Bloodthirsty Berserk Tiger

Suotuo City was not far from the Star Dou Great Forest, less than five hundred kilometers away.

Naturally, this made it the best place for Shrek Academy's students to obtain Soul Rings.

Whether it was Wang Xiaofeng, Ma Hongjun, or even Oscar, they had all obtained their Second Soul Rings in the Star Dou Great Forest.

This showed just how special the Star Dou Great Forest was. No matter what kind of Soul Master you were, you could always find the Soul Beast you needed here—provided you did not get killed first.

As long as each of them ate one of Oscar's sausages every hour, their stamina could remain abundant.

Oscar had been exercising with Wang Xiaofeng lately. Though he trained inconsistently, his physique had indeed improved, and he could barely keep up with the others.

Ma Hongjun, on the other hand, needed to rest from time to time to recover his Soul Power before he could keep going. But his Soul Power rank was the lowest, and he also had to suppress his evil fire every day. It was only natural that his body was somewhat weak.

Watching Ma Hongjun panting for breath, Wang Xiaofeng stroked his chin. It seemed that after they returned this time, he could ask the dean to activate that hellish training plan designed specifically for Ma Hongjun.

Before the sun set, the group from Shrek Academy had run more than four hundred kilometers. Seeing that they could not reach their destination today, Zhao Wuji ordered them to rest.

They had happened to arrive at a Small Town. If they continued onward, there was no telling whether they would find supplies.

As soon as they entered the Small Town, Wang Xiaofeng and the other three began looking around.

Of course, Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were sneaking glances at girls, while Wang Xiaofeng and Oscar were looking for an inn.

At that moment, Zhao Wuji pointed at an ordinary-looking inn ahead of them. "We'll stay here. Rest for the night, then set out at dawn tomorrow. You'll pay for your own lodging and meals."

Shrek's rule was that, when outside, students and teachers split their expenses separately. You paid for yours, and I paid for mine.

The inn was a two-story building. The first-floor hall was a simple restaurant, while the second floor provided rooms. Zhao Wuji got himself a single room and went straight upstairs.

After a brief discussion, Dai Mubai and the other three booked a four-person room for the four boys.

"Let's eat before going upstairs. I've been eating sausages all day—I'm about to throw up."

Ma Hongjun voiced everyone's thoughts. Even Oscar nodded in agreement. He was nearly sick of his own sausages too.

The four of them casually found a table in the corner and sat down.

Ma Hongjun rapidly ordered the dishes, then they began waiting for the food to arrive.

The atmosphere was somewhat subdued. They had traveled all day and eaten sausages all day, so everyone was tired.

"Xiaofeng, hurry and take that thing out. This is the perfect time to have a little drink," Oscar said suddenly, apparently remembering something and growing excited.

"What thing?"

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were curious. What had Wang Xiaofeng come up with this time?

With a helpless sigh, Wang Xiaofeng took four gourds out of his Soul Tool and handed them to the others.

"What's this?" Dai Mubai shook the gourd in his hand. It sounded as though there was water inside.

Oscar eagerly took the gourd from Wang Xiaofeng and said to Dai Mubai, "This is wine Xiaofeng brewed himself. It has a very unique flavor."

Oscar removed the gourd's stopper, and a distinctive aroma of wine immediately drifted out. Then he gulped down three large mouthfuls in a row, his face visibly flushing red.

"Is it really that good?" Dai Mubai was a seasoned drinker. What kind of wine had he not tasted? But judging by Oscar's expression, it had to be decent.

Bang!

Ma Hongjun, who had tried a few mouthfuls, collapsed onto the table unconscious.

"Ah, this wine is strong. It has a strange fragrance too—it really is good." Dai Mubai took a sip, his eyes lighting up. This wine truly had something special.

"This is wine brewed with my Ancestral Secret Recipe. It has quite a kick," Wang Xiaofeng said with a laugh.

Of course, Wang Xiaofeng did not know how to brew wine. To explain this wine, they had to go back to a month ago.

After his first Mimetic Cultivation session, the gourds in the Mimetic Cultivation Ground had begun growing remarkably well. Every time he cultivated there, many gourds would fall to the ground. Wang Xiaofeng had not paid much attention at first, merely storing them in his Martial Soul Space as containers for water.

Then, one day last month, he discovered that the water stored in the gourds had turned into wine.

(Wang Xiaofeng had stored a great deal of water in gourds within his Martial Soul Space in case of emergencies.)

After conducting many experiments, Wang Xiaofeng discovered that each gourd would turn the first water poured into it into wine, then become an ordinary gourd. If water was poured into it again, it would really be nothing more than water.

Putting wine inside did not improve its quality, nor did higher-quality water turn into better wine. Other liquids did not undergo any changes either.

Naturally, Wang Xiaofeng knew nothing about wine, so he asked Oscar to taste it. If the wine was good enough, he could cooperate with Dai Mubai.

Then, after one sip, Oscar became obsessed with Wang Xiaofeng's wine. Of course, to keep Oscar from becoming an alcoholic, Wang Xiaofeng made three rules with him: he could only drink three mouthfuls a day.

"Mubai, what do you think? You provide the money, and I provide the technique. Can we work together to open a Winery?"

Flander was driving Wang Xiaofeng mad. Every time he went to Spirit Hall to collect money, he had to hand it back over immediately afterward. His savings kept dwindling. If he did not find a new source of income, he would starve to death.

"Sure. You take sixty percent, and I take forty. We'll open a Winery in Suotuo City. If it loses money, I'll bear all the losses." Dai Mubai nodded, agreeing to Wang Xiaofeng's proposal. He thought highly of Wang Xiaofeng. Even if they lost money, it would be nothing.

After being fed a sausage, Ma Hongjun woke up. Once everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they returned to their rooms to sleep. After all, they still had to help Dai Mubai obtain his Third Soul Ring tomorrow.

Nothing happened that night. At dawn the next morning, while the sky was still dim, Zhao Wuji woke everyone with his booming voice.

Other than Oscar, everyone quickly finished breakfast and gathered on the first floor.

"Teacher Zhao, could you give me some face when we're outside?" Oscar said helplessly as Zhao Wuji threw him to the ground. He dusted off his clothes and got to his feet.

"Hmph. If you sleep in again next time, get ready for your backside to blossom." Zhao Wuji had plenty of ways to deal with lazy worms like him.

Once they left the Small Town, they picked up speed. The Star Dou Great Forest was already close, and as they hurried onward at full speed, Dai Mubai was naturally the most excited. It was his first time coming to the Star Dou Great Forest. His previous Soul Rings had all been obtained in the Soul Hunting Forest near his home.

As they arrived before the forest, the air grew even colder. It was already winter, and the temperature had been low to begin with. The Star Dou Great Forest was at least ten degrees colder than the outside world.

"So cold!" Oscar wrapped his coat more tightly around himself and edged a little closer to Zhao Wuji.

Naturally, Wang Xiaofeng and the other two felt nothing. One had the Phoenix as his Martial Soul, one regularly trained his body, and the last was a Soul Elder. This little bit of cold was nothing to them.

"Alright, let's arrange our positions." Dai Mubai stopped everyone and began assigning tasks.

"Xiaofeng and Xiao Ao will stay with Teacher Zhao. Ma Hongjun will stand in front of them and keep watch. I'll lead the way."

The four nodded, having no objections to Dai Mubai's arrangements.

"Wait a moment. Let me give you some more sausages." Oscar quickly chanted his incantation, and before long, a large handful of sausages and cured sausages appeared in his hands.

The three stored the sausages and cured sausages in their Soul Tools. Oscar's sausages could last for one day. If they were accidentally forced apart, these would be life-saving supplies.

The terrain within the Star Dou Great Forest was already extremely complicated, and it was winter now, with countless dead branches and fallen leaves covering the ground. Even with Dai Mubai using his Martial Soul Avatar and clearing the way with his claws, their advance was exceedingly slow.

After traveling for around an hour, it was already noon.

During that hour, they encountered quite a few Soul Beasts, though most were ten-year or hundred-year ones. They usually avoided the Soul Beasts rather than clashing with them directly. Occasionally, some foolish ones came seeking death, and Dai Mubai's tiger claws dealt with them immediately.

"Alright, let's rest for a while. We're about to enter a deeper area, so we need to stay in good condition."

Seeing that everyone was somewhat tired, Zhao Wuji told them to rest first.

The Vajra Tiger Dai Mubai needed generally appeared only in the deeper parts of the Star Dou Great Forest's outer region. Maintaining their best condition was essential.

Dai Mubai cleared a small patch of open ground, and everyone sat down to recover their strength.

Just as Wang Xiaofeng was recovering his Soul Power, he suddenly felt a gust of cold wind strike at his back. He instinctively dodged to the side, then heard Zhao Wuji's furious voice.

"Damn thing!"

Wang Xiaofeng looked up to see Zhao Wuji already in his Martial Soul Avatar state. Seven Soul Rings floated up and down around his body. Facing him was a tiger three meters tall, entirely black, with blood-red evil light gleaming in its eyes.

"Xiaofeng, hurry and eat a sausage." Oscar helped Wang Xiaofeng up and held out a sausage to him.

Only after eating the sausage did Wang Xiaofeng realize that three ten-centimeter-long bloody gashes had been carved across his waist.

Fortunately, under the healing effect of Oscar's sausage, they were no longer bleeding.

Dai Mubai stood in front of Wang Xiaofeng. The light of two Soul Rings shone from his body, revealing his uncertain expression.

"This is... a Bloodthirsty Berserk Tiger!"