Chapter 5

The Spine Bone Sword Dragon's heart pounded wildly—how the hell do you fight this? A weak-ass human actually can unleash such attack power?

Spine Bone Sword Dragon

The Spine Bone Sword Dragon reacted quickly, raising its massive claws before its chest as soul power surged, imprinting five dark-gold qi blades.

Spine Bone Sword Dragon

Bang!

The Spine Bone Sword Dragon lurched back several meters, its massive claws dripping with blood and useless; Gu Xuan's strike disabled both of its claws.

Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Gu Xuan

If the Spine Bone Sword Dragon didn't guard against it, its body could be torn apart outright by the Sky-Tearing Claw.

Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Sky-Tearing Claw

Gu Xuan didn't give the Spine Bone Sword Dragon a moment to recover—he sprinted forward, leapt high, and plunged his dark-gold terror claw into the beast's chest.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Dark Gold Terror Claw

But it didn't end there—after Gu Xuan's right-arm dark-gold terror claw pierced the dragon's chest, he landed and tore the beast open, spilling its guts and blood in a bloody spectacle.

Gu Xuan, Dark Gold Terror Claw, Spine Bone Sword Dragon

Gu Xuan stood before the Spine Bone Sword Dragon, his martial soul withdrawn, his expression indifferent as he watched the lifeless beast collapse backward.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon, martial soul

"Ah!" Ning Rongrong screamed and covered her eyes—it was too gruesome.

Ning Rongrong

Chen Xin cradled Ning Rongrong, whispering, "Don't be afraid, little princess Rongrong—becoming a Soul Master is like this; only through the trials of blood can one grow."

Chen Xin, Ning Rongrong, Soul Master

Ning Rongrong shook her head and timidly said, "Sword Grandpa, I'm not scared—I just feel a bit queasy."

Ning Rongrong, Jian Ye Ye

Jian Ye Ye, Ning Rongrong

Chen Xin and Gu Rong exchanged a glance, choosing not to call out Ning Rongrong's bravery, and instead watched Gu Xuan in the arena with smiling faces.

Chen Xin, Gu Rong, Ning Rongrong, Gu Xuan

Gu Xuan sat cross-legged, meditating to restore his soul power. The fight wasn't stressful for him, but he'd gone all-out from the start, draining a lot of soul power—since he was absorbing a soul ring above his level, he needed to stay in peak condition.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

Before Gu Xuan, the Spine Bone Sword Dragon's body already bore a condensed purple soul ring, shimmering with the distinct glow of a thousand-year soul ring.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Soul Ring

When a soul beast is killed, it forms a soul ring that lasts only one shichen (about two hours); if no one absorbs it within that time, the ring fades away.

Soul Ring

Gu Xuan clearly wouldn't let such a high-quality soul ring vanish; after half a shichen, he opened his eyes, a glint of light flickering in his dark-gray pupils as he eagerly gazed at the soul ring before him.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

Gu Xuan remained seated, his soul power at its peak, and he used it to draw the dragon's soul ring upward, which slowly rose to the top of his head.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Soul Ring

As the soul ring reached Gu Xuan's head, a tremendous wave of soul power erupted, pressing against his body—the tempering from the ring's power and a necessary step in merging with it.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

Gu Xuan wholeheartedly embraced the soul ring's tempering; with his current physique, the power of this three-thousand-year soul ring didn't shred his body but gradually tempered it, making him tougher and stronger.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

In the observation room, Ning Rongrong stared unblinking at Gu Xuan, thrilled that he was about to reach Soul Elder rank.

Ning Rongrong, Gu Xuan, Soul Elder

Gu Rong and Chen Xin felt likewise; Gu Xuan could be called the most talented and persevering person the Seven Treasure Glazed Sect has seen in a century. Though his innate soul power is only rank eight, his determination more than compensates for the gap with others.

Gu Rong, Chen Xin, Gu Xuan, Seven Treasure Glazed Sect

Just like Ning Rongrong—even though her innate soul power is rank nine, her perseverance falls far short of Gu Xuan's.

Ning Rongrong, Gu Xuan

Indeed, it is precisely because of Gu Xuan that Ning Rongrong has achieved her current accomplishments.

Gu Xuan, Ning Rongrong

Gu Xuan absorbed the soul ring quickly, as it didn't impose much pressure on him—or rather, the pressure was within his capacity to bear.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

Normally, a Soul Master needs at least three shichen to absorb a soul ring and advance, but Gu Xuan completed it in just one shichen.

Soul Master, Soul Ring, Gu Xuan

At this moment, Gu Xuan had two yellow and one purple soul rings aligned, quietly hovering and pulsing on his body, marking his ascension to Soul Elder–level Soul Master.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring, Soul Elder, Soul Master

A Soul Elder at just twelve years old—and Gu Xuan had only turned twelve a week ago—such an achievement is exceedingly rare even across the entire continent; he can truly be called a heaven's pride.

Soul Elder, Gu Xuan

Gu Xuan rose to his feet; his black robe fluttered without wind, his short black ponytail stayed neat even after the battle, giving him a vigorous, spirited air.

Gu Xuan

The only possible flaw might be the bloodstains on his body; though they may not show on his black robe, his hands and face were inevitably stained with the Spine Bone Sword Dragon's blood, adding a touch of heroic vigor.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon

Gu Xuan looked toward Ning Rongrong in the observation room and softly asked, "Rongrong, do you want to see my third soul skill?"

Gu Xuan, Ning Rongrong, third soul skill

Ning Rongrong bobbed her head like a rattle drum, delighted, saying, "Great! Brother Gu Xuan's third soul skill must be awesome!"

