Chapter 61: The Gemini Gold Cloth
In contrast to Yue Guan's tense expression, the veins bulging across Lin Beiya's entire body looked frighteningly grotesque.
The energy contained within the Two-Headed Demon Soul Lizard's soul ring surged violently through his meridians. Lin Beiya was certain—if he attempted to absorb this ring without wearing the Gold Cloth, he would explode on the spot.
Yet, even with the twenty-percent boost granted by the Gold Cloth, he was barely hanging on.
Every inch of his body felt like it was burning.
Knowing exactly what awaited him if he gave up, Lin Beiya could only grit his teeth and endure.
As time passed, not only did his condition fail to improve, but the bleeding from his body worsened, the crimson spreading at an alarming rate.
Yue Guan beside him had attempted to intervene several times, but each time he stopped himself at the last moment—because he still hadn't sensed the slightest trace of surrender from Lin Beiya.
"You brat… absorbing a single soul ring is giving me heart palpitations."
The absorption continued, and Lin Beiya felt his consciousness beginning to fade. Fortunately, at that critical instant, the Cosmo within his spiritual sea began spinning rapidly.
The passive circulation of his Cosmo Power reversed the situation, helping Lin Beiya stabilize the imbalance between his body and the overwhelming soul power.
His thoughts gradually cleared. Although the pain still tormented him, he could now endure it.
From Yue Guan's perspective, Lin Beiya's body was undergoing strange and inexplicable changes—but at least those changes were heading in a positive direction.
"Whew… what a little monster."
Finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, Yue Guan relaxed for the first time since the absorption began. Lowering himself into a seated position, his tense shoulders eased as he lamented how he was falling behind the new generation.
As time slowly passed, Lin Beiya's condition steadily improved. His aura rose rapidly—signaling the final stage of the absorption, where the soul ring's energy fed back into his cultivation.
Half an hour later, Lin Beiya quietly opened his eyes. As he moved his limbs, crisp popping sounds echoed endlessly from his bones.
"So you actually did it… Next time, don't pull this kind of stunt again. My old heart can't take it."
"Hahaha, thank you, Elder Chrysanthemum. I'll behave myself next time."
Lin Beiya couldn't help but chuckle at Yue Guan's lingering fear. He then closed his eyes again, sensing the new power he had gained.
Seeing this, Chrysanthemum Douluo didn't interrupt. Instead, he waited patiently—curious about what kind of soul skill a soul ring surpassing the limit by such a huge margin would produce.
The Athena Statue martial soul floated above Lin Beiya's palm. As the third deep-purple soul ring shone brightly, a beam of golden light shot into the sky.
The light connected with countless stars above the Star Dou Great Forest. The constellation's brilliance formed the figures of two children—one holding a bow, the other an arrow—before reflecting down as a golden pillar that struck the earth.
Supported by four limbs, a golden model with dual masks of good and evil slowly manifested.
Yue Guan understood what he was seeing. As expected, Lin Beiya's third soul ring had once again manifested a Gold Cloth—he just didn't know what abilities this one carried.
"Third Soul Skill—Gemini Gold Cloth, Activate."
As soon as Lin Beiya spoke, the radiant golden armor on the ground shattered into countless fragments before reforming and attaching itself to his body.
Unlike the restrained elegance of Aries or the imposing bulk of Taurus, the Gemini Gold Cloth gave Lin Beiya an indescribably strange aura.
For a moment, Yue Guan couldn't even tell whether the aura he emitted was righteous… or sinister.
"Beiya, is this your new soul skill?"
"That's right. The Gemini Gold Cloth—good and evil in one body. Destruction and protection both lie within a single thought."
"...…"
Yue Guan had absolutely no idea what Lin Beiya was talking about—he only knew it sounded impressive.
"What kind of abilities does it have? Can this old man take a look?"
Lin Beiya nodded. He also wanted to see the true power of the combat techniques granted by the Gemini Gold Cloth.
"Gemini Arc Light!"
{T/N: I searched for a long time but couldn't find any technique in Saint Seiya that matches this skill's description. So I believe this is an original ability created by the author.}
He raised his right arm lightly. From his palm, a basketball-sized sphere of light emerged, crackling with violet-blue arcs of electricity.
Receiving Yue Guan's approving look, Lin Beiya directly tossed the glowing sphere toward him.
The moment it left Lin Beiya's control, a small-scale but immensely powerful magnetic field formed instantly. With the light sphere as the center, everything within dozens of meters was violently pulled toward it by a terrifying gravitational force.
Caught off guard, Yue Guan took several involuntary steps forward, nearly being dragged straight into the sphere. Only by erupting with a burst of soul power close to a Soul Emperor's level did he manage to barely halt himself.
And before his eyes, flowers, grass, trees—even rocks—were sucked into the magnetic field and immediately crushed and obliterated in a single seamless motion.
A bead of cold sweat slid down Yue Guan's forehead. 'You call this Soul Elder-level attack power? If you told me it was a Soul Emperor's desperate killing move, I'd believe you.'
"Boy, calling you a genius is no longer enough. 'Monster' is much more fitting."
"If we weren't both members of the Spirit Hall, this old man would definitely press you into the dirt today, no matter what."
After all, Lin Beiya was still only a small Soul Elder. If he reached Soul Emperor, Soul Saint, or even Titled Douluo in the future… Yue Guan couldn't even begin to imagine how terrifying he would become.
Lin Beiya rolled his eyes. 'Saying you want to kill me right in front of my face—is that really appropriate?'
Once the energy of the Gemini Light Arc dissipated and the forest returned to calm, Yue Guan stabilized himself and asked again:
"Is there more? If I remember correctly, your previous two sets of Gold Cloth each had two combat skills."
"That's right. There's another one."
"Oh? Then show it to me as well."
Yue Guan had barely finished speaking when a faint golden beam suddenly shot out from Lin Beiya's index finger, piercing straight into the space between Yue Guan's eyebrows.
"Demon Illusion Fist!"
Time seemed to freeze. Yue Guan's eyes instantly turned hollow, and his entire body began trembling uncontrollably.
Three seconds later, Yue Guan forcefully broke free from that terrifying state that even he felt fear from, finally regaining his consciousness.
If the earlier Gemini Light Arc had merely been impressive, then this Demon Illusion Fist was something eerie—something that chilled the soul.
"Th-This… what is this ability?"
"A technique that directly targets the enemy's soul. It's another ability granted by the Gemini Gold Cloth."
Lin Beiya did not hide anything. Using the Gold Cloth to unleash the Demon Illusion Fist could only achieve hypnotic effects. Controlling an enemy like a puppet required mastery over the Cosmo as well.
What he had just shown was only the hypnotic aspect. He hadn't controlled Yue Guan or turned him into an unconscious puppet.
In truth, if Yue Guan had been fully alert and defensive, Lin Beiya wouldn't even have been able to hypnotize him for a moment. He could only affect opponents whose spiritual power was weaker than his.
And although Lin Beiya's spiritual power—enhanced by the Gold Cloth—was far above his peers, putting him leagues ahead of others his age, he was still a long way from reaching the level of a Titled Douluo.
"I see. Kid, you really are a hexagonal warrior—well-rounded in every direction. At this point, whatever weird abilities you show next, this old man won't even be surprised."
Lin Beiya nodded. He was extremely satisfied with the Gemini Gold Cloth's capabilities. Once he practiced more after returning, he would be able to activate these two combat skills through his Cosmo alone, even without wearing the Gold Cloth.
—
End of Chapter