The Undisputed Number One Genius (1)

"Brother Lin Chen!" When Xiao Wu saw Lin Chen open his eyes, she rushed over at once. "You're finally awake! You scared me to death. You've been sitting there for almost two hours."

"Sorry for worrying you." Lin Chen's voice was deeper and fuller than before. "It's all right now. I absorbed the Soul Ring successfully."

With a thought, he made the Chaos Pearl in his dantian glow faintly.

Hum- A purple Soul Ring rose from beneath his feet and drifted slowly up and down. The pressure unique to a Thousand-Year Soul Ring spread outward, sending the surrounding low-level Soul Beasts fleeing. Even the chirping of insects vanished entirely.

Xiao Wu's eyes widened as she stared at the purple Soul Ring, her face full of admiration. "It really is a Thousand-Year Soul Ring! Brother Lin Chen, you're amazing!"

"Let's try the new Soul Skill."

Lin Chen recited the words silently, activating his First Soul Skill.

A hazy gray, translucent screen of light suddenly expanded from his body, forming a circular shield two meters across that enclosed him and Xiao Wu. A chaotic glow flowed across its surface. It looked thin, but it carried a substantial, indestructible weight.

This was the Chaos Pearl's First Soul Skill-Chaos Shield.

It granted immunity to all control effects and toxins of the same rank and could withstand powerful attacks from those of a higher rank. As his Soul Power grew, so would the shield's strength.

Lin Chen casually picked up a fist-sized stone and smashed it against the screen of light.

With a bang, the stone instantly shattered into powder, but the screen remained utterly still. Not even a ripple appeared.

"Mm, not bad." Lin Chen nodded in satisfaction.

With this shield, he could practically ignore attacks from Soul Masters of the same rank. Even against attacks at the Soul Elder level, he could withstand a few blows.

He checked his Soul Power and found that it had settled firmly at level seventeen. Absorbing a Thousand-Year Soul Ring at level ten had sent him up seven levels in one leap. Such speed would be enough to shock the entire Soul Master World if word got out.

On top of that, given the purity of his Chaos Soul Power, his current combat strength was enough to put up a fight against any Soul Grandmaster below level twenty-five.

"All right, it's time to take care of your business." Lin Chen dismissed his Soul Skill. "There's a rabbit colony over by the valley. They're the best match for your Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul."

Xiao Wu blinked and spoke hesitantly. "Brother Lin Chen... actually, after we Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts take human form, we can produce our own Soul Rings whenever we reach a bottleneck. Like now that I've reached level ten, if I cultivate for a while longer, my body will naturally condense a Soul Ring of my own."

She paused, then continued explaining, "It's an innate ability of transformed Soul Beasts like us. We don't need to hunt Soul Beasts for Soul Rings the way humans do. Besides, a Soul Ring we produce ourselves is the most perfectly compatible with us."

Lin Chen nodded. Of course he knew how it worked. When a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast took human form and cultivated anew, its first seven Soul Rings could all be self-condensed. Only after reaching level seventy and entering the Maturity Stage would it need to hunt Soul Beasts to obtain higher-level Soul Rings.

"But," Lin Chen said, changing tack, "the age and quality of a self-produced Soul Ring are fixed. Each time you break through a major realm, you can only produce a Soul Ring of a fixed age-for example, Hundred-Year Soul Rings at levels ten and twenty, and a Thousand-Year Soul Ring at level thirty. If you want a Soul Ring of higher quality and stronger attributes, hunting a suitable Soul Beast is actually the better choice."

He looked at Xiao Wu and said seriously, "Take the Shattering Bone Rabbit, for example. It's one of your kind, around five hundred years old, and of excellent quality. If you produce your First Soul Ring yourself, you'll probably only get an ordinary hundred-year Soft Bone Rabbit Soul Ring. But if you hunt this Shattering Bone Rabbit, your Soul Power, physical constitution, and skill quality will all improve by a large margin. Its value is more than a single grade higher. And when you break through at level twenty, you can choose an even higher-aged Thousand-Year Soul Beast. Its value to your future strength is also immeasurable."

