Zhou Sichen followed Qian Duoduo out of the Inner Court and headed toward the Beast Arena. At this moment, an elderly man inside the arena was waiting anxiously.
Ever since he heard about Zhou Sichen's Book of Contracts, he had been eager to meet this young man. He had dedicated countless efforts to nurturing the soul beasts under his care, so this opportunity was invaluable to him.
As Qian Duoduo approached with a handsome young man, Gong Changlong took two steps forward, closing the distance in an instant. He didn't even spare a glance at Qian Duoduo.
Where was the dignity of a Titled Douluo? Where was the cold and distant demeanor that made others hesitant to approach him?
Instead, Gong Changlong's wrinkled face leaned in close to Zhou Sichen, wearing what he believed to be a friendly and approachable smile.
"So, you must be Zhou Sichen? I am Gong Changlong, but you can just call me Elder Gong."
Zhou Sichen bowed slightly in greeting. "Elder Gong."
Gong Changlong immediately grabbed Zhou Sichen's hand and led him toward the interior of the Beast Arena.
As they walked, he spoke enthusiastically, "Old Qian told me that your martial soul allows you to form contracts with soul beasts and that they are all exceptionally obedient to you."
"I don't have many hobbies, but I do love raising soul beasts. Everyone in the academy calls me the Beast King, though honestly, I'm not as great as the title suggests."
"So, I was wondering if you could do me a small favor. I can't communicate with soul beasts myself, but maybe your contracted soul beasts could talk to my precious ones? It would help me understand what these little creatures are thinking."
At this moment, Elder Gong resembled a chatterbox—or rather, a passionate student eager to learn—as he continued rambling on and on to Zhou Sichen.
Zhou Sichen listened silently, pondering how he could help.
Qian Duoduo followed behind them at a leisurely pace, watching Gong Changlong with a helpless expression.
This man had no particular interests except for training soul beasts.
That said, he had to admit—Zhou Sichen's contracted soul beasts were perfectly suited for the task.
After all, soul beasts followed the law of the jungle, respecting strength above all else. If Zhou Sichen's contracted soul beasts obeyed him, and then they, in turn, subdued other soul beasts, wouldn't that create a seamless chain of obedience?
As they stepped into the Beast Arena, the overwhelming scent of blood and the violent aura of the soul beasts made Zhou Sichen frown.
Inside enormous iron cages, various soul beasts were kept in captivity. With a quick glance, he estimated there were at least a hundred of them.
Most were at the hundred-year level, some at the thousand-year level, and only a scarce few—barely a dozen—had reached the ten-thousand-year level.
The moment Elder Gong entered, all the soul beasts, including the ten-thousand-year ones, curled up in the corners, shivering in fear. Clearly, they were terrified of his authority.
"How about my little darlings? I have poured my heart and soul into taming them, but the wild nature of soul beasts is hard to suppress. Don't be fooled by their current state—once they're out, they'll still be nothing but bloodthirsty predators."
Hearing Elder Gong's words, Zhou Sichen nodded in agreement.
Soul beasts naturally resisted humans, making them difficult to tame. Even though his Book of Contracts was incredibly special, he still had to "convince them with virtue" when forming contracts.
Zhou Sichen replied, "Elder Gong, before coming here, Dean Qian already explained the situation to me. I can't guarantee success, but I will do my best to help."
Hearing this, Elder Gong was overjoyed and wrapped an arm around Zhou Sichen's shoulder as if they were sworn brothers.
"Hahaha! That's all I needed to hear! From now on, no matter what trouble you run into, come to me. I won't let you down!"
Zhou Sichen smiled slightly. "I might just take you up on that offer, Elder Gong."
With those words, he took a few steps forward and slowly raised his right hand.
A golden book, radiating a dazzling light, appeared in his grasp—the Book of Contracts.
Elder Gong's expression turned serious as he stared unblinkingly at Zhou Sichen. He had heard the rumors: this young boy's soul rings were all purple, meaning thousand-year level…
Such an extraordinary martial soul—despite all his years studying soul beasts, this was his first time encountering something like this.
As the Book of Contracts materialized, three black ten-thousand-year soul rings rose around Zhou Sichen.
Seeing these three rings and feeling their immense pressure, Elder Gong's eyebrows twitched.
