Douluo Continent: The Purple Dragon's Roar, the End of the Dark Abyss

"Wife! Xiao Yi and I are back!" Ye Zihao's loud voice boomed at the gate of the courtyard.

The door opened with a click, and Yang Liuqing, wearing an apron and with flour still on her face, quickly came out to greet them: "Oh my, you two actually obtained suitable soul rings in just one afternoon? I thought it would take a day or more!"

Ye Zihao patted his chest proudly: "Absolutely! You see who's in charge!" He turned to his son and winked, "Xiao Yi, come in first."

As soon as the three entered the house, Ye Zihao couldn't wait to get close to his wife, grinning like a cat that had just stolen some cream: "Wife, guess how many years Xiao Yi's first spirit ring will last?"

Yang Liuqing nudged her husband with the back of her flour-covered hand: "It's only 500 to 600 years, isn't it? Does that exceed our planned timeframe?"

Ye Zihao suddenly straightened up, his eyes shining like stars: "Yes! That's right, it definitely exceeded the limit! Honey, you can guess with confidence!"

Yang Liuqing rolled her eyes at him and wiped her hands with her apron: "I guess it's been more than 700 years, Xiao Yi's limit."

"Raise it higher!" Ye Zihao slapped his thigh anxiously.

Yang Liuqing looked at her husband suspiciously, then turned to her son: "Really? More than 700 years? You're not lying to me, are you?"

Ye Linyi and his father shook their heads frantically. Ye Linyi quickly added, "Mom, Dad isn't lying to you, it really is taller than 700 years."

Ye Zihao, looking aggrieved, tugged at his wife's apron: "Wife, how could I dare to lie to you?"

Seeing this, Yang Liuqing laughed and patted her chest: "Alright, alright, I know you weren't lying to me. Now tell me, how many years have you exceeded the limit?"

Ye Zihao instantly switched from a wronged expression to a smug one, his eyes narrowing into slits: "You'd better be prepared when I tell you, don't be surprised."

Yang Liuqing laughed and punched him lightly: "Old Ye, what storms haven't I weathered? Just tell me!"

"Xiao Yi's first spirit ring is—" Ye Zihao deliberately dragged out the word, "1500 years!"

"What?!" Yang Liuqing dropped the dough in her hand onto the cutting board with a "thud," her eyes widening in disbelief. "You two aren't lying to me, are you? Really?"

Ye Zihao looked at his son triumphantly. Ye Linyi understood and with a flick of his wrist, the Dark Abyss God-Slaying Halberd with a purple soul ring appeared in his palm.

As the light swirled, the entire room was enveloped in a mysterious purple glow.

Yang Liuqing covered her mouth, her eyes widening even more, and quickly stepped forward to examine it closely: "It really is a thousand-year soul ring!"

Ye Zihao slammed his hand on the table with an air of bravado: "I wasn't lying to you!"

The three of them looked at each other and smiled, a warm atmosphere flowing in the sunlight.

Yang Liuqing's eyes were filled with a complex mix of worry and pride. She gently stroked her son's still somewhat immature but resolute face, her voice trembling slightly: "Xiao Yi, you wouldn't dare risk absorbing such a high-level spirit ring, and besides, you are a twin spirit possessor, with limitless possibilities for the future..."

"Alright, Mom!" Ye Linyi interrupted his mother with a smile, deliberately straightening his back to show off his strong arms. "I know you're worried about me, but didn't I successfully absorb it? You're making it sound like I didn't succeed."

Yang Liuqing sighed softly, her eyes full of doting: "I know, but you can't take such risks next time, understand? Xiaoyi."

"Okay, Mom." Ye Linyi nodded obediently, but a sly glint flashed in his eyes.

"Alright, everyone go about your business." Yang Liuqing waved her hand casually.

"Mmm-hmm!" Ye Linyi skipped and hopped out of the house, then suddenly turned back and shouted, "Mom and Dad, I'm going to try out my first soul skill!"

"Okay, be careful!" Ye Zihao and Yang Liuqing said in unison.

"Hmm!" Ye Linyi's figure disappeared outside the door.

The moment the door closed, Yang Liuqing's expression turned serious. She put her hands on her hips and glared at Ye Zihao, who was still standing dumbfounded in the living room: "Ye Zihao, you'd better kneel down! If you move even a little, you're finished!"

"What? Why?" Ye Zihao was completely bewildered, watching his wife's expression change instantly, utterly unaware of what he had done wrong.

"Kneel down!" Yang Liuqing shouted sternly, startling Ye Zihao so much that he quickly knelt on the ground.

Ye Zihao blinked his eyes pitifully, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace: "Wife, what did I do wrong again?"

Yang Liuqing crossed her arms, her gaze piercing her husband like a sharp sword: "Don't you know what you did wrong?"

Ye Zihao nodded frantically, beads of sweat forming on his forehead: "Wife, just tell me! I can't just kneel here for nothing!"

"Fine, I'll tell you where you went wrong!" Yang Liuqing took a deep breath, raising her voice a few decibels. "You shouldn't have let Xiao Yi absorb a 1500-year-old soul ring, which is beyond his level. What am I supposed to do if he fails to absorb it? Huh?"

