Azurefall Celestial Ring

A low, obscure ancient incantation, as though it did not belong to this era, slowly flowed from Huo Yuhao's pale, cracked lips. Every syllable carried a strange rhythm, drawing upon the faint energy in the air. As he chanted, the space above his upturned palm twisted slightly, and a fist-sized grayish-white orb of light slowly took shape as it rotated. Its interior was unfathomably deep, as if it connected to another world filled with deathly stillness and cold—an temporary gateway to the core of his demiplane, the Undead Plane.

At the same time, he took out two tough parchment sheets that had been prepared beforehand and soaked in a special medicinal solution. Drawn upon them in mithril ink mixed with soul power and spiritual imprints were incomparably intricate Forbidden Dragon Curse runes, emitting a faint yet imposing violet glow.

"Bear with it. It might sting a little and feel cold," Huo Yuhao said softly to Tang Wulin, who lay on the bed and nervously gripped Na'er's hand. Then, with lightning-fast fingers, he slapped the two talismans onto the center of Tang Wulin's forehead and the Shanzhong acupoint on his chest.

"Hiss—"

The talismans melted the moment they touched his skin, turning into two masses of deep violet light that swiftly seeped inside. Tang Wulin's body jolted, and a muffled groan escaped him. He could clearly feel an icy chill, like needles piercing into him yet carrying a strange suppressive force, spreading rapidly through his meridians. Under that power, the fine pale-gold scales on his right hand seemed to lose their support. Their luster quickly dimmed before they slowly receded like the tide, returning his hand to the normal skin of a child, though it was slightly red. The scorching, violent sensation within him that had kept him restless and panicked also seemed to have been drenched with ice water, instantly suppressed and much calmer.

"Good, it's suppressed. Now I'll begin extracting the excess energy. You may feel weak during the process, but it won't hurt." Huo Yuhao's steady voice gave Tang Wulin confidence. His left hand maintained the grayish-white orb while his right hand spread open, aimed at Tang Wulin.

Visible strands of pure energy, like liquid gold, began to be slowly drawn from Tang Wulin's seven apertures and pores. The instant these strands left Tang Wulin's body, their violent nature revealed itself. They writhed like tiny golden snakes, but under the lingering restraint of the Forbidden Dragon Curse's violet light and Huo Yuhao's precise spiritual guidance, they could only twist unwillingly before eventually flowing into the grayish-white orb and vanishing.

The process was exceedingly slow and mentally draining. Huo Yuhao had already suffered severe injuries during yesterday's sealing battle, and his soul power was recovering at an infuriatingly slow pace. He had to rely on Demon Spirit continually replacing high-grade Bottle soul tools—devices that stored and replenished soul power—to maintain even the most basic output. Often, after absorbing for ten-odd minutes, he had to stop and clutch a Bottle while gasping for a moment of recovery. Cold sweat streamed down his pale face, making Tang Ziran and Lang Yue's hearts ache as they watched, while Na'er pressed her lips tightly together.

Tang Ziran wanted to say something several times, but Lang Yue gently stopped him each time, signaling with her eyes that he should not disturb Huo Yuhao. Watching Huo Yuhao fight so desperately for their son, they could no longer express their gratitude in words. It could only become the depth in their gazes, along with the warm water and towels they kept ready to offer at any moment.

The entire morning passed amid intermittent extraction and recovery. When the last pale-gold thread of energy seeped from Tang Wulin's fingertip and entered the orb, Huo Yuhao closed his fingers. The grayish-white orb silently dissipated. He let out a long breath of turbid air tinged with pale-gold mist, swayed on his feet, and was promptly caught by Demon Spirit, who had been watching him closely.

"It's... over." Huo Yuhao's voice was weaker than before, though it carried the relief of completing his task. "The ownerless Golden Dragon King's Divine Power that leaked out due to the loosening seal and exceeded what his current body could bear has been extracted. But the seal itself, as well as the foundational energy that has already fused into his flesh, blood, and bones, remains. He'll have to slowly adapt to and absorb that himself in the future."

At lunch, the atmosphere was much lighter than yesterday, though still solemn. Huo Yuhao looked at Tang Wulin, whose face remained somewhat pale but whose eyes had regained their brightness, and spoke with utmost seriousness. "Wulin, after you return, you must seize every moment to cultivate and improve your soul power, physique, and spiritual power. I've already done all I can. The seal can only last for a while. Whether you can control the power inside you in the future without suffering backlash will depend entirely on yourself. Remember, power itself is not frightening. What is frightening is lacking the temperament and strength to control it."

Tang Wulin nodded forcefully, engraving those words deep into his heart. He knew that Uncle Huo had nearly sacrificed half his life to save him.

Huo Yuhao then said to Tang Ziran and Lang Yue, "The Undead Plane is temporarily stuffed full and needs time to digest this Golden Dragon King power. Moreover, this power is violent by nature and extremely difficult to convert. It's far more troublesome than gentle elemental energy. Next, I need to immediately go somewhere for deep healing and recovery, so I can no longer accompany you."

