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Xue Tianxing did not directly use the strong ice power to destroy the shell, but like boiling a frog in warm water, he slowly increased the coldness of the ice layer, eroding the living space of the black-armored turtle bit by bit.
The black-shelled turtle, curled up in its shell, was quite calm at first.
It felt no vibration from the violent impact outside, and thought that this group of human soul masters could not break its shell, so it was ready to give up.
But not long after, a biting coldness came from the gaps between its limbs, like countless ice needles piercing its skin, making it shiver uncontrollably.
"You can't go out! If you go out, you'll die!"
The black-shelled turtle encouraged itself in its heart, endured the coldness in its limbs, and huddled tightly in its shell.
It was thought that as long as it could survive this wave of cold, humans would retreat. However, it still underestimated Xue Tianxing's patience and the power of the ultimate ice.
As time went by, the coldness in the tail became more and more intense. The ice layer not only spread on the surface of the shell, but also continued to seep through the gaps inside the shell. The skin on its tail began to feel numb due to the cold, and even the circulation of its soul power became sluggish.
The black-shelled turtle could clearly feel that its living space was being frozen and compressed bit by bit, and its body temperature was constantly dropping.
It tried to use its soul power to resist the cold, but five thousand years of soul power was like a drop in the bucket in front of Xue Tianxing's extreme ice, and it had no effect at all.
"If you keep going like this, even if you don't get killed, you'll freeze to death in your shell!"
The Black-armored Turtle's heart began to waver.
It could feel its vitality rapidly draining away, and its tail was almost losing sensation. If it persisted any longer, it would probably not even have the strength to resist.
Just when Xue Tianxing felt that the Black-armored Turtle could not hold on any longer and was about to ask Dugu Yan to release the poisonous fog, the Black-armored Turtle finally couldn't hold on any longer.
It suddenly stretched its head out of the shell, its pair of green eyes full of anger and despair, as if it wanted to rush out and fight everyone to the death. Even if it meant death, it would rather die than endure this biting cold any longer.
But as soon as it stuck its head out, Cao Qing, who had been prepared, took action!
His eyes became fierce, and he poured all his soul power into the dagger in his hand. Before the black-armored turtle could fully react, he stabbed it fiercely in the neck.
With a "swish", the short knife accurately pierced the vital point of the black-armored turtle.
The black-shelled turtle let out a short hiss, its head drooped weakly, and it completely lost its life force.
As the Black-Armored Turtle died, a purple, thousand-year-old soul ring slowly rose from its body, hovering above the corpse, emitting rich and pure soul power fluctuations—this was exactly the fourth soul ring that Cao Qing had dreamed of! Cao Qing looked at the soul ring in front of him, trembling with excitement.
He hurriedly walked to the bottom of the soul ring, sat cross-legged, and began to absorb the hard-earned soul ring.
Ning Rongrong immediately activated the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda, adding "Soul Power Amplification" and "Defense Amplification" to Cao Qing to help him stabilize the absorption process.
Oscar was also ready to restore the sausage and deal with any possible soul power disorder at any time.
Xue Tianxing, Shui Bing'er, and others surrounded Cao Qing, vigilantly observing the movements around them to prevent other soul beasts from disturbing them.
The sunlight shone on Cao Qing and the purple soul ring. Everything seemed so smooth and full of hope.
The afterglow of the setting sun dyed the Star Forest a warm orange, and Cao Qing finally slowly opened his eyes.
The soul power fluctuations around him were several times stronger than before. His soul power, which was originally level 40, had now stabilized at the level 45 Soul Master realm.
"Your Highness! I've broken through! My soul power has reached level 45!"
Cao Qing stood up suddenly and ran towards Xue Tianxing excitedly, his voice filled with incredible joy, and said to Xue Tianxing:
"According to my previous training speed, it would take at least a year to reach level 41 to 45, but now I've broken through in an instant!
Thank you, Your Highness! Without you, I wouldn't be where I am today!"
He bowed deeply to Xue Tianxing, his eyes full of gratitude and respect.
From the life-and-death crisis outside Soto City, to the evolution of his martial soul into the Black Tortoise Shield, to his successful breakthrough into the Soul Sect today, every step was inseparable from Xue Tianxing's help.
Xue Tianxing smiled and walked forward to help him up, his eyes full of admiration, and then he said to Cao Qing:
"You were already able to reach the 38th level of Soul Master at the age of fifteen. Your talent is far beyond that of ordinary people."
In Xue Tianxing's opinion, Cao Qing is an extremely rare genius - a character who has never appeared in the original work, but has a cultivation speed that is even better than Dai Mubai.
He couldn't help but think that if he hadn't traveled through time, Cao Qing would have died in the woods outside Soto City, and his talent would have been buried.
"Work hard. I hope you can break through to the Soul King level soon and become a solid support for our team."
Xue Tianxing patted Cao Qing on the shoulder with an encouraging tone.
Cao Qing nodded heavily, his eyes firm:
"Don't worry, Your Highness. I will definitely not let you down!"
At this time, the sunset had completely set, and night began to cover the Star Forest.
A few roars of soul beasts were heard in the distance, reminding everyone of the dangers of the night.
Xue Tianxing looked up at the sky and said:
"It's too late now, we can't get out of the Star Forest before dark.
The Starry Forest is too dangerous at night. Let's find a safe place nearby to spend the night and set off early tomorrow morning."
Everyone nodded and began to look around for a suitable place to stay overnight.
Finally, they stopped in a relatively open space - the space was shaded by tall trees, the ground was flat, and they could clearly observe the movements around them.
Oscar took out a flint from the storage soul guide and quickly started a bonfire.
Shui Bing'er and Shui Yue'er went to the nearby woods and caught a few wild rabbits; Dugu Yan found some dry branches to keep the fire going; Ning Rongrong and Cao Qing set up simple warning traps around the open space to prevent lower-age soul beasts from approaching.
Not long after, the fragrant roasted rabbit came out of the oven.
Everyone sat around the campfire, eating barbecue and chatting about the day's battle and the joy of Cao Qing's breakthrough.
Oscar also specially made a few skewers of "spicy sausage barbecue", which received praise from everyone.
On a big tree not far away, the two Soul Saints still concealed their auras, vigilantly observing the movements around them, silently guarding the safety of everyone.
The light from the bonfire illuminated the faces of the young people, and everyone's face was filled with relaxation and comfort.
Xue Tianxing looked at the scene in front of him, and an inexplicable warmth surged in his heart.
In his previous life, he was born in a bustling city, living a life of going to and from work every day. He had never experienced such a night of chatting with friends around the fire in the forest.
In this life, as the prince of the Barak Kingdom, his spirit rings were either captured in advance by his subordinates for him to absorb, or he was accompanied by Titled Douluo such as Dugu Bo and Liu Tianfeng in hunting. He had never had such a "down-to-earth" experience.
This feeling of fighting side by side with his partners and sharing joy was something he had never experienced in his two lifetimes.
He looked at Shui Bing'er, who was talking and laughing beside him, and secretly made up his mind - he must protect this warmth, make this team stronger, and carve out a world of their own in the future Douluo Continent.
The crackling bonfire illuminated the faces of the young people and their hopeful future.
Although the Star Forest is dangerous at night, the open space around it is now filled with warmth and comfort.