Before Yun Ming made his move, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger had maintained the initiative in its battle against Dugu Bo and Gu Rong. However, once Yun Ming joined the fray, he became the final straw that broke the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
During the time the three of them began working together to fight the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, it had lost count of how many blows it had taken.
It was either being slapped by Dragon Claws or whipped by a snake tail. Furthermore, with Yun Ming restricting the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's use of space power, it could no longer affect Gu Rong, effectively neutralizing its only advantage: speed.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger watched as its sneak attack with the Evil God Hook was once again blocked by Yun Ming's Atlas Divine Spear, and to make matters worse, it took another hit of Dugu Bo's 'Jade Scale Poison Light', leaving it feeling incredibly irritable.
Sensing the severe injuries on its body and its increasingly paralyzed limbs, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's blood-red eyes were filled with madness. However, its instinct for survival kept it calm in the final moments. It stared vigilantly at the menacing Yun Ming; he was the one who had turned the tide, leaving it unable to win and unable to escape. Therefore, as long as it could eliminate him, its great Evil God Tiger self could break the deadlock and be reborn.
In truth, it wasn't just the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger that was having a hard time; Yun Ming was struggling too.
Although Yun Ming's Soul Power was pure and refined, its total volume was only at the fiftieth level. Given that he was fighting such a high-level battle, his Soul Power would soon be stretched thin.
Perhaps because Yun Ming rarely took the initiative to attack after his initial 'Annihilation' spear strike, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger hadn't yet figured out his true strength; otherwise, the fight might have been even harder.
Now it was a test of endurance—whoever couldn't hold on any longer would be the one to lose.
After another lightning-fast exchange, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger took a kidney strike from Gu Rong's Dragon Claws. Unlike before, however, this was intentional. It was feigning being knocked back to get closer to Yun Ming. The entire process was so natural that none of the three noticed anything amiss until the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger began its move.
Seeing that it was close enough to Yun Ming, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger transformed its Evil God Hook into an Evil God Thorn. Its long tail struck out instantly, and a point of black light appeared between it and Yun Ming.
The intense black light erupted instantly, forming a massive black hole three meters in diameter.
Seeing the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's lightning-fast movements, the three of them realized they had been tricked.
Gu Rong immediately exerted his full strength, attempting to repair the black hole created by the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, but his space power failed to shake the black hole in the slightest.
Looking at the black hole before him, Yun Ming understood the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's plan. He looked at the unlucky tiger opposite him with a strange expression. He knew this soul skill; it had been recorded in later generations. With his abilities, he wasn't worried about entering that soul skill space and returning to a "newbie" state to fight a tiger cub.
The Phoenix Cry Ring on his hand flashed, and a silver spear appeared in Yun Ming's grasp.
A massive suction force suddenly emanated from the black hole, which had expanded to three meters. Yun Ming didn't resist this powerful pull at all and was sucked straight in. The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's own body was also uncontrollably swallowed, disappearing into the black hole.
At the final moment before being swallowed, Yun Ming said one thing to Gu Rong and Dugu Bo.
"Don't worry, wait for my return."
Then he vanished. Upon hearing this, Dugu Bo and his companion realized what this soul skill was—it was the most bizarre soul skill of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, mentioned in the information Yun Ming had provided them.
Thinking of how monstrously talented Yun Ming was, the two felt slightly relieved and waited quietly for his return.
After experiencing absolute darkness, a sensation of weightlessness, and the gradual fading of his Soul Power, Yun Ming finally left that pitch-black space and arrived on a vast, endless Arena.
There were no Sun Moon Star in this place; all the light originated from the Arena itself. Borrowing this light, Yun Ming checked his own state, but he was puzzled when he saw something different from the records.
Didn't the records say that when Sea God Tang San came here, he regressed to the state of a six-year-old before his Martial Soul had awakened? What is this...
Yun Ming wasn't the only one confused; so was the small tiger thirty meters ahead. This was naturally the peerless fierce tiger that had been one-against-three outside, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger itself. It had indeed regressed to childhood just like the records Yun Ming had read, turning into a cute little tiger about 1.5 meters long, having lost all its Soul Power cultivation.
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was currently losing its mind. The information in its bloodline told it that anyone who entered this space would have their cultivation stripped away, returning to a "newbie" state. Now that it had been stripped, what was the deal with that human Soul Master opposite?
That's right, Yun Ming had not been stripped down to nothing as the ancient texts he read in his past life suggested. Although Yun Ming had also regressed, he had only gone back halfway; he was now at the age of nine, with a Soul Power cultivation of twenty-three.
Yun Ming raised his hand to summon the Atlas Divine Spear, and one yellow and one purple Spirit Ring appeared beneath his feet. Feeling the divine fluctuations radiating from the Atlas Divine Spear, Yun Ming understood the reason. It seemed the rules here had been largely offset by the divine position he held in his past life. Before Yun Ming could continue to investigate the cause, a mysterious broadcast interrupted his thoughts.
"Welcome to the Life and Death Arena. Only the death of one party can end this life-and-death battle and allow you to leave this space. Countdown: five, four, three, two, one, start."
Hearing the broadcast, Yun Ming refocused his attention on the small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger. Man and tiger fell into an awkward atmosphere.
Yun Ming looked at the little tiger that had shot itself in the foot and smiled.
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, seeing Yun Ming's smile, was currently cursing its ancestors in its heart. It was a trap for its descendants—the soul skill had malfunctioned!
Normally, when a human and a Super Soul Beast like the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger returned to their infancy, the combat power of a human cub was far inferior to that of these Super Soul Beast cubs. But it hadn't expected Yun Ming's Soul Power to remain intact. Given the combat power Yun Ming had displayed in the previous battle, how the hell was it supposed to fight?!
