A Million-Coin Tip, Solo Slaying a Ten-Thousand-Year Condensing Water Cold Luan, and a Blood River Treasure

Qilin's shimmering form bounded between sky and earth, leaving distinctive footprints across the Far North. Yu Tianjun glanced back from time to time; most of his pursuers were growing smaller and smaller.

Only that ten-thousand-year female Condensing Water Cold Luan King kept up her relentless pursuit!

"I said ages ago that this damned Far North was no place to stay. My first trip out, and I run into a ten-thousand-year soul beast. Just my luck..."

Yu Tianjun took out a firework soul tool to send up a warning, calling for the Heavenly Dragon Sect's soul masters to help.

"Um, we have devices for calling for help too. Could you find us somewhere to rest?"

Vina clung tightly to the horns on Qilin's head, her slender body bouncing up and down, her little face a picture of misery.

Afraid he would refuse, she hurriedly added, "I'll pay extra! One million gold soul coins, right now!"

Mu Xue held the horn on the other side of Qilin's head, no longer looking like an aloof beauty. "We'll keep our word."

"Really? Then swear on your martial souls that you won't tell anyone about anything you see next."

Yu Tianjun's eyes shifted as he said this to the two girls.

They immediately complied. Vina asked curiously, "What are you going to do that we can't tell anyone about?"

"You're about to find out."

Yu Tianjun snapped his fingers, using his spiritual power to turn the qilin around. It raised its head and puffed out its chest, facing the ten-thousand-year Condensing Water Cold Luan.

Seeing Yu Tianjun's demeanor turn razor-sharp again, as though he had returned to his earlier battle state, Mu Xue's pupils contracted in alarm.

"You're not planning to fight her, are you? She's a ten-thousand-year soul beast!"

As far as Vina knew, a Soul Elder challenging a ten-thousand-year soul beast like this alone was courting death. He would soon be in pieces scattered everywhere.

"Correct. But you can't tell anyone, or your martial souls will shatter."

As his words fell, Yu Tianjun used Water Release. A bridge of water formed between Qilin's shimmering body and the ground in the distance, gently carrying the two girls and the Snow Lotus away.

"Qilin, possess me!"

Yu Tianjun leaped down through the air. The Five-Element Qilin's phantom dissolved into a skyful of motes that merged into his body. A five-colored lotus of light blossomed over his heart—its green, red, yellow, white, and black petals unfurled layer by layer across his entire body, becoming reverse scales. Five-colored fluorescent patterns flowed along the edges of every scale, pulsing like living meridians.

In an instant, the sharpness of metal, vitality of wood, yielding softness of water, explosiveness of fire, and solidity of earth flashed and flowed across the scales in turn. His eyes became vertical pupils swirling with five colors. The five elements around him spontaneously gathered into wisps of five-colored light that wound and roamed around him as he breathed.

Water was the most abundant element in the Far North, followed by earth and wood, then metal and fire. Thus, the black radiance was strongest, green and yellow came next, and white and red were weakest.

To outside observers, whether the burdensome beauties Vina and Mu Xue who had been gently sent away or the Condensing Water Cold Luan King charging after him, this was an utterly genuine Five-Element Qilin possession. Yu Tianjun looked solemn and majestic, the five elements returning to their origin—he was practically the embodiment of strength and justice.

In reality, it was entirely an illusion Yu Tianjun had fabricated using his supreme innate talent, Myriad Forms.

His true appearance was one of darkness flooding the heavens, like an unrivaled god of slaughter descending—practically the arrival of the Holy Spirit Cult's Holy Son!

For now, however, there was nothing wrong with treating Yu Tianjun as a Five-Element Qilin soul master. All his abilities originated in darkness, but he could express them through other elements as well, including his soul skills.

"We're a little far from Dragon City. I reckon my elders will need some time to get here—at least half an hour."

Smiling, Yu Tianjun raised two fingers and pointed at the opponent in the sky, who looked capable of crushing him.

"So you'd better let me kill you within half an hour. Otherwise, your end will be miserable."

"Screee!"

The Condensing Water Cold Luan King roared. A ten-thousand-year soul beast had intelligence comparable to a six-year-old human child. Her phoenix bloodline made hers a little higher, equivalent to an eight-year-old's, enough to recognize the mockery in his words.

You think a mere three-ring soul master can kill me? Just watch me kill you and devour your Qilin bloodline! I'll evolve into an Ice Phoenix, become the Far North's fourth heavenly king, and restore the Ice Phoenix's glory!

She beat her wings and swooped down. A blizzard rose, tornadoes churning through the frozen sky.

"First soul skill, Five Elements Return to Origin."

Yu Tianjun narrowed his eyes and lit up his first soul ring. Five-colored patterns of light covered his body, activating his Qilin bloodline and increasing all his attributes by thirty percent. Each attack could refine one-fifth of the soul power his opponent used to resist it and bring that power back to replenish his own.

