The Dark Finale
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Lan Yinhuang and Xiao Rou's words made sense to Lin Yongming. The dark night provided the perfect environment for the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger to thrive.
If the terrain were more complex, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger might indeed escape. Moreover, Xiao Rou had hunted it before and understood its behavior better than anyone.
This time, Xiao Rou was determined to eliminate the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger once and for all.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's method of increasing its cultivation was through devouring other spirit beasts, not through natural cultivation. This made it a threat wherever it appeared, as other spirit beasts would immediately band together to destroy it before it grew too powerful.
Although Xiao Rou had taken human form and had Xiao Wu to care for, her heart still leaned more toward the spirit beast side compared to Lan Yinhuang. Naturally, she cared more about the well-being of spirit beasts.
Hearing Xiao Rou's grave tone, Dugu Bo glanced back. Initially, he had been somewhat dismissive of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, which was less than thirty thousand years old. But now, he began to take it seriously.
"Understood," Dugu Bo replied.
Originally, Dugu Bo hadn't planned to release his Martial Soul True Body early. But after Xiao Rou's warning, he quickly increased his spirit power, and a pitch-black spirit ring lit up. To avoid alerting the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, he whispered softly,
"Seventh Spirit Ability, Jade Phosphor Serpent True Body."
A cloud of dark green mist surrounded Dugu Bo, and the ground beneath him seemed to turn into a swamp. A massive emerald-green serpent's head emerged, followed by its long, coiling body. Its cold, reptilian eyes gleamed with a chilling gaze.
As a Titled Douluo, Dugu Bo's Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor had evolved into a creature resembling a dragon. His True Body now took the form of a thirty-meter-long, thick, emerald-green serpent.
The sheer presence of Dugu Bo's True Body brought immense pressure to Lin Yongming, Lan Yinhuang, and Xiao Rou. Fortunately, his aura wasn't directed at them.
After releasing his True Body, Dugu Bo used the surrounding trees as cover, coiling his serpent form around them as he approached the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
"Dugu Bo is ready. Let's move. Xiao Ming, Ah Yin, stay close to each other. Don't separate too far," Xiao Rou said. Her body glowed with a soft pink light as her seventh spirit ring rose. In her True Body state, rabbit ears and a tail appeared, transforming her into a youthful, rabbit-eared girl.
With a graceful leap, Xiao Rou jumped onto a tree branch, using the branches to move swiftly toward the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger. She left behind a trail of pink afterimages as she positioned herself to Dugu Bo's left.
"Xiao Ming, let's go," Lan Yinhuang said. Since neither of them had a True Body, they could only summon their martial souls in their hands.
They chose to approach from the right, spreading out to form a pincer attack with Dugu Bo and Xiao Rou.
"Ah!" A scream echoed as the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger killed another member of the hunting team.
The remaining two hunters were drenched in sweat, their faces pale and exhausted. Hearing their teammate's death cry, their expressions turned even whiter.
"Old Fourth! I'll fight to the death! Sixth Spirit Ability, Whirlwind Hammer Strike!" The hunting team leader, wielding a black hammer, spun twice in the air before slamming the hammer down with tremendous force onto the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
The tiger's tail glowed with a dark gray energy, forming a protective barrier around its body.
This was one of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's defensive skills, using its evil energy to shield itself. The barrier was incredibly resilient.
The hunting leader's hammer strike only forced the tiger to crouch slightly, leaving it completely unharmed.
Snarling, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger swung its tail, striking the hunting leader and sending him flying.
The remaining hunter, seeing his leader struggling, took the opportunity to flee.
"Boom!" The hunting leader crashed to the ground but quickly got up. However, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was already pouncing on him.
"Fourth Spirit Ability, Jade Phosphor Mist!" Seizing the moment, Dugu Bo unleashed his spirit ability. A cloud of green mist spewed from the serpent's mouth, enveloping the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
"Roar!" Temporarily blinded by the mist, the tiger roared in frustration. Its red eyes darted around until they locked onto Dugu Bo's massive True Body. Instantly, a look of wariness appeared in its eyes.
"Nine rings… a Titled Douluo! Your Excellency, please save me!" The hunting leader, stunned by the sudden turn of events, spotted Dugu Bo's nine spirit rings and pleaded for help.
"Step back. My poison is lethal," Dugu Bo said without turning his head, continuing to advance toward the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
"This tiger is extraordinary. It's using a defensive skill to repel my poison," Dugu Bo noted with surprise as his toxins were deflected by the gray energy barrier around the tiger.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, seeing the mist thickening, charged straight at Dugu Bo with incredible speed, almost like a teleportation.
This was one of the tiger's skills, Charge, which allowed it to move in a straight line at twice its normal speed.
"Good. Fifth Spirit Ability, Serpent Shield!" Although the tiger's speed was astonishing, it wasn't true teleportation. Dugu Bo, with his experience, could still track its movement.
"Boom!" The tiger collided heavily with Dugu Bo's shield, staggering back dizzily.
Realizing that Dugu Bo was no ordinary opponent, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger began circling him cautiously, looking for an opening.
"It's as intelligent as they say," Dugu Bo muttered. He then commanded his True Body to lunge at the tiger.
The two engaged in a fierce battle. The tiger would occasionally gain the upper hand, leaping onto the serpent's body to bite or claw at it. However, the serpent would retaliate by slamming the tiger to the ground or biting its hind leg.
For a while, the tiger and serpent clashed, neither backing down. The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger seemed determined to devour Dugu Bo's True Body.
