After Yang Xiong and Lin Gong entered the Sunset Forest, they quickly reached an area filled with black miasma. Visibility was extremely low, and there was even a faint trace of poison in the air.
Back when Yang Xiong was searching for the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, he had explored nearly every location. He had been especially excited when he came across this black miasma.
Unfortunately, this place wasn't the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. It resembled more of a vast abyss. The last time Yang Xiong ventured into the black fog, he encountered a very ferocious soul beast right after entering.
That soul beast likely thought Yang Xiong was trying to invade its territory and chased him for half a day. If Yang Xiong hadn't mastered teleportation and been fast enough, he would have been killed. Even so, he still suffered a heavy blow, breaking numerous bones. It had been his most dangerous experience yet.
After carefully searching through the black miasma, the two finally found a huge cave.
From a distance, it appeared to be a very robust dragon. Just its length exceeded twenty meters. Its entire body emitted a dark metallic sheen like refined steel and was covered with armor-like scales, leaving almost no weaknesses. Its claws were extremely sharp, and most striking were the two silver dragon horns on its head, gleaming dangerously.
This soul beast was the Silver-Horned Tyrannosaurus, a top-tier dragon-type soul beast known for its formidable strength and fierce offensive power. Its sharp claws gleamed with a chilling light. As a supreme metal-attribute soul beast, it also possessed the raw power typical of dragonkind.
Lin Gong said seriously, "Yang Xiong, you'd better think this through. This Silver-Horned Tyrannosaurus is already 4,300 years old. In terms of combat power, it's already stronger than most ordinary ten-thousand-year soul beasts. Let alone using it as your third soul ring, even the fourth ring for a normal soul master might not be able to handle it."
Yang Xiong responded with equal seriousness, "Teacher Lin, have you ever seen me do anything I wasn't confident in? Since I chose this Silver-Horned Tyrannosaurus, it means I'm sure of myself."
Lin Gong shook his head. "Absorbing a soul ring isn't that simple. The later soul rings carry increasingly strong energy, and it's also tied to the soul beast's power. This dragon's strength and defense are among the best. If you're even slightly careless, your body might explode from the energy."
Yang Xiong said, "Teacher, I'm very confident I can absorb this soul ring. No one knows my body's strength better than I do."
Lin Gong sighed, "Fine. Since you insist, this old man will risk his old bones to help you. If you die or end up disabled, I'll just take care of you for the rest of your life."
Yang Xiong couldn't help rolling his eyes. This old guy really didn't trust him, acting as if he was destined to fail. Honestly, who's to say who'll take care of whom?
Lin Gong flew forward, soul rings instantly appearing, two yellow, three purple, and three black, along with a giant Purple Radiance Bamboo.
The Silver-Horned Tyrannosaurus reacted swiftly, immediately sensing someone had invaded its territory. Despite facing a Soul Douluo, it didn't back down. It charged forward, slashing with its huge claws. One strike left a glaring scratch on the giant bamboo.
Even Yang Xiong was shocked. This dragon's attack power was even greater than he'd imagined. Its terrifying metal attribute could probably cut through defenses of soul beasts at the same level. No wonder it was a top-tier metal attribute beast. Its sheer power had bent the Purple Radiance Bamboo like a bow.
But Lin Gong truly lived up to being a Soul Douluo. In the blink of an eye, countless Purple Radiance Bamboos appeared in the sky, like a barrage of arrows, surrounding the area. Even the dragon's mighty defense couldn't resist.
Even more bamboo shot out from the ground, forming a giant bamboo forest that resembled a cage.
The Silver-Horned Tyrannosaurus realized how powerful the enemy was and tried its best to break free, roaring non-stop, but it couldn't escape the trap.
Within minutes, it was tightly surrounded, unable to move. Several giant bamboo spikes pierced its body, and red blood spilled across the ground.
Yang Xiong walked over and teased, "Teacher Lin, are you sure you're not a control-type soul master? Your bamboo's control seems stronger than its offensive power."
Lin Gong answered proudly, "You bookworm! You know what the biggest strength of the Purple Radiance Bamboo is?"
Yang Xiong thought for a moment. "Bamboo-type martial spirits and soul beasts are known for their toughness and pressure resistance. Their attack might be secondary. From a control standpoint, I'd say your abilities rival those of the Imperial Academy's Zhilin Soul Douluo."
