Ghostheart Spider

Under the group's combined assault, Long Yue finally burned himself out. He lay on the ground, drawing more breaths than he could let out, with many Soul Beast footprints trampled across his body.

Seeing this, Chen Jianshu could no longer hold on either. His domain vanished at once, his white hair slowly returned to black, and his silver eyes became their original dark color.

Those two attacks had also drained his Soul Power. He staggered and fell, but just before he hit the ground, a pair of soft arms caught him.

Chen Jianshu panted softly and looked up to see fair, tender skin marked with a few bruises, as well as long red hair that seemed somewhat unfamiliar.

"Are you all right?"

A faintly cool voice reached him, and the cat-eared girl came into view. He shook his head slightly in response.

"It's nothing serious. I just ran out of Soul Power."

The others came to their senses then. Dai Yueyan and Dai Yun'er immediately ran over to help the unconscious Long Yue up, calling out in concern:

"Brother Long Yue?"

"Brother Long!"

Among the others, Weng Daimin came to Chen Jianshu's side and took his other arm, asking with concern:

"Changkong, are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

Meanwhile, Xue Liushuang, Ye Xinglan, and Wu Bingyu stood with swords in hand, keeping a wary watch.

Dai Yueyan soon found Long Yue's eject button and pressed it. Long Yue's figure slowly vanished, and all the spiritual power on him flew to the Dai siblings.

"Prodigies of the Douluo Continent, today I've seen how extraordinary you all are. I hope we'll have another chance to spar next time."

Dai Yueyan gave the group a Star Luo Empire salute, while Dai Yun'er made a face at Ye Xinglan. If that person with the Snow Maiden Martial Soul hadn't interfered, she would never have lost to that sword-wielding girl.

And then there was that Twin Martial Souls holder from the knockoff Star Luo Academy. If not for the help of the person they'd been chasing, they would surely have defeated every one of their opponents.

"Hey! Boy over there, what's your name? Thanks for saving us just now."

Dai Yun'er looked at the figure supported by Wu Siduo and Weng Daimin and immediately called out her question.

"Me? Since you've asked so sincerely, I'll show you great mercy and tell you! I don't change my given name when I walk or my surname when I sit! I am Tang Wulin!"

Chen Jianshu promptly pointed his thumb at himself and shouted his classmate's name. Xue Liushuang and Weng Daimin were dumbfounded for a moment when they heard it. Wasn't your name Wu Changkong?

"Tang Wulin, is it? I'll remember you! My name is Dai Yun'er. Next time, you won't beat us by luck!"

With those parting words, the Dai siblings both left the Spirit Ascension Platform to check on their companion.

Afterward, Chen Jianshu and his companions, all bearing injuries, recuperated in a quiet place.

Xue Liushuang, Ye Xinglan, and Wu Bingyu all had bruises. Long Yue's punch had been no easy thing to endure. Weng Daimin, on the other hand, was mostly unharmed.

"Wu Siduo of the Wu family in Star Luo City, Douluo Continent, and Star Luo Academy. I'm very sorry for dragging you all into this."

As the group rested, the big cat apologized to them. In her view, she had been the one to lead those dangerous enemies to them.

"It's all right. We were bound to face them sooner or later anyway."

Wu Bingyu sighed. She didn't blame Wu Siduo for bringing that terrifying fellow to them; they would have faced him sooner or later anyway.

She was deeply troubled now. With her current level-twenty-one Soul Power and two Thousand-Year Soul Rings, she had been utterly unable to resist Long Yue.

It wasn't as though she had never fought a Soul Elder before, but Long Yue's Martial Soul was simply too terrifying. It was unquestionably among the very best of the super Martial Souls.

At least when she had previously fought a Soul Master named Long Chen, who had the Light Sacred Dragon Martial Soul, she had easily soloed him.

The quality of that Mountain Dragon Martial Soul completely crushed that Radiant Sacred Dragon. Perhaps only the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear could compare with it.

A deep sense of frustration welled up in her. Xue Liushuang and Ye Xinglan were also prodigies. Weren't they both experts capable of fighting opponents a Soul Ring above them? Yet they too had been utterly unable to resist, and felt deeply frustrated.

"Wu Siduo, do you know the background of that Long Yue and those siblings?"

It was also Weng Daimin's first time facing someone so powerful, and she couldn't help being curious about their origins. The question gave Wu Siduo pause, and she began to think.

"I entered the Turbulent Period Spirit Ascension Platform with the seniors from my academy. We ran into them later."

"They called themselves Star Luo Royal Academy. We fought them afterward and, unsurprisingly, suffered a crushing defeat. They called our Star Luo Academy a knockoff."

