harleyscars Chapter 20 Chrysanthemum Douluo's Request: Can you give me a flower?
Chapter 20 Chrysanthemum Douluo's Request: Can you give me a flower?
Deep within the Starry Sky Forest, the air was thick with the damp, musty smell of decaying leaves.
A dark shadow silently landed at Lin Yu's feet, stirring up a withered leaf.
It was a spider with a translucent gray, crystal-like body, its eight long legs curled up, and eight small, dark blue eyes on its head still darting around, clearly stunned by the fall.
"Four thousand two hundred years, the Ghostly Spider."
The ghostly figure appeared out of thin air without even uttering a sound.
For a Title Douluo, capturing a soul beast of this level is easier than drinking water.
Lin Yu squatted down and tapped the hard spider leg.
"Thanks, Elder Ghost."
Without any hesitation, he sat down cross-legged and summoned the Gates of Hell.
The eerie door swung open, and a ghost bride in red appeared, her sharp claws reaching out to sever the spider's head.
Then, the Gate of Hell unleashed a suction force, instantly locking onto the Ghostly Spider on the ground. Several chains flew out, pulling the spider's soul and soul ring back into the gate.
Bibi Dong stood to the side, arms crossed, quietly watching Lin Yu absorb the soul ring.
When an ordinary Soul Master absorbs a thousand-year Soul Ring, they are extremely cautious, fearing that their Soul Power will cause them to explode.
That kid's something else.
Less than fifteen minutes.
Lin Yu opened his eyes, stretched, and another silver-gray soul ring appeared on his body.
"Is it all done?"
Yue Guan's alluring face was filled with astonishment, and her finger pointing at Lin Yu was trembling.
"This is a soul beast over four thousand years old, and you've absorbed it all just like that?"
Lin Yu patted his butt and stood up, looking completely at ease.
"It's home, we should be overjoyed, why would it turn on us?"
Yue Guan was so choked up that his eyes rolled back.
Bibi Dong gave Lin Yu a deep look, then turned and left.
"Now that you're all better, let's head back to the city."
……
Two and a half days later, in a side hall of the Papal Palace.
This trip was ridiculously fast; even the guards of Wuhun City thought His Holiness the Pope had just gone out for a spring outing.
"Show us your second soul skill."
Bibi Dong sat in the main seat, her slender fingers gently tapping the armrest.
Ghost and Moon Gate stood on either side, both staring at Lin Yu with curiosity.
The first soul skill created a ghost bride, so what will the second soul skill be?
Lin Yu scratched his head somewhat awkwardly.
"Um... teacher, this skill is a bit special."
"special?"
"Yes, you can't see it during the day."
The hall was silent for a few seconds.
Yue Guan chuckled, "Little brat, you're picky about the time for your soul skill? Is it because it can't stand the light of day?"
"Pretty much," Lin Yu said, shrugging. "Besides, this place is too bright and has too much yang energy, so they don't like to come out."
Bibi Dong frowned slightly.
"Then let's go see what's coming to you at the gates of hell."
She was decisive and stood up from her seat.
Lin Yu didn't waste any words. His soul power surged, and the ancient and eerie gate to the underworld burst open. Gray mist instantly poured out, causing the temperature of the originally magnificent hall to drop sharply.
"please."
Lin Yu was the first to step in.
Bibi Dong followed closely behind.
Ghost and Moon Gate exchanged a glance and followed them inside.
The field of vision suddenly changed.
It was no longer the opulent Papal Palace, but an endless, hazy gray world.
There was no sun in the sky, only an eternal gloom.
The moment he landed, Ghost froze.
The ghostly martial spirit within his body began to operate uncontrollably, and the previously sluggish bottleneck suddenly felt loose.
The extreme comfort almost made him cry out.
The yin energy and death energy here were like a great tonic for him.
This is home!
In contrast, Yue Guan felt much worse, wrapping his golden armor tighter in disgust, as the atmosphere here severely suppressed his soul power.
"what?"
Bibi Dong suddenly spoke up.
She pointed into the distance.
In the originally monotonous gray space, a glaring blood red has been added.
A mighty, roaring river stretches across the wasteland, its waters a chilling blood-yellow, as if countless wronged souls are wailing and churning within.
A simple and dilapidated stone bridge spans the river.
A stone tablet stands at the bridgehead, its inscription blurred and illegible.
"This is..." A hint of surprise flashed in Bibi Dong's eyes.
These things weren't here last time I came.
Lin Yu explained, "After absorbing the second spirit ring, this place automatically expanded. The river is called Yellow Springs, and the bridge is called Helplessness."
The group walked to the riverbank.
A nauseating, fishy smell wafted over.
But everyone's attention was drawn to a sea of flowers beside the bridge.
It was a cluster of fiery red flowers, blooming with a bewitching yet resolute beauty. There were no leaves, only slender petals that curled backward, resembling prayerful hands.
In that gloomy world, this sea of flowers, red as blood, was breathtakingly beautiful.
"This...this is..."
Yue Guan stared intently at the sea of flowers as if struck by lightning, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
He rushed over and knelt down in front of a flower, his face almost touching it, but he dared not touch it, for fear of desecrating this sacred object.