"Yowl!" The tiger was thrown to the ground again, this time struck by the serpent's tail. It let out a pained cry, more like a cat's meow than a tiger's roar.
The blow clearly hurt the tiger.
It cautiously got back up, suddenly unleashing a surge of gray energy. The energy twisted into spiraling waves that rapidly expanded around its body, spreading out for hundreds of meters.
"It really does have a domain. This is the first time I've seen a spirit beast with one," Dugu Bo remarked, surprised as the gray waves passed over him, slightly suppressing his spirit power.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger crouched low, its front claws extended. A mix of gray energy, lightning, and wind swirled around it, forming three energy spheres.
"A combination of three attributes? Impressive. For a spirit beast under thirty thousand years, you've held your own against me. Truly a top-tier spirit beast," Dugu Bo said, genuinely impressed.
The tiger launched the three energy spheres at Dugu Bo.
"Bone Spirit Ability, Medusa's Gaze!"
Dugu Bo controlled his True Body to position itself in front of him. From the serpent's massive eyes, two gray beams shot out, freezing the energy spheres mid-air and turning them into stone.
The Medusa's Gaze could even freeze energy, rendering the tiger's attack useless.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's eyes widened in shock, clearly not expecting its attack to be neutralized so easily.
Suddenly, its scorpion-like tail shot a needle-like projectile at Dugu Bo.
Dugu Bo dodged sideways, but the tiger used the distraction to turn and flee.
"Fourth Spirit Ability, Blue Silver Prison!" Lan Yinhuang, anticipating the tiger's escape, summoned countless Blue Silver Grass vines from the ground, trapping the tiger.
Lin Yongming noticed that as soon as the tiger was trapped, lightning crackled within the prison.
"Old Freak, hurry! I can't hold it for long!" Lan Yinhuang shouted.
"Hmph! Eighth Spirit Ability, Time Freeze!" Dugu Bo immediately acted, firing a dark green energy orb from the serpent's mouth. The orb struck the tiger, freezing it in place.
The Blue Silver Grass vines shattered under Dugu Bo's power, but the tiger remained immobilized.
"Ha… Break!" Dugu Bo channeled his spirit power, causing the orb inside the tiger to explode.
"Meow!" The tiger let out a pained cry, gray blood dripping from its mouth.
"Sixth Spirit Ability, Eight-Stage Fatal Kick!" Seizing the opportunity, Xiao Rou teleported next to the tiger.
She delivered a series of eight rapid kicks, each one more powerful than the last. The final kick, infused with all her strength, struck the tiger's abdomen, sending it flying into a large boulder, which shattered on impact.
Even after such a devastating attack, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger struggled to its feet, though its protective gray energy had finally dissipated.
"Fifth Spirit Ability, Blue Silver Overlord Spear!" Lan Yinhuang summoned a golden-blue spear made of vines and thrust it into the tiger's abdomen, piercing through its weakened defenses.
"Xiao Ming, now!" Lan Yinhuang shouted.
Lin Yongming was already in position, his Thunder Blade in hand. To ensure the tiger was truly dead, he unleashed his spirit ability.
"Third Spirit Ability, Unparalleled Thunder Strike!" Lin Yongming delivered the final blow, his lightning energy coursing through the tiger's body.
Finally, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger collapsed, its life force fading. A pitch-black spirit ring emerged above its body.
"Sigh… The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger is finally dead," Xiao Rou said, her tone tinged with mixed emotions.
"I wonder if another one will appear," Lan Yinhuang mused.
"This tiger was remarkable. Even at less than thirty thousand years, it rivaled a Spirit Sage, if not stronger. It's hard to imagine how powerful it would be at a hundred thousand years," Dugu Bo remarked, circling the tiger's corpse with a hint of regret.
"Alright, thanks to all of you, I can now absorb its spirit ring. I'll begin," Lin Yongming said, summoning his Purple Lightning Thunder Wings to prepare for the absorption.
"Go ahead. We'll keep watch," Dugu Bo nodded.
"Xiao Ming, be careful. If it had reached thirty thousand years, I wouldn't have let you absorb it. The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger is too powerful," Lan Yinhuang warned.
"Don't worry, Ah Yin. I'll succeed."
With that, Lin Yongming sat down beside the tiger's corpse and began guiding the spirit ring into his body, circulating his Wave Secret Technique to absorb its energy.
"Hmm!" Lin Yongming grunted as the spirit ring's energy surged into him, causing a sharp pain in his chest.
"Such domineering energy!" Lin Yongming thought, his brows furrowed as he focused on assimilating the spirit ring's power.
"Roar!" A resentful roar echoed in Lin Yongming's mind as the tiger's lingering hatred launched a mental assault.
"Dark Heaven's Eye of Perception!" In his mind, a red eye of perception appeared, countering the tiger's mental attack with a crimson energy beam.
The beam struck the tiger's phantom repeatedly, shattering it. This marked the end of the mental struggle that came with absorbing a ten-thousand-year spirit ring.
"Good thing I awakened my mental perception during my fourth spirit ring," Lin Yongming thought with relief.
With the mental interference gone, Lin Yongming's absorption of the spirit ring's energy sped up.
After a while, Dugu Bo suddenly stood up, ready to attack.
Xiao Rou also tensed, preparing for a fight.
Lan Yinhuang, however, looked around in surprise as familiar red eyes began to appear in the air around them, as if they were about to open.
Note: So far this story is published up to chapter 215 on my patreon, go check it out and remember that if we reach the goal of 100 power stones I will publish the next chapter.