Night had completely swallowed the Star Dou Great Forest.
In the thick darkness, there was only the rustle of boots treading on rotten leaves, along with several heavy, suppressed breaths.
Dai Mubai felt as though his lungs were a broken bellows, every breath bringing searing pain. Exhaustion crashed against his nerves like wave after wave of tide, until even the sight before him began to blur into double images.
Yet worse than his physical exhaustion was the humiliation buried deep in his soul.
His fists had remained clenched, his nails digging deeply into his palms. Only that sting of pain kept him awake.
Tang San had obtained a soul bone.
That Control System Soul Master he had never truly regarded highly in the past had, right before his eyes, completed a transformation he might never attain in his entire life.
And he, the third prince of the Star Luo Empire, could only watch helplessly like some laughable guard.
In the end, he had even been nailed to the pillar of shame by that woman's two words: "trash."
Why?
That thought gnawed madly at his heart like a venomous snake.
He turned his head to look at Tang San walking beside him. Tang San's steps were steady, and his breathing was calm, as though he never tired. Though the eight newly formed spider spears had been withdrawn into his body, they still gave off a faint, oppressive presence that filled Dai Mubai with piercing irritation.
Tang San noticed his gaze and turned toward him, his expression calm.
"Can you still hold on?"
Dai Mubai's Adam's apple bobbed as he squeezed out a single word through clenched teeth.
"Yes."
He turned away and stopped looking at Tang San. If he looked one second longer, he feared he would lose control and throw