The Next Day
At the back of the STGT sect martial arts platform, there was a two-meter-tall, wounded light brown-and-white bear locked in a cage.
"This is the crystal bear you asked for. Our sect members searched for all three soul beasts you wanted. Although we found other beasts as well, this crystal bear is the only one that is suitable for your soul ring age. It's around 710 years old," Sword Douluo said to Xie Yue, who stood nearby.
"Mm, thank you for your hard work, Grandpa," Xie Yue thanked him. Every gesture of his was filled with elegance and nobility.
Sword Douluo was also surprised by Xie Yue's talent. It wasn't easy to achieve such a noble aura. He could see it more clearly now—Xie Yue didn't pretend or try to act elegantly. This aura was already deeply rooted in him, as if he was born with it. Could a child learn noble etiquette to the core in just a year and a half? It seemed impossible, but Xie Yue had done it.
Seeing his disciple, Chen Xin also felt proud and happy.
"It seems your studies at Moon Pavilion have benefited you greatly. Now, you can clearly control your mood fluctuations with ease," Sword Douluo said after evaluating Xie Yue once again.
"Is it?" Xie Yue asked.
"Yes... You didn't even show joy after seeing this bear. That's a good thing," Sword Douluo praised. Despite being only 9 years old, Xie Yue already knew the importance of hiding his emotions. He was showing signs of maturity beyond his years.
But the truth was, Xie Yue had deliberately controlled his mood fluctuations. He didn't want to act like a little kid anymore. He was tired of it. Even though acting was easy for him after learning how to control his aura from Tang Yuehua, he didn't want to do it now. If he continued acting like a child, he wouldn't be able to get involved in important matters related to the sect's higher-ups. So, step by step, he had to show more maturity.
"Thank you for your praise, Grandpa. I am truly happy to receive it from you," Xie Yue smiled mildly and sweetly. His little maturity and cuteness were laced with elegance.
"Haha, kill it and absorb it. Grandpa also found a suitable fourth soul ring for you. When our sect members found the crystal bear, they also found another bear. They said they didn't know its name, and it must be a powerful soul beast over 30,000 years old. It can fight against Soul Saints. So, I went to check it out. After feeling its power, I found it was only around 5,000 years old. It's on the same level as the bird we found for your first soul ring. It would be perfect for your fourth soul ring, so I had someone keep an eye on it. I'll go and bring it back soon," Sword Douluo explained slowly.
Hearing Chen Xin's description, a name came to his mind: Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear.
The sect had been searching for the soul beasts Xie Yue needed one and a half years ago. After a difficult search, they found the crystal bear. They also found many other suitable soul beasts for Hu Liena and Xie Yue. That powerful bear was one of those coincidental encounters.
Xie Yue knew that his luck was not great, so he had asked them to start searching for his soul beast a year earlier. If he had waited until reaching a bottleneck, who knew if he would find a super or top-level soul beast suitable for him in just a few days? His luck was always bad, and he didn't want to rely on that possibility. Since he had the sect's backing, he needed to use it to his advantage.
And now, he had already found his second super soul beast. This was the power of collective effort. This was why Xie Yue didn't choose to act alone and instead sought support for himself.
The Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear was on the same level as the Emerald Demon Bird.
...
"Kill it quickly. I want to see what ability this top-level soul beast will give you," Sword Douluo urged.
"Yeah." Xie Yue summoned his Moon Blades. A light yellow soul ring circled around him. Xie Yue activated the soul ring, and it shone brightly. In an instant, he disappeared. Then a flesh-cutting sound was heard. The crystal bear's head fell to the ground. It was over in a flash.
Xie Yue had the innate ability to double his speed, plus the first soul ring's boost of 140% (120% + 10*2%). It also gave him an attack boost of 140%, along with the default 20% defense-breaking property of his Moon Blades.
His super speed and attack shattered the limits of a level 30+ soul elder. Since the crystal bear was seriously injured, he easily broke its defenses. But if the bear had been uninjured, it would have been impossible to defeat it.
Even in ancient times, crystal bears were exceedingly rare and powerful. They had mutated from the same species as the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear. Although weaker than the Fear Claw Bear, the Crystal Bear possessed a special ability. Every one of its attacks could cause its opponent's body to crystallize, stacking until the opponent eventually shattered from further attacks.
The Crystal Bear's skin was as hard as copper, and its bones were as strong as iron. Its body was incredibly tough. Only a strong soul power and a quick removal of the crystallized areas could prevent massive damage from its attacks. The Crystal Bear also had a weakness: it lacked ranged combat abilities, and its neck was its weak point.
When it was on the verge of death, the Crystal Bear's soul power would explode, crystallizing everything in a certain radius. The stronger the Crystal Bear, the larger the radius of its soul power explosion.
A thousand-year-old Crystal Bear was practically unstoppable, crushing anything in its path. It was like a bulldozer, crystallizing and smashing small trees into powder. It was overbearing.
"Maybe if it wasn't for Chen Xin's methods, it would have self-exploded," Xie Yue thought.
He sat down cross-legged and began absorbing the soul ring.
After a while, two yellow soul rings circled around him. His height also increased slightly. He was now more than 140 cm tall. His soul power had increased by two levels, unlike when he absorbed his first soul ring. His first soul ring had only been around 200 years old, so he didn't gain any soul power improvement from it. But now, he was level 22.
"What is your soul ring ability?" Sword Douluo asked impatiently.
"Crystal Slash," Xie Yue said simply.