Tang Ziran immediately expressed his understanding and repeatedly thanked him. "Mr. Huo, our family will never forget your great kindness! Please go and recover without worry. We'll take care of Wulin and make sure he works hard!" Lang Yue nodded repeatedly as well, her eyes red.

Na'er stood beside Tang Wulin and listened quietly, a complicated light in the depths of her violet eyes. Her understanding of Huo Yuhao had been overturned once again—not only was he an unfathomably powerful, mysterious expert capable of stripping away the Golden Dragon King's God Core, but he was also someone who, for the sake of a promise—the warning from the Gu Yue she had mentioned, as well as his connection to Tang Wulin's birth parents—had not hesitated to injure himself so severely, and who still had such thorough plans for what came next even after exhausting himself. His resolve, strength, and sense of responsibility made the unease she had felt from being seen through gain an indescribable hint of... respect? Or perhaps it was the complicated feeling she had toward one of her own kind—someone else burdened by secrets and heavy responsibilities.

After the meal, the Tang family of four solemnly bid farewell and left Rain Spirit Grilled Fish Shop. They knew Huo Yuhao needed absolute quiet.

"Demon Spirit, let's go." Huo Yuhao was practically half-supported by Demon Spirit as he sat in the front passenger seat of the Realm Patrol. In his current state, even driving was a struggle.

"Mm! Brother Yuhao, just sit tight and rest." Demon Spirit gently adjusted his seat and fastened his seatbelt before getting into the driver's seat herself, her little face filled with determination. This soul-powered car, which she had personally helped modify, was about to display its full performance.

"Optical camouflage at full power, soul power fluctuation suppression maximized. Realm Patrol, activate!"

The vehicle slid out without a sound. A layer of water-like glimmer flowed across its surface before it perfectly blended into its surroundings, as if it had vanished into thin air. It was not merely visually invisible; even its soul power fluctuations and sound were reduced to nearly nothing. Demon Spirit's talent in soul tool arrays and concealment technology gave this car stealth capabilities sufficient to fool most Soul Douluo and even ordinary Title Douluo. Its speed steadily increased as it raced down the dedicated soul vehicle lane, no slower than a high-speed soul train, yet so smooth it seemed motionless.

Huo Yuhao leaned against the seat with his eyes closed, resting. While focusing on driving, Demon Spirit occasionally glanced at him worriedly through the rearview mirror. Her amber eyes were full of heartache.

Star Dou Great Forest Core Region, Lake of Life

When the Realm Patrol crossed layers of forest in stealth mode and reached the heart of this soul beast sanctuary, Di Tian and the other ferocious beasts were already waiting by the lake.

The first thing that came into view was a huge, nearly transparent bowl-shaped energy barrier covering the entire core region. Multicolored light flowed over its surface, while countless fine runes and streams of data silently moved within. This was the ultimate version of the Skyveil full-area shielding system, created through countless rounds of iterative upgrades by combining Myriad Demon King's plant-sensing network, Crimson King's scent concealment, Zi Ji's spatial interference, and Bear Lord's energy barrier technology. Not only could it completely isolate all energy, spiritual fluctuations, sounds, and even scents within from leaking out, it could also simulate an energy and life signature identical to the surrounding environment. Even if a human Super Douluo or Ultimate Douluo passed nearby, they would find it extremely difficult to detect any anomaly here without the most careful, targeted investigation. This was the soul beasts' last and safest experimental base and healing sanctuary.

Beneath the shielding Skyveil, Lake of Life shimmered with ripples, and its dense life aura had nearly become tangible pale-green mist. Yet at this moment, the lake was surrounded by a massive ring-shaped soul tool device formed from interwoven dark-gold and jade-green elements, its structure extraordinarily complex. The device was assembled from countless curved alloy plates engraved with circuits. The material was strange, neither metal nor jade, warm and smooth to the touch, with a faint jade-green glow flowing within—it was a special alloy personally designed by Bi Ji, who had expended immense effort to nurture it over a long period with the power of her Jade Swan origin and infuse it with her understanding of the laws of life. It was named Jade-Gold Life Resonance Alloy. This enormous healing soul tool, built primarily from that alloy, was named the Azurefall Celestial Ring.

"Azurefall Celestial Ring, activate!"

At Di Tian's signal, Bi Ji floated gracefully into the air. The Jade Swan martial soul blossomed behind her in a gentle yet vast green radiance. She pressed both hands onto the Azurefall Celestial Ring's main control core, pouring in pure, immense life soul power like floodwaters released from a dam.

"Hum—!!!"

A deep roar rang out as tens of thousands of runes upon the Azurefall Celestial Ring lit up in succession, changing from jade-green to dazzling emerald-gold. The entire ring slowly began to rotate, producing a deep, pleasant metallic resonance. At the center of the lake, the tranquil surface suddenly churned as the immensely concentrated water of the Lake of Life was drawn out and atomized by an invisible force, merging with the life soul power Bi Ji had injected.

