Soul Hunting Operation (Part 2)

Soul Hunting Operation (Part 2)

After exchanging a few more pleasantries with Xiao Wu and the others, Rota left. He still had to hunt soul beasts with Qian Xunjie tomorrow, so he did not intend to disturb Xiao Wu's family any longer.

Rota had planned to find an inn for the night, but he had forgotten to ask Qian Xunjie for some money.

Asking Qian Xunjie for money now was something Rota simply could not bring himself to do. If he really went back to ask, he might as well throw away his pride altogether.

"What a blunder~ Why not just kill a soul beast and sell it?"

Before he became a Spirit Hall elder and collected a salary, he could only rough it for a while.

Not long after leaving Xiao Wu and the others, Rota stopped. He intended to find a soul beast with a higher cultivation level—put simply, he was going fishing.

Rota used himself as bait to see whether any soul beasts would take the hook. If some blind soul beast attacked him, he would have every reason to deal with it.

Rota was deep within the Star Dou Great Forest. There were hardly any Hundred Year Soul Beasts in this area; most were Thousand Year or Ten Thousand Year Soul Beasts.

The older a soul beast was, the higher its price generally became. That way, Rota would not need to hunt too many soul beasts. The main reason, of course, was that he was lazy!

Sure enough, it was not long before some movement began stirring around Rota.

The surrounding forest provided soul beasts with excellent cover. Unless a soul master was particularly powerful, getting ambushed meant certain death.

But Rota possessed Observation Haki and had a clear grasp of everything around him.

A leopard-type soul beast was prowling around Rota. Its aura was quite strong, though Rota could not yet determine whether it was a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast.

"Since you're planning to make a move on me, this old man will fish for you!"

The leopard soul beast lowered its body and prepared to pounce. The older a soul beast was, the greater its intelligence. While it could not speak like the Sky Azure Bull Python or Titan Giant Ape, it could at least think.

At last, the leopard soul beast could no longer restrain itself and pounced at Rota! Its speed was incredibly fierce, and in less than a second, it had lunged behind Rota.

Had it been any unprepared soul master, they would likely have died on the spot without some special life-saving measure.

Unfortunately, the leopard soul beast's opponent was Rota. Competing with Rota in speed was like showing off before an expert.

"Sorry, little leopard~"

The instant the leopard soul beast was about to succeed, Rota turned and planted a foot directly on it.

There was no need to doubt the force behind that kick, especially since it landed squarely on the beast's forehead. If Rota had not deliberately held back, its brains would have burst out on the spot.

It could not be helped. Rota was not a member of any soul beast protection association. That was simply the rule of this world.

A black Soul Ring emerged from the leopard soul beast's corpse. It was clearly a Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring.

However, Rota had no need to absorb it. He only needed the leopard soul beast's corpse. Still, if someone happened to need it, would they buy it at a high price?

Rota shook his head and dismissed the thought. That was nothing but wishful thinking. A soul beast's Soul Ring could only be absorbed by the one who killed it. What a pity.

Rota hoisted the leopard soul beast's corpse over his shoulder and vanished in an instant.

When he returned to the previous village, Rota carrying a Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast naturally drew plenty of attention.

Before long, a large group of merchants had gathered around him, asking about purchasing the soul beast.

Rota picked the one who looked most agreeable and began talking with him. Having all those merchants staring at him was irritating!

"How much are you planning to pay for this soul beast?"

"Sir, I offer 5,000 Gold Soul Coins~ After all, this is a Swift Shadow Leopard nearly twenty thousand years old."

"So it's nearly twenty thousand years old!" Rota thought to himself. Only from the merchant's words did he learn the soul beast's age. Still, he had to keep up the act.

"Then, sir, are you satisfied with this price?"

Five thousand Gold Soul Coins were more than enough for his expenses. Besides, Rota only needed to stay at an inn.

"No problem. Let's sell it for that price!"

"Very good. There are 5,000 Gold Soul Coins inside. Please count them."

The merchant handed Rota a bulging money pouch, letting Rota indulge his urge to handle some cash.

In truth, whether it really contained 5,000 Gold Soul Coins did not matter much to Rota. As long as it was enough, that was fine.

"If there's no issue, then I'll take my leave. This is my card. If you have more soul beasts to sell next time, please send me a letter."

It seemed the merchant intended to establish a long-term partnership with Rota, which made him feel a little awkward. He had only done this on a whim. Still, Rota accepted the card the merchant offered. It might come in handy someday.

One should never speak too absolutely, or one might end up eating their words.

Feeling the weight of the money pouch, Rota finally experienced what it meant to be rich. The first thing he planned to do was eat a good meal. He had been in Douluo for nearly a day and had only drunk a cup of hot tea.

There were quite a few restaurants in the village. Rota was not picky and entered one with fewer people.

To be honest, Rota preferred a quiet environment. Drinking tea and eating a meal in peace—what could be better?

"Sir, this is our menu. Please have a look!" The young waitress's sweet voice was very pleasant to hear.

"Alright, let this old man take a look first."

"Of course, sir. Take your time, there's no rush."

There were simply too many dishes on the menu, and Rota had no idea what to order. After glancing through it, he said to the young waitress, "Miss, please bring me a pot of hot tea and your most popular dish!"

"Yes, sir. Please wait a moment!"

With money in his pocket, Rota unconsciously spoke with much more confidence. At last, there would be no more awkward situations like the one at the inn earlier.

Through his earlier soul beast fishing, Rota had realized that he truly lacked knowledge about soul beasts. Since he was here, he needed to properly learn more about them.

"By the way, miss, do you have any books about soul beasts?"

"Sir, are you looking to pass the time? Please wait a moment, I'll get some for you." The young waitress answered enthusiastically.

Before long, the young waitress brought Rota several books about soul beasts.

Waiting for food could get boring, so the restaurant had such items available for customers' entertainment.

Rota leisurely sipped tea while reading, feeling thoroughly at ease. The books contained much knowledge about soul beasts, including how to identify their ages.

Time passed quickly, and before long, a lavish meal was placed before Rota. Looking at the feast in front of him, Rota's stomach let out an uncooperative growl.

Fortunately, the young waitress was not nearby, or it would have been rather embarrassing.

"Damn, this is pretty good~"

After taking just a small bite, Rota was conquered by the meal. He was no professional gourmet and lacked the words to describe it, so all he could think was, Damn.

At last, it was time to pay the bill. Ten Gold Soul Coins vanished from his pouch. It was not much compared to 5,000, but for commoners, this single meal might have cost them years of income.