After Xu Zhengyang left, Bei Bei still stood there in a daze, thinking about the battle just now.
As a genius of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Bei Bei had always been confident in his talent. He was like a star in Shrek's outer courtyard, yet today, against someone his own age with less Soul Power, he had suffered such a crushing defeat without his opponent even revealing his Martial Soul.
Bei Bei even felt that if they fought to the death, his opponent could probably kill him without suffering a scratch. This was pure domination in strength. Whether in speed, power, or even reflexes and combat instincts, the gap between them was far too great.
Seeing Bei Bei so unsettled, Tang Ya hurried to comfort him. "Bei Bei, you weren't even using your full strength just now. You didn't use your thousand-year Soul Skill or our Tang Sect's hidden weapons. A win or loss like this doesn't mean anything."
"If you'd used the Dragon Whisker Needle, no matter how fast his reactions were, you would definitely have given him more than he could swallow."
Bei Bei shook his head. "Xiao Ya, you can't put it that way. From beginning to end, Long Aotian never even used his Martial Soul. He was holding back too. If I'd really struck viciously, I'm afraid it wouldn't have ended with just my clothes being shattered."
"Besides, judging by how he fought and his combat awareness, I've more or less guessed where he came from. I never imagined one of them would actually be traveling the continent to gain experience."
Confusion appeared on Tang Ya's face. "Bei Bei, can you really tell where he's from?"
A trace of bitterness appeared on Bei Bei's face. "I should have guessed long ago. His physical abilities are extremely strong, and his combat awareness is just as formidable. He doesn't readily use Soul Skills, either, and he comes from the Heaven Soul Empire."
"If my guess is right, he should be from the Heaven Soul Empire's Body Sect. Only people from the Body Sect would dare stride so brazenly across the continent and disregard an invitation from Shrek. After all, the two sides are at odds, and the Body Sect is notorious for shielding its own."
Tang Ya was also exceedingly shocked to hear this. Looking back on the battle, there had indeed been some resemblance to the legendary Body Sect.
"Bei Bei, people from the Body Sect are traveling the continent again, and they've even appeared near Shrek. Could they be planning something?"
Bei Bei shook his head. "That, I don't know. The Body Sect has always been mysterious and gone its own way, but it isn't an evil organization. Unless there's a major conflict, even we would be better off not provoking them."
Xu Zhengyang knew nothing of Bei Bei and Tang Ya's conversation. While traveling the Douluo Continent this time, it suddenly occurred to him that, as a Grand Soul Master, his Soul Power was still far too low and his strength far too weak, especially since the Douluo Continent could be said to have enemies everywhere.
Rather than have his identity exposed and make enemies when the time came, he might as well use another name. His fighting style did indeed bear some resemblance to the Body Sect's, which would make others hesitate to throw a stone for fear of hitting the vase.
Besides, someone like Long Aotian had always cultivated in the Body Sect and probably paid little attention to outside affairs. By the time they realized something was wrong, he would have long since returned to the Sun Moon Empire.
After leaving Shrek City, Xu Zhengyang followed the map along the roads skirting the Star Dou Great Forest, heading straight for Star Luo City. That was one of his real destinations on this trip to the Heaven Dou Empire.
Shrek City and the Star Dou Great Forest lay at the junction of the three great empires. Traveling along the forest's outskirts would allow him to avoid the national borders and save himself considerable trouble.
Xu Zhengyang was now carrying three hundred jin of weights. Running at this speed was also physical training, and could even be called squeezing his stamina dry.
After traveling for roughly three days, Xu Zhengyang finally arrived at Star Luo City.
The Star Luo City before him was taller and grander than Dongyang City. Even in scale, it far surpassed Shrek City. This was the capital of the Star Luo Empire, after all, and the Star Luo Empire was chiefly known on the Douluo Continent for its military strength.
The whole of Star Luo City already looked somewhat like a fortress. Not only were its walls extremely high, but it was also very heavily guarded.
Only after finding a hotel in Star Luo City and resting for a night did Xu Zhengyang head for his destination this time: the auction house.
Over the years, Xu Zhengyang had tried every possible means to polish and temper the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear. But with his strength, even if he could master all eighty-one strikes of the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer Technique, he still could not forge his Martial Soul any further. He could only make the rust on the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear's surface gradually disappear.
According to what Xu Yuanxuan had said back then, the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear was made from extremely precious metals. Its shaft was Yang Flame Iron, while its spearhead was Extraterrestrial Meteoric Copper. In a sense, they already ranked among the finest metals.
But precisely because these two metals were so precious and so hard, they were completely beyond Xu Zhengyang's ability to temper. Even using the Xu Clan's best furnace had produced little effect on the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear.
According to Xu Zhengyang's research into the Martial Soul tempering method recorded in ancient texts, making a Martial Soul evolve was extremely difficult and required finding even higher-grade metals. The specific method was in Illustrious Virtue Hall.
Xu Zhengyang had searched through all kinds of books, and even the Xu Clan's entire Soul Tool manufacturing factory in Dongyang City, without ever finding the precious metal he wanted.
Yet here in Star Luo City was the metal he truly wanted: that Soul Devouring Carving Knife.
Xu Zhengyang had little interest in Soul Tool carving knives, but this Soul Devouring Carving Knife was made from Gold of Life. To his knowledge, no metal was more precious than Gold of Life.
As for those so-called precious metals in Illustrious Virtue Hall, on the one hand, they were far too distant from his reach; on the other, their value fell far short of Gold of Life.
If he could fuse Gold of Life into the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear, its tremendous vitality, terrifying weight and toughness, and special life attribute would definitely allow the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear to break through its current limitations. He would definitely be able to refine the Tiger-Head Zhan Gold Spear into a Life-Bound Soul Tool, just like Ji Juechen. That would truly transform his Martial Soul, and it might even evolve into a divine artifact in the future.
Moreover, Gold of Life could heal injuries, strengthen the spiritual sea, and absorb the primordial power of heaven and earth. Throughout the entire Douluo World, it could be called a cheat-like existence, and even the bane of all Soul Masters and Soul Engineers.
Of course, all of this depended on his being able to actually smelt Gold of Life and even incorporate it into his Martial Soul. That involved a secret method possessed only by Illustrious Virtue Hall, or rather, Ji Juechen's method of tempering his Martial Soul.
After running with weights on his back for so many consecutive days, Xu Zhengyang quietly meditated for an entire night after reaching the hotel. At the same time, he carefully considered his future path of development. He was determined to obtain this Soul Devouring Carving Knife.