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To raise his spirit soul to the nine-thousand-year limit, Zhao Long's strength was naturally not to be underestimated.
It wasn't that his fifth soul ring wasn't optimal—it was simply a matter of allocation, not lack of talent.
Years of forging, combined with his hammer-type martial soul, had allowed him to develop a certain level of mastery in hammer techniques.
A five-thousand-year spirit beast was well within Zhao Long's ability to hunt.
However, five-thousand-year spirit beasts weren't abundant everywhere in the Intermediate Ascension Platform. They required searching, and one had to avoid attracting other powerful spirit beasts during combat. Thus, hunting a five-thousand-year spirit beast wasn't entirely safe for him.
For truly efficient hunting, three-thousand-year spirit beasts offered the best cost-to-benefit ratio.
They could be dealt with quickly while leaving enough energy to escape if stronger spirit beasts approached.
This wasn't the real world—death here came with manageable consequences—but dying once still meant losing a precious Intermediate Ascension Platform slot, which wasn't cheap. It was better to prioritize survival and avoid rash habits, as such behavior in real-life crises could prove fatal.
Considering Xu Yuan's presence, Zhao Long decided to hunt spirit beasts around two thousand years old. Each would grant Xu Yuan's spirit soul an additional hundred years of cultivation.
With just five such beasts, they could meet the minimum requirements for this mission.
Zhao Long's efficiency wasn't particularly high.
Though he had experience with multiple Ascension Platform hunts, as a blacksmith, his approach was cautious rather than swift.
Fortunately, Xu Yuan wasn't in a rush.
The Ascension Platform mimicked the ancient Star Dou Forest. The Primary Ascension Platform simulated the forest's outskirts, while the Intermediate Ascension Platform replicated its outer layers, where spirit beasts with lifespans of up to six or seven thousand years could be encountered.
In mixed zones, ten-thousand-year spirit beasts appeared, but these were exclusive to the Advanced Ascension Platform. It was said that creating each ten-thousand-year spirit beast in the Advanced Ascension Platform consumed significant resources. Though hunting them wouldn't allow spirit souls to break through the ten-thousand-year barrier, it could extend their lifespan further.
A maximum lifespan of six or seven thousand years didn't mean all spirit beasts in the Intermediate Ascension Platform were thousand-year beasts.
On the contrary, finding each thousand-year spirit beast required time.
Along the way, the duo also killed any hundred-year spirit beasts they encountered.
Even small gains mattered.
Based on over a day of hunting, Xu Yuan estimated that at least two hundred years of the spiritual energy needed for his Dream Fiend spirit soul to reach the thousand-year mark would come from hundred-year spirit beasts.
There was no helping it—they were too easy to kill.
Though Xu Yuan couldn't instantly dispatch them on sight, Zhao Long could.
Hundred-year spirit beasts had no chance of escape against Zhao Long. A severe injury dealt by him, followed by Xu Yuan delivering the finishing blow, amounted to nearly instant kills.
The real time-consuming part was recovering soul power and searching for targets.
"Wait!" Zhao Long raised his hand to stop Xu Yuan, shielding him behind his back.
Zhao Long's expression turned vigilant, and Xu Yuan also sensed something amiss.
Though Xu Yuan's spiritual power talent was strong, he was only seven years old, with a spiritual power value of just over 500 points. After absorbing the Dream Fiend spirit soul, his spiritual power would increase somewhat, but compared to Zhao Long, it was still lacking.
Zhao Long, having fused two thousand-year spirit souls, had undoubtedly reached the Spirit Sea Realm long before reaching level forty. Now at level fifty-eight, his spiritual power had surpassed a thousand points.
Ahead of them, a massive shadow appeared.
"It's… a Giant Ancient Ape!"
Looking at the towering black gorilla, Xu Yuan swallowed nervously.
So big!
Of course, he was only awed by its size.
The Giant Ancient Ape's massive body and impressive strength made it stand out, but its clumsy movements and lack of elemental control made it relatively easy to hunt.
As a result, fully grown Giant Ancient Apes were rare.
"This ape has at least four thousand years of cultivation. Do you want to take it?" Zhao Long's eyes lit up as he stared at the ape.
Xu Yuan shook his head.
After two and a half days of hunting in the Intermediate Ascension Platform, his spirit soul had already advanced and was now close to fourteen hundred years, nearing its limit. He planned to steadily increase it further using hundred-year spirit beasts.
This ape might provide over two hundred years of cultivation at once, but while Xu Yuan's spiritual power could handle it, his body might suffer outside the Ascension Platform.
After forming the bloodline contract, Xu Yuan's bloodline cultivation had become easier, but he had only been cultivating for seven days. His physical strength hadn't yet caught up.
"Alright, find a safe spot and stay out of the battle. Keep an eye on the surroundings for me," Zhao Long instructed while keeping his gaze fixed on the ape.
The past two and a half days of cooperation had given Zhao Long a clear understanding of Xu Yuan's abilities, leading to this arrangement.
"Got it, Brother Long. Be careful."
Xu Yuan quickly retreated.
"Roar!"
Seeing Xu Yuan move, the ape pounded its chest fiercely. The terrifying thuds reverberated with soul power fluctuations, causing one's blood to surge. Fortunately, both Xu Yuan and Zhao Long had robust physiques, so they weren't overly affected.
The ape let out a loud roar, uprooting a nearby tree and swinging it toward Xu Yuan.
"Beast, your opponent is me!" Zhao Long bellowed, summoning a massive iron hammer. Adorned with purple patterns, the hammer crackled with strands of lightning.
Boom!
The Soul-Sealing Hammer collided with the tree, shattering it into pieces. Xu Yuan dodged the flying debris while retreating further from the battlefield.
"Too bad, but there's no helping it. I'd rather play it safe in the Ascension Platform."
Xu Yuan could afford to be reckless when it concerned his future potential, but for something as manageable as the Ascension Platform, he preferred to stay calm.
Watching the battle between a Soul King and the Giant Ancient Ape, Xu Yuan's heart raced with excitement.
The power of soul masters went far beyond the clichés of fantasy floor tiles he'd seen in his past life.
Even if it were floor tiles, this was still the realm of fantasy!
After killing the ape, Zhao Long needed to rest. Since Xu Yuan only needed a few more hundred-year spirit beasts, he informed Zhao Long and set off on his own.
Three hours later.
Xu Yuan had raised his Dream Fiend spirit soul to approximately fifteen hundred years and stopped hunting spirit beasts.
With that, he voluntarily left the Ascension Platform.
Staying inside to hunt spirit beasts for combat practice was pointless—he could do that in Shrek's Soul Battle Arena and Beast Arena after returning.
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Blacksmiths Association
"Not bad, you finished in just three days," Mu Ye said in surprise.
"Brother Long is strong. Hunting was a breeze," Xu Yuan chuckled.
"How many years did you raise it to?"
"Fifteen hundred years."
"Not bad. That's probably your current physical limit for now. You could push higher, but there's no need," Mu Ye nodded, leading Xu Yuan to the rooftop.
"Since you'll be focusing on cultivating your brain martial soul next, I should teach you some methods for cultivating spiritual power," Mu Ye said as they reached the rooftop, bringing up techniques for spiritual power cultivation.
"Methods for cultivating spiritual power?"
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