Once things had settled down, the group entered the Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest, roaming around in search of a suitable Soul Ring for Yang Chang'an.
The search went on for several days.
Honestly, if Yang Wushuang had been the only one accompanying him, some of the Soul Beasts would have been serviceable. After all, finding a Soul Ring came down to fate. How could everything be absolutely perfect? Good enough would do.
The problem was that Qianjun Douluo was leading the group this time.
What sort of temper did that old master have? Could a Soul Ring for his own disciple be merely serviceable? Could good enough possibly do?
Impossible.
So over the past few days, they had wandered through more than half the Mixed Zone and examined no fewer than twenty Soul Beasts, yet Qianjun Douluo had rejected every last one.
"This one won't do. Too young."
"That one won't do either. Its attributes don't match."
"What even is this thing? It has the nerve to call itself a Soul Beast?"
Yang Wushuang: "..."
Jin Li'er: "..."
Yang Chang'an, on the other hand, took it in stride. With his teacher leading the search, they could take their time. What was the rush?
Finally, on the fifth day, they discovered a hulking creature sunning itself in a corner of a thorn-choked hollow.
It was a golden, lizard-shaped Soul Beast, a size larger than the Golden-Scaled Giant Crocodile Jin Li'er had previously absorbed. Golden scales covered its body, glittering in the sunlight and giving it an imposing, majestic appearance.
It lay there, lazily swishing its tail and occasionally yawning to reveal a mouthful of gleaming white teeth.
"Golden Earth Dragon!" Jin Li'er's eyes instantly lit up, and she nearly jumped into the air. "It's a Golden Earth