Million-Year Soul Ring, God-bestowed Soul Ring?

Underground, a sacrifice was beginning.

Gu Ming accepted Tian Meng's spiritual origin and felt his Sea of Consciousness fill considerably. Ten spheres of light entered it, and even his first martial soul released itself involuntarily as his soul power soared.

From his initial rank twelve, it shot straight up to rank fifteen.

Tian Meng floated beside Gu Ming and said smugly, "You bastards all absorbed my origin, but you never expected me to have a plan ready. What I left in Star Dou was only a clone. Go tear each other apart in your own nest."

"One day, I'll turn every last one of you into soul rings."

Immediately afterward, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm merged completely into Gu Ming's body, and his first brilliant golden Million-Year Soul Ring slowly rose from beneath his feet.

Gu Ming's aura changed dramatically at that moment.

In the blink of an eye, the next day arrived.

Zhongli Wu fought a great battle against the ferocious beasts and, unsurprisingly, fled in defeat.

No matter how powerful an Evil Soul Master was, a single Super Douluo could do nothing against so many ferocious beasts. His only choice was to flee in defeat.

When Gu Ming awoke again, he found himself lying beside a small stream. There were no soul beasts nearby, though countless little fish swam through the water.

After briefly checking his body, he discovered that Tian Meng's ten spheres of light were still in his Sea of Consciousness. His million-year first soul ring also rose from beneath his feet.

The only surprise was that Tian Meng's consciousness seemed to have vanished, as though he had never been there at all.

Gu Ming was a little puzzled.

Could his soul have been too weak, causing him to disappear right after the sacrifice?

He turned toward the Tianjing Beast and Spider King lying beside the stream and asked, "Do you know where that big worm went?"

The Tianjing Beast raised its head and spoke in a human voice. "That big worm's spiritual consciousness was too low-level. He fell asleep after merging and probably won't be able to wake up anytime soon."

The Spider King said, "Master, his spiritual origin is a tremendous source of nourishment."

Hearing this, Gu Ming finally understood.

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm must have been affected by the Tianjing Beast's aura and fallen into a temporary slumber, unable to wake up for a while.

That was a good thing, too.

At least he wouldn't have someone talking in his head all day.

Just then, the Star Dou Great Forest erupted into turmoil again. An aura belonging to no faction rampaged through it, killing every soul beast it encountered and leaving large numbers dead or wounded.

Gu Ming immediately recognized Zhongli Wu's aura. He stood up and shouted, "Cult Leader, I'm here!"

Sure enough, several kilometers away, Zhongli Wu was slaughtering soul beasts in a frenzy when he sensed that faint ripple of spiritual power. He gradually calmed down and headed in its direction.

A few minutes later, Zhongli Wu spotted Gu Ming beside the stream, and clarity returned to his blood-red eyes.

No one knew how he had endured that day.

The cult leader had personally taken the Holy Son out to hunt soul beasts, only to lose him. He would have been too ashamed to face anyone upon returning to the Holy Church.

That was why Zhongli Wu had gone mad.

But now he had calmed down.

Seeing the cult leader he had been longing for, Gu Ming called out, "Cult Leader, I finally found you."

After landing, Zhongli Wu first checked Gu Ming's physical condition, then asked anxiously, "Holy Son, are you all right? This was all my fault for failing to look after you. That damned Beast God Di Tian tricked me."

"One day, I'll skin Di Tian alive. He infuriates me!"

Gu Ming shook his head to show he was fine, then recounted what had happened after he lost consciousness, slipping his own embellishments into the story.

As Zhongli Wu listened, he was initially still shaken, but his furrowed brow gradually relaxed.

Thankfully, the Holy Son was unharmed.

If something really had happened to the Holy Son, he would have been too ashamed to face the Holy Spirit Cult's followers upon returning. It would have been an indelible stain on his life.

Finally, when Zhongli Wu heard about the supposed God-bestowed Soul Ring, he sucked in a cold breath and said, "Let me see it."

