Infinite Flame
The second Soul Ring on Hui Ye's body suddenly lit up. Within the gray ring, five rays of light flowed, blending with one another yet remaining distinct.
At a certain moment, they burst into five-colored radiance.
The Second Soul Ring was complete!
His Soul Power Level revealed itself at that moment: level 25.
Basically, each time he absorbed a Soul Ring of a different attribute, his Soul Power rose by one level. It simply hadn't shown because he hadn't finished absorbing his Second Soul Ring.
Hui Ye now felt that the Soul Power Level in his body had not reached its limit. With all five attributes gathered, a gentle stream of Soul Power continually poured into him, and his presence rose again.
Level 26.
Level 27.
2... it wouldn't go any higher.
With that, his Soul Power stopped growing.
For an ordinary person, such a rapid rise in Soul Power Level would destabilize their foundation and affect their future development, making it necessary to suppress their level.
But Hui Ye had Immortal Body and Infinite Stamina, so he had no need to worry about those problems.
With Infinite Stamina, did a stable foundation even matter? When cultivating, he could just cultivate for all he was worth. He couldn't die anyway.
The Second Soul Ring relied on the five elements complementing one another, allowing it to continuously absorb Soul Power from the outside world and feed it back into the body.
Even if there was no Soul Power in the outside world, it could circulate on its own and produce Soul Power.
Hui Ye clenched his fists, feeling his body brim with power, as though his strength would never run out.
He rolled his neck a couple of times, making it crack, then swaggered toward the very front of the battlefield.
"Everyone, fall back!"
Hui Ye bellowed.
Almost everyone was on the verge of collapse from exhaustion, yet they were still holding the front line, resisting the Metal-Devouring Rats' attacks.
"Little guy, you should go back. If anyone's going to die, it should be us first."
"You've already killed quite a few Soul Beasts. You probably have hardly any Soul Power left. Go rest in the back."
The others tried to persuade him.
Hui Ye shook his head.
Forget it. I'll show them what I can do.
He raised his head and silently intoned, Head Soul Bone skill: Black Flame Eruption.
Black flames gushed from Hui Ye's eyes, but this time was different from before. The beams of flame came without interruption.
They were no longer as scrawny as before, either. Now they could be thick and long, burning continuously like a flamethrower.
With a slight turn of his head, the flames swept along with it, spreading the burning area ahead into a fan shape.
Within that area, the Metal-Devouring Rats squealed in agony as they burned.
The black flames clung to the Metal-Devouring Rats like burning oil. No matter how they rolled, they couldn't put them out.
He raised his head slightly, sending the flames farther away. They reached more than twenty meters, turning everything in their path into a sea of fire.
Everyone was horrified. The black flames were far too overbearing; they were nearly impossible to extinguish quickly.
And was Hui Ye's Soul Power unlimited?
The flames could burn over such a wide area, and even after three minutes, his Soul Power still didn't seem to be exhausted.
By now, the firelight shone through Hui Ye's skull.
From the others' perspective, it looked as though he had a sun perched on his neck, exceptionally red and blazing.
Without a word, everyone chose to retreat a distance.
Yes!
Keeping a safe distance was most important.
Who wouldn't be afraid of those damned flames splashing onto them by accident?
After burning for another minute, Hui Ye's head exploded with a bang.
After Hui Ye revived, he cursed under his breath. "Damn, the temperature got too high. Blew the cylinder."
Everyone: "..."
The Metal-Devouring Rats in the main passage had been almost completely cleared out as well. The smell of burning wafted through the air, and although everyone wrinkled their noses, they couldn't hide the joy of victory in their hearts.
"Woohoo, we won!"
Everyone cheered and leaped for joy.
"Little brother, you were incredible! You deserve the greatest credit for this battle!"
Old Eight and Old Nine sidled up to another fourth-rank Soul Ancestor of the Blazing Tiger Mercenary Corps and said in low voices:
"Vice commander, I think we should forget about avenging our commander."
"Yeah, we can't afford to mess with that kid."
The vice commander glanced at them. "Did I say I was going to avenge him?
"Lie Hu was sick in the head. All he ever did, day in and day out, was offend people.
"Every time he kicked an iron plate, I was the one who had to clean up after him. Good riddance.
"Those of you who are still alive can follow me from now on. We're done being mercenaries. I'll take you into some honest business instead."
Old Eight and Old Nine said, "We'll follow the vice com... ahem! Whatever the boss says."
In a vast, naturally formed cavern at the deepest point of the mineral vein, a pair of eyes like headlights suddenly snapped open.
Its nostrils twitched constantly as it sniffed the bloody scent in the air, and a trace of bloodthirsty ferocity flashed in its eyes.
The Zhou Clan's Six-Ring Soul Saint and Five-Ring Soul King strolled leisurely down the main passage.
The Soul King boasted all the way about how formidable his Martial Soul was. His Martial Soul was the Beast Martial Soul Earthquake Beast, and if he managed to obtain an Earthquake Beast Soul Ring this time, his Martial Soul might even have a chance to evolve.
Just then, the entire main passage shook violently, jolt after jolt.
"Ha ha, everyone inside is dead, and the Earthquake Beast is awake! Quick, let's go in and take that beast down in one stroke while it's enjoying its bloody meal!"
The Soul King spoke excitedly.
Thump, thump!
Thump, thump, thump!
The Soul Saint frowned, sensing that something was off. It didn't sound like the rumbling of an Earthquake Beast stomping on the ground, but rather the noise and vibrations caused by someone setting off Fixed-Installation Soul Guidance Bombs.
"Stop celebrating and hurry inside to take a look."
The Soul Saint charged ahead. "I hope it's not what I think."
The Soul King hurried after him. "What's wrong? Could something have gone awry?"
"Let's go in and see first."
The two moved swiftly, reaching the destroyed section of the main passage in less than five minutes.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!
As the ground shook more and more frequently, the two could also make out the sounds coming from the other side of the rubble.
Just as the Soul Saint had said, it was the sound of some kind of explosion.
"What on earth happened in there?"
The Soul King's face was full of anxiety. His Sixth Soul Ring was at stake, so he couldn't afford to be careless.
Earthquake Beasts were extremely rare Soul Beasts, born only within mineral veins.
Even then, not every mineral vein gave rise to an Earthquake Beast, much less one of the ten-thousand-year level, as this vein had.
Its rarity could be said to rival that of obtaining a top-grade Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone.
"I'm going in to take a look." The Soul King was about to step forward and clear the passage.
The Soul Saint grabbed him and said gravely, "Whatever's over there is coming."
Before his words had faded, the sounds from the other side of the rubble grew clearer and clearer.
Rumble!
Rumble!
The passage walls shook violently, and pieces of rock kept breaking loose.
Boom!
With a tremendous bang, rubble flew as an opening was blasted through.
The dust cleared, and a group of people emerged. At their head was none other than Hui Ye.
After the fierce fighting with the Soul Beasts, only 61 of the 500 people had survived.
"You're still alive!" The Soul King's face was a mix of shock and fury.
When enemies met, their eyes burned red. Everyone stared at the Soul King, brimming with killing intent.
"You Zhou Clan bastards, how dare you set me up! I might not be able to beat you, but don't think you'll have an easy time of it either.
"If you've got the guts, keep your juniors from setting one foot outside the Zhou Clan's gates for the rest of their lives. Otherwise, don't blame us for being ruthless!"
The Soul King roared, "Family is off-limits! That's the rule among Soul Hunters!"
"Pah! Five hundred brothers are nearly all dead, and you want to talk to me about rules?"
"Fuck your mother!!"