Dark clouds pressed over the endless snowfield, each gust of cold wind carrying piercing ice crystals.
The boy stood in the boundless snow, his purple outfit fluttering in the wind, exposing his wrists where purple-gold lightning slowly traveled along the patterns on his arms, evaporating fine white mist in the knife-like cold.
Not far around the boy, two figures flanked him from front and back, trapping him.
On the left, a tall, thin man was covered in light blue fur, his pupils the pale white unique to the ice plains. His Ice Wolf martial soul was fully possessed, his bulging shoulder muscles straining his beast hide armor. One white, two yellow, two purple soul rings rotated slowly under his feet, cold air condensing into white mist with his breath: "Ignorant kid, daring to trespass into my territory."
On the right, a burly man gripped a pitch-black long staff, its body gleaming coldly. Two yellow, three purple soul rings were nearly optimal, clearly stronger than the Ice Wolf Soul King.
The burly man lightly shook his wrist, planting the staff in the snow, and looked coldly at the boy: "Kid, this is the Yun Tian Mountain Range, a place even Spirit Hall can't control. Since you dare come here to show off, be prepared to die!"
The boy didn't respond, only coldly raising his right hand, a ball of purple-gold lightning leaping from his palm. The moment the lightning hit the ground, the ice layer beneath the snow cracked suddenly, fine electric lights spreading along the cracks, weaving an invisible electric net around him. Then, three purple soul rings slowly emerged, the third one so purple it was almost black, clearly very close to ten-thousand-year level.
Seeing the three identical purple soul rings, both the thin man and the burly man's pupils contracted: "Soul Elder cultivation with three millennium soul rings?! How is this possible?!"
The boy remained cold. His first soul ring suddenly lit up, his foot stomping the ground as he charged out, leaving an afterimage in place while a domain covered in lightning suddenly enveloped the two. In an instant, a terrifying pressure descended.
"Ao!"
The Ice Wolf Soul King roared: "You're just a Soul Elder."
In the next moment, he was already before the boy, activating his second soul skill "Ice Wolf Claw." Two wolf claws covered in thick ice tore through the air, five ice blades scraping past the boy's afterimage and slashing into the snow, instantly creating five half-foot-deep ice grooves. But before he could retract, purple-gold lightning wrapped around his ankle like a venomous snake, current surging through his fur and numbing his body, slowing his movements.
"Careful!"
The Staff Soul King's face changed, his third soul ring lighting up. The staff instantly tripled in size, sweeping toward the boy's back with a howling cold wind—third soul skill, Earth-Splitting Strike.
The staff wind hadn't arrived, but the snow on the ground was already swirling into a vortex. Yet, as if the boy had eyes on his back, he flipped his wrist, condensing purple-gold lightning into a thunder whip that precisely wrapped around the staff.
The current conducted along the staff, numbing the Staff Soul King's grip, nearly making him drop it. He hurriedly activated his fourth soul ring, covering the staff in thick ice to try shattering the whip, but in the next moment, a palm covered in lightning was already before him.
"Puff!"
The Staff Soul King grunted, staggering back two steps. His shoulder clothing was scorched by lightning, revealing burned skin, while his internal organs felt like they were about to shatter.
By now, the Ice Wolf Soul King had broken free of the current, his fourth soul ring lighting up. A basketball-sized ice-blue orb condensed in his mouth, the cold turning surrounding snowflakes into ice particles.
Fourth soul skill, Ice Explosion Bomb.
The orb shot out toward the boy, snowflakes dancing in its path, a crack appearing in the snow.
The boy's second purple ring lit up, lightning rampaging over his body, his aura surging violently. He sneered disdainfully at the incoming ice orb and grabbed it.
"Boom—"
The Ice Explosion Bomb collided directly with the boy's palm, but there was no imagined mist of ice—only the boom of it being crushed in his hand.
Without pausing, he stepped forward and punched at the latter.
"Not good!"
The Ice Wolf Soul King's heart sank. His second soul ring flashed, covering his body in ice armor. The fist collided with the armor in a dense explosion, sending the Ice Wolf Soul King sliding back, leaving two deep tracks in the snow.
A cold light flashed in the boy's eyes. He slowly raised his hands, purple-gold lightning coiling along his fingertips, his bones cracking lightly. Two half-foot-long purple-gold claws extended from his palms, their tips gleaming coldly, as if tearing the surrounding air with a faint buzzing.
"What—is that?"
The Staff Soul King's face changed drastically; he felt a heart-palpitating pressure from those claws.
Soul bone?
No, soul bones' six parts don't include palms.
The Ice Wolf Soul King also sensed something wrong and turned to flee, but the boy's figure appeared behind him like a ghost. The purple-gold terror claws, carrying purple-gold lightning, ruthlessly grabbed at the Ice Wolf Soul King's back.
"Puchi!"
The sound of sharp claws piercing beast hide and muscle was especially clear in the snow. The Ice Wolf Soul King's body stiffened, staring blankly at the claw piercing his chest, still holding a beating heart.
