Poacher

Xu Mingxi had no idea Ling Yilan had followed him in right on his heels.

Their destinations were completely different. The Ice Scarred Valley Xu Mingxi was heading to now was a place where a five-thousand-year Moon Gazing Toad was nothing more than a bottom-tier Soul Beast.

If Ling Yilan's fourth soul ring did not require a specific Soul Beast, the outskirts of the Far North Land were already enough for her to obtain a soul ring she would be satisfied with.

After following him for a while, she realized Xu Mingxi was clearly headed for the inner region, or even the core region, and could only give up.

Xu Mingxi and the two elders wore Cold-Weather Suits, with only their eyes exposed from head to toe.

As they continued deeper, the surrounding environment became increasingly harsh, and this was also a tremendous trial for Xu Mingxi.

Soul Beasts were not the greatest danger. Under the pressure of the two elders, not many Soul Beasts dared to come near.

The only thing he needed to resist was the bitter cold brought by this Far North Land.

Xu Mingxi pressed forward with great difficulty. He could feel his soul power being consumed continuously.

Although the two elders could help him, if he needed them to help with everything, he might as well not be a soul master at all.

Right now, Xu Mingxi only wished he had something like a Soul Power Milk Bottle to replenish his soul power. Unfortunately, he did not.

From birth until now, Xu Mingxi had never seen any Soul Tool other than a Storage Soul Tool.

Even the lamps used for illumination on Starfall Mountain were made from materials taken from Soul Beasts; once soul power was infused into them, they would give off light.

In the end, seeing that Xu Mingxi truly could not hold on any longer, the First Elder finally acted, wrapping his entire body in soul power.

Carrying Xu Mingxi on his shoulder, the two elders sprinted toward Ice Scarred Valley.

Ice Scarred Valley was a stretch of valley. The snowy mountains around it blocked most of the cold currents, and the temperature inside was not even as low as the outskirts of the Far North Land.

This was also a place where some Soul Beasts from the inner region of the Far North Land that disliked extremely cold environments loved to dwell.

For example, the Flowing Water Leopard in front of Xu Mingxi. The moment the three of them entered Ice Scarred Valley, this blind Soul Beast leaped out.

"Elder, judging by this Flowing Water Leopard's size and markings, it's only about twelve thousand years old, right? How does it dare?"

"No idea. But we don't need its soul ring, so driving it away will do."

When disciples and members of Star Crown Sect hunted for soul rings, they never killed other Soul Beasts lightly.

Having passed down their legacy for several thousand years, they had already begun to sense that obtaining soul rings was getting harder by the day.

This was not only because the Soul Beasts needed by the Star Crown Martial Soul were relatively rare, but even more because the overall number of Soul Beasts was declining.

In the past, Soul Beasts that could be found in the outskirts now required going to the inner region to discover.

Star Crown Sect could not control others. It could only restrain its own actions and seek peace of mind.

Although Xu Mingxi was not some Soul Beast protection association, when it did not affect him, he also did not want to kill at random.

The chance of a twelve-thousand-year Soul Beast dropping a Soul Bone was not much higher than winning the lottery in his previous life.

The First Elder attacked directly, striking the ground in front of the Flowing Water Leopard and blasting it away with the shock.

The Flowing Water Leopard, finally clear-headed and aware of the pressure from the two elders, scurried off in a panic.

"Elder, let's hurry. The Moon Gazing Toads' territory is on the west side of the valley."

Moon Gazing Toads were a gregarious type of Soul Beast. Every night, they would gather to worship the moon, making them very easy to find.

It was just that this type of Soul Beast was relatively weak, yet it lived close to the core region, so most people would never choose them.

It was precisely because of this that they had been able to survive peacefully in Ice Scarred Valley, and their group even had a Ten-Thousand-Year Moon Gazing Toad King.

The reason Xu Mingxi knew this so clearly was that basically every single member of Star Crown Sect had the blood of a Moon Gazing Toad on their hands.

