After entering the Sunset Forest, Yang Xiong and Lin Gong quickly arrived at a specific area. This region was filled with thick black miasma, greatly reducing visibility. Even the air carried traces of deadly poison.
Initially, when Yang Xiong had been searching for the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well, he had scoured many places. Upon encountering the black miasma, he had been particularly thrilled.
Unfortunately, this place wasn't the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well but instead resembled an endless abyss. The last time Yang Xiong ventured into this black miasma, he immediately encountered an extremely fierce spirit beast.
This spirit beast likely thought Yang Xiong was invading its territory and chased him for half a day. If Yang Xiong hadn't mastered teleportation and ran fast enough, he would have been killed. Even so, he suffered a blow that shattered countless bones in his body—it was the most dangerous encounter he'd ever faced.
After carefully searching through the black miasma, the two finally found a massive cave.
From a distance, they could see a very powerful dragon-like creature. Its length exceeded twenty meters, and its body gleamed like polished iron, covered in metallic scales. It appeared flawless, with razor-sharp claws and a pair of silver horns on its head that looked exceedingly sharp.
This spirit beast was the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon, considered one of the top-tier dragon-type spirit beasts. Not only was it incredibly strong and powerful, but its sharp claws emitted a chilling gleam. It was a supreme metal-attribute spirit beast with formidable dragon-like strength.
Lin Gong spoke with unusual seriousness. "Yang Xiong, think carefully. This Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon is 4,300 years old. In terms of pure combat power, it's stronger than an ordinary ten-thousand-year spirit beast. This soul ring isn't just for a third soul ring—even a normal soul master's fourth soul ring might not be able to handle it."
Yang Xiong's expression grew grave. "Teacher Lin, have I ever done anything without confidence? Since I've chosen this Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon, I have my reasons."
Lin Gong shook his head. "Absorbing a soul ring isn't that simple. The later the soul ring, the stronger the energy within it. Moreover, it depends on the spirit beast's own strength. This Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon is exceptionally powerful in both offense and defense—it's likely at the pinnacle among spirit beasts. One careless move, and you'll explode from the overwhelming energy."
Yang Xiong replied, "Teacher Lin, I'm very confident in absorbing this soul ring. My body's strength should make this clear to you."
Lin Gong sighed. "Fine. If you're determined to go through with this, I'll risk my old bones to help you. If you die or get crippled, at worst, I'll take care of you for the rest of your life."
Yang Xiong couldn't help but roll his eyes at Lin Gong. 'How can this old man be so distrustful of me? He acts as if I'm guaranteed to fail. Besides, who knows—maybe it'll end up being him relying on me for life.'
Lin Gong swiftly leaped forward, and two yellow, three purple, and three black soul rings appeared around him. A massive Purple Emperor Bamboo materialized in his hands.
The Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon reacted quickly, sensing someone intruding into its territory. Even against a Soul Douluo-level expert, it didn't back down. Instead, it charged directly, its massive claws tearing at the enormous Purple Emperor Bamboo, leaving a visible scratch.
Even Yang Xiong was astonished. The attack power of this Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon was even stronger than he had imagined. Its terrifying metal attribute allowed its claws to ignore defenses when facing spirit beasts of the same level. No wonder it was considered a top-tier metal-attribute spirit beast. Its strength was even more horrifying—one strike bent the Purple Emperor Bamboo into a bow-like shape.
However, Lin Gong was indeed a Soul Douluo-level expert. In an instant, countless Purple Emperor Bamboos appeared in the sky, each resembling sharp arrows that nearly enveloped the surrounding area. Even the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon's formidable defense couldn't withstand them.
Moreover, countless Purple Emperor Bamboos emerged from the ground, forming what looked like a massive bamboo forest. All the bamboos intertwined, creating a colossal cage.
By now, the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon realized the strength of its opponent. It roared furiously and charged around with all its might but couldn't break free from the Purple Emperor Bamboo prison.
Within minutes, the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon was completely immobilized, surrounded by the bamboos. Several large Purple Emperor Bamboos pierced its body, and red blood flowed onto the ground.
Yang Xiong approached and glanced at Lin Gong, unable to resist teasing him. "Teacher Lin, are you an offensive-type or control-type soul master? Your Purple Emperor Bamboo seems to have much stronger control abilities than offensive ones."
Lin Gong's face filled with pride. "You brat, reading books doesn't mean you understand martial souls. You know about the Purple Emperor Bamboo, but do you know its greatest characteristic?"
Yang Xiong thought for a moment before replying. "The greatest trait of bamboo-type martial souls and beasts should be their resilience—or rather, their resistance to pressure. Offense is secondary. In terms of control ability, it's already comparable to Zhi Lin, the Soul Douluo of Tian Dou Imperial Academy."
Lin Gong immediately blew up. "Zhi Lin is only at Level 83, while I'm at Level 87! Are you underestimating me, you little punk?"
Yang Xiong laughed. "Your strengths differ. Zhi Lin's martial soul, the Azure Vine, excels in fine control of spirit power. His vine is unique—it's probably the strongest control-type spirit master I've ever seen."
"Teacher Lin, your Purple Emperor Bamboo has stronger attack power. Its resilience is unmatched, and it's incredibly sharp. You can use it for both offense and defense. However, Zhi Lin's Azure Vine has significant limitations—it's weak against fire and sharp objects. That's far inferior to your Purple Emperor Bamboo."
Lin Gong said, "You haven't wasted your book knowledge, kid. It's a pity you don't seem interested in pursuing scholarship further."
"Forget about that for now. Focus on absorbing the soul ring first. Think carefully—you can still back out now. Once you start absorbing the soul ring, even I won't be able to help you."
Without another word, Yang Xiong approached the massive Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon. Up close, the dragon appeared even more ferocious, its eyes filled with violent intent. It continued to growl menacingly—a true top-tier dragon-attribute spirit beast.
Yang Xiong took out a spear and thrust it into the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon's eyes, stabbing repeatedly until the dragon stopped struggling reluctantly. A purple soul ring emerged.
Lin Gong frowned slightly. "Xiao Xiong, why are you so fixated on high-year soul rings?"
Yang Xiong sat beside the Silver-Horn Tyrant Dragon, summoned his martial soul and soul rings, and his entire body turned silver as he began absorbing the soul ring.
The soul ring's energy was indeed incredibly powerful and violent. Just pulling the soul ring to align with his body caused an overwhelmingly strong force to surge into his body. It felt as though he were submerged in molten lava—his blood boiled, and his skin seemed ready to split apart.
A powerful energy coursed through all his meridians, burning them as if his body were on the verge of collapse.
At this critical moment, all his spirit power was drawn into what resembled a massive Tai Chi (Yin-Yang) symbol. As the energy entered, the Tai Chi gradually expanded, and his body seemed to break through some kind of barrier.
This was the Yin-Yang Meditation Technique, also known as the Tai Chi. A famous saying in Tai Chi goes: "One gives rise to two, two gives rise to three, and three gives rise to everything!"
The surging spirit power was like a drop of water merging into the Tai Chi, causing the Yin-Yang fish to gradually grow stronger.
Beside him, Lin Gong noticed Yang Xiong's serious expression. Though Yang Xiong's body initially became extremely turbulent, it quickly calmed down. Lin Gong began to feel doubtful.
"What's going on with this kid's body? Why does it feel like his spirit power forms a cohesive whole? Even the soul ring's energy is rapidly integrating into his body—he's different from others."
When Yang Xiong fully absorbed the soul ring, he felt much more refreshed. The surrounding miasma began to dissipate, revealing a star-filled sky. In that instant, the world seemed infinitely vast.
Yang Xiong felt that the Yin-Yang Meditation Technique had become more complete and smooth. Some previously blocked meridians now seemed unblocked.
He understood clearly—this was likely the legendary Eight Extraordinary Meridians. Though he hadn't achieved full-body meridian flow, his body had grown significantly stronger, and his cultivation speed would improve.
Lin Gong marveled. "Yang Xiong, I underestimated you. This is a 4,300-year soul ring, yet you absorbed it successfully without any side effects. Your body is far stronger than I imagined."
Yang Xiong asked curiously, "Teacher Lin, didn't you believe I had a chance before letting me absorb it? Were you doubting my success earlier?"
Lin Gong snorted. "Who would dare have confidence in you with a 4,300-year soul ring? That's more than double what a normal soul master can handle for their third soul ring."
"I've always said Yu Xiaogang's theory about soul ring years is unreliable. How could the first three soul rings have precise year limits? For ordinary spirit beasts, who can tell their exact age?"
Yang Xiong chuckled. "Teacher Lin, how much of what's passed down in the soul master world can be taken as absolute truth? With the development of soul masters, especially their increasing focus on physical conditioning, Yu Xiaogang's theories will likely be obsolete sooner or later."
Lin Gong sighed. "You're quite open-minded. As you said, these theories may have been correct at the time, but they'll likely be outdated eventually."
Yang Xiong shook his head. 'This is nothing compared to what's coming. In ten thousand years, the seventh soul ring of the Body Sect can reach a hundred thousand years. These theories are like physics on Earth—they may have been groundbreaking at the time but are later proven wrong.
Lin Gong huffed. "I just can't stand Yu Xiaogang's attitude. Everyone knows where his so-called knowledge comes from, and many of his theories are wrong. Yet he acts arrogantly, as if he's infallible. His teaching feels like misleading students."
Yang Xiong smiled. "Take the essence and discard the dross. Yu Xiaogang has read a lot of books, but his strength is too low. He doesn't understand the gap between high-level and low-level soul masters, which leads him to spread misconceptions."
At this moment, Yang Xiong, who had been calm, suddenly felt something unusual. His hands throbbed with intense pain, as if they were being torn apart.
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