Dark Tortoise Armor and Dark Tortoise Displacement

Inside Ning Fengzhi's office at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, both Sword Douluo and Ning Fengzhi were exceedingly surprised.

"Uncle Bone, are you saying that Yang Xiong's First Soul Ring really absorbed a 540-year soul ring? And that Soul Beast wasn't a Mystic Turtle, but the legendary Dark Tortoise?"

Bone Douluo nodded. "Even I nearly mistook it. It was definitely a Dark Tortoise, and it was more than 540 years old—somewhere between 540 and 550 years."

"Although Yang Xiong suffered somewhat during the absorption process, he succeeded, and his soul power has reached level thirteen. In my opinion, absorbing Hundred-Year Whale Rubber to increase a soul ring's age by a hundred years should not be a problem. But with higher-grade Thousand-Year Whale Rubber and Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Rubber, the increase likely won't be so simple. Even I can't estimate how far it could go."

Ning Fengzhi nodded. "This truly is a tremendous surprise. Taking Whale Rubber to increase the absorption limit of soul rings should greatly improve physical constitution and the amount of soul ring energy one can take in. It would indeed be immensely beneficial to a Soul Master's cultivation. Whale Rubber truly deserves to be called a priceless treasure."

"And Yang Xiong surprised me as well. He was actually able to identify it as a Dark Tortoise based solely on pictures and a few descriptions. It seems the boy has done some research into Soul Beasts. Even old Mr. Lin Gong was nearly fooled."

Lin Gong had been specially chosen by Ning Fengzhi as Ning Rongrong's Class Teacher. Although his Soul Power Level was relatively low, he was unquestionably among the very best in the entire Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, whether in educating students or in his knowledge of martial souls. He had even once been Ning Fengzhi's Class Teacher when Ning Fengzhi was in school.

Bone Douluo, however, was somewhat disgruntled. "That brat should have discovered the secret of Whale Rubber earlier. Otherwise, Rongrong's First Soul Ring could have had its age raised substantially as well. Perhaps she might even break through the limits of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda someday."

Ning Fengzhi was speechless. Yang Xiong was about the same age as Rongrong, yet he had broken through to level ten more than a year and a half later than her. Their differences in every aspect were simply too great—how could they possibly be compared?

After Yang Xiong returned home, the soul power in his body suddenly went completely out of control. Even his spine and ribs were in extreme pain, as though every bone in his body were about to lose control.

In truth, Yang Xiong had sensed that something was wrong with his body after absorbing the soul ring. It felt as if something were about to grow out of him. However, there had been too many people watching, so he could only summon his Body Martial Soul and do his best to suppress the abnormalities in his bones.

But after returning home, it seemed that the tension in his nerves had finally slackened. The bones in his body began to grow madly, quickly filling more than half the room.

When the frenzy within Yang Xiong's body gradually subsided, he found himself inside an enormous turtle shell. His spine and ribs seemed to have fused into one whole, forming a massive shell.

This shell was completely different from any he had seen before. It seemed to envelop his entire body. Not only had a huge turtle shell grown from his back, but his chest and abdomen were also covered in shell, like a suit of armor. Its only flaw was that carrying a turtle shell on his back looked rather ugly.

Although ordinary turtle-type Soul Beasts were stronger on their backs, their chests and abdomens were actually extremely tough as well, both covered in thick shell. It simply was not as noticeable as their back shells.

The External Soul Bone on Yang Xiong's body also seemed entirely different from ordinary External Soul Bones. It had not only grown out from his spine; all of his ribs seemed to have changed as well, more like armor covering his entire chest and abdomen.

Yang Xiong knocked on the shell on his back and the Chest Armor over his torso, finding their defensive power exceptionally formidable. Both his back and his chest and abdomen were protected, and even all the bones in his body had become considerably stronger. In particular, the shell had two forms. In one form, when summoned normally, it only protected his chest and back. The shell on his back was not large, merely shielding all the muscles there.

The other form appeared when the turtle shell was fully revealed. It seemed to become incomparably massive, placing his entire body under the protection of the shell. Even his head and limbs were completely enclosed within it.

Yang Xiong named this Dark Tortoise shell the Dark Tortoise Armor. In particular, he felt that the Dark Tortoise Armor was only at the 500 Years level for now. It should continue evolving in the future, and perhaps eventually become armor that covered his entire body.

Especially if the Dark Tortoise Armor evolved to the Hundred Thousand Year Level, perhaps no one would be able to break it.

The Dark Tortoise Armor had also granted Yang Xiong a very useful soul skill, called Impregnable Fortress. It could summon the Dark Tortoise Armor to block an enemy's attacks, whether physical attacks or energy-based attacks. However, if the opponent was two major realms stronger than Yang Xiong, the armor's defense would weaken.

Yang Xiong had originally complained to himself. Although few External Soul Bones had appeared on Douluo Continent, they were basically all top-tier treasures.

Tang San's Eight Spider Lances, Huo Gua's Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear Claw, and even Bibi Dong's Six-Winged Purple Light Wings were all considered top-grade and looked exceptionally impressive. Yet why had he ended up with a turtle shell? The difference in style was simply too great. If he had known, he would not have chosen the Dark Tortoise.

But after thinking it over carefully, Yang Xiong realized that Body Martial Souls were relatively weak in the early stages. Especially in battle, they basically required close combat, which could easily injure the body. Aside from looking a little ugly, the Dark Tortoise Armor offered all-around defense. Even when he did not summon it, it could strengthen his ribs' resistance and protect the vulnerable areas of his chest and abdomen. It was absolutely the most suitable choice for a Body Martial Soul.

Moreover, the Dark Tortoise Armor possessed powerful shock-absorption capabilities. No matter how fierce the attack he suffered, his internal organs would not be severely damaged, invisibly adding another layer of defense.

More than the External Soul Bone, what truly delighted Yang Xiong was his First Soul Skill.

Even Yang Xiong had merely been taking a gamble, yet he had unexpectedly succeeded. His First Soul Skill actually possessed the Dark Tortoise's most terrifying spatial attribute.

Dark Tortoise Displacement: within a certain range, it instantly switched the positions of himself and his opponent. In particular, when the opponent was completely unprepared, once they were locked onto by Dark Tortoise Displacement, it was almost impossible to break free. Its range was one hundred meters, and the stronger the enemy, the more soul power it consumed.

Yang Xiong especially felt that this soul skill would have immense potential for development in the future. For instance, if he exchanged positions with the air in front of an enemy, would that not be similar to Teleportation? Its effect might even be better than Teleportation. It could also greatly compensate for his weak combat ability in the early stages.

Yang Xiong tried using his soul power to control the Dark Tortoise Armor. The entire Dark Tortoise Armor did not extend from his spine, but rather seemed to be an extension of all the bones in his chest, abdomen, and back.

In the early stage, it is the Dark Tortoise Armor; later, it will evolve into the Black Tortoise Armor. I thought about this for a long time and felt that armor-type External Soul Bones were the most suitable for a Body Martial Soul.

I wrote wings and claws before, so this time I made a turtle shell that wrapped around the entire body. Perhaps it would be more suitable.

Normally, all External Soul Bones are things like claws, wings, and Eight Spider Lances. I seem to have written all of those before, and I also feel that armor suits the protagonist's martial soul better than wings.