DD Spiritual Sword [518-519] (Patreon)

Chapter 518: Qin Ming's Resolve – Advancing to Titled Douluo

The next day, Tianlin set off. Since he had promised Bai Chenxiang, he wouldn't delay.

With his current strength, even flying at high speed, it wouldn't take him long to reach the Extreme North. Plus, after absorbing the Fire Spirit Pearl, no matter how cold it was, he wouldn't feel the chill. Even after entering the skies above the Extreme North, his speed didn't decrease at all.

Tianlin never forgets a place he's been to before, so he quickly and easily arrived at the Ice Empress's territory.

It's been almost four years since the Ice Empress left this place. Many high-level soul beasts in the Extreme North already knew she left, so now this place has become the territory of other high-level soul beasts.

On the way, Tianlin saw several soul beasts with ages ranging from seventy to eighty thousand years.

However, with Tianlin's current aura, even those beasts didn't dare provoke him.

Just then, Tianlin, with his sharp eyes, spotted someone walking on the snowy ground—a very familiar figure. It was Qin Ming.

"Teacher Qin!" Tianlin hurriedly descended and called out to him.

"Xiao Tian!" Qin Ming was overjoyed. "I didn't expect to see you here. I just came out of the Fire God's inheritance site, preparing to return to the sect to seek your help."

"Seek my help?" Tianlin understood—looks like Ma Hongjun's godly trial had encountered some difficulty.

Qin Ming explained the situation to Tianlin. It turned out they couldn't pass the sixth trial. Indeed, Ma Hongjun's sixth trial was truly too difficult. Although the Fire God allowed Qin Ming to assist, for two Soul Douluos to defeat a soul beast with the full strength of a Super Douluo, it was basically impossible.

Not to mention, the soul beast was a Fire Lord, an exceptionally powerful innate variant. With the help of the Fire God, its flames had already evolved into the Ultimate Flame. Although Ma Hongjun also had Ultimate Flame, he still couldn't restrain it.

Qin Ming's help to Ma Hongjun wasn't much. After all, he didn't have Ultimate Flame, so his fire was completely suppressed by the Fire Lord. Every time Qin Ming wanted to attack, Ma Hongjun had to use his own fire to counteract the Fire Lord's flames, giving Qin Ming a chance to strike. Rather than saying he was assisting Ma Hongjun, it was more like Ma Hongjun was assisting him.

In this situation, after eleven months and over thirty attempts fighting the Fire Lord, both were defeated every time. Though this did improve their strength a lot, each advancing by one level, it did not change the result. Helpless, Qin Ming had to go out and seek help, as there was less than one month left before the trial's time ran out. If Ma Hongjun didn't defeat the Fire Lord within a month, he would fail the sixth trial.

Tianlin glanced at Qin Ming and asked, "Teacher Qin, your soul power has reached level 89. Is your trip out this time to break through to Titled Douluo?"

Qin Ming nodded. "Yes, Xiao Tian. You should have already reached the Titled Douluo stage, right? With your Illusory Water and Thunder, can you help an eighty-nine-level Soul Douluo break through again? Only if I break through to Titled Douluo can I help Hongjun defeat the Fire Lord."

Tianlin smiled confidently. "Of course, no problem. I could do that even when I was a Soul Douluo. After reaching Titled Douluo, I can even help eighty-eight-level Soul Douluos break through."

"Great! There's no time to lose, let's head to Star Dou Forest!" Qin Ming said urgently. With only a month left, they had to hurry—anything else could be discussed on the way.

Tianlin had Qin Ming stand on the Demon Sword, and they flew away.

"Teacher Qin, have you decided on which soul beast you want? Having a target will save a lot of time," Tianlin asked.

"I have. Xiao Tian, do you remember which soul beast you hunted for your second soul ring?"

Qin Ming's words made Tianlin pause. "Teacher Qin, don't tell me your ninth ring will be from the Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast?"

"That's right." Qin Ming didn't deny it—he'd decided long ago.

"Teacher Qin, although the Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast is a fire attribute soul beast, its attack isn't strong. Back then, my master chose it for me precisely for that reason—it's not suitable for you, you're a burst-type soul master," Tianlin advised.

Qin Ming's first eight rings were all for burst power, so to choose a weak attack soul beast as the most important ninth ring seemed wasteful. Tianlin couldn't understand his thinking.

"Xiao Tian, do you think that even if I break through to Titled Douluo and get a powerful ninth skill, would I be able to defeat a beast as strong as the Fire Lord right after breaking through?" Qin Ming countered.

