Shen Hanyu's foot, which was about to step forward, stiffened. He slowly withdrew it and asked,
"What's wrong?"
Tian Meng cleared his throat and said:
"Brother just arrived here and immediately sensed that this place is extraordinary. So brother used full power to investigate, and finally managed to barely detect the two god-level dragon corpses that Hanyu mentioned to brother before. Brother carefully sensed them and discovered that, although these two dragon corpses have completely lost their vitality, they still contain a considerable amount of higher-level ice and fire attribute energy."
"Brother's idea is that ice and fire already coexist in a delicate balance within your body."
"If we can completely integrate these two energies into the blank ice-attribute martial soul that brother will provide for you later, allowing true coexistence and circulation of ice and fire within it, although it might not directly form a martial soul, just as you said, there are still dragon souls remaining on these two dragon corpses. If we absorb them entirely, brother is confident in helping you condense a true god-level dragon clan martial soul. It might even directly make you a genius with three innate martial souls; that's not impossible."
"Of course, all of this is just the brother's imagination. Whether or not to carry it out is up to you."
Tian Meng's words caused Shen Hanyu to fall into thought.
On one hand, what Tian Meng said did have some feasibility, but the risk was also extremely high. A single mistake with the energy from either the Ice Dragon King or the Fire Dragon King could cause him to die without a burial place. Even if he luckily succeeded, whether his body could bear a Dragon King-level martial soul was another issue altogether.
Just like Long Yue from the third part of the series, who possessed a true Mountain Dragon King martial soul, even with the entire resources of the Star Luo Continent supporting him, the side effects were still endless, and a single carelessness could lead to death.
Humans cannot possess super martial souls of such outrageously high quality, such as the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, the Evil Emperor Tiger, or various Dragon King martial souls. This type of martial soul places too much pressure on the soul master's body, which the soul master simply cannot withstand.
Therefore, there emerged those slightly inferior super martial souls. These martial souls can be borne by humans without worrying about excessive pressure on the body. These martial souls are already practically the pinnacle of human martial souls.
As for true god-level martial souls, Shen Hanyu had neither experienced nor seen one, so he didn't truly understand their mysteries. But just hearing the name was enough to know they stood at the peak of the soul master world in every era.
On the other hand, if this life-gambling operation succeeded, the benefits it would bring him would also be endless.
A top-tier tool martial soul plus a super beast martial soul, his chances of becoming a god would be infinitely magnified. At the very least, he would gain one more super trump card capable of reversing the situation at a critical moment. In any case, it would be beneficial.
After thinking for a moment, Shen Hanyu shook his head and said:
"We'll see when the time comes. Right now, the most important thing is for you to use the terrifying energy in this pool to break through and become a true million-year soul beast. As for what comes after, we'll adapt to the circumstances. After all, neither of us knows the true situation down below."
Tian Meng acknowledged with a sound, then fell silent. From its appearance, it was clearly somewhat excited and nervous.
Shen Hanyu turned to look at Dugu Bo, his gaze solemn as he said:
"Old poison geezer, I'm leaving the surface to you. This time I'll need quite a while. No matter what happens up there, do not casually enter the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. If something unexpected truly occurs, please make a trip to Tianshui Academy in Element City. My younger sister studies there. Hand this to the dean of Tianshui Academy; she will naturally understand."
As he spoke, Shen Hanyu tossed a blue-white jade pendant to Dugu Bo. His name was engraved on it. It had been prepared for him by his parents when he was born. Shen Liuyu naturally had one as well. This was also a method the siblings sometimes used to contact each other; it signified that something very important had happened and could not be resolved in a short time.
Dugu Bo nodded. Although he didn't understand why Shen Hanyu was being so cautious, he had at least learned a bit about Shen Hanyu's character by now and knew his personality. Being this cautious this time likely meant that even he himself had no complete confidence in what was coming next.
Shen Hanyu nodded, then looked at the calm pool water. He took one step forward, leaped directly into the pool, and slowly sank toward the depths…
Dugu Bo stared at the pool water for a long time. Finally, he stored the jade pendant in his soul storage device, placed his hands behind his back, and slowly left the area…
......
Darkness, endless darkness.
This was Shen Hanyu's first sensation. The second was a terrifying sense of oppression and the instinctive crisis feeling a living being experiences before danger. The deeper he went, the more severe it became, as if it wanted to crush any intruder completely, turning them into fragments that would thoroughly dissipate in the world.
The deeper he went, the more even the most basic light gradually disappeared. The profound darkness was like a man-eating black hole waiting for prey to deliver itself, then cruelly hunting it down and making it part of the darkness…
Inside Shen Hanyu's spiritual sea, Tian Meng let out a sigh of admiration, sounding somewhat enjoying itself as it said:
"Hanyu, if we ignore the hidden dangers here, brother actually quite likes this environment. The last time brother felt something like this was in the cave of the ten-thousand-year profound ice marrow. I have to say, as long as brother absorbs a portion of the energy here, it won't be long before brother breaks through to become the Douluo Continent's first million-year soul beast…"
Shen Hanyu silently acknowledged in his mind and continued diving downward.
Only when he reached the very bottom of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well did Shen Hanyu feel as though he passed through a transparent barrier and entered a dark space.
His feet did not touch the ground; instead, he floated in the air. This space seemed to have been altered by something, emitting an eerie feeling.
Looking up, the pool water of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well was not far above, yet it felt as distant as another world, completely unable to affect the space below.
"What profound spatial attainment."
Shen Hanyu exclaimed in admiration.
As expected of the two great Dragon Kings, who were already famous during the Dragon God era. Even in death, relying only on their spiritual force and remaining divine power, they still possessed such strength.
Tian Meng slowly emerged from Shen Hanyu's spiritual sea and landed in front of him. The nine golden patterns on its body emitted a faint glow in the darkness, like the only glimmer of light in this world.
Tian Meng gently nodded its seemingly cute head and said to Shen Hanyu:
"Hanyu, brother has already checked. Aside from the remnant souls of those two dragon corpses, there is practically no threat here. However, for some unknown reason, the remnant souls of those two dragon corpses show no signs of awakening even now. Brother is about to start absorbing the energy here to begin the breakthrough. Brother isn't sure exactly how long this process will take. In any case, take good care of yourself during this time."
Shen Hanyu nodded. He was also curious about the lack of reaction from the Ice and Fire Dragon Kings, but since they weren't reacting, it was indirectly a good thing; at least for now, they were very safe.