"This Dark Devilgod Tiger truly lives up to being a soul beast with one of the highest bloodlines. Even the external soul bone it brings is this powerful."
Jiang Jue felt the roaring wind rushing past both sides of his body. A faint smile rose at the corners of his mouth as he thought to himself.
The pair of external soul bone wings carried the Dark Devilgod Tiger's innate wind and lightning attributes. When Jiang Jue fully activated them, his speed far surpassed that of a Soul Douluo and was not even inferior to that of an ordinary Titled Douluo.
This was also the first time he had flown into the sky alone without relying on a soul tool. Watching the ground below shrink smaller and smaller, and the clouds that seemed close enough to touch, his heart could not help but stir.
"Wind–Thunder Shadow Plunder!"
Crackle! Crackle!
Two streaks of blue-purple lightning flashed across the wings on Jiang Jue's back. The blood-red demonic patterns covering them suddenly burst forth with light, and along the outer edges of the wings, a stream of black airflow extended outward.
"Whoosh!"
In an instant, Jiang Jue's figure vanished from where he was, soaring upward like a golden-winged roc. This time, his speed was so great that not even an afterimage was left behind.
"Second Brother, why do I feel like what you taught me wasn't that great? The soul skills the Young Master gained this time look insanely powerful. We really should've gone up and congratulated him earlier."
Seeing that he couldn't keep up, Yu Tao stopped trying to chase. Since they were already close to the sect's location anyway, he leisurely flew behind together with Lang Ya.
"That might be because it didn't meet the Young Master's expectations. You know—geniuses have standards different from ordinary soul masters like us."
Lang Ya rubbed his nose and spoke earnestly.
"So that's how it is. Second Brother, you really are wise."
"Good that you understand. Hurry up and catch up—don't keep the Young Master waiting."
Lang Ya let out a quiet sigh of relief and urged him on.
Watching Jiang Jue disappear high above, Lang Ya knew that his judgment had actually been wrong. But a man couldn't say he was wrong—especially in front of his own brothers.
Above the Heavenly Chasm, at the entrance of the Body Sect.
Jiang Jue's figure suddenly appeared, the thunder-flashing wings behind him slowly retracting back into his body.
"Wind–Thunder Shadow Plunder can triple my speed in an instant. I've used this soul skill for quite a while now, and it's only consumed one-tenth of my soul power. This is completely usable for long-distance travel."
Feeling the depletion of soul power within him, Jiang Jue's eyes gleamed as he silently assessed.
After absorbing the Dark Devilgod Tiger's hundred-thousand-year soul ring, the energy within had already pushed his cultivation to level sixty-four—this despite the fact that progress with extreme attributes was notoriously slow.
Moreover, just like the Ice Empress, in order to avoid wasting energy, the Dark Devilgod Tiger had sealed most of its origin power into the soul bone, providing Jiang Jue with resources for future cultivation.
"Although the Dark Devilgod Tiger sealed its origin power into the soul bone, there's still quite a bit of its top-tier bloodline left in the corpse itself."
"The next time I see Elder Zhang, I'll hand it over to him. It might allow his cultivation and martial soul to advance another step."
Looking at the massive corpse of the Dark Devilgod Tiger stored in his spatial ring, Jiang Jue's gaze flickered.
Zhang Peng's martial soul was a Scorpion Tiger, a lower-tier martial soul derived from the Dark Devilgod Tiger. Perhaps he could gain some benefits from this corpse.
What's more, Jiang Jue still needed to find a way to join the Body Sect's upcoming treasure-stealing operation against Mingde Hall. He would likely meet Zhang Peng again before long.
"And there's also Meng…"
Jiang Jue's thoughts shifted.
"Young Master, we're here."
Before long, Lang Ya and Yu Tao arrived beside Jiang Jue from behind.
"Let's go. First, we'll inform Elder Jin."
"And later, we'll follow the prepared script."
"Yes!"
Jiang Jue nodded slightly, and the three of them headed toward Jin Peng's room.
Knock, knock, knock!