"Considering their surname is Dai and they claimed to be from the Star Luo Continent, they should be members of the Dai Family, the royal family of the Star Luo Federation over on the Star Luo Continent."

She voiced her conjecture, though they weren't from the same continent, so the information she knew was very limited.

"Prodigies from the Star Luo Continent? They really can't be underestimated..."

Weng Daimin pondered for a moment. The quality of Long Yue's Martial Soul was also unlike anything she had seen in her life, but she soon turned her gaze to Chen Jianshu.

Then this Wu... er... Tang Wulin, was it, who fought the three-ringed Long Yue with just one ring? His Martial Soul's quality should be extremely powerful too, right?

They didn't press him, however. A Martial Soul was a private matter, so they couldn't very well ask too much.

"Everyone, heal your injuries first. If we run into another enemy as strong as Long Yue, I'm afraid we'll be wiped out."

Chen Jianshu summoned a green slime: the two-star Life Slime. At the sight of the exceptionally adorable creature, the girls all turned their attention to the Soul Spirit.

"A rare life-element elemental creature Soul Spirit."

"It's so soft and bouncy!"

"Its healing is really powerful too."

The girls held the Life Slime, unable to put it down. There was nothing else for it: not one of their group was a Healing Soul Master, so they could only rely on the Soul Spirit for treatment.

While they recuperated together, a figure in the shadows watched them from a corner with a bloodthirsty gaze.

In a clearing, Chen Jianshu and the others were recovering and healing their injuries while Weng Daimin stood guard. Suddenly, she felt a chill down her back, and the hairs all over her body stood on end.

She immediately looked around warily but found nothing. Just then, however, a faint sweet scent reached her nose. She frowned slightly and looked into the distance.

A hundred-year-old Bailing Fruit lay on the ground two hundred meters away, giving off a tempting fragrance. She was dazed for a moment, then hurriedly shook her head and clutched it, murmuring:

"Something's wrong... Why would a fruit just appear on the ground for no reason? And I'm a little dizzy... It seems like mental bewitchment..."

Realizing something was wrong, she immediately went to Xue Liushuang and gave her a push.

"Sister Liushuang, Sister Liushuang, something's going on!"

Xue Liushuang opened her eyes at her voice. The others heard the commotion and opened theirs as well.

"What is it, Xiaomin? What happened?"

Xue Liushuang asked in puzzlement. Weng Daimin immediately pointed in a direction and explained what was wrong.

Everyone looked where Weng Daimin was pointing, but there was nothing there.

"Where did it go?! There was a hundred-year-old Bailing Fruit right over there just now!"

Seeing that it was gone, she was at a loss. Xue Liushuang, her good friend, nodded slightly and did not doubt her.

"Xiaomin, there's probably a spiritual-type Soul Beast lying in ambush nearby, trying to separate you from us."

She voiced her guess, and everyone found it quite reasonable. By then, Wu Siduo had recovered from her injuries. She put down the Life Slime and volunteered:

"I'll go take a look, then."

"Sorry for the trouble."

Xue Liushuang nodded slightly. After all, Wu Siduo was the only agility-type Soul Master on the team, making her the best suited for scouting.

Wu Siduo then used Martial Soul Possession. An illusory black cat tail appeared, followed by two Yellow Soul Rings around her. She became an afterimage and sped in the direction Weng Daimin had indicated.

"Speaking of which, has anyone else had a creepy feeling? I've had it ever since a little while ago."

Weng Daimin uneasily rubbed her wrist, where the hairs were standing on end. Her unease was growing stronger.

"No."

Ye Xinglan and Wu Bingyu exchanged glances and both shook their heads, saying they felt nothing of the sort. Xue Liushuang comforted her from the side.

"Don't worry, Xiaomin. There are so many of us that we can deal with any powerful enemy we encounter."

Only then did she feel reassured. Elsewhere, Wu Siduo darted through the forest, but after searching the area, she still found no target. Unwilling to give up, she searched farther out, only to find nothing again.

She had no choice but to return and report what she had found. When everyone heard there was nothing, they found it strange.

"Something's wrong. There's nothing in such a large area? That really doesn't make sense. It's too quiet."

Xue Liushuang voiced her doubts. As Weng Daimin listened, her sense of foreboding grew stronger. Then Chen Jianshu suddenly spoke.

"Powerful Soul Beasts mark out their own territories. There are no other Soul Beasts in this area, so perhaps it's the habitat of a powerful one?"

"We can't rule that out."

Xue Liushuang agreed with his answer. There wasn't a single Soul Beast within a five-hundred-meter radius, so they could only have wandered into a powerful Soul Beast's territory. Ye Xinglan thought nothing of it and said outright that they could bulldoze their way through.