The answer was obvious—of course not. Tianlin shook his head decisively. "No."

"In that case, what use is attack power? What I need to do is assist Hongjun in passing the trial. Xiao Tian, you only know that the lower-aged Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast's Sealing Purple Flame can lower the opponent's soul power level, but you don't know that once a Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast passes fifty thousand years, its purple flame undergoes a qualitative change. The added effect can even temporarily lower the opponent's martial soul quality—that's what I'm after."

"If we can temporarily make the Fire Lord lose its Ultimate Flame power, Hongjun will have a chance."

Qin Ming was very thorough in his reasoning and never lost sight of his role. He knew that in this trial, Ma Hongjun was the main force. No matter how high his level was, he was just an assistant.

"But doing this, Teacher Qin, isn't it unfair to you?" Tianlin hesitated. Doing this would disrupt Qin Ming's original path, reducing his strength after breaking through.

"It doesn't matter. After joining the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, I've put more effort into Hongjun than anyone. Although he's my junior brother, he's like my disciple. As a teacher, to cultivate a god is my lifelong honor. Xiao Tian, Hongjun and the Emperor Battle Team are both my pride," Qin Ming smiled.

Hearing this, Tianlin smiled too. "Alright, then let's go, Teacher Qin."

At maximum sword speed, they reached Star Dou Forest in less than a day.

Purplefire Gold-eyed Beasts aren't hard to find. Chen Xin once said they serve as military advisors to those physically strong but simple-minded soul beast groups, so you just look for such groups.

Soon, they found a settlement of all ten-thousand-year-old Volcano Gorillas. The leader was a ninety-thousand-year-old gorilla—actually the best choice for Qin Ming, but today their target wasn't it.

They also found the Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast, and as the adviser of ten-thousand-year soul beasts, its age was much higher than the one Tianlin absorbed, around sixty thousand years.

This age was just right. After reaching Super Douluo, Tianlin's Illusory Water and Thunder could raise a soul beast's age by up to forty thousand years; he guessed at the limit it would be fifty thousand.

Raising it to a hundred-thousand-year soul beast for Qin Ming to hunt would be a consolation for him.

The Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast, realizing they were after it, wanted to summon the gorillas to attack but Tianlin drew his Asura Demon Sword, and its endless killing aura instantly scared off all the volcano gorillas. They were dumb, but not suicidal; even together, they weren't a match for that sword.

Without the protection of the gorillas, the Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast's weak combat power was no match for Qin Ming. As long as he avoided its Sealing Purple Flame, Qin Ming could easily kill it.

With Tianlin's help, a hundred-thousand-year soul ring and a hundred-thousand-year head soul bone were created. Qin Ming drew in the soul ring and absorbed it, then absorbed the head bone.

A new Titled Douluo appeared on the continent!

Chapter 519: Battle with the Fire Lord Again – Fire Wolf Douluo Qin Ming

With his new soul ring and soul bone, Qin Ming and Tianlin returned to the Extreme North. The round trip cost them more time; now there was less than a month until Ma Hongjun's sixth trial deadline.

Although the number of attempts was unlimited, every defeat required time to heal. In other words, they could challenge at most one more time—if they failed again, the trial would basically be considered failed.

"This time, you must win!" Tianlin opened a small spatial passage and, together with Qin Ming, flew into the Fire God's inheritance ground.

Led by Qin Ming, Tianlin reached Sui Ren Valley, where Ma Hongjun was cultivating. Sensing someone approaching, Ma Hongjun immediately opened his eyes.

Seeing Tianlin, Ma Hongjun was overjoyed and rushed over, "Boss, you came too! I missed you so much!"

Tianlin, annoyed, held his head to keep his snot off his clothes. "You've gotten skinnier and more handsome, but your personality hasn't changed at all. Still haven't passed the sixth trial? Useless! Both of us have first-level god trials, but Rongrong is already on her seventh trial."

"Boss, my trial is like your Asura God trial—no high priest guiding the way—so of course it's slower." Ma Hongjun's face fell. "And this god trial is too hard. The ones before were fine, but the sixth is killing me. I have to fight someone as strong as Elder Bone, and I have to win with it at full power. How can a Soul Douluo like me possibly win?"

"Oh right, boss, can you join the fight? If you can, it's a sure win!" Ma Hongjun looked at Tianlin hopefully. He knew that if Tianlin could fight, he could solo the Fire Lord.

