Chapter 55: Dugu Bo's Fantastic Adventure (Part One)

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The time goes back to when Dugu Bo was recruited by the Star Luo soul-hunting team to be their helper.

"This time, we are going to hunt a ninety-thousand-year-old Sea Dragon King. Our scouts found it resting near an isolated island outside of Star Sea City. The purpose of hunting it is twofold: one, to eliminate the threat it poses, and two, to obtain its ninth soul ring for Elder Wang (the quasi-Title Douluo)."

Hai She (Sea Snake) Douluo gave the orders. This soul-hunting team was quite powerful: led by a Title Douluo offering, accompanied by a quasi-Title Douluo, seven Soul Douluos (including Dugu Bo), and ten Soul Sages.

Sixty percent of the Soul Douluos and Soul Sages were agility-based attackers. The strategy was for the Title Douluo to engage the spirit beast head-on while the agility-based attackers continuously harassed and exhausted the beast's stamina, thereby increasing the chances of a successful hunt.

This was the most effective method passed down in the Star Luo Empire for hunting high-level spirit beasts, unique to their empire. 

The Spirit Hall usually relied on several Title Douluos working together or over a dozen Soul Douluos teaming up, completely disregarding subtlety. As for the Tian Dou Empire—forget it; they didn't even have a single Title Douluo, so they weren't worth mentioning. If not for the existence of the Spirit Hall, the Star Luo Empire would have long since wiped out the Tian Dou Empire.

Dugu Bo followed the soul-hunting team under the alias "Green Dragon," with his spirit being a Golden Green Dragon and his soul power at level eighty-five. He ranked among the top three Soul Douluos here, so no one dared to provoke him.

Before long, Dugu Bo and the soul-hunting team arrived at the desolate island where the Sea Dragon King resided. A massive deep-blue figure was coiled on the island—the Sea Dragon King was sleeping.

However, as a ninety-thousand-year-old spirit beast, its strength rivaled that of a Title Douluo-level spirit beast. Being a sub-dragon species specialized in spiritual attributes, its perception was incredibly sharp. In an instant, it woke from its slumber and assumed a battle-ready stance.

*Roar!*

The Sea Dragon King let out a furious roar, attempting to drive these humans away. Its keen senses detected two humans whose strength made it wary: one was the leading elder, whose power was comparable to its own, and another who, despite appearing weaker on the surface, instinctively felt terrifying to the Sea Dragon King.

"Indeed, worthy of being a near hundred-thousand-year sea spirit beast—its perception is extraordinary. Let's proceed with the plan we discussed earlier!"

Hai She Douluo bellowed fiercely and unleashed his True Body of the Spirit to confront the enemy.

"True Body of the Spirit!" shouted the quasi-Title Douluo, five Soul Douluos, and ten Soul Sages as they all activated their True Body of the Spirit.

Hai She Douluo's spirit was the Sea Viper, a highly venomous sea snake-type spirit comparable in tier to the Beryl Python but without the latter's absurd flaws.

"Eighth soul skill, Fury of the Sea Viper!" Hai She Douluo unleashed his eighth soul skill, directly striking the Sea Dragon King.

The Sea Dragon King, now in pain, was enraged. Even clay figurines had some temper, let alone these humans who had come to hunt it. How could it not be furious?

The Sea Dragon King's eyes glowed with blue light. Sensing something ominous, Hai She Douluo quickly dodged and shouted, "Be careful! This beast's attack is coming!"

But it was too late. A beam of blue light shot from the Sea Dragon King's eyes, instantly killing one of the Soul Douluos. His body exploded, shocking the surrounding soul masters.

Meanwhile, Dugu Bo stood on the outskirts of the battlefield alongside another Soul Douluo, observing the situation. That's right—his role was simply to observe. After all, he was a wild recruit, and the soul-hunting team didn't fully trust him.

An eighty-eight-level Soul Douluo stood beside Dugu Bo, ostensibly to assist but actually to monitor him. Dugu Bo noticed this but paid it no mind. What did a mere Soul Douluo matter to him?

At this point, the battle between the soul-hunting team and the Sea Dragon King had reached a fever pitch. One Soul Douluo and four Soul Sages had been killed by the Sea Dragon King, while the beast itself was covered in wounds, its deep-blue scales torn off.

*Roar!*

The Sea Dragon King let out a thunderous dragon roar toward the sky. Everyone assumed it was on its last legs, unaware of the impending disaster their assumption would bring.

Finally, it was Elder Wang's turn. This Sea Dragon King would become his ninth soul ring. Once absorbed, he would ascend to become one of the continent's top powerhouses and enter the Star Luo Empire's Offering Hall.

A black-and-red soul ring emerged from the Sea Dragon King's body. A ninety-thousand-year soul ring was the closest to a hundred-thousand-year one, no longer purely black but black with a tinge of red.

In contrast, Dugu Bo's ninth soul ring wasn't black-and-red. He had hunted it himself—a snake-type spirit beast around eighty-five thousand years old. This was the disadvantage of not belonging to a major faction, but it wasn't a significant issue. With his current soul power at level ninety-five, what did it matter if this guy's ninth soul ring was slightly stronger? He could kill Elder Wang in an instant.

By now, the hunt was complete, and Elder Wang began absorbing the soul ring. Dugu Bo and the eighty-eight-level Soul Douluo moved forward to protect him.

Hai She Douluo remained in place, recovering his strength. Two Soul Douluos inspected the Sea Dragon King's corpse, checking for soul bones. High-level spirit beasts like this had a high probability of dropping soul bones.

"Hai She Lord! There's a soul bone—it's a head bone!" one of the Soul Douluos shouted, startling Hai She Douluo, who was still recuperating.

He immediately teleported to the Soul Douluo's side and stared at the deep-blue soul bone, his hands trembling. The other Soul Douluos and Soul Sages' eyes gleamed with intense desire.

This was an exquisite head bone—a Spirit-Crushing Demon-Breaking Head Bone. Its soul skill was likely the blue light from the Sea Dragon King's eyes. A ninety-thousand-year head bone was already comparable in value to a hundred-thousand-year limb bone.

The value of a head bone was exceptionally high. Dugu Bo also saw the head bone and had already prepared to swiftly eliminate everyone here and seize it. Such a fine soul bone—he absolutely had to claim it for his granddaughter.

Just as Dugu Bo was about to act, an unexpected event occurred. A colossal creature suddenly surged out of the sea—it was another Sea Dragon King.

This Sea Dragon King was also around ninety thousand years old. Upon seeing the corpse of the first Sea Dragon King on the island, it roared furiously, and its dragon eyes emitted a beam of blue light, targeting Elder Wang.

Elder Wang was in the critical stage of absorbing the soul ring and couldn't be disturbed. The sudden attack caused him to explode on the spot, the energy of the soul ring tearing his body apart.

"Little Wang!"

"Elder Wang!"

The soul-hunting team was enraged. They had been on the verge of claiming their reward, only for the mission to fail. Hai She Douluo, furious, unleashed his True Body of the Spirit and engaged the Sea Dragon King in a life-or-death battle.

He had little time left in his life, with only a few decades remaining. Elder Wang had been his chosen successor, meant to take over his position, and now that successor was gone. How could he not be enraged?

The remaining Soul Douluos and Soul Sages unleashed their True Body of the Spirit and attacked the Sea Dragon King. Due to the sudden appearance of the second Sea Dragon King, the Spirit-Crushing Demon-Breaking Head Bone had not yet been stored in a storage soul-guiding device and remained on the corpse of the first Sea Dragon King.

Without breaking a sweat, Dugu Bo claimed it for himself.

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