Star Dou Great Forest.
Rows of trees, so dense they blotted out the sun, appeared in their line of sight, their verdant leaves exuding a fresh aura of life. Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan led Yang Zhenzhen through this ancient and primeval forest.
It was Yang Zhenzhen's first time in the Star Dou Great Forest, and she was full of curiosity and questions about this renowned Spirit Beast gathering place, which had given birth to so many legendary tales. Her big eyes, filled with vibrant light, scanned everything around her. Despite the inherent danger of their mission, the girl's voice was full of cheer.
"Sister Nannan, the environment here is so refreshing!" Yang Zhenzhen took a deep breath of air, then said delightedly.
"Right? I feel the same way," Jiang Nannan replied with a smile, agreeing with Yang Zhenzhen.
"Zhenzhen, have you thought about what kind of Spirit Beast you want for your third spirit ring?" Zhu Ziyang looked at the two cheerful girls, one big and one small, and couldn't help but smile, asking Yang Zhenzhen for her thoughts.
"Yes, I have," Yang Zhenzhen answered without hesitation. "My first and second Spirit Abilities are both amplification-type Spirit Abilities, so for my third Spirit Ability, I want an offensive one. I've looked it up myself, and a Spirit Beast like the Skythunder Eagle would be perfect."
Yang Zhenzhen's first and second spirit rings were both hunted by Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan. Her first spirit ring came from a two-hundred-year-old Conductive Flying Mouse, providing her with a Spirit Ability called 'Electrical Storage' that enhanced her lightning element attack power. Her second spirit ring came from a seven-hundred-year-old Lightning Demonic Wolf, providing her with a Spirit Ability called 'Thunder Demon Body' that amplified her strength and attack power.
Now, the girl wanted to acquire an offensive Spirit Ability, which was within Zhu Ziyang's expectations. However, what surprised Zhu Ziyang was that she actually knew about the Skythunder Eagle Spirit Beast and was even planning to make it her third spirit ring.
"That's a very good idea," Zhu Ziyang said with a hint of surprise in his expression. "Do you know what kind of Spirit Beast the Skythunder Eagle is?"
"Yes, I do," Yang Zhenzhen nodded, answering seriously. "The Skythunder Eagle is a top-tier lightning-attributed flying Spirit Beast. Its body contains extremely explosive thunder, said to come from the divine thunder above the nine heavens. It can easily obliterate any Spirit Beast of the same realm, which is why it's called the Skythunder Eagle. I believe its spirit ring will definitely provide me with a very powerful offensive Spirit Ability."
"The Skythunder Eagle's energy is very explosive, and its spirit ring isn't that easy to absorb. Are you confident?" Zhu Ziyang listened to Yang Zhenzhen's answer and knew that the child had indeed prepared well. While he admired her, he couldn't help but feel a little doubtful.
"I believe in myself, I can definitely do it!" Yang Zhenzhen nodded very seriously and firmly. Zhu Ziyang felt her conviction in her eyes.
"Alright then, the Star Dou Great Forest happens to be one of the places where Skythunder Eagles appear. We'll help you hunt a thousand-year Skythunder Eagle!" Zhu Ziyang said with a smile.
"That's great! Thank you, Yang-ge!" Yang Zhenzhen exclaimed, jumping up happily upon hearing this.
After locking onto their target, the three immediately sprang into action, shedding their previous relaxed and leisurely demeanor, which had been akin to a spring outing, and becoming cautious and serious.
They bypassed the outer regions and mixed zones, heading directly into the Star Dou Great Forest Core Area. Top-tier Spirit Beasts like the Skythunder Eagle could not appear in the outer areas of the Star Dou Great Forest, so they did not linger outside and directly entered the Core Area to search.
After searching in the forest for three or four days, they found a suitable Skythunder Eagle for Yang Zhenzhen on a tall, lightning-struck tree. Zhu Ziyang personally took action, directly snatching the thousand-year Skythunder Eagle before its parents, two ten-thousand-year Skythunder Eagles, could react. By the time the two ten-thousand-year Skythunder Eagles came to their senses and furiously unleashed terrifying bolts of lightning, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan had already taken Yang Zhenzhen a thousand meters away, to a place where the two Skythunder Eagles could not possibly detect them.
"Zhenzhen, come on," Zhu Ziyang said, placing the Skythunder Eagle, whose cultivation was around thirteen hundred years, in front of Yang Zhenzhen.
"Mhm!" Yang Zhenzhen nodded, her green-glowing eyes fixed on the majestic Skythunder Eagle on the ground. A cleaver appeared in the girl's hand; it was the same cleaver. She had already used this cleaver to send off two Spirit Beasts, and soon, it would be three.
Yang Zhenzhen's hand rose and fell, and the Skythunder Eagle, which had already fainted during the process of being abducted by Zhu Ziyang, let out a muffled groan before it could no longer awaken. A light purple spirit ring floated out from the Skythunder Eagle's corpse, captivating Yang Zhenzhen's gaze.
"Zhenzhen, you can do it!" Jiang Nannan cheered the girl on.
