After explaining the characteristics of the three Soul Beasts, Qin Ming took the fourth volume of the Soul Beast illustrated guide from the bracer on his wrist. He quickly turned to a few pages, marked them, and handed the book over, leaving the final choice to Fang Lin.
Fang Lin read the entries on the Void Pattern Jade Tapir and the Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree several times.
Compared with those two, the Crane Feather Pattern Antelope seemed much more ordinary, so Fang Lin ruled it out first.
The Void Pattern Jade Tapir possessed a rare spatial attribute, which greatly tempted Fang Lin. But if his luck was bad and he obtained a Soul Skill that increased elemental resistance, it would be something of a waste. After tempering his body with the ice and fire Immortal Herbs, Fang Lin was already immune to ice and fire, and most elemental Soul Masters had one of those two attributes.
After turning it over in his mind, Fang Lin ultimately decided to play it safe.
"Teacher Qin, I'd like to choose the Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree, but why doesn't this book say how old it is?"
The Soul Beast guide Qin Ming had given him only recorded that a Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree over a thousand years old stood in the central part of the Soul Hunting Forest. It didn't say whether the tree was one thousand or nine thousand years old.
"The Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree grows in a rather unusual way. I'll explain when we get there. I estimate it won't be more than four thousand years old. Even if it exceeds the thirty-six hundred years I mentioned just now, it won't make much difference."
Top-tier Plant-type Soul Beasts were far rarer than other Soul Beasts of the same age for two reasons: they grew slowly, and Plant System Soul Rings were relatively gentle to absorb. As a result, those of any quality had an extremely hard time surviving in the world and were even at risk of extinction.
Fang Lin left the academy with Qin Ming. They first went to an office in Heaven Dou City to obtain a special Soul Hunting permit, then took a carriage into the empire.
The empire's Soul Hunting Forest lay between Thunder Spirit Province and Di'ao Province. To the south was the Vast Feather Mountain Range, while crossing the Ice God Mountain Range to the north led to the Far North. The Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree Fang Lin sought was in the central part of the Soul Hunting Forest, toward the north.
After entering the Soul Hunting Forest and traveling at full speed for nearly an hour, Fang Lin felt that the air around them was noticeably colder than at the entrance, a sign that the two were gradually approaching the Ice God Mountain Range.
Strangely, though the surroundings were cold, a faint, peculiar fragrance lingered in the air, refreshing the spirit with every breath.
"Be careful. We're almost there," Qin Ming warned.
After they passed through a stretch of dense underbrush, the view suddenly opened onto a broad clearing. In its very center stood a massive tree with a brown trunk, entwined by countless bright golden vines as thick as the mouth of a bowl. Slender branches grew from the vines, hanging down from the trunk and spreading densely throughout the clearing. Some even plunged into the soil like roots and stems, intertwining in great raised knots.
Among the vines, huge animal leg bones and patches of rotting fur were faintly visible.
Qin Ming's gaze fell on the massive tree's branches.
"The fragrance you smelled just now comes from the Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree's fruit. It bears one fruit for every thousand years it gains. The fourth fruit is still somewhat unripe, which means he hasn't reached four thousand years yet."
Fang Lin looked where Qin Ming pointed and saw several bright red fruits hanging there, each about the size of a fist. The smallest was half green and half red, and considerably smaller than the others.
"Teacher Qin, what should we do next?"
Plant-type Soul Beasts mostly fought with vines, either entangling and strangling their enemies or injecting them with toxins. One look at the roots and stems covering the ground around the Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree was enough to tell that it was no easy opponent. But fire was the bane of most Plant-type Soul Beasts.
"Wait here."
Qin Ming stepped forward, bright yellow flames winding around his body. The sight was somewhat like the fine arcs of lightning that appeared around Yu Tianheng when his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul possessed him.
This was Fang Lin's first time seeing Qin Ming fight. Most Soul Masters with wolf Martial Souls followed the Agility Attack System, but Qin Ming followed the Power Attack System. His mutated Blazing Fire Wolf had greatly increased strength and destructive power, and his Soul Ring skills were somewhat similar to Yu Tianheng's later ones.
His third Soul Skill amplified his Soul Power and fire attribute. When he used it, the flames around him blazed brilliantly. The Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree's vines crackled as soon as they came near, turning into blackened, withered branches before his wolf claws tore them to shreds.
