Fate's Arrangement

Wang Nan was jolted awake by a tremor.

Before dawn had even broken, waves of roars came from the Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest. Trees fell one after another as a huge number of hundred-year and thousand-year Soul Beasts frantically fled toward the outskirts.

Wang Nan stepped out of the tent and saw Yan Shaozhe staring solemnly into the depths of the forest.

"Teacher, what happened?" Ma Xiaotao also walked over from the other side.

"I was wondering the same thing." Yan Shaozhe frowned. "It's possible that a particularly powerful Soul Beast has appeared within the Mixed Zone, driving the lower-level Soul Beasts to flee. But..."

Yan Shaozhe did not voice the rest of his thoughts. At his level of strength, he naturally knew that the Soul Beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest were managed as well. How could the one in the core area permit such chaos?

"Then are we not obtaining a Soul Ring?" Ma Xiaotao followed Yan Shaozhe's example and looked toward the Mixed Zone, but with her current strength, she could see nothing beyond the dense trees.

"No. Let's wait a little." Yan Shaozhe extended his Spiritual Power toward the rear of the fleeing Soul Beasts.

The Soul Beasts there were relatively slow runners, and several enormous ones stood out in particular.

Yan Shaozhe cast Wang Nan a discreet glance.

Those Soul Beasts were not adept at running, but all possessed exceptional strength. Once they began fighting, the earth would shake and the mountains would tremble. Any one of them would be a good choice for Wang Nan.

"Stay here, both of you. I'll be right back." With that, Yan Shaozhe flashed away and vanished, leaving Wang Nan and Ma Xiaotao staring at each other.

"Don't worry." Ma Xiaotao found a spot and sat down. It was unclear whether she was speaking to Wang Nan or herself. "I'm still here. Teacher won't just leave us behind."

Wang Nan looked around. Because of the aura Yan Shaozhe had briefly revealed, the nearby Soul Beasts had already fled without a trace. Seeing that there was no danger, he simply sat down as well.

"My Martial Soul is somewhat special, and I can't completely control its power." As Ma Xiaotao spoke, she used a branch to poke through the ashes left by the campfire. "So Teacher limits how long I can cultivate each day, and he doesn't let me have too much contact with other people, afraid that I might hurt them."

Wang Nan looked into Ma Xiaotao's pale pink eyes and listened to her stories of childhood. After spending an entire day together, he had discovered that Ma Xiaotao at this time was merely more lively and talkative, nowhere near as irritable as she would be later. Perhaps that was because of her Martial Soul's influence.

One spoke while the other listened, and time passed second by second. Only when the sun rose and the restless Soul Beasts in the Mixed Zone gradually quieted down did Yan Shaozhe return. With a bang—, an enormous Soul Beast dropped to the ground.

It was a wyrm. More precisely, a Rock Ridge Wyrm.

Its entire body was covered in dark yellow scales, its limbs were thick and powerful, and the horns on its head had already been broken. Its back rose high like a small mountain, while the end of its tail was spindle-shaped and still lashed about, blindly striking the air.

"Although the Soul Skills provided by the same Soul Beast can differ depending on the Martial Soul, according to Shrek's existing records, every Soul Skill a Rock Ridge Wyrm can provide is an area-of-effect Soul Skill. It should suit your needs."

As Yan Shaozhe spoke, he pressed down with one hand, and the Soul Beast quickly lost consciousness.

"Its weak point is its neck. Once you're ready, come obtain the Soul Ring."

Wang Nan took a deep breath, summoned his Coiling Dragon Staff, and thrust it forward fiercely. Soon, a Purple Soul Ring slowly rose into the air.

He knew that the coming battle would depend on himself.

The third time Wang Nan saw a Soul Beast appear in his Spiritual Sea, he was no longer surprised. The moment the Rock Ridge Wyrm appeared, he charged forward with his staff in hand.

Within the Spiritual Sea, Wang Nan could teleport at will. Against a Soul Beast that was already poor at speed, he was practically invincible. Yet it was still a thousand-year Soul Beast, and a Rock Ridge Wyrm with outstanding defense at that. Several consecutive minutes of attacks failed to inflict any substantial damage.

Wang Nan helplessly stopped attacking. At this rate, he might not be able to finish it even by nightfall, not to mention that he needed to return outside as soon as possible to absorb the Soul Ring. After thinking it over, he still had to rely on the Luminous Orb above his head.

The first two times he had absorbed Soul Rings, the Soul Beasts had been captured by that Luminous Orb while attacking him, allowing him to learn additional skills. So now, he needed to lure the Rock Ridge Wyrm before him into attacking of its own accord.

With that in mind, Wang Nan fixed his gaze on the Rock Ridge Wyrm's eyes and cautiously stepped closer, pausing after every step.

This Rock Ridge Wyrm had first been awakened by a terrifying aura. Then, while fleeing, its twin horns had been sliced off by a single palm strike. After that, it had been knocked unconscious and turned into a Soul Ring without any awareness. When it regained consciousness and found itself in an unfamiliar environment, it had inexplicably been struck over a hundred times with a staff. It was utterly dazed.

Only when it saw Wang Nan's provocative gaze did it realize that it had been attacked.

With an angry roar, the Rock Ridge Wyrm whipped up a fierce gust toward Wang Nan.

Rather than being alarmed, Wang Nan was delighted. Bracing against the powerful wind, he continued forward. He was not afraid of it attacking; he was afraid it would refuse to attack.

The Rock Ridge Wyrm raised its forelegs and swiped twice through the air. As yellow light flashed from its broken horns, ripples spread outward from beneath its feet.

Wang Nan's face went pale as he felt the entire Spiritual Sea tremble.

A mere thousand-year Soul Beast possessed such power. If he absorbed Soul Rings with even higher cultivation levels in the future, he did not know whether he could withstand them.

But this was not the time to think about such things. Relying on his home-field advantage, Wang Nan's figure flickered continuously. He landed atop the Rock Ridge Wyrm's back, dodging its attacks while his Coiling Dragon Staff struck down again and again.

The Rock Ridge Wyrm roared once more. The heavy scales on its back all stood on end, and its entire back began to shake violently.

This was it.

Wang Nan sensed something and looked up, just in time to see the Luminous Orb blaze brilliantly. The next moment, the Rock Ridge Wyrm beneath him vanished.

Yan Shaozhe had been watching Wang Nan all along. Only when he saw Wang Nan's aura gradually stabilize did he finally relax.

Naturally, he had not been gone for so long merely to find a fleeing Soul Beast. He had also gone to investigate the source of the disturbance.

Wang Nan needed a Soul Ring that could provide an area-of-effect attack. Then, the very next day, a Soul Beast disturbance occurred, and among the fleeing Soul Beasts there happened to be a suitable Rock Ridge Wyrm. It was as though someone had arranged the entire matter from behind the scenes.

Yet when he reached the source of the disturbance, he found nothing but a headless Soul Beast corpse. There were no traces of any other people or Soul Beasts, nor did he find any hidden tampering left behind within the Soul Beast's body.

Now that he saw Wang Nan successfully beginning to absorb the Soul Ring, Yan Shaozhe could only treat the matter as a coincidence.

Perhaps it was fate's arrangement.