Chapter 3: The Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, Black Wind Demon Snake
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"Gather your energy in the dantian, push both palms forward, let your intent follow the movement, and guide your inner energy through the rotation."
In an instant, Feng Xiaotian felt a current of energy surge through his entire body, making him feel significantly lighter.
"It worked!"
"The Nine Yang Divine Skill can indeed be used in this world!"
Feng Xiaotian could hardly contain his excitement. With the Nine Yang Divine Skill, his power would be greatly enhanced.
Before he knew it, it was late at night, and Feng Xiaotian began to feel drowsy.
"The Nine Yang Divine Skill is powerful, but I must proceed gradually, avoiding haste to prevent losing focus. There's still a year before the tournament, so I need to pace myself."
That night, Feng Xiaotian slept soundly.
Over the next half-month, Feng Xiaotian made the Nine Yang Divine Skill his top priority. He successfully broke through to the second level, which involved cleansing his marrow and strengthening his muscles.
By completing this step, he had unblocked his Ren and Du meridians, purified his bone marrow, enhanced his body's energy reserves, and boosted his immune system.
During his cultivation, he noticed that each subsequent breakthrough became increasingly difficult. But this was expected. His current soul power was limited, with only three soul rings. The Nine Yang Divine Skill and his soul power complemented each other, and it was now time to set out and obtain his fourth soul ring.
Feng Xiaotian approached his grandfather.
"Grandpa, I'm ready. We can depart tomorrow."
"I haven't seen you much lately. What have you been working on?"
"Grandpa, I've been focusing on my cultivation to better absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring."
Feng Lieyang nodded in approval. "Good, that puts my mind at ease."
"Grandpa, let's head to the Star Dou Forest tomorrow. We'll have a better chance of encountering a ten-thousand-year soul beast there."
"Alright!"
---
The next day, Feng Xiaotian, along with his six teammates and his grandfather Feng Lieyang, set out for the Star Dou Forest. It was the largest soul beast forest on the Douluo Continent, spanning the borders of the Tian Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire, and home to a vast array of soul beasts.
The group started from the forest's outskirts and gradually moved deeper. The closer they got to the forest's center, the more likely they were to encounter high-level soul beasts.
As they walked, a strange sound suddenly came from up ahead—a "rustle, rustle, rustle" noise.
"It sounds like a reptilian soul beast. Everyone, stay alert. I'll check it out!"
Feng Xiaotian spread his wings and flew high into the sky, carefully observing the scene below. It turned out to be a Red Wind Ant, but it didn't seem to have reached ten thousand years yet.
"Don't worry, everyone. It's just a few-thousand-year-old Red Wind Ant. We can bypass it by going left."
Feng Lieyang suggested, "Xiaotian, a few-thousand-year-old Red Wind Ant isn't bad. Why not take it?"
"Grandpa, we agreed on a ten-thousand-year soul beast. Let's keep looking."
"You're as stubborn as ever. Alright, let's keep going a bit further."
The group continued onward. The deeper they ventured, the denser the trees and undergrowth became, and the more dangerous it felt. A sinister and foreboding atmosphere began to envelop them.
Suddenly, there was movement ahead once more. A group of soul beasts bolted out, running at full speed.
Feng Lieyang cautioned, "A ten-thousand-year soul beast is nearby. Everyone, be careful!"
He soared into the sky and spotted the massive creature.
"Xiaotian, that's the ten-thousand-year soul beast, the Black Wind Demon Snake."
Feng Xiaotian was both surprised and delighted.
"Everyone, block it! Don't let it escape!"
Feng Lieyang felt a twinge of concern.
"Xiaotian, the Black Wind Demon Snake is an extremely cold and yin-aligned creature. I'm worried that your body might not be able to withstand it."
Hearing this, Feng Xiaotian's excitement only grew.
"Grandpa, that's exactly what I want. It's perfect!"
Feng Xiaotian was currently cultivating the third level of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, which focused on intense yang energy. Every time he trained, he felt a searing heat coursing through his body, almost unbearable. The extreme cold and yin energy of the Black Wind Demon Snake would perfectly balance out the excess heat, allowing the energy within him to reach equilibrium.
Normally, absorbing the soul ring of such a cold and yin creature would be risky, but Feng Xiaotian was confident. Although Feng Lieyang didn't fully understand where his grandson's confidence came from, he decided to trust him. After all, a ten-thousand-year soul beast was a rare opportunity—better to take it while they could.
"Xiaotian, I'll hold it off for you!"
"Thank you, Grandpa!"
"Everyone, let's go! Help the boss take down the demon snake!"
Feng Xiaotian also saw this as a chance to train his team's coordination. Before coming to the soul beast forest, he had already discussed with his grandfather that unless absolutely necessary, he wanted to handle things on his own with his team.
Feng Lieyang blocked the demon snake's path, while Feng Xiaotian and his teammates surrounded it. The massive snake reared up, glaring at them with its cold eyes, occasionally opening its enormous jaws threateningly.
Feng Xiaotian decided to test the snake's strength first and launched the initial attack.
"First Soul Skill, Wind Blade Array!"
The other team members followed suit.
"First Soul Skill, Blade of the Wind!"
"Second Soul Skill, Magic Whirlwind!"
Despite the barrage of attacks from Feng Xiaotian and his team, the demon snake remained unfazed. It coiled its body, tucking its head under its massive frame. The wind-formed blades clashed against its scales, creating sparks but inflicting little damage. The scales on its back were incredibly tough, like iron shields, nearly impervious to their attacks.
The reality was that their collective power was not strong enough. Among the seven of them, only Feng Xiaotian had just reached level 40, while the others were still in their 30s, limiting them to just three soul skills each. If Feng Lieyang hadn't been there to protect them, the Black Wind Demon Snake would likely have counterattacked by now.
Feng Xiaotian hadn't yet used his self-created soul skill.
"Save your strength, everyone. That creature's weak spots are its head and abdomen. Focus your attacks on those areas! You attack its abdomen from below, and when it rises, I'll strike its head."
"Understood!"
Feng Xiaotian hovered in the air while the others returned to the ground.
"Third Soul Skill, Wind Sword Technique!"
A long sword formed by wind shot towards the snake's abdomen, skimming along the ground. The snake suddenly reared up, narrowly avoiding the strike, and let out an angry roar. Feng Xiaotian seized the opportunity and launched his attack on its head.
"Stromwind Demon Wolf Eighteen Slash, engage!"
The team leaped into action again, coordinating with Feng Xiaotian to surround and besiege the snake. This time, the snake was injured and became enraged. Ignoring the other attacks, it lunged directly at one of the team members, its scales bristling like blades, as if determined to take someone down with it in its final moments.
"Ah Zhi, watch out! Get out of the way!"
"Ah!"
Ah Zhi couldn't dodge in time. Faced with the vicious demon snake, he was terrified.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Heavy Wind Blade!"
Just as the snake's gaping maw was about to clamp down on Ah Zhi, a massive sword descended from the sky, pinning the snake to the ground. No matter how much it struggled, it couldn't break free.
Everyone looked at Feng Lieyang, astonished. This was the power of a Soul Douluo—a force to be reckoned with.
"Xiaotian, quickly finish it off and claim your soul ring!"
(End of Chapter)