Ning Rongrong, third soul skill

Gu Rong gave a wry smile; as his soul power surged, a black hole large enough to fit his two-meter frame appeared before him. He stepped into it, and moments later another black hole appeared twenty meters behind Gu Xuan, from which he stepped out.

Gu Rong, Gu Xuan

This is Gu Rong's eighth soul skill—Spatial Gate—and one of the reasons he can be called the most bizarre Titled Douluo.

Gu Rong, eighth soul skill, Spatial Gate, Titled Douluo

"Xuan'er, Grandpa's here to train with you." Gu Rong's hearty voice rang out.

Xuan Er, Gu Rong

Gu Xuan turned, looking enviously at the black hole vanishing behind Gu Rong, and had to admit that this soul skill was top-notch in both function and flair—he naturally felt envious as well.

Gu Xuan, Gu Rong

"Grandpa, you're a Titled Douluo—bullying me would be no fun." Gu Xuan gave a helpless smile.

Titled Douluo, Gu Xuan

Gu Rong didn't mind, saying, "You little brat, so many people wish they could get a couple of pointers from your grandpa, yet you're not happy about it?"

Gu Rong

Gu Xuan shook his head and said, "Grandpa, Rongrong seems to be calling you."

Gu Xuan, Rongrong

Upon hearing that, Gu Rong instinctively looked up toward Ning Rongrong in the observation room, but the next moment, Gu Xuan not far ahead of him erupted with surging soul power.

Gu Rong, Ning Rongrong, Gu Xuan

"Third Soul Skill: Bone Dragon Purgatory!"

third soul skill, Bone Dragon Purgatory

The instant Gu Xuan's words fell, the purple third soul ring on his body lit up.

Gu Xuan, Soul Ring

As the soul skill was released, Gu Xuan raised his hand and waved; directly before him, within a five-meter-wide radius, a row of spine bones—similar to the Bone Prison skill the Spine Bone Sword Dragon had used—jutted out like swords, their attack even swifter and stronger than the dragon's.

Gu Xuan, Spine Bone Sword Dragon, Bone Prison Skill

Gu Rong watched Gu Xuan with a smiling, teasing look and said, "Xuan'er, you dare scheme against your grandpa? You're asking for a beating!"

Gu Rong, Xuan Er, Gu Xuan

Gu Rong waved his hand, releasing the same Bone Prison skill without using a soul skill, and it collided directly with Gu Xuan's third soul skill.

Gu Rong, Bone Prison Skill, third soul skill, Gu Xuan

Although Gu Rong didn't release a soul skill, his soul power was as high as rank ninety-six—even a casual strike could instantly kill Gu Xuan.

Gu Rong, Gu Xuan

But Gu Rong naturally wouldn't unleash a killing blow on his grandson; the Bone Prison he released was calibrated to the power of Gu Xuan's third soul skill, merely needing to be slightly stronger than it.

Gu Rong, Bone Prison, third soul skill, Gu Xuan

The spine bones between them protruded and collided; Gu Xuan, while increasing his soul power output, said, "Grandpa, this is 'all's fair in love and war' (i. e., in war, deception is acceptable)."

Gu Xuan

Gu Xuan had only just broken through to Soul Elder; how could he hope to match Gu Rong in endurance? As his words fell, he unleashed a wave of soul power, allowing his third soul skill Bone Dragon Purgatory to barely hold off Gu Rong's Bone Prison for a moment, while he himself lit up his two yellow soul rings and charged toward Gu Rong.

Gu Xuan, Soul Elder, Gu Rong, third soul skill, Bone Dragon Purgatory

Gu Xuan leapt and spun atop the protruding spine bones, covering less than twenty meters in an instant; the dark-gold terror claw on his right hand's external soul bone sprang out, launching a Sky-Tearing Claw straight at Gu Rong's face.

Gu Xuan, External Soul Bone, Dark Gold Terror Claw, Gu Rong, Sky-Tearing Claw

Gu Rong continued to watch Gu Xuan with a smiling gaze; the five dark-gold qi blades flying at his face made him retreat not an inch as he raised his right arm, shaping it into a gray-white bone dragon claw to block in front.

Gu Rong, Gu Xuan

Huff!

Sound effect, no named.

The five dark-gold qi blades struck Gu Rong's bone claw directly, but unlike before when they had been effective against the Spine Bone Sword Dragon, they merely left five faint white marks on his bone claw.

Gu Rong, Spine Bone Sword Dragon

Gu Rong is indeed famed as the most bizarre Titled Douluo, but he also has a hidden title—'Ultimate Defense'—and the defensive power of his Bone Dragon martial soul is also immensely strong.

Gu Rong, Titled Douluo, Bone Dragon Martial Soul

The dark-gold terror claw is indeed terrifying, but it also depends on who you're facing.

Dark Gold Terror Claw

Gu Xuan's attack didn't end after the Sky-Tearing Claw; he followed right behind, driving his dark-gold terror claw straight at Gu Rong's chest in a 'stabbing the yellow dragon' move.

Gu Xuan, Sky-Tearing Claw, Dark Gold Terror Claw, Gu Rong

Gu Rong smiled faintly, a large hand shooting out to seize Gu Xuan's face with lightning speed—how could a Titled Douluo about to strike leave any room for a newly broken-through Soul Elder like Gu Xuan to resist?

Gu Rong, Titled Douluo, Gu Xuan, Soul Elder

A handsome face was grabbed by Gu Rong; Gu Xuan's vision went dark, knowing his grandfather was just playing around, he immediately begged for mercy: "Grandpa, spare my life!"

Gu Rong, Gu Xuan

Please collect and recommend!

No named entities.

(End of chapter)