The Eight Spider Lances, Tang San's Rebirth

Die.

The final word Lin Xi spoke carried no warmth, yet it cracked something in the hearts of Dai Mubai and the other three.

They did not dare move.

They instinctively held their breath.

Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Oscar, and Ning Rongrong stood stiffly around Tang San, forming a ridiculous protective formation.

Protect him?

A soundless, self-mocking smile tugged at Dai Mubai's lips.

They could not even protect themselves. What could they possibly use to protect Tang San?

Yet they did not dare disobey Lin Xi's orders.

He looked at Tang San, who sat cross-legged with the Soul Bone cradled in his hands, his emotions churning violently.

Why?

Why did Tang San get such an opportunity?

Why had the Soul Bone every Soul Master dreamed of fallen into his hands so easily?

Was it because he had been the first to kneel and beg like a dog? Or because he had been born better at reading that woman's thoughts?

Dai Mubai could not understand it.

He was a dignified Star Luo Prince, the Evil-Eyed White Tiger, blessed with extraordinary talent. When had he ever lost to anyone of his generation?

But here, before Lin Xi, all his pride had been crushed beneath her feet.

And now, even Tang San, a Control System Soul Master he had never truly regarded highly in the past, was soaring into the heavens, about to leave him far behind.

This feeling was worse than death.

Beside him, Zhu Zhuqing's pretty face was colder than usual. She said nothing, merely staring at Tang San. In her tranquil catlike eyes, it was impossible to tell whether there was envy—or some deeper resolve.

Ning Rongrong and Oscar were much simpler. They felt only pure fear and reverence.

Whatever little thoughts they had harbored had long been smashed to pieces by Lin Xi's thunderous methods.

Now, they only wanted to survive.

Tang San seemed utterly unaware of everything around him.

He closed his eyes and tightly gripped the cold, sinister Soul Bone with both hands, slowly channeling his Mysterious Heaven Skill Soul Power into it according to the method Lin Xi had taught him.

"Ah!"

An indescribable agony exploded from his palms and instantly swept through his entire body!

Countless venomous, needle-like sensations burrowed into his marrow, madly gnawing at every inch of bone and every nerve!

Tang San's body began to tremble violently. Beads of sweat rolled down from his forehead, and his face turned paper-white in an instant.

"Guard your mind."

Lin Xi's cool voice sounded beside his ear.

"This is the first step of the Soul Bone merging with you. The resentment of the Man Faced Demon Spider is resisting you."

"Devour it, or be devoured by it."

"There is no third path."

Tang San clenched his teeth so hard that blood seeped from his lips.

He thought of Lin Xi's expectations for him, of his father far away, and of Xiao Wu.

He could not lose!

He pushed the Mysterious Heaven Skill to its limit. The Soul Power in his body turned into a raging torrent, crashing madly into the Soul Bone in his hands. He would use his own will to crush the last remnant soul of that Man Faced Demon Spider!

Time passed second by second.

Tang San's body was completely soaked in sweat, as though he had just been pulled from the water.

Behind him, eight blood-red bulges slowly rose along his back. They grew larger and larger, tearing through his clothes in a grotesque, terrifying display.

"It's coming out." Xiao Wu clenched her little fists nervously.

Dai Mubai and the others widened their eyes, not daring to blink.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Eight muffled sounds of blades piercing flesh rang out in succession. Eight purple-black spider legs, dripping with blood, violently stabbed out from Tang San's back!

The legs thrashed wildly through the air, stirring up waves of foul wind.

"Aah!!!"

Tang San threw back his head and let out a hoarse roar, suppressing the pain to its utmost limit.

He could feel his spine being forcibly torn apart, only to be violently reassembled by an overbearing force. The soul-deep agony nearly made him pass out.

Yet his consciousness had never been clearer.

A brand-new, explosive power was wildly growing within him.

Those eight legs felt as though they had always been part of his body.

With a thought—

The eight wildly flailing legs froze at once, then folded neatly behind him like the most obedient soldiers.

Tang San slowly opened his eyes.

He lowered his gaze to his hands, then tried controlling one of the spider legs behind him.

Whoosh!

A purple-black afterimage flashed past and stabbed fiercely toward an ancient tree nearby that would have taken one person to wrap their arms around.

Pfft!

A soft sound rang out.

The hard trunk was effortlessly pierced through, leaving a hole clear from front to back, its edges smooth as a mirror.

"Gasp..."

Dai Mubai sucked in a cold breath.

Oscar was so frightened that he dropped onto the ground, muttering, "Oh my god... Can this thing... be used to roast sausages?"

No one paid him any attention.

Everyone had been stunned by its terrifying power.

This was no longer a Soul Skill. It was practically eight more indestructible arms that he could wield as easily as his own limbs!

Tang San slowly rose to his feet, feeling the unprecedented power within him.

Though he was mentally exhausted, his Soul Power had not diminished. Instead, it had increased, breaking through its bottleneck in one rush.

Level thirty-one!

Level thirty-two!

A single Soul Bone had not only given him eight indestructible spider legs, but also raised his Soul Power by two whole levels!

This was a heaven-defying opportunity!

He turned to look at Lin Xi in the distance, his eyes filled with undisguised gratitude.

He knew that Lin Xi had given him all of this.

"How does it feel?" Lin Xi asked him calmly.

"Very powerful," Tang San said sincerely.

"This is only the beginning." Lin Xi walked to his side and extended a jade-like finger, lightly touching the cold Eight Spider Lances. "They will evolve as you grow. Their poison will also become stronger as you absorb more toxins."

She withdrew her hand, her tone utterly calm.

"Use them well. Do not disappoint my expectations."

"Yes!" Tang San nodded heavily.

With another thought, the savage Eight Spider Lances slowly retracted into his body. The torn wounds on his back healed rapidly at a visible speed, soon becoming smooth and unblemished once more.

"Enough."

Lin Xi clapped her hands and swept her gaze across everyone.

"Rest is over. Keep moving."

What?

Dai Mubai and the others were all dumbfounded.

Tang San had only just absorbed the Soul Bone, and they had spent half the day standing guard in terror. The sky was nearly dark now, yet rather than rest, they were going deeper in?

Was this woman a demon?

"Senior, it's getting late." Dai Mubai finally could not hold back any longer and forced himself to speak. "At night, Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest become more active. Shouldn't we find a safe place to make camp first?"

"Make camp?"

Lin Xi glanced at him as if she were looking at an idiot.

She raised a hand and pointed at Tang San.

"He is level thirty-two, and he has also gained an External Soul Bone."

Then her finger moved in turn across Dai Mubai, Oscar, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing.

"And you? You're still standing still."

"I do not have time to wait for you useless trash to crawl along slowly."

"If you cannot keep up, die here."

With that, she turned and walked toward the deeper parts of the forest. Her back was resolute, leaving no room for discussion.

Dai Mubai's face shifted between green and white. His fists clenched until they cracked, but in the end, he could only loosen them weakly.

He glanced at Zhu Zhuqing beside him, only to find that she said nothing. She merely silently followed Lin Xi.

Oscar and Ning Rongrong exchanged a look, their faces full of bitterness, then dragged their exhausted bodies after her.

Tang San walked over to Dai Mubai and patted his shoulder.

"Let's go."

Dai Mubai took a deep breath and followed, but in those Evil-Eyed eyes, beneath the unwillingness, there was now an added trace of madness born from being driven into a corner.

The group silently walked into the deepening darkness.

Only Lin Xi seemed to wear the faintest curve at the corner of her lips.

If I don't drive you to your limits, how will I ever see the most interesting scene?