Star Dou Great Forest

The day after everyone broke through, three carriages stopped at the gates of Heaven Dou Royal Academy. The horses pulling them were descendants of Soul Beasts and warhorses bred by the Heaven Dou royal family. Gentle by nature, they possessed exceptional endurance and speed. The group climbed aboard, and the carriages rolled toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

Sitting in the smooth-riding carriage, Yu Feng looked around excitedly. "These are Shadow Divine Steeds! Only the Heaven Dou royal family gets to travel with them, and Brother Yu got us three whole carriages. I can't believe it!"

Beside him, Osler said, "Don't forget, Brother Yu isn't just a genius. The crown prince recommended him to Heaven Dou Royal Academy." Only then did the others remember that Jiang Baiyu was more than a peerless talent. Through his own abilities, he had gained the backing of two Titled Douluo—and even the future emperor of Heaven Dou, Xue Qinghe.

"Good grief. With connections like Brother Yu's, he could do whatever he wanted among Heaven Dou's noble families," Yu Feng exclaimed.

"And don't forget," Osler added, "the Rose Duke's Residence let Lingling go right after Jiang Baiyu's grandfather paid them a visit."

"Have you noticed something else?" Shi Mo chimed in. "After Jiang Baiyu hit us, our Soul Power improved, but so did the quality of our martial souls. My Black Tortoise Shield and Shi Mo's both got darker at some point, and their defense improved too."

"No way! I thought it was just me. My Wind Chime Bird mutated into a Windhawk, and I have no idea why." As Yu Feng spoke, he summoned his martial soul.

Osler nodded as well. Though his martial soul had not evolved, his Shadow Aura had grown stronger.

Meanwhile, Jiang Baiyu sat with Yu Tianheng in another carriage. "Yu Tianheng, I'm sure you've felt your martial soul changing toward a True Dragon. So here's my question: when you get your fourth ring, do you dare absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring and become a True Dragon in one leap?" he asked.

Indeed, when Jiang Baiyu fought the Imperial Fighting Team, the Shennong Cauldron's life force had not been the only thing at work. The Immortal Herbs in the Cauldron World had released their origins, which had sought out the most suitable martial souls and hosts during the battles, improving the quality of those martial souls. Even the Dragon Aura Jiang Baiyu had unconsciously revealed had drawn their martial souls toward transformation.

So that was it, Yu Tianheng thought. During his earlier fights with Jiang Baiyu, he had occasionally sensed an aura that made even his martial soul tremble. After every fight, he had also felt its quality steadily advancing toward a True Dragon. Jiang Baiyu really had been the cause. Brimming with confidence, he said, "Of course!"

"Good. I'll help you when the time comes," Jiang Baiyu said. In the time they had spent together, he had come to think highly of Yu Tianheng. Whether in the way he treated others or in his Soul Power cultivation, Yu Tianheng was unlike the children of other great noble families. He trained diligently, and Jiang Baiyu liked him all the more for it.

"We're here," said the guard driving the carriage.

The group climbed down and found themselves at an entrance guarded by Heaven Dou soldiers. At the sight of the carriages, the soldiers hurried to salute. These were royal carriages, after all!

Declining the guards' offer to accompany them, the group entered the Star Dou Great Forest. Jiang Baiyu had studied the map before coming. This area was not far from Suotuo City, and he was confident they could find the Man Faced Demon Spider here. Yes, the Soul Beast he had told Dugu Bo about was the very Man Faced Demon Spider from which Tang San had obtained an External Soul Bone.

After hearing about it, Dugu Bo had arrived in the Star Dou Forest early and searched everywhere for a Man Faced Demon Spider around two thousand years old. By now, he had probably found one.

Just as Jiang Baiyu thought that, a dragon's roar rang out. "It's Grandpa!" Dugu Yan's eyes lit up, and the group hurried toward the sound.

Before long, they reached the place where Dugu Bo had sent the signal. He sat idly on a fallen tree. Beside his feet lay three Man Faced Demon Spiders, unable to move. They varied in size, but all were around two thousand years old.

