Xu Tianxi, of course, hadn't forgotten that earth-shattering battle, which had unfolded like a massive tsunami. The memory was still fresh in his mind.
In the second clash between Xu Xiaoyun and the Heavenly Tyrant Ancestor, Xu Xiaoyun had utilized a Soul Ring Combination derived from his divine beast bloodline. His first five Soul Rings had merged into one, forming the Soul Skill "Black Tortoise Roar." A majestic shield made of light, like an eternal golden wall, had pressed down, and the Black Tortoise had let out a resounding cry, its divine beast might shaking heaven and earth.
At that moment, Xu Tianxi had even thought that this attack, unleashed by Xu Xiaoyun at sea, might have reached the level of a Limit Douluo, something even Long Xiaoyao couldn't underestimate.
Unfortunately, his opponent was the Heavenly Tyrant Ancestor, whose cultivation was immeasurably profound, rendering the Black Tortoise Roar completely ineffective.
In their third encounter, Xu Xiaoyun's sixth and seventh Soul Rings had merged, transforming into a vibrant, blood-red Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, which had truly shocked Xu Tianxi.
Two black Soul Rings merging into a red one? Was this talent not too heaven-defying?
But then he recalled the original story, where Xu Sanshi, during the first great competition, had merged three Soul Rings—"yellow, yellow, purple"—whose combined age couldn't possibly exceed four thousand years, into a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring. He had then used "Black Tortoise Roar" to directly contend with a Ten Thousand Year Soul Skill from an Angel Soul King. Upon remembering this, Xu Tianxi felt that Xu Xiaoyun's feat wasn't so remarkable after all.
At least Xu Xiaoyun's sixth and seventh Soul Rings combined had an age of seventy to eighty thousand years at minimum, which was more normal than Xu Sanshi's.
As for the subsequent eight-ring fusion, it was simply another burst of his ring-fusion talent, and it hadn't harmed the Heavenly Tyrant Ancestor anyway.
Now, hearing Xiao Changfeng bring it up again, a flash of insight streaked through Xu Tianxi's mind. He pursed his lips and asked with a dry voice:
"Senior Martial Uncle, you're not going to teach me the method of Soul Ring Combination, are you? I haven't even cultivated my Second Martial Soul yet."
Xiao Changfeng smiled mysteriously and countered in a low voice:
"Who told you that this ability can only be used by the Black Tortoise Martial Soul? The Xuanming Sect has been passed down for so many years, and during that time, there have been Titled Douluo like me whose Martial Soul isn't Black Tortoise. How could we not have some unique secret skills? This particular secret skill can be used by any Soul Master who possesses a divine beast bloodline."
Xu Tianxi's eyes lit up. "You mean..."
"Exactly what you're thinking!"
Xiao Changfeng laughed heartily, then tapped his toes and rose into the air. His nine Soul Rings reappeared, and the Ice Crystal Phoenix let out a clear, resonant cry. The oppressive aura of the king of all birds swept across the four directions, causing a vast expanse of the sea to yield and fall silent.
"My dear nephew, watch closely!"
Xiao Changfeng let out a long cry, and the first four Soul Rings on his body immediately glowed intensely. Then, the four rings pulsed and merged into a single, inky black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.
Its aura was as profound as an abyss. Although Xu Tianxi had never absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, he had an intuition that the quality of the merged Soul Ring created by Xiao Changfeng was definitely beyond the ten-thousand-year level.
After all, this was a fusion of one yellow and three purple Soul Rings. Xiao Changfeng's fourth ring, which was a thousand-year one, was almost purplish-black, even deeper than his Deep Sea Silver Demon Whale Soul Ring.
Clang~ Clang!
Soul Power surged for a thousand feet, transforming into layers of ice flower ripples, pure white as snow. A giant phoenix phantom condensed and spread its wings amidst Xiao Changfeng's far-reaching cry. Its phoenix eyes were sharp as blades, revealing an arrogant air of dominion over the world.
Battle intent surged in Xiao Changfeng's eyes. He spread his arms as if to fly, merging with the ice phoenix's wings, releasing endless ripples of blue light. His essence, spirit, and soul unified, raising his entire aura to its peak. He then uttered four rhythmic words:
"Ice Phoenix - Ten Thousand Miles!"
The high-pitched phoenix cry transformed into sound waves, shaking heaven and earth. The space around Xiao Changfeng visibly distorted, a phenomenon caused by the ice-cold spatial ripples that permeated the world. Cold light scattered in all directions, and the knife-like cold winds made Xu Tianxi's eyes sting, forcing him to use his Soul Power to protect them.
Countless Soul Power feathers, either azure or snowy white, condensed and shot out from the space around Xiao Changfeng, reflecting dazzling light.
The next instant, Xiao Changfeng thrust his arms forward, and the Ice Crystal Phoenix Shadow soared through the heavens, carrying a rolling cold current that swept across the sky. The silver-blue stream of light obscured the morning sun's brilliance, bringing a sensation of ice and snow, and then vanished into the distant sea in Xu Tianxi's somewhat dazed gaze.
"How was that, my dear nephew? How was your Senior Martial Uncle's move?"
Xiao Changfeng landed with a hearty laugh, arms crossed, spirits soaring. A hint of smugness flickered in his ice-blue eyes.