Having spent years dealing with soul beasts, he was intimately familiar with the aura of soul rings.
These three rings weren't just ten thousand years old—they were at least fifteen thousand years old!
How could a twelve-year-old possibly possess such soul rings?
Weren't they supposed to be thousand-year rings? How did they suddenly become ten-thousand-year rings overnight?!
Elder Gong nearly exploded on the spot. This completely shattered his worldview!
Since when did the continent have such a terrifying genius?
But he had to admit—witnessing such a miracle in his lifetime was truly worth it.
After a long pause, Elder Gong, as a Titled Douluo, forced himself to calm down.
Setting aside the shocking soul rings, what he was most eager to see now were Zhou Sichen's contracted soul beasts—Ice Jade Scorpion, Hell Phoenix, Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear…
Each one of these was an incredibly rare and powerful species. Unfortunately, the stronger a soul beast's bloodline, the harder it was to tame. Even as a Titled Douluo respected as the Beast King, Elder Gong had never been able to tame such high-bloodline soul beasts.
And now, with three ten-thousand-year soul rings, did that mean Zhou Sichen's contracted soul beasts were all at the ten-thousand-year level?!
A ten-thousand-year Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear? That was a terrifying existence even he wouldn't dare to face head-on…
At this moment, Qian Duoduo walked up beside Elder Gong and smirked meaningfully.
"So, how about that? Pretty good, right? I brought Sichen here just for you today."
Only then did Elder Gong remember Qian Duoduo's presence. He awkwardly smiled. "Ah… Old Qian, my apologies. I got too excited and forgot about you."
Elder Gong didn't question the sudden change in Zhou Sichen's soul rings. As a high-ranking member of the academy, he knew better than to pry into matters that weren't his business.
Qian Duoduo, already used to Elder Gong's antics, raised an eyebrow and joked, "Well, since I did you such a favor, don't forget about that ten-thousand-year Blood Tiger's essence and that thousand-year Horned Deer's antler."
Elder Gong immediately gave him a knowing look and patted his chest in reassurance. "No problem!"
Unbeknownst to him, however, there was an understanding between Qian Duoduo and Xian Lin'er…
As they conversed, the first of Zhou Sichen's three black soul rings lit up, and the golden book flipped to its first page.
A beautifully detailed image on the page glowed, transforming into a ball of bright blue light that landed before them.
As the glow faded, a massive Ice Jade Scorpion appeared, its crystalline body glistening. The sheer aura of a ten-thousand-year soul beast radiated from it, making the already trembling soul beasts cower even further in fear.
Elder Gong's eyes shone with excitement. If he weren't trying to maintain some composure, he would have lunged forward to hug the creature.
Though it wasn't the Darkgold Dreadclaw Bear, a ten-thousand-year Ice Jade Scorpion was still an incredible sight.
The Ice Jade Scorpion clan was a powerful race in the Extreme North, specializing in ice and poison.
Some individuals could even abandon their poison entirely, focusing purely on the Ultimate Ice attribute—an attribute so rare that even among Titled Douluo, those who possessed it were one in a million.
Zhou Sichen smiled. "This is Ah Da, my first contracted soul beast."
Elder Gong stepped closer to examine the magnificent scorpion, while Ah Da curiously observed the old man.
Even though Elder Gong didn't release his soul power, Ah Da could still sense the overwhelming pressure emanating from him.
More importantly, Elder Gong's years of handling soul beasts had left him covered in their scents.
If Ah Da didn't already know he was human, he might have mistaken him for a fellow soul beast.
Through spiritual communication, Zhou Sichen relayed Elder Gong's intentions to Ah Da, who lifted its head proudly.
"Boss, don't worry. None of these guys can beat me. My natural poison was already terrifying, and now, with the Ultimate Ice granted by the ancestor (Tian Meng), even after reaching the ten-thousand-year level, I can cultivate both ice and poison without issue."
"Just give me half a day, and I'll have them all under my command!"
Hearing Ah Da's confident response, Zhou Sichen turned to Elder Gong.
"Elder Gong, Ah Da can subdue these soul beasts without any problem. It will just take a few small tricks."
Elder Gong was overjoyed. "That's fantastic!"
****
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