Gu Ming nodded and released the soul ring of his first martial soul.

The moment that supreme, sacred, brilliant golden million-year first soul ring rose, Zhongli Wu's mind went blank.

A Million-Year Soul Ring. It really was a Million-Year Soul Ring. The Holy Church was going to have a child sent by heaven.

With this boy, the Holy Church could reemerge on the continent within a hundred years.

Even several minutes later, Zhongli Wu still couldn't believe that everything before him was real, until Gu Ming called him out of his daze.

Zhongli Wu coughed and said with a chuckle, "Since you somehow acquired a Million-Year Soul Ring, that's a good thing. It shows you have the potential to become a god, boy. With you in the Holy Church, I can rest easy."

"It's all thanks to your excellent guidance, Cult Leader."

Gu Ming modestly cupped his hands again, his words leaving Zhongli Wu thoroughly pleased.

After a few dry chuckles, Zhongli Wu scooped Gu Ming up and said, "Since our mission is complete, we'll return to the Holy Church at once. We can't linger here, and we should stay out of the continent's sight as much as possible."

With that, he left the Star Dou Great Forest with Gu Ming.

One month later.

At the training grounds in the Evil Demon Forest, the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters.

Gu Ming had fully adjusted to life in the Holy Spirit Cult and begun his own cultivation plan, growing stronger step by step.

His coordination with his Spider Martial Soul was also becoming increasingly seamless.

In truth, the Holy Spirit Cult wasn't rotten through and through. Cult Leader Zhongli Wu went out all day to pursue his ambitions and expand the holy cult, while Deputy Cult Leader Feng Ling trained with Gu Ming every day. Life was rather harmonious.

As for the elders, aside from a few particular Evil Soul Masters, Zhang Peng and the others weren't especially bad. At least their interests differed.

This made Gu Ming all the more certain of one thing.

Even if he became a righteous Soul Master, once he revealed his Spider Martial Soul with its demonic aura, Shrek would still label him an Evil Soul Master and hunt him without end.

In the end, he would be forced into the Holy Spirit Cult.

He had merely joined the Holy Spirit Cult a little earlier now. The timing had moved up.

Meanwhile, certain little devils in Shrek, such as Xuan Zi, had brought ruin upon plenty of Inner Court students, yet were still alive and well—and even held positions as Sea God Pavilion Elders.

This truly was a world without reason. Villains ran rampant outside, while honest, law-abiding people were falsely accused of being Evil Soul Masters.

Just then, Feng Ling approached gracefully with a longsword in hand. Raising an eyebrow, she said, "Holy Son, today's lesson is practical combat."

Gu Ming's expression stiffened. "Big Sister, isn't that unfair? You're a Super Douluo, after all. I'm only a One-Ring Soul Master."

Feng Ling chuckled. "I knew you'd try to talk your way out of it with that glib tongue. But without proper discipline, how will you become a Holy Son who stands tall between heaven and earth? How will you revitalize the Holy Church?"

"Starting today, I won't use my martial soul or soul skills. You may attack me however you like, but I won't hold back either. I hope you'll become stronger under my tutelage."

Gu Ming took a deep breath, grabbed his Spider Martial Soul, and charged forward with tremendous speed.

Seeing this, Feng Ling's lips curved into a smile, and she moved even faster.

Several of Gu Ming's attacks were blocked. Instead, he took a brutal beating from Feng Ling, who even chased him down to hit him.

"Damn it!"

Gu Ming gritted his teeth and attacked again, unleashing his physical strength to clash head-on with Feng Ling.

Boom!

Gu Ming flew away like a cannonball, again and again, getting back up to fight every time.

His Spider Martial Soul's silk couldn't restrain her, and even its attacks weren't powerful enough.

But so what? One day, he would surpass anyone.

Gu Ming gripped his Spider Martial Soul and roared, "Again!"