In an instant, a jade-green energy storm more than ten meters in diameter, stretching from heaven to earth, formed at the center of the lake. The storm was filled with the purest power of the laws of life and healing energy, and tiny phantoms of Jade Swans could faintly be seen circling through its edges. How powerful was its healing ability? In theory, as long as a living being retained even a trace of its life imprint and its most essential organs, such as the brain and heart, remained intact, physical injuries would regenerate and heal at a visible speed within the storm's center. This was a miraculous sight that perfectly combined Bi Ji's top-tier healing abilities, Lake of Life's accumulation over tens of thousands of years, and the terrifying amplification of the Azurefall Celestial Ring.

However, when Huo Yuhao, supported by Demon Spirit and Bear Lord, stepped into the center of the storm, the situation was far from promising. The vast life energy, enough to regrow flesh from bone and revive the dying, poured into his ravaged body like mud sinking into the sea. The injuries caused by the Golden Dragon King's Divine Power did not affect only his flesh. They were deeply branded upon his energy channels and divine origin as well, carrying intense attributes of destruction and immortality that gave them an exceptionally high resistance to pure life energy. The jade-green currents advanced through his body with great difficulty, and the rate of recovery was far below expectations.

"As expected, it isn't enough... Activate Triple Celestial Ring Mode!" Di Tian ordered in a deep voice, golden light flashing in his eyes.

"Leave it to me!" Bear Lord roared, slamming his fan-sized palm onto a special activation hub of the Azurefall Celestial Ring.

"Clang—! Creak—!"

The thunderous sounds of machinery in motion erupted. The previously unified Azurefall Celestial Ring suddenly split apart at its connections, becoming two smaller rings, one within the other, along with a core control ring suspended directly overhead. The three rings began rotating at high speed around Huo Yuhao at the center, each following precisely predetermined tracks at different speeds.

The inner ring rotated clockwise, stabilizing and guiding the primordial life force of Lake of Life.

The outer ring rotated counterclockwise, amplifying and compressing the life soul power Bi Ji released.

The upper ring rotated vertically, harmonizing and resonating the two forces before geometrically amplifying them and precisely infusing them into him.

"Azurefall Celestial Ring: Triple Amplification Array, full-power output—healing efficacy increased by 300%!"

Bear Lord's voice boomed like muffled thunder. The entire device's roar reached its peak. Its precise inner components bore enormous strain, releasing overloaded hissing sounds and scattered sparks, but it had truly succeeded.

The jade-green energy storm at the lake's center abruptly deepened in color, nearly turning into a solid emerald substance. The storm's howl became a sacred hum. This time, the powerful healing force finally began to shake those stubborn Golden Dragon King injuries. A healthy flush appeared on Huo Yuhao's pale face at a visible pace. The tiny cracks and bruises across his body rapidly healed, his dried-up meridians were nourished, and his shredded muscle fibers reconnected... Purely physical damage was being forcibly repaired before this collective creation of wisdom that was practically a miracle.

Time passed little by little. The Azurefall Celestial Ring ran at full power for several hours. Its interior overheated, multiple auxiliary arrays overloaded and began smoking, and even the costly Jade-Gold Life Resonance Alloy developed fine fatigue cracks. To create this preliminary prototype, the Emerald Court fashion empire and the Dark-Gold Heavy Peak workshop had spent nearly all of their profits from the past two years. The most expensive part had not been the materials, but the countless failed experiments—figuring out how to use a soul tool, a mere tool, to stably amplify the innate healing properties of a top-tier healing martial soul like Bi Ji's involved exceedingly complex laws of life and soul power resonance coding. Every experiment consumed astronomical resources.

Finally, as the setting sun gilded the forest's edges, Huo Yuhao slowly and deeply exhaled a long breath of turbid air carrying a faintly mixed gold-gray aura at the storm's center. All of his external injuries had healed, and his complexion had returned to normal. Although the depletion of his spiritual soul and origin could not possibly be replenished in a short time, his physical condition had recovered by more than seventy percent.

"Screech—creak—"

Accompanied by a final burst of teeth-grating mechanical groans and a large release of steam, the Azurefall Celestial Ring, having finally completed its mission, stopped running. Its three rings sagged weakly and crashed heavily onto the lakeshore, with overloaded, burned-out sparks flickering in many places as it temporarily declared a strike.

The storm dissipated, and Lake of Life returned to calm.

Huo Yuhao opened his eyes. His ice-blue gaze had regained its usual brilliance, though fatigue still lingered in its depths. He stepped over the lake's surface and walked toward the shore one step at a time.

"Brother Yuhao!" Demon Spirit, who had been clasping her hands and waiting anxiously, was the first to rush over. Unable to hold back any longer, she threw herself into Huo Yuhao's arms like a bird returning to its nest, hugging him tightly. Her voice trembled with tears and lingering fear. "You scared me to death... You really scared me to death this time!"

Huo Yuhao gently patted her back, comforting the younger sister who had held herself together all this time and was only now letting all her worry show. His gaze swept over every companion around him, each bearing concern and exhaustion on their faces—the steady Di Tian, the gentle Bi Ji, the rough yet dependable Bear Lord... Warmth surged through his heart.

"Thank you for your hard work, everyone," he said softly. Though his voice was quiet, it clearly carried across the lakeshore.