However, considering that not fighting here meant death, the small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger had no choice but to grit its teeth and charge.
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger turned into a black shadow and instantly pounced toward Yun Ming. If Yun Ming had no Soul Power, the base stats of a Super Soul Beast cub might have caused him a little trouble, forcing him to fire a few extra shots, but now...
Watching the small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger pounce before him, Yun Ming retracted the Atlas Divine Spear and the practice silver spear. He raised his small, sandbag-like fists, imbued them with Soul Power, timed his moment, and delivered a Subduing Tiger Fist right at the pouncing tiger.
"Bang!"
His fist made intimate contact with the small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's right cheek, emitting a dull thud of flesh colliding. Yun Ming's punch left the little tiger stunned.
The little tiger was knocked to the ground. After regaining its senses, flames of anger rose in its blood-red eyes; this human actually dared to hit its face. Driven by a desire for revenge and survival, it charged again, only for Yun Ming to reward its left cheek with another Subduing Tiger Fist, sending it flying once more.
After that, it was just.
"Bang!"
"Bang, bang, bang!"
"Bang, bang, bang, bang!"
"..."
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger kept charging, even though it was being met with little fists from every angle by Yun Ming, never stopping for a moment. It wasn't until it took a heavy punch to the abdomen from Yun Ming, hitting it so hard it vomited stomach acid, that it let out a pained cry and paused its offensive.
"Awoo~"
Looking at the stubborn little tiger before him, a bold idea flashed through Yun Ming's mind. After considering the feasibility of the matter, he decided to give it a try.
Yun Ming said to the little tiger, which was lying on the ground playing dead.
"Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, do you want to live?"
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was stunned by Yun Ming's question, thinking to itself, Could this treacherous villain be trying to harm it? However, recalling the experience of being brutally beaten by Yun Ming earlier and confirming the fact that it was completely unable to defeat him, it decided to listen to what Yun Ming wanted before making a decision.
The small Dark Demon Evil God Tiger stood up. It didn't cry out, nor did it launch another attack; it simply stared at Yun Ming in silence. From its blood-red eyes, Yun Ming could detect a hint of hesitation.
Seeing this, Yun Ming directly summoned his Sky Dome Silver Peng Soul Spirit, Tian Ling.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was somewhat surprised to see the silver and gold Sky Dome Silver Peng suddenly appear. What was this thing?
Yun Ming explained Tian Ling's state to the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
"This is a Soul Spirit, another form of existence for a Soul Beast."
"It is the process of extracting a Soul Beast's soul from its body through a special method and having it sign a contract with a Soul Master, allowing it to become the Soul Master's Spirit Ring without being hunted."
"My proposal is, if you are willing to sign a contract with me and become my Soul Spirit, you can continue to live in this form."
Upon hearing this, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger glanced at the Sky Dome Silver Peng. Having understood Yun Ming's meaning, it immediately let out an angry tiger roar.
"Roar!"
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was expressing, 'What does this human in front of it take the noble Dark Demon Evil God Tiger for? How could it ever become a slave or servant to a mere human!'
Seeing the little tiger's furious expression, Yun Ming didn't mind and said to Tian Ling.
"Tian Ling, tell it about the benefits and drawbacks of being a Soul Spirit, then let it decide."
Tian Ling nodded in response. He then began to use bird language to introduce the benefits of being a Soul Spirit to the little tiger, such as immortality, no longer facing the risk of being hunted, the ability to fight, and enjoying the wonders of the human world, and so on. He painted a flowery picture; as far as he was concerned, other than having one's freedom restricted, it was all benefits.
However, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger wasn't interested in any of it. It just looked at Tian Ling with the gaze of someone looking at a traitor to their kind, as if to say, 'You became a slave and servant to a human for just these things?! I look down on you!'
Tian Ling understood the meaning behind the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's gaze, so he added the final benefit.
'If the host becomes a god, the host's Soul Spirit will also ascend to the heavens in one step and become a god alongside them.'
"And my master is the most talented person I have ever seen in the human world. If there is anyone in this world who can become a god, it will definitely not be anyone else—it must be my master!"
Dark Demon Evil God Tiger: "!!!"
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, which hadn't cared before, suddenly perked up upon hearing that being a Soul Spirit had this benefit. Becoming a god! That was its lifelong pursuit. However, the thought of being controlled by a human made it hesitate.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger looked at Yun Ming. It also acknowledged Tian Ling's statement; this human, who was even more monstrous than itself, had a faint divinity about him. The possibility of him becoming a god did indeed seem high. If it submitted, it would never have to exhaust itself hunting Soul Beasts and fighting everywhere, and even then, it might not become a god in the future. There were examples of humans becoming gods, but it had truly never heard of a Soul Beast doing so.
And so, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger struggled between these two thoughts for who knows how long.
Finally, it let out a tiger roar toward Yun Ming.
Tian Ling translated, 'The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger asks if you truly become a god in the future, will you really be able to bring it to godhood as well?'
Yun Ming looked at the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger and responded earnestly.
"If I can become a god in the future, you will also become a god with me, granting you eternal life. I promise!"
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger looked into Yun Ming's eyes and saw sincerity and solemnity. Finally, it gritted its fangs, prostrated itself before Yun Ming, lowered its noble head, and chose to submit, agreeing to become a Soul Spirit.
In the end, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger could not resist the temptation of becoming a god and chose to take a shortcut, saving itself countless years of struggle.
Ah, although it was the most evil Soul Beast in this world, how could it not also desire a bright future!
ps: Seeking monthly tickets, seeking recommendations.
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Translated by: randomtranslator.com
Proofread by: DaoistReader