If he revealed his true Dark Qilin form, all his attributes would increase by fifty percent, and the amount of his opponent's resisting soul power he could refine would rise to one-third. Unless a single strike exceeded his endurance limit, the effect would remain active.

At that moment, he raised his Qilin Arm. Water elements surged, condensing around him into a blue Qilin claw a meter long that shot into the sky.

The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's signature soul skill, Thunder Dragon Claw—the water Qilin version!

At the Heavenly Dragon Sect, Yu Tianjun did indeed have excellent teaching resources. His elders had explained the profound principles behind the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's soul skills one by one, letting him pick up plenty of semi-self-created soul skills for free, such as Thunder Dragon Claw, Thunderous Might, and Blue Lightning Divine Dragon Rush.

Powered by the Five-Element Qilin, these three offensive soul skills were stronger than their original versions.

The Snow Empress had once said that even Di Tian might not be able to defeat her in the Far North, where she could harness its vast reserves of ice elements in battle.

For Yu Tianjun, the principle was the same. The Qilin's elemental talent likewise allowed him to harness the Far North's elemental power in battle, though the amplification was not as great.

Boom!

The Qilin claw shook the Cold Luan Feng and snow before shattering with a crash. Immediately afterward, a vast surge of soul power flooded into Yu Tianjun's body. To him, that result hardly counted as a loss.

"If you can't suppress me in one move, you're doomed."

Feeling his body brimming with strength, Yu Tianjun repeatedly used Water Release to shift positions, vanishing into thin air and suddenly reappearing to launch surprise attacks from different directions.

Occasionally, he used the Darkness Escape Technique, emerging from his opponent's shadow to strike forward with his Qilin Arm before slipping back into darkness.

His second soul ring flashed repeatedly. Every Five-Element Space-Splitting Slash raised a mist of blood, leaving shimmering, swirling five-colored "space-splitting" claw marks in his opponent's wounds.

He struck and ran, never taking an attack head-on. Yet because he moved so quickly, this Ghost assassin's battle looked from the outside like a thunderous, all-out duel between Yu Tianjun and a powerful ten-thousand-year soul beast.

"I've never seen a three-ring Battle Soul Elder like this. Is this the power of a Qilin martial soul?"

Mu Xue stared blankly into the sky at the Qilin prodigy battling a ten-thousand-year soul beast with a Phoenix Bloodline as a mere Soul Elder, fighting as valiantly as a Soul Emperor. She almost no longer recognized her own soul rings.

They both had three rings, and only four levels separated them. How could the gap be so enormous?

"Now I think that perhaps, once my second martial soul awakens, I might have a tiny chance of catching up to him."

Vina hung her head dejectedly, trembling as she held the little Snow Lotus that was nearly two thousand years old. Touching her full bosom, the girl felt as though she were dreaming.

Soul masters under twenty all counted as the younger generation. Few among them could stand against this ten-thousand-year Cold Luan; perhaps only members of the seeded teams that reached the semifinals in past tournaments could manage it.

"There's something else I've been wondering about. Why could his martial soul leave his body and fight earlier?"

Mu Xue raised a very important question.

Vina furrowed her brows, drawing on her knowledge as the Heaven Dou Empire's Princess to attempt an explanation. "There's a secret technique in the soul master world called Martial Soul Mimicry. If a soul master's first soul ring comes from something with the same form as their martial soul, they may be able to master it."

"Once they master Martial Soul Mimicry, their martial soul can leave their body and fight."

"However, Martial Soul Mimicry itself doesn't enhance the soul master very much. It mainly changes how they fight."

After thinking about it, Mu Xue's beautiful eyes filled with longing. "He's worked wonders with Martial Soul Mimicry. It can fight and run, and he doesn't even have to move his own legs. He's ridiculously cool."

Vina giggled. "Falling for him, Sister Xue? Why don't we visit the Heavenly Dragon Sect and meet his family?"

"How does telling the truth mean I'm falling for him? Stop teasing."

Mu Xue rejected her best friend's attempt to sell her out and reminded her, "Now I understand why he made us swear. If word of this talent gets out, can your imperial family keep him safe? Shrek might well come snatch him away."

"He's so irreverent. He definitely wouldn't want to go to Shrek and work for them for free, doing those blasted Inspection Corps Missions."

That remark swept away Vina's smile and good mood.

Her best friend had struck the imperial family right where it hurt. The powerless Princess put on a mask of pain. Looking as dispirited as a helpless husband, Vina muttered:

"Don't bring up that Inspection Corps. Most of the people who die are from our Heaven Dou Empire."

Every year, people entered the Shrek Inner Court, and every year, people died, keeping its numbers steady at fewer than a hundred. The Heaven Dou Empire supplied the most students, and on average, every six months it received news that a genius born within its borders had been written off at Shrek Academy. The pain was enough to tear out one's heart.

