Silence.
Ever since Li Xun transmitted his spiritual energy, the Sky Dream Iceworm had completely fallen silent.
It wasn't until a long while later that he finally spoke, sounding rather flustered: "How could I possibly be their food?!"
"You might not know just how powerful I am. I'm the only Golden-striped Ice Silkworm in my clan to have reached the 100,000-year mark, and my cultivation has even reached a terrifying 980,000 years. I'm just 20,000 years away from becoming a million-year Soul Beast."
"Take a look at these nine beautiful golden stripes on my body. They're a symbol of my strength."
"My heavens! You're actually a Soul Beast with 980,000 years of cultivation!" Li Xun, noticing Skydream's current awkwardness, quickly offered some flattery.
"Hehe, right?" Skydream chuckled, then used his disproportionately small eyes to glance around. "Huh? You're hiding quite well! If it weren't for my immense spiritual power, I might not have even noticed you."
"But there's another guy here besides me, and his spiritual power is also incredibly strong. I'll cover for you so he doesn't detect you."
Li Xun wasn't surprised that Skydream had detected him from a kilometer away. After all, this guy's spiritual power was so vast that it could reach the surface and observe humans entering the Star Dou Great Forest.
As for the other guy Skydream mentioned, it was probably that ridiculously powerful Beast God Di Tian.
Feeling a thin layer of spiritual energy enveloping him, Li Xun's eyes flickered. "Thank you so much, but I probably won't stay here for long. This place is still too dangerous for a human like me."
"By the way, what was that Soul Beast doing next to you earlier?"
"You're leaving already?" Skydream wriggled uneasily, then chuckled. "Her? She's just my servant, cleaning my body. I was in a good mood, so I casually gave her a bit of my cultivation."
"Impressive strength, truly admirable." Li Xun flattered him, then muttered as if relieved, "I originally thought you were being imprisoned and wanted to lend a hand to see if I could help. But since you're fine, I won't disturb you any further."
Hearing this, Skydream's constantly shifting eyes froze for a moment, and his tone became slightly anxious. "Hey, don't rush off! Did you come to such a dangerous place just to take a look around?"
"I'm just here to see if there are any suitable Soul Beasts for me. But there are quite a few here, so I don't need to inspect them one by one. I'll come back when I'm ready to attach a Spirit Ring." Li Xun replied casually.
At this point, Skydream hadn't been in the Star Dou Great Forest for long and hadn't yet been drained to the point of exhaustion by the other Soul Beasts. Li Xun planned to keep pulling the strings to lower his guard.
Skydream was startled by this, but after a moment of thought, he relaxed. "There are indeed quite a few Soul Beasts here. Not to mention the most powerful one, there are several with over 400,000 years of cultivation."
"But I can see that your internal energy isn't very high. Can your body withstand the immense energy of a 100,000-year Soul Beast?"
During his years of captivity, Skydream had sensed a few humans who ventured deep into the Star Dou Great Forest. Without exception, all of them possessed strength far surpassing that of a 100,000-year Soul Beast.
Although he hadn't observed carefully, a rough comparison between those few individuals and Li Xun revealed a noticeable gap.
"You underestimate me, and you underestimate us humans. The talent of humanity lies in turning the impossible into the possible, time and time again."
Li Xun chuckled, "Do you know the age of the Soul Beast I absorbed last time?"
"How old?" Skydream became somewhat interested.
"85,000 years."
"With just this amount of energy in your body, you can already absorb an 85,000-year-old Soul Beast?!" Skydream was astonished.
"You might have heard of humans becoming gods, but have you heard of Soul Beasts becoming gods? This is the potential of humanity. Moreover, an 80,000-year-old Soul Beast is only my fifth Spirit Ring. For the remaining four slots, I will choose 100,000 Year Soul Beasts as my Spirit Rings."
"What!" Skydream was stunned, his plump body twitching with anxiety.
He hadn't expected this little human before him to have such a crazy idea. He felt uneasy and scared, unsure whether he should stop this person. After all, as long as Li Xun continued to grow, four 100,000 Year Soul Beasts would inevitably perish.
However, this thought only flashed through his mind because his current situation was even more pitiful than the Soul Beasts killed by humans. These Soul Beasts were intent on squeezing every last bit of his power, draining him dry.
Li Xun didn't give Skydream much time to react, "And this is only my first Martial Soul. Once I attach Spirit Rings to my second Martial Soul, becoming a god will just be a matter of time."
"What! You have a second Martial Soul?" Skydream felt his entire body trembling, "Four plus nine equals thirteen. Are you planning to hunt thirteen 100,000 Year Soul Beasts?"
Skydream suddenly thought of a problem. Even including the strongest one in the Star Dou Great Forest, there might not be enough 100,000 Year Soul Beasts to make up thirteen. Where would Li Xun get the rest?
The Far North Land!
Thinking of the Ice Empress, Skydream's body trembled. He felt that for the sake of his dream lover, he couldn't betray the Soul Beasts to humans.
"Don't be afraid. Actually, hunting isn't the only way to obtain 100,000 Year Soul Beasts. You should know about the unique talent of Soul Beasts—Sacrifice, right?"
Li Xun, sensing Skydream's emotional changes through his spiritual power, quickly got to the point, "This Sacrifice is different from the Spirit Rings obtained through hunting. It can be revived under certain conditions. For example, after the person who obtained the Spirit Ring becomes a god."
"Can it really be revived?" Skydream was stunned. Becoming a god was a fatal attraction for Soul Beasts. In the face of their long lifespans, Soul Beasts were generally far more afraid of death than humans.
"It's true. After Sacrifice, following the god in the God Realm to be revived has always been the path of least resistance for Soul Beasts. This is also your only chance to become a god because the God Realm does not allow Soul Beasts to undergo tribulations to become gods!"
Skydream stared blankly at the vines on the ground, his mind racing with thoughts.
Although he hadn't been outside for long, from crossing the seas to the Star Dou Great Forest, he had indeed only heard from other Soul Beasts about becoming a god. But whether any Soul Beast had actually succeeded, he hadn't heard of it.
The power of Soul Beasts is immense, far surpassing that of ordinary humans. Yet, despite their strength, none of this formidable race has ever ascended to godhood, which is quite intriguing.
Now, trapped here and surrounded by Soul Beasts whose attack power far exceeds my own, there's no chance of escape.
If this continues, I might not even live long enough to be hunted by humans; I could be drained dry by these detestable creatures. Might as well take a gamble on this so-called "path of surrender."
"Are you sure you're not lying to me?" Skydream's thoughts raced, and then his small eyes shifted as he spoke with a hint of suspicion.
"Why would I lie to you? There's no benefit in it for me. Besides, I was about to leave, and it was you who called me back," Li Xun conveyed his displeasure through his mental energy. "If there's nothing else, I'll be on my way."
"Hey! Don't be in such a hurry to leave!" Skydream chuckled. "How about I offer you a chance of a lifetime? Interested?"
"A chance of a lifetime? Do tell."
"I'm planning to Sacrifice my 980,000 years of cultivation to you," Skydream grunted twice, feigning generosity, but his eyes flickered uneasily.
"No thanks."
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