Although Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bears were hard to find, Shrek Academy was, in the end, not quite like other places.
Before taking Mu Yueye to the Star Dou Great Forest, Mu En had already sent people to determine the approximate range where a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was active.
According to the information provided by an inner courtyard disciple, this Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear should have only just reached ten thousand years of age.
Knowing its approximate range made it much easier to find. On the afternoon they entered the Star Dou Great Forest, Mu En led Mu Yueye to a bear's den.
Inside the den, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear caught the scent of the two men and rose to its full height, watching Mu En and Mu Yueye's movements.
It had evidently sensed that Mu En's strength was no small matter and was quite wary of them.
Had Mu Yueye been alone, it probably would have charged him long ago.
Mu En smiled, then raised a hand and said to Mu Yueye,
"Ye'er, look, hasn't a chance for real combat just presented itself?"
Mu Yueye could not help smiling a little helplessly. Then he joked with Mu En,
"Great-great-grandfather, isn't a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear a bit much for real combat?"
Mu En waved a hand and said to Mu Yueye,
"I trained you myself. How could I not know what you're capable of? You can deal with him without a problem, and I'll be here backing you up. What are you afraid of?"
Mu Yueye nodded, then looked at the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear in the den.
The bear looked back at Mu Yueye. As though it knew it could not escape death, it actually walked out of the hollow tree on its own.
What drew Mu Yueye's attention most was, naturally, the pair of dark gold dreadclaws for which the bear was famous.
The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was naturally watching Mu Yueye's movements as well, but it was clearly far less patient than he was. With a roar, it charged at him.
Mu Yueye swept a hand out, and four golden chains floated forth. As soon as the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear charged into their midst, its movements abruptly stopped.
The corners of Mu Yueye's mouth lifted slightly. With a sharp wave of his hand, one of the chains pierced the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's shoulder blade, just as he had used it to greet Xuan Zi before.
The other three chains intertwined above the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's head, forming a golden pyramid that enclosed it.
But this Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was not Xuan Zi. It could not simply use stronger Soul Power to shatter everything as he had.
Mu En finally got to see what the second stage of the Soul Skill's damage looked like.
A totem of the Radiant Sacred Dragon appeared on the ground beneath the pyramid. At the same time, an identical circular totem appeared in the sky.
Both totems contained intense light energy, and in an instant, they slammed toward each other.
As they hurtled together, they naturally caught the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear between them.
The instant they finally collided, a violent explosion rang out.
Still dazed, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear fell.
Lying on the ground, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear tried to cover the gaping hole in its abdomen with its dark gold dreadclaws. After struggling a couple of times, it died full of resentment, and a pale black Soul Ring floated above it.
Mu En nodded in satisfaction, then said to Mu Yueye,
"Although your strength is indeed formidable now, killing a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear with just one Soul Skill truly exceeded my expectations. Very good."
Mu Yueye smiled at Mu En, then reached out to guide the black Soul Ring toward his Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul.
As he closed his eyes and began absorbing the Soul Ring, Mu Yueye felt his consciousness enter a black space resembling a Sea of Consciousness.
"This is..."
Mu Yueye knew about the soul impact of a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring. After all, there were plenty of people around him who had absorbed one, at every level of cultivation.
But other people's descriptions were abstract in the end. Only now that he was experiencing it himself did he know exactly what it felt like.
The darkness before him seemed boundless, with no end in sight and no way to see where he had come from.
It was also different from the feeling of being the master of everything in his Sea of Consciousness. Here, he did not seem to have complete control over everything.
"Roar-"
A hoarse roar rang out. Mu En turned to look and saw the shadow of a bear glowing red as it charged at him.
It appeared to be the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear that had already died.
"Looks like this is where the soul impact takes place."
Mu Yueye loosened his arms and legs and charged straight at the bear's shadow.
"I could kill your real body, and you still think your soul can fight me?"
Mu Yueye sneered disdainfully as a flicker of golden flame ignited on his fist.
The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's remnant soul froze on the spot.
"Have a taste of my own improved Sacred Dragon Looks Down on All."
Mu Yueye's palm, wreathed in golden flames, suddenly pressed down, as though a dragon god stood in midair and lowered his own palm.
It was different from Mu En's King's Landing, which purely combined mental power with a physical attack.
Mu Yueye's improved Sacred Dragon Looks Down on All connected with a trace of the power of heaven and earth. Though achieved by different means, it shared the same wonder as the Unity of Heaven and Man that Long Aotian, who appeared later, excelled in.
Borrowing the lofty supremacy of heaven and earth's power, it bore down directly upon all living beings.
King's Landing relied on one's own formidable strength to subdue an opponent head-on, while Sacred Dragon Looks Down on All borrowed the Dao of heaven and earth to bear down upon all living beings.
In its remnant soul state, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was instantly annihilated by the strike. At the same time, the dark space before Mu Yueye turned azure blue again.
That was Mu Yueye's Sea of Consciousness.
When Mu Yueye opened his eyes, the sun had already dipped some way toward the western horizon. He stood and loosened his arms and legs.
Mu En nodded in satisfaction and said to Mu Yueye,
"You absorbed the Soul Ring pretty quickly."
Mu Yueye smiled, then said to Mu En,
"It's all thanks to your excellent teaching, great-great-grandfather."
When Mu En brought Mu Yueye back to Shrek Academy, he received a special letter requesting help.
It was a plea for help from the Tang Sect.
When an ordinary place asked Shrek Academy for help, Shrek generally took one of two approaches.
If the other party was strong enough to be worth helping, Shrek would lend a hand, calling it the upholding of justice.
If the other party was not strong enough to be worth helping, Shrek would act as though it had never received the letter, then come out and deal with the matter in a token fashion once it was more or less over.
However, the powers able to send Shrek a plea for help were rarely in particularly dire straits, so the second situation seldom occurred.
The present Tang Sect, however, was truly a special case.
It was utterly pathetic, the worst of the worst, yet in terms of status, it was a sect founded by Tang San, a core member of Shrek Academy's first generation of the Shrek Seven Devils.
Mu En convened a Sea God Pavilion Meeting specifically to discuss the matter...