Ye Zihao was so aggrieved that tears were almost falling: "Wife, you can't blame me for this! Xiao Yi is determined to absorb this spirit ring. I've tried to persuade him many times to no avail; he's just stubbornly determined to absorb it!"

Yang Liuqing snorted coldly: "Alright, thankfully the absorption was successful this time. Next time you help Xiao Yi acquire a soul ring, the age limit absolutely cannot exceed that by too much, understand?"

Ye Zihao nodded vigorously, clasping his hands together in a gesture of respect: "Next time, I'll risk my life to make sure he doesn't absorb a soul ring that's been there for so many years, even if it means risking my life!"

"Wife, can I get up now?" Ye Zihao pleaded pitifully.

Yang Liuqing snorted lightly, turned and walked towards the kitchen: "Kneel!" As she left, she added casually, "One hour will do!"

Ye Zihao watched his wife's departing figure, then looked up to the sky and sighed, "Heavens above, earth below, why do you treat me like this!"

They silently reached a consensus: the reason their son was able to absorb a 1500-year soul ring beyond his level was due to the blessing of a top-tier beast soul and martial soul, his persistent training, the whale glue he occasionally took to enhance his physique, and a little bit of luck.

.........

"We've arrived at the back of the mountain!"

Standing at the edge of the dense forest, Ye Linyi gazed at the towering primeval forest before him and shouted excitedly, "Whoosh!"

"Your grandfather is here!" He deliberately lowered his voice, mimicking the tone of an old man, and then summoned the Dark Abyss God-Slaying Halberd Martial Soul. The halberd glowed with a dark purple light and charged into the jungle.

Ye Linyi moved through the jungle, his sharp eyes searching for prey.

Suddenly, he remembered his first soul skill, "Shadow Piercing"—an ability that allowed him to slip into the shadows and quickly lock onto his prey.

He looked up at the sky, which was covered by dense foliage. This forest, where sunlight was almost nonexistent, was the perfect place to unleash his soul skills.

"Now!" Ye Linyi's first purple soul ring suddenly lit up, and his soul skill was activated.

The Dark Abyss God-Slaying Halberd suddenly emitted a dense dark light. With a slash of its tip forward, space seemed to be torn apart, and Ye Linyi disappeared into the jungle in an instant.

From the outside, this jungle seems to be nothing out of the ordinary, but if someone with keen spiritual power or a higher level of spiritual attainment were here, they would definitely be able to detect the spatial fluctuations left in the air.

Ye Linyi groped his way through the darkness. This was his first time using a soul skill, and his movements were still a bit clumsy.

He tried to take a step forward, but found that he could not control his direction freely in the dark space and could only grope around in place.

"This won't do..." Ye Linyi frowned, concentrating on sensing the flow of soul power.

After several attempts, he finally found the trick—by controlling the direction of his soul power release, he could guide himself to move through the dark space.

He successfully traversed the space several times, emerging from the darkness, his forehead beaded with sweat and panting heavily.

"I didn't expect to deplete my soul power so quickly after just a few trips..." Ye Linyi wiped his sweat and secretly estimated, "With my level 14 soul power, I can only trip a maximum of eight times."

He walked to a large tree, sat cross-legged, and began to recover his soul power. A moment later, he opened his eyes, which gleamed with excitement: "Again!"

Ye Linyi summoned the Dark Abyss God-Slaying Halberd once again, his purple soul ring lit up, and he activated his first soul skill, "Shadow Piercing the Realm".

The halberd tip sliced ​​through the space, and he slipped inside, beginning his journey through the darkness.

This time, Ye Linyi's vision was exactly the same as the outside world, perfectly clear.

He traversed the area several times, stopping to look around, but didn't see a single soul beast. He couldn't help but wonder, "How strange, why haven't I encountered anything?"

He decided to go through it a few more times.

After traversing through several more times, Ye Linyi suddenly saw an open space ahead—a huge waterfall cascading down the cliff, connecting to a green pool below, with splashing water that shimmered with rainbow colors in the sunlight.

"Why is there a waterfall here?" Ye Linyi muttered to himself, a hint of curiosity flashing in his eyes.

He decided to first recover his soul power before deciding whether to continue exploring this unexpected discovery.

Ye Linyi leaped out of the dark space, his right hand gripping the Dark Abyss God-Slaying Halberd tightly. The halberd gleamed with a dark purple light as he warily scanned his surroundings.

After confirming that there were no traces of soul beasts, he slowly walked forward to the edge of the pool.

The pond water was crystal clear, and several silver fish swam among the rocks, creating tiny ripples.

Ye Linyi squatted down, his fingertips lightly touching the water's surface, and the coolness instantly spread throughout his body.

He deliberately exposed his back to create an opportunity for potential enemies, while secretly observing the reflection on the water's surface—his only blind spot.

Just then, a dark figure quietly emerged in the reflection of the water.

A hundred-year-old tiger-type spirit beast poked its head out from behind a tree, its amber pupils locking onto Ye Linyi's back, its fangs gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

It let out a low growl, its hind legs slammed into the ground, and it transformed into a black shadow, lunging towards Ye Linyi's "vital point".