Thrown out of the Lake of Life, Jiang Bai opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by a group of fierce beasts.
The cute Royal Beast, looking like a golden lion cub, bared its teeth at him.
It was filled with resentment toward Jiang Bai.
"Ten Thousand Beast King, I'll leave the Child of Nature in your care!"
Di Tian entrusted Jiang Bai to the care of the Ten Thousand Beast King, since, among all these fierce beasts, only the plant-type soul beast, the Ten Thousand Demon King, could best look after him.
The Ten Thousand Beast King nodded; the Child of Nature was incredibly important to the soul beasts and was revered as the god of plant-type soul beasts.
He would naturally take good care of him.
At this moment, Jiang Bai regained his composure. Isn't it just a matter of defeating Gu Yuena? Simple!
Once he inherits the powers of the God of Destruction, wouldn't he easily be able to handle her?
Just wait—becoming a good husband is a must for me!
—
Even after all these twists and turns, he still doesn't have a soul ring.
Looking at the cheerful Blue Silver Emperor, he couldn't help but fall into silence.
Huo Yuhao's first soul ring was a million-year sacrifice from the Skydream Iceworm, giving him four soul skills right off the bat!
And now he was about to receive a 200,000-year Blue Silver Emperor's sacrifice.
But then he thought about how his soul skills might end up being linked to the Blue Silver Emperor's abilities.
If the soul skill he gets from this 200,000-year soul beast is just some plant-based abilities, that would feel like a bit of a letdown.
"Ten Thousand Beast King, for now, I'd rather not go with the Blue Silver Emperor," Jiang Bai said.
The Ten Thousand Beast King's entire body shuddered. Could it be that the Child of Nature has lost interest in a mere 200,000-year Blue Silver Emperor and now wants me to sacrifice myself?
If he mentioned it to the Lord, the mighty one might hand him over without hesitation.
For the first time, this top-five-ranked fierce beast felt real fear, something even Di Tian's beatings had never stirred in him. Cold sweat broke out across his brow.
"I'd just like an ordinary soul skill."
A sacrifice from a 200,000-year soul beast felt too extravagant.
Besides, if he kept accepting soul rings like this, he'd end up with all these fierce beasts sacrificing themselves for him.
It was almost too surreal to believe.
"That's a relief, that's a relief!" The Ten Thousand Beast King, who had lived for tens of thousands of years, had never felt such terror.
Hearing that Jiang Bai only wanted a regular soul beast, he could finally relax.
Even the Blue Silver Emperor on the ground gave a sideways glance, as if realizing that her life was spared for now.
Meanwhile, in the entire Star Dou Forest, Blue Silver Grass spread everywhere, having benefited the most from this life-giving rain.
He now felt some confidence about facing his upcoming 200,000-year tribulation.
It was Perfect!
The difference between a 200,000-year-old soul beast sacrifice and a 190,000-year one is like night and day. Better to fatten it up before slaughter.
After a moment's thought, the Ten Thousand Beast King realized that the Child of Nature only wanted an ordinary soul beast.
So—
With a gesture, his massive branch-like hand plunged into the ground.
Moments later, he brought forth a vibrant green plant streaked with delicate gold and silver patterns, sparkling like stars.
This was a rare celestial herb that his true form, the Demon-Eyed Tree, had once devoured.
It was filled with strong spiritual energy, able to sense changes in its surroundings.
The biggest advantage of plant-type soul beasts was that they could leave behind seeds.
When he swallowed this celestial herb long ago, he kept a small segment alive to nurture with his own energy, hoping to cultivate a new one.
While it had developed some spirit and intelligence, after ten thousand years it had only managed to reach 300 years of cultivation.
He decided it would be best to offer it to the Child of Nature.
"A celestial herb!" Jiang Bai gasped. This was a plant that, if consumed, could evolve one's martial spirit.
But in all honesty, it seemed that without at least ten thousand years of cultivation, even celestial herbs were little more than ingredients.
But for his first soul ring, it should be sufficient.
Without hesitation, Jiang Bai killed the herb.
In the next moment, a yellow soul ring emerged from the celestial herb, hovering above it.
Jiang Bai sat down cross-legged and began channeling his soul power to merge with the ring.
Pain.
Relief.
Heat.
How to describe it?
Jiang Bai had never experienced anything like this before.
At that moment, a small deer appeared behind him, guiding the soul ring.
It was only a hundred-year soul ring, not a thousand or ten-thousand-year one.
Given his innate full soul power and his status as the Child of Nature, the celestial herb didn't resist him at all, smoothly integrating into his body.
It felt like... being paid and having to thank them for it.
After a slight discomfort at first, the process quickly passed, leaving him feeling somewhat underwhelmed.
However, his new soul skill surfaced in his mind.
[Alone atop the Mountain]
Jiang Bai summoned his martial spirit, and with a flash, a yellow soul ring appeared beneath his feet.
First Soul Skill, activate!
Suddenly, a strange sensation washed over him.
His entire body felt ethereal, as if he were about to transcend. His body transformed into a jade-green, gem-like state.
A tiny version of Jiang Bai appeared above the Ten Thousand Beast King's head!
Originally a six-year-old's size, he was now shrunken to one-fifth of that, looking even smaller.
So small he couldn't be any smaller.
It felt somewhat like being in a soul state.
"What a strange sensation!"
Though Jiang Bai couldn't leave the top of the Ten Thousand Beast King's head, he could move and speak just as before.
He even tried throwing a punch at the Beast King but found that it didn't seem to cause any harm.
His body appeared almost intangible.
"Ten Thousand Beast King, can you try attacking me?"
The Beast King, equally intrigued, looked closely at Jiang Bai. It felt unusually different.
"I can't feel your presence at all. It's as if your aura has vanished, like you're cut off from the world."
The Beast King extended a massive hand toward him, but it simply passed right through.
"It seems this soul skill of yours is incredibly effective for self-preservation!"
"How long can you maintain it?"
Jiang Bai thought for a moment in response to the Demon King's question.
It seemed he could stay in this state as long as he wanted, with no time limit, provided he had enough soul power.
And in this form, his energy consumption was minimal.
With his level ten soul power, it looked like he could sit on the Ten Thousand Beast King's head for an entire day and night.
And besides, he could even restore his soul power.
This was absolutely game-breaking!
Of course, there was a chance that if the Ten Thousand Beast King took a hit, he might get knocked down from his position.
So, without hesitation, Jiang Bai said, "Ten Thousand Beast King, try hitting yourself."
"Preferably hard enough to leave yourself wounded."
Ten Thousand Beast King: ???
You want me to hit myself?
If it weren't for the fact that the Child of Nature had already gained his soul ring, he'd have suspected Jiang Bai was trying to harm him.
Seeing the Beast King's silent stare, Jiang Bai realized his words might've come across the wrong way.
"I just mean try hitting yourself to see if it'll knock me off!"
The next moment, an immense force gathered in the Beast King's hand, and, without hesitation, he plunged it through his own chest.
Streams of green fluid poured out like blood.
The Ten Thousand Beast King only let out a muffled grunt, and his chest-though pierced -began to regenerate visibly.
Still, he seemed a bit unsteady afterward.
This guy... is relentless! Since Jiang Bai didn't fall off, he felt completely reassured.
Exiting the first soul skill and landing on the ground, he thought, "Perfect!"
This was exactly the skill he wanted!
In danger, he could just hang out on his opponent's head, untouchable!