Douluo Continent: Long Live the Spirit Hall

However, in the New World, although it has been discovered that six or seven years old is the best time for martial soul awakening, unless one comes from a very wealthy family, not many people will choose to awaken their martial soul.

Of course, some people are unwilling to continue living in a daze, and many earn money to awaken their martial soul after adulthood. However, after adulthood, the body is basically fixed, and starting to cultivate at this time is much less effective.

If this old man is in this situation, then he is quite inspiring.

"You talk too much." The old man's voice rang out again, tinged with annoyance. Whether Yan had guessed correctly or not, with a slight whooshing sound, several white ice spikes shot out from the mist, aiming at some special acupoints on Yan's body.

Even under these circumstances, the old man did not kill him outright. Instead, he targeted Yan's acupoints, mainly aiming to subdue him rather than kill him.

"Clang clang clang..." The ice spikes struck Yan's body, making a clanging sound even before they got close. The ice crystals quickly melted into drops of ice water and landed on the ground, soon forming a large puddle of ice water.

"I underestimated you." The old man's pupils shrank a few steps away. A white shadow suddenly rushed out, arriving in front of Yan almost like a flash of lightning. Its icy claws reached for Yan's shoulder.

"Old man, please don't be so impulsive." As Yan spoke, his hand reached out and locked onto the old man's wrist. The old man was startled. He realized that if he continued, no matter what conventional choice he made, his wrist would inevitably be grabbed. In this situation, he decisively released his soul skill.

"Frost Blade." The old man's third soul ring suddenly flashed, and his withered and aged right hand suddenly changed and slashed. The white mist around him suddenly churned rapidly, and in an instant, a three-meter-long crescent-shaped transparent ice blade appeared and slashed towards Yan.

"Ice Mirror Reincarnation." The old man circulated his soul power again, and as his second soul ring flashed, a semi-transparent ice mirror blocked Yan's outstretched palm. A powerful rebound force was released the moment Yan's palm touched it, but neither of these two soul skills could affect Yan's movements.

The old man's attack with ice blades and his parry with ice mirrors were perfectly coordinated. Although he seemed a bit rusty, his response was truly first-rate, making him a rare talent.

Unfortunately, he encountered Yan, a young man far more powerful than he had imagined. Wisps of golden flame appeared on Yan's body. As soon as they appeared, the temperature in the room suddenly rose. Even more terrifying was that when it touched the ice mirror and ice blade, these two powerful soul skills were broken.

What's chilling is that they weren't melted by the high temperature, but rather seemed to have become fuel, burning away into nothingness.

"I underestimated you. Are you some kind of old monster who has rejuvenated? Why did you come looking for me?" The old man's eyes changed again. With a wave of his hand, dozens of ice spikes spiraled out and shot out, covering the sky and whistling as they hurtled towards Yan.

He simultaneously pushed off with both feet, his body suddenly flying backward. Yan's power was beyond his expectations; just a little flame had broken two of his soul skills, making it impossible for him to continue the battle.

Faced with the onslaught of snow-white ice spikes, Yan simply waved his hand, and a flame suddenly shot up from his palm. After the flame appeared, the temperature in the room rose even higher, and the warm mist made the two of them feel as if they were in a sauna.

The flame in Yan's palm had only just taken shape when all the countless ice spikes the old man had just released went cold. The old man was extremely surprised, even a little frightened, but his hands did not slow down.

"Ice Silk Entanglement." His fourth soul ring flashed, and his palms opened and closed, condensing countless tiny ice silks. Then, he threw his palms, and the ice silks soared into the sky, wrapping around Yan all over the place. In just a moment, they continuously wrapped and contracted one meter away from Yan's body, and a large, snow-white cocoon quickly took shape.

"This move is quite interesting. If you can't win with quality, you can win with quantity. With thousands of threads twisting and turning, you can control and entangle. If my flames were weaker, I might have been able to suppress them with this move." Despite being surrounded by a vast expanse of ice threads, Yan spoke calmly. With a flick of his fingers, wisps of tiny flames quickly swept out, burning all the ice threads to ashes.

