A flash passed through Jiang Jue's eyes as he looked at the blood-red hundred-thousand-year soul ring. He muttered silently in his heart:
"Just as expected… this so-called heavenly tribulation is something forcibly imposed on soul beasts."
Last time, the Ice Emperor also only encountered a heavenly tribulation after reaching the four-hundred-thousand-year threshold, as though this world had shackled soul beasts with chains they could never escape.
"But that has nothing to do with me for now. First, I need to accept the sacrifice."
Settling his thoughts, Jiang Jue sat cross-legged as the Soul-Refining Banner floated behind him. The ten-thousand-year soul ring was pulled toward it and abruptly locked onto the banner.
The mass of black light containing the Dark Devil Evil God Tiger's origin slowly descended toward Jiang Jue and merged into his body.
Immediately after, an eerie, icy flow of energy rushed from the soul ring into Jiang Jue's body — but the moment it entered him, it turned into the gentlest sheep, following his guidance as it washed through his body in waves.
This was the benefit of sacrifice — no restrictions, no worries about physical limits, and the ability to absorb every last bit of the soul beast.
"Second Brother, how did Young Master even do that? This is unbelievable!"
Yu Tao stared dumbfounded at the scene and turned to Lang Ya in a daze.
"I want to know too…"
"But now that things have reached this point, our priority is to protect the Young Master while he absorbs the soul ring. The sixth soul ring being a hundred-thousand-year one… it's shocking. Even the Sect Master only reached a hundred-thousand-year ring on his seventh ring."
Lang Ya slowly shook his head, gazing at Jiang Jue with complicated emotions.
"Isn't that a good thing? The stronger our Young Master becomes, the brighter our future!"
Yu Tao scratched his head and chuckled.
"Heh! You really are a genius!"
Lang Ya also laughed.
Time flowed bit by bit. The two of them stood beside Jiang Jue like two iron towers.
Day turned into night — seven hours passed.
"Boom!"
A muffled sound rang out. The black mist surrounding Jiang Jue began to fade. The crimson hundred-thousand-year soul ring on the Soul-Refining Banner stabilized completely.
"Young Master finished absorbing it?"
Yu Tao's eyes brightened. He loosened his shoulders and asked in delight.
Lang Ya was about to speak when he suddenly sensed a wave of extreme evil erupting from Jiang Jue's body.
"Rip—!"
Clothes tore apart. Two fist-sized bulges pushed out from both sides of Jiang Jue's spine, glowing with black halos.
Jiang Jue's expression tightened, jaw clenched, enduring immense pain. Beads of blood seeped from the skin around his back.
"Whoosh!"
With a sharp tearing sound, two huge wings unfurled from Jiang Jue's back — pitch-black in color, engraved with countless crimson demonic lines. At the tips of the wings were two streaks of blue-purple lightning, and dark currents drifted faintly from both sides.
His wings flapped. Wind and thunder erupted as dirt and pebbles were swept skyward. Jiang Jue slowly lifted from the ground.
"Evil… ultimate evil…"
Jiang Jue opened his eyes. A flash of ash-gray flickered within them as he murmured quietly.
"Boom!"
He clenched his fists, a sonic boom crackling from his joints. His blood churned violently as black soul power wrapped around his arms.
Moonlight fell. Stars shimmered. In the dark night, Jiang Jue was shrouded in black mist, like a sovereign of the abyss.
"Congratulations, Young Master!"
"Congratulations!"
Lang Ya and Yu Tao hurried forward and bowed respectfully.
Jiang Jue nodded and calmed his mind, sensing the abilities granted by the Dark Devil Evil God Tiger.
"Huh? This is… a mutated version of Aiding the Tiger for Evil?"
Feeling one of the soul skills brought by the hundred-thousand-year ring, Jiang Jue couldn't help feeling excited.
"Control the souls of beings that have died within twenty-four hours, force them to unleash 200% of their peak strength, lasts for fifteen minutes, and they can even self-destruct at the end?"
"The only limit is how many souls and how strong they can be, depending on my spiritual power."
"If this soul skill is used on a battlefield… explosions really would be art."
Jiang Jue steadied his breathing.
"Calm down… this is just the beginning."
"Evil God's Thorn, Evil God's Guard, Storm-Thunder Shadow."
"No Life-and-Death Arena Skill? Forget it. I refined the Dark Devil Evil God Tiger's beast soul anyway — I have it in another form."
Although disappointed that he didn't obtain the life-and-death soul skill he wanted, he comforted himself with the thought of possessing the tiger's beast soul.
"When the time comes, I'll equip Huzi with soul-guided devices, arm him to the teeth. Then he won't lose in the Life-and-Death Arena again."
"Besides, the Soul-Refining Banner's evil attribute has now turned into an ultimate attribute. Excellent."
He nodded in satisfaction as he felt the sinister aura from the banner.
"And this inner core… I must make good use of it. After all, it's a treasure capable of creating a protagonist in another world."
Jiang Jue rubbed the Dark Devil Evil God Tiger's inner core and returned to a calm expression.
"Second Brother, why is the Young Master sometimes happy and sometimes disappointed…?"
Yu Tao whispered.
"Let me teach you something. At a time like this, keep your mouth shut. If he's happy in the end, go congratulate him. If he's not, remain silent."
After speaking, Lang Ya fell completely silent.
"Second Brother, I don't really get it… but it feels right. Truly, one must learn throughout life."
Yu Tao nodded seriously.
"Hmph. Just keep learning. You've got a long way to go."
Lang Ya smirked inwardly.
"Let's go. Back to the sect."
A moment later, Jiang Jue retracted his wings and slowly descended, speaking calmly.
Lang Ya and Yu Tao exchanged glances, immediately returning to solemn silence.
"What's wrong with you two?"
Jiang Jue frowned.
"We're fine, Young Master."
They shook their heads and said nothing more.
"This scene feels strangely familiar…"
Jiang Jue muttered to himself, then shook his head and walked toward the edge of Sunset Forest.
He still needed to find a way to join the upcoming major operation — the Body Sect's theft of the Mingde Hall treasure. The operation was soon.
Lang Ya and Yu Tao followed closely behind.
Body Sect
Inside Jin Peng's room.
Jin Peng leisurely drank tea, looking extremely satisfied.
Suddenly — a powerful aura burst from within the Body Sect, shooting straight into the sky.
"This is the Sect Master's aura?!"
"He's broken through?!"
Jin Peng spat out his tea and vanished from his room in a flash.
The entire sect erupted into commotion.
"What's going on? Did a strong enemy attack?"
"Are you stupid? Who would dare cause trouble for the Body Sect?"
"I think this aura came from the ancestral grounds… could it be that the ancestor has manifested?"
"You're even stupider. But… this aura really does feel like the Sect Master's…"
The two disciples looked at each other, seeing the same shock and excitement in each other's eyes.
(End of Chapter)