Helping Ma Hongjun Solve the Root of His Troubles! Tang Shan's First Spirit Ring!

"Hiss—my teeth!" Ma Hongjun crashed to the ground, blood and saliva leaking through his fingers.

His eyes filled with venom as he glared at Lan Yu, his words slurred: "You dare hit me? You're finished!"

After the outburst, he turned his head and wailed toward Zhao Wuji: "Master-in-law! He hit me, wuwuwu~"

Zhao Wuji, who had been pushed around all the way here, was initially feeling a secret sense of satisfaction, but upon hearing the words "Master-in-law," he felt as if he had been electrocuted and his entire body jolted.

In the blink of an eye, he rushed to Ma Hongjun's side and hurriedly helped him up.

"To be so young and yet so vicious with your hands, I shall teach you a proper lesson today!"

Zhao Wuji let out a low shout and struck a palm toward Lan Yu.

Lan Yu utilized the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track beneath his feet, shielding Tang Shan as he sidestepped the blow, then let out a cold snort, full of disdain: "If you want to bully the weak with your strength, just say so. Why hide behind high-sounding words to mask your own incompetence!"

"Master-in-law, kill him! Leave that little girl for me; once I go back, I'll put in a good word for you with my master!" Ma Hongjun lay sprawled on the ground, still grinning hideously.

"You're courting death!"

Lan Yu's eyes turned abruptly cold, and in an instant, the Zhuge Divine Crossbow appeared in his palm. He raised his hand and pulled the trigger; the crossbow bolt tore through the air, aiming straight for Ma Hongjun's crotch.

Clang—!

Zhao Wuji didn't have time to think; he activated his martial soul and raised his hand to block it, but the power of the bolt made him gasp in cold air.

"So what if I bully the weak? If the weak dare to resist, they must pay the corresponding price!"

"Noisy!"

A cold, crisp female voice suddenly descended, and a slender shadow dropped from the sky, shrouding Zhao Wuji completely.

He looked up in astonishment, only to see a figure in dark robes standing in mid-air, blocking out most of the light in the room.

"You say, bullying the weak?!" The moment the words fell, nine spirit rings emerged from beneath her feet.

Yellow, Yellow, Purple, Purple, Black, Black, Black, Black, Red!

A Titled Douluo!

A hundred-thousand-year spirit ring!

Ah Yin hovered silently in mid-air, the pressure so great that the spirit masters in the inn couldn't catch their breath; everyone feared that in her desire to protect her own, she would start a massacre right then and there.

"Your Excellency!" Several spirit masters with sharp eyes hurriedly bowed in salute.

Ah Yin ignored them, simply floating there in silence.

The longer she remained silent, the more terrified the crowd became.

Zhao Wuji, meanwhile, knelt on the ground, trembling violently, his lips quivering for a long time without being able to utter a single word.

"Little Yu, how do you want to deal with them?" Ah Yin's tone was calm and rippleless.

"You, cut off one of your own arms!" Lan Yu pointed at Zhao Wuji, his tone icy.

Zhao Wuji, kneeling on the ground and expecting certain death, was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. He was immediately overcome with wild joy and kowtowed repeatedly: "Thank you, Your Excellency! Thank you, Young Master!"

After speaking, he stood up, condensed his spirit power into a hand-blade in his right palm, gritted his teeth, and hacked fiercely at his left arm.

With a dull thud, the severed arm fell to the ground, and blood sprayed out. Zhao Wuji immediately channeled his spirit power to stop the bleeding, gasping for air.

"Your Excellency... Young Master, may we leave now?" he asked cautiously, his face deathly pale.

"That brat spoke disrespectfully to my sister; you handle it," Lan Yu said with his hands behind his back, his tone indifferent.

"This..." Zhao Wuji looked at Ma Hongjun, who was sprawled on the ground, gritted his teeth, and said in a deep voice, "Hongjun, don't blame me for being heartless!"

"Master-in-law, Master-in-law! I was wrong, I'll never dare do it again!" Ma Hongjun was scared out of his wits and begged for mercy repeatedly.

"A long pain is worse than a short one; keeping you around is just asking for trouble!" Zhao Wuji roared, and his right fist came crashing down.

"Ah—!"

A shrill, miserable scream echoed throughout the room.

Ma Hongjun's eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.

The area beneath him was a mess, too gruesome to look at.

Every man present felt a tightening in their own crotch and collectively gasped in cold air.

"Young Master, are you satisfied?" Zhao Wuji asked, panting heavily.

Lan Yu didn't speak, merely waving his hand.

As if granted an amnesty, Zhao Wuji grabbed the unconscious Ma Hongjun with one hand and tucked the long-since-fainted Oscar under his arm, fleeing quickly without looking back.

The moment his figure vanished, the several strange spirit masters in the inn also disappeared.

Lan Yu's eyes were dark and heavy; he didn't say a word.

If Ah Yin weren't a Support-type Douluo, even if she were the weakest Agility-type Douluo of the same rank, he, Lan Yu, would dare to say he wouldn't fear a thing!

It was a pity that Ah Yin was a Support-type Douluo. If he provoked Zhao Wuji, although they would eventually win, having a Titled Douluo and a Spirit Saint fighting back and forth in this wilderness would be even more dangerous.

"Young Master, the inn will have your food sent up in a moment," the innkeeper said, bowing his waist with a fawning tone.

Lan Yu nodded and reached out to ruffle Tang Shan's little head.

Under the awestruck gazes of the soul masters, the two walked hand in hand back to their room on the second floor.

Late at night.

Tang Shan's fingertips brushed lightly over Lan Yu's cheek. Listening to his steady breathing, a glimmer flickered in her eyes, and her pretty face flushed hot.

She leaned toward Lan Yu's ear and whispered, "Brother... no one can hurt you. I will protect you."

"Mm~"

Hearing Lan Yu's unconscious murmur, Tang Shan smiled sweetly, snuggled deeper into his embrace, and closed her eyes to drift into a deep sleep.

The next day.

At the first light of dawn, the four of them set off into the Star Dou Great Forest, reaching the depths of the outer perimeter before noon.

Ah Yin leaped down from a tree, landed in front of Lan Yu, and asked with a smile, "Xiao Yu, what kind of soul beast do you think we should choose for Xiao Shan's first soul ring?"

"A seven-hundred-year Earth Vein Dragon Lizard."

Tang Hao was a hundred-thousand-year Clear Sky Divine Dragon, and as the superior to Tang Shan's martial soul, he served as an excellent point of reference.

"This soul beast has a high probability of granting Xiao Shan a gravity-control type soul skill."

"Seven hundred years?!" Ah Yin's expression shifted slightly.

"That's right, seven hundred years! For soul rings under a thousand years, I believe one only needs to consider the compatibility with the martial soul and the physical constitution."

Lan Yu reached out and pinched Tang Shan's soft, doughy cheek. "After all, Xiao Shan has consumed Whale Glue, so her physical constitution is fine. Plus, the bloodline suppression the Haotian Flood Dragon exerts over the Earth Vein Dragon Lizard ensures there won't be any problems!"

"Xiao Shan, you..." Xiao Wu looked at Tang Shan with concern.

"I trust Brother!" Tang Shan nodded solemnly, her gaze firm.

It was high noon, and the cicadas in the forest were chirping noisily.

The group walked for another hour before finally reaching their destination.

What came into view first was a wide, rocky canyon beach, connecting in the distance to a ridge of undulating, exposed rock veins.

Lan Yu activated his Purple Demon Eye, and under careful observation, he could see the tracks of dozens of Earth Vein Dragon Lizards.

"You all wait here; I'll go catch one!" With those words, Ah Yin's figure vanished from where she stood.

A moment later, an Earth Vein Dragon Lizard nearly four meters long, its body covered in earthy-yellow, sandstone-textured scales, was bound tightly by Blue Silver Grass and slammed onto the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.

Ah Yin's figure landed right behind it.

"Come on, Xiao Shan, finish it off." Lan Yu handed over the Zhuge Divine Crossbow, fearing that a sleeve arrow wouldn't have enough power.

Tang Shan nodded, took the crossbow, aimed at the center of the lizard's brow, and fired a bolt.

Orange-red blood splattered out.

The next second, a deep yellow soul ring slowly rose from the corpse.

Tang Shan immediately stepped forward, sat cross-legged, and began to absorb the soul ring.

"Xiao Wu, you should take this time to condense your first soul ring as well," Lan Yu said, turning his head toward Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu took a deep breath, nodded, and sat down cross-legged, a faint, soft light radiating from her body.

Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye, and Tang Shan slowly opened her eyes.

Lan Yu and Ah Yin hurried over to meet her.

"Brother!" Tang Shan threw herself into Lan Yu's arms, her eyes curving into crescents. Under Ah Yin's slightly jealous gaze, Lan Yu patted her head and asked with a smile, "How is the soul skill effect?"

At these words, Tang Shan pulled back from his embrace, stood straight, and the yellow soul ring beneath her feet lit up.

"First soul skill, Gravity Dragon Might!"