Chapter 160: Huge Improvement

"Grandfather! Quickly, go save Feiliu!" Dugu Yan hurriedly grabbed the sleeve of Dugu Bo's robe beside her and pleaded.

Dugu Bo, however, said in a deep voice, "Yanyan! Don't panic! Feiliu can still hold on! Look!"

Dugu Yan immediately turned to look and discovered that although Ning Feiliu's brows were still tightly furrowed and a trace of fresh blood was flowing from the corner of his mouth, he was still gritting his teeth and persevering.

Ning Feiliu had indeed not failed yet, but as she watched his body tremble, she felt as if he could fail and die at any moment.

"Yanyan! If you interrupt his Soul Ring absorption process now, not only will he fail to absorb the Soul Ring, but his cultivation might regress, and his foundation could be damaged, making it difficult for him to improve his cultivation in the future!" Dugu Bo said in a deep voice, "Do you want to ruin his future?"

However, he was also quite puzzled; theoretically, there should have been no problem with Ning Feiliu absorbing this Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion Soul Ring.

Why would such a violent reaction suddenly occur?

Yet Dugu Yan trembled fiercely all over; she looked at Ning Feiliu, who appeared to be gritting his teeth to hold on, and felt deeply conflicted.

But... but...

"Grandfather... even if Feiliu becomes a cripple, I will always love him." Dugu Yan said in a low voice, "I just hope he can be okay, I hope he can be safe, but..."

"I know Feiliu's pursuit of strength; he wouldn't want to become a cripple in the future, so I cannot harm him." She said with a sob, "But if Feiliu is truly in danger from here on out, even if he resents me later, Grandfather, you must save Feiliu."

"Sigh..." Dugu Bo let out a sigh and then said, "I understand..."

Dugu Yan temporarily regained her calm, but her red, beautiful eyes never left Ning Feiliu for a single moment.

If Ning Feiliu showed signs of impending failure and serious injury a second time, she would not hesitate to beg her grandfather Dugu Bo to intervene again.

Yet, it only appeared that Ning Feiliu was having trouble absorbing the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring; in reality...

He was as steady as an old dog.

He looked at the now slightly more illusory remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion before him and swung his Spirit Hammer again, smashing it against the opponent!

Just a moment ago, during the collision, he had been slightly unaware, and the clash within his Spirit Sea against the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion had caused his Spirit Sea to be shaken by the backlash.

It was just like the human immune system battling a virus within the body; the human body becomes the main battlefield, so naturally, it would be affected.

That was why he had suffered the injury from the backlash.

But now, Ning Feiliu had become clever; he took the initiative to strike, smashing the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion until it vanished into thin air before it could even get close to his Spirit Sea!

"Go—!" Ning Feiliu commanded the Spirit Hammer, bombarding the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion blow after blow.

One blow!

One blow!

Another blow!

"Roar—!"

"Roar—!!!"

"Roar..."

With the strikes of the Spirit Hammer, blow after blow landed on the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion.

The remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion also appeared increasingly illusory.

After the final hammer blow landed, the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion completely turned into nothingness and scattered.

Ning Feiliu could once again calmly guide the Soul Ring energy into his body.

One could see that on his body, the originally missing third Soul Ring was gradually condensing into a black ring.

Seeing this, Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan both immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"I told you, this kid... wouldn't fail here." Dugu Bo immediately said with a smile to comfort Dugu Yan.

However, after Dugu Yan breathed a sigh of relief, her beautiful eyes still held lingering fear; she was truly... afraid.

Truly afraid of losing Ning Feiliu just like she had lost her father and mother back then.

She truly could not bear the pain of losing any more loved ones, whether it was Grandfather Dugu Bo or Ning Feiliu...

She truly did not want to bear the pain of losing them.

Actually, thinking about it carefully, regarding Ning Feiliu's decision to absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, she could have completely suggested he be more conservative.

Feiliu could have absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring next time; even if he had absorbed a nine-thousand-year Soul Ring this time and a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring next time, that would have been fine.

But... Feiliu was too aggressive.

She was truly afraid; Ning Feiliu had succeeded this time with no danger, but what if there was danger next time?

Dugu Yan was truly afraid.

She knew very well how intense Ning Feiliu's pursuit of strength was, and she didn't quite understand why.

Could it be because Feiliu was ignored too much by his father, Ning Fengzhi, in the past, and now he wanted to improve his strength so badly to prove himself as soon as possible?