"In your dreams. I have nothing to do with the Fire God trial. This is up to you and Teacher Qin. But don't worry, Teacher Qin is much stronger now." Tianlin looked back at Qin Ming.

Qin Ming stepped forward and displayed his nine soul rings: two yellow, three purple, three black, and one red. Ma Hongjun's eyes lit up with excitement, "Teacher, you made it to Titled Douluo and got a hundred-thousand-year ring!"

Qin Ming smiled and said seriously, "That's right. Title: Fire Wolf. Are you ready for the final challenge?"

Ma Hongjun's expression turned serious. "I'm always ready."

Qin Ming nodded and shouted to the sky, "Lord Fire Lord, we request another challenge. Please show yourself."

A giant fireball fell from the sky, and the Fire Lord's massive figure appeared before the three. "Oh, Asura inheritor, you're here again? You've changed greatly over the years—so much I can't see through you. But even if you're here, you can't help Ma Hongjun with the trial."

Tianlin said calmly, "I understand. As the Asura inheritor, I won't violate the god trial's rules. But I believe even without me, Hongjun and Teacher Qin will definitely win this time."

Tianlin leaped onto a cliff, leaving the battlefield to the other two. "Hongjun, Teacher Qin, it's up to you now."

"Don't worry, boss!" Ma Hongjun's Martial Soul Possession: Divine Fire Phoenix activated, and his two yellow, two purple, and four black soul rings appeared, his soul power surging.

The Fire Lord's eyes narrowed—these two were rare geniuses. After every fight, they grew stronger. Ma Hongjun had reached level 83, and Qin Ming had just become a Titled Douluo. This was clearly the final battle.

"Come! Flame Bomb!" The Fire Lord attacked first, launching a massive Flame Bomb.

At this point, Qin Ming was useless—his fire was suppressed by the Ultimate Flame, even after advancing to Titled Douluo.

Ma Hongjun had to go first—Ultimate versus Ultimate—to withstand the Fire Lord's flames, then Qin Ming could act.

"Fifth soul skill: Phoenix Meteor Shower!" Ma Hongjun released countless fireballs. Though each was smaller than the Flame Bomb, the sheer number compensated for quality.

The flames collided in rapid succession. For a while, both sides were even, but the gap in power was too great. Soon, Ma Hongjun was at a disadvantage.

"Phoenix Arm Bone Skill: Phoenix Blast Strike!"

Ma Hongjun added explosive force to his flames. The meteor shower's fireballs all exploded, and the burst power barely matched the Fire Lord for a moment.

That moment was enough—the Fire Lord's Ultimate Flame was suppressed briefly, and Qin Ming, in Fire Wolf Martial Soul Possession, charged at full speed.

"Purplefire Gold-eyed Beast Head Bone Skill: Soul Burn!"

Qin Ming's new head bone was support-oriented. Though called Soul Burn, its attack power wasn't strong—instead, it continuously weakened the opponent's spiritual power, halving their mental attack and defense.

"Ugh!" The Fire Lord clutched its head, caught off guard by the unexpected change in Qin Ming's fighting style.

After a year of fighting, Qin Ming had always been a burst-type soul master. The sudden shift to support after reaching Titled Douluo was a waste of his most important ring, thought the Fire Lord. But it had to admit—this was the duo's only way to win.

"Hongjun, now! Lock its soul!" Qin Ming shouted.

"No problem! Eighth soul skill: Phoenix Soul-Killing Chain!" Ma Hongjun was ready. This god-given eighth soul skill was a control skill—transforming flame into chains to bind the enemy. As an eighth soul skill, it didn't just restrain the body.

Phoenix Soul-Killing Chain had two effects: first, skill lock—the opponent can't escape, no matter where they go. Second, soul lock—both the enemy's martial soul and soul power become unusable.

To break the chain, the target would have to give up their martial soul and rely on sheer physical and spiritual strength.

But now, the Fire Lord's soul was wounded by Qin Ming and couldn't break free.

"Heh, nice tactics, but don't forget—I'm not a soul master, I'm a soul beast!" The Fire Lord roared. If this was a beast spirit soul master, their body strength would drop sharply when their martial soul was sealed, but soul beasts had no martial soul and relied on themselves.

The Fire Lord struggled madly, trying to rip apart Ma Hongjun's chains. Ma Hongjun gritted his teeth—he would not let it break free.

At this moment, Qin Ming's ninth soul ring lit up. The Fire Wolf Douluo was finally about to use his ninth soul skill for the first time.