"Wait—"
"Bang"
With a soft sound, bright red blood fell on the snow, instantly freezing into dark red ice crystals.
Seeing this, the Staff Soul King was scared out of his wits and turned to flee desperately, but how could the boy give him a chance?
Lightning flashed, and in an instant, he was behind him.
The purple-gold terror claws swept horizontally. The Staff Soul King hurriedly blocked with his staff, but this time, his staff was like paper, easily cleaved by the dark gold terror claws.
"No!"
The Staff Soul King let out a despairing scream as the dark gold terror claws sliced unhindered across his neck, sending a head flying into the air.
"The twenty-third!"
The boy was Chen Yi, who had left the Body Sect for training. Ever since the Great Elder pointed out his shortcomings in actual combat a year ago, he had begun seeking out outlaws in the Yuntian Mountain Range for fights.
As for why he didn't go to the Great Soul Arena, it was because of Chen Yi's extremely heaven-defying soul ring configuration. To prevent other forces from noticing, Chen Yi chose to tangle with these outlaws in the Yuntian Mountain Range.
Initially, Chen Yi's targets were ordinary Soul Ancestors, but as his strength and combat experience grew, they no longer provided much benefit.
Especially half a year ago, after Chen Yi hunted his third soul ring in the Star Dou Great Forest with the Second Elder, it became a crushing game. From then on, Chen Yi sought Soul King-level powerhouses in the Yuntian Mountain Range for life-and-death battles.
As a hidden sect in the Yuntian Mountain Range for hundreds of years, the Body Sect naturally knew all about the soul master scum roaming here. Thanks to the Body Sect's intelligence network, Chen Yi could fight a Soul King every few days over the past few months.
"Buzz—"
"What powerful Dark Gold Terror Claws; the power at the ten-thousand-year level is indeed incomparable to millennium level." Chen Yi lowered his head, looking at the extended claws and murmuring to himself.
Chen Yi's third soul ring came from a nine-thousand-year Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear. To find this super soul beast, the sect spared no effort in obtaining information from mercenary groups.
Worthy of a super soul beast, the violent energy of the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear's soul ring still gave Chen Yi lingering fear. A mere nine-thousand-year soul ring's violence probably surpassed most twenty-thousand-year ones.
If not for the Great Elder and others insisting he absorb the Diamond Mammoth left leg bone before hunting the soul beast, absorbing this soul ring might have taken extra effort.
"Not bad!"
A voice of approval sounded, and the Third Elder's tall figure appeared behind Chen Yi.
Ever since Chen Yi started seeking opponents in the Yuntian Mountain Range, his growth was visible. From initial Soul Ancestors to Soul Kings, he even defeated a Soul Emperor recently. This record was undoubtedly stunning for Chen Yi's age and cultivation.
Hearing the Third Elder's voice, Chen Yi turned and bowed. Compared to a year ago, with his gray beard and white hair, the Third Elder now seemed to have a second spring, even his hair had blackened a lot.
A year ago, the Third Elder had secluded himself deep in the Qi Blood Soaring Hall for three full months, finally condensing the first soul core in Douluo Continent's soul master history and breaking through to Titled Douluo, titled "Terror Arm."
On the day the Third Elder emerged, all the Body Sect's powerhouses went into deep seclusion. The Sect Master Chu Shanhe even declared: No golden vow, no emergence.
Two months later, the Great Elder successfully condensed a soul core in his upper dantian, breaking into level 95 Super realm, faintly touching the threshold of level 96; the Second Elder broke through to level 95, joining the ranks of the strongest below the peak.
Chen Zhen and Hong Yue also entered death seclusion with plenty of resources. With their talents, they would soon emerge and step into level 90.
The Body Sect was no longer as bustling as before, the air carrying a hint of desolation. But the occasional bursts of powerful auras still shattered the calm, leaving ripples in heaven and earth.
"Third Elder, who's next?"
The extreme north was indeed the headquarters of evil soul masters in the Dragon King era. Even in the nearby Yuntian Mountain Range, Chen Yi had encountered many degenerates this year.
"No, you've killed enough this year. In terms of combat experience and life-and-death fighting ability, among your peers, almost no one can stand shoulder to shoulder with you!"
Not just peers—even many older generations might not match Chen Yi in pure combat ability now. Not all geniuses have been tempered in blood and fire.
Most importantly, while the Yuntian Mountain Range has many degenerates and outlaws, those who come here are no weaklings. The Soul Ancestors and Soul Kings Chen Yi found this year were already a significant portion of the lone wanderers in the Yuntian Mountain Range; the rest had considerable backers. During the Body Sect's critical transformation period, they could only let them live a bit longer.
Chen Yi was puzzled. If not to give a list, according to the usual pattern, shouldn't he stay invisible? Why suddenly appear?
"Then, Third Elder, you're here to see me because—"
Compared to the Great Elder who liked being cryptic, the Third Elder was much more straightforward and directly replied: "A year has passed; your training can come to an end!"