But no matter what, one's life and safety were the most important.

Especially for Dugu Yan, she only loved Ning Feiliu as a person, not because he was a peerless genius Spirit Master with great talent.

Ning Feiliu... even if he weren't that strong, she would still love him.

Dugu Yan took a deep breath, seemingly having made a certain resolution...

After Ning Feiliu resolved the remnant Spirit Soul of the Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion, the process of absorbing the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring became quite smooth.

His expression, which had been gritting his teeth and frowning, became peaceful, as if he were not absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, but a common Thousand-Year Spirit Ring.

The black energy slowly condensed into a deep black Soul Ring, emitting a terrifying pressure like a demon or a monster.

The entire Soul Ring absorption process lasted for about another hour...

Then, the black Soul Ring was completely formed, in the position of Ning Feiliu's originally missing third Soul Ring!

Ning Feiliu opened his eyes, a look of wild joy on his handsome face.

"I succeeded!" He stood up and said with wild joy.

Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan hurriedly stepped forward; seeing that he had truly absorbed the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, Dugu Bo smiled with satisfaction.

Dugu Yan, however, only gave a faint smile, as if there were still some things on her mind.

"You brat, you really gave us a scare. What exactly happened just now?" Dugu Bo chuckled a few times, then asked seriously.

Having successfully absorbed the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, Ning Feiliu no longer had any intention of hiding things from Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan.

He said directly, "Actually, it was indeed quite dangerous just now, because during the process of absorbing the soul ring, a Spirit Soul phantom of a Ten Thousand Year Silver Moon Mane Lion appeared... I think this is probably a unique characteristic of Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts."

"A unique characteristic of Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts?" Dugu Bo frowned and said, "A Spirit Soul phantom? Could it be..."

"That's right, Teacher. Now that I think about it carefully, it's likely that after a Soul Beast breaks through ten thousand years, it not only possesses intelligence similar to humans but also initially forms a Spirit Soul existence," Ning Feiliu nodded and said. "Therefore, after a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast is killed, its Spirit Soul will still remain within the power of the soul ring, carrying the intense resentment of being killed. Once a Spirit Master absorbs its soul ring, they will be attacked by it!"

"This is the mental attack of a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast before it dies. If it weren't for the fact that I practice the Moonlight Breathing Method, my mental power is already not weak—about the same as an ordinary adult—and I have the Spirit Condensation Technique, I fear I would have been severely injured by its mental shock and turned into an idiot, or even killed."

After Ning Feiliu said this, Dugu Bo also felt a lingering fear, not having expected that there was such a layer of crisis in absorbing a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

Not to mention Dugu Yan; hearing Ning Feiliu say this, her beautiful eyes became even more flustered.

She directly took Ning Feiliu's hand and said, "Feiliu... let's not take such risks so casually next time, okay?"

Ning Feiliu immediately pretended to smile bitterly and said, "I didn't know about this beforehand either, but now I have successfully survived the danger, haven't I? Actually, this can be considered an unexpected gain, allowing me to know this taboo of absorbing Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings."

"Indeed, no wonder countless geniuses of the Douluo Dalu in the past could only absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring as their fifth soul ring," Dugu Bo said. "As for those who absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring early, even if they didn't explode and die, they all died mysteriously."

Generally speaking, those who could not withstand the impact of the soul ring's power would show signs of exploding to death.

But it just so happened that in some records, some who absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring early did not show signs of exploding to death, but simply failed and died.

It was probably because they encountered a mental shock, leading to their Spirit Soul being wiped out, which is why they failed.

"However, Sister Yan, you don't have to worry about this in the future, and you can absorb a higher-level Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring for your fifth soul ring," Ning Feiliu said with a smile. "After all, with the Moonlight Breathing Method to strengthen mental power, and if I teach you the spirit attack technique—the Spirit Condensation Technique—you basically won't need to fear the mental shock of higher-level Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts."

"Of course, it's fine if you don't want to take the risk, Sister Yan."

However, for Dugu Yan, being able to absorb a higher-quality Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring was a good thing.

Ning Feiliu could still be more conservative; after all, he could explode his rings and replace them at any time. Even if he didn't absorb a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring now, he could later use 【Summoning of the God of Smelting】 and 【Summoning of the God of Ice and Snow】 to explode the soul ring and re-absorb a new one.

But Dugu Yan's soul rings could not be replaced, so naturally, she should prioritize higher-quality soul rings.

