Unlock Kamen Riders in Douluo's Way Ch 41

The soul beast living area, also known as the soul beast ecological area, is, in essence, the place where soul beasts make their homes. In this expanded Douluo World, the geographical diversity translates to a greater abundance and variety of these ecological zones.

Among them, the soul beast forest reigns supreme as the largest, most diverse, and most populated. The Star Dou Forest, for instance, is a prime example of such a vast ecosystem.

However, this also means that the soul beasts within these forests are a mixed bag. Most soul masters avoid these chaotic environments, preferring to seek specific spirit rings in ecological zones known for particular types of soul beasts.

The World Tree and Baimu Trench are examples of this, the former being a haven for plant and wood-type soul beasts, while the latter is favored by aquatic soul beasts due to its concentrated soul power. The frigid Polar Continent is home to ice-type soul beasts, while the perpetually hurricane-shrouded Infinite Tianshan teems with spirit beasts possessing exceptional flight abilities.

Yin Xiaoya and his group now find themselves in the Lava Mountains, a location defined by its specific attribute. A vast magma flow lies a mere hundred meters beneath the surface, causing surface temperatures to soar, making it ideal for soul beasts with powerful fire affinities.

As far as the eye can see, an endless landscape of mountains stretches out, dotted with bizarre rock formations. The terrain is largely barren, with occasional bursts of bright magma spewing from the ground. Dominating the horizon is a towering volcano, reaching a height of nearly 10,000 meters. Even from hundreds of kilometers away, its outline is clearly visible, along with the plumes of black smoke billowing from its peak.

"Ugh… it's so hot!" Tang Wu whines, the heat already getting to her. Sweat soaks her beautiful long whip, causing it to cling uncomfortably to her neck.

However, Xiao San is suffering even more. As a plant-type martial soul master, he is naturally vulnerable to flames. While his Blue Silver Grass would be able to ignore the flames if he had reached the 100,000-year soul beast stage, he is currently just a novice soul master with two soul rings, neither of which grants his Blue Silver Grass fire resistance.

Seeing the children struggling, Su Xuan decides they have had enough of an introduction. He claps his hands together. "Alright, those of you experiencing the Lava Mountains for the first time should now understand the dangers they pose. It's time to learn how to withstand the heat."

The group then notices that the accompanying teachers, including Su Xuan, seem completely unaffected by the high temperatures, showing no signs of discomfort or even a bead of sweat.

"Students visiting the Lava Mountains for the first time must learn to resist the heat on the spot to progress further," Su Xuan explains. "The method isn't particularly difficult, but it requires focus. Watch closely." She demonstrates how to use soul power to create a cyclone around the body, effectively insulating it from the heat. While this technique won't defend against flames reaching hundreds of degrees, it can certainly mitigate the discomfort of temperatures in the tens of degrees.

Tang Wu, Xiao San, and Fang Xin, all possessing considerable talent, quickly grasp the technique. Ma Hongjun, however, lacks even a single soul ring, his soul power barely reaching level fifteen. Such intricate control proves too challenging for him. Fortunately, as he aims for a fire-attribute spirit ring, the need to adapt to the heat provides him with additional motivation.

Watching him sweat profusely, yet stubbornly refusing to give up, Yin Xiaoya nods approvingly. Ma Hongjun's determination to grow stronger is evident, undeterred by the initial hardships.

"S-Senior, I understand everyone else, but why are you acting like it's nothing? Don't you have no soul power in your body?" Tang Wu asks, confused.

Yin Xiaoya grins, proudly gesturing to the Meteor Driver on his waist. "As long as I wear this, a portion of the Rider's strength surges out, helping me resist the temperature."

Everyone, including Ma Hongjun, raises their eyebrows in annoyance. This is cheating! Even with soul power, their physical strength depletes faster as they constantly mobilize it to resist the heat. Yin Xiaoya achieves the same effect effortlessly, without expending anything, which is infuriating.

"Alright, we've already traversed the outermost area, where there are no soul beasts," Su Xuan announces, stopping after about ten kilometers. Pointing to the various paths branching out before them, she says, "We'll start encountering soul beasts soon. The Lava Mountains aren't suitable for prolonged battles, so to avoid unnecessary consumption, we need to decide what kind of soul beast we're looking for before proceeding. Little fat man, before we left, Grandmaster should have told you about the soul beasts that suit you, right?"

Ma Hongjun nods, panting, and clumsily retrieves a letter from within his sweat-soaked clothes. Su Xuan's face darkens at the sight of the damp letter, but she sighs and says, "Open it yourself and read it to us."

Embarrassed, he unfolds the letter and reads out Yu Xiaogang's instructions. Based on Ma Hongjun's current condition, the Grandmaster has identified three suitable soul beasts: the Poison Fire Needle Scorpion, the Flame-Tailed Black-Bone Chicken, and the Red Jade Silkworm. As these names are spoken, Yin Xiaoya notices the expressions of the teachers turn sour.

"Grandmaster… you really know how to make things difficult," one of them mutters.

"Yeah, this looks like it's going to be a long battle," another adds, equally dismayed.

"Is there a problem with these three soul beasts?" Yin Xiaoya asks, curious.

Su Xuan sighs, explaining the issues. Each of the three presents its own unique challenges.

First, there's the Poison Fire Needle Scorpion: a crimson-armored scorpion with a venomous, needle-like tail. This rare soul beast combines poison and flame, resulting in a scorching toxin. Once the poisonous fire invades the body, detoxification is nearly impossible, making it the most dangerous of the three.

