(The setting of nine Ten-Year Soul Ring has been modified. It is recommended to read the second half of Chapter 8 first before reading this chapter, otherwise the reading experience may feel a bit abrupt.)
When Lu Yu opened her eyes again, the sun had already set, casting its last rays across the forest.
Hiss--
Lu Yu twisted her aching body, straightened her legs and supported herself on the ground, looking down at her hands with a face full of astonishment and lingering fear.
"I... I'm level 60? How is that possible?"
He rubbed his swollen arm and instantly understood the key to it.
With his current physical strength, he simply couldn't withstand such a massive amount of Soul Power.
Lu Yu already possessed a 69,000-year-old Soul Ring, and now he has absorbed Soul Ring that is over 30,000 years old. The combined power of the two forces is approaching the 100,000-year level, far exceeding the limits of his current physical body.
It was precisely because of this that the massive amount of excess Soul Power overflowing from the Soul Ring directly fed back to Lu Yu, forcefully pushing his level from 54 to 60.
Even so, there was still too much Soul Power in the Soul Ring. The excess Soul Power was External Soul Bone, and the remaining lifespan was only the limit that Lu Yu's current body could barely withstand.
With a thought, four Soul Ring slowly rose from beneath Lu Yu's feet: white, white, white, and black.
Looking at the fourth pitch-black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, Lu Yu's expression was even more unpleasant than if he had just eaten a bitter melon.
The original Soul Ring, which had been around for over 30,000 years, has been stripped away several times and now only has about 13,000 years left.
"Damn, thank goodness I had the foresight to absorb the first three ten-year Soul Ring!"
Lu Yu secretly rejoiced.
If it were a normal Soul Ring Configuration, the total age of the first three rings would definitely exceed ten thousand years, and the Soul Ring absorbed now would have to lose ten thousand years of age.
Lu Yu looked at the black Soul Ring on his body, which had become much dimmer, and felt helpless.
Originally, he had planned to fuse the two Soul Ring into a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, but his physical body couldn't withstand it.
Thirteen thousand years, plus the original sixty-nine thousand years of the Somersault Cloud, the total lifespan is only eighty-two thousand years, still far from one hundred thousand years.
"No, my physical body is still too weak. My current limit is that I can only withstand Soul Ring of 80,000 years."
Lu Yu rubbed her temples, her face full of worry.
Now that he has broken through to level 60 Quasi-Soul Emperor, he should be able to continue absorbing Soul Ring and strive for an even higher realm.
His physical body had already reached its limit. Absorbing another Ten-Year Soul Ring wouldn't be a problem, but Lu Yu wouldn't dare to absorb another suitable Soul Beast if he encountered one in the future.
Ordinary millennium Whale Rubber is ineffective against Lu Yu, and as for Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue, it's not something Lu Yu can just buy whenever he wants right now.
Lu Yu took a deep breath, reached out and rubbed Great Sage's head, muttering softly, "Looks like I need to go find Dugu Bo and get the Immortal Herb as soon as possible."
He remembered clearly that in the original novel, the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum that Dai Mubai consumed could circulate Qi in his limbs, open up his eight meridians, and even cultivate Vajra Indestructibility body. It was an excellent Immortal Herb for enhancing physical strength.
As long as one can break through the physical limitations with the help of the Immortal Herb and absorb high-level Soul Ring in the future, there will be no more hidden dangers of the body exploding.
Moreover, given Dugu Bo's understanding of herbs, Lu Yu could also tell Dugu Bo about the effects of Whale Rubber, allowing Dugu Bo to research and develop some elixirs that enhance physical strength.
He couldn't handle it alone, so he tied up Yang Wudi and Yue Guan, who were also easy to control.
Yang Wudi so poor he's almost starving. First, try to entice him with a large sum of money. If that's not enough, then offer the Aromatic Silk Beauty as a bargaining chip. I'm sure this old goat won't be tempted.
As for Yue Guan, he's even easier to handle.
Thinking of how this old woman treated Dai Mubai, as long as Lu Yu ate the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and stood in front of him, she wouldn't be afraid of Yue Guan not being able to catch the hook.
"Sigh, we're in for a lot of work!"
Lu Yu got up and stretched, his bones cracking and popping. He then activated his Somersault Cloud and soared into the sky.
Before long, Lu Yu saw Zhu Zhuqing running wildly below from the sky, with seven or eight men in black closely following her about 500 meters away.
"Let's find a Soul Beast to break through to level 60 first, then go find her!" Lu Yu chuckled and controlled the Somersault Cloud in another direction.
A few minutes later, Lu Yu found a 20-year-old Iron Armored Bull, which was the youngest among the group of Iron Armored Bull.
It was still a calf. Lu Yu rode down on his Somersault Cloud, grabbed the calf's horns, and ran away. The herd hadn't even noticed that a calf was missing.
After successfully breaking through to level 60, Lu Yu followed the same method and fused his own Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring with the Great Sage Sage's Soul Ring.
The Somersault Cloud arrived at 82,000 years ago.
The Somersault Cloud, originally the size of a small car, expanded to the size of a small truck.
"Ah~ It's a pity it didn't reach 100,000 years!" Lu Yu sighed.
Night fell.
Exhausted, Zhu Zhuqing leaned against a tree branch to rest, her gaze fixed on the direction she had come from.
His face was full of regret and anxiety. More than half a day had passed since Lu Yu lured away the Soul Beast, but he still hadn't seen Lu Yu.
That's a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast; Zhu Zhuqing was truly afraid that Lu Yu would never return once he left.
"No, I have to go find him."
Zhu Zhuqing clenched her fists, her mind made up.
Just as Zhu Zhuqing sat up, leaning against the tree trunk, she heard rustling sounds coming from the bushes behind her. Her fingernails instantly grew longer as she stared warily into the bushes.
Lu Yu's clothes were tattered, with not a single good piece of cloth. When Zhu Zhuqing saw the figure clearly by the moonlight, her pupils shrank, and she jumped down from the tree branch with joy, hugging Lu Yu tightly.
Lu Yu had already spotted Zhu Zhuqing, so she wasn't surprised at all that Zhu Zhuqing was hugging her. Instead, she seemed to be enjoying the soft touch against her chest.
"Waaah... I thought... I thought you were never coming back!"
Zhu Zhuqing choked up as she spoke, hugging him tighter and tighter.
"Alright, alright, I'm back now!" Lu Yu gently patted Zhu Zhuqing's back to comfort her.
Zhu Zhuqing hugged Lu Yu and cried for a while before helping Lu Yu sit down. Looking at the wounds on Lu Yu's body, she was both surprised and delighted.
How did you escape from that Soul Beast?
"Cough cough, luckily, after I lured it away, I encountered another Soul Beast. The two of them fought, which gave me a chance to escape. However, I was knocked unconscious by the aftershocks of their battle, and when I woke up, it was already dark."
Lu Yu reached out and stroked Zhu Zhuqing's head to comfort her.
Feeling the touch on her head, Zhu Zhuqing blushed and quickly stood up, shrinking back.
"You're badly injured, you need to rest."
After speaking, Zhu Zhuqing turned around and took a few steps, then lay down with her back to Lu Yu. However, the cat tail that kept wagging indicated that she was not at peace.
Lu Yu smiled gently, leaned against the tree trunk, and looked up at the starry sky.