"Old man, it seems you've run out of tricks." Yan emerged from the ice cocoon entwined with thousands of ice threads and could still easily provoke the old man. This attitude truly surprised the latter, and at the same time, it also made him feel a little scared.

The old man's expression suddenly changed. He realized that he had no way to deal with the young man in front of him. He probably couldn't beat him in a fight, so he had no choice but to retreat.

"Don't even think about running away. I have some things I'd like to sit down and talk to you about." Yan's voice rang out again. He seemed to have noticed the old man's thoughts and acted before he could.

Yan's figure appeared behind the old man in an instant, and a hand silently landed on the old man's shoulder. A powerful, scorching soul force surged into the old man's body, causing his icy soul force to react violently.

A wisp of soul power emanated from Yan's body. He hadn't fully released his martial soul, but this old man was, after all, a Soul King. Killing him wasn't difficult, but subduing him without taking any damage would be troublesome, and he would still need the power of his soul rings to assist him.

"How is this possible?" Feeling the rising momentum behind him and the scorching power that was constantly suppressing his soul power, the old man subconsciously turned his head to try to struggle. However, the next moment, an incredulous shock appeared on his calm face.

The shop, which was originally filled with icy mist, was now filled with white water vapor. The old man looked up and stared in shock at the young man behind him. The young man had six spirit rings, only one more than him, but the configuration of those spirit rings was truly terrifying.

One yellow, two purple, and three black—it's only six spirit rings, yet three of them are ten-thousand-year spirit rings. You should know that even some Soul Saint level experts don't have three ten-thousand-year spirit rings, but this young man in front of me actually has them.

Moreover, it's unbelievable that he's become a Soul Emperor at such a young age. The old man had previously guessed that Yan was a monster who had reversed aging, but at this moment his doubts wavered. Monsters who reverse aging are basically powerhouses above the seventh ring, but this young man in front of him is only at the sixth ring and is full of vigor, so he should be his real age.

But that makes it even more terrifying, because Yan looks like he hasn't even reached adulthood yet, his face still has a bit of a childish look, and he doesn't even look twenty years old. A sixth-ring powerhouse who is not even twenty years old is just too terrifying.

Although he was slightly frightened, the old man quickly suppressed his emotions and still chose to make a move.

"Frost-Piercing Spear." After regaining his composure, the old man's expression turned solemn. His fifth soul ring flashed with black light, and his withered hands clenched slightly, causing the surrounding icy mist to condense rapidly. With a sudden swing and push of his right hand, a pure white ice spear slammed directly toward Yan's head.

At the same time, another, longer ice spear appeared in his left hand. After shooting out the ice spear with his right hand, he nimbly grasped the second ice spear and swung it horizontally. This combo was smooth and fluid. Yan was less than half a meter away from the old man at this moment, so he basically couldn't dodge this combo.

"Haven't you had enough fun yet, old man? Moderate exercise is indeed good for the elderly, but too much is not good." Before the old man could even feel smug, Yan's left hand accurately caught the ice spear that was heading straight for his face, and in just a short while, the ice spear completely melted away.

The old man was still thinking of using the other ice spear to fight back, but Yan had no interest in continuing. He simply gripped the old man's shoulder with his right hand, and a scorching soul force quickly spread from his arm to the ice spear, breaking it in two.

The old man's fifth soul skill also failed to work; he had basically used up all his powerful soul skills. Facing Yan's slightly serious use of fire abilities, the old man, who was severely countered, couldn't withstand many attacks at all.

After the soul skills are no longer useful, the soul master's abilities are mostly useless. The old man's four soul skills were all useless, and his shoulder was also grabbed by Yan, so there was probably no chance of him resisting.

Chapter 297 Jingyang Mountains

"I lost. I didn't expect you to look so young, yet you're already at least a sixth-ring level expert. Yesterday, I was just meddling in other people's business." The white-haired old man spoke again, his aged voice filled with helplessness and a hint of probing.

"I don't think you came all this way just to cause me any trouble. I wonder what your purpose is?"

"I come from outside the Sun Moon Empire, and I want to establish a foothold in this Mingdu. I need some reliable helpers." Yan casually released the old man's shoulder, then turned his back to him and continued, "I need someone who knows Sun Moon City quite well, and preferably a Soul Master. I think you're very suitable." The white-haired old man looked at Yan in surprise.

"You want to recruit me into your faction, using this method?" Yan continued, "You have the strength of a fifth-ring cultivator, yet you're hiding in this street corner. You must have some formidable enemies. Could you tell me about them? Perhaps I can be of help."

"Hehe, what a joke." The old man paused for a moment before laughing. Yan turned to look at him, his eyes filled with seriousness.

The old man seemed to sense his sincerity, a complex expression appearing in his eyes. He sighed and said, "Very well, as for myself, who knows when I'll be able to take revenge? If you want to hear it, I'll tell you. You've probably guessed it, I haven't been awakening my martial spirit for very long, and I was quite old when I did. The money I saved back then wasn't actually for myself, but for my daughter..." The old man recounted his story in detail, a very simple tale of a nobleman abusing his power. There were too many nobles in Mingdu, and while ordinary people could get more opportunities and more easily encounter powerful figures there, they were less likely to do so.

About twenty years ago, this old man's family was harmed by a nobleman over a trivial matter. Only he escaped. He spent all his savings to awaken his martial soul in order to take revenge, but the enemy's power was too great, and he was not confident that he could kill them in one blow. He has been waiting for so many years.

So many years have passed, and that nobleman from back then has inherited his family business and become a great nobleman. He is accompanied and protected by powerful figures of at least the fifth or even sixth ring level when he goes out. He can't find an opportunity to take revenge at all, and can only endure and lie low in Mingdu.

After listening to the old man's story, Yan remained silent for a while. Without much thought, he spoke again: "What is the name of your enemy? His mansion or residence should be not far from here." The old man seemed to have guessed his thoughts and quickly said: "He is an imperial marquis, so naturally he would not live in this area. However, he owns an estate nearby and comes to stay for a few days every month, but that is when he is most vigilant."

"Wait a minute." Yan turned his head and said this again before his figure disappeared from the spot. The streets of Mingdu are intricate and complicated, especially in some slums in the outer city, where there are many illegal buildings and other self-built structures. Outsiders can easily get lost here.

After circling the streets a few times, Yan arrived at a place where the outer city and the inner city meet. At the end of the street ahead was a manor. After observing for a while, he arrived at the foot of the high wall.

...Inside a shop on the street corner, Dick was applying some medicated wine to himself. He had just fought with Yan, and although the latter had held back, he had still suffered a minor injury. Just as he was about to put down the medicated wine, he suddenly heard some noises outside.

"This, this is that guy..." Something was thrown into the room and landed in front of him. When the old man Dick saw this, his body trembled. His dream of many years had come true. His enemy had finally died in front of him.

“I interrogated him before killing him, and he was indeed a wicked man. He deserved his fate. You didn’t lie to me, that’s good.” Yan’s voice came from outside the door. He had changed his clothes and slowly walked into the room. He then went to the customer seat in the shop and sat down. His gaze fell on Yan again. “From now on, Old Dick’s life is yours.” The old man wept bitterly, tears soaking his clothes, but he didn’t care. He knelt down in front of Yan, sobbing loudly.

"You've been in Mingdu for many years, you must have some unique intelligence and methods, right? Help me set up a base here and recruit some people." Yan casually took a sip of tea and tasted some pastries before instructing the old man to do his job. He was always lazy and would never do things himself unless it was something particularly important.

The old man hurriedly and solemnly said, "Your Excellency is my great benefactor. Rest assured, I will definitely handle things well for you."

"Hmm." Yan nodded and waved, then walked to the backyard of the shop, where the old man usually lived. The conditions weren't great, but for the time being, it was more suitable for him to hide there.

He wiped out an entire noble family and a marquisate in broad daylight, killing many dark-skinned nobles, all in the capital city of Sun and Moon. This incident has already caused a sensation in the city, and now everyone outside is avoiding him, so he naturally has to be careful.

"Rest assured, my lord, leave things here to me." The white-haired old man, Dick, made a promise to Yan, took some things, nodded slightly to Yan in farewell, and then left the small courtyard.

"Yan, what are you guys discussing? I don't quite understand." Not long after Dick left, a small head peeked out from Yan's arms. The much smaller Demon Soul Great White Shark, Bai Xiuxiu, asked Yan. This guy was unusually curious about some things.

"These things, you don't understand yet, and it's best not to try to understand them." Yan reached out and gently patted Bai Xiuxiu's big head with a smile, not explaining too much to her. For now, let the carefree little shark continue to be carefree.

...The Jingyang Mountains are located in the north-central part of the New World, about a thousand meters away from Sun Moon City, the capital of the Sun Moon Empire.

This mountain range covers a vast area with numerous branches and is covered with abundant vegetation. Inside the mountain range, there are extremely rich mineral resources, and many special soul beasts that are fond of metal energy live there.

This place is a paradise for many adventurers. Every year, countless adventurers venture deep into the Jingyang Mountains, for resources, for spirit beasts, for mineral deposits, or even for legendary treasures. The reasons are varied and make the Jingyang Mountains even more lively.

"Yan, I sense the aura of many soul beasts ahead. When are we going to eat?" On the official road outside the Jingyang Mountains, a figure slowly approached the outer edge of the mountains. It was Yan, who had temporarily left Sun and Moon City.

He caused quite a stir in Sun and Moon City, which was difficult to quell for a while and caused considerable trouble. Therefore, on the advice of the old man Dick, he temporarily left Sun and Moon City and entrusted the matter there to Dick, which could be regarded as a test for him.

Yan wasn't worried that Dick would cause trouble or run away. Of course, he left some tricks behind before leaving, hoping that Dick wouldn't disappoint him.

After leaving Sun and Moon City, he continued northward toward the Jingyang Mountains. Perhaps because the further north he went, the closer he got to the gathering place of soul beasts, the more desolate the place became. Now, there were hardly any traces of human activity left in this area.

This situation actually made Bai Xiuxiu very happy. Because only in such secluded places could she talk to Yan anytime and anywhere. In crowded places, she could only keep quiet or even hide, which was very obedient but also very uncomfortable.

"Don't worry, you won't go hungry. But you don't even have a neck, you should lose weight." Yan finally stopped in a sheltered valley near the Jingyang Mountains. After gathering some firewood and building a campfire, he began to work. Bai Xiuxiu, who was helping him, was very unhappy to hear his words.

Bai Xiuxiu's voice is cute and pleasant; even when she's angry, it sounds like she's being affectionate.

"Sharks don't have visible necks, you stinky Yan, you big bad guy, all you do is bully me..." Yan subdued the whining Bai Xiuxiu with one hand, and then took out some things from his soul tool. Although this trip away from Sun Moon City was rather abrupt, Yan was still very well prepared.

Because he had Bai Xiuxiu, a big foodie, by his side, and because he himself enjoyed indulging in food, he brought quite a lot of things with him.

Vegetables, fruits, various fresh meats and seasonings, and even a variety of kitchen utensils and tableware are all available.

"Xiuxiu, go fan me and start the fire." Yan directed Bai Xiuxiu to participate in the exercise. As he spoke, he skillfully set up the barbecue grill he had brought. Bai Xiuxiu's eyes lit up at his familiar demeanor.

The little shark watched as Yan arranged the skewers one by one and brushed them with layers of sauce, oil, and honey, and its mouth involuntarily watered.

If she weren't handless and limbless, she would definitely have joined in by now. Yan slapped the restless little shark's head aside, and while doing her work, she didn't forget to remind him, "Don't mess around. Go and observe the surroundings. These aren't ripe yet. Eating too much raw food will make your breath stink." Bai Xiuxiu listened to Yan's words. After reluctantly eating two pieces of fruit, she manipulated her soul tool to make her body fly into the sky, and then went to keep watch by observing the surroundings.

This wasn't Yan overthinking things; cooking in the wild carries certain risks. It can easily attract wild animals and humans, and in the harsh environment of the New World, encountering humans is hardly a good thing.

Chapter 298 The Wrath of the Eternal Golden Wolf

"It smells so good, Yan, can I start eating now?" In the valley outside the Jingyang Mountains, Bai Xiuxiu returned from her patrol when a rich aroma immediately caught her attention. Bright tears of emotion welled up in her eyes; she couldn't resist any longer.

The little white shark sidled up to Yan, its eyes gleaming brightly, looking incredibly cute with its drooling expression.

"Little foodie." Yan couldn't help but pinch Bai Xiuxiu's chubby shark head. The latter endured it for a delicious bite, and even gently rubbed against Yan's palm.

Bai Xiuxiu said cutely, "Yan, hurry up and feed me something, I'm starving! As long as you feed me, I'll do anything." Yan subconsciously glanced at the little chubby shark. If she were to transform, her voice would be quite nice. Unfortunately, Bai Xiuxiu was far from transforming, so even if he wanted to make a request, this little guy couldn't keep his promise.

However, Yan didn't intend to let the little shark go hungry. After preparing a pot of thick soup and letting it simmer slowly, she served herself and Bai Xiuxiu a bowl of soup.

He sat by the fire, eating as he looked at the map, his finger occasionally tapping on it, clearly thinking about which direction to go next.

This map of the Jingyang Mountains was provided by Old Dick. Although it is a bit old, according to him, the general environment inside the Jingyang Mountains has not changed much over the years, so it is still basically usable.

Looking at the map, Yan gained a better understanding of the Jingyang Mountains. The overall shape of the Jingyang Mountains resembles a giant spider, with a vast central mountain range and eight branching ridges extending in different directions like eight legs, winding and protecting the central mountain range.

The branches of the Jingyang Mountains have relatively few spirit beasts but abundant mineral resources. The central mountain range, however, has a much larger number of spirit beasts.

Among them are many extremely powerful beings. The main peak, Jingyang Peak, is especially forbidden territory. According to intelligence provided by Old Dick, the Sun Moon Empire's royal family has stationed troops in all eight branches of the Jingyang Mountains, primarily for the purpose of developing the mineral resources within these branches.

As for the Central Mountain Range, which is richest in mineral resources, no human force dares to venture deep into it to mine for profit because the soul beasts hidden there are truly terrifying.

The soul beasts in the New World are somewhat different from those in the Douluo Continent. The biggest difference lies in the level of danger in the areas where soul beasts gather.

During this period, within the Star Dou Great Forest of Douluo Continent, the true overlord beasts and many 100,000-year-old soul beasts were all asleep, so the activity of soul beasts was greatly reduced, and the overall environment of the continent was peaceful.

Within the Demon Forest of the New World, there also exists an unparalleled ferocious beast, the Evil Eye Tyrant Ruler. This mental beast is one of the strongest beings in the world, not only extremely ferocious but also highly aggressive.

As the master of the Demon Forest, the Evil Eye Tyrant has always had zero tolerance for humans who step into it. Moreover, if humans slaughter soul beasts excessively, these top-level soul beasts will stir up a beast tide, which would be a real calamity.

Although Jingyang Mountain Range is not the Star Dou Great Forest, it is still an extremely dangerous gathering place for soul beasts, and there are even traces of 100,000-year-old soul beasts deep inside.

This kind of region, inhabited by spirit beasts that have existed for hundreds of thousands of years, is extremely difficult to develop. If humans invade too much, they will be met with a fierce counterattack from the spirit beasts living there.

Therefore, over the years, the Sun Moon Empire's garrison has mostly only explored and mined ore on the outskirts of the eight branch lines, and has not dared to venture deep into them and leave too many traces of human activity.

"Xiuxiu, did you find anything while you were patrolling?" In the valley, Yan ate meat and drank soup, and then fed some soup to Bai Xiuxiu, who had no hands. This pot of beef soup tasted very good, and Bai Xiuxiu liked it very much.

Bai Xiuxiu raised her plump shark fin and pointed to the location of the main peak of the Jingyang Mountains on the map.

"It should be this way. I think I found some human footprints, very fresh, like they were from yesterday." A hint of surprise flashed in Yan's eyes. The main peak of the Jingyang Mountains—even he wasn't keen on going there.

"It's strange that someone has come to the main peak of the Jingyang Mountains. It's really strange. But as long as they don't run into me, we don't need to worry about it for now." After enjoying a delicious meal and tidying up their things, Yan and Bai Xiuxiu set up camp in the valley.