In less than half a quarter-hour, Qin Ming forced his way to the massive tree and burned it nearly to charcoal, leaving it completely unable to resist.
Of course, that was only how it appeared. Given a Plant-type Soul Beast's vitality, it still had a chance to regenerate as long as its main trunk remained intact.
Fang Lin bounded forward, summoned his long saber, and lit up the second Soul Ring beneath his feet. He utterly destroyed the trunk, and as the massive tree crashed to the ground, a purple Thousand-Year Soul Ring slowly gathered and took shape above it.
The instant the Mysterious Nether Gold-Entwining Tree died, Fang Lin noticed the four fruits on its trunk rapidly shrivel into four rock-hard pits that struck the ground.
Surprised, Fang Lin also felt a little regret. They had smelled so good just now, and he had wanted to taste them.
"Absorb the Soul Ring. I'll stand guard for you." Qin Ming walked over to where the pits had fallen, picked them up, and casually tossed them into the withered giant tree. "If you hunt Plant-type Soul Beasts in the future, first, try not to completely destroy their roots and stems. Second, if they have seeds, you can leave them where they are. That way, another Soul Beast might grow here a hundred years later."
Fang Lin nodded, taking the lesson to heart. He sat down cross-legged and began absorbing the Soul Ring.
Holding his breath and concentrating, Fang Lin adjusted his mental state to its peak. Then he circulated his Soul Power and drew the purple Soul Ring onto his long saber.
The instant they touched, the purple light abruptly shrank to the size of a bracelet and slipped around the long saber. At the same time, a vast, scorching surge of Soul Power entered Fang Lin's body.
The violent energy roared through his meridians. Fang Lin's body trembled, and the intense, bursting pain in his meridians made sweat pour down him like rain.
A Soul Ring beyond one's limits contained an immense amount of energy. One careless mistake could make the body explode, killing the absorber, but if it could be fully absorbed, it would also bring enormous benefits to one's Soul Power.
As Qin Ming watched their surroundings, he also kept an eye on Fang Lin's condition.
As time passed, the turbulent presence around Fang Lin gradually calmed. Instead, a faint red-and-blue light radiated from him. At last, the purple Soul Ring gave a soft tremor and steadily withdrew into Fang Lin's body.
"Looks like he made it."
A smile appeared on Qin Ming's face. If word got out that Fang Lin's Third Soul Ring was nearly four thousand years old, probably no one would believe it, but Fang Lin had indeed done it.
Fang Lin let out a long breath and opened his eyes. Red-and-blue light seemed to flow through his gaze.
A three-ring Soul Elder!
Fang Lin moved his body, and the joints in his hands and feet gave a series of explosive pops. His muscles were filled with explosive power.
His physique had already been strong enough after being tempered by ice and fire, yet unexpectedly, it had improved noticeably once more. The effect of a Thousand-Year Soul Ring was far greater than he had imagined.
No wonder they said level thirty was an important threshold for a Soul Master. Those below level thirty still fell into the category of low-level Soul Masters; only above level thirty did they enter the ranks of proper Soul Masters.
Fang Lin closed his eyes and sensed the Soul Power within him. Delight appeared on his face.
Just as I thought.
His Soul Power Level had risen sharply, surpassing the usual level thirty-one and leaping straight to level thirty-three.
If he continued absorbing Soul Rings above his level in the future, Fang Lin could save a great deal of time cultivating his Soul Power.
Seeing the satisfaction Fang Lin couldn't hide, Qin Ming couldn't help finding it amusing.
"Now that you're done absorbing it, let's go. There'll be plenty of time to enjoy yourself when we get back."
The two didn't collect the Nether Profound Ironwood trunk as material. It was too large for Qin Ming's Storage Soul Tool, let alone Fang Lin's.
On the way, Qin Ming cleared a path while asking Fang Lin about the effects of absorbing the Soul Ring.
"Just as I thought, it's a Soul Skill that directly strengthens the Tool Martial Soul itself, transforming it in every respect, including its weight, hardness, and explosive power. I'll have to test it to know the exact effects." Fang Lin followed behind Qin Ming, then thought for a moment and continued, "There's also another strange characteristic, but I can't explain it clearly right now."
"Once we're back at the academy, you can try it and find out." Qin Ming glanced back at Fang Lin. "A four-thousand-year Soul Ring would be good enough in quality even as a Soul Ancestor's fourth Soul Ring. If it didn't have something unique about it, that would be strange."