Netherworld Mantis

The outer mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest.

This was the boundary between Hundred-Year Soul Beasts and Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

The main reason Zhu Zhuqing had chosen this place to hunt a Soul Beast was safety!

The Soul Beast she needed to hunt had to be around Three Thousand Years old and of a relatively formidable type.

However, while powerful, its overly small size made it difficult for it to survive in the inner regions.

So, the mixed zone was the best place to look for this kind of Soul Beast.

The Soul Beast she was looking for was called the Shadow Mantis.

Even after reaching ten thousand years, this Soul Beast would still be less than a meter long.

Yet it was renowned for its powerful offensive ability.

It could be called one of the top assassins among Soul Beasts!

However, this assassin was simply too small. Even a Three Thousand Year Netherworld Mantis was only thirty centimeters long.

This meant that any prey it fancied among the Soul Beasts would be far too large.

Thus, for the sake of filling their stomachs, they usually wandered through areas inhabited by Soul Beasts one rank below them.

However, because Netherworld Mantises were so unscrupulous, other Soul Beasts would show no mercy whenever they encountered Netherworld Mantis larvae.

They were practically one of the three greatest pests of the Star Dou Great Forest!

The first pest was the Man Faced Demon Spider!

The second pest was the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger!

And the third pest was naturally the Netherworld Mantis!

As an outstanding young lady of the new era, eliminating pests for the Star Dou Great Forest was something she ought to do!

The other Soul Beasts would surely understand her!

Mm!

Why did that feel a little strange?

Now that she had a target, Zhu Zhuqing naturally did not hesitate.

After evolving and ascending, the Nether Shadow Spirit Cat's concealment ability had naturally become even more exceptional.

And the one thing the entire Star Dou Great Forest did not lack was shade!

Zhu Zhuqing, moving through the shadows beneath the trees, could practically go anywhere.

Even when passing by other Soul Beasts, none of them could sense her presence.

For a time, the Star Dou Great Forest, which appeared incomparably dangerous to others, felt more like a backyard garden to her.

However, the Netherworld Mantis truly deserved to be called a dwarf among Soul Beasts!

Though she knew they had to be somewhere in this mixed zone, finding one was still immensely difficult.

The main reason she wanted to obtain a Netherworld Mantis Soul Ring was for the Soul Skill it could provide.

The Soul Skills granted by Mantis Soul Beast Soul Rings were generally predictable.

They were either Twin Blades or Continuous Blade Qi Slashes!

Either of these Soul Skills was extremely good, which was why Mantis Soul Masters were so highly sought after in the world of Soul Masters.

The problem was that Mantis Soul Beasts possessed exceptionally powerful attack power.

Those who came to hunt them usually ended up being hunted instead.

Otherwise, even if Mantis Soul Beasts had not been driven extinct by other Soul Beasts, they would likely have been slaughtered into extinction by Soul Masters.

Compared with scratching people with claws, Zhu Zhuqing preferred cutting them down with weapons.

After all, the longer the weapon, the greater the advantage.

And the Netherworld Mantis was a Dark Attribute Soul Beast that could provide two sharp weapons.

As long as she was lucky enough, cutting people down with dual blades would no longer be just a dream!

And even if she failed this time, would there not still be another chance?

Both Soul Power Detachment Attack and the Blade Transformation Soul Skill were highly suited to the Nether Shadow Spirit Cat.

It was just that Netherworld Mantises were truly difficult to find.

As the possessor of the Extreme Darkness Attribute, she could sense Dark Attribute fluctuations within thirty meters of her.

Using this sensing method, she found quite a few Dark Attribute Soul Beasts.

However, none of those Soul Beasts had yet piqued Zhu Zhuqing's interest.

Her first choice remained the Netherworld Mantis, though she secretly noted down the locations of those other Soul Beasts.

If she still could not find a Netherworld Mantis within half a month, she planned to hunt that Ghost Tiger that was over Three Thousand Years old.

After all, the Clone Soul Skill was quite good too!

Finally!

Heaven did not disappoint the determined!

After searching for more than a week, Zhu Zhuqing found her true love!

A Netherworld Mantis!

A Netherworld Mantis around three thousand five hundred years old!

Its enormous compound eyes allowed it to see in all directions around its body. No enemy could approach its alert range unscathed.

Its thirty-centimeter-long body possessed two enormous sickle blades of equal length.

Just standing there, it exuded an aura that made it seem extremely dangerous to provoke.

As an emotionless assassin, there were basically no other Soul Beasts that dared remain near a Netherworld Mantis.

Unless the Netherworld Mantis was hungry!

This Netherworld Mantis had clearly just completed a hunt. It was pressing down on the corpse of a Ghost Tiger that had only just reached a thousand years and greedily devouring it.

That Ghost Tiger had grown over three meters long, yet it had been easily dealt with by a thirty-centimeter-long mantis.

What a disgrace to Soul Beasts!

But this showed just how terrifying the Netherworld Mantis was!

If its size had not limited its ability to deal with larger prey,

then the areas inhabited by ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts would probably have been their paradise.

Other girls would probably get goosebumps at the sight of an insect like this.

But as Zhu Zhuqing looked at this mantis, she found it handsome, valiant, and incredibly dashing!

Setting its size aside, a Three Thousand Year Netherworld Mantis could probably contend with a Soul Beast over nine thousand years old.

If it fought a Soul Master, even a Soul Ancestor who encountered it would have to consider whether to run away with a bucket.

Even a Soul King could not be certain of coming out unscathed against a Three Thousand Year Netherworld Mantis.

After all, Mantis Soul Beasts were famous for their high damage. High damage and high Armor Break meant that ordinary Soul Beasts and Soul Masters generally would not provoke them.

However, the Netherworld Mantis, long regarded as a pest among Soul Beasts, had finally encountered someone who dared covet it today.

Zhu Zhuqing, hidden in the shadows, silently watched the Netherworld Mantis gnaw on the Ghost Tiger's flesh.

She intended to give it a vicious blow once it had eaten its fill!

However, things did not go as smoothly as Zhu Zhuqing had expected.

The scene she had imagined, of the Netherworld Mantis eating until its belly was round, never happened.

The Netherworld Mantis stopped eating after it had eaten its fill.

Looking at the Ghost Tiger's corpse, which had barely lost any meat, Zhu Zhuqing had the urge to curse.

You damn thing, you killed such a huge tiger just to eat this little bit of meat?

If you had said so earlier, that Ghost Tiger probably would have sliced open its own rear for you.

Did you really have to go on a killing spree?

Sure enough, no Soul Beast capable of surviving in the Star Dou Great Forest was an idiot!

They had their own rules for survival in the forest!

The first rule was to never reveal weakness!

The Netherworld Mantis knew it could eat more, but the price of overeating was becoming bloated!

Its movements would become less agile!

Though they were not very intelligent, they had their own way of surviving!

"It seems there really is no way to take shortcuts!"

Seeing that the Netherworld Mantis had no intention of eating any more, Zhu Zhuqing understood that her plan would probably not work.

Since taking a shortcut was impossible, she could only fight it head-on!

Fortunately, the Netherworld Mantis's fearsome reputation was widely known. The instant it appeared and hunted the Ghost Tiger, this entire area had been emptied.

Otherwise, it really would have been difficult for her to act!

A Netherworld Mantis over Three Thousand Years old!

It would have been difficult for her to make a move against one before, but now...

"Martial Soul Fusion!"