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Not long after, thanks to the efforts of the grandfather-grandson duo, a sizable pile of firewood had accumulated at the base of the Sky Azure Tree.
Next, Su Nan retrieved several wooden barrels from his storage-type soul tool and tossed them toward the pile of firewood.
Sky Azure Tree: ? ? ?
Throwing wood didn't pose an immediate threat, and neither did tossing barrels filled with oil. Since this particular Sky Azure Tree lacked a brain and relied solely on instinct, it failed to detect any imminent danger and remained as still as a mountain.
"Boom boom boom—!"
The barrels cracked open upon hitting the ground, spilling their contents of oil, which spread across the area, releasing a sharp, pungent smell.
Of course, the Sky Azure Tree also lacked a sense of smell and was unaware that these black liquids would prove fatal to it.
Seeing that everything was unfolding according to plan without a hitch, Chu Chengzhou took out a tinderbox, lit the oil-soaked stick in his hand, and hurled it toward the unsuspecting Sky Azure Tree, whose impending demise drew near.
"Whoosh—!"
The quality of the oil was excellent. As soon as the torch hit the ground, towering flames erupted instantly.
"Bang bang bang—!"
As the fire roared, the Sky Azure Tree could no longer remain still. Several thick roots burst out of the ground, instinctively lashing out at the burning pile of wood.
Unfortunately, the brainless Sky Azure Tree didn't realize that its frantic thrashing only made the fire burn more fiercely.
There was no other reason—the barrels, initially just cracked and leaking oil, were now completely shattered by the tree's violent strikes, causing the oil to splash everywhere and intensifying the flames further.
'Setting fires in the wild—how many years of prison food would I get for this?'
Gazing at their "masterpiece," Chu Chengzhou couldn't help but muse internally.
Of course, the Tian Dou Empire didn't prohibit soul masters from setting fires in the forest. Otherwise, fire-attribute soul masters would be the first to object, and fire-attribute spirit beasts wouldn't comply with the empire's laws either.
Moreover, burning down the entire Soul Hunting Forest wasn't as easy as one might imagine.
Though the forest was teeming with vegetation, dry wood and grass were scarce. Additionally, most plants possessed some degree of soul power. Unless a Title Douluo specializing in fire arrived, even deliberate arson would struggle to engulf the entire forest.
Under the intense blaze, within ten minutes, this unlucky Sky Azure Tree fell completely silent.
In fact, the reason the Sky Azure Tree lasted so long was due to its nature as a spirit beast.
Without the protection of soul power and frequent use of healing soul skills, Chu Chengzhou estimated that it wouldn't have lasted more than three minutes before succumbing to the flames.
Soon, a deep yellow soul ring emerged from the raging inferno.
Upon seeing the soul ring appear, Chu Chengzhou's face lit up with joy, but almost immediately, he frowned.
The fire was still burning—how was he supposed to absorb the soul ring?
Absorbing the soul ring while bathed in flames? That was practically suicide!
"Wait a bit. The fire won't last much longer."
Su Nan, noticing Chu Chengzhou's predicament, spoke up.
Chu Chengzhou sighed in frustration and nodded.
There were no nearby streams or rivers to provide water, so they had no choice but to wait for the fire to die out on its own.
The amount of oil they had used wasn't excessive, and the wood burned quickly. After about fifteen minutes, the raging flames began to gradually subside.
However, Chu Chengzhou didn't rush to absorb the soul ring just yet. Even though the fire had been extinguished, the residual heat was still intense. To avoid unnecessary suffering, it was better to wait a little longer.
After all, though soul rings had a limited time frame, they wouldn't dissipate that quickly.
Another half hour passed, and Chu Chengzhou felt it was time. Accompanied by a faint blue glow, his True Spirit Flag martial soul materialized, and he prepared to draw in the soul ring.
"Huh? Little Chengzhou, has your martial soul changed?"
Seeing the small flag martial soul in Chu Chengzhou's hand, Su Nan let out a soft exclamation, his tone tinged with surprise.
From what he remembered, his grandson's martial soul was originally a gray-colored flag that looked like a subpar product. How had it transformed into its current form?
Though the color was similar to before, the overall quality seemed incomparably higher.
"Has it? Grandpa, you must've remembered wrong. My martial soul has always been like this, hasn't it?!"
Chu Chengzhou, blatantly lying through his teeth, responded with feigned confusion.
Some of his cheat-enhanced results could be shared with family, such as the Meditation, Body Refinement, and Spirit Refinement techniques, which could be explained away as self-developed soul skills.
But his upgraded martial soul was another matter entirely—it couldn't be explained or shared. Chu Chengzhou naturally planned to gloss over it.
After all, his grandfather had only seen his martial soul once during his awakening three years ago. Even if there were slight discrepancies between his memory and reality, they could easily be brushed aside.
"Remembered wrong? Hmm~, it seems Grandpa is truly getting old. I can't even remember my grandson's martial soul correctly."
Stroking his beard, Su Nan shook his head.
Hearing this, Chu Chengzhou felt a bit awkward.
Shaking off the twinge of guilt, he stepped forward to absorb the soul ring.
Guided by the faint blue glow of soul power, the hundred-year Sky Azure Tree soul ring slowly floated toward Chu Chengzhou.
As the soul ring approached, Chu Chengzhou felt an immense pressure envelop him, as if the gravitational pull of Douluo Star had suddenly multiplied several times.
Soon, the soul ring hovered above his head, giving him no time to react. It abruptly contracted, transforming into a bracelet-sized, incredibly dense yellow ring that directly encircled the True Spirit Flag martial soul in his right palm.
Instantly, Chu Chengzhou felt a surge of overwhelming energy flood into his body, threatening to tear him apart.
Without hesitation, Chu Chengzhou immediately activated his purple-tier Meditation skill, fully focusing on refining the soul power pouring in from the Sky Azure Tree soul ring.
The effects of the purple-tier Meditation skill were extraordinary. Not only did it significantly boost his soul power cultivation speed, but it also far surpassed ordinary meditation methods commonly used by soul masters when it came to soul power recovery and refinement.
As the Meditation skill took effect, the surging, chaotic energy of the soul ring gradually began to settle. Chu Chengzhou felt the pressure ease considerably and focused on calmly refining the soul ring's energy.
Time ticked by slowly. After nearly fifteen minutes, seeing Chu Chengzhou sitting cross-legged and calmly refining the soul ring without showing any signs of strain, Su Nan finally let out a sigh of relief.
Though he had anticipated that Chu Chengzhou would be able to absorb a soul ring around seven hundred years old, he still couldn't help but feel tense when the moment arrived.
After all, to his knowledge, no soul master on the continent had ever absorbed a six-to-seven-hundred-year-old soul ring at level 10 soul power. Until he personally witnessed it, he couldn't truly feel at ease.
However, since a quarter of an hour had already passed and no signs of danger had emerged—and the process appeared stable—it was clear that his remarkable grandson was capable of setting this unprecedented precedent on the continent!
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