The Hunted Girl, Zhu Zhuqing

"It's all right. You have to eat one bite at a time; you've already done very well."

Zhou Chen rose to his feet and extended his left hand. With a flash of light in his palm, two scrolls a foot long appeared.

"I have always rewarded merit and punished wrongdoing. In light of your contributions, I have decided to bestow these two cultivation arts upon you to aid your training, so that you may make even greater contributions to my Purple Micro Palace in the future!"

"Cultivation arts?"

Seeing the two scrolls in Zhou Chen's hand, Xiao Chenyu and Wang Sheng's eyes both turned blazing hot!

On the Douluo Continent, the cultivation methods of most Soul Masters consisted of nothing more than simply circulating Soul Power. Even aristocratic families and sects possessed only a few minor tricks for cultivating Soul Power, none of which formed a complete system.

Without mature Soul Power cultivation arts, Soul Masters' cultivation speed depended entirely on their innate talent, the quality of their Martial Souls, and the configuration of their Soul Rings, rather than their own diligence and hard work.

However, the cultivation arts Zhou Chen bestowed upon his subordinates could greatly increase their cultivation speed!

Xiao Chenyu and Wang Sheng had long heard of this.

As far as they knew, Headmaster Marx had received the Green Light Art bestowed by Zhou Chen.

This Green Light Art was said to resonate with the plants between heaven and earth, and could even perform photosynthesis to absorb sunlight. It complemented Headmaster Marx's plant-type Ghost Vine Martial Soul perfectly.

Because of this, in just six years, Marx had relied on this cultivation art and several pills to advance by leaps and bounds from a level 42 Soul Ancestor to level 70. He was only one Soul Ring away from becoming a Soul Sage!

They had always envied Marx. Now that they learned they too would receive cultivation arts, their excitement was beyond words.

"Chenyu, your Martial Soul is a wolf. Wolves are bloodthirsty and cruel by nature, yet swift and agile, making this Blood Demon Art suitable for you. However... the Blood Demon Art has one drawback: it will gradually make you enjoy drinking blood."

"Drinking blood?" Xiao Chenyu cried in alarm.

"That's right. But you don't necessarily have to drink human blood; pig's blood or cow's blood will do. Besides, drinking blood can rapidly raise your Soul Power level," Zhou Chen coaxed.

"Then this subordinate is willing."

Xiao Chenyu agreed without the slightest hesitation.

As long as he could rapidly increase his Soul Power, what did drinking blood matter?

"Good. Stand right there and don't move."

Zhou Chen chuckled and immediately summoned the System, preparing to infuse him with the cultivation art.

Ding... Would you like to use the Blood Demon Art—an inherited cultivation art of the Blood Sect in the Black-Corner Region of the Battle Through the Heavens world, low Earth-tier. It can rapidly increase cultivation through drinking blood, but can only reach the Dou Huang realm at most. Friendly reminder: this bloodline carries significant hidden dangers. Please use with caution.

"Yes."

Zhou Chen answered decisively.

It wasn't as if he would be using it. He could just ignore any hidden dangers.

Besides, Dou Huangs from the Doupo World could fly through the heavens and burrow into the earth, control the energy of heaven and earth, destroy cities and annihilate nations. They were practically comparable to Titled Douluos. That upper limit was already very high, all right?

Ding... Host authorization confirmed. Target: Xiao Chenyu...

Beginning cultivation art infusion!

Boom!

A pillar of light burst from Zhou Chen's palm and instantly enveloped Xiao Chenyu. Countless motes of light, like beautiful fireflies, continuously sank into his body.

This miraculous sight left Wang Sheng, who stood to the side, dumbstruck, and made him look forward to it even more.

Meanwhile, Xiao Chenyu felt as though he had been thrown into an ice cave. The bone-piercing chill nearly froze his blood solid!

Who knew how long passed before the pillar of light finally dispersed.

At this moment, Xiao Chenyu's face had become unusually pale and feminine, making him look like a vampire.

Clearly, the Blood Demon Art had affected him considerably.

"How do you feel?" Zhou Chen raised an eyebrow.

"Huff..."

After exhaling a mouthful of turbid air, Xiao Chenyu immediately dropped to one knee and said solemnly, "This subordinate's Soul Power has risen by two levels, and my body has become exceptionally cold. Other than that, there seems to be nothing else."

"Do you feel like drinking blood?" Zhou Chen asked curiously.

Hearing this, Xiao Chenyu said somewhat awkwardly, "Not at the moment."

"Oh, that's good."

Zhou Chen nodded, then turned to Wang Sheng. "Your Martial Soul is the Battle Tiger. As they say, clouds follow dragons, and wind follows tigers. This 'Wind Scroll Art' is also quite suitable for you."

As he spoke, Zhou Chen once again had the System infuse Wang Sheng with a cultivation art.

"Thank you for your grace, Palace Master! This subordinate will brave fire and water without hesitation!"

After receiving the cultivation art infusion, Wang Sheng immediately dropped to one knee and spoke respectfully.

"All right, get up. We still have important business to attend to."

Zhou Chen waved his hand, signaling Wang Sheng to rise, then continued, "The Star Luo Royal Secret Guard has already appeared near Notting City. They are heading toward the Balak Kingdom."

"Immediately gather the Tian Shu Guard and follow me to wipe them out!"

"As you command."

At the same time.

Thirty li from Notting City, within a dense forest.

A young girl dressed in a tight black outfit was lightly stepping across the treetops, weaving back and forth through the woods.

The girl's long black hair draped over her shoulders, while her fair little face was slightly lowered. She had a tall, slender figure and well-proportioned, long legs, but her chest was extremely full, making her seem like an adult. It was simply at odds with her age.

In sharp contrast to her fiery body, the girl radiated an inner coldness. Her beautiful eyes did not even hold a trace of life, containing only the icy chill of deathly stillness.

There was also a penetrating wound on her right shoulder, clearly caused by an arrow. Although the wound had been bandaged, thin streams of bright red blood still seeped from it.

Clearly, the girl was being hunted.

After darting through the forest for several li, the girl was about to rest when a mocking female voice suddenly sounded by her ear:

"Zhu Zhuqing, my dear little sister, did you think you could escape?"