Plunder Claw Dragon

Lin Yao carried the young girl as he flew, dodging the frantic claw strikes of the giant dragon behind them, while explaining, "I am Lin Yao, son of Official Lin Xueli of the Douling Empire. I am neither from the Heaven Dragon Sect nor the Earth Dragon Sect."

The girl's beautiful eyes flickered, and she immediately looked back at the giant sub-dragon pursuing them.

This triangular-headed sky sub-dragon seemed determined to snuff them out right here.

Even though Lin Yao was significantly faster, the dragon relied on the reach of its claws, repeatedly attempting to hunt down Lin Yao and the girl.

"This dragon is the guardian of the Dragon Scale Fruit you wanted to take earlier. It's called an Annihilation Horned Dragon. These creatures are quite simple-minded; I'm afraid it won't back down easily."

Lin Yao flew rapidly, guided by his instincts, and said to the girl, "Keep talking, just tell me the important parts."

The girl steadied her nerves and said to Lin Yao, "Neither of us can beat it in a one-on-one fight. Find a way to get me onto its back, and I'll deliver a fatal blow. The dragon is yours, and the Dragon Scale Fruit is yours. How about that?"

Lin Yao glanced back, nodded, and then suddenly banked, flying toward a dense forest on the other side.

The girl watched Lin Yao nervously and shrieked in disbelief, "What are you doing? Those are trees! Trees!"

Lin Yao didn't answer, just plunged forward. As they were about to hit the trees, he pulled up sharply, his flight path forming an almost perfect right angle, which sent the girl into a series of terrified screams.

The Annihilation Horned Dragon lacked such quick reflexes and crashed straight into the trees. Its sharp claws pierced the trunk, but it failed to snap the tree entirely.

"Alright, go!" Lin Yao shouted, then threw the girl toward the relatively flat ridge of the Annihilation Horned Dragon's back.

The girl clearly hadn't expected Lin Yao to be so decisive in tossing her, and her face paled, but she managed to control her body and maintain her balance.

After landing on the Annihilation Horned Dragon's back, the girl didn't dare hesitate; she whipped out a dagger and stabbed it into the dragon's neck.

Lin Yao couldn't be bothered to check on the girl's situation. Instead, he turned back to the tree, plucked the Dragon Scale Fruit, and placed it into his personal storage soul tool.

Lin Xueli had given him this tool on the way here—not specifically for this mission, but rather like a parent gifting a phone to a child after a major exam.

After securing the uniquely shaped Dragon Scale Fruit, Lin Yao finally looked back at the girl.

By now, the girl clearly hadn't anticipated the Annihilation Horned Dragon's terrifying combat power; she was currently being pinned against the tree trunk by the dragon, which was about to bite off her head.

Seeing this, Lin Yao flew toward her and quickly arrived behind the Annihilation Horned Dragon, plunging his blade into the dragon's head.

Dragon blood sprayed out. The Annihilation Horned Dragon roared in pain and thrashed wildly, shaking Lin Yao off its back.

During this chaos, the girl seized the gap in the dragon's movement and escaped from beneath its claws.

However, the giant tree couldn't withstand the dragon's movements and was ultimately shattered in the middle.

The Annihilation Horned Dragon turned to glare at Lin Yao, the murderous intent in its eyes impossible to hide.

Just then, Lin Xueli made his move.

For this elderly Spirit Douluo, dealing with a soul beast that hadn't even reached a thousand years of cultivation was an instant kill. He simply appeared above the Annihilation Horned Dragon and tapped his finger lightly on its spine.

The Annihilation Horned Dragon's massive body collapsed instantly, its dragon eyes staring at Lin Xueli and the three of them with lingering resentment.

Lin Xueli turned to the girl. "The agreement between my son and you is now fulfilled. You may go ahead and finish off this soul beast."

The girl nodded. Lin Yao asked, "I've told you my name. Could you tell me yours?"

The girl hesitated for a moment, then slit the Annihilation Horned Dragon's throat with a single stroke of her blade and spoke three words to Lin Yao in a flat tone: "Nan Qiuqiu."

Lin Yao nodded, then followed Lin Xueli deeper into the Heaven and Earth Dragon Valley.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

They hadn't gone far when a dull, heavy sound echoed through the valley.

Lin Xueli looked up toward the distance, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "The soul beast with the strengthening effect you need is likely coming. This should be a big one. I've seen your combat performance; it's acceptable, and your reaction speed is quite fast, so leave the rest to your father."

As an official of the Douling Empire, Lin Xueli was not a rigid man regarding his students' practical combat; he didn't demand that Lin Yao engage in a bloody, head-on clash to call it "real combat."

The evasion skills and timing Lin Yao had displayed were enough to satisfy him.

After all, from his perspective, Lin Yao was only a six-year-old child.

The sound grew closer. Although Lin Yao didn't need to fight, he kept his eyes fixed on the source of the noise.

It was a giant, bipedal sub-dragon, resembling a variant of a Tyrannosaurus Rex. It had four eyes and a pair of human-like ears on the sides of its head, its ferocious face radiating raw power.

As the giant bipedal sub-dragon opened its massive maw, jagged, saw-like fangs were revealed.

"ROAR!!!"

The sub-dragon's roar shook the heavens, but Lin Xueli couldn't be bothered. He simply raised a hand, and several light arrows embedded themselves around the dragon.

Following a snap of Lin Xueli's fingers, the light arrows converged, pinning the sub-dragon firmly to the ground.

"You two are quite lucky. This is a Plunder Claw Dragon. Although it's not a flying sub-dragon, it is a beneficial mutation of the Tyrannosaurus Rex and ranks among the top three elite soul beasts in the Heaven and Earth Dragon Valley."

Nan Qiuqiu had caught up at some point. Seeing the giant dragon restrained by Lin Xueli, she spoke to the two of them.

Lin Yao nodded upon hearing this, then drew the blade Lin Xueli had gifted him and swiftly ended the Plunder Claw Dragon's life.

The Plunder Claw Dragon collapsed in resentment, and a deep yellow soul ring floated out. Lin Yao sat down and guided the ring toward himself.

His Ender Dragon Martial Soul floated behind him in a phantom form. As Lin Yao guided the soul ring to merge with the Ender Dragon, the creature flapped its wings, appearing to perch atop Lin Yao's head.

The soul ring gradually shrank, merging into Lin Yao's body.

At the same time, Lin Yao felt a certain shackle within his body shatter under the impact of the soul power brought by the ring. By the time the absorption was complete, his soul power had reached a new height.