Lin Gong huffed, "Zhilin Soul Douluo is only level 83. I'm level 87! Are you underestimating me?"
Yang Xiong chuckled, "Your strengths differ. Zhilin's martial soul is Skyblue Vine, which excels in precision control. It's the strongest control-type spirit I've seen."
"Your Purple Radiance Bamboo, however, has both powerful offense and resilience. You can serve as either a power-type or defense-type. Zhilin, on the other hand, has more limitations. His Skyblue Vine is vulnerable to fire and blades, which makes it inferior to your bamboo."
Lin Gong replied, "You've read your books well, but it looks like you're not interested in academic pursuits."
"Anyway, let's focus on absorbing the soul ring. You'd better reconsider. Once you start, I won't be able to help you anymore."
Without a word, Yang Xiong walked over to the dragon. Up close, it looked even more ferocious. Its eyes were full of savagery, and it still let out low growls. Truly worthy of being a top-grade dragon-type soul beast.
Yang Xiong pulled out a long spear and stabbed directly into the dragon's eyes. After a few thrusts, the beast finally stopped struggling, a purple soul ring rising above it.
Lin Gong looked worried. "Yang Xiong, why are you so fixated on soul ring age?"
Yang Xiong sat down next to the dragon, summoned his martial soul and soul rings, and his entire body turned silver as he began the absorption.
The soul ring's energy was indeed powerful and wild. As soon as he drew it into his body, an overwhelming force surged in, making him feel like he was immersed in magma. His blood boiled, and his skin felt like it would tear open.
A powerful energy flooded into his meridians, burning them from the inside. His body was on the brink of collapse.
At that moment, all his soul power was drawn into a massive Yin-Yang symbol. As the energy poured in, the symbol grew stronger, as if breaking through a limit.
This was the Yin-Yang Meditation Method, also known as Tai Chi. A famous phrase from Tai Chi says: "From one comes two, from two comes three, from three comes all things."
The soul power entering him was like a drop of water joining the great Tai Chi, helping the Yin-Yang symbol grow.
Lin Gong observed Yang Xiong's tense expression. His body had seemed uncontrollably violent at first, but quickly calmed. This puzzled Lin Gong.
"What's going on with this kid's body? His soul power seems to work as a whole, and the soul ring energy is merging with him unusually fast. This isn't normal."
When Yang Xiong finished absorbing the soul ring, he felt a great sense of relief. The surrounding miasma seemed to disperse, and the sky was full of stars. It felt like the world had expanded.
More importantly, the Yin-Yang Meditation Method felt smoother and more complete. Some blocked meridians seemed to have opened.
Yang Xiong realized he had likely activated some of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians. Though not fully unblocked, his progress had improved significantly, even boosting his cultivation speed.
Lin Gong was amazed. "Yang Xiong, I really underestimated you. That was a 4,300-year soul ring, and you absorbed it successfully without side effects. Your body is much stronger than I imagined."
Yang Xiong asked curiously, "Teacher, didn't you believe I could do it? Why let me absorb it if you didn't think I'd succeed?"
Lin Gong snorted, "Who would've had confidence in that situation? A 4,300-year soul ring is more than double the recommended age for a third soul ring."
"I've always said that Yu Xiaogang's theory about exact soul ring ages was unreliable. How can you judge the exact age of a regular soul beast?"
Yang Xiong laughed, "None of these so-called soul master theories are absolute. As soul masters evolve and focus more on physical conditioning, Yu Xiaogang's theories will probably be phased out."
Lin Gong sighed, "You're probably right. These theories may have been useful once, but they'll be outdated sooner or later."
Yang Xiong shook his head, thinking, "This is only the beginning. In the future, even the seventh soul ring for members of the Body Sect could reach 100,000 years. These so-called theories, like early Earth physics, might have once been groundbreaking but are later proven flawed."
Lin Gong snorted, "I just don't like Yu Xiaogang's attitude. It's obvious where his knowledge came from, and many of his theories are wrong, yet he acts so arrogant. His teachings could mislead others."
Yang Xiong said with a smile, "Take the good and discard the bad. Yu Xiaogang has read a lot, but his strength is too weak to truly understand the gap between high-level and low-level soul masters. That's why he makes so many flawed conclusions."
Just then, Yang Xiong, who had been calm, suddenly felt a strange sensation. His hands began to throb with intense pain, as if they were being torn apart.
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