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"Everyone, move forward," Ke Jie called out to the group.
The most threatening 4,300-year-old Mighty God Tiger had been dealt with, leaving the Saratan Giant Turtle and the smaller tiger as no real threat to them.
This Mighty God Tiger's age was too high, making it suitable as Chen Huayu's fourth soul ring. However, since he was only at the verge of becoming a Soul Elder, this soul ring would have to go to waste.
Without hesitation, Ning Tianchen and Feng Xiaotian turned their attention to the Saratan Giant Turtle.
"Don't let it enter the water, Xiaotian. You go to the rear and block it," Ning Tianchen quickly instructed.
Once in the water, the Saratan Giant Turtle would become an unstoppable combination of offense and defense.
Neither of their martial souls were suited for underwater combat. If things escalated, Ke Jie might have to step in.
As the team's captain and vice-captain, they couldn't afford to look so incompetent.
Ning Tianchen landed on the giant turtle's shell, gripping his Seven Kill Sword with both hands in a reverse grip, and forcefully stabbed it into the shell.
Clang!
A sharp sound of impact rang out.
The Seven Kill Sword managed to gouge a notch into the shell but failed to pierce through.
Ning Tianchen's hands trembled slightly from the force, and he felt momentarily disoriented.
Thankfully, the turtle couldn't reach his back—otherwise, he would have surely suffered retaliation.
"This thing is ridiculously hard," he muttered after regaining his composure.
Feng Xiaotian chuckled in response. "You should've looked more carefully. Its head already has the beginnings of dragon horns sprouting, and its eyes are a pale red."
"Given time, it will definitely grow into a Dragon Turtle."
Dragon Turtles were among the pinnacle bloodline soul beasts.
At the same level, perhaps only blunt weapon martial souls like the Heavenly Dragon Hammer could hope to shatter a Dragon Turtle's shell across the entire continent.
The Seven Kill Sword wasn't like the Heavenly Dragon Hammer—it relied on precision strikes akin to a surgeon's scalpel.
Just now, Ning Tianchen had simply been careless.
"Attack its limbs," Ke Jie reminded as he arrived to join them.
Even though the Mighty God Tiger's attacks were formidable, it still couldn't harm this creature.
In the short term, Ning Tianchen and Feng Xiaotian working together might not be enough to defeat it.
"Nine Treasures Shine, First: Strength, Third: Spirit!"
With Ning Rongrong's amplification, their attacks became even fiercer.
The Saratan Giant Turtle decided to retreat into its shell, completely unmoving despite their relentless assault.
Soon, the rest of the Seven Treasures team joined the battle.
However, none of their attacks made any progress against it.
Ning Tianchen's Seven Kill Sword could pierce the unprotected areas, but its skin was so thick that making meaningful progress would take considerable time.
Ning Tianchen frowned slightly.
Even if they managed to knock the turtle unconscious, Ning Rongrong's strength alone wouldn't be enough to deliver the final blow.
"It can resist physical attacks, but it can't resist poison," Ning Tianchen suddenly realized.
If it could truly withstand all attacks, the Saratan Giant Turtle would have long become the dominant force among soul beasts.
While its shell's defense was indeed formidable, Dugu Bo was here, and his poison could easily incapacitate the turtle.
With that thought, Ning Tianchen gestured for Dugu Bo to step in.
"Principal Ke, go bring back the smaller tiger. Leave this to me," Dugu Bo cracked his neck, preparing to act.
Against this kind of "turtle hiding in its shell," his poison would work wonders.
Ke Jie didn't waste time and sped off to assist.
Behind Dugu Bo, the Azure Phosphorus Snake Emperor martial soul emerged, its overwhelming presence altering the atmosphere around them.
Dugu Bo's eyes gleamed with icy resolve as he stepped forward through the air.
The sheer pressure terrified the giant turtle, which struggled to escape. However, the venom spewed from the Jade Phosphorus Snake Emperor's mouth wrapped around it like an iron net, enveloping its body.
Seeing no sign of Dugu Bo holding back, Ning Tianchen quickly called out, "Old man, its soul ring suits Rongrong!"
"Relax, I won't let it die."
After mastering the art of condensing poison pearls, Dugu Bo's control over toxins had become exquisitely refined.
The poison spread across the turtle's body, causing it to feel as if thousands of insects were gnawing at its heart. Unable to endure, it extended its head and limbs from its shell.
Its limbs bent like broken branches after a storm, lying limply on the ground, each movement filled with pain and difficulty.
Its head repeatedly slammed against the ground, seemingly trying to end its own life.
Perhaps due to exerting too much force, it fainted outright.
The Jade Phosphorus Snake Emperor opened its mouth wide and retracted all the poison back into its body.
"Go ahead, it still has one last breath left." Dugu Bo retracted his martial soul, his expression remaining cold.
Ning Tianchen accompanied Ning Rongrong to the turtle's head.
Ning Rongrong retrieved a dagger from her soul tool and, with all her strength, stabbed it into the turtle's neck.
The dagger seemed dull, or perhaps Ning Rongrong's strength wasn't enough—it barely scratched the surface.
"Rongrong, use this sword." Ning Tianchen took out a three-foot-long sword from his soul tool.
He guided Ning Rongrong's hands with his own, plunging the sword into the turtle's eye.
The giant turtle let out a pained groan, and soon, a purple soul ring floated out of its body.
"Thank you, Brother Tianchen." Ning Rongrong dropped the sword and joyfully threw herself into Ning Tianchen's arms.
Without his help, she likely wouldn't have been able to kill the giant turtle.
Ning Tianchen affectionately patted her forehead. "Rongrong, hurry and absorb the soul ring. We'll guard you."
"Mm-hmm." Ning Rongrong's face radiated happiness as she sat cross-legged, using her mind to bind the soul ring to her Nine-Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul.
On the other side, Ke Jie dragged the barely alive smaller tiger back to reunite with the group.
After both Ning Rongrong and Chen Huayu entered the state of absorbing their soul rings, Ning Tianchen glanced at the setting sun. "It's getting late. Rongrong and Fatty will probably need until the early hours of the morning to finish absorbing their soul rings. Let's set up camp here and depart early tomorrow."
The group nodded in agreement and set up tents beside Ning Rongrong and Chen Huayu.
During this time, Ning Tianchen didn't idle. He personally inspected the corpses of the three soul beasts.
Unfortunately, no soul bones had dropped.
"Little guy, this turtle's shell is excellent material for shields. If your soul tool has space, pack it up and take it back," Dugu Bo reminded him.
The turtle's body was massive, and Ning Tianchen's soul tool was already filled with other items, leaving no room.
However, Ke Jie seemed to have anticipated this and carried an empty soul tool with him, storing the turtle's corpse inside.
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Late at night, Ning Rongrong completed her soul ring absorption first.
"Nine Treasures Transform, Nine Treasures Shine, Fourth: Defense!"
Ning Rongrong unleashed her soul skill, displaying its effects before everyone.
Feeling the significant boost in defensive power, Feng Xiaotian praised without reservation, "My defense increased by fifty percent. No wonder it's a Nine-Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda soul skill—it truly is powerful."
Ning Tianchen smiled faintly. "Xiaotian, this turtle shell suits you well."
Only then did Feng Xiaotian notice that his body was now enveloped in a translucent turtle shell-like aura.
Not just him—all those who received Ning Rongrong's amplification had the same shell.
"I've given everyone a little turtle shell," Ning Rongrong giggled behind her hand.
"Doesn't that make us turtles?" Oscar said with a bitter smile.
(T/N: In Chinese being a turtle is euphemism for being a coward.)
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