Chapter 122: Mental Paralysis
After hearing Yang Xiong's words, Lin Gong thought for a long while before speaking: "Little Xiong, absorbing a 10,000-year soul ring for the first time is extremely dangerous. You must be prepared for the possibility of perishing at any moment."
"I have great confidence in your physical strength. I believe you can endure all soul rings under 10,000 years, but a 10,000-year soul ring is entirely different. You need to be mentally prepared."
Yang Xiong nodded, but at that moment, he began to feel a slight sense of illusion around him, or perhaps an unsettling sense of unreality. It was as if his entire body had started to go numb.
Yang Xiong's heart skipped a beat. He had been with Lin Gong, so why was this happening? Could it be that he had been ambushed by a soul beast?
The mental paralysis felt extremely strange, and it seemed as if he had fallen victim to it without realizing. The enemy was definitely more powerful than an ordinary 10,000-year soul beast.
Seeing that Yang Xiong seemed to be losing control of his body and his soul power appeared to be dissipating, he gritted his teeth and tried to resist the numbing effect. But the paralysis seemed to be originating deep within his soul, and even with all his soul power in use, he couldn't move.
At that moment, Yang Xiong's eyes turned purple. A beam of purple light suddenly shot from his eyes, and the purple energy spread throughout his body. His body formed a large Tai Chi symbol, and the paralysis from deep within his soul immediately vanished. In his mind, a giant Tai Chi diagram appeared, with the center of the diagram focused on the forehead of a giant silver figure.
Although Yang Xiong had broken free from the paralysis, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling as though his entire mind had been severely wounded. His head felt as though it might split open.
When Yang Xiong looked around again, he found himself on one knee, panting heavily, his mouth covered in blood, and a pool of blood on the ground. He even felt as though blood had trickled from his eyes, and his body was drenched in sweat, as if he had gone through an exceptionally brutal battle.
Looking around, he saw Lin Gong sitting nearby with a half-smile, as if watching a play.
Yang Xiong quickly surveyed his surroundings: "Teacher Lin, be careful! It feels like I was attacked by a mental-type soul beast."
Lin Gong laughed: "What mental-type soul beast? You're overthinking it. I just wanted to test your mental power. I didn't expect your mental power to be stronger than I imagined."
Yang Xiong was puzzled: "How is that possible? Was the mental paralysis just now caused by you? Aren't you a plant-type soul master?"
Lin Gong replied: "Don't worry about it. Calm down and rest for a while. Mental attacks are not easy to resist, and the damage isn't easy to recover from."
Yang Xiong sat down on the ground and began to meditate, slowly recovering his body.
After about three hours, Yang Xiong felt his mental power return to normal. The mental attack just now had been even more difficult than the battle with Yaomei in the Spirit Hall.
Yang Xiong looked at Lin Gong in confusion: "Teacher Lin, I'm becoming more and more curious about you. How did you learn this attack method?"
Lin Gong gave a bitter smile: "Little Xiong, do you remember when I told you why I joined the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"
Yang Xiong's eyes widened in realization: "Could it be because of your head soul bone?"
Lin Gong revealed a hint of pride: "This head soul bone of mine is called the 'Mental Paralysis Wisdom Soul Bone.' It comes from my eighth soul ring, a 65,000-year-old Demon-Eyed Magic Tree, which has a mental paralysis attack ability."
Yang Xiong couldn't help but ask: "Mental paralysis effect? Can plant-type soul bones have this effect, especially a head soul bone?"
Lin Gong sneered: "Do you think you know everything? My head soul bone is a group attack skill. It can cause a wide-area mental paralysis effect, and it's a rare plant-type soul bone. Its value far exceeds that of the head soul bone in the Soul Master Competition. Do you think those guys from the Chrysanthemum Douluo would target me otherwise?"
Yang Xiong was shocked by this revelation. Plant-type head soul bones were already extremely rare, but one with a group mental paralysis attack skill was truly terrifying in terms of value.
"Teacher Lin, why did you attack me just now? I thought I was under attack by a 10,000-year-level mental-type soul beast?"
Lin Gong fell silent for a moment before speaking: "You wanted to absorb a 10,000-year soul ring for your fourth ring, right? My mental attack just now was around the level of a 10,000-year soul beast. Normally, the mental shock from a 10,000-year soul beast should be similar to the attack I made. You were able to handle it, though barely."
"Even so, you need to be very careful. Absorbing a 10,000-year soul ring involves not only the physical energy clash but also the mental shock. Since you want an elite 10,000-year soul ring, it will be difficult. I'm not sure you'll be able to absorb it."
Yang Xiong smiled: "Teacher Lin, soul masters' cultivation is always against the heavens. Only by surpassing limits can one become stronger. You should know my ambitions."
Lin Gong sighed: "Fine, do as you wish. Perhaps I'm getting old and no longer dare to truly break through the limits."
Yang Xiong understood that Lin Gong's actions were all for his benefit. Normally, soul bone skills were a soul master's secret, and no one would easily reveal them. It was only because Lin Gong trusted him so much that he shared the secret of his head soul bone.
...
After a sleepless night, the two of them gradually entered the mixed zone of the Star Dou Forest.