For the past two and a half years, he had been constantly stimulated by the talent Xu Tianxi displayed, making even him, a Super Douluo, feel a bit insecure. Now, after showcasing his strength these past two days, he had finally regained some face.
This was the treatment a dignified ninety-sixth-level Super Douluo like him deserved. While he might not have been as good as Xu Tianxi at that age, he had also been a generation's prodigy, stunningly talented and almost unrivaled among his peers.
As an elder, he still needed to maintain some elder's demeanor.
"Amazing, truly amazing."
Xu Tianxi gave a thumbs-up, speaking from the heart.
He had no concept of how powerful this move was, but he figured it could freeze him a hundred times over without a problem.
He just wondered what the result would be if he unleashed it on that bastard Yan Shaozhe.
"Haha, my dear nephew, you don't need to envy me. With your talent and aptitude, it definitely won't take you long to learn this secret technique."
Xiao Changfeng's lips couldn't stop curving upwards as he said this. Then, his tone shifted, and his expression became serious:
"But remember, this secret technique places a great burden on the body. The more Soul Rings you fuse and the higher their age, the greater the burden. The highest level, the nine-ring fusion, even your teacher would never use lightly."
Xu Tianxi's gaze sharpened at these words. He nodded earnestly and asked curiously, "Then, Senior Martial Uncle, what level can you achieve now?"
"I've achieved an eight-ring fusion before, which I used when I fought your teacher upon breaking through to ninety-sixth level. I haven't tried a nine-ring fusion yet..."
A grave expression appeared between Xiao Changfeng's brows as he carefully instructed:
"Later, I will teach you the incantation. After you learn it, you must carefully comprehend it. Although this method is based on activating divine beast bloodline, your primary cultivation of Illusory Moon Mystic Eyes might present some obstacles. However, all laws under heaven are interconnected; as long as you diligently try, you will definitely be able to master this method."
At this point, Xiao Changfeng's voice grew even deeper, and the light in his eyes became sharp and ruthless. He said solemnly:
"But remember, unless absolutely necessary, do not use this move with your Illusory Moon Mystic Eyes in public, or there will be endless troubles!
Those Titled Douluo, and even Super Douluo, will target you out of greed. You must at least cultivate to the Soul Sage level before you have the power to protect yourself!"
"Furthermore, if you use this move in a private battle with an enemy, you must leave no survivors! Better to kill the wrong person than let one go!"
Xu Tianxi's expression became solemn and serious. He calmly said "Okay," deeply understanding the gravity of the matter.
Such a secret technique was an immense temptation for any force or powerful individual. Its practical value was far higher than the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family's Dragon Transformation, the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile School's Split Mind Control, or the Clear Sky Sect's Haotian Nine Perfections. It was almost on par with Ring Detonation.
When Yuhao displayed some of the Ice Emperor's aura during a competition in the Star Luo Empire, it attracted the Guardian Douluo of the Star Luo Empire, who even dared to attack disciples from Shrek Academy. This showed that those Titled Douluo were not to be trifled with, and one absolutely couldn't count on their kindness.
"Yes, this is perfect."
Seeing the determination in Xu Tianxi's eyes, Xiao Changfeng couldn't help but smile and nod. His lips moved, uttering a profound and obscure incantation.
Xu Tianxi listened quietly, a perplexed expression occasionally flashing across his eyes. He asked questions, and Xiao Changfeng smiled as he answered them. A few minutes quickly passed.
After hearing the incantation, Xu Tianxi was about to ask Xiao Changfeng for more insights, but then he saw a sharp glint in the latter's eyes and a strange expression on his face.
"Senior Martial Uncle, what's wrong?" Xu Tianxi asked with concern.
Xiao Changfeng didn't answer. He closed his eyes to sense something, then hesitantly replied,
"The Ice Phoenix - Ten Thousand Miles Soul Skill I just released seems to have hit some Sea Soul Beasts. And... quite a few of them were hit. There should be more than one Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast among them, and they're quite strong."
Xu Tianxi: "...???"
Is Senior Martial Uncle's aim really that good? He hit a whole group with one shot?
"Then, Senior Martial Uncle, should we go take a look?"
Hearing that there might be some excitement, Xu Tianxi enthusiastically suggested.
"Let's go take a look then..." Thinking that he had already hit them, Xiao Changfeng felt there was no harm in checking.
Two minutes later.
On a frozen sea surface, Xiao Changfeng, accompanied by a dumbfounded Xu Tianxi, descended from the sky. They looked at the black-purple Soul Rings suspended in mid-air, speechless.
Heaven help him, he really didn't intend to randomly kill Soul Beasts. Why was their luck so bad? To be directly hit by his attack?
These beasts, beaten beyond recognition, were not ordinary Soul Beasts. Each was over fifteen meters long, with the same streamlined whale body as the Deep Sea Demon Whale. They were none other than Evil Demon Orcas, one of the three major overlord Soul Beasts of the near-shore waters, renowned alongside the Deep Sea Demon Whale!
Even in death, these orca remnants exuded a fierce and domineering aura. Their solidified gazes were shocking and awe-inspiring; in life, each had been a powerful existence dominating its own territory. The leading Evil Demon Orca was nearly thirty meters long, and its aura had clearly reached the level of a fifty-thousand-year-old Soul Beast!
"If I had known I'd hit these guys, I would have fused one less Soul Ring. It's such a waste that so many valuable Soul Rings can only be discarded. What a pity..."