Chapter 106: Fourth Soul Ring

Roar.

A single angry roar, and the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast sensed the human Soul Master who had trespassed its territory.

Within the raging Lightning Light, a giant beast was wrapped; its length exceeded five meters, and slab-like crystals covered its body like scales, each slab brimming with dense Thunder and Lightning.

A heavy bony tail grew as if attached to its spine, extending three meters beyond its body, and a single horn sprouted on its forehead, one of its means to condense thunder and lightning.

Feeling the pressure from the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast, Zhao Tianhe glanced at the nearby Bai Ningwu.

"Are you sure its cultivation is only five thousand years?"

The bloodline tier of the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast ranks among the higher Soul Beasts; merely from its outward features or form, it's hard to determine its exact cultivation.

A thousand-year-old Thunder Crystal Armor Beast and a nine-thousand-year-old one look identical; only the crystals on its body can differentiate them, but as long as the beast lives, the crystals constantly brim with Thunder Attribute, making its exact cultivation impossible to discern with the naked eye.

Thunder Academy's knowledge of Thunder Attribute Soul Beasts surpasses many academies, yet its understanding of the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast is limited; as a teacher at Thunder Academy, Bai Ningwu can only roughly gauge this beast's cultivation.

Judging from the soul power pressure emitted by this beast, it definitely exceeds five thousand years.

Zhao Tianhe, aware of Tie Li's physical strength, originally aimed for a six-thousand-year Soul Beast.

But he cannot confirm this beast's exact cultivation; if it's a seven-thousand-year one, that's disastrous, yet missing it would make finding a suitable Thunder Attribute Soul Beast very difficult.

"The Thunder Crystal Armor Beast belongs to the first tier of Thunder Attribute Soul Beasts, feeds on Thunder Attribute ores, and its emitted pressure already exceeds that of normal Soul Beasts. This beast's cultivation may exceed five thousand years, or may be exactly five thousand years;

you should also know its peculiarity—its exact cultivation is hard to discern, so I cannot give you a guarantee," Bai Ningwu said.

This Thunder Crystal Armor Beast's cultivation definitely exceeds six thousand years.

Bai Ningwu thought to himself.

【7】 "Teacher Zhao, let's go with it," Tie Li said.

"Teacher Zhao, that one then," Tie Li said.

"Are you sure? This beast's cultivation might exceed the limit you can absorb!" Zhao Tianhe had to warn him.

A flash of delight crossed Bai Ningwu's eyes, and he smoothly added.

"Whether it's Thunder and Lightning Attribute or the body attributes added by absorbing Soul Rings, the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast is an excellent choice for Strong Attack-type Soul Masters of Thunder Attribute."

That statement is true; for Strong Attack-type Soul Masters of Thunder Attribute, the beast's attributes are almost perfect.

"Hmm, it's hard to find such a compatible Thunder Attribute Soul Beast later; I think we can give it a try."

Seeing this, Zhao Tianhe agreed to Tie Li's request.

"Brother Bai, your Thunder Academy knows the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast better; shall we strike together? Later, when we hunt the Soul Beast, we'll lend you a hand," Zhao Tianhe said.

Bai Ningwu muttered inwardly, "You want to hunt a Thunder Crystal Armor Beast over five thousand years, while my students only need a thousand-year Soul Beast; treating both as the same concept? How shameless."

But outwardly he still agreed.

"Don't worry, I'll strike together with you."

Two Soul Emperors plus a Soul King, as long as it's not a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast, basically pose no big problem.

The Thunder Crystal Armor Beast, true to its high‑bloodline Soul Beast status, still gave them some trouble.

Whether intentional by Zhao Tianhe or not, the Lightning Light condensed by the beast's horn struck Bai Ningwu's shoulder, instantly inflicting severe injury.

Zhao Tianhe seized the opening, coordinated with Li Ji to unleash a soul skill, crippling the massive body of the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast, leaving it barely alive.

"Ah, Brother Bai, how careless of you," Zhao Tianhe feigned concern.

Saying so, he signaled Li Ji to bring the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast before Tie Li.

Bai Ningwu glared fiercely at Zhao Tianhe, then immediately took out a healing pill and swallowed it.

"Bang"

Li Ji tossed the massive body of the Thunder Crystal Armor Beast onto the ground, still bearing residual Lightning Light.

The beast's ferocious gaze fixed on the human Soul Master ahead, as if eager to open its maw and tear, but now it emitted only a whimpering wail.

Tie Li was unreserved, summoning a Purple Thunder Hammer and smashing it hard onto the beast's head.

One hammer, two hammers... until a deep violet Soul Ring surfaced from the beast's corpse.

Tie Li immediately sat cross‑legged on the ground and began absorbing the Soul Ring.

Sss!

Just as he began absorbing the Soul Ring, Tie Li felt a faint sting.

As another Team-leading Teacher at Thunder Academy, Lei Ying, after the beast's death, lost the Thunder and Lightning Attribute crystals, revealing its true form.

His pupils suddenly contracted; it was an eight-thousand-year Thunder Crystal Armor Beast.

At that moment, his gaze at Tie Li carried a hint of schadenfreude, exceeding the Fourth Soul Ring limit by a full three thousand years.

He, as a teacher, knew very well what the outcome of absorbing a Soul Ring beyond its age limit would be.

In his view, Tie Li was already dead; now he worried whether Zhao Tianhe and the others would vent their anger on them.

Don't be fooled by Zhao Tianhe being a teacher at Tian Dou Royal Academy; he wasn't a good person before.

Lei Ying quietly approached Bai Ningwu and whispered the situation to him.

"They insist on absorbing the Soul Ring; what does that have to do with us? I've already warned them;

don't worry too much. He's now a teacher at Tian Dou Royal Academy, we are teachers at Thunder Academy; he won't dare go too far, at most he'll be humiliated, but swapping a genius Soul Master's downfall—don't you think that's profitable?" Bai Ningwu said.

Hope so, Lei Ying thought silently.

Tie Li's absorption of the Soul Ring came with a faint pain, but within his tolerance.

If a Soul Master reaches the Soul Ancestor stage, and the four Soul Rings he absorbs aren't optimally arranged, his Fifth Soul Ring may not dare to take a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring; he might settle for an eight-thousand or nine-thousand-year Soul Ring instead.

The Fourth Soul Ring Tie Li absorbed was eight thousand years old, equivalent to the standard for some Soul Masters' Fifth Soul Ring.

The absorption took over an hour; anxiety flickered in everyone's eyes, clearly exceeding normal absorption time, but once started, it cannot be halted, and the rest must be endured alone.

Zhao Tianhe's gaze toward Bai Ningwu grew unfriendly, making Bai Ningwu's heart skip a beat, as if he had miscalculated something.

"Brother Zhao, I warned you beforehand; it's your student who wants to absorb this Soul Ring," Bai Ningwu said immediately.

(End of chapter)