"I'll consider it when the time comes." Dugu Yan still looked worried. She looked at Ning Feiliu again and said, "Or rather, Feiliu, you... never mind, let's go back and I'll take you to a place to talk..."

Ning Feiliu was stunned for a moment, but he nodded and said, "Alright then... although I don't know what you want to say, Sister Yan, since you've said so..."

"By the way, kid, how many levels of soul power did you increase this time?" At this moment, Dugu Bo coughed, interrupting their conversation, and changed the subject, saying, "You absorbed a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring at the Soul Elder realm; your soul power should have increased quite a bit."

"Not much, not little, exactly three levels of soul power. I am now at level thirty-nine soul power!" Ning Feiliu said with a smile.

Only one level of soul power away from breaking through to Soul Ancestor; this progress was truly rapid.

It was also exactly what Ning Feiliu wanted. It was worth it for him to choose to absorb this Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring directly; sure enough, risk and benefit coexist.

Well... actually, given his current situation, it didn't count as having too much risk just now.

"Level thirty-nine soul power?!" Dugu Bo was shocked for a moment, then clicked his tongue in wonder and said, "You brat... you really crossed three major realms in just half a year; it's truly too exaggerated."

He had watched with his own eyes as Ning Feiliu rose from a Spirit Master to a Great Soul Master, then to a Soul Elder, and now he was about to advance to Soul Ancestor.

It was truly enough to drop the jaws of a crowd of people if told to others.

However, in Dugu Bo's view, the process of Ning Feiliu's explosive growth in strength was almost impossible to replicate. First of all, his martial soul was reforged, and he personally consumed three Immortal Herbs.

The Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, the Blazing Apricot Delicate, and the Qiluo Tulip were all Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure that seized the creation of heaven and earth in this world of the Douluo Continent.

Then there were the "self-created" soul skills 【Summoning of the God of Smelting】 and 【Summoning of the God of Ice and Snow】 that Ning Feiliu created. These two soul skills were also completed with the help of the Extreme Fire Power and Extreme Ice Power of the Blazing Apricot Delicate and the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass.

These two self-created soul skills, which could explode soul rings while possessing immense power, allowed Ning Feiliu to continuously absorb higher-level soul rings while increasing his soul power each time.

So the most important thing was still the three Immortal Herbs, yet there were only those two in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, and there were no more.

Secondly, you must have Ning Feiliu's two major self-created soul skills, 【Summoning of the God of Smelting】 and 【Summoning of the God of Ice and Snow】. Only after learning these two powerful soul skills could you use the Extreme Fire Power and Extreme Ice Power possessed by the Blazing Apricot Delicate and the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass respectively to explode your own soul rings.

In short, in Dugu Bo's eyes, no one could replicate this process of Ning Feiliu's explosive growth in strength in a short period of time.

However, when the two great Immortal Herbs, the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Blazing Apricot Delicate, grow again in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well in the future, and then Ning Feiliu teaches his two major self-created soul skills, 【Summoning of the God of Smelting】 and 【Summoning of the God of Ice and Snow】, then another peerless genius whose strength leaps forward instantly could appear.

And the person who could have this treatment, be able to enter the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to pick and swallow the two great Immortal Herbs, the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass and the Blazing Apricot Delicate, and then receive the teaching of the two major self-created soul skills, 【Summoning of the God of Smelting】 and 【Summoning of the God of Ice and Snow】...

Who else could it be?

Of course, it would be the future child of Ning Feiliu and Dugu Yan!

As soon as Dugu Bo thought of this, he felt even happier. What kind of genius would his future grandson be!

Just thinking about it made him feel very happy!

"It's just that my luck is very good." Ning Feiliu could not read minds at this time and could not imagine that Dugu Bo had even thought of the names for his and Dugu Yan's future children, so he said with a smile.

All his opportunities were based on what that cheat gave him, although he had also made a lot of effort for it.

But without that cheat, no matter how hard he worked, it would be in vain.

Just as a certain great inventor from his previous life, whose character was as low as San Ge's, once said, his current experience could also be summarized in one sentence—

Genius is 1% inspiration plus 99% perspiration, but that little bit of inspiration is often the most important, even a hundred times! A thousand times! more important than that ninety-nine percent perspiration!

"Alright, since you've finished absorbing the soul ring, kid, then we should leave this place too," Dugu Bo waved his hand and said.

"Alright." Ning Feiliu and Dugu Yan nodded.

(End of this chapter)