With the assistance of Wang Xiao’s robust soul power, it took about half an hour for Xu Zihuang to successively consume and refine three jade bottles of ten-thousand-year Whale Gel.
He could clearly feel a warm sensation spreading throughout his entire body; his limbs and bones were filled with this comforting heat.
Exiting his meditative state, he stretched his body slightly.
Instantly, all the bones in his body produced a series of popping sounds, and he felt an indescribable level of comfort.
The ten-thousand-year Whale Gel had completely overhauled his physical fitness.
Not only had the endurance of his meridians and bones massively increased, but his sheer physical strength was now terrifyingly close to that of a power-type soul master of the same rank.
Yao Yang, who had been carefully observing Xu Zihuang’s physical condition from the side, realized his expectations had still been too conservative.
Back when his own cultivation had reached the Soul Ancestor realm, his physical toughness had only been about this level.
“Outstanding talent” was no longer enough to describe Xu Zihuang; it was more like he was uniquely favored by the heavens.
Wang Xiao silently glanced at Yao Yang.
He hadn’t actually told Yao Yang about Xu Zihuang successfully fusing that external soul bone.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Yao Yang, but rather that he hadn’t decided whether to drag Yao Yang into this mess yet.
If Xu Zihuang truly harbored that ambition, their enemy would be the entire Sun Moon Empire.
The two men, each with their own thoughts, exchanged a brief look.
Xu Zihuang, who was just about to walk across the iron plank connecting the deck to the ice surface, suddenly thought of something.
He turned to Meng Lang, who had been respectfully standing guard nearby, and said, “Meng Lang, I remember your martial soul is the Black-Striped Narwhal, and your soul power just reached rank forty but you haven’t acquired a soul ring yet, right?
It just so happens there are two three-thousand-year Evil Orcas.
The soul ring of the other one is yours.”
“Yes, Young Master!” Meng Lang was stunned for a moment, but quickly snapped back to reality, his face flushed red as he responded.
He hadn’t expected Xu Zihuang to actually remember his situation.
Such an honor left him feeling overwhelmed with favor.
That was an Evil Orca’s soul ring!
The three thousand-year-old Evil Orcas were completely restrained, and there was no need to constantly worry about them self-destructing like the two powerful ten-thousand-year ones.
Relying on the Evil Orcas’ powerful vitality, transporting them alive to the Yuenan Archipelago and selling them for hundreds of thousands of gold soul coins wouldn’t be a problem at all.
Taking in the expression on Meng Lang’s face, Xu Zihuang chuckled and stepped onto the iron plank leading to the ice.
He was never stingy with his own people.
He also harbored the intention to cultivate Meng Lang.
Meng Lang’s talent was quite good, and he was only seventeen years old.
He was a perfect fit to be part of his core team.
A biting chill radiated from the ice, but Xu Zihuang walked steadily toward the three thousand-year-old Evil Orcas, acting as if he couldn’t feel it at all.
Having fused the external soul bone, the Brilliance Dragon Claw, and his first soul ring, his vitality was currently at its peak.
This little bit of cold wouldn’t affect him in the slightest.
Meng Lang followed closely behind Xu Zihuang with a face full of excitement.
“Young Master.” Among the Imperial Dragon Legion soldiers guarding the three thousand-year-old Evil Orcas was Meng Lang’s father, Meng Cang.
Xu Zihuang smiled and nodded at Meng Lang, casually saying, “Elder Meng, there’s no need to keep the other three-thousand-year Evil Orca locked up.
It’s perfectly suited for Meng Lang to absorb.”
Hearing Xu Zihuang’s words, Meng Lang also looked up at his father.
Seeing his father’s increasingly gloomy expression, he uncomfortably lowered his head.
Taking a deep breath, Meng Cang ultimately didn’t say much.
For one, he couldn’t disobey Xu Zihuang’s orders.
Secondly, he actually had his own selfish desires.
The Evil Orca’s soul ring perfectly matched their family’s hereditary Black-Striped Narwhal martial soul.
He just felt too embarrassed to ask for it himself given his status.
Right now, the Imperial Dragon Legion was in dire need of money, and he didn’t want to make the group lose hundreds of thousands of gold soul coins just for his son.
Yet, Xu Zihuang offering it proactively hit right at the core of his thoughts.
While feeling deeply guilty, his approval and loyalty toward Xu Zihuang deepened even further.
After all, who wouldn’t like a lord who was both caring and generous to his subordinates?
Xu Zihuang arrived in front of the massive head of one of the three-thousand-year Evil Orcas.
The beast was entirely frozen in hard ice, leaving only the blowhole on top of its head exposed to maintain its breathing.
An Imperial Dragon soldier knowingly handed over a barbed soul spear, somewhat similar to the whaling spears used by the whaling fleets in the frozen northern seas of the Sun Moon Empire.
“Young Master, piercing through the blowhole will quickly extinguish its life.”
Xu Zihuang didn’t doubt him.
For a powerful soul beast like the Evil Orca, its skin was as hard as iron; the blowhole used for breathing was its only weak point.
Plunging the spear deep into the hole, Xu Zihuang held the handle and slowly twisted it without changing his expression.
He didn’t even care about killing people, let alone a soul beast that was inherently hostile to human soul masters.
“Buzz, buzz, buzz—” The three-thousand-year Evil Orca let out a mournful hum, and not long after, it lost all signs of life.
Ripples of red light rose from its massive corpse, while rich purple light condensed to form a luxurious purple soul ring.
Xu Zihuang looked calm, but the intoxicating look in his eyes was hard to conceal.
He very much enjoyed this fulfilling sensation of gradually acquiring power.
I hope the soul skill I get won’t disappoint me.
Sitting cross-legged on the ice, Xu Zihuang directly extended his left hand, using his soul power to summon the Evil Orca’s soul ring.
The purple light acted as if it had waited a long time and finally found a release valve.
The moment it felt Xu Zihuang’s pull, it surged toward him like rivers flowing into the sea.
He only felt a massive wave of heat abruptly flood his body.
Before he could even react, the heat began to scorch his body like boiling flames.
Unlike when he fused the Silver-Scaled White Whale’s soul ring, Xu Zihuang—now with his eyes closed—had his brow tightly furrowed, his body trembling uncontrollably.
A severe, swelling pain assaulted his meridians.
If his willpower weren’t so resolute, he would have collapsed instantly.
As expected of an Evil Orca’s soul ring, it truly is tyrannical.
Xu Zihuang praised inwardly and quickly adjusted his condition.
In reality, this was his first time undergoing a conventional soul ring absorption in the true sense.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t withstand the impact of the Evil Orca’s soul ring energy, but rather that he hadn’t adapted to it immediately.
Soon, his aura stabilized, causing the several Imperial Dragon soldiers guarding him to breathe a sigh of relief simultaneously.
Just as we thought, the Young Master is fine.
They had witnessed Xu Zihuang create too many miracles with their own eyes.
Without even realizing it, they had developed a blind trust in him.