Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile's Kiss

"Third Soul Skill..."

Xiao Xian smiled faintly. "It's an offensive soul skill: Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile's Kiss."

He looked quite satisfied.

The Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile's most threatening attack was its Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile's Kiss. When activated, its teeth would be covered in a layer of purple light. Once it touched a soul beast or Spirit Master, that purple light would instantly bore into their bodies, entangling with their Soul Power—and continuously ravaging and corroding them from within.

After the enemy completely lost the ability to move, the Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile could reclaim the strengthened purple light into its body as it devoured them.

Just like that dying black wolf soul beast they had seen earlier.

The spot on its back that had been pierced through glimmered with that terrifying purple radiance.

Combined with Xiao Jue's current transformation, this soul skill's destructive power would be especially great!

To Xiao Xian, however, attack power was not the most important thing.

What mattered most was that, according to certain records, although most Spirit Masters who survived Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile's Kiss ended up crippled, once they successfully dispelled the purple light and fully recovered, their Soul Power circulation would seemingly become much smoother...!

Compared to the disaster-ridden Second Soul Skill, which had nearly been scrapped altogether, this soul skill had gone far more smoothly and successfully met his expectations.

Still, the specific details could not be explained in just a few words, so there was no need to explain them to Flender for now.

"Finally, a soul skill with some offensive power!?" Flender nodded at those words. The tension in his brow eased somewhat, and he seemed even more pleased.

Xiao Xian's foundation ultimately lay in his martial soul.

With this soul skill, his martial soul could finally be of some use.

Just from hearing the skill's name, he could roughly imagine what kind of soul skill it was.

It could not be helped. When they had captured that Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile, he had witnessed it far too many times.

Those terrifying giant maws blazing with purple light!

If he had not been fairly quick, even getting bitten once would have left him seriously injured on the spot!

What a pity.

Xiao Xian had no idea what Flender was thinking.

Of course, even if he did know, he would not have said anything...

Many times, he did not use his martial soul not because Xiao Jue was useless, but because Xiao Jue was simply too useful!

It knew everything the Mysterious Heaven Skill did. Suction Palm and Blowing Fire Palm were nothing...

Xiao Xian even dared say that Xiao Jue was sometimes much stronger than he was.

For example, when they had used Violent Step to leap into the air... Xiao Jue had learned it before him.

Flender looked at the sky. Dawn had only just broken, and it was not even time for breakfast at Shrek Academy yet. It was still very early.

He glanced at the dragon crocodile's corpse in the distance. "Don't waste it. Go clean it up. We can still eat it when we get back."

"Yes, Martial Uncle."

Xiao Xian looked at the enormous dragon crocodile corpse on the ground and immediately circulated his Soul Power again.

Purple Soul Power flashed across his palm, and a mighty dragon-dog with a somewhat draconic shape appeared on the ground.

"Xiao Jue, get to it. Skin it and take the meat. This is your future food supply. I'll handle the head; the rest is yours."

Xiao Xian brushed his hand across his waist and pulled out a sharp blade. He stepped forward, propped open the dragon crocodile's jaws, climbed inside, and began working.

The Dragon Whisker Needles in its head were densely packed, so it was safer for him to handle that part himself.

Mysterious Heaven Skill Soul Power poured from his palm. Xiao Xian rapidly searched through the pile of shredded tongues, pulling out one slender, sharp golden needle after another from the flesh.

Xiao Jue's task was much simpler. It opened its bloody maw, aimed at the dragon crocodile's belly, and tore fiercely, ripping off an entire layer of hide. The immense force even dragged the huge corpse some distance across the ground.

Xiao Xian's hand jerked, and the hand holding the dragon crocodile's mouth open nearly slipped. Its jaws almost snapped shut directly, nearly biting him in half at the waist.

"..."

Half an hour later, Xiao Xian's Storage Spirit Tool was packed to the brim.

Flender led Xiao Xian swiftly through the forest.

They even encountered a soul-hunting team along the way. The other party immediately went on guard, but Flender clearly did not care about them and swept past with Xiao Xian.

More than an hour passed.

"Finally out!" Flender carried Xiao Xian out of the Star Dou Great Forest, visibly much more relaxed. Even he had to remain cautious every time he brought students here.

Since he was only bringing Xiao Xian, Flender did not linger outside for long. They merely found an inhabited town on the way, ate something, and continued their journey back to Shrek Academy.

By afternoon, the two had successfully returned to Shrek Academy outside Suotuo City, landing in the familiar clearing.

"We're back. Go get some rest. I'm giving you some time off."

"When you have time, write to your teacher. I believe he'll be very happy."

Flender patted Xiao Xian on the shoulder, then left with a faint smile on his face.

There was no way he could be unhappy.

He had examined the boy's body on the way.

This Thousand-Year Soul Ring from the Dark Gold Dragon Crocodile had successfully strengthened his physique and widened his meridians, enough to support his cultivation for quite some time.

That brat probably thought Flender did not know. Master had listed so many kinds of soul beasts in his letter, and he had explained those special abilities in crystal-clear detail.

For the time being, he would let the brat mess around on his own.

"If that's the case, Xiao Gang should be coming to see me soon..."

Flender could not help feeling a little expectant. His stubborn old friend... how many years had it been? Were they finally going to meet again? It was just a pity that she was not here.

When Xiao Xian returned to the dormitory, Oscar was not there.

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were not there either. Zhao Wuji might have taken them out for training.

Life at Shrek Academy had always been simple and dull. At first, they would use their interests to draw in the students' attention.

But the further things went, the more straightforward and brutal it became.

Rather than a school, it was more like a training camp—a high-intensity, combat-oriented training camp.

Outside the dormitory, Xiao Xian summoned Xiao Jue and placed all of his Soul Rings on it, letting it adapt to its suddenly increased strength on its own before returning to his room and lying down.

Xiao Jue had grown far too large to fit inside the dormitory.

When he had the time, he would have to make a separate nest for it.

It would come in handy during cultivation as well.

Before long, Xiao Xian drifted into a deep sleep as he pondered.

The journey had not been particularly tiring, and it had gone fairly smoothly. Unlike when Tang San was around, everything had not been plagued by one disaster after another. Still, mental exhaustion was unavoidable.

It was not until night fell, around midnight, that Xiao Xian slowly woke up.

But...

The moment he woke, Xiao Xian sharply sensed that something was wrong.

"Where's my Soul Power?!" Startled, he instinctively narrowed his eyes. The Soul Power that had fully recovered within his body had somehow fallen to less than thirty percent!

"Roar—!"

A faint, distant roar drifted in from outside the window.

Xiao Xian immediately turned to stare in that direction. Seeming to realize something, his expression returned to normal.

"Boss Dai, you're no good, hahaha!"