A Mutant Man Faced Demon Spider and the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Response

Unlike the outer region, the Mixed Zone was no place for a hundred- or thousand-year soul beast to claim territory unless its species was exceptionally powerful.

Jiang Yu spent two days exploring the Mixed Zone with Wu Lie. They saw no fewer than a hundred kinds of soul beasts, but only a handful had the space attribute.

No wonder spiritual- and space-attribute soul masters had the hardest time finding suitable Spirit Rings on the continent. Soul beasts with either of those powerful attributes were simply too rare.

On the third day of searching, Jiang Yu and Wu Lie finally struck gold.

It was a spider—an enormous one, with a body over two meters across and eight spear-like legs more than four meters long.

Its entire body gleamed silver. Its eight slender legs flashed coldly, like the sharpest razors. Vegetation along its path was cut in half by an invisible force before it even touched those legs.

On the spider's underside was a terrifying human face formed from black markings. Eight small eyes glinted with bloodlust.

Wu Lie told Jiang Yu the soul beast's name.

Nightmare of small soul beasts, devourer of life, abomination to all soul beasts, terrifying and evil killer—those were just some of its titles.

That was right. It was the Man Faced Demon Spider, whose entire family had so faithfully met its end in the original story.

At the sight of them, the roughly fifteen-hundred-year-old Man Faced Demon Spider hissed and sprang forward on all eight legs. Jiang Yu saw only a silver flash. Then every plant within twenty meters seemed to be sliced in half, along with space itself, leaving a straight black fissure.

Wu Lie stood in front of Jiang Yu. A white mark appeared on his right arm, which was already covered in thick red dragon scales.

Nine Spirit Rings hovered around him: two yellow, two purple, and five black.

"Kid, this Man Faced Demon Spider is an exceptionally rare mutant. There isn't a trace of poison in its body. All it has is speed honed to the extreme and the power to cut through space carried by those eight legs. It's around fifteen hundred years old. If you're willing to try, I'll take it down for you."

A fifteen-hundred-year-old mutant Man Faced Demon Spider would have been more than enough for an ordinary soul master's third ring.

But Jiang Yu might never find another soul beast so powerful and so well suited to him.

He hesitated for an instant, then said decisively, "Grandpa Wu, that's the one."

Wu Lie understood at once. With a savage grin, he kicked off the ground and hurled himself like a flaming meteor at the Man Faced Demon Spider, which had belatedly realized it had picked a fight with someone far beyond it.

Man Faced Demon Spider: Nooo!!!

Four hours later, Jiang Yu slowly opened his eyes. A magnificent purple Spirit Ring settled into place, and a silver gleam flashed across the invisible Shadow Dragon Dagger. Space trembled as its edge swept through the air.

It worked! The greater the risk, the greater the reward. Just two Spirit Rings have given my martial souls the Light Purification Power and spatial cutting power. Even their foundations have grown more than three times stronger.

At this rate, my Space-Time Dragon bloodline might awaken before I even become a Soul Sage.

If I want that day to come sooner, it looks like I'll have to risk my life a few more times.

Jiang Yu was like a college student from his previous life who could afford a plane ticket but bought a hard-seat train ticket instead. The journey was miserable, yet the moment he arrived and saw how much he had saved, he forgot all the suffering.

Forgetting the pain as soon as the wound healed was not exactly wise. But cultivation sometimes worked that way. Without trials of life and death, no one could hope to stand above the rest.

Jiang Yu feared death, but he was even less willing to settle for mediocrity.

That was life. The more precious something was, the greater the price one had to pay for it.

After returning to the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Jiang Yu was questioned, as expected, by Ning Yunxiu and the other sect leaders.

Some things could not be hidden, and there was no need to hide them. Jiang Yu told them that after adding Spirit Rings to both his martial souls, he had sensed an extremely mysterious power deep within himself. He had no idea what it was.

The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Grand Elder, a level ninety-seven spiritual-type Super Douluo, came forward personally. She used her spiritual power to examine Jiang Yu thoroughly, inside and out.

In the end, she concluded that a hidden power did indeed exist within him.

She could not determine what it was. They would have to wait until Jiang Yu fully awakened it himself.

After the Strongest of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect left, the other five Titled Douluo departed one after another. Soon, only Ning Yunxiu and Jiang Yu remained in the vast Nine Treasure Hall.

Ning Yunxiu studied Jiang Yu thoughtfully.

She knew more than the others. Just before leaving, the Illusion Douluo—the Strongest of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—had sent her a private message.

The Illusion Douluo had said that although she could not see what power lay hidden within Jiang Yu, she was certain it was deeply connected to dragons. If her guess was right, it was at least the bloodline or power of a true dragon.

She had also said that Jiang Yu's spiritual strength was exceptional, as was the development of his spiritual sea. His mind was active and mature; they could not regard him as an ordinary six-year-old child.

Ning Yunxiu trusted the Illusion Douluo completely.

The reason was simple: the Illusion Douluo was her grandmother's younger sister. Ning Yunxiu called her great-grandmother, while Ning Tian had to call her great-great-grandmother.

Looking at Jiang Yu standing obediently before her with his head lowered, Ning Yunxiu stopped herself from dwelling on it.

Whatever power lay hidden within him, and however sharp a mind he concealed beneath that obedient exterior, he was still only six.

The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had never meant him harm. On the contrary, they had treated him sincerely and nurtured him. Ning Yunxiu trusted her judgment of character. Jiang Yu did not strike her as cold or ungrateful, and as long as he was not, time could open any number of possibilities.

With that thought, Ning Yunxiu smiled gently and said to Jiang Yu:

"Xiao Yu, now that you're back from your soul hunt, your Soul Power has reached level fifteen, hasn't it?"

"Yes, Sect Master," Jiang Yu replied respectfully.

"'Sect Master'? Have you forgotten what I told you? When we're alone, just call me Aunt Yunxiu."

Ning Yunxiu's tone was gently reproachful.

"Aunt Yunxiu..." Jiang Yu always felt that Ning Yunxiu looked at him strangely, especially when she saw his face.

"Mmm. Just remember from now on." Pleased that he had changed how he addressed her, Ning Yunxiu nodded. "You have level fifteen Soul Power before you're even six and a half, and both your Spirit Rings came from beasts above the usual age limit. At the normal cultivation rate for someone with Innate Full Soul Power, you should become a Soul Grandmaster before you turn eight. That kind of speed is unprecedented."

"From now on, you'll study and cultivate alongside Xiao Tian and Xiao Feng. I'm sure you'll become good friends."

Jiang Yu understood what Ning Yunxiu intended. She wanted him to build a bond with Ning Tian and Wu Feng while they were young, so they could support the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect together in the future.

That was what Jiang Yu had wanted too, so he agreed without hesitation.

Ning Yunxiu stroked Jiang Yu's head affectionately, her face bright with a smile.