Chapter 227: Invincible Golden Body, Dugu Yan's Late-Night Inquiry
Xiao Wu's third soul ring was eight thousand years old.
Ye Lingling was now one hundred percent certain that Lin Qingmo absolutely had a way to let people break through the theoretical limits of soul rings, with an extremely high success rate.
Zhu Zhuqing was one example. Xiao Wu was another.
Ning Rongrong stared at the soul rings on Xiao Wu, and her eyes lit up.
She grabbed Xiao Wu's arm, unable to suppress the excitement in her voice.
"Xiao Wu, you're amazing! An eight-thousand-year fourth soul ring! Quickly show us what the soul skill is!"
Xiao Wu pursed her lips and smiled.
Her fourth soul ring suddenly lit up.
"Fourth Soul Skill: Invincible Golden Body."
She softly spoke its name.
A layer of golden light surged from her body, enveloping her completely in an instant.
The glow wasn't dazzling, yet it carried an immovable, heavy presence.
It was as if the one standing before them was no longer a Soft Bone Rabbit soul master but a golden statue frozen in time.
"This soul skill gives me five seconds of absolute defense below the god level, while doubling my strength."
Xiao Wu paused, a smile flickering in her eyes.
"For every ten ranks of soul power I gain, the invincibility duration increases by one second. The enhancement duration is the same as the invincibility duration."
As her words fell—
The camp fell silent for a moment.
Then came waves of sharp inhalations.
Five seconds of absolute defense.
Double strength.
What kind of concept was that?
On a battlefield, five seconds were enough for a power-attack system soul master to turn the tide from certain defeat to victory.
Not to mention Xiao Wu herself was a close-combat fighter.
In her hands, this soul skill directly pushed her survivability and explosive power to a terrifying level.
Lin Qingmo stood at the edge of the crowd, his gaze resting on Xiao Wu.
He understood better than anyone the true value of this soul skill.
In the original story, Xiao Wu's fourth soul skill was also Invincible Golden Body.
But there, its duration wasn't this long, nor was the enhancement this intense.
There was only one reason for this change: the age of her self-condensed soul ring far exceeded that of the original.
From this, it could be seen that even for transformed soul beasts, self-condensed soul rings were not fixed in strength.
Even Lin Qingmo himself, looking at that layer of golden light, couldn't help but feel a trace of envy.
Teleportation.
Invincible Golden Body.
More than once, he had wondered just how many godlike abilities this Soft Bone Rabbit was hiding.
"So strong!"
Yu Feng was the first to shout, rushing forward and circling Xiao Wu, clicking his tongue in amazement.
Ning Rongrong also chattered excitedly, asking questions one after another, her eyes full of envy.
The others gathered around as well.
The bonfire's light was mostly blocked as laughter and exclamations mixed together, drifting into the night sky.
Only one person didn't move.
Dugu Yan stood at the edge of the crowd with her arms crossed.
The firelight flickered across her face.
Her gaze passed over the others and remained fixed on Lin Qingmo.
Her eyes flickered.
Zhu Zhuqing, a three thousand five hundred-year third soul ring.
Xiao Wu, eight-thousand-year fourth soul ring.
Ning Rongrong, a three-thousand-year third soul ring.
All were far beyond theoretical limits, and all had gained powerful soul skills.
All because of the same person.
Dugu Yan bit her lower lip.
Did that mean… as long as he was willing, he could also help her break her limits?
Make her stronger?
She had never been willing to fall behind others.
At this moment, that thought grew wildly in her heart like creeping vines.
Night deepened.
The campfire burned brightly again, its dancing flames casting a warm glow on everyone's faces.
Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu huddled by the fire, showing off their new soul skills, laughing from time to time.
Yu Feng played along enthusiastically, his reactions perfectly timed.
Ye Lingling sat quietly nearby, a faint smile on her lips, occasionally handing out water and dry rations.
Zhu Zhuqing was also seated.
She said nothing.
Only occasionally, her gaze would pass through the flickering flames and land on Lin Qingmo.
Lin Qingmo leaned against the tent entrance, watching the group of young boys and girls, a smile unconsciously curving his lips.
This trip to Sunset Forest had yielded more than he had expected.
Zhu Zhuqing obtained a three-thousand-five-hundred-year third soul ring, along with an external soul bone.
Ning Rongrong broke through rank thirty and gained a three-thousand-year third soul ring.
Xiao Wu could finally openly display her fourth soul ring, all doubts completely dispelled.
As for himself, his soul power stabilized at rank forty-nine, his fourth soul ring upgraded to forty thousand years, and the power of his soul skill surged dramatically.
And the little trap he had casually set for Tang San, causing irreparable cracks within Shrek, was an unexpected bonus.
Everything was moving in the direction he had anticipated.
The wind passed through the forest.
The night air of Sunset Forest carried the scent of vegetation and damp earth.
Most of the tents had gone dark. Only the one at the deepest part of the camp still emitted a faint glow of soul power.
Lin Qingmo sat cross-legged, a faint Blue Silver Grass aura surrounding him.
The aura was gentle yet carried a subtle pressure, the suppression originating from the essence of his martial soul.
He was currently channeling the Blue Silver Grass in the forest to assist in his meditation.
Suddenly—
He paused.
Outside the tent, faint footsteps could be heard.
The person was clearly hesitating. The steps stopped and started, pacing at the entrance for quite some time.
Finally, a voice as soft as a mosquito sounded, "Qingmo… are you asleep?"
Lin Qingmo raised an eyebrow slightly.
Coming to find him at this hour?
His finger lightly brushed against his knee. The tent flap was lifted slightly by Blue Silver Grass.
Standing at the entrance was Dugu Yan.
She was still wearing the fitted outfit from the day's soul hunt. Her long hair was loosely tied, with a few strands falling by her ears.
Her fingers twisted the corner of her clothes, the knuckles turning pale.
The side light cast upon her revealed an unnatural blush on her cheeks.
Her gaze shifted, not daring to look inside.
"Come in."
Lin Qingmo's voice was calm.
"It's so late. What do you need?"
Dugu Yan bit her lower lip and stepped in with her head lowered.
The tent flap fell behind her, blocking out the wind and firelight from outside.
Inside the tent, only the dim glow of a soul power lamp in the corner remained, stretching its shadows into something blurred and ambiguous.
She stood a few steps away from Lin Qingmo.
Her fingers twisted tighter.
Her throat moved again and again before she finally forced out a sentence.
"Young Master… I… I wanted to ask you about surpassing the limit of soul rings."
As soon as the words left her mouth, her entire body tensed.
Her heart pounded like a drum, almost breaking through her chest.
Of course, she knew how presumptuous this question was.
During this time following Lin Qingmo, she had personally witnessed Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, and Xiao Wu break through the theoretical limits of soul rings one after another, their strength soaring.
Everyone around her was moving forward.
Only she remained where she was.
How could she possibly endure that feeling?
Lin Qingmo looked at her.
His fingers lightly tapped against his knee as several thoughts flashed through his mind.
Dugu Bo had already pledged allegiance to him, recognizing him as master.
Dugu Yan was Dugu Bo's only granddaughter, naturally making her one of his subordinates.
Her martial soul was the Jade Phosphor Serpent. Her talent wasn't bad.
However, the poison caused heavy backlash on her body, making her cultivation far more difficult than that of others.
Since she was one of his people, she could be cultivated.
End of Chapter
[35+ advanced chapters available on Patreon—next arc already unlocked (search: Taichu372).]