Ye Qing's light attribute had already reached the ultimate level. Adding another light-attribute Soul Ring would offer little benefit now, and light-attribute Soul Beasts with top-tier bloodlines were exceedingly rare.
Mu En's meaning was clear.
The tiger was the king of the forest. Beyond elemental attacks, it also needed formidable close-combat prowess. With his Holy Light Shuttle skill, Ye Qing would be difficult to shake off, so strengthening his close-combat abilities was necessary as well.
Just like the White Tiger Martial Soul passed down through the Star Luo Dai Family, whose members were all born warriors.
"For Qing'er's third Soul Ring, let's choose a ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. This time, I'll personally hunt the Soul Beast for him!" Mu En said gravely.
In close combat, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear stood in a class of its own, surpassed only by True Dragon Soul Beasts. No one knew how many True Dragon Soul Beasts remained in the Star Dou Great Forest, but a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear would certainly be easier to find.
As for a light-attribute Soul Ring, once Ye Qing's physical strength met the requirements, he could directly absorb a light-attribute Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring. No matter how one looked at it, the benefits would be greater than absorbing one now.
Mu En had high hopes for Ye Qing and did not want him to have any weaknesses.
Choosing a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear for his third Soul Ring was just right. Whether he gained its terrifying offensive power or its defensive enhancement, it would greatly strengthen his close-combat abilities.
A ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear could already go toe-to-toe with an ordinary Titled Douluo. Although the Titled Douluo would ultimately kill it, its dying counterattack would still be brutally fierce.
That was why Mu En intended to act personally.
He had not fought in a long time, but for this disciple who had attained the ultimate attribute, he did not mind getting out and stretching his legs.
"Elder Mu, you..." Ye Feng's voice was half delighted, half worried.
Although no one in the Sea God Pavilion knew the exact state of Mu En's health or how much longer he could live, everyone knew that his grievous injuries had never healed and that his days were numbered.
Ye Feng was delighted that an ultimate powerhouse like Mu En would help hunt Ye Qing's Soul Ring, yet he also worried about Mu En's health.
"It's fine. These old bones can still move around a little." Mu En saw Ye Feng's concern and waved his hand with a smile.
If he did not get out now, then in another couple of years, as his condition worsened, he would no longer be able to move around even if he wanted to...
And that was indeed the case.
When ordinary people were gravely ill, the closer they came to the end of their lives, the harder it became to move. Eventually, even lifting a hand took effort.
Mu En was no different. During these years, the Dragon Core's baleful energy had not yet completely destroyed his soul, so he could still go fishing with Ye Qing. In a few more years, he would hardly want to do anything except bask in the sun.
When Ye Qing learned that Mu En would actually be taking him to hunt his Soul Ring this time, he was quite surprised.
But Mu En gave him no chance to think further. Ye Qing felt the world spin, and the scenery before him changed from Shrek Academy to a forest.
It had probably taken only... a few breaths?
The spatial power of a Limit Douluo...
Seeing Ye Qing's shocked expression, Mu En merely smiled. He had no intention of explaining this ability to him. Ye Qing had not even obtained his third Soul Ring yet, and the realm of a Limit Douluo was far too distant. Telling him about it now would only clutter his thoughts and make him reach for heights beyond his grasp.
Next, Mu En showed Ye Qing what it meant to be a Limit Douluo.
The vast Star Dou Great Forest was like a back garden beneath Mu En's feet. Every time he lifted a foot and set it down, they arrived somewhere new. A sweep of his spiritual power was enough to inspect an entire area.
An ordinary Soul Hunting party would have almost no chance of encountering a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, yet Mu En found three within a single hour.
Two were thousand-year beasts, and one was a forty-thousand-year beast.
None of these three Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears was suitable for Ye Qing's Soul Ring. Mu En had no intention of killing them for Soul Bones either, and took the opportunity to teach Ye Qing about them.
"As top-tier Soul Beasts, Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears have a high chance of producing Soul Bones, but their species also has tremendous difficulty reproducing. Bringing a new Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear into the world is extraordinarily difficult," Mu En said.
"Slaughtering Soul Beasts without restraint will only leave Soul Masters with no rings to use in the end. Little Ye Qing, remember this: unless it's necessary, avoid killing Soul Beasts indiscriminately."
"Of course, if one pursues you relentlessly, you needn't hold back. In a Soul Beast forest, whatever the battle, you must end it swiftly."
"I understand, Teacher." Ye Qing nodded.
Whether he would actually do so was another matter. When his teacher was instructing him, he would nod and agree first. Being well-behaved was the whole point.
His "attitude toward learning" also greatly pleased Mu En. The intervals between their spatial jumps grew longer, and whenever they encountered a relatively rare Soul Beast, he would stop to teach Ye Qing a little about it.
Over the next three hours, Mu En found another four Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears.
Of these four Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears, the first was another thousand-year beast and unsuitable for Ye Qing. The second and third were a mated pair. The male had over fifty thousand years of cultivation, while the female happened to be close to twenty thousand years.
The female Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear would indeed have suited Ye Qing, but Mu En soon noticed that she was pregnant.
She would probably give birth to cubs within a few years.
Upon discovering this, Mu En abandoned the choice without hesitation. He would rather spend more time searching than kill a female Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear that was about to give birth.
Naturally, Ye Qing had no objections.
He was even wondering about it. A mated pair of Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears, with the female close to twenty thousand years of cultivation and due to give birth in a few years... Could this be the family of Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears that the three Zhongli brothers, those Evil Soul Masters, wreaked havoc on in the original story?
It really does seem to fit.
Perhaps because of Mu En and Ye Qing's "mercy," the fourth Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was exactly the target they had come for.
A Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear just over twenty thousand years old.
Its age was probably under twenty-one thousand years, placing it close to the limit Ye Qing could withstand.
"Every Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear is exceedingly rare. We're already near the Star Dou Core Region, so absorbing this Soul Ring here clearly wouldn't be appropriate. We'll take it back to Shrek, and you can absorb it there," Mu En told Ye Qing. Then he flashed above the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's head, knocked it unconscious with one mighty slap, and took it and Ye Qing through spatial jumps back toward Shrek.
If ordinary Soul Saints or Soul Douluos encountered a twenty-thousand-year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, they could only flee in disarray. Yet before a Limit Douluo like Mu En, it truly was no different from Ye Qing.
It had absolutely no power to resist.
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