Volume One

Volume One, Chapter 31: The Disabled Yu Xiaogang "No! Teacher!" Willow Leaf Blades, Flying Locust Stones, Coin Darts, Bone Piercing Nails—every kind of Hidden Weapon blossomed in Tang San's hands. Some flew straight, others at angles, but all were aimed at the Ghost Vine's roots. Eyes were one of the few vital weaknesses of soul beasts. Seeing blood continuously pouring from Grandmaster's right shoulder and arm, Tang San hurriedly bound it tightly with a strip of cloth, greatly slowing the bleeding. Even so, Grandmaster passed out from the pain. "Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch..." A rapid series of mechanism clicks rang out from Tang San's right hand. Immediately afterward, silver short arrows shot forth, racing straight for the Thunder Leopard's eyes. A shrill cry rang clearly through the Soul Hunting Forest. Clearly, the Ghost Vine had just activated its Parasite ability. More than a dozen thorny black-purple vines burst from the grass at once and swept outward, twisting as they lunged toward Tang San and Su Xing. Su Xing muttered an incantation, and the yellow soul ring on his body lit up. His eyes abruptly turned golden, and the Ghost Vine vines wrapped around him suddenly swelled. "You mongrel!" Seeing Grandmaster in such a state, Su Xing was slightly shaken. This guy's martial soul was already incapable of cultivation, and his Soul Power could never break through rank thirty in his lifetime. Now he had become disabled too. He really was somewhat pitiful. Then, the Thunder Leopard shook its head and rolled again. In only a few seconds, it brutally tore off Grandmaster's right arm, exposing his mangled, blood-drenched shoulder. But what was truly frightening was the Ghost Vine's Parasite ability. When it attacked, it released countless tiny seeds that directly parasitized its enemies. As long as the Ghost Vine could supply enough energy, or those seeds absorbed sufficient nutrients, they would grow upon the host, while neurotoxins spread throughout the body. Bang! Grandmaster gradually regained consciousness, pain appearing on his face as groans began to escape his mouth. The Bodhi Heart Method, one of the Shaolin Seventy-Two Arts, kept the mind as clear as a mirror and warded off all evils; it possessed miraculous detoxifying effects. Su Xing gave a cold shout. The yellow soul ring on his body lit up again, and he fiercely swung the purple-black sickle in his hand. A Startling Goose Blade Aura swept out, severing every incoming vine. After firing more than a dozen cold gleams of throwing knives, Tang San did not pause in the slightest. With Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track beneath his feet, he rapidly retreated. Tang San's heart had sunk to rock bottom; naturally, he could no longer hold anything back. "Good, he still has a pulse." Seeing Grandmaster unconscious, Tang San hurriedly felt the pulse on his left wrist, secretly sighing in relief. Tang San pressed one hand against Grandmaster's chest and circulated the internal force of the Mysterious Heaven Skill. His right hand struck out repeatedly, sealing the blood vessels around Grandmaster's right shoulder and arm so he would not lose too much blood in a short time. "Awooo!" Meanwhile, on Su Xing's side, he discovered that the surface of his skin felt tingly and had begun to go numb. Though the thorns on the vines were only about an inch long, they kept tightening around Su Xing, causing intense pain throughout his body. At the same time, he realized that his body was becoming increasingly numb. Hearing this, Su Xing nodded slightly. "Mm, it's fine. You two should go back first. I can handle hunting the soul beast by myself." "Teacher, how are you?" Tang San was frantic with worry as he hurriedly helped Grandmaster up from the ground. After breaking free from the Blue Silver Grass, the Thunder Leopard's speed suddenly became incomparably swift. In an instant, it reached Grandmaster's side and pounced down to bite him. "Brother Su, Teacher's condition is very bad. I have to take him back to Nuoding City for treatment immediately." Tang San lifted Grandmaster and carried him on his back. The Ghost Vine was an extremely terrifying plant-type soul beast. It possessed potent neurotoxins, and as long as one was pricked by the thorns on its vines, the poison would immediately spread, continuing until the victim dissolved into pus and became nourishment for the Ghost Vine. "Aaah!" Grandmaster let out a miserable scream. "This seems to be... a Ghost Vine?" Su Xing and Tang San were both startled, speaking in unison. Thus, this terrifying plant-type soul beast loved fresh blood. It fed on humans or animals and was somewhat like a man-eating flower. Tang San spun around, flinging out another dozen or so cold-glinting Hidden Weapons. Still, a pitiful person must have something hateful about them; he was not truly worthy of sympathy. The Ghost Vine's attacks covered an extremely wide area, leaving almost no possibility of dodging. "Crack, crack, crack." More than a dozen cold-glinting throwing knives burst from Tang San's hands with a light flick of his ten fingers, shooting toward the Ghost Vine's roots. Tang San's purpose was clear: he knew the Ghost Vine's roots were its vital weak point. Then, the Thunder Leopard's body suddenly stiffened before it fell to the ground and began rolling violently. As the Thunder Leopard's life gradually ebbed away, a yellow soul ring slowly condensed above its body. "Ah~" This also prevented the Ghost Vine from using Parasite on him. Twelve short arrows had been fired. Under Tang San's precise instant control, four entered the Thunder Leopard's eyes, while the other eight pierced its head. Tang San raised a hand and brushed it across the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges at his waist, taking out the Tang Sect Hidden Weapon, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow. Misfortunes never came singly. Just as Tang San prepared to leave with Grandmaster, thorny black-purple vines suddenly slithered out from the grass, swiftly blocking his path. On Tang San's side, he first released Blue Silver Grass to entwine the approaching Ghost Vine, then abruptly raised his head as purple light in his eyes flared brilliantly. The reason a plant-type soul beast like the Ghost Vine had appeared here was likely because Grandmaster's severed arm had bled without stopping, attracting it with the scent of blood. Moments later, every Ghost Vine vine wrapped around Su Xing, including the Ghost Vine seeds parasitizing his body, was shaken into powder. Then, Tang San's lowered hands drifted up from his waist. Seeing Grandmaster's arm torn off by the Thunder Leopard, Tang San's eyes instantly reddened. He stomped fiercely on the ground and shot into the air, leaping toward Grandmaster. "Shaolin Seventy-Two Arts, Bodhi Heart Method!" "These vines actually have poison? But what can such trifling poison possibly do to me?" Seeing this, Grandmaster's face turned deathly pale. He instinctively raised his right hand, wanting to block the Thunder Leopard's bite, but in the next second, a savage gleam flashed through the Thunder Leopard's eyes as it viciously bit down on his arm. By the time Tang San reached Grandmaster's side, he found that blood was still pouring from Grandmaster's shoulder and arm, while half of his body had become slightly stiff. In the next second, Su Xing's body abruptly stiffened as well. At some unknown moment, a layer of fine, thorny vines had appeared on his body.