Douluo Continent: Long Live the Spirit Hall

The fur of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was extremely tough, and even though it was dead, it was very difficult to tear. Fortunately, there was the Title Douluo, Ghost, who skillfully peeled off a complete bear skin.

Although this top-tier soul beast is relatively young, it is still a treasure trove. The coat made of bear skin is so tough that even a Soul Saint would find it difficult to break through its defenses with a single blow without using soul skills. It can even save a life in a critical moment.

"Strange. There's nothing special about this soul beast. It should definitely produce soul bones. Why can't we find any?"

After the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was skinned, Ghost used a knife to peel away the flesh from its limbs, but found no bones that showed any signs of soul power, which Ghost found extremely strange.

Chapter 99 External Right Metacarpal Bone

"Could it be that my wish has really come true?"

Beside the corpse of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, Yan's heart pounded. Just as the ghost was wondering why it hadn't found the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's limbs and was about to peel off the flesh from the bear's head and back, Yan took a dagger and began cutting off a pair of bear paws.

Yan moved quickly. After cutting open the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's left paw, he still found nothing. But at this moment, his breathing became more rapid. He carefully cut off the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's only remaining right forelimb and dissected it in a few strokes, finally revealing a strange bone.

"Strange, a right arm bone? But it doesn't quite seem like it. A six-hundred-year-old right arm bone? A mutated one?"

The ghostly figure watching from the side looked at Yan as he extracted a piece of claw bone from the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's right claw, and a look of surprise appeared in his eyes. He was quite knowledgeable, but he never expected to encounter such a soul bone.

The soul bone in Yan's palm was dark gold in color and emitted a rich fluctuation of soul power. However, this soul bone was different from the traditional right arm soul bone; to be precise, it was a palm bone.

Its shape resembles a palm, but the front of the palm has five long, narrow blades, like a miniature version of a giant dinosaur claw. The dark golden halo flows on the blades like water ripples, giving it a strange feeling of being a divine weapon.

"A six-hundred-year-old soul bone isn't too strong, but if Xie Yue were to absorb it, the benefits would be considerable. Soul rings and soul bones from the same soul beast have a slight cumulative amplification effect."

Ghost observed for a moment and then lost interest. The Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear's right arm soul bone was indeed very precious, but it was too old. For a Title Douluo like him, it didn't arouse any interest at all.

What he didn't notice was that Yan, who was holding the soul bone, had a hint of hesitation in his eyes. He was conflicted and wanted to just steal the soul bone.

Ghost may be ignorant, but doesn't he know that although this soul bone didn't directly materialize on Xie Yue's body when he absorbed the soul ring, it is a genuine external soul bone, the external soul bone of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, which is even more precious than an ordinary 100,000-year soul bone?

While Yan was struggling with this dilemma, Xie Yue, who was absorbing the spirit ring, was in a rather bad situation. The higher the level of the spirit beast, the more powerful the spirit ring it produces. And these powerful spirit rings are a great test for the spirit master who absorbs them.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear is undoubtedly powerful, known as the Forest Destroyer and Earth Ripper. This kind of soul beast is naturally extremely ferocious, and refining its soul ring is extremely difficult. As time went by, his face gradually turned pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Fortunately, Xie Yue's talent was among the best of his peers, and his will was extremely firm. Although there was a minor setback, he managed to get through it. As the golden halo slowly faded, Xie Yue slowly opened his eyes.

"Hiss~~~"

A flash of dark gold light passed by, and Xie Yue's aura became more savage and ferocious, as if he were more aggressive. This sudden change made Hu Liena move even closer. For a moment, she thought her older brother had been replaced and had become so manly.

"Brother, you're covered in sweat. Are you that weak? It took you more than twice as long to absorb and refine a six-hundred-year-old soul ring. I absorbed a seven-hundred-year-old Purple Spirit Wolf back then..."

The adoration Hu Liena felt for her brother lasted less than half a second before turning into disgust. Her words of disgust came one after another, which broke Xie Yue's defenses. He plunged a series of sharp knives into his heart. And the one who stabbed him was his own sister. Where could he go to reason with her?

"Xiaoyuezi, I didn't say that, why are you looking at me like that?"