Yang Zhenzhen nodded, then immediately sat cross-legged beside the Skythunder Eagle, activating her spirit power. A pair of purple moth wings appeared behind her, with purple electric arcs swirling around them, looking full of peculiar beauty. The Skythunder Eagle's spirit ring, guided by the girl's spirit power, floated into her hand.
Her eyes closed, and the refinement and absorption of the spirit ring began. Uncontrolled electric arcs started to appear around Yang Zhenzhen's body. This was her Spirit, Thunder Ray Moth, battling with the Skythunder Eagle's spirit ring. The gap between Yang Zhenzhen's Spirit and the Skythunder Eagle was still very large. If she could successfully absorb the Skythunder Eagle's spirit ring, her Spirit should receive a considerable boost. If she couldn't absorb it, Zhu Ziyang would do his best to save her life.
However, that was only the worst-case scenario. Judging from the current situation, Yang Zhenzhen's process of absorbing the Skythunder Eagle's spirit ring was very smooth. Although electric arcs still flickered occasionally, these arcs visibly became much more docile.
"Brother!" Jiang Nannan suddenly called out to Zhu Ziyang, her voice filled with surprise.
"What's wrong?" Zhu Ziyang looked over and saw Jiang Nannan, who was squatting beside the Skythunder Eagle's body, holding up a Spirit Bone in her hand, her face full of pleasant surprise as she looked at him. Zhu Ziyang couldn't help but be stunned, then burst out laughing, "This girl, she's so lucky!"
"Yes, she is!" Jiang Nannan agreed heartily. She said, "This is a torso bone, and although it's only thousand-year level, it's more precious than even a ten-thousand-year limb bone. This Spirit Bone should allow Zhenzhen's strength to increase by another significant margin!"
"Not bad. After she finishes absorbing the spirit ring, we'll let her absorb this Spirit Bone," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile.
Three hours later, Yang Zhenzhen successfully refined the Skythunder Eagle's spirit ring. She sprang up, her delicate face flickering with excitement and exhilaration. Three spirit rings, two yellow and one purple, appeared behind her. The electric arcs on her pair of purple moth wings became even more active.
Electric light surged in her eyes, and the purple spirit ring shone brightly. In an instant, the wings behind her turned deep purple, and the area around her body became dim. Immediately afterward, nine purple bolts of lightning descended from the sky, landing in a circular area within five meters of Yang Zhenzhen's body. The ground was instantly split into nine deep pits of varying sizes.
"Is this your third Spirit Ability? Not bad!" Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan watched this scene and exclaimed in admiration, "It's even an area-of-effect attack."
"Hehe!" Yang Zhenzhen retracted her Spirit and ran excitedly to the two of them, saying, "That's right! My third Spirit Ability is called 'Heavenly Thunder Descent,' and it can unleash nine bolts of heavenly thunder in an instant, punishing targets within the range of the heavenly thunder! The best part is that the number of heavenly thunders will increase as my strength grows!"
"Hehe, congratulations, Zhenzhen!" Jiang Nannan said, reaching out her hands to pinch Yang Zhenzhen's small face and affectionately rubbing it. "Not only did your wish come true, but it even exceeded expectations!"
"Yes, yes!" Yang Zhenzhen also nodded excitedly. It was clear that the girl was truly thrilled.
"Here, this is for you, Zhenzhen!" Zhu Ziyang said with a smile, handing the Skythunder Eagle torso bone in his hand to Yang Zhenzhen. "Absorb this Spirit Bone too. Sister Nannan and I will protect you."
"Huh?" Yang Zhenzhen was stunned, somewhat disbelieving her ears, and looked at Zhu Ziyang with surprise.
"Alright, don't be surprised," Jiang Nannan said, laughing at the girl's dazed expression and explaining, "This is a torso bone! It was found on this Skythunder Eagle. You could say it's specially prepared for you!"
"This, this..." Yang Zhenzhen finally reacted. Her first thought was to refuse. She waved her hands repeatedly, saying, "I can't take it, it's too precious. Yang-ge, you should keep it for yourself!"
"According to the rules of our Shrek Academy, whoever absorbs the spirit ring also absorbs the Spirit Bone!" Zhu Ziyang looked at Yang Zhenzhen's reaction and couldn't help but be amused. He deliberately put on a stern face and said, "Take it!"
He pushed the Skythunder Eagle torso bone into Yang Zhenzhen's hand, but Yang Zhenzhen acted as if she was holding a hot potato, passing it from her left hand to her right, unwilling to accept it. Her delicate face gradually grew anxious. She looked at Jiang Nannan, pleading, "Sister Nannan, I..."
"Alright!" Jiang Nannan smiled and held her hand, making her grip the Skythunder Eagle torso bone tightly. She said, "This Spirit Bone belongs to you, and no one can take it away! Quickly, be a good girl, fuse with it. We'll protect you!"
Jiang Nannan's gentleness dispelled the anxiety and worry in Yang Zhenzhen's heart. With a silly smile on her face, she sat down cross-legged again, holding the Skythunder Eagle torso bone in her hand. Following Jiang Nannan's guidance, she placed the Spirit Bone on her back, and then, the fusion began.