Of the three living Ultimate Douluos, both Mu En and Long Xiaoyao came from the Heaven Dou Empire. The Body Sect and the previous season's big three were all within its borders.

In Huo Gua's generation of the Shrek Seven Monsters, everyone except Huo Gua and He Caitou came from Heaven Dou. Clearly, the Heaven Dou Empire was the entire continent's reservoir of talent.

There were plenty of geniuses, but they all left the empire far behind. If you weren't a Princess, you couldn't understand the pain.

"Anyway, I absolutely won't let Shrek take him away. When I get back, I'll have Father replace Dragon City's city lord. He can forget about ever getting a recommendation letter!"

Vina's expression was resolute. The empire's previous admissions staff had all been incompetent fools, squandering talent and humiliating the nation. She would take matters into her own hands!

"Ooh, looks like our Princess has fallen for him. But I think your father wants to marry you to a genius from the Body Sect," Mu Xue teased with a smile.

Vina protested, "I haven't even met the Body Sect's genius. No, wait, I haven't fallen for him... stop laughing. He's using his third soul skill."

"I'm not laughing. Do you think he really could solo a ten-thousand-year soul beast... ah?!"

Mu Xue's smile froze before she realized it.

On the battlefield between earth and sky, a deep, magnificent purple soul ring blazed with light. Countless five-colored motes spilled from Yu Tianjun's body, condensing into five translucent human figures—

The white one was sharp, the green one ethereal, the black one supple, the red one blazing, and the yellow one solid. Every figure had exactly the same face as Yu Tianjun.

Without a doubt, this was a clone soul skill, the envy of everyone in the soul master world.

Each clone's aura was fifty percent as strong as the original's. They lunged at the Condensing Water Cold Luan King from five directions at once, throwing the battle into chaos with five-element escape techniques. In an instant, it became a one-sided six-on-one beating.

"Screee!"

Even burning her bloodline, the Condensing Water Cold Luan King could not endure this righteous group beating. Soon, she let out a mournful cry, raising her head in a long shriek. Blue flames ignited across her body as she spiraled upward, separating out a phoenix phantom that soared to strike the heavens!

Burning her bloodline and awakening the phoenix's power, she unleashed a desperate strike: Ice Phoenix Descends.

Yu Tianjun's original body stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm. He said unhurriedly, "You could have escaped if you'd used that earlier. Now you can't."

His second and third soul rings shone in succession. All five clones converged on the original body, condensing into a five-colored space-splitting blade several times larger than before.

Ring Fusion, an ability that had appeared among elemental soul masters at the Soul Fighting Tournament ten thousand years ago, emerged once more in this era. It activated multiple soul skills simultaneously, greatly increasing explosive power.

"Soul Ring Combination Skill, Five Elements Combined Void-Splitting Slash."

His qilin arm seized the blade of light and slashed toward the sky, like a qilin beast trampling its way into the heavens. The Condensing Water Cold Luan King lost the head-on clash. Her body was severed at the waist, then exploded into chunks of flesh, raining blood over the Far North.

Boom!

The giant luan's scattered remains smashed bloody craters into the ground, and a soul ring as black as ink rose from the earth.

"Done."

Yu Tianjun clapped his hands, then flew down in front of the Cold Luan King's remains and began feeling around with his still-transformed qilin arm.

"Are you looking for a soul bone? I can give you one as thanks for saving our lives. I guarantee it'll be a high-quality one at least fifty thousand years old."

Supporting each other, Vina and Mu Xue walked over, their expressions awestruck, as though they had beheld a celestial being.

Putting the greater good first, Princess Vina decided to raid the treasury's gold to recruit a future peerless genius for the empire.

"Thanks, but my luck's pretty good. Maybe this soul beast died full of resentment, feeling humiliated that a nobody like me had killed her."

Yu Tianjun pulled with both hands, drawing a bone the size of an infant's arm from the Cold Luan King's left wing. The bone was snow-white, wreathed in pale blue soul light, and felt pleasantly cool.

A Condensing Water Cold Luan Left Arm Bone, ten-thousand-year grade, ice attribute, with a faint but pure phoenix bloodline. On the market, it would sell for somewhere in the tens of millions of gold soul coins—a genuine Blood River Treasure.

Vina and Mu Xue were speechless at the sight. A ten thousand year soul bone, just like that?

"Who dares call the Heavenly Dragon Sect's Qilin prodigy a nobody?"

A voice brimming with killing intent tore through the air. A streak of cyan-blue lightning descended from the sky, landing a short distance from the three youngsters. As the soul light faded, a tall old man in blue robes stepped out.

"You finally made it, old sir."

Seeing his powerful backer arrive, Yu Tianjun quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Mu Xue and Vina exchanged glances, seeing the surprise in each other's eyes, then bowed to the old man together.

"We pay our respects to Your Eminence Thunderclap."

Thunderclap Douluo was the title of the Heavenly Dragon Sect's previous sect master.