Basically every member would choose a Moon Gazing Toad for their fourth soul ring.

All because of one divine skill, a group defense divine skill that, when used by a four-ring Soul Ancestor, even Soul Emperor-level experts would find difficult to break.

Star's Protection.

It was only because Star Crown Sect had relatively few people. Otherwise, Xu Mingxi would have suspected they might need to think of a way to raise this kind of Soul Beast.

As someone who cherished his life, how could Xu Mingxi let such an excellent soul skill pass him by?

When the three of them arrived at the Moon Gazing Toads' territory, they were holding the Moon Worship Ceremony.

After a thousand years of hunting them, Star Crown Sect had developed feelings for this Soul Beast, and unless necessary, they did not want to interrupt.

Besides, Xu Mingxi felt that this scene was truly beautiful—or rather, sacred.

In Xu Mingxi's eyes, the Moon Gazing Toads were snow-white all over, and were instead a little ugly-cute.

As the toads' calls continued, silvery-white moonlight spilled down from the sky. All the Moon Gazing Toads kowtowed in the direction of the full moon, and the moonlight fell upon them as though rewarding their devotion.

Immediately after, the Moon Gazing Toads over a thousand years old each spat out a precious pearl, and the moonlight in the sky gathered onto those pearls.

As the full moon was covered by dark clouds, the radiance on the pearls gradually turned inward, and the Moon Gazing Toads were about to take them back into their bodies.

Just then, a figure suddenly emerged from the shadows around the Moon Gazing Toads' territory.

She wore a black Nightwalker Outfit, and a black shadow seemed to cling to her body. Above her, six soul rings—three yellow, two purple, and one black—were shining.

With several swift bounds, she rushed toward the brightest Moon Pearl in the air.

Although the Moon Pearl had no real use, its luxurious and noble qualities made it beloved by some high-ranking officials and nobles. With the price high enough, there would always be someone willing to take the risk.

But the Second Elder would never let him take the Moon-gazing Toad King's Moon Pearl.

That thing affected the survival and development of the Moon-gazing Toad clan. To put it more seriously, this was digging at the very foundations of the Star Crown Sect.

This boy had already earned his death.

The Second Elder's first soul ring lit up, and a dazzling ray of starlight shot out from the star crown.

First Soul Skill, Star Guiding Art—it pinned the poacher in place on the spot.

The Moon-gazing Toads had been somewhat panicked because of the poacher, but the moment they saw that starlight, they immediately calmed down.

The Moon-gazing Toad King swallowed the Moon Pearl back into its belly, then after a croak, leapt straight into the nearby ice cave.

"Croak."

Clansmen, flee for your lives. Those despicable people are here again. From here on, it all depends on each toad's fate.

Though they did not possess much intelligence, after a thousand years of hunting, the Moon-gazing Toad clan had already etched the Star Crown lineage into their inherited memory.

They knew that every time starlight appeared, one or two of their clansmen would surely disappear.

In the past, there had also been Moon-gazing Toad Kings who tried to resist, only to be pinned in place by a single ray of starlight.

The current Toad King felt that it was better not to endure such humiliation. In any case, these people had never hunted a ten-thousand-year Moon-gazing Toad.

Uh, are we really that scary?

Looking at the Moon-gazing Toads fleeing in every direction, Xu Mingxi was also somewhat caught between laughter and tears. Why did they make it seem like they were devils or something?

No—there was still one Moon-gazing Toad that had not run. Or rather, the Second Elder would not let it run.

"Mingxi, this Moon-gazing Toad has just passed five thousand years. It's perfectly suited to be your fourth soul ring."

Under the protection of the two elders, Xu Mingxi calmly walked forward and ended the unlucky toad's life with one slash.

He sat down cross-legged on the spot and began drawing in that bright purple soul ring.

Beside him, the two elders began interrogating the captured black-clothed person. The First Elder tore the veil from her face in one motion.