The process of finding a spirit ring for Dugu Yan went rather smoothly.
Since her Martial Soul had evolved into a True Dragon Martial Soul, only spirit rings with dragon bloodlines could be compatible.
So, they selected a 4,000-year-old Earth Demon Centipede Dragon.
This centipede had a fairly strong dragon bloodline. Its body was snow-white, and its extremely potent poison attribute could corrode metal and stone alike.
This spirit ring granted Dugu Yan a new soul skill that could shoot poison-attribute energy beams,Emerald Gold Bone-Corroding Ray.
The beam's concentrated poison could melt a person instantly upon contact, effectively solving the issue of her poisonous mist being blown away or burned by flames.
However, things on Fang Ling's side didn't go as smoothly.
Over a month passed, and he still hadn't found a suitable spirit beast.
The death attribute wasn't common. It did exist, but was extremely rare.
It was certainly real, but they hadn't seen any suitable ones in the Sunset Forest. They might have to try their luck later in the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Maybe try a different attribute?" suggested Dugu Bo.
Going a month without finding a compatible spirit ring is normal for soul masters. Sometimes, it's just out of your control.
Fang Ling pondered for a moment. "Let's give it three more days. If we still don't find one, I'll wait until I'm a Spirit King and then head to the Star Dou Great Forest."
On the third day, while they were still searching fruitlessly, Dugu Bo suddenly noticed something.
He narrowed his eyes, then patted Fang Ling, who was searching elsewhere.
"No need to force the death attribute. Take a look at that one,what do you think?"
Fang Ling immediately turned in the direction Dugu Bo pointed.
It was a mantis, purple and black, engaged in an intense battle.
Its size wasn't large,about as tall as a human.
Its purple exoskeleton looked extraordinary: bright and glossy, with black star-like specks scattered across it, giving off a mysterious aura.
What caught the eye most were its forearms,two enormous scythe-like blades, each about a meter long. They were sharp, sturdy, and smooth as mirrors, shimmering with a purple-black glow like the night sky.
With strong hind legs and agile movements, it completely overwhelmed its opponent.
Dugu Bo spoke softly, "Top-tier spirit beast,Ten-Thousand-Year Doom Mantis."
Fang Ling had begged him repeatedly to find a ten-thousand-year ring to train his willpower through spiritual shock.
After observing and pressuring him for half a year, Dugu Bo determined that Fang Ling's spirit had barely reached the threshold, so he raised the spirit ring limit to ten thousand years.
Still, encountering a rare spirit beast like this by chance was extremely fortunate.
"What makes it top-tier?" Fang Ling hadn't noticed anything special.
The Doom Mantis was dominating the battle, seemingly relaxed, and clearly not using its full strength.
Wait,was it just a coincidence?
Fang Ling suddenly saw the Doom Mantis spin around mid-fight and block a sneak attack from behind.
What was that?
His pupils contracted, and he fell into deep thought.
Dugu Bo didn't realize Fang Ling had noticed something unusual, so he explained:
"It has a special ability called Anti-Magic. It's a rare skill that can nullify any soul power-based attack, regardless of attribute."
Any soul power-based attack?
Fang Ling was shocked. He recalled something and said, "I vaguely remember a subspecies of dragon-type soul beast called the Rouge Dragon. It had a skill called Annihilation, which could decompose an opponent's elemental powers to achieve destructive effects."
That was a dragon-type soul beast he'd read about recently. Its unique abilities and post-ten-thousand-year evolution had left an impression on him.
So when he heard "Anti-Magic," he immediately connected the dots.
"Quite similar," Dugu Bo nodded after a moment's thought.
This attribute was clearly very useful.
Fang Ling immediately asked, "Teacher, could you explain more?"
Seeing how eager his student looked, Dugu Bo smiled slightly.
"It's just as you guessed,long-range soul skills, soul power defenses, Martial Soul enhancements,all of them are affected."
"As long as it's soul power, it doesn't matter the level."
He added, "The Doom Mantis's twin scythes are also extremely sharp. If you absorb this spirit ring, the sharpness of your Martial Soul should improve significantly."
"Perfect. Let's go with this one," Fang Ling confirmed with a nod.
The Anti-Magic ability was extraordinary. If Dugu Bo went out of his way to mention it, that alone showed how valuable it was.
And it ignored soul power level,wasn't that the perfect ability for challenging opponents above your rank?
He had already tested the upper limit of his Weakness Detection skill.
At maximum effort, he could detect flaws in a soul emperor using Martial Soul possession.
With Anti-Magic, he'd gain an even easier and quicker way to break through defenses. Judging from the Doom Mantis's behavior, the ability was probably a continuous buff or enchantment.
This was the ultimate counter to tank-type enemies.
Fang Ling was thrilled. If a defense-focused soul master couldn't withstand this, how could an offense-focused one possibly stand a chance?
And it would enhance his scythe's sharpness. Plus, that strange reaction from earlier suggested the beast might have even more hidden potential.
The Doom Mantis was truly valuable from head to toe.
Dugu Bo personally took action and captured it.
Although it was a top-tier spirit beast,one even high-level ones avoided,it stood no chance against a poison-type Title Douluo.
Without a way to resist poison, it was quickly paralyzed.
Then, with a single punch, Dugu Bo shattered its tough exoskeleton.
The Anti-Magic energy didn't cover its whole body,just a thin layer on the scythe blades.
Fang Ling guessed it was because the ability consumed too much spirit power and could only be used on the weapon edge.
A power that strong couldn't possibly be easy to use. The high soul power cost was the price.
Holding the paralyzed mantis,its blades and limbs drooping,Dugu Bo tossed it in front of Fang Ling.
Fang Ling raised his own scythe and finished it in one clean slash.
A faint black light began to glow from the Doom Mantis's body, and a deep, dark spirit ring formed above it.
Fang Ling sat cross-legged and raised his scythe toward the dark light.
A powerful black energy surged toward him like a river into the sea.
There was no need to rely on the Ice-Fire Yin-Yang Well to trigger residual medicinal power. His body was already strong enough to absorb a ten-thousand-year spirit ring directly.
The surging black energy overwhelmed him instantly like a tidal wave.
The spirit ring's energy filled every corner of his body almost immediately.
But thanks to his strong physique and broad, resilient meridians, he could endure it.
While his body absorbed the spirit ring's power, his spiritual world was also thrown into battle.
A faint purple-black mantis shadow was clashing violently with the image of a man holding a giant scythe.
The Doom Mantis was especially skilled in combat.
There were no spirit skills in the spiritual plane.
Though the beast's combat technique was remarkable, and Fang Ling suffered two cuts early on, he quickly adapted.
Swinging his scythe with increasing speed, he matched the mantis's dual scythes blow for blow.
Occasionally, he even overpowered it, leaving deep gashes in its form.
After four intense hours of spiritual,or rather, soul-level,combat, the spirit ring was fully absorbed.
What surprised him most was the change on his personal panel.
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