The Second Soul Hunt

For the next three months and more, Lu Yang remained immersed in cultivation.

During that time, Qian Renxue visited a few more times. She never stayed long, however, leaving after asking how things were going, as though she were merely reminding him of her presence.

Those months of arduous cultivation brought rapid growth in Lu Yang's cultivation. When he first arrived in Heaven Dou City, he had only been around rank fifteen. Now, more than three months later, he had reached rank twenty and could obtain his second Soul Ring.

Even with the trait his Martial Soul granted him, which increased his Soul Power cultivation and recovery rates fivefold under sunlight, this cultivation speed was considerably faster than that of ordinary Soul Masters. Lu Yang pondered this for a long time.

Ultimately, he reached a conclusion. His Sun God Martial Soul likely possessed an ultimate attribute.

Lu Yang had overlooked this because a sun Martial Soul had also appeared in the original Douluo Continent story. It was the hereditary Martial Soul of the Sun Moon Empire's imperial family during the Peerless Tang Sect era. However, the fire attribute of their inherited sun Martial Soul only approached ultimate fire rather than being an ultimate attribute itself. This had led Lu Yang to overlook the possibility after awakening his Martial Soul.

Qian Renxue was also startled when she received word that Lu Yang wanted to obtain his second Soul Ring.

"Uncle She Long, when Lu Yang first came to Heaven Dou City, his Soul Power should have only been around rank fourteen or fifteen, right? In just over three months, not even four, his cultivation has risen by as many as five ranks. He hasn't been in contact with any outsiders or taken anything that burns through his potential during this time, has he?" Qian Renxue asked.

"Young mistress, I don't believe so," She Long replied.

"You don't believe so?" Qian Renxue was somewhat dissatisfied with that answer.

"Young mistress, Lu Yang doesn't live in the Crown Prince's Residence, after all, and I can't keep watch over him constantly. But the people assigned to his place are our own. They wouldn't deceive us," She Long explained.

"That's true. But in that case, Lu Yang's talent is rather terrifying," Qian Renxue remarked.

"Then, regarding his second Soul Ring?" She Long asked.

"Of course we should help him obtain it as soon as possible. Since we've decided to recruit him, we should naturally give him the best treatment. Let me make some arrangements. We'll set out tomorrow and help him hunt down a suitable Soul Ring," Qian Renxue said.

This time, she intended to accompany him herself.

Lu Yang's first Soul Ring had already exceeded a thousand years in age. Qian Renxue was eager to see just how old a Soul Ring he intended to absorb for his second.

Qian Renxue was not the only one curious about the Soul Ring's age. Lu Yang himself was considering it as well.

Before absorbing his first Soul Ring, Lu Yang had asked Su Yuntao to examine his physical condition. Likewise, before absorbing his second Soul Ring, he wanted someone to examine him so that he could determine his condition before deciding on its age.

Even without an examination, however, Lu Yang felt that his physique should have improved considerably. This was not merely a blind assumption. Since arriving in Heaven Dou City, the treatment Qian Renxue had provided him was far better than anything he had received in Windbreath Village or Nuoding City.

His daily meals now included meat from Soul Beasts of considerable age. Snake Lance Douluo had even sent him ingredients for medicinal baths, all of which helped strengthen his physique.

With these resources, his physique improved rapidly. If he had the opportunity, he really wanted to seek out Dugu Bo, feed him the Immortal Herb password, and eat the singular velvet sky chrysanthemum growing in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to raise his physique another notch.

Early the following morning, Qian Renxue arrived at the courtyard with She Long. They picked up Lu Yang, then left Heaven Dou City directly and headed toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

Inside the carriage, Lu Yang spoke first. "Your Eminence She Long, could you please examine my body? I'd like to know how my current physique compares to that of an ordinary Soul Master."

Hearing Lu Yang's request, She Long suspected nothing and placed a hand on his shoulder. After channeling Soul Power into Lu Yang's body and examining him, he reached a conclusion.

"Your physique should be somewhat stronger than that of an ordinary Soul Elder. Compared to a Soul Ancestor, though, you may still fall a little short," She Long answered.

"I see," Lu Yang replied, then began calculating how old his second Soul Ring should be.

"Then I'll aim for a second Soul Ring around five thousand years old," Lu Yang decided after a while.

"Five thousand years? That's an age even ordinary Soul Ancestors wouldn't lightly attempt. Are you certain?" She Long asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes, I'm certain," Lu Yang answered firmly.

"When I was studying at the Soul Master Academy in Nuoding City, I read many accounts in the library about Soul Masters absorbing Soul Rings. Most of those books didn't specify a clear age limit for the Soul Rings one could absorb. Those that did only offered recommendations on age, along with precautions."

"What I saw most often was that if someone absorbed a Soul Ring beyond what they could withstand, their body would be unable to endure its energy and burst, killing them. Back then, I wondered just what determined the age a person could withstand."

"So when I absorbed my first Soul Ring, I used myself as an experiment. I asked Brother Tao to examine my body, and he said my physique was stronger than that of an ordinary One-Ring Soul Master, but hadn't yet reached the level of a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster. That was why I initially set my target at a Soul Ring around seven to eight hundred years old."

"But Brother Tao and I encountered a thousand-year-old Mutated Flamefire Sparrow. After killing it, I worked up the courage to try absorbing its Thousand-Year Soul Ring. I wouldn't say the process was all that easy, but it mostly just took a great deal of time. So I think my guess was correct. Absorbing Soul Rings-at least ten-year, hundred-year, and thousand-year ones-should depend only on one's physique. As long as the body can withstand it, absorbing a thousand-year ring as one's first Soul Ring need not be something that happens only through a miracle."

"Well..." After hearing Lu Yang's explanation, She Long was at a loss for how to respond.

"Little Yang, did you never think about what would happen if you failed?" Qian Renxue asked.

"Uh, I didn't think that much about it back then." Lu Yang scratched his head. He could not possibly reveal his previous life to Qian Renxue, so he could only offer an excuse to brush the matter aside.

"But now I'm quite confident that my original theory was right. So I'll choose a Soul Ring around five thousand years old for my second," Lu Yang said.

Seeing how certain Lu Yang was, She Long had intended to try persuading him again, but Qian Renxue nodded in agreement. With her and She Long accompanying him, taking down a Soul Beast around five thousand years old would be no great difficulty.