Xiang Yang felt a little uneasy as he recalled the way Dai Mubai had looked at him when they changed shifts that morning. Had something happened yesterday?
When he asked Tang San, Tang San only said everything was normal and he hadn't noticed anything amiss.
Ah, maybe I just didn't sleep well and my eyes were playing tricks on me, Xiang Yang thought.
After several more hours on the road, they finally arrived at a strange mountain valley that even sunlight couldn't penetrate.
The dense bamboo forest seemed to stretch on without end. Ma Hongjun took two steps forward, only to feel waves of cold air creeping up his neck, making him shiver unexpectedly.
He turned around and said meekly, "This place... is pretty creepy."
Actually, Ma Hongjun had initially wanted to suggest they not go in. It felt gloomy and sinister inside, and that was quite unfavorable to him.
"Fatty, watch the rear. I'll lead the way." With Dai Mubai, who had the highest cultivation, giving the order, everyone proceeded according to plan.
Only a few minutes after they entered, Dai Mubai, who was cutting through the bamboo with his tiger claws at the front, heard some movement a short distance ahead and to the right. He immediately raised a hand, signaling everyone to stop, and Tang San extended his Blue Silver Grass in that direction as instructed.
He had been deliberately placed near the front because he was the only one who could scout without making a sound. This was also one of the characteristics of a Plant-type Martial Soul, whose usefulness was amplified in a forest.
"It's all right. It's just a Purple-Light Rat digging for bamboo shoots." Tang San's next words made them breathe a sigh of relief.
In Soul Beast territory, it was best to avoid fighting too much. The sounds of a fierce clash would attract more Soul Beasts, and even an instant kill would leave behind the smell of blood.
Of course, if you had a Titled Douluo leading the way, you didn't need to worry about it. If you had two above level ninety-five who also had a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, you could even charge into the core area (laughs).
"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!"
Just as they were preparing to continue, a dense thrumming of wings came from behind them.
"Not good!" "Damn!" "Eek, that's a little scary."
Xiang Yang and the other two turned to look and saw a "black cloud" bearing down on them with unstoppable force.
"Those are Black Bamboo Bees," Xiang Yang and Tang San said at the same time. They exchanged a glance, and Tang San continued, "Don't attack yet. Let's avoid them first. Go!"
Under his lead, the group hurried more than a hundred meters to the left, but a small portion of the swarm still followed them.
Seeing this, Xiang Yang gave his orders. "Tang San, use your Blue Silver Grass to make a covering big enough to hide all of us. I'll assist you. Xiao Wu, Zhu Zhuqing, go draw the swarm away. Mubai, guard us. Little Oscar, Rongrong, give us your buffs. Hongjun, don't move."
"Okay." Tang San didn't ask why they weren't wiping out this small group of bees. He unleashed his Martial Soul and quickly began weaving.
"Red-Eyed Moonshadow! Activate!"
The instant Xiao Wu's speed surged, more than a dozen Black Bamboo Bees also lost their vision, throwing their formation into disarray.
"Nine Netherworld Clones! Appear!"
Zhu Zhuqing split off two clones and drew the swarm away.
This Soul Skill came from hunting a Nine Netherworld Spirit Cat, a close relative of the Hell Spirit Cat. It could copy one hundred percent of the original's abilities except for this Soul Skill itself, and an additional clone could be created every ten levels.
It had also fused with her own darkness attribute, allowing the clones to disperse into black mist that could obstruct vision and spiritual perception. Zhu Zhuqing had previously used this ability to successfully disrupt Zhao Wuji, buying enough preparation time to activate the Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
"Seven Treasures Have Names, Second: Speed!"
"Fragrant, soft, tender tofu!"
After all that, only a scattered few were knocked down by Dai Mubai. The two girls then hurried back and hid in the grass shelter with the others, and only when the swarm couldn't find them did it gradually disperse.
A quarter of an hour later, the group changed direction and continued onward.
Ma Hongjun nudged Oscar. "Why did we hide just now? Those little bugs only looked scary. They were actually all Ten-Year Soul Beasts. I could've burned them all with one blast of fire." It wasn't that he thought Xiang Yang had done anything wrong; he simply didn't understand and was too embarrassed to ask, so he could only try asking his good brother.
"Fatty, you've really eaten until your head's stuffed and your gut's full, if you can't even understand that." Oscar teased him first, but when he saw Ma Hongjun's fist gradually clenching, he hurriedly straightened up. "Ahem, think about it. This is a bamboo forest. If you set a fire, it'd spread everywhere. How many Soul Beasts would that attract?"
"And that swarm of Black Bamboo Bees was only a small part of the colony. A single hive has at least tens of thousands." He shook his head, then caught sight of Rongrong looking over out of the corner of his eye. Raising his head, he said, "Once we got tangled up with them, the rest would definitely come. If we made too much noise, there might even be more Soul Beasts of other kinds. Of course, one less problem is better than one more."
Xiang Yang's thinking was actually simple: they had come for training, not to fight Soul Beasts. In Soul Beast territory, as long as they weren't invincible, they had to avoid pointless conflicts as much as possible.
The biggest reason this place was forbidden to humans was that they were isolated and without support. Once a battle began, their stamina would dwindle and their Soul Power would run out, but the Soul Beasts were endless. Never mind a handful of little Soul Masters in their twenties and thirties—even high-level Soul Saints like Flender and Zhao Wuji wouldn't think that just because this was the thousand-year region, they could run rampant here.
Without some special reason, doing that was courting death. Before they knew it, high-level Soul Beasts might catch the scent and come looking while they were fighting.
More than an hour later, after several detours along the way, the group finally stood before a strange bamboo forest.
Once they arrived, the two teachers finally showed themselves. "What's going on?" Ma Hongjun asked in confusion. They hadn't even started fighting, and the two Soul Saints had already come out?
"Ah, Fatty, don't tell me your Evil Fire's burned its way into your brain." Oscar pressed a hand to his forehead, looking worried as he remarked, "We specifically talked about this before. A thousand-year plant-type bamboo Soul Beast can cover an area several thousand meters across. How long would it take us to fight our way through? With that little bit of fire of yours, you couldn't burn it all in a day."
"Oh, oh, oh, I see." Ma Hongjun was left blinking in surprise by his explanation.
Tang San heard the voice beside him. Oscar was right, and his target this time, the [Secluded Iron Bamboo], was one of the best among them.
Aside from the reproductive speed common to bamboo, its characteristics could be roughly guessed from its name. This kind of Soul Beast was far harder than other bamboo. They usually grew in places rich in iron ore and naturally absorbed some metallic elements as they grew, making them far more resistant to fire than ordinary plants.
Unlike the green or blue-green of other bamboo, Secluded Iron Bamboo was gray-black (gray at a hundred years, black at a thousand), and its stalks were irregularly angular rather than round like ordinary bamboo.
At a glance, more than half the bamboo forest before them was gray, indicating that this Soul Beast had only recently broken through to a thousand years.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Zhao Wuji and Flender, one on the ground and one in the sky, swept the area with palm imprints and wind blades.
The Soul Beasts in the bamboo forest were so frightened by the Soul Saints' presence that they fled blindly. Even with Xiang Yang, Tang San, and the others right in front of them, they paid them no mind.
A few minutes later
Flender folded his broad wings and landed in front of them. "All right, there are still a few roots left. Go on, hurry."
"Yes, thank you, Dean." Tang San cupped his fists in salute, then headed toward the land the two Soul Saints had ravaged beyond recognition.
He turned over the broken bamboo stalks and looked at the few connected bamboo roots clinging to life. Then he summoned his Martial Soul. "Splitting Fluff Explosion!"
The densely packed Blue Silver Grass swiftly seized what little life it had left. Watching the purple ring of light gradually solidify, Tang San felt a mix of emotions: curiosity about his third Soul Ring, excitement at the increase in his cultivation, and... a trace of bitterness and frustration at the destruction before him. So many... materials... all wasted!
Then he thought of the various other Soul Beasts, and the words Xiang Yang had spoken yesterday flashed through his mind. Without realizing it, he clenched his fist.
You definitely will... no!
We will definitely succeed!
We will definitely succeed!
We will definitely succeed!
He repeated it silently three times because Xiang Yang had said before: important things should be said three times.
He didn't quite understand it, though. Perhaps it was a custom that had arisen in later generations.
He sat down cross-legged and stirred his Soul Power to draw in and refine the Soul Ring. No matter what, strength was what counted. He could worry about the future later; for now, he would advance to Soul Elder first.