Clear knocking sounds rang out.
"Come in!"
Jin Peng's voice came from inside the room.
Creak!
The door opened. Jin Peng looked at the three who had returned—and at Jiang Jue, whose aura had clearly grown much stronger. A trace of surprise flashed through his eyes.
"Level sixty-four? Isn't Xiao Jiang an extreme-attribute soul master? How could he have increased by so much? Just how many years was that soul beast?"
Jin Peng thought to himself.
As a soul master's level increases, advancing becomes more and more difficult, and the level boost gained from absorbing soul rings also diminishes.
"Don't tell me it was a hundred-thousand-year one?"
"The Sect Master trained his body from childhood and didn't obtain a hundred-thousand-year soul ring until his seventh ring. No matter how talented Jiang Jue is, it's impossible—and the three of them couldn't possibly defeat a hundred-thousand-year soul beast either."
Jin Peng chuckled and dismissed the absurd thought, then asked aloud,
"So? Are you satisfied with the soul ring and soul skills you obtained this time?"
"Very satisfied."
Jiang Jue nodded slightly and replied with a smile.
"Good. As long as you're satisfied. If you weren't, this old man would have had to take Lang Ya and Yu Tao to task and see whether they didn't put in enough effort."
Jin Peng raised his teacup, took a light sip, and joked.
Lang Ya and Yu Tao exchanged glances, their mouths twitching simultaneously as they remained silent.
They really hadn't put in any effort. The moment they reached the Sunset Forest, they were knocked unconscious. When they woke up, Jiang Jue had already handled obtaining the soul ring by himself, while the two of them merely watched from the side.
It was practically just a sightseeing trip.
"Oh right, Xiao Jiang. The Sect Master has finished his closed-door cultivation. There's a chance he'll come looking for you in a couple of days."
Jin Peng seemed to recall something and spoke softly to Jiang Jue.
"The Sect Master's come out of seclusion? So that's where he disappeared to for over a year… But at this point, there shouldn't be any opportunity for him to break through to an Ultimate Douluo. Yet Elder Jin looks quite pleased…"
Jiang Jue's gaze shifted slightly, a hint of doubt in his heart.
"I haven't seen the Sect Master in a long time either. I miss him very much. If he comes to see me, I'll certainly welcome him."
Jiang Jue said with a smile.
"Good. You've worked hard these past days—go back and get some proper rest."
"Then, Elder Jin, I'll take my leave."
Jiang Jue said respectfully, then turned and left. Seeing this, Lang Ya and Yu Tao immediately followed behind him, quickly heading outside.
"Lang Ya, Yu Tao, you two stay behind for a moment. I have some matters to assign to you."
Lang Ya's heart skipped a beat. The two of them still couldn't escape it after all.
"Yes, Elder Jin."
Jiang Jue's heart remained calm. Before returning to the sect, he had already arranged everything that needed arranging, so there was nothing to worry about.
"The Sect Master coming to see me… this might not be a bad opportunity."
With a deep, thoughtful gaze, Jiang Jue headed toward his wooden hut. He needed to prepare properly.
Not long after Jiang Jue left, a shocked voice rang out from Jin Peng's room.
"What?! A hundred-thousand-year soul ring?!"
Sun–Moon Empire, Mingdu.
Inside a branch of the Holy Spirit Cult.
Zhang Peng, hidden beneath a black robe, looked at a freshly delivered envelope on the desk before him, his brows knitting slightly.
"This Pingfan Alliance really has a death wish."
"They actually dared to secretly capture wild evil soul masters. These are future fresh blood for our Holy Spirit Cult."
"But this does allow this old man to complete the task assigned by the Young Master…"
A pleased look appeared in Zhang Peng's eyes as he grabbed the file on the desk and muttered softly.
"I searched everywhere for you—so you were hiding right under my nose all along."
On the envelope was a photograph of a young girl with long golden hair. Even through the photo alone, one could feel the sacred aura radiating from her.
Beside it were several large characters:
Ye Guyi, Angel!
(End of Chapter)