Hearing the Snake Granny agree, Meng Yiran, feeling shy, forgot to stop her. Oscar, without hesitation, took out a dagger and swiftly killed the Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent.
Then, he sat cross-legged and began absorbing the soul ring.
This time, the Snake Granny didn't leave immediately. She wanted to observe Oscar's martial soul. To assess the strength of someone's martial soul, the most direct method is to see what type of spirit skill it produces. If it's a useless skill, then the martial soul has no real value.
The Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent wasn't particularly aggressive, so absorbing its soul ring went smoothly. In less than an hour, Oscar completed the process.
His spirit skill, as in the original story, was the "Flying Mushroom Sausage," which grants the user the ability to fly for one minute at the speed of the Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent.
The Snake Granny was both shocked and delighted. This spirit skill had immense strategic significance. On a battlefield, it could enable either a surprise attack or a swift retreat, proving incredibly useful. Even in a regular team battle, giving the entire team the ability to fly unexpectedly could lead to miraculous tactical outcomes.
"This child is a once-in-a-century genius in the food-type martial soul category," she thought. "I must recruit him to assist my Yiran."
Since Tang San did not intervene, the soul beast wasn't fought over but was willingly offered by the Snake Granny after observing Oscar's potential. Hence, there was no conflict between the two parties.
Meng Yiran also acknowledged that Oscar's support abilities would greatly benefit her future battles and cultivation. And with Oscar's extraordinarily handsome face, she couldn't help but feel a bit moved.
Looks don't matter in Douluo Continent—this statement is only half true. For women with ordinary talent, it might hold, but Meng Yiran was a beautiful, talented, and well-born young lady.
Girls like her naturally had higher standards. In the original story, Tang San, before the awakening of the Blue Silver Emperor, had an ordinary appearance, which meant he had to demonstrate enough strength to attract her. But with Oscar's looks, this step could be skipped entirely.
"Well, young man, congratulations on obtaining such a fine soul ring. I still need to take Yiran to search for other soul beasts, so we'll take our leave for now. Later, I'll visit your Shrek Academy with my old man to discuss your situation. Farewell."
The Snake Granny bid farewell to the group and left with her granddaughter.
"Take care, senior." Oscar, extremely grateful to the Snake Granny for allowing him the soul ring, escorted them a short distance before returning.
With Oscar's soul ring issue resolved, they now needed to find suitable soul beasts for Ning Rongrong and Tang San.
For these two, there wasn't much concern, as Tianlin had already prepared everything. Shortly after they set off again, they came across a severely injured Sky Spirit Tiger, about 1,600 years old.
The Sky Spirit Tiger was a very unique tiger-type soul beast. It didn't have the powerful attack or defense typical of tigers, but its distinguishing feature was its abundant soul power, far surpassing that of other soul beasts of the same age.
By hunting it, Ning Rongrong stood a high chance of obtaining a skill that amplified soul power, which was precisely what she needed.
Zhao Wuji couldn't help but marvel, "Ning Rongrong truly seems to be heaven's favorite child. Such incredible luck! To come across a soul beast with perfect age and attributes, and it's even on the verge of death—it's practically a gift-wrapped soul ring."
Of course, this wasn't mere luck. Tianlin had earlier instructed Yin Yang to capture it. Tang San's soul beast had also been prepared, but it wasn't anything special and couldn't be revealed yet. Otherwise, they would have to leave the Star Dou Forest immediately, disrupting Tianlin's plans.
As night fell, the group decided to camp at the site where Ning Rongrong absorbed her soul ring. Tianlin stayed close to her, protecting her.
The others either meditated or rested, with Zhao Wuji standing guard. The night passed peacefully.
Indeed, the plot had changed. The Titan Giant Ape did not appear. It remained quietly by the Lake of Life.
This was all thanks to the Concealment Pill Tianlin had given Xiao Wu, which completely suppressed her aura. Without sensing Xiao Wu, the Titan Giant Ape had no reason to leave the Lake of Life.
After more than an hour, Ning Rongrong successfully absorbed her soul ring, gaining a third spirit skill that amplified soul power. Tianlin, concerned about her mental exhaustion, didn't let her continue meditating. He held her in his arms until she fell asleep, waiting quietly for Yin Yang's news.
As the night deepened, the guard shift changed to Dai Mubai. Suddenly, a secret voice transmission reached Tianlin's ears: "Xiao Tian, Meng Yiran has started absorbing the Man-Faced Demon Spider's soul ring. Come quickly."
Tianlin opened his eyes, a smile forming. Everything was going exactly as planned.
Without the Titan Giant Ape's interference, Tang San wouldn't have chased it into the forest's depths to rescue Xiao Wu, subsequently encountering the Man-Faced Demon Spider that Dragon Duke was hunting. Without Tang San's intervention, the soul beast was destined to die, and Meng Yiran could claim it without issue.
Tianlin glanced pityingly at the meditating Tang San and thought, "Sorry, Tang San, your Eight Spider Lances are gone."
Having read the original story, Tianlin knew how important the Eight Spider Lances were to Tang San. This external soul bone not only greatly enhanced Tang San's attributes but also allowed him to adapt to various terrains and provided powerful offensive capabilities with its venom.
Most importantly, the Eight Spider Lances served as a medium connecting Tang San's other soul bones, enabling the creation of a full soul bone armor—a feat typically impossible unless the soul bones came from the same type of soul beast. This dramatically increased Tang San's power and even allowed it to evolve into a divine artifact.
But such a powerful external soul bone, since it wouldn't belong to Tianlin, was better off not appearing at all.
Tianlin gently placed Ning Rongrong down and whispered, "Rest well, Rongrong. Brother Sword will be back soon."
Then, he stepped out of the tent. With a flash, he disappeared using teleportation. Dai Mubai, with his limited strength, didn't notice a thing.
Tianlin quickly found Yin Yang, who had been waiting. "Grandpa Eagle, please take me to Dragon Duke and Snake Granny."
"Alright, but we need to hurry. That girl won't hold out much longer." Yin Yang picked up Tianlin, utilizing his Title Douluo speed as an agility-type spirit master. Like a bolt of lightning, they dashed in the direction of Dragon Duke and Snake Granny.
In the forest, Dragon Duke and Snake Granny were growing increasingly anxious. After much effort, they had captured the Man-Faced Demon Spider, only to discover it was over 2,000 years old.
Meng Yiran was just an ordinary girl, without the benefit of body refinement through immortal herbs. She could not withstand such an over-aged soul ring. Her face twisted in agony, her body wracked with pain—it was clear she was on the verge of exploding.
"Yiran, you must hold on! This is all Grandpa's fault for not realizing the true age of the Man-Faced Demon Spider." Dragon Duke was wracked with guilt. As a Title Douluo, he had failed to correctly identify the soul beast's age, putting his granddaughter in grave danger.
But this wasn't entirely his fault. Aside from eccentric people like the Grandmaster, who memorized soul beast ages down to the exact year? Most people only estimated their age roughly, and a margin of error of about a hundred years was unavoidable.
PS: Read atleast 140 advanced chapters at patreon.com/AbsoluteCode