"Click—"
A mechanical sound rang out, and the Asura Armor, originally predominantly silver-white and dark gold, had been upgraded to a predominantly black-purple color, with a changed style and an even stronger sense of oppression.
"It's upgraded like that?!"
Lin Mu was completely caught off guard by this sudden change, never expecting the Asura Armor to suit him so well.
Even before the upgrade, the Asura Armor's overall strength was already comparable to the Thunder Atlas Armor.
Except for its lack of area-of-effect attacks, the Asura Armor's single-target attacks and mechanics were superior to the Thunder Atlas Armor.
The upgraded Hellface Asura Armor combined both stats and mechanics.
Although Lin Mu hadn't yet become a god, judging from the terrifying amplification of the Hellface Asura Armor, a casual swing of his Asura Wind-Splitting Claw would at least reach god-level power.
Of course, the Bear Lord's soul ring also played a role, perfectly matching the Asura Wind-Splitting Claw.
"What kind of armor is this?"
The Sea Woman Douluo looked at Lin Mu's new armor with curiosity in her eyes.
The aura emanating from that armor alone sent a chill down her spine. Why was this guy's martial soul so strange, conjuring up so many suits of armor?
However, Lin Mu had no time to pay her any attention. He casually said, "I'll be right back."
As soon as he finished speaking, he opened his panel again and pressed the fire, wind, thunder, and activation buttons in sequence.
The instant he pressed the activation button, he vanished from the Sea Woman Douluo's sight without leaving a trace, as if he had never been there.
"Where is he?"
Staring at the empty space before her, the Sea Woman Douluo was completely dumbfounded. She couldn't sense Lin Mu's presence at all.
Even if she were a Titled Douluo with her soul power, she shouldn't have been completely unaware if Lin Mu had teleported away.
But the facts were undeniable, leaving her utterly perplexed.
Since it was his first time using his time-traveling ability, Lin Mu had set the timeline to the day he helped Tang San acquire his first soul ring.
His gaze shifted, and he was already on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, having traveled from Sea God Island.
The once seamless blend of sea and sky had vanished, replaced by towering ancient trees with lush foliage, and fields of Blue Silver Grass and various soul beasts.
Using his soul power, Lin Mu quickly sensed a small group several thousand meters away.
"Lingling?"
Noticing the short-haired girl in the group, Lin Mu didn't hesitate; he instantly vanished from his spot.
When he reappeared, he was already atop a large tree several thousand meters away.
Not wanting to interfere with past events, Lin Mu didn't appear directly, but instead concealed his aura, looking down.
Just then, the group encountered trouble.
Looking down at the ferocious tiger-like soul beast, Lin Mu frowned slightly, secretly surprised, "How could a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast appear here, and a 30,000-year-old Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger at that!"
It's common knowledge that tiger-like soul beasts are stronger than other soul beasts of the same cultivation level, and the Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger is not only terrifyingly strong, but its long, slender tail is also highly venomous.
The strength of an ordinary ten-thousand-year-old soul beast is comparable to that of a Soul Emperor, which is why many soul masters' fifth soul rings are purple.
Generally speaking, if a soul master wants to obtain a ten-thousand-year fifth soul ring, they can only seek help from a Soul Emperor or higher.
However, apart from soul masters from major forces, other soul masters basically cannot find any willing experts to help.
This is simply unavoidable.
Hunting ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts carries inherent risks, and only a small number of soul masters are willing to take that risk for profit.
However, the vast majority of commoner soul masters cannot afford it.
Thus, they are left with only two choices: either give up their ten-thousand-year soul ring or join a team to assist each other in hunting it.
The former means wasting some potential, like Qin Ming.
The latter isn't much better; it involves more risk, wastes a lot of time, and doesn't guarantee obtaining the desired soul ring.
Moreover, hastily assembled teams are unreliable and could be betrayed at any time.
Ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts are already difficult to deal with, let alone this 30,000-year-old Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger, which possesses deadly poison, far beyond the capabilities of ordinary soul saints.
Unfortunately, the Ye family's team includes a soul saint, and not even with the optimal soul ring configuration.
Even with Ye Miaoyun's assistance, they cannot defeat this 30,000-year-old Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger, as the Nine-Hearted Begonia lacks an antidote.
After several rounds of combat, the only soul saint was unfortunately stung by the Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger's venomous stinger.
Fortunately, he used his Martial Soul True Body, which allowed him to barely withstand the attack.
However, once the Martial Soul True Body's duration ended, he would still inevitably succumb to the deadly poison, which is why poison-attribute soul beasts are so difficult to deal with.
Knowing he was poisoned, the soul saint decisively said, "Matriarch, I'll hold this beast off. You all get out of here quickly."
Hearing this, Ye Miaoyun didn't immediately stop assisting him, her gaze turning to the young Ye Lingling.
After some hesitation, she had to accept reality, and instead grabbed Ye Lingling's hand, her face filled with guilt, saying, "Da Kui, you must live!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Ye Miaoyun pulled Ye Lingling away, the other guards following closely behind, leaving only the soul saint to cover their retreat.
Soon, they escaped the area.
"Matriarch, Miss, I..." Da Kui said weakly.
He had already given his all to hold on for so long while poisoned, and now he was completely exhausted.
Just as he awaited death, a mysterious figure suddenly appeared before him, casually crushing the Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger's head, splattering blood and brain matter onto his face.
Staring at the armored figure, seemingly descended from heaven, Da Kui was completely stunned.
However, he had no time to ask about the person's identity or why they had saved him.
The Scorpion-Tailed Demon Tiger's poison had already invaded his internal organs; unless a legendary god intervened, he had no chance of recovery.
At this moment, Lin Mu calmly walked over, circulating his soul power to help him expel the poison, while simultaneously feeding him Blue Silver Pills.
Before long, Da Kui's body fully recovered, but his mind remained blank.
Why would someone as powerful as a god save him?
After a while, Da Kui finally came to his senses, bowed respectfully, and asked with a face full of confusion, "Senior, why did you save me?"
"I act when I want to; there's no need for a reason," Lin Mu said calmly.
Although he couldn't interfere in past events casually, standing idly by wasn't his style in this situation.
Just as Da Kui was about to continue questioning, Lin Mu waved his hand to interrupt, saying calmly, "Although I saved you, I have one condition: you must change your appearance."