Evil Soul Master, Ye Guyi

Kong Deming's first reaction was not delight, but worry.

He did not know whether the speed at which those cells divided would harm Xu Tiance.

But when Xu Tiance opened his eyes and Kong Deming saw how bright and alert they were, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Xu Tiance rose from the ground, a genuine smile touching his face. His physique had undoubtedly surpassed that of an ordinary person. With a body like this, absorbing a Soul Ring beyond the optimal age limit would be no problem.

By a conservative estimate, he could absorb an eight-hundred-year Soul Ring.

"Tiance, your height..."

Only when Kong Deming pointed it out did Xu Tiance notice that he seemed to have grown taller. His trousers, which had fit perfectly before, were now noticeably short, exposing a strip of his calves.

It seemed the rapid cell division had increased the division of his cartilage cells, spurring his growth.

Xu Tiance had been raised in luxury and was already a little taller than his peers. Now he stood taller by a considerable margin.

But to Xu Tiance, that was no bad thing. For a man, being tall was a good thing—far better than being short. As long as he did not grow so tall that his limbs looked out of proportion, he was fine with it.

"Tiance, I sensed your cells dividing at tremendous speed just now, greatly improving your physique. Do you... feel any discomfort?"

Discomfort?

No. I've never felt better!

Xu Tiance gave a brief reply, a faint smile appearing on his face.

Although swallowing the Whale Rubber had triggered the rapid cell division, it proved that the still-vague ideas in his mind had a basis. Even without adding a single Soul Ring to his Primordial Cells Martial Soul, he could continue developing it on a deeper level according to its unique properties.

A thoughtful look appeared in Kong Deming's eyes as well.

The Primordial Cells Martial Soul was far more mysterious and powerful than he had imagined. Unfortunately, he could offer no guidance or useful advice on this Martial Soul.

It seemed he needed to put cooperation with the Body Sect on the agenda.

The next morning, Kong Deming took Xu Tiance out of Mingdu and headed for the Star Dou Great Forest. Besides Kong Deming, an elder from the Offering Hall accompanied Xu Tiance.

Kong Deming placed great importance on Xu Tiance and feared that any mishap might befall him. To guard against the unexpected, he had brought the elder along to make doubly sure of his safety.

The elder was someone Xu Tiance knew fairly well: Ye Yulin, a rank ninety-two Titled Douluo and Level 9 Soul Engineer, whose title was Starry Sky.

Ye Yulin had been present when Huo Yuhao competed in Mingdu's underground Soul Engineer tournament. His signature creation, the Sun Moon Divine Needle, had ultimately become the prize Huo Yuhao won for taking first place.

Xu Tiance naturally had no objection.

Why would he object to having another Titled Douluo protect him?

"With your current physique, absorbing a Soul Ring over seven hundred years old will pose no problem. As for what kind of Soul Beast we should hunt, I spent all last night sorting through the possibilities."

Inside the soul-engineered carriage pulled by a Hornscale Horse, Kong Deming sat with Xu Tiance, while Ye Yulin kept watch outside the compartment.

"Your Martial Soul is the Sun-Moon Radiance Martial Soul, one that no one has ever awakened before. It possesses several attributes, including Ultimate Fire, Ultimate Light, mental power, and space. In principle, Soul Beasts of any of those attributes could be candidates for your Soul Ring. But with so many attributes, we must make a choice. Tiance, what kind of Soul Beast do you think we should hunt for your First Soul Ring?"

Xu Tiance furrowed his brow and thought for a moment before answering. "I don't know what attribute you want me to absorb, Teacher. But I'm certain you aren't thinking of a Mental Attribute Soul Beast."

"Oh? Why?"

"Although the Star Dou Great Forest is home to Soul Beasts of all kinds and attributes, there are more Mental Attribute Soul Beasts in the places where Soul Beasts gather in our Sun Moon Empire. If we wanted to hunt one, we wouldn't need to come all this way to the Star Dou Great Forest."

Kong Deming paused at Xu Tiance's explanation, then smiled. "You sly little rascal. You're right. I wasn't considering a Mental Attribute Soul Beast for your First Soul Ring."

"The Soul Masters of the Three Great Empires and Shrek Academy have more or less worked out the best early Soul Rings for a Soul Master. Soul Beasts that grant enhancement-type Soul Skills are unquestionably the best choice at that stage. So our first consideration is a fire- or light-attribute Soul Beast that can grant you an enhancement-type Soul Skill. Of course, exactly what we hunt will depend on what we find."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Ye Yulin's voice sounded from outside the compartment.

"Elder Kong, something seems to have happened up ahead."

Kong Deming frowned and lifted the curtain beside him, sending out his powerful mental energy at the same time.

In an instant, Kong Deming's pupils contracted, and shock crossed his face. "Such a brutal massacre happened here?"

A massacre?

Xu Tiance lowered his head to glance at the map beside him.

They had crossed the border of the Sun Moon Empire and reached Maple Leaf Prefecture, a mid-sized city in the Heaven Dou Empire. A massacre here... Well, Xu Tiance had no memory of one.

Massacres were not uncommon on the Douluo Continent. With Evil Soul Masters around, entire families were wiped out all too often. In the original story, Zhang Lexuan, Tang Ya, Nana, and Ye Guyi had all suffered similar ordeals. They were surely far from the only ones in this world.

But Kong Deming's next words made Xu Tiance pause.

"Hm? There's actually a survivor... And the survivor has an Angel Martial Soul?"

"Not just that. An Evil Soul Master is chasing the child with the Angel Martial Soul," Ye Yulin added from outside.

An Angel Martial Soul... a massacre... being hunted down.

Could the survivor Kong Deming mentioned be Ye Guyi?

There were few people with an Angel Martial Soul in Peerless Tang Sect. Add a massacre and pursuit by an Evil Soul Master... In all likelihood, it was Ye Guyi.

"Ye Yulin, let's go take a look."

Ye Yulin answered at once and drove the soul-engineered carriage faster.