Level Twenty-Eight!

Now, we could label the Scarlet King's three heads from left to right as Scarlet King A, Scarlet King B, and Scarlet King C.

Scarlet King A: What kind of twisted logic was that from the Auspicious Beast?

Scarlet King B: It almost made sense.

Scarlet King C: No! It didn't make a damn bit of sense!

For the greater good of Soul Beasts, the Scarlet King strongly opposed the Auspicious Beast's actions. She was openly aiding the enemy.

Yet deep down, it had to admit how delicious the Overlord Drumstick was.

Truth be told, it was tempted to find a chance to kidnap Gao Ren and keep him in the Great Ferocious Land indefinitely.

But reason told him he could not do that.

Starting a war between the Star Dou Great Forest and Shrek Academy over a bite to eat was simply absurd!

When the Auspicious Beast and the Scarlet King appeared again, a pale blue swan accompanied them.

Xuan Zi spotted the pale blue swan first and gauged its approximate age.

"A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?! A-Ren clearly asked for a thousand-year Soul Beast. Why did you bring a ten-thousand-year one?!"

All three of the Scarlet King's heads snorted at once. "A thousand-year Soul Beast would be beneath the Auspicious Beast's dignity. Only a Soul Beast at least ten thousand years old is worthy of being given away as her gift."

Gao Ren could neither laugh nor cry. "Lady Auspicious Beast, Senior Scarlet King, I'm afraid this gift is more than I can handle right now."

Thanks to Shrek Academy's finest resources and a steady supply of his own Overlord Drumsticks, his body was now nearly as strong as that of a level-thirty Power Attack System Soul Master.

The oldest Soul Ring his body could withstand was around two thousand years old. He was still nowhere near ready to absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

And absorbing one would subject him to Soul Shock as well.

That was why most ordinary Soul Masters waited until their Soul Power reached level fifty before choosing a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast for their Soul Ring.

By then, their bodies and minds were largely mature, greatly reducing the effects of Soul Shock.

If Gao Ren tried to absorb one now, both his body and mind would likely be destroyed.

"More than you can handle?" The Auspicious Beast laughed. "If the Purifying Water Swan sacrifices itself for you, you'll be able to handle it, won't you?"

"A sacrifice?!" Everyone from Shrek Academy froze. Like the Scarlet King earlier, they felt as though the wrinkles in their brains had been smoothed flat.

"Yes, a sacrifice," the Auspicious Beast said earnestly. "I'll have this ten-thousand-year Purifying Water Swan sacrifice its life and soul.

"That way, even a weak human cub like Gao Ren can merge with a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring with absolute certainty."

Gao Ren was too stunned to speak. He could not help glancing at the Purifying Water Swan.

"Are... are you really willing?"

The Purifying Water Swan nodded, its eyes resolute. It looked ready to lay down its life without a moment's hesitation.

"As compensation, the Auspicious Beast has granted its flock permission to settle in the lake at the edge of the Great Ferocious Land, under her protection," the Scarlet King said solemnly. "This swan is a hero to the Purewater Swans!"

Once he understood why, Xuan Zi grinned from ear to ear. "Lady Auspicious Beast, I'm sorry to put you to so much trouble. We're gaining so much from this that even this old man feels a little guilty!"

"If you feel guilty, have Gao Ren make more Overlord Drumsticks before he leaves." The Auspicious Beast licked her lips. She was hungry again.

"I will! I definitely will!" Gao Ren agreed at once, unable to keep the grin off his face.

Gaining a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring out of nowhere was beyond anything he had expected!

He felt that if he kept the Auspicious Beast happy, he could ask for any ten-thousand-year Soul Beast he wanted next time!

After that, the ten-thousand-year Purifying Water Swan began its sacrifice.

The great swan lowered its proudly raised head and gently touched Gao Ren's forehead with its beak.

The next moment, crimson blood flames ignited across the Purifying Water Swan's body.

What burned was its blood, its life, and the cultivation it had amassed over more than ten thousand years.

The blood flames blazed ever higher, gradually turning from red to black—the color of a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

As the black flames spread, the Purifying Water Swan's body grew increasingly transparent.

When the Purifying Water Swan vanished completely, a black Soul Ring formed and slowly descended around Gao Ren, settling outside the Hundred-Year Soul Ring at his feet.

The power of the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring erupted at once. Gao Ren's Soul Power began to surge rapidly, smashing through the level-twenty bottleneck in an instant!

Level twenty-one, level twenty-two, level twenty-three... It climbed all the way to level twenty-eight before the Soul Power within him finally began to settle.

"Level twenty-eight Soul Power? At this rate, we'll be back in the Star Dou Great Forest in a few months," Xuan Zi exclaimed.

"Let us know before you come, and I'll have Uncle Scarlet King meet you," the Auspicious Beast said with a smile. "Next time, let us properly welcome you as our guests."

Noticing the Auspicious Beast looking at him, the Scarlet King nodded despite his helpless expression.

At the prospect of such a welcome, Xuan Zi promptly agreed. "Then we'll be troubling you and the Scarlet King again."

"No trouble at all," the Auspicious Beast said with a smile.

The Scarlet King: Of course it's no trouble for you. I'm the one getting saddled with it!

“A-Ren, use your second Soul Skill to make an Overlord Drumstick.” Xuan Zi rubbed his hands together expectantly. “I wonder what a Purifying Water Swan-flavored Overlord Drumstick tastes like.”

The Auspicious Beast: Me too! I want one too!

The Scarlet King realized he had started drooling without noticing and sucked it back in hard.

The Inner Court students, led by Zhang Lexuan, also stared at Gao Ren with shining eyes.

Seeing everyone so eager, Gao Ren immediately recited the Soul Chant for his second Soul Skill.

"Overlord Drumstick, sweep all evil clean; cast off every affliction, restore all to clarity—Pure World Overlord's Leg!"

As he spoke, Gao Ren took two large iron platters and fourteen small iron plates from his Storage Soul Tool, letting the Pure World Overlord’s Legs land neatly on them.

Everyone, Gao Ren included, received a Pure World Overlord’s Leg.

The Auspicious Beast and the Scarlet King received ten each. With mouths as large as theirs, one would probably be nothing more than a bite-sized snack.

"Kid, that's thoughtful of you!" The Scarlet King picked up his large platter in his jaws, pleased.

Xuan Zi, who had received his Pure World Overlord’s Leg first, stripped the meat off it as though peeling off clothes. Within seconds, nothing but bone remained.

“Overall, it tastes a bit like poached chicken,” he observed. “But the Overlord Drumstick's texture is worlds apart from ordinary chicken, so it's far more enjoyable than poached chicken.”

"With ginger-scallion sauce or sand ginger soy sauce, the flavor should reach another level!"

Gao Ren, who had yet to take a bite, took Xuan Zi's advice and went straight for the condiments.

"Delicious!"

No one there was suffering from a negative status effect, so the exact effects of the Pure World Overlord’s Leg remained unknown.