On their undersides, white markings stood out starkly against their black bodies. Those markings formed the shape of a vicious human face.

Eight little eyes gleaming with eerie purple light clustered on each spider's underside. Two eyes appeared to have been smashed into a bloody mess. Several cracks ran across the shell beneath, and even its sharp forelimbs had been broken.

As soon as he saw the group, Dugu Bo said, "Little Yu, I spent ages looking for these Man Faced Demon Spiders. Come on, let Yan Yan kill them first. Let's see if one appears."

Dugu Yan showed no fear of the hideous spiders. She drew a long blade from her storage Soul Tool, took aim at the three spiders, and struck hard.

Jiang Baiyu had told her about the Man Faced Demon Spider's External Soul Bone long ago. Without hesitation, she stabbed them one after another.

Three purple Soul Rings rose, and Dugu Bo and the others watched closely.

"Found it!" Dugu Bo said, pointing at the smallest Man Faced Demon Spider.

Within that spider's Soul Ring was a dark spiderweb pattern, glowing faintly with a strong pulse of Soul Power. "There really is a Soul Bone!" the others exclaimed in shock. A Soul Bone was actually inside the Soul Ring. How unusual!

"Go on, absorb it," Dugu Bo urged Dugu Yan.

Dugu Yan did as he said, sitting cross-legged and drawing the thousand-year Soul Ring toward her.

Dugu Bo turned to Jiang Baiyu. "Little Yu."

Jiang Baiyu pointed casually. A thread of dragon-pattern origin flew from the Shennong Cauldron and merged into the thousand-year Soul Ring. The moment they touched, the ring's color deepened sharply, even taking on a layer of black. It was clearly on the verge of becoming a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

"What was that?" Everyone stared in shock at Jiang Baiyu's ability to raise a Soul Ring's age.

"It's nothing. Just a little trick. This is the limit of what I can do, though. I can't push it any further."

Jiang Baiyu's face was pale. Drawing on the power of the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings placed enormous strain on him, even when he increased a ring's age by less than six thousand years.

Seeing his pallor, Ye Lingling activated her Nine-Hearted Begonia. A beam of white light drifted down over him, but it had no effect.

Jiang Baiyu waved a hand. "I'm fine. I just used too much mental energy. Let's keep an eye on Dugu Yan."

Though the Soul Ring was nearly ten thousand years old, Dugu Yan's body had grown much stronger under Jiang Baiyu's training.

Before long, she finished absorbing the ring.

She opened her eyes, and a rich purple light flashed through their emerald green.

"How is it?" Dugu Bo asked anxiously.

Dugu Yan gave him a sly smile. "There's a bit of a problem."

"What is it?" Even Jiang Baiyu spoke up.

"My martial soul. Look," Dugu Yan said with a smile. As it slowly possessed her, a surge of emerald-green Soul Power burst from her body.

The phantom Jade Phosphorous Serpent that had once coiled behind her was now twisting and swelling violently.

Its body stretched longer, shedding layer after layer of emerald scales. In their place grew jade dragon scales with a cold sheen, dark green poison light flowing between them. The serpent's head became a dragon's, though it had no horns, only a smooth, rounded crest. Clawed limbs slowly extended, and a thick dragon tail swayed. Poison light still surrounded it—the Jade Nether Chi Dragon!

As a serpent martial soul, hers had also been affected by Jiang Baiyu's Dragon Aura. Once she absorbed a Soul Ring that had likewise been strengthened by dragon energy, the transformation followed naturally. Her martial soul had evolved into a Sub-Dragon Species.

"And there's this, too." Dugu Yan, now enchanting in her Martial Soul Possession, smiled alluringly as eight thick purple jointed legs shot out from her back.

In just a few blinks, the thick spider legs extended to a length of one and a half meters. Then their joints snapped open, adding another meter and a half and exposing their sharpest tips. All eight legs spread to either side of her body, gleaming with eerie purple light like enormous arms shielding her at their center.

A faint purple haze seemed to cling to the spider legs. Light rippled through them as though they were made of transparent Purple Crystal.

"An External Soul Bone!" Dugu Bo cried out at the sight.