In the heart of Soul Hunting Forest, ancient trees stood like guardians. Their bark was covered in the marks of time, and their tangled roots plunged deep into the earth.
Sunlight struggled to pierce the canopy, casting only scattered patches of brightness upon the ground and lending this dark forest an added air of mystery and eeriness.
At this moment,
Blade stood atop a massive tree. Its trunk was covered in thick moss, while its crisscrossing branches resembled enormous arms reaching up to embrace the sky.
Though the branch beneath his feet was thick and sturdy, it trembled slightly under his weight, letting out faint creaks.
Blade's figure was almost completely blended into the canopy. Only those sharp, blood-red eyes gleamed with an icy light in the dim forest.
As always, his hands held Shizun's Sword. The patterns on its hilt had been soaked smooth and clear by his blood, while the blade itself faintly exuded an icy aura, forming a stark contrast with the tropical climate around it.
There was not the slightest expression on Blade's great face, as though he were a cold and indifferent statue. Only the occasional glint in the eyes fixed on the ground below revealed the fluctuations in his heart.
Now,
His gaze remained locked on Yu Xiaogang and Tang San below, who were cautiously searching the forest for a suitable spirit beast.
Seeing this, a trace of anticipation appeared in Blade's eyes. The amused curve of his lips became more pronounced, as though he was deeply interested in what was about to happen.
In the original work, Tang San obtained his first spirit ring in this very forest.
According to Yu Xiaogang's rather unconventional theory at the time, what Tang San ultimately absorbed was the spirit ring of a four-hundred-year Mandala Snake.
That