As she watched the unfamiliar young man approach, Bibi Dong discovered that she could not move at all.
She could only watch helplessly as their bodies pressed tightly together.
"What is he going to do?" Bibi Dong's face was filled with terror.
But she had no idea what was happening.
"Nothing much." As Ye Yao spoke, he scooped Bibi Dong up, and the two became joined just like that.
Bibi Dong's face burned with shame and anger, but she was powerless to resist.
Immediately afterward, she discovered that their powers seemed to be merging.
More precisely, her power was being assimilated by this man!
What on earth is happening? Shock surged through Bibi Dong's heart!
No, this must be a hallucination caused by absorbing the Soul Ring. It must be!
That was what Bibi Dong thought.
But she still could not move. She could only watch as her power gradually transformed into a pure-white power.
Recalling the color of White Tiger's Soul Ring, Bibi Dong immediately realized that the person before her was probably White Tiger's incarnation.
But if he was White Tiger's incarnation, why would he do this to her?
Bibi Dong could not make sense of it, no matter how hard she thought!
Meanwhile, Chrysanthemum Douluo and the others standing guard nearby could only see Bibi Dong sitting on the ground the entire time.
Her face was somewhat flushed and her breathing had quickened, but her Soul Power was relatively stable. There was nothing particularly unusual about her.
They simply wondered why absorbing a single Soul Ring was taking her so long.
Normally, she should have finished absorbing it quickly, then gone to examine the Soul Bone.
After all, a Two-Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was guaranteed to drop a Soul Bone!
With some luck, she might even obtain an External Soul Bone.
While Bibi Dong was still absorbing the Soul Ring.
Over at Crimson Flame Volcano.
The death of his White Tiger avatar had no effect on Ye Yao.
At that moment, his Vermilion Bird avatar was leisurely preening its fiery-red feathers at the crater.
It was as though the Douluos standing before it did not exist.
There were nine Douluo powerhouses in total, plus a wielder of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
Moreover, almost all these Douluos were above level ninety-five.
Against this lineup, never mind a Two-Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast-even a five-hundred-thousand-year one could only flee with its head in its hands.
Yet Ye Yao's Vermilion Bird avatar was not the slightest bit flustered.
However, none of the groups had acted rashly either.
The three forces kept one another in check, and none dared make a move lightly.
That was especially true for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
They had to protect Ning Fengzhi, a Soul Saint, and they were closest to Vermilion Bird. They simply did not dare strike first!
Azure Luan and Light Feather Douluo had not approached either. They remained far away, observing everyone.
Vermilion Bird was frighteningly enormous. Both men could attack it without getting close, so there was no need to hurry.
The members of the Clear Sky Sect, on the other hand, were somewhat torn.
Their first objective on this trip was naturally to obtain Soul Rings and Soul Bones.
But preventing Spirit Hall from obtaining Soul Rings was equally important!
After some thought, Tang Xiao took the initiative to speak.
"Sect Master Ning, Spirit Hall has even dispatched its Revered Elders now. They must be determined to obtain the Four Beasts' Soul Rings."
"I am sure you understand why our Clear Sky Sect has made an exception and descended from the mountain today."
"If Spirit Hall obtains the Four Beasts' Soul Rings... the consequences will be unthinkable!"
"Our Clear Sky Sect is a living example!"
Ning Fengzhi's expression showed no particular change at those words.
He had already thought that through long ago.
Otherwise, he would not have brought two great Douluos out to hunt the Four Beasts.
But understanding was one thing.
How to act was another matter entirely.
Openly opposing Spirit Hall here would mean tearing away all pretense of cordiality!
They might well end up sharing the Clear Sky Sect's fate!
With Spirit Hall's strength, dealing with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect really would not be very difficult.
Back then, the Clear Sky Sect had been stronger than the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!
Had it not still ended up sealing its mountain and closing its gates?
Spirit Hall merely lacked a suitable pretext.
If they wished, replacing all of the Upper Three Sects would not be difficult either.
Whatever the case, Ning Fengzhi did not dare act rashly. He replied without answering the question.
"Sect Master Tang, it has been a long time. I never imagined you would come down from the mountain for a single Soul Beast."
Tang Xiao gave a smile that did not reach his eyes. "We have been cooped up too long. We merely came out to clear our heads!"
As they spoke, their gazes kept drifting toward Azure Luan and Guang Ling, seemingly both deliberately and casually.
However, the two seemed to have little desire to attack just then. They stood obediently in place without moving.
They truly were in no hurry.
Judging by Vermilion Bird's current condition, it would not be so easy to kill.
Since that was the case, they had no need to be the first to strike!
Tang Xiao did want to act, but Ning Fengzhi was passing the buck and refusing to cooperate.
If the Clear Sky Sect made the first move, would Spirit Hall, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Vermilion Bird all attack them together?
Just imagining that situation frightened Tang Xiao and the others!
The Clear Sky Sect could not withstand losses like that in its current state!
The Titled Douluos were in no hurry, and Ye Yao was even less so. He waited leisurely above the crater for them to launch an attack!
Unlike the quiet Crimson Flame Volcano, the Qingchuan Mountain Range was practically ready to explode!
By now, nearly ten thousand Soul Masters had arrived.
Although many of them were low-ranking Soul Masters, that number was still considerable!
People filled the entire mountain range.
The few Soul Beasts that had lived there had long since been slaughtered in the Soul Masters' encirclement!
But they had already searched the place inside and out. Why had they found no sign of Azure Dragon at all?
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, which had arrived first, had now searched every corner.
But never mind Azure Dragon-they had not even seen a green snake.
Everyone could not help feeling puzzled.
Could Azure Dragon simply not be here at all?
Yet when the Heavenly Screen showed it, Azure Dragon had plainly been coiled here in the Qingchuan Mountain Range.
Yu Yuanzhen and the others had also found traces of where Azure Dragon had rested, so why... could they not find the creature itself no matter what?
As time passed, more and more Soul Masters came to the mountain range.
Conflicts broke out frequently, and quite a few Soul Masters had already died in them.
If this continued, many people would die before they even found the dragon.
Golden Crocodile Douluo had also made a circuit of the mountain range and likewise failed to find Azure Dragon.
He was now standing atop a mountain peak, looking around.
He was not particularly skilled at searching for presences, but a Titled Douluo's sensitivity to Soul Power assured him that traces of Azure Dragon were nearby.
He simply could not determine exactly where.
He looked all around but discovered nothing.
Somewhat helplessly, Golden Crocodile Douluo looked up at the sky. "If only those fellows were here. They could fly up and take a look."
Azure Luan, Qian Daoliu, and the others could all fly. Searching from the sky would clearly be more efficient!
Just as he was thinking this, Golden Crocodile Douluo's eyes suddenly narrowed!
He looked at an enormous dark cloud overhead and felt that something was strange.
Was that cloud not a little too dark?
As he pondered this, a raindrop suddenly fell from the sky and landed on Golden Crocodile Douluo's face.
Immediately afterward, rain poured down in sheets.
The dark clouds in the sky gradually thinned, while Golden Crocodile Douluo kept his eyes fixed on that cloud.