had suffered a mental attack. Because the capture failed, its remaining health had been directly depleted!

"Damn it!"

Su Heng cursed. Wasn't that ball of Luo Chen's meant for capturing spirit beasts? How did he manage to smash it to death?

In the distance, Fule was locked in a fierce battle with a thousand-year Iron-Spine Shark.

The Iron-Spine Shark was massive with astonishing strength; every lash of its tail stirred up giant waves. Although Fule had a higher spirit power level, he was no match for the Iron-Spine Shark in the water and could only barely hold it back, preventing it from approaching the pier.

"This won't do." Luo Chen frowned.

If the Iron-Spine Shark wasn't eliminated, other spirit beasts would continue to swarm in endlessly. Fule couldn't handle it alone; he needed help.

"Su Heng!" Luo Chen shouted.

Su Heng dove down from the air and landed beside Luo Chen. "What is it, Brother Chen?"

"Help Uncle Fule fight the Iron-Spine Shark. I'll draw its attention from the front, and you attack its gills from the side."

"Its gills?"

"Yes. That's its weak point."

Su Heng didn't ask further and nodded.

Su Heng transformed into a streak of lightning and circled to the side of the Iron-Spine Shark.

Luo Chen jumped off the Blazing Wolf and directed the Plate Armor Turtle to swim forward. He took the opportunity to leap onto the turtle's shell and summoned the Evil Eye to his side.

With purple light flickering in his eyes, he said to Fule, "Uncle Fule, we will pin it down; you take the chance to attack it."

"Good!" Fule shouted.

Su Heng had already circled to the side of the Iron-Spine Shark and spotted its soft, pink gills.

"First Spirit Skill! Wind-Thunder Wing!"

Su Heng's entire body erupted with electric light as he dove from the side, his wings slamming fiercely into the Iron-Spine Shark's gills. Arcs of electricity spread across the gills, and the Iron-Spine Shark let out a roar.

Su Heng retreated immediately after the strike; it had to be said, the speed of the Thunder Roc spirit was truly exceptional.

Luo Chen seized the opportunity, and his Evil Eye Gaze struck true!

The Iron-Spine Shark was caught off guard, and since its own mental strength wasn't particularly high, it fell directly into a state of paralysis.

Seeing this, Fule immediately exerted his power.

"Second Spirit Skill, Power King Collision!" A massive phantom of a water buffalo appeared, and with a "moo," it charged toward the Iron-Spine Shark.

Just then, Luo Chen asked, "Uncle Fule, is this Iron-Spine Shark's spirit ring suitable for you?"

Fule pondered for a moment. "It is quite suitable for me, though the age is a bit low."

"However, it is a rare find, so I shall give it a try!"

Luo Chen nodded upon hearing this. He had originally wanted to capture it, but since Fule had spoken, he would just look for other spirit beasts.

This Iron-Spine Shark was decent, though he didn't know if a regular Gulu Ball could capture a thousand-year spirit beast.

Once the Iron-Spine Shark fell, all the other spirit beasts lost their leader and scattered in all directions.

Finally, Hailun City was saved!

Fule took a deep breath and sat cross-legged beside the massive corpse of the Iron-Spine Shark. The purple thousand-year spirit ring descended slowly, hovering above his head for a moment before merging into his body.

The entire process was not easy. Veins bulged on Fule's forehead, and his body trembled slightly, clearly enduring the impact brought by the spirit ring. But as an experienced veteran spirit master, he quickly stabilized his breathing and completely refined this power.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Fule opened his eyes and let out a long, turbid breath.

"It is done." He stood up, stretched his limbs, and a faint blue luster shimmered on his body. "The spirit power of the Iron-Spine Shark is indeed profound. Although the age isn't very high, it excels in attribute compatibility, providing a significant boost to my current strength."

Luo Chen nodded, retrieved the Evil Eye and the Plate Armor Turtle into his spirit storage device, and asked, "Uncle Fule, what are your plans now?"

Fule glanced at the gradually calming sea and then at the guards cleaning up the battlefield on the pier. He said in a deep voice, "Although Hailun City has been defended this time, the spirit beast tide came suspiciously. I will stay behind to assist the city defense forces in strengthening the alert, and take the opportunity to familiarize myself with my new spirit ring."

Su Heng landed back on the ground, retracted his wind-thunder wings, and chimed in, "Brother Chen, what about us? Shall we continue hunting spirit beasts?"

Luo Chen did not answer immediately, instead gazing toward the distant horizon.

The sea was sparkling, as if nothing had happened. But he knew in his heart that the failure to capture the Golden Starfish actually represented a deeper understanding of his Gulu Ball spirit. As a spirit, it still had many differences from the Gulu Balls in the Kingdom of Locke.

"Let's return to the city to rest first." Luo Chen withdrew his gaze. "The spirit beasts in the sea were scared off by this battle and won't appear again for a short time."

Su Heng grinned. "Fine, I'll listen to you anyway."

The three walked back along the pier, with the dispersing crowd and the gradually calming Hailun City behind them.

At nightfall, Luo Chen lay on his bed, thinking about what to do next.

"Evil Emperor, how do you think I can rapidly increase my strength now?" Luo Chen asked.

"This Seat believes that if you just rely on that spirit of yours and capture more spirit beasts, you will become stronger!"

Luo Chen snorted coldly. "What? You want me to get stronger quickly so your spirit power can be unsealed sooner? I told you long ago, you can't escape; why don't you believe me?"

Luo Chen's voice had barely faded when the Evil Emperor fell silent for a moment, followed by a low, meaningful chuckle.

"Kid, you know as well as I do that while I want to break my seal, we are currently grasshoppers tied to the same rope. If you're weak, I won't fare any better." The Evil Emperor's voice resonated in his mind, carrying a rare note of sincerity. "I'm having you capture more soul beasts not just for my own sake—the potential of that martial soul of yours is far greater than you imagine."

Luo Chen rolled over and stared at the ceiling.

"Speak plainly."

"...What I mean is, that 'capture' ability of yours isn't as simple as just subduing soul beasts." The Evil Emperor's tone paused slightly. "Every time you successfully capture a soul beast, your soul power undergoes a minor tempering. While the boost each time isn't massive, it adds up over time, and it's much faster than your bitter cultivation."

Luo Chen narrowed his eyes. "I know that, of course, but..."

He had indeed felt that ever since capturing the Evil Eye and the Plate Armor Turtle, the circulation of his soul power had become smoother than before. He just hadn't thought too deeply about it.

"So your martial soul really does have a success rate for capturing soul beasts; I had assumed it was a one-hundred-percent guarantee."

"How could they possibly receive the same treatment as you, Lord Evil Emperor!"

"Still, your martial soul should have more potential than this. Since there are guaranteed captures and low-probability ones, there must certainly be some with moderate success rates."

Luo Chen knew this, of course, but he didn't speak again and closed his eyes.

The Evil Emperor also tactfully fell silent.

In the room, nothing remained but the sound of waves crashing against the shore in the distance outside the window, rhythmic and long-drawn-out.