Too Long, Too Many Complications

Early the next morning, while the sky was still dim, Zhao Wuji roused everyone with his booming voice.

After leaving the small town, they picked up their pace. They were already very close to the Star Dou Great Forest, and everyone hurried onward at full speed. Naturally, Oscar, who was about to obtain his third Spirit Ring, was the most excited.

The Star Dou Great Forest lay directly south of the Heaven Dou Empire, spanning both great empires. Because of the abundance of Spirit Beasts here, it was also the stretch of border where the boundary between the two nations was least distinct. According to the map, most of the Star Dou Great Forest lay within the Star Luo Empire. Of course, the Heaven Dou Empire had never acknowledged that.

As one of the three major wild Spirit Beast habitats, this was naturally the place Soul Masters most hoped to visit, because every visit here meant they were about to advance.

No one knew how many years the Star Dou Great Forest had existed on the Douluo Continent, but once they entered the forest, the dense canopy that blotted out the sky and sun was enough to tell them of its ancient history.

From afar, faint waves of fresh air drifted toward them, carrying the fragrant scent of vegetation that refreshed both body and mind. It was indescribably pleasant. Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, it felt as though all thirty-six thousand pores across their bodies had opened up, an indescribably invigorating sensation.

Although Gu Chen and Gu Yuena had spent only a few days in the Star Dou Great Forest, nowhere near as long as Xiao Wu, who had grown up there, both of them felt a home-like comfort after arriving. It was brought about by their bloodlines.

At last, they arrived before the Star Dou Great Forest. The towering trees were at least twenty meters tall, and this was only the outermost region. The dense forest had no paths at all, with layer upon layer of shadows beneath the trees, concealing its true appearance.

Upon reaching the forest, the air became even more pleasant, as though the temperature had dropped by several degrees. The refreshing sensation, mixed with the fragrance of damp earth, continuously stimulated their senses of smell.

"Everyone, stop." Zhao Wuji spoke.

Everyone halted. After traveling more than a hundred li, their bodies had all warmed up. Oscar and Ning Rongrong in particular, as support Soul Masters, had fairly decent physical constitutions, but they still could not compare to Gu Chen and the others.

After resting and recovering for a while, they continued onward.

Along the way, Xiao Wu skipped about happily. After all, this was her home.

The terrain within the Star Dou Great Forest was extremely complicated. There were no paths at all in the forest, so naturally, the task of clearing the way fell to Dai Mubai.

Using Martial Soul Possession, Dai Mubai extended the blades from his tiger palms. As he swung both hands, he sliced through the brambles blocking their way without affecting their speed in the slightest.

Before long, they encountered Spirit Beasts—and a whole group of them.

At Zhao Wuji's deliberately lowered command, everyone stopped moving. Tang San was the first to discover this group of Spirit Beasts: a pack of Gnawing Weasels. These Spirit Beasts were not large, and their offensive power was not particularly strong, but their teeth were exceptionally formidable, capable of biting through metal.

Gu Chen frowned slightly and silently released a trace of Dragon Might, driving the Gnawing Weasels away. Although Tang San and the others had not harmed them in the original story, it was better to be safe than sorry.

The Star Dou Great Forest was simply too dense. Describing it as blotting out the sky and sun was no exaggeration. It was not easy to even see sunlight within the forest.

They traveled for about two hours, and it was now midday. During that time, they encountered quite a few Spirit Beasts, but most were ten-year or hundred-year ones. They generally avoided the Spirit Beasts rather than directly clashing with them. Occasionally, some foolish ones came looking for death, but Gu Chen secretly drove them away with Dragon Might.

"Alright, everyone, rest for a while first." Zhao Wuji's voice allowed the constantly tense group to relax. Dai Mubai cleared away the surrounding brambles, creating an open space of nearly a hundred square meters. Everyone sat down against the trees and rested for the moment.

Oscar naturally provided his sausages once again. At a time like this, no one had the mood to care whether they tasted good or bad. They ate Oscar's sausages, drank the water they had brought with them, and rested briefly.

Just as everyone had rested for about half an hour, Tang San and Zhao Wuji suddenly looked toward the same direction.

Zhao Wuji shouted, "Get up! Something is rapidly approaching."

The rustling sounds grew louder and louder. Even Oscar and Ning Rongrong, who were support Soul Masters, could clearly sense how swiftly the unknown creature was approaching.

"It's a seventeen-hundred-year Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent," Gu Yuena said softly. With her spiritual power, she could discern the creature's true strength at a glance.

If she were not currently living as a human, and if Gu Chen had not taught her the principle of the strong devouring the weak, Gu Yuena would absolutely have stopped them from hunting Spirit Beasts.

Zhao Wuji's eyes lit up. "A Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent