That crisp female voice rang out again, neither polite nor roundabout, asking directly, "I am the Silver Dragon King. I ask you, young friend—have you met the Dragon God? What is his current condition?"
Yu Tianming was momentarily taken aback by her bluntness, but since the Silver Dragon King was half of the Dragon God himself, there was no point in hiding anything. He answered directly, "Some years ago, due to an accidental encounter, I was swept into a temporal turbulence and ended up in a small world filled with dragon corpses and remnants of souls. After months of trekking, I eventually found the remnant soul of the Dragon God at its center…"
"Was the Dragon God lucid or mad? And what sort of blessing did he bestow upon you?" The Silver Dragon King asked eagerly.
Yu Tianming gazed down toward the depths of the Lake of Life, where her heavily wounded body lay resting. With a sigh, he said slowly, "Perhaps it was due to my dragon bloodline, or the blessings of the Water and Fire Dragon Kings, or perhaps because I cultivated both body and elements. When the Dragon God saw me, he directly removed the Sea God's divine trial from me and guided me on the path of cultivation. That's how I was able to step into the divine realm even before reaching rank 100."
Sea God's divine trial? Di Tian and Bi Ji exchanged stunned glances. They never imagined Yu Tianming had already been chosen by the Sea God. Since when did becoming a god become so… accessible?
"You were originally chosen by the Sea God? You're exceptional indeed. Naturally, it makes sense that the Dragon God would recognize you," the Silver Dragon King sighed, her voice laced with melancholy. "It must have been your Water and Fire Dragon King aura that led you into that broken realm. Can you return there again?"
Yu Tianming shook his head. "I could probably locate that small world again, but the Dragon God's soul dispersed after guiding me. I'm afraid…"
He didn't finish, but the surrounding savage beasts already understood. A heavy sorrow silently spread through the Star Dou Forest's core.
Though born of nature, who among them hadn't heard of the mighty Dragon God? Now, to learn he was truly gone… it was a bitter pill to swallow.
"I am the incarnation of the Dragon God's Creation Divinity—his other half," the Silver Dragon King murmured. "I had always hoped that once I recovered, I could revive him. But now…"
'You just revealed your greatest weakness to me,' Yu Tianming thought silently. 'You're severely injured and in seclusion. How do you know I won't strike you down right now? Or… are you just too innocent from never dealing with humans?'
In truth, the Silver Dragon King had barely interacted with humans since her birth. She'd gone into seclusion in the Star Dou Forest almost immediately. It was this very inexperience that had led to her later falling for Tang San's son, Tang Wulin.
Feeling a twinge of sympathy, Yu Tianming gently said, "You may be half the Dragon God, but you are your own being now. Instead of placing all your hopes on reviving him, why not focus on growing stronger yourself?"
"…I understand," she replied softly, though it was unclear whether she truly accepted his words. Then she turned to Xiong Jun. "He is indeed the inheritor of Lord Dragon God's will. Xiong Jun, for my sake, please offer your sacrifice. You may preserve your soul, and there may yet be a future for you."
By now, Xiong Jun's neck had fully stopped bleeding. In fact, despite receiving no treatment, the wound had already begun to regenerate. Physical injuries were nothing to a beast with 500,000 years of cultivation.
"Hmph, fine. I'll do it for you, Lord Silver Dragon King," he grumbled. "But if not for you, I'd rather self-destruct than sacrifice myself…"
He wasn't stupid. He knew offering his soul ring would allow his spirit to live on. But without Yu Tianming's confirmation, he'd had no idea if he would even be accepted. Now, with the Silver Dragon King's assurance, he wanted to at least act tough to save face.
"Oh?"
Xiong Jun flinched when Yu Tianming turned toward him. He quickly diverted, grumbling, "You already have nine soul rings. I assume you want me to sacrifice to the next generation? When do we start?"
Yu Tianming glanced around at the savage beasts and calmly uttered two words:
"Right now."
A tall figure in black appeared beside him—it was Dugu Yan, already informed through sound transmission to prepare for a soul beast sacrifice. She immediately activated her spirit, and seven rings rose behind her: black, black, black, black, black, black, red.
The red ring was clearly from the Titan Giant Ape, while the six black rings were from her Sea God trial.
"This is the one?" Xiong Jun muttered, arms crossed. "Young, but already at Soul Sage level with such abnormal rings. She must be a peerless genius. Being sacrificed to you doesn't shame me."
Dugu Yan glanced silently at Yu Tianming.
He smiled and explained, "At the hundred-thousand-year mark, soul beasts face a heavenly tribulation to evolve. But that tribulation is so deadly that less than one in ten survive a second. That's why some beasts choose to abandon longevity and transform into human form instead."
"So… all these people around us are soul beasts?"
He nodded. "They're all at least 300,000-year-old soul beasts—formidable enough to have survived two tribulations. They're known as savage beasts and can take human form freely."
The surrounding beasts smirked proudly at his words.
Xiong Jun took a step forward. "I've cultivated for 500,000 years. Among savage beasts, I stand near the top. Little girl, once you accept my sacrifice, your path to godhood won't be far."
"Then let's begin," Yu Tianming said simply.
Xiong Jun hesitated, then turned toward Bi Ji with a trace of embarrassment. "After I'm gone, please… look after my people."
"I will," Bi Ji replied softly. Despite their usual bickering, she couldn't refuse a dying request.
At her words, Xiong Jun stepped forward and revealed his true form—a massive, 15-meter-tall bear covered in dark golden fur. Strangely, his arms were disproportionately long, each nearly 10 meters, even on his enormous frame.
The bear radiated crimson-gold light that quickly intensified, wrapping Dugu Yan in a glowing cocoon. Within moments, it solidified into a soul ring hovering in her eighth slot.
Just as Xiao Wu had once sacrificed herself to Tang San before he reached rank 60, Xiong Jun now sacrificed himself to Dugu Yan before she reached rank 80. Due to his immense cultivation, the ceremony was quick and efficient—before she could even process what was happening, she had become a Soul Douluo.
Looking at the red soul ring with five golden lines, Dugu Yan muttered, "Such overwhelming power… I'm already at rank 86. With this energy still refining my body, I'll be rank 90 within half a year. I've… become a Titled Douluo?"
Yu Tianming curled his fingers, drawing in the soul bone left behind—a dark gold left arm bone. Heavy and gleaming with sharp edges, it was clearly of a higher tier than a normal 100,000-year bone.
He didn't absorb the ring, instead transmitting to Dugu Yan: "What soul skills did you get?"
"Darkgolden Terrorclaw," she replied. "A devastating attack skill, perfect for piercing defenses or surprise attacks. And Berserk—an explosive power-boosting skill. I haven't used it yet, but I can already tell—it's far beyond ordinary augmentation. It could turn the tide of a battle."
Yu Tianming said no more and affixed the soul bone to his own arm. The bone melted into a glow and fused into his body.
Immediately, he sensed its essence—and an odd feeling welled up.
Whether due to coincidence, his spirit, or the Dragon God's legacy, the bone gave him an elemental affinity—metal control.
He could now feel all metal elements in the air, buried underground, and hidden in stone—ready to be manipulated at his will. Unlike others who used magnetism to move metal, Yu Tianming could command the metal element itself.
The second ability was the Darkgolden Terrorclaw—a true soul skill, unlike Huo Yuhao's externally attached version. He could now condense pure gold-element blades at his fingertips for devastating melee and ranged attacks. The strike was so sharp that even lesser gods might not withstand it.
Now, his soul bones included:
Head: Tianmeng Ice Silkworm – Mental Stability / Spiritual Manifestation
Torso: Mountain Dragon King – Earth Control / Deathly Void
Left Arm: Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear – Metal Control / Terrorclaw
Right Arm: Sky Azure Bull Python – Wood Control / Azure Thunder
Left Leg: Deep Sea Demonic Whale – Water Control / Space Fracture
External: Dragon God Wings – Cloud Travel / Wind Manipulation
With these, he had nearly mastered five elements: metal, wood, water, earth—and was only missing fire. While his spirit included wind, fire, and lightning, he lacked a fire-element soul bone. Without it, true balance remained elusive.
This imbalance gnawed at his otherwise calm heart, stirring a fierce longing.
At that moment, Yu Tianming turned his eyes toward the Red King.
The Red King reverted to its original form: a five-meter-long, three-headed hellhound with blazing fur. Despite its dragon bloodline, it was unmistakably canine. Its three identical heads gleamed with red-gold fangs and scorching energy.
In truth, the Red King—with its three heads and dragon bloodline—was perfectly suited as Yu Tianming's ninth ring. But before absorbing his ninth, Yu Tianming hadn't had the opportunity to slay a savage beast like this… until now.
(End of Chapter)
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