Then, there's the Flame-Tailed Black-Bone Chicken: a bird-type soul beast with feathers made of solid black fire. While not particularly strong in combat, it possesses an extraordinary ability: feathering clones. It can instantly create hundreds of clones, each maintaining the same fighting power as the original for ten minutes. However, it doesn't use the clones to fight; instead, it immediately flees, with the numerous clones scattering in different directions, making it impossible to catch.

Finally, there's the Red Jade Silkworm. The teachers reject this option immediately. Not only is it incredibly rare, but it also lives in an extremely harsh environment, having been soaked in magma for countless years. Even a thousand-year-level Red Jade Silkworm is only the size of a palm, making it practically impossible to find.

Despite the difficulties, everyone quickly agrees on the first option: the Poison Fire Needle Scorpion. Thanks to Shi Er's anti-toxin medicine given to them before they set off, they have a chance to mitigate the poison, even if it doesn't provide complete immunity.

With the target identified, the next step is to find it. Yin Xiaoya volunteers for this task, releasing all the Candroids in his system space: Batta Candroids, Tako Candroids, and Taka Candroids, tasking them to search for the soul beast.

Seeing the astonishment on everyone's faces, he smiles and explains, "Didn't I say we should avoid consumption? These little guys of mine excel at exploration. Let's leave the work to them; they'll be far quicker than any of us."

"Uh… so what do we do now?" one of the teachers asks.

With the tedious exploration work delegated, everyone is at a loss for what to do.

"Have you forgotten? This trip isn't just about finding a spirit ring for Ma Hongjun; it's also about making him a Kamen Rider. That requires a soul beast as well, but unlike the scorpion, I know exactly where this one is. While the little guys are searching for the Poison Fire Needle Scorpion, please help me subdue this other soul beast."

As long as a soul beast can be used to unlock a Kamen Rider's power, the system can pinpoint its location within a certain radius. Entering the Lava Mountains activated the system, marking the locations of numerous soul beasts capable of unlocking different Kamen Rider powers.

Among them happens to be one suitable for unlocking the Henshin Onsa in Ma Hongjun's possession. Yes, the transformation device given to him is the tuning fork used by the Onis in the Kamen Rider Hibiki series. However, the system didn't specify which Oni Rider this Henshin Onsa corresponds to, stating only that it cannot be Hibiki, the main Rider.

The problem is, numerous Oni warriors appear throughout the Hibiki series. In that world's setting, Onis specialize in battling ghosts and monsters, each Oni possessing a unique image.

Although the Douluo World can replicate these forms based on the corresponding soul beasts, Yin Xiaoya suspects that the system might not produce a fixed Oni, but instead create a brand new one based on Ma Hongjun's characteristics. But all of this is just speculation. The most important thing is to find the soul beast designated by the system.

The group follows Yin Xiaoya for about ten kilometers, finally stopping at a location with surface magma. The magma flows like forked streams, winding intricately through a stone forest. The stones range from a few meters to tens of meters high, hindering visibility. The proximity to the magma makes the stone forest incredibly hot, causing even those resisting with soul power to feel uncomfortable.

"Scorched Stone Forest? Is the soul beast you're looking for here?" Su Xuan asks, pulling Yin Xiaoya aside.

"Well, it should be around here."

Upon confirmation, Su Xuan and the other teachers exchange concerned glances, confusing Yin Xiaoya.

"We probably know which soul beast you're looking for," Su Xuan says.

"Huh? How do you know?"

Su Xuan sighs. "This is the only kind of soul beast living here; did you think we wouldn't know? It's not that we're objecting, but we have no chance of winning against them with our current strength."

"They? I only want one. What do you mean?"

"Zhi!!!!"

Before Yin Xiaoya can finish his question, everyone hears a bird's screech echoing through the stone forest – not just one, but hundreds screeching in unison. Hearing the sound, he finally understands what Su Xuan means.

"Could it be that the same kind of soul beasts live here?"

Su Xuan nods. "Exactly. And there are a lot of them. According to rough estimates, there are at least a hundred who have been cultivated for over a thousand years. And they are fiercely protective of their young. Harm even one, even if it's just a few decades old, and you'll have to face the wrath of the entire flock. Even soul beasts avoid this place, because they know these guys are not to be trifled with."

Another teacher adds, "While this is just a rumor, it's a persistent one. It's said that the leader of this flock is an over 50,000-year-old individual of immense strength. If it joins the fray, the few of us wouldn't stand a chance."

Yin Xiaoya is taken aback. However, something doesn't add up. When he looks at the points marked by the system, there is only one. If there were multiple soul beasts of the same type, how could the system only mark one?

"System, what's going on?"

[They are not wrong in what they said. This is indeed the place where the soul beasts of the same group live, but the system label is also correct. In this group, there is only one that can unlock the Henshin Onsa. However, what is going on, the host must see its body with his own eyes before he can determine what is going on]

Where is this all coming from? Yin Xiaoya thinks, annoyed.

"Su Xuan, what's the name of the soul beast you're talking about?" he asks.

She gives him a speechless look. "You brought us here; don't you know?"

"Uh… I have some difficulties, please understand."

"Fine," she sighs. "A group of spirit beasts called Ghost-Faced Griffins lives here. They have eagle heads with strange patterns, lion-like bodies, and a pair of flaming red wings on their backs. Their flames are imbued with a powerful physical attack, and individuals over 5,000 years old can reportedly use magma as bath water."

Magma as bath water… Just how strong does it have to be? And there isn't just one, but a group of them! But what isn't clear now is why only one can unlock the Kamen Rider's power.

"Well, it seems we'll have to go in and investigate," Yin Xiaoya says.