Fourth Ring of Ten Thousand Years

Now that all three of them had completed their breakthroughs, it was time to find a suitable fourth Soul Ring for Bing Yekong.

"Senior Dugu, Senior Yang, dare you come with me to the Far North and put our new selves to the test?"

After packing up all the immortal herbs he needed, Bing Yekong asked the two of them.

Bing Yekong's target for his fourth Soul Ring was a ten-thousand-year Soul Ring—and not an ordinary ten-thousand-year one. So, rather than returning to the Great Star Dou Forest, he planned to head straight for the Far North in search of the Soul Ring best suited to him.

Yang Wudi's eyes lit up at once. "No problem. This old man feels terrifyingly strong now!"

After taking the pill refined from Black Jade Divine Bamboo, Yang Wudi's Soul Power rank was far from the only thing that had improved.

The Black Jade Divine Bamboo had enhanced the sharpness of the Soul-Breaking Spear, making his combat strength even greater.

With his current strength, if Yang Wudi went all out, he could absolutely suppress the Serpent Spear Douluo from the middle and later stages of the original story with ease.

With that life-risking style of his, focused entirely on offense and none on defense, even a Super Douluo would struggle to gain an advantage against him.

Dugu Bo nodded as well. "I've hardly visited the Far North before. I'd like to see how the Soul Beasts there differ from those in my Sunset Forest."

Once they had settled on the plan, the three immediately set off for the Far North.

When he thought of the Far North, Bing Yekong first thought of its three great heavenly kings: the Ice Sky Snow Maiden, Snow Empress; the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, Ice Empress; and the Titan Snow Demon King.

Thinking of it that way, Bing Yekong felt that his Heavenly Frost Sword Martial Soul was highly compatible with Soul Beasts like the Ice Jade Scorpion.

However, he did not make the Ice Jade Scorpion his first choice. Finding one depended on luck, and they would most likely only be found in the core region.

And if they entered the core region, one of Ice Empress or Snow Empress might spot them.

Bing Yekong did not believe that, with two ordinary Titled Douluo at his side, he could defeat the Ice and Snow Empresses.

There were still more than ten thousand years before the great tribulations of the two Empresses of Ice and Snow. At this point, they were not much weaker than at their peaks.

Thus, the Ice Jade Scorpion could only serve as an alternative. Their priority was still to search for other ice-attribute Soul Beasts.

A few days later, the three arrived near Soul Hunting Town by the Frozen Forest at the outermost edge of the Far North.

In the original story, Oscar had once joined a mercenary group here while traveling and training outside.

However, with two Titled Douluo-level powerhouses beside him, Bing Yekong had no need to seek out mercenaries.

After buying a map from a roadside shop, the three set off into the Far North.

The Far North was swept by bitter winds, its temperature countless times lower than that of the Great Star Dou Forest.

Even hot water would freeze solid the instant it was taken out.

And this was only the temperature of the outer region.

Fortunately, all three of them had ways to resist the cold.

Dugu Bo and Yang Wudi relied purely on their cultivation to ward off the chill, while Bing Yekong had it easier. By directly using the Ultimate Ice Soul Power within him, he could even feel comfortable amid this frozen wasteland while replenishing his Soul Power.

The ice-attribute natural elements in the Far North were at their densest. It could be called the most perfect cultivation ground for the Heavenly Frost Sword.

Unfortunately, there were too many Soul Beasts here, so Bing Yekong could not remain to cultivate.

The most urgent matter was still finding a suitable Soul Beast for his fourth Soul Ring.

Based on Bing Yekong's own judgment, as well as Dugu Bo's examination, his physical condition was more than capable of enduring a twenty-thousand-year Soul Ring.

Thus, they set their target at around twenty thousand years.

Whether they were ice-attribute Soul Beasts proficient in attack or those skilled in controlling ice elements, all were within Bing Yekong's consideration.

After all, his Heavenly Frost Sword was already of the Ultimate Ice attribute. Unless he absorbed a Soul Beast with the same Ultimate Ice attribute, it would not be of much use.

So he might as well find an ice-attribute Soul Beast with formidable offensive power to further enhance the Heavenly Frost Sword's attack strength.

The three ignored the outer region of the Far North and headed directly toward the mixed region.

After all, just like the outskirts of the Great Star Dou Forest, the outer region had few thousand-year Soul Beasts, let alone ten-thousand-year ones.

They clearly could not find a suitable fourth Soul Ring for Bing Yekong here.

Once they entered the mixed region, all three became more vigilant.

The Soul Beasts in the mixed region were a motley lot. There was no telling when a powerful ten-thousand-year Soul Beast might appear.

A single ten-thousand-year Soul Beast would not frighten them, but if the commotion of battle attracted more ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts, that would be troublesome.

Therefore, unless necessary, the three would not actively fight Soul Beasts. They would only act when they encountered their target, and otherwise, they would detour whenever possible.

An hour later, the three stepped into the depths of the mixed region.

"We can't go any farther."

Bing Yekong raised a hand, stopping the other two.

"This Far North is far more dangerous than we imagined. According to legend, the strongest Soul Beasts within can easily kill even a Titled Douluo."

That was no exaggeration.

Before Snow Empress, Bing Yekong and Dugu Bo were no different. The latter was merely a slightly larger ant.

With Snow Empress's Limit Douluo-level combat power, a casual wave of her hand would freeze the two of them into ice sculptures.

Dugu Bo and Yang Wudi nodded in deep agreement upon hearing this.

The temperature in the depths of the mixed region had already made the two of them feel cold.

How could any Soul Beast capable of surviving in a hellhole like the core region be simple?

"Then we'll search for a suitable Soul Beast here."

Bing Yekong nodded. He and the other two then began wandering around the area in search of a suitable Soul Beast.

"A thirty-thousand-year Frost Wolf. No, its attributes are too poor."

"A forty-thousand-year Frozen Eagle. Its age is too high, and its quality is lacking as well."

"A ten-thousand-year Profound Ice Serpent. Its quality is acceptable, but its age is too low."

They found several in a row, but none suited Bing Yekong.

But that was how it went sometimes. One could not be impatient when searching for a Soul Beast. Keep looking, and perhaps the right one would eventually appear.

On the afternoon of the third day, Bing Yekong's thoughts were proven correct.

He truly encountered a Soul Beast that suited him perfectly.

Inside an ice cave, the three discovered a lone Ice Jade Scorpion.

Judging by its size, it had roughly twenty thousand years of cultivation, making it just right for Bing Yekong.

Bing Yekong even had Yang Wudi and Dugu Bo scout the surrounding area. They found no sign of any other Ice Jade Scorpions.

If Ice Empress had been nearby... she surely would not have been able to restrain herself from acting after such provocation by humans.

Therefore, Bing Yekong could conclude that the Ice Jade Scorpion before them was definitely alone.

That meant his fourth Soul Ring was secured.

A ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion possessed indisputable Ultimate Ice attributes, and together with its unparalleled offensive power, it could not have been more suitable as Bing Yekong's fourth Soul Ring.

"Senior Yang, Senior Dugu, this is the one!"

Bing Yekong waved his hand. Yang Wudi hesitated no longer and charged forward first.