"Old Chrysanthemum, what's wrong with you?" Ghostly frowned and cursed.
Yue Guan completely ignored him, suddenly turned her head, stared at Lin Yu with bloodshot eyes, looking as if she wanted to devour him.
"What's the name of this flower?!"
Lin Yu was startled by his crazy appearance and subconsciously took a half step back.
"What's wrong, spider lily?"
"The red spider lily... the red spider lily..."
Yue Guan muttered to himself, appearing as if he had gone mad.
"A flower blooms for a thousand years, withers for a thousand years, its petals and leaves never meet... It's actually true! There really is such a flower in this world!"
He jumped up excitedly, grabbed Bibi Dong's sleeve, and began to explain things, completely forgetting about social hierarchy.
"Your Holiness! Look at the shape of this flower, its color! Ancient texts record that this flower only blooms on the road to the underworld, a flower that guides the souls of the dead and can awaken their memories of their past life! In terms of rarity, it even surpasses the legendary immortal herb!"
"It is the flower of death, and also the flower of love!"
Yue Guan spoke with great enthusiasm, her alluring face contorted with excitement.
As someone who is obsessed with flowers, seeing such a legendary divine item is even more exhilarating than gaining a level of soul power.
As Bibi Dong listened to Yue Guan's description, her gaze fell once again on those alluring flowers, her expression somewhat dazed.
Awakening memories... the flower of love...
She seemed to have thought of something, and a barely perceptible hint of pain and complexity flashed in her eyes.
Lin Yu looked at the group of big shots who had gone astray and sighed helplessly.
Hey, we're here to see soul skills, not to hold a botany seminar.
"Ahem!"
He coughed twice, interrupting Yue Guan's incessant chatter.
"Elder Ju, the flowers are right here, they can't run away. I'll give you a couple later to take home and put in a vase. Can we take care of our business first?"
Yue Guan suddenly turned around and glared fiercely at Lin Yu.
"A vase for flowers? What a waste! That's blasphemy!"
But he finally remembered his business and reluctantly retreated from the sea of flowers, though his eyes were still glued to the flowers and he couldn't tear them off.
Bibi Dong also came to her senses, composed herself, and resumed her aloof and cold demeanor.
"Let's begin."
Lin Yu nodded, his chest rising and falling slightly, and his second spirit ring suddenly lit up.
Second Soul Skill: Netherworld Summoning!
As soul power was injected, the Bridge of Helplessness suddenly trembled.
The Yellow Springs water beneath the bridge churned even more violently.
Two figures slowly emerged from the mist on the bridge.
The man on the left is dressed in a white robe and a tall hat. He is tall and thin, holding a mourning stick in his hand. His long tongue hangs out in front of his chest, and he has a strange smile on his face.
The man on the right was dressed in a black robe, short and stout, with a fierce face, holding a black chain, and exuding a menacing aura that kept strangers at bay.
It is not the legendary Black and White Impermanence.
Although his aura was cold, it wasn't very strong, probably equivalent to the soul power fluctuations of a Great Soul Master.
These are the ordinary ghost messengers summoned by Lin Yu.
"This is your second soul skill?"
The ghost took a closer look and was somewhat disappointed.
"It looks intimidating, but this soul power fluctuation... I'm afraid it can't even withstand a single punch from Yan."
As a titled Douluo specializing in agility and attack, he could see through the true nature of the two ghost messengers at a glance.
Aside from being a bit scary-looking, their fighting ability is really worrying.
Lin Yu chuckled and snapped his fingers.
"Elder Ghost, don't jump to conclusions. I never said they were for fighting."
He pointed to the white-robed ghost messenger.
"Go, show off your skills to the elders."
The white-robed ghost messenger let out a strange laugh, his figure suddenly becoming illusory, and he actually passed directly through the ghost's protective soul power, lightly placing the mourning staff in his hand on the ghost.
There was no sound of any physical collision.
But the ghost's expression changed instantly.
In that very instant.
He felt as if his soul had been violently pulled, and he even had the illusion that it was about to leave his body!
Although it was only for a moment, he broke free instantly thanks to the powerful mental strength of a Title Douluo.
But the sheer terror on a spiritual level gave him goosebumps.
"A soul-stealing charm?!"
The ghost cried out in surprise, its gaze towards the two ghost messengers completely changing.
If this skill were used on a Soul Master of the same level, even if it only stole their soul for a moment, it would be enough to kill them a hundred times over in a life-or-death battle!
A glint of light flashed in Bibi Dong's eyes.
"Ignoring physical defenses and targeting the soul directly?"
"That's right."
Lin Yu nodded smugly.
"Moreover, that's not their biggest role."
He pointed mysteriously to the gray, hazy space around him.
"As long as I have enough soul power, I can spread this thing all over the entire continent. Then, wherever someone dies or where there is a powerful soul, these guys can just travel there and bring the soul back to me."
"If I throw the souls I've brought back into the underworld, they can replenish my soul power."
At this point, Lin Yu rubbed his hands together, revealing a shrewd businessman's smile.
"Teacher, this is hardly a soul skill."
"This is clearly a fully automated leveling-up cheat!"