Xie Yue's displeased gaze fell on Yan, who immediately jumped up in anger. Although, perhaps, probably because Hu Liena had spent so much time with him, that's why she said so many suggestive things, he certainly wouldn't admit it. How could he, the Holy Son of the Spirit Hall and a well-known positive figure on the continent, have such a stain on his reputation?

"Heh, you know perfectly well whether it's true or not."

Xie Yue just smiled coldly, looking at the couple standing together, feeling tired, empty, lonely and cold. He was clearly Nana's brother, but were girls really that outgoing these days?

How could Yan, with his fiery temper, be indulged? He couldn't let this negative impression materialize. Holding up the soul bone in his hand, he shook it and said, "Hey! You ungrateful wretch, aren't you? I was the one who unlocked this soul bone for you."

"A mutated arm bone? It seems to be for amplifying claws, but it doesn't seem to be of much use to me."

Xie Yue had naturally noticed the dark golden soul bone in Yan's hand long ago. When he saw the soul bone, some information about it naturally came to mind. After learning about the part it amplified, he frowned.

This soul bone amplifies his fingers, specifically his fingernails, which evolve into Dark Gold Terror Claws—an extremely powerful fist and claw artifact. However, the key issue is that he wields a knife, not a beast spirit, so he cannot unleash the full power of this soul bone.

"This is the soul bone of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, you really don't want it?"

With great determination, Yan placed the soul bone in front of Xie Yue, refraining from revealing that it was an external soul bone, mainly because external soul bones were far too precious for soul masters.

The two Douluo might not be too interested in a 600-year-old right arm soul bone, but if they knew it was an external soul bone, who knows if they would be tempted? It's best not to test human nature.

"His~~~"

Xie Yue didn't waste any more words after hearing Yan's words. He reached out to take the soul bone. Yan reluctantly let go in the end. But as soon as Xie Yue introduced his soul power into it, it was as if he had grabbed a hot coal. He hissed and threw it away.

"This soul bone is too domineering. It is clearly of the metal element but has extremely high temperature. I can't absorb it. Moreover, it is a close combat weapon for fists, palms, and claws, which is most suitable for beast martial souls. You should absorb it."

Xie Yue spoke to Yan, who had just received the soul bone. As he spoke, he stretched out his palm, which was originally fair but was now completely red and seemed to be slightly swollen.

"Are you sure this isn't a joke?"

After hesitating, Yan was tempted. Judging from the state of Xie Yue's palm, the other party would not be able to absorb this soul bone in a short time. In order to avoid any unforeseen complications, it would be best to use it as soon as possible. More importantly, he really wanted this soul bone.

“If you hadn’t come along this time, I wouldn’t have had the chance to hunt this soul beast. Since I can’t absorb this soul bone, of course I’ll give it to you. We’re friends, after all. If you really feel bad about it, then just return a soul bone to me later.”

Xie Yue spoke nonchalantly, while Yan's eyes seemed to take on a different luster at that moment, "In that case, I'll accept it."

Yan felt that Xie Yue was right. This piece of right palm bone was extremely suitable for him and he absolutely could not let it go. At worst, he could compensate Xie Yue with a piece of soul bone later.

Chapter 100 Claws of Flames

"You will protect me."

Yan addressed the crowd, then eagerly sat cross-legged, channeling his soul power to merge his soul bone with his own.

A domineering energy directly impacted his right palm, and he finally understood what Xie Yue meant by the burning sensation. It was an excruciating pain, as if it were going to completely transform his entire hand.

The more powerful the soul bone, the more difficult it is to fuse. For some high-quality soul bones, there are special requirements for fusing them. For example, the soul bone of the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion requires the power of extreme ice to refine it unless one is willing to sacrifice.

While the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's soul bone doesn't have such high requirements, one's martial soul quality and physical attributes must be excellent to refine it; otherwise, one simply cannot withstand the transformation of the hand.

Moreover, this Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear died with its eyes wide open, its soul bone containing violent negative emotions, making it even more unfriendly to the soul master refining the soul bone.

Fortunately, Yan's foundation was strong enough, and his soul power was far more abundant than Xie Yue's. In addition, his beast martial soul had stronger resistance in this regard, so he barely met the conditions for refining this soul bone.