Xiao Wu nodded thoughtfully. Although she was a transformed Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, she hadn't given much study to the specific choice of Soul Rings. Under Da Ming and Er Ming's protection, she had never needed to consider such things.

"Then I'll do as you say, Brother Lin Chen!" She quickly made up her mind, her eyes shining with anticipation. "I want to get stronger too, so we can join forces and be invincible under heaven!"

The two left the swamp and headed southeast toward the valley. With the Chaos Pearl's presence concealing them, Soul Beasts gave way along the route, and their journey went fairly smoothly.

An hour later, a broad valley appeared before them.

Lush grass filled the valley, a stream gurgled along, and dozens of Shattering Bone Rabbits of different sizes hopped about the grass, foraging for food.

Most were Soul Beasts ten or several decades old. Only on a rock in the deepest part of the valley lay an exceptionally sturdy gray rabbit.

The rabbit had long, pointed ears, thick limbs, and clearly defined muscles around its waist. A Yellow Soul Ring floated above its head. It was approximately four hundred and ninety years old, right within Xiao Wu's optimal absorption range.

"It's a Shattering Bone Rabbit," Lin Chen said quietly. "It excels at drawing strength from its waist and abdomen, and its explosive power is tremendous. One strike can snap a tree as thick as a bowl. Its Soul Ring can give you a close-range, explosive Soul Skill that's highly compatible with your Martial Soul."

"Then I'll go lure it out." Eager to give it a try, Xiao Wu loosened her wrists and ankles.

"Wait." Lin Chen stopped her. "This rabbit is fast and vicious. I'll help wear it down first, then you can land the final blow. That will give you the best results when you absorb the Soul Ring."

With that, he casually broke off a branch, infused it with Soul Power through his fingertips, and flicked it away. The branch shot out like an arrow, grazing the Shattering Bone Rabbit's ear before lodging precisely in the rock.

The rabbit sprang up, looked at Lin Chen and Xiao Wu with scarlet eyes, and let out a piercing cry.

It kicked off the ground and charged like a cannonball, moving so fast it left an afterimage as it hurtled straight at Lin Chen's knees.

Lin Chen neither dodged nor evaded. His Chaos Shield silently expanded.

Bang! The Shattering Bone Rabbit slammed into the screen of light with a dull thud, only to be bounced back. It rolled twice on the ground and shook its head, clearly dazed by the impact.

It seemed enraged and charged again and again, but the Chaos Shield stopped it every time. The force of the rebound left it increasingly exhausted, and it began to slow down. After about half an incense stick's time, the Shattering Bone Rabbit's breathing had noticeably weakened, and it lay on the ground, gasping for breath.

"That's enough. Xiao Wu, it's your turn." Lin Chen dismissed the shield.

"Okay!"

With a sharp cry, Xiao Wu suddenly darted forward. Her steps were light and nimble, and within a few strides she was in front of the Shattering Bone Rabbit.

The rabbit was no less ferocious and opened its mouth to bite, but Xiao Wu turned sideways with the motion, seized its ear with one hand, and twisted her waist, using the force to lift herself into the air.

"Hey, down you go!"

Using her momentum and the strength of her waist, she actually swung the Shattering Bone Rabbit, which weighed over a hundred jin, up and smashed it hard against the ground. The impact was solid. The Shattering Bone Rabbit twitched twice, then stopped breathing.

A bright yellow Hundred-Year Soul Ring slowly emerged from its body.

Xiao Wu clapped her hands and came hopping back, her face full of pride. "Hehe, Brother Lin Chen, wasn't I amazing?"

"Mm, you were." Lin Chen smiled and nodded. "Go absorb the Soul Ring. A four-hundred-year Soul Ring is just right for you."