Chapter 24: Leaping Level Again
In fact, he actually spoke.
"Are there any other Great Soul Masters?"
Lao Lie asked in surprise. "The three of them are more than capable of hunting three-hundred-year-old Soul Beasts, more than enough to satisfy your need for a first Spirit Ring."
Sun Qi said, "I need protection myself."
Lao Lie heard Sun Qi's subtext: the Spirit Ring Sun Qi wanted might require the full efforts of three Great Soul Masters, leaving him no time to spare.
"It seems your hunting standards are very high."
"I want Spirit Rings that are at least three-hundred years old, and I'm probably very picky, wanting Spirit Rings from Soul Beasts with powerful bloodlines," Sun Qi said bluntly.
"In that case, I'll pair you with three more Great Soul Masters, all with Soul Power above level twenty-five, and you'll add forty gold Soul coins. How about that?" Lao Lie asked.
Sun Qi nodded.
A Soul Elder's monthly allowance was already one hundred. To have them all hunting Souls together, and even to select them for months, was bound to be a high price.
Similarly, the stipend for Great Soul Masters was not low, ten gold Soul coins a month.
If they couldn't even earn ten gold Soul coins after three months of accompanying, they might as well quit.
Therefore, the maximum allocation of fifty gold Soul coins, three Great Soul Masters, was the limit. Sun Qi requested more, and the Soul Hunting Group agreed to add three Great Soul Masters for an additional forty gold Soul coins, which was considered humane.
Six Great Soul Masters, ultimately splitting the bill at ninety gold Soul coins, would yield fifteen each.
"Let me make it clear, we will hunt Souls for you according to your needs, but the maximum duration is three months," Lao Lie reminded Sun Qi.
Sun Qi nodded.
Three months of Soul hunting was plenty of time.
"Also, our members will collect herbs and rare materials they discover during the Soul hunting process. This may lead to some time loss. Is that acceptable to you?"
Sun Qi nodded.
"Well, for three months, every two weeks, we'll return to the surrounding villages and towns to rest for a day, replenish our supplies, and sell any herbs and rare materials we've collected. Is that okay?"
"No problem."
Lao Lie went through a few things with Sun Qi in advance, and after confirming that Sun Qi had no objections, he extended his hand.
"Then the deal is done."
Sun Qi also extended his hand and shook it with Lao Lie.
After paying a deposit of fifty gold Soul coins, Sun Qi left accompanied by the six Great Soul Masters of the Soul Hunting Group.
The target of this Soul hunt was Sunset Forest.
Sunset Forest was a large Soul Beast habitat on the Douluo Continent, and among the Soul Beast habitats outside the Star Dou Great Forest, it was one of the best. The Soul hunting groups in Heaven Dou City all made their living from this, and most of them roamed in Sunset Forest.
As a Soul hunting group that had been roaming around the periphery of Sunset Forest for many years, the Fire Blade Soul Hunting Group naturally had a deep understanding of the basic distribution outside of Sunset Forest.
But even so, Sun Qi could clearly feel the difference, the difference from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
"There's no restriction on Soul Beast type. As long as you have a strong bloodline, you can enter from the southwest."
A total of six Great Soul Masters assisted Sun Qi in this Soul hunt. In addition to the three previously known Great Soul Masters with Spirits of Fire Wolf, Wind Blade, and Fiery Sunflower, there were also three Soul Masters from Lao Lie's team. Their Spirits were all level 26, and their Spirits were Blazing Monkey, Firebird, and Rock Shield, respectively.
They were either fire or wind attributed, and Rock Shield was a defense-type Soul Master chosen for him at Sun Qi's request.
Entering Sunset Forest, the seven of them formed a somewhat scattered formation, not particularly tight, but with Rock Shield constantly protecting them, Sun Qi felt somewhat secure.
The group searched for a month, encountering several Soul Beasts over three hundred years old. Sun Qi wasn't particularly satisfied with any of them, so he avoided them.
In the second month, Sun Qi also saw a four-hundred-year-old Soul Beast, but he didn't think it suited him, so he chose not to hunt it.
Even in the final month, he remained unhurried.
In fact, they were quite lucky.
In the middle of the last month, Sun Qi finally found a Soul Beast he had his eye on.
It was a Scarlet Blood Vine, an extremely rare Soul Beast. It resided in a magma zone, feeding on magma and relying primarily on explosives.
Among Soul Beasts of the same age, the Scarlet Blood Vine was among the strongest.
Most importantly, this Scarlet Blood Vine was a perfect match for Sun Qi, at over four hundred years old, nearly five hundred years old.
In other words, this Scarlet Blood Vine had already surpassed the normal limit of its first Spirit Ring, and the excess was only a small number, only forty or fifty years.
Because of his experience leapfrogging, Sun Qi was actually quite bold.
The first Spirit Ring of his Stone Monkey body was that of the five-hundred-year-old Transparent Spirit Ape. The key to his successful leapfrogging was twofold: one was to withstand the Spirit Ring's Soul Power impact, and the other was to resist the assimilation of Soul Power.
Could Seal Sun Qi meet these two requirements?
"My cultivation technique, enhanced by Seal's Spirit, is even more powerful in circulating Soul Power. Whether it's resisting the impact of Spirit Rings or refining Soul Power, it's no problem. Besides, I've been meditating constantly for the past two months, so I should have accumulated Soul Power close to level one."
Seal Sun Qi is no longer the useless Soul Master with only level one innate Soul Power. With the complete Stone Monkey cultivation technique and the added bonus of Seal's Spirit, he can now be considered a gifted Soul Master with extremely rapid cultivation.
Even in just two and a half months, and while hunting Souls, Sun Qi's Soul Power must have increased by at least half a level.
With this extra Soul Power, he has the confidence to leapfrog levels.
This is the trick he has discovered so far that facilitates leapfrogging Spirit Rings, and he must utilize it effectively.
The six Soul Hunters couldn't accurately determine the age of the Scarlet Blood Vine. This kind of Soul Beast is quite rare. They could only roughly estimate its age based on its Soul aura, roughly three or four hundred years old.
Now that Sun Qi had spoken, they didn't hesitate.
The six of them, working together, weren't afraid of the Scarlet Blood Vine's flames, so they easily took it down.
Sun Qi took a deep breath, staring at the bright yellow Spirit Ring. He sat down resolutely, touching it with his Soul Power.
This was his second time absorbing a first Spirit Ring, leaping a level.
His mindset was completely different.
Last time, he felt the fear of the unknown, but this time, he was much more composed.
As the Spirit Ring's power assaulted his limbs and bones, it felt like boiling magma flowing through his body. Sun Qi's expression remained calm, circulating his Soul Power, just as he practiced the Stone Monkey technique.
His Soul Power collided and impacted with the Spirit Ring's power within his meridians.
Above his head, a Seal appeared, strengthening the path of his technique.
"I've endured it!"
Gone was his initial composure. Sun Qi's expression was now somewhat grim, and he looked extremely painful, but there was no doubt he had withstood the onslaught of the nearly five-hundred-year-old Spirit Ring.
After the Soul Power impact, the problem of Soul Power assimilation became apparent.
He discovered that after his cultivation technique was strengthened, his Soul Power was even less susceptible to assimilation. In other words, even without the half-level Soul Power hidden within his body, he could still resist Soul Power assimilation!
Time passed.
Five hours later, Sun Qi opened his eyes.
The yellow Spirit Ring had been wrapped around his body, and the Seal above his head had also changed, echoing his yellow Spirit Ring and seeming to become more complex.
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[end of the chapter]