Long Xiaoyao VS the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff!

Facing the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's heavy blow, Long Xiaoyao did not even blink. He merely slowly raised his right hand, transforming it into a dragon claw covered in black dragon scales. Then, he unleashed his domain—the Dark Domain. At the same time, nine Spirit Rings appeared around him: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, red, red.

Bang!

The lion claw collided with the dragon claw, erupting with a heavy boom, as though two mountains had crashed together. A visible shockwave spread outward from the point where the two claws met.

"Seventh Soul Skill, Dark Holy Dragon True Body!"

With a low growl from Long Xiaoyao, his seventh Spirit Ring flashed brightly. His aura surged dramatically, and dense black dragon scales instantly covered his body. Sunlight filtered through gaps in the leaves and shone upon the scales, yet there was not the slightest reflection, as if the dragon scales had swallowed all the light.

The Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's unstoppable charge was abruptly halted. Its body jerked to a stop as though it had struck an invisible wall of sighs, before it was sent flying like a ragged sack, smashing through one towering ancient tree after another.

Meanwhile, Long Xiaoyao remained where he stood, as steady as Mount Tai.

"Your bearing is decent, but your strength is somewhat lacking."

A cold smile curled across Long Xiaoyao's lips. The sixth Spirit Ring around him immediately blossomed with black light, and abyss-like black soul power gathered at the tips of his dragon claws before shooting toward the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff, which had been preparing to pounce.

The Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's once-proud golden fur was instantly corroded by the black beam, turning dim and lackluster. It let out a mournful cry, then collapsed to the ground like a falling building with a bang.

Long Xiaoyao gave it no chance to catch its breath. He flashed forward, and his eighth Spirit Ring bloomed with an eerie red glow, accompanied by a chilling pressure.

"Eighth Soul Skill, Shadow-Annihilating Dragon Claw."

Long Xiaoyao raised his right claw high. The claw blades radiated a razor-sharp aura that made one's heart quiver, then came crashing down fiercely.

Squelch!

Long Xiaoyao's claw blades pierced directly into the vital point of the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's cervical spine. Its eyes, once filled with ferocity, instantly lost all their light, leaving only faint, weak breathing.

That strike had shattered its tendons and bones. Its entire body lay limp on the ground like a puddle of mud, having completely lost all ability to resist.

Long Xiaoyao dismissed his Martial Soul Avatar. The scales faded from his body as he returned to human form. His aura fluctuated slightly, but he did not appear to have expended much energy.

He turned to Xu Tianchen, who stood nearby, and nodded to him, signaling that it was over and that he could come over.

It was as though Xu Tianchen had only just recovered from the battle. He took a deep breath, suppressing his anticipation and excitement for the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's Spirit Ring. He took out the newly upgraded Level-Three Penetrating Soul Guidance Ray Kong Deming had given him from his Soul Guidance storage ring and walked toward the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff lying on the ground.

The Golden-maned Lion Mastiff, sprawled limply on the ground, struggled to open its dark golden eyes and watched Xu Tianchen approach step by step. It wanted to roar, but only managed a weak whimper.

It wanted to struggle to its feet and continue fighting, yet it no longer had the strength to even lift a single claw.

Xu Tianchen looked at the dying Golden-maned Lion Mastiff. Its eyes were filled with unwillingness, fury, a desire to live, and a pursuit of power. Even in the face of imminent death, it still radiated the unyielding arrogance of a soul beast.

He raised the Soul Guidance ray gun in his hand and aimed at the wound Long Xiaoyao had inflicted.

As a Soul Guidance ray passed through the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's brain, its already dim eyes flashed with a final glimmer before completely losing all their light. Perhaps that fleeting glimmer had been the memories of its life flashing before its eyes.

Long Xiaoyao watched deep purple streams of light rise from the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's body. After these streams gathered into a deep purple Spirit Ring above the corpse, he said to Xu Tianchen, who was still looking at the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff:

"This Golden-maned Lion Mastiff truly deserves to be called the greatest among super soul beasts. With only more than nine thousand years of cultivation, it was already no weaker than a Title Douluo. If I had not struck it with a continuous barrage and left it no chance to counterattack, then if it had erupted once more, even an ordinary Super Douluo would not have been able to take it down."

"Of course, it was fortunate that it had not yet reached ten thousand years. Otherwise, I would not have been confident in beating it into such a dying state in such a short time and with so little commotion."

Xu Tianchen said nothing. He knew just how formidable the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff was, and the stronger it was, the more it proved that the Spirit Ring it produced would be exceptional, did it not?

He walked before the Spirit Ring, took a deep breath, and sat down cross-legged. He released his Purple Radiance Annihilating Heaven Dragon Martial Soul, and two Spirit Rings, one yellow and one purple, emerged around him. Then, with a thought, the deep purple Spirit Ring floated toward Xu Tianchen and settled around his body.

The instant the Spirit Ring entered his body, a violent surge of energy rushed into Xu Tianchen's meridians. This energy not only carried the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's ferocity, but also its unyielding arrogance.

This energy seemed to carry the resentment of the dead Golden-maned Lion Mastiff as well, attempting to prevent Xu Tianchen from absorbing it. His face turned pale as paper, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolled down his forehead, soaking through his clothes.

The Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's unwillingness and savagery, born from its bloodline, transformed into a massive bloodline phantom within Xu Tianchen's Sea of Spirit. It roared endlessly inside, venting its unwillingness at having its life ended by an ant and turning the Sea of Spirit upside down.

"Guard your mind! Use your powerful spiritual power, the Purple Radiance Annihilating Heaven Dragon bloodline within your body, and your Sun Martial Soul that has entered the dual ultimate attributes to suppress it!"

Long Xiaoyao's authoritative voice exploded within Xu Tianchen's mind like an ancient thunderclap ringing out from the heavens.

Xu Tianchen abruptly sank his consciousness back into his body. Without hesitation, he mobilized his spiritual power and manifested it within his Sea of Spirit. At the same time, a blazing sun appeared in the sky above the Sea of Spirit. The light it released shone upon the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's bloodline phantom with a sizzling sound, shrinking its original size.

After being struck by the sunlight, the bloodline phantom was met by the breath of a deep purple giant dragon. The bloodline phantom was beaten back step by step.

After an unknown amount of time, the Golden-maned Lion Mastiff's bloodline phantom finally let out one last mournful cry. It was smashed into golden light filling the sky by a single claw strike from the bloodline phantom manifested by the Purple Radiance Annihilating Heaven Dragon Martial Soul, then merged into Xu Tianchen's Sea of Spirit.

In the outside world, Xu Tianchen also underwent astonishing changes because of this.

Xu Tianchen steadily absorbed the energy within the Spirit Ring. No longer did the energy race through his meridians like wild horses breaking free of their reins; instead, it became like a thoroughly tamed beast, slowly merging into his meridians and dantian. He refined and absorbed it bit by bit until it finally became his own strength.

Seeing that Xu Tianchen's condition had stabilized, Long Xiaoyao also let out a sigh of relief.

More than a day had passed before things finally stabilized. Long Xiaoyao looked in the direction of the Sun Moon Empire and muttered, "I wonder how things are going on Xishui's side?"

At the same time, turmoil capable of affecting the entire Douluo Continent was also unfolding within the Sun Moon Empire.