The Chatterbox Turtle

In the Star Dou Great Forest, Sword Douluo Chen Xin and Ning Fengzhi found an eight-thousand-year-old Curly-Tailed Turtle by a river.

Under normal circumstances, dealing with an eight-thousand-year-old Soul Beast would have been a breeze for a mighty Titled Douluo. But this Curly-Tailed Turtle gave Sword Douluo Chen Xin a headache. Its defense was astonishing, and it could even shut its shell tight.

Whenever the Curly-Tailed Turtle pulled its limbs, head, and tail into its shell, extra bone sealed the gaps left behind. Sword Douluo Chen Xin's Sword Qi could not hurt it at all.

"Uncle Jian, this Curly-Tailed Turtle is too strange. Why don't we give up?" Ning Fengzhi said helplessly as he watched it withstand every attack.

"Fengzhi, be quiet. For your sake and for my dignity, I'm prying this shell open no matter what," Sword Douluo Chen Xin said through gritted teeth.

"Eighth Soul Skill: Seven Kill Thunderclap! One Sword Splits the Sky!" Sword Qi swirled around Sword Douluo Chen Xin. He pointed the Seven Kill Sword skyward, then swung. A colossal sword of Sword Qi, crackling with immense lightning, slammed into the Curly-Tailed Turtle's octagonal shell.

Only a faint white line appeared on the shell. The blow had done no real damage. The Curly-Tailed Turtle stuck out its tail, wagged it at Sword Douluo Chen Xin, then pulled it back in.

"Damn it! You wretched turtle, are you trying to ruin my reputation?" Sword Douluo Chen Xin felt his composure crumble at the sight of that smug little tail wag.

Sword Douluo Chen Xin leaped into the air and swept the Seven Kill Sword in a circle. Countless flying swords appeared across the sky, all aimed at the Curly-Tailed Turtle. "Sixth Soul Skill: Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Sect!"

The flying swords struck the same spot on the turtle's shell in a clanging barrage, but did not hurt it one bit.

"Uncle Jian, give up. My ears hurt..." Ning Fengzhi said pitifully, covering them with his hands.

"Hmph." Sword Douluo Chen Xin landed in a foul mood. "Wretched turtle..."

"Well, if it isn't Sword Douluo. Have you so much time on your hands today that you're out here knocking on a turtle shell?" Lei Zhenyun said as he approached, mockery filling his voice.

"Ling Yuan Douluo, Heavenly Tyrant Douluo, Thunderbolt Douluo—I've made a fool of myself before you three seniors," Sword Douluo Chen Xin said awkwardly, his face as red as a pig's liver.

Huang Tieyi stared at the octagonal turtle shell by the river, three meters high and five meters long. After a moment, he remembered it. He had seen this enormous turtle in his sixth life, when he had been reborn as a Soft Bone Rabbit. This was no Soul Beast approaching ten thousand years of age. It was a hundred-and-thirty-thousand-year-old Octagonal Shield Turtle.

"Were you planning to give its Soul Ring to this boy?" Huang Batian asked, pointing at Ning Fengzhi.

"Yes. From what I observed, it was an eight-thousand-year-old Curly-Tailed Turtle. Its defense is remarkable, making it well suited to Fengzhi's fourth Soul Ring," Sword Douluo Chen Xin explained.

"You're mistaken, Sword Douluo. That isn't a Curly-Tailed Turtle. It's an Octagonal Shield Turtle. Judging by its enormous size, it must be the Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast recorded as a priority by Spirit Hall," Ling Yuan Douluo said.

"A hundred thousand years? Then what's it doing here?" Sword Douluo Chen Xin asked, his eyes wide with shock.

"Playing with fools!" The Octagonal Shield Turtle poked its head out, its voice dripping with mockery. "Human with the sword, keep hacking at me. Give me a good scratch..."

"You..." Furious, Sword Douluo Chen Xin swung the Seven Kill Sword at it. The turtle snapped its head back into its shell. Sword Qi struck the shell with a metallic clang, and that was all.

"Heh-heh, can't catch me, angry monkey..." The Octagonal Shield Turtle's taunting voice came from inside its shell. Sword Douluo Chen Xin's face flushed with embarrassment.

"That turtle shell looks tough! Let me try." Lei Zhenyun released his Thunder Leopard Martial Soul and immediately entered Martial Soul Possession. "Fifth Soul Skill: Heaven-Shaking Thunder!" Lightning coiled around his hand as he slammed it into the shell. The shell absorbed it in an instant. "Ooh, that tingles. How comfortable!" the Octagonal Shield Turtle said smugly from inside.

"Let's just go. Neither child needs a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's Soul Ring yet," Ling Yuan Douluo said helplessly.

"Fengzhi, since it's a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, let's go too," Sword Douluo Chen Xin said.

The Octagonal Shield Turtle felt the ground vibrate and realized they really were leaving. It immediately stuck its head out and shouted, "Humans, don't go! Let's play a little longer! You're welcome to come hack at me..."

Huang Tieyi and the others heard it but paid no attention and kept going. None of them needed its Soul Ring right now.

"Hey, humans! Can't you hear me? Let's play a little longer..." The Octagonal Shield Turtle extended all four limbs and its tail and followed them. It moved slowly, but the pressure of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast radiated from it, sending every nearby Soul Beast into hiding. "Hey, humans! Don't ignore me when I'm talking to you. We don't meet often. Meeting like this must be fate! We could at least have a chat..."

"That turtle is so noisy. I really want to pry its shell open and take a look..." Lei Zhentian said irritably, covering his ears.

"The noise is the lesser problem. Its pressure is making all the nearby Soul Beasts hide. That will make it hard to find a Soul Ring for the Saintess..." Ling Yuan Douluo said with a frown.

"Let's get rid of it..." Huang Batian said angrily as he released his Martial Soul. It was a Body Martial Soul—the Silver Saint Body.

"Big brother, that shell is too hard. It won't work," Lei Zhenyun said, looking at Huang Batian, who had entered Martial Soul Possession and become a silver-white giant over five meters tall.

"I'm going to move it, not kill it..." Huang Batian charged at the Octagonal Shield Turtle, making the ground tremble beneath him.

When the Octagonal Shield Turtle saw a Titled Douluo charging toward it, it immediately withdrew into its shell.

Huang Batian gripped the edge of the shell with both hands and unleashed all his strength to lift it. Veins bulged across his face as he gritted his teeth, his features contorted with effort. Even so, he managed only to pry up one side.

"Come on, human! Put your back into it! A little harder and my front feet might leave the ground..." the Octagonal Shield Turtle taunted from inside its shell.

Seeing his grandfather struggle to no effect, Huang Tieyi immediately released his Martial Soul and entered Martial Soul Possession. He became a golden giant over five meters tall and stepped forward to help. Together, grandfather and grandson finally lifted the Octagonal Shield Turtle...