However, with Old Scorpion—who had spent his entire life studying venomous scorpions—by his side, Dugu Feng wasn't worried at all.
It wasn't until evening that Old Scorpion returned, looking utterly exhausted.
"Young Master, the range of this glacier is too vast. It's hard to search thoroughly. It seems we'll have to stay here for a few days!"
The glacier was enormous, and after a full day of searching, he had only covered a small section.
The larger the area, the more certain Old Scorpion became that an Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion resided here.
Dugu Feng naturally understood this logic as well, knowing full well that haste makes waste.
Their wait lasted half a month.
During this time, they did encounter a few Ice Jade Emperor Scorpions, but they were all ten-thousand-year specimens—unsuitable for his needs.
Then, one day, Old Scorpion returned with a face full of joy: "Found it! A thousand-year Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion!"
Overjoyed, Dugu Feng immediately activated his Martial Soul Avatar and followed Old Scorpion deep into the glacier.
After navigating countless twists and turns, they entered an ice cavern.
A full half-hour later, the two emerged from a narrow passage.
Before them lay an icy pool.
"This Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion was hiding extremely deep. Its age is close to eighteen hundred years.
It's inside the pool. To prevent it from escaping, I've already severely wounded it. Just deliver the final blow, Young Master, then quickly enter the pool to absorb it!"
Old Scorpion remained vigilant. Once an Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion appeared, it represented the hope of an entire clan—no wonder it had hidden so well.
At any moment, other Spirit Beasts could arrive.
Hearing this, Dugu Feng didn't hesitate. He stepped into the pool through an opening in the ice.
At the bottom of the pool, his eyes fell upon a massive, jade-green scorpion roughly 1.7 meters long.
The scorpion was surrounded by frigid ice blocks, clearly indicating it had been cultivating within the ice.
Discovered by Old Scorpion, it had been gravely injured before it could react.
The scorpion's entire body gleamed with a mirror-like silver sheen. Its six long legs and dorsal shell resembled diamonds.
But the most radiant parts were its two pincer-like foreclaws, which shone like silver crystal, exuding an air of nobility.
Truly worthy of a Spirit Beast bearing the title "Emperor" in its name.
Of course, what concerned Dugu Feng most was its venom. Through the icy surface of the scorpion's body, he could see faint green specks.
He immediately realized this was what set the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion apart from ordinary Ice Jade Scorpions—aside from the venomous stinger on its tail, its two foreclaws could also deliver toxins.
Its combat capabilities were terrifying.
A dual affinity for ice and poison.
"Come, my second Spirit Ring!"
With a burst of Soul Power, Dugu Feng ended the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's life.
A dense, violet-green energy coalesced above the scorpion's corpse.
Gradually, it formed a purple Spirit Ring.
Seizing the moment, Dugu Feng sat cross-legged and activated his Martial Soul Avatar. His purple Soul Power reached out to summon the Spirit Ring.
"BOOM!!"
A deafening roar echoed in Dugu Feng's mind as the energy violently collided with his entire body.
The second Spirit Ring he was absorbing came from a Spirit Beast nearing eighteen hundred years.
Normally, this would be the level for a third Spirit Ring.
The energy was simply too immense.
In an instant, it flooded every inch of his being.
But Dugu Feng's true strength lay in the body forged by the ten-thousand-year Whale Python and his Core Pearl.
His meridians and bones were anything but ordinary.
Although he had been jolted, he withstood it directly.
The pain from absorbing the Spirit Ring was nothing compared to the agony of the poison's eruption.
But now, Dugu Feng truly grew tense.
The most critical part of absorbing a poison-attribute Spirit Ring had arrived. For an entire year, he had eaten fried scorpions continuously just to adapt to the mixture of scorpion and serpent venom.
By now, the scorpion venom carried within the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's energy had already seeped deep into every part of his body.
Meanwhile, the Azure Phosphorus Violet Venom in his bloodline erupted completely.
The two toxins merged into one.
"Mixed Poison—my first Mixed Poison! With my strength, I can definitely endure this!"
Dugu Feng's eyes gleamed brightly. Mixed Poison was the most powerful enhancement for a Poison Spirit Master.
Only this could pave the path to the pinnacle of toxicity.
The sensation of poison eruption struck again.
Absorbing a poison-attribute Spirit Ring meant that before he could experience its Soul Skill or unleash its venom upon his enemies, he first had to taste its lethality himself.
The pain wracking his entire body and the dizziness clouding his mind assaulted him once more.
His bones were being destroyed.
Yet, even as they shattered, the immense energy within the Spirit Ring repaired them, making his body even stronger.
After a long while, Dugu Feng finally regained full clarity.
This was the power of Mixed Poison. Fortunately, his body had endured the torment of toxins since childhood, allowing him to gradually withstand it.
He hadn't used his Core Pearl to aid the absorption from the start—he wanted to maximize the transformative effects of the Spirit Ring on his body.
To make his body grow stronger once more.
Wave after wave of agony was simply his body growing more powerful.
Half an hour later, the surging Soul Power gradually subsided.
One yellow and one purple Spirit Ring hovered rhythmically around his body, confirming that Dugu Feng had successfully absorbed the Spirit Ring.
"Level 22 Soul Power. And within it, that faint violet-blue hue must be the Mixed Poison formed by the fusion of Azure Phosphorus Serpent Venom and Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Venom!"
Absorbing a Spirit Ring beyond his level had granted him an extra rank in Soul Power, which was expected.
"Huh?"
Dugu Feng suddenly noticed that part of the energy above the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's corpse still lingered, continuing to merge into his body.
Normally, once the Spirit Ring was successfully absorbed and his Soul Power stopped increasing, there should be no residual energy left.
"What's going on?"
"Ah—!"
Bang!
Dugu Feng's brows furrowed as a cry of pain escaped his lips. At the same time, the clothes covering his shoulders completely burst apart.
He quickly focused his senses and discovered two arm-sized protrusions bulging from his shoulders.
"Could this be... a Soul Bone?"
Even as excruciating pain coursed through him, Dugu Feng's spirit soared with excitement.
But this wasn't an ordinary Soul Bone—it was an External Soul Bone!
His eyes widened in shock.
Silver-crystal-like structures emerged from the protrusions, growing at an astonishing speed.
By now, the pain had lessened significantly.
Dugu Feng could even clearly see what was sprouting from his body.
"These are the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion's two front claws!
This... this is unbelievable!"
Dugu Feng flexed his shoulders. The claws had split out from the junction between his shoulders and arms, each about three meters long.
From a distance, it would look as if he had four arms—except two of them were much longer.
At their tips were razor-sharp pincers, each over forty centimeters long, with serrated edges gleaming in a silver sheen.
Dugu Feng suspected that if a person stood before him, these pincers could shear them clean in half.
At this moment, all the energy generated by the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion was finally exhausted.
He tentatively moved his pincers—they were extraordinarily agile.
The opening and closing of the pincers exuded a fierce, ruthless aura, capable of tearing through anything.
Tang San's Eight Spider Lances granted him eight spider-like legs.
What he had unexpectedly obtained were two scorpion pincers—somewhat similar, yet different.
But as for the Eight Spider Lances, since he had crossed over, whether Tang San could still obtain them was another matter entirely!
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