Volume One

The Demonic Breaking Bear and Diamond Ape, after a fierce internal struggle, Tang San, that crafty bastard, ultimately chose to absorb the Ghost Vine's spirit ring first before taking Grandmaster back for treatment. It had to be said, he truly was a good disciple. For every four hundred years of cultivation, a Diamond Ape grew one meter taller. This Diamond Ape was nearly four meters tall, meaning it was a thousand-year spirit beast. Drawn by the pale blue glow, the seven-hundred-year Ghost Vine's spirit ring slowly floated toward Tang San's head. "Come, my second spirit ring." As for Su Xing... "Take care of yourselves. I have things to do, so I'm leaving first." Su Xing glanced at Tang San and his master, tapped the ground with the tip of his foot, and leaped onto a nearby tree. His figure flickered, and he vanished after a few flashes. Su Xing quickly sprang up and dashed out of the tent. Under the faint moonlight, he spread out the spiritual power of his External Spirit Bone and discovered two dark figures chasing each other a thousand meters away. Su Xing's first spirit skill was called Blood Blade Dance. It increased attack power by one hundred percent, and its attacks carried a potent poison. As his level rose, for every ten levels gained, both the attack power and poison increased by ten percent. "Roar!" The comfort brought by absorbing the spirit ring was impossible to describe with words. It felt as though he were floating weightlessly among the clouds, or standing at the peak of bliss. One bear and one ape, one chasing and one fleeing—it was quite the spectacle. Su Xing gave a low shout, and a deep yellow spirit ring suddenly lit up around him, circling up and down. There were Variegated Cats, Short-tailed Leopards, Datura Snakes, Black Demon Wolves, Wind Baboons, and countless other ten-year and hundred-year spirit beasts, but he had never encountered one over a thousand years old. "What domineering power!" The originally slender blades of grass began to grow longer and wider. Their faint blue color gained streaks of black, and barbs emerged upon them, identical to those on the Ghost Vine. No matter how tenacious the Ghost Vine's life force was, after suffering such a heavy blow again, it could not escape death. "First spirit skill, Blood Blade Dance." This spirit skill was simply impossible to guard against, an exceptionally insidious control skill. A hot current spread wildly through Tang San's body, flowing in streams. Wherever it passed, the searing pain vanished, leaving behind only a warm, soothing comfort. Thus, Tang San carried Grandmaster out of the Soul Hunting Forest. Yet due to the enormous difference in their sizes, Grandmaster's legs dragged along the ground the entire way, eventually scraping off a layer of skin. The one being chased was an ape-type spirit beast. Its entire body was grayish-white, it stood nearly three meters tall, and it was covered from head to toe in a thick layer of stone armor. Immediately afterward, the Blue Silver Grass began to change. Standing atop a large tree in the Soul Hunting Forest, Su Xing looked up at the gradually darkening sky, surveyed the surroundings, chose a concealed spot, and set up his tent. A dull explosion rang out through the Soul Hunting Forest. Tang San had just defended Yu Xiaogang, that argumentative idiot, but Su Xing had no intention of caring whether the two lived or died. All Su Xing wanted now was to hunt spirit beasts and obtain his second spirit ring. After scattering some beast-repelling powder he had bought beforehand around the area, Su Xing lay down to rest. The next second, Tang San took out the short sword Grandmaster had given him, cautiously approached the Ghost Vine, and drove the blade down hard. The poison carried by Blue Silver Grass's first spirit ring changed into neurotoxic paralysis after absorbing the Ghost Vine's spirit ring. Even when dispersed through the air, it could produce a certain effect. Tang San felt as though he were immersed in darkness. At the center of that darkness stood a lonely Blue Silver Grass, swaying gently. A pale red blade aura over three meters wide shot explosively from the scythe and slammed viciously into the Ghost Vine's roots. Very soon, the yellow spirit ring above Tang San's head slowly shrank, finally transforming into an incomparably solid golden halo only the size of a bracelet, which settled around the Blue Silver Grass martial spirit in his right palm. "Bang!" Tang San drew in a sharp breath. "He killed a seven-hundred-year Ghost Vine in one move. Is this Brother Su's true strength?" Tang San focused his attention on the martial spirit in his right hand. As the Ghost Vine's spirit ring approached, he felt an immensely powerful pressure. A faint yellow spirit ring condensed above the Ghost Vine's corpse. Unlike the Thunder Leopard spirit ring Tang San had seen before, the yellow spirit ring produced by the Ghost Vine was not only especially clear, but also carried faint streaks of purple light. He encountered many spirit beasts along the way. The next moment, the Ghost Vine was uprooted from the soil and hurled away, smashing heavily into a large tree. Its underground stems were completely severed, and its once-thick vines gradually lost their vitality. Under the moonlight, it looked as though a demonic bear had descended into the world. As his spiritual power drew closer, Su Xing finally saw the two dark figures clearly. The second spirit ring skill the Ghost Vine granted Tang San was Parasite. Su Xing suddenly swung the scythe in his hand. In an instant, Tang San's body burned as if on fire, and he began to convulse uncontrollably. The Mysterious Heaven Skill within him seemed to have been ignited by this sudden force as well. With the infusion of Soul Power, the effect of the Ghost Vine's parasitic ability would be fully brought out through Tang San's Blue Silver Grass. The parasitic seeds it released would directly achieve the effect of Tang San's first spirit skill, Bind... Tang San slowly raised his right hand and gradually condensed a stream of Soul Power in his palm. Accompanied by a pale blue halo, Blue Silver Grass grew from his palm. Next, Tang San first gave Grandmaster some simple bandaging, then poured some water into him. Since Grandmaster remained unconscious, he had no ability to move at all. Even before absorbing it, Tang San could clearly sense the immense energy contained within it. "It's actually the rulers of the Soul Hunting Forest—the Demonic Breaking Bear and the Diamond Ape." Su Xing was both startled and delighted. "Boom!" In the latter half of the night, a beast's roar woke Su Xing. Then, seeing Grandmaster's life force grow weaker and weaker, Tang San discovered that the plant-type spirit beast Ghost Vine seemed well suited to become his second spirit ring. "Did he... just leave like that?" Tang San stared in horror in the direction where Su Xing had disappeared, a trace of helplessness flashing through his eyes. He had thought Su Xing would not abandon them. Su Xing's entire body was shrouded in golden light, as though plated with gold. The blade of the purple scythe in his hand flickered continuously, releasing a dense aura of death. After obtaining the Ghost Vine's spirit ring, Tang San's attributes improved greatly in every aspect. His Blue Silver Grass became tougher and took on an appearance similar to that of the Ghost Vine. The pursuer was a bear-type spirit beast over seven meters long. Its fur was grayish-brown, its body enormous, and its bear claws were exceptionally sharp.