After the mental attack yesterday, Yang Xiong felt incredibly relaxed, as though he had started to understand the threshold of controlling his mental power.
Normally, Yang Xiong had been cultivating the Purple Extreme Magic Eyes for many years but hadn't used it much. He had rarely engaged in mental combat or developed a specific method for cultivating his mental power.
However, after this encounter, it seemed like he had gained some experience in mental combat. Perhaps to truly evolve his mental power, in addition to his own cultivation, he needed to engage in mental battles, just as physical training required physical confrontation.
Soon, the two entered the mixed zone of the Star Dou Forest.
The entire Star Dou Forest was filled with various plants, making visibility extremely poor. While the outer zone had relatively safe conditions, with Soul Beasts generally not being too dangerous, the mixed zone was much more dangerous. The Soul Beasts here ranged from 100-year to 10,000-year-old creatures, with some even reaching 30,000 years.
The Soul Beasts here had a significant characteristic: their overall combat strength was much stronger than those in the outer zone. These Soul Beasts were more vicious, their attacks more powerful, which explained why Lin Gong was so cautious.
In the mixed zone, Yang Xiong saw more types of Soul Beasts, many of which had good attributes, and there were even some top-tier ones.
Yang Xiong couldn't help but sigh. If he had known, he would have come to the Star Dou Forest for his previous three soul rings. Some of the Soul Beasts here were too good, and too rare, and Yang Xiong had even seen some with Dragon attributes.
After spending more than ten days searching the mixed zone, Yang Xiong still hadn't found a Soul Beast that suited him. Either the age was too low, the bloodline was too weak, or the attributes didn't fit his needs. Even Lin Gong was beginning to grow impatient.
Lin Gong sighed: "Little Xiong, what kind of Soul Beast are you looking for? The 10,000-year Soul Beast we encountered yesterday, the Thousand-King Ant, was already a rare 10,000-year Soul Beast. Its strength and Earth attributes are perfect for you."
Yang Xiong replied helplessly: "Teacher Lin, can't we find something fiercer? That Thousand-King Ant was a bit too weak."
Lin Gong sneered: "What do you know? If a Thousand-King Ant reaches 10,000 years, its bloodline has already mutated. And it can lift several times or even tens of times its weight. It's one of the best choices for a strength-type Soul Beast."
Yang Xiong couldn't help but roll his eyes. Lin Gong was so happy about a 10,000-year Thousand-King Ant. If only he knew that there were three 90,000-year Thousand-King Ant Kings in the Star Dou Forest, Lin Gong would be even more delighted!
But one day, while walking through a forest, Yang Xiong and Lin Gong suddenly felt the ground shake, as if a powerful Soul Beast was passing by.
Following the sound, their eyes widened in surprise.
Before them stood a massive Soul Beast, resembling an enormous elephant, over ten meters long. Its trunk stretched more than five meters, and its tusks were exceptionally terrifying.
Yang Xiong was puzzled: "How can there be such a huge Soul Beast in the mixed zone? This Soul Beast seems unusual."
Lin Gong looked at him disdainfully: "I can't believe you don't recognize a Diamond Mammoth. It's such an ancient Soul Beast. How could you not know it?"
Yang Xiong quickly responded: "Of course I know the Diamond Mammoth. I remember reading about it in books. The Diamond Mammoth is a very ancient Soul Beast that is rarely encountered in the Soul Master world. Its size is far larger than ordinary Soul Beasts, and its strength is exceptional."
Lin Gong nodded: "That makes sense. The Elephant Armor Sect has been searching for a long time, but they haven't found a pure Diamond Mammoth. This Soul Beast's bloodline is no weaker than the Titan Giant Ape's. No wonder the Elephant Armor Sect's defense martial soul is the best in the world."
Yang Xiong thought for a moment: "Teacher Lin, I want this Diamond Mammoth as my fourth soul ring."
Lin Gong's face darkened: "What are you thinking? A 10,000-year Soul Beast might be absorbable, but this Diamond Mammoth has likely reached 14,000 years, far surpassing the limit for a Soul Master's fifth soul ring."
"Especially this Diamond Mammoth, with its enormous size, seems extraordinary. The energy within it is terrifying. Even a normal Soul Master's sixth soul ring might not be able to absorb it. After all, absorbing a soul ring isn't just about the age of the Soul Beast, but also the energy it contains and the strength of its bloodline. The Diamond Mammoth is one of the oldest Soul Beasts."
Yang Xiong fixed his gaze on the Diamond Mammoth. Normally, the age of a Diamond Mammoth was determined by the patterns on its trunk, and this one was twice as large as the typical 10,000-year Soul Beasts. Something wasn't right.
At that moment, Yang Xiong seemed to realize something and smiled: "No, Teacher Lin, this isn't a Diamond Mammoth."
Lin Gong was puzzled: "How is that possible? It looks exactly like a Diamond Mammoth, except for the shape of the tail and tusks. It's also identical to the martial soul of the Elephant Armor Sect…"
Lin Gong seemed to have an epiphany and looked shocked: "No way… According to legend, the earliest version wasn't the Diamond Mammoth. The Diamond Mammoth evolved from another Soul Beast. Could this be a return to its ancestral form, evolving into the most ancient version?"
(END CHAPTER)
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