"What's there to be afraid of? I'll kill however many come! I've never been afraid!"

"It's better to be cautious. If we run into another situation like last time, with wave after wave coming at us, things will be bad."

Chen Jianshu disagreed. Last time, he had faced a group attacking him together. He had been in a truly miserable state, constantly chased with death on his heels.

"I think it's better to be cautious too. We were badly injured fighting those people from the Star Luo Continent not long ago, and we're not in good shape. We shouldn't fight again now."

Xue Liushuang shook her head slightly, saying they shouldn't fight again. Although the Life Slime could heal their injuries, it couldn't restore them from mental exhaustion.

Seeing that both of them thought another fight unwise, Ye Xinglan could only back down. After all, Long Yue had gotten the better of her not long ago, wearing away some of her stubbornness.

The group unanimously decided to leave the area and immediately retraced their steps. Only after encountering other Soul Beasts and other teams of Soul Masters who had entered the Spirit Ascension Platform did they relax.

The group then bulldozed a team of Soul Masters with three Soul Elders and four Soul Grandmasters.

Those Soul Masters' skills were so watered down it was ridiculous. The girls beat them casually, while Chen Jianshu acted as the team's Healing Soul Master and treated them. He was living off the girls too.

Being surrounded and cared for by a group of beautiful girls really did feel wonderful. By then, night had fallen, and the group rested beneath a large tree.

After a day of intense fighting, they couldn't take any more. They weren't super beasts without a sense of pain, after all; they could still feel it.

Wu Siduo would take the first half of the night watch, and Chen Jianshu the second. The main reason was that Wu Siduo's Hell Spirit Cat was better at staying up late and was a nocturnal animal.

A Hell Spirit Cat's vision was unaffected at night, so Wu Siduo was responsible for the watch. Chen Jianshu, meanwhile, had mastered the dark element, making the two of them the best suited to stand guard.

Naturally, he had no objections. After all, he had spent the afternoon coasting, holding the fort at the rear and the like. Standing watch for a night was nothing.

The second half of the night soon arrived. Chen Jianshu ended his meditation and changed shifts with Wu Siduo, standing in the shadow cast by the great tree's branches and leaves.

"Yawn... The night shift... I really don't like night shifts. It's pitch-black... It really makes you feel unsafe."

Chen Jianshu folded his arms parallel to each other, hiding each hand inside the wide sleeve over his opposite arm. His eyes were narrowed, and he looked ready to fall asleep.

"Come to think of it... Since the author didn't skip this night... something's bound to happen tonight."

He suddenly opened his eyes. His formerly dark pupils turned an eerie purple, and with just one glance, the pitch-black night around him instantly faded away. It was as useful as switching on night vision.

He swept his gaze around and sensed nothing unusual, but he kept the Character Card possessed state active, not daring to let his guard down.

Time passed bit by bit. At around four in the morning, Chen Jianshu had used up quite a bit of his spiritual power, and his eyes stung a little. Looking tired, he rubbed his slightly reddened eyes.

When he opened them again, he saw what seemed to be a hideously ferocious spider crouching on a large tree some two hundred meters away. It gave him a fright.

But when he blinked, the spider was gone. That scared him badly enough to jolt him fully awake.

"Noble Phantasm Projection! Go!"

He immediately raised both hands, swung them outward, and slowly traced them downward. Six Iron Swords appeared along the path of each hand. All twelve Iron Swords shot out with a whoosh toward the place where the spider had been crouching.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Metal rang against metal. Some of the Iron Swords fell to the ground as though they had struck a hard metal shell, while others lodged in the tree with dull thuds.

"Something's wrong! Who's there?!"

Chen Jianshu immediately shouted,

then waved his hand, projected the Dawn Divine Sword with Noble Phantasm Projection, and sent it shooting over. His shout startled Ye Xinglan, Wu Bingyu, and the others out of their meditation.

They awoke at once and looked over, seeing the Dawn Divine Sword shoot out and bury itself in a large tree. A ferocious spider then leaped down from the tree and charged straight at them.

"It's a Ghostheart Demon Spider! A rare, top-tier spiritual-type predator!"

Xue Liushuang recognized it and immediately shouted. Everyone assumed fighting stances, preparing to face the Ghostheart Demon Spider.

"Why is it another spider? Am I really fated to be at odds with spiders?"

Chen Jianshu clicked his tongue at the sight of yet another spider. The last Man Faced Demon Spider had forced him to take it down with him, and now another spider had appeared?

P.S. This is the first and second update for July 13, a combined four-thousand-character chapter. I went back to my hometown for summer vacation, so the updates are a little late.