A golden torrent swept over his entire body. Under the influence of his soul power, his dark golden right palm bone seemed to melt, turning into a pool of dark golden liquid that enveloped his right palm and then slowly seeped into it.

"Ding ding..."

Yan, who was sitting cross-legged, suddenly trembled. Golden-red flames erupted instantly, and two yellow soul rings flashed at the same time. A huge torch with a diameter of five meters appeared on the spot in an instant. In the center of the brilliant flames, Yan's whole body began to become transparent.

"This soul bone is so domineering that even Yan needs to use his martial soul to suppress it. Fortunately, I gave up after trying it once, otherwise I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to withstand the backlash from this soul bone."

Xie Yue, who was protecting Yan, subconsciously wiped the sweat from his forehead, secretly glad that he knew his own limitations.

When he absorbed the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's spirit ring, he sensed the domineering power of this spirit beast. The golden power that almost completely transformed his body nearly killed him.

When he came into contact with the soul bone, he sensed a power of the same origin that was even more powerful than the energy of the soul ring. The thought of bringing such energy into his palm made him tremble. After trying it for a while, he knew he couldn't withstand it.

The current situation made him feel even more fortunate. Even Yan, a beast spirit owner, had to use his spirit to suppress it. If it were him, he would have been devoured by this power long ago.

Within the dazzling torch, Yan's right hand was undergoing a transformation. The bone in his right hand transformed into a ball of golden energy that seeped into his palm and began to reshape it. At first, it felt quite comfortable, as if a warm liquid was enveloping his right hand.

But soon this warmth turned into scorching heat, and then gradually escalated into intense heat and even stinging pain. The intense heat raged wildly, as if countless tiny knives formed from flames were frantically cutting his palm.

The intense heat posed no problem for Yan, but the sharp, knife-like pain originated from the golden elemental power of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. If it wasn't suppressed, it could very well cause a backlash from his soul bone.

So Yan didn't hesitate and immediately activated his Martial Soul. He released skills from both Soul Rings at the same time, and the two buffs stacked together. His speed, strength, soul power, skill range, and other attributes all doubled at the same time. The power of flames enveloped his entire body, drawing endless fire elements into his right palm to suppress the power of his Soul Bone.

Fire overcomes metal. Metal is inherently somewhat weak against fire. Although it cannot completely overcome fire, Yan's flames are of high quality, approaching the ultimate fire, while the power of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear is only approaching the ultimate metal.

However, although these two forces are of similar quality, one is still growing continuously, while the other has gradually begun to be refined and worn away. In the ongoing confrontation, Yan naturally has the upper hand.

"This soul bone is so domineering, its soul skills must be extraordinary. The Holy Son's judgment is as good as ever."

Before the enormous torch, Yue Guan and Gui Mei were also staring at Yan's right hand. At first, they didn't take this soul bone seriously, but when Yan refined it, the violent aura it released made them realize the quality of this soul bone.

“Soul bones are different from soul rings. To refine a powerful soul bone, one must have an excellent martial soul quality. As for soul rings, as long as they are within the age limit, the difficulty of refining them is not too high.”

Ghostly offered a rare explanation, revealing a difference between himself and Yue Guan. Yue Guan's explanation was based on his understanding of the current situation, while he had once refined a high-quality soul bone, an experience that still haunted him.

Within the flames, Yan, who was sitting cross-legged, also began to show some changes in his aura. His right palm gradually became transparent, like a dark golden yellow crystal, and that golden color was constantly deepening.

As time went by, his right palm turned completely dark gold, and the originally slender metacarpal bones gradually underwent obvious changes. The bones of the entire palm became slightly larger, but not significantly so, and the bones of the five fingers gradually became sharp, as if they had become real claws.

Moreover, through the flesh and blood, one could see that strange patterns had begun to appear on his metacarpal bones. The thicker parts of the finger bones and metacarpal bones had cloud-like patterns, while the sharper parts below had triangular sharp patterns, layer upon layer, each pattern seemingly containing infinite power.

"Pfft~~~"

As the massive torch gradually closed and Yan's aura stabilized, just when everyone thought everything had settled down, his right palm suddenly shot out, his five fingers bursting with flames, and suddenly extended into five dark golden rays of light. These five rays of light were about nine inches long, wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, like blades.

The dark golden light rippled like water, and as the five golden blades swept through the void, a slight whistling sound unconsciously emanated from the air.

If Yan's original martial soul possession was like transforming into a giant of light, making him appear majestic, then at this moment his hands have become as ferocious and terrifying as Belial's. But no one would doubt the power of those dark gold claws surrounded by flames.

"call out!"

The war god, surrounded by flames, suddenly waved his right hand, and five golden rays roared out. Five pitch-black cracks appeared in the void, and as the golden-red flames burned, the cracks slowly dissipated and healed.

Wherever the five golden lights passed, a scorching atmosphere filled the air, and trees crashed to the ground. The fire continued for over a hundred meters before the brilliant golden light gradually dissipated. Thick smoke and flames rose rapidly, and a fiery corridor over a hundred meters long devoured the endless forest in an instant.

Chapter 101 Frozen Forest

"The Dark Gold Terrorclaw's ultimate tearing power possesses extreme destructive and penetrating force; it can even tear apart space itself. Furthermore, my own flames can amplify the Dark Gold Terrorclaw's additional damage."

Yan carefully experienced his modified soul bone skill: "It has tearing and penetrating power plus fire damage, and the skill can be used at both long and short ranges. In close combat, it is a divine weapon that can fight against top-tier weapon spirits."

As for ranged attacks, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw's extreme penetration can even tear through space, so its attack range is naturally excellent, and it also has super burst power at range.

It can be said that although this soul bone is only a hundred-year-old soul bone, apart from the drawback that it is not easy to control and adjust the direction of the soul skill after it leaves the body, its soul skill attack power and attack range surpass most soul skills under ten thousand years old.

More importantly, this is a soul skill belonging to the external soul bone, which can be upgraded as Yan continues to advance, and its attack power and attack range will only become stronger in the future.

"Practice it."

Before the corridor of flames, Yan smiled and waved his right hand, the dark gold claws wrapped in golden-red flames whistling through the air. The immense destructive power made him increasingly satisfied with his right palm. He glanced at Xie Yue beside him and gestured for the latter to spar.

"Damn it. Forget it, I don't want my moon blade to be crushed by you."

Xie Yue subconsciously summoned his martial soul. The moon blade, which was originally slightly yellow like the bright moon, had now turned into a dazzling golden yellow. However, compared to the deep dark gold of Yan's right hand, Xie Yue shook his head like a rattle drum.

Although he enjoyed challenges, he didn't want to suffer. His Moonblade had indeed improved in quality after this ordeal, but it wasn't quite at the level of a Dark Gold Terrorclaw. Yan's right palm, on the other hand, was practically a Dark Gold Terrorclaw, and it was also enchanted with Flame. He seriously doubted that a direct clash between the two would break his Moonblade.

Although a weapon spirit can quickly recover even if it is destroyed and will not affect the battle, it is definitely not a pleasant experience. Xie Yue was naturally smart enough to admit defeat.

"Hehe... Little Yan is still the best."

Hu Liena laughed happily and ran over to stare at Yan's right hand. If Yan hadn't stopped her, she would have even wanted to touch it. However, Yan didn't even want to think about the consequences if she had actually done so.

Xie Yue looked at the man and woman chatting and laughing, opened his mouth, then closed it helplessly. If it were anyone else who had stabbed him in the back, he would have definitely drawn his sword. As for Hu Liena, well, she was his own sister. He had to endure it, even if it meant holding back his tears, even if he was now completely outmatched.

After testing the power of the Dark Gold Terror Claw again, Yan withdrew his sharpness. The dark gold light slowly dissipated, and his palm returned to its original appearance. However, upon closer inspection, one could still notice the difference. His right hand seemed to have been tinged with gold compared to his left hand, though it was not very obvious.

"This trip has been fruitful for everyone. It seems that the idea of ​​'restless thinking leads to action' was right. This soul bone has loosened my bottleneck a bit, and I'm not too far from reaching level 30 soul power."

Yan secretly considered his current soul power cultivation. He was confident that he could break through to level 30 soul power in a few months, before his tenth birthday. At that time, he would be the youngest three-ring soul master in recorded history (the record here refers to ordinary soul masters, while the Angel and Sea God martial soul families are outside the record), and his status as a holy son would be more secure.