Run!

Xue Xiao Ran stepped onto the battlefield, clutching that dreamlike ball of blue mist.

After the stimulant had been used on him, the mist spread even more violently.

Snakes were naturally cold-blooded, but even it could not withstand the chill of this Cold Poison.

This Cold Poison carried a trace of the pressure of Extreme Ice, the final straw that broke the camel's back for the Jungle Python.

A sharp gleam flashed through the Jungle Python's eyes as it opened its jaws and bit at Xue Xiao Ran.

It had already decided that Xue Xiao Ran posed the greatest threat here. He had to be killed now.

"Watch out!"

Meng Hong Chen hurriedly warned him.

A trace of purple flashed through Xue Xiao Ran's eyes as he leaped to the right.

A foul gust howled past his side, making him frown.

It stinks.

He landed on a nearby tree trunk, pushed off it, and flipped onto the Jungle Python's back.

"You can't escape."

Xue Xiao Ran's calm voice seemed to pronounce death itself. His hands wreathed in blue mist grabbed the Jungle Python's head, and he immediately began a relentless assault.

Smack!

Xue Xiao Ran slapped its forehead, then flipped backward and landed before the four of them.

The snake hissed. Its eyes had already turned somewhat unfocused, and its body curled up in agony. The cold energy contained within One Night Cold Rain was no joke.

"Xiao Hong Chen, get ready."

Xue Xiao Ran spoke to Xiao Hong Chen beside him.

The latter nodded, and a dagger silently appeared in his hand.

"Yan Yuyan, I'm counting on you."

Xue Xiao Ran clenched his hands, and that excited gas immediately emerged.

"Mm."

Yan Yuyan took a deep breath. The Flame Demon King behind her grew even taller, its flames burning more fiercely, while blazing fire began to rise from Yan Yuyan's body as well.

"Flame Slash." Her second soul ring suddenly shone with yellow light. Dense fire elements gathered in her hand, forming a blade of flame.

"Charge!"

Yan Yuyan cried out and rushed forward first.

Meng Hong Chen and Xue Xiao Ran followed behind her. At some point, Yu Ling Lin's Crimson Flame Thorns had sprouted from the ground, tightly binding the Jungle Python's body.

With his hands in his pockets, Xue Xiao Ran somehow struck later yet arrived first, overtaking Yan Yuyan. A Shadowless Kick lashed viciously across the Jungle Python's head.

His right leg ached slightly. The Jungle Python's hide really was thick.

After taking that blow, the Jungle Python's entire head spun. Coupled with the eruption of the Cold Poison, the light in its eyes gradually faded.

"Slash!"

Yan Yuyan swung the flaming blade, severing the Jungle Python's most agile tail at the base.

The Jungle Python hissed in agony, its body writhing across the ground and kicking up clouds of dust.

"Stay down."

Xue Xiao Ran spoke calmly.

The Jungle Python twisted for a while before its body gradually settled. Only its eyes still blinked, filled with terror.

Xue Xiao Ran stepped forward and looked into the Jungle Python's eyes.

What emotions lay within those emerald-green eyes?

He gently stroked the Jungle Python's forehead. "The Other Shore. Rest in peace."

As though it understood something, the Jungle Python stopped struggling as well.

"Xiao Hong Chen, finish it quickly."

He spoke to Xiao Hong Chen behind him.

Xiao Hong Chen nodded with a smile, cupped his hands toward the four of them, then plunged the dagger into the Jungle Python's vital point.

The snake gave a few final symbolic twitches, and then a purple soul ring appeared in the air.

Xue Xiao Ran let out a breath of relief. Fortunately, no one had come to interfere at the very end. Otherwise, there would have been another fierce struggle.

Xiao Hong Chen sighed with emotion. His first two hundred-year soul rings had been hunted by his grandfather, and he had merely been a spectator. But now, he had successfully obtained his third soul ring through his own strength, and it was even a thousand-year one.

With that thought, he nodded to the four of them again, especially Yan Yuyan. He knew that without Yan Yuyan's suppression through her fire attribute, the Jungle Python would not have been defeated so easily.

Yan Yuyan did not look at Xiao Hong Chen and turned her head away. Xiao Hong Chen's face darkened. It seemed Yan Yuyan was still holding a grudge against him. Yu Ling Lin snickered from the side. She was just embarrassed.

He touched the purple soul ring, then sat down cross-legged and began absorbing it.

While they had been fighting, the Shrek team that had previously battled the Jungle Python had vanished without a trace at some point.

Xue Xiao Ran did not mind. Instead, he felt relieved. He did not want anything to go wrong while his classmate was absorbing a soul ring.

He did not care that they had retreated either. It had been a Thousand-Year Soul Beast they could not handle in the first place. Anyone else would have made the same choice.

Seeing Meng Hong Chen automatically sit behind Xiao Hong Chen to guard him, Xue Xiao Ran consciously walked around the area and began scattering powder to repel soul beasts.

At the same time, he scattered a layer of Paralysis Poison.

After finishing all this, he glanced at the sky and saw that the sun was already setting. He could not help sighing softly. It looked like they would be spending the night here.

By the time Xue Xiao Ran finished cultivating and opened his eyes, dawn had arrived, while last night's bonfire still burned faintly.

Seeing Xiao Hong Chen's jade-like complexion, he knew the soul ring had been successfully absorbed without any backlash.

Xue Xiao Ran stood up and stretched. Cultivating on a tree trunk yesterday had left his butt sore, but there was nothing he could do about that.

He began taking dry rations from his ring to prepare breakfast.

"Phew."

Xiao Hong Chen let out a long breath. Three different soul rings, yellow, yellow, and purple, appeared behind him.

Meng Hong Chen opened her eyes as well. Looking at her brother, a relieved smile appeared in her beautiful eyes.

"Come eat once you're done absorbing it."

Xue Xiao Ran placed breakfast on the wooden table he carried in his ring and called everyone over to eat.

Yan Yuyan and Yu Ling Lin, who had been cultivating while standing guard, also walked over and began quietly discussing the gains and losses from yesterday's battle.

The five of them gradually split into three circles. Xiao Hong Chen and Meng Hong Chen formed one circle, while Yan Yuyan and Yu Ling Lin formed another.

They all believed Xue Xiao Ran belonged to their circle, but that was not the case.

"Once you're done eating, let's return to the main camp."

Xue Xiao Ran spoke indifferently. They were still too close to the center of the Star Dou Great Forest. Under such circumstances, encountering a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast would be nothing unusual.

Just then, faint movement came from the distant woods, followed by a wolf's howl.

Xue Xiao Ran's cheek twitched slightly. Of course, what they feared most was what came.

An Azure Fire Wolf emerged from the bushes. Its sharp fangs, scar-covered face, and the pressure it radiated—everything about it showed that it was a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

"Run!"

Xue Xiao Ran dropped his half-eaten food, abandoning even the table. After shouting, he took the lead and ran toward the main camp.

"Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, run!"

Xiao Hong Chen grabbed his stunned sister and fled after Xue Xiao Ran at top speed.

Yan Yuyan and Yu Ling Lin followed close behind with bitter expressions.

Behind them, the Azure Fire Wolf seemed to have decided that the five of them had trespassed into its territory. It howled and charged after them, its presence drawing ever closer.