Martial Soul Evolution, Void Quake-Mountain Tapir

Over the past year, the two of them continued to consume whale glue, though the improvements were negligible due to the low age of the specimens.

Han Yu worked without rest for three hundred and sixty days, his routine starting the moment he opened his eyes: cultivation, sword practice, and study, spinning like a tireless machine.

At the same time, he used the Evil-Warding Divine Thunder to raise the age of his Thunder Tiger skull bone to five thousand years.

His soul power rose smoothly from level fourteen to level twenty, and he was about to gain two more thousand-year soul rings to advance to the Great Soul Master realm.

A seven-year-old Great Soul Master was an unprecedented existence in the history of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect; even the two who achieved godhood ten thousand years ago likely didn't surpass Han Yu at this age.

Ning Fengzhi even went so far as to specifically designate a position for a "Holy Son," intending to formalize it once Han Yu's strength grew further. The Holy Son's authority and treatment would be below the Sect Master but above the Elders and the Young Sect Master; in layman's terms, it meant that apart from Ning Fengzhi himself, everyone in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would have to follow Han Yu's wishes.

Ning Rongrong was envious of Han Yu's terrifying cultivation speed. Aside from sleeping, she had spent almost every day of the past year by his side, studying and cultivating together, yet the gap between them only grew wider, leaving her four levels of soul power behind him.

This was not for lack of effort on her part; it was simply that Han Yu was incredibly diligent while also possessing superior talent, whereas her innate soul power was only at level nine.

As for Han Yu, his innate soul power was only considered "full" because the limit for non-god-tier martial spirits was level ten; it did not necessarily mean his cultivation talent was limited to the standard of innate full soul power.

Another reason was that Han Yu's martial spirit grade had improved. Under the nourishment of his second martial spirit, the Mystic Array Disk, his Green Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword could now manifest two sword shadows, each carrying thirty percent of the original's strength.

Both his soul skills and his cultivation speed had seen a slight increase.

Consequently, feeling a sense of crisis, Ning Rongrong didn't even follow Han Yu on this soul ring hunt. She stayed behind, bottling up her determination to cultivate and even pestering Ning Fengzhi to teach her the secret technique of multitasking.

The next day, at the edge of the Star Dou Forest core.

Accompanied by Chen Xin and Gu Rong, Han Yu set out to hunt for his second soul rings for both martial spirits.

The two Title Douluo walked slowly, one in front and one behind.

Based on their previous experience, Gu Rong had specifically sought out and reviewed ancient texts on the Array Canon, listing several soul beasts as the primary targets for this hunt.

Before long, the trio arrived at a loess slope.

A soul beast covered in blue-gray scales, with thick limbs, tiny slit-like eyes, and a sharp, spiral-shaped horn on its head, was digging a hole in front of a dirt mound. Every so often, it would extend a long, slender tongue to sweep across its claws, reeling in several Thousand-Jun Ant soul beasts to consume.

"A Void Quake-Mountain Tapir. Its eyesight is extremely poor; it relies on sensing spatial vibrations to capture prey," Gu Rong said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Its method of attack is to release shockwaves from its horn. When it curls up, its body becomes a massive source of vibration, crushing enemies into pulp."

Gu Rong's gaze fell upon that single horn, and he nodded.

"This soul beast is around eighteen hundred years old, not exceeding two thousand. That is the age most soul masters choose for their third soul ring. How is Han Yu's physical constitution currently?" Gu Rong asked, looking back at Chen Xin with curiosity.

He had spent the year teaching Han Yu spatial techniques but knew nothing of his physical strength, only guessing it was significantly higher than that of an ordinary soul master.

"Teacher, I can handle it," Han Yu said, clenching his fists with full confidence.

He didn't remember the exact limits for soul rings, but he already possessed one hundred-year ring and one thousand-year ring; even by simple addition, he could absorb it.

Whale glue, divine thunder to protect his meridians, the Spirit Gathering Array—which of these was not something other soul masters dreamed of when absorbing soul rings?

If not for the cautious nature instilled in him by Chen Xin, he would have even wanted to risk attempting a three-thousand-year ring.

Chen Xin did not answer; he simply beckoned gently toward the Void Quake-Mountain Tapir in the distance.

The bloated tapir struggled as it flew toward the three of them, four small golden swords piercing its limbs and pinning it to the ground.

The extreme pressure made the soul beast tremble. Its horn emitted shockwaves to probe its surroundings, and its mouth opened and closed incessantly, emitting miserable whimpers.

Chen Xin's expression remained calm as he signaled for Han Yu to proceed.

Han Yu nodded, summoned his Green Bamboo Bee Cloud Sword, and decapitated it with a single strike.

The Void Quake-Mountain Tapir's head rolled to the side, its body went limp, and blood flowed from its neck.

Han Yu did not retract his martial spirit. Instead, he swung his sword several more times, severing the soul beast's limbs and channeling a large amount of Evil-Warding Divine Thunder into them.

Bang!

Gu Rong reached out, releasing a wave of soul power to block the splashing blood, a look of realization dawning on him as he nodded repeatedly.

Once bitten, twice shy.

After the incident with the Thunder Tiger, Han Yu was no longer in such a rush to absorb soul rings, terrified of another similar accident. He didn't think his luck would be good enough to obtain another soul bone capable of increasing his age.

If he were to accidentally absorb a soul bone over a thousand years old, he would truly regret it for the rest of his life.

A moment later, a pale purple soul ring rose slowly from the corpse of the Void Quake-Mountain Tapir.

Han Yu sat cross-legged, switched to his second martial spirit, and guided the soul ring toward himself.

A massive surge of soul power poured into his body. Faced with the fierce and menacing divine thunder, the energy obediently threaded through his meridians and was distributed throughout his entire body.

It was surprisingly easy.

When he finished, Han Yu stretched his body vigorously, looking as refreshed as if he had just woken from a nap, a look of contentment on his face.

Chen Xin and Gu Rong's mouths twitched slightly at the sight.

It was as if he had come here for a vacation.

"Teacher, I succeeded," Han Yu said, brushing off the dust and bowing to his two teachers.

"My soul skill is quite interesting; its effect is..."

"Croak."

A toad's croak cut Han Yu off. The center of the loess slope caved in as a massive black figure turned its back on the group and began to flee, lashing out with a slime-covered tongue several meters long, aimed directly at Han Yu's back.

"Hmph, courting death." Gu Rong's eyes narrowed. He waved his hand, summoning a massive wall of white bone that shielded Han Yu, layering it three times over.

The space beside them began to tremble, black voids appearing and gradually expanding.

Han Yu's eyebrows twitched. Watching Gu Rong's movements, his eyes lit up. His brand-new second soul ring flared, and he gave the Mystic Array Disk in his hand a light flick.

The black hole seemed to have been hit with a fast-forward button; it completed its preset state at a speed visible to the naked eye, reaching stability in an instant.

Gu Rong whipped his head around to look at the purple soul ring glowing beneath Han Yu's feet, his face filled with disbelief. He had been using the technique of manipulating spatial power to travel for decades, reaching a level of pure mastery.

Even for him, it took over ten seconds for the space to stabilize, yet this boy with only twenty levels of soul power had caused the black hole to form instantly. What kind of miraculous soul skill was this?

Gu Rong gazed at Han Yu with complex eyes, exhaled a puff of air, and stepped into the black hole.

The next instant, a few booms and a hair-raising, shrill scream echoed from the distance, followed by silence.

Han Yu swallowed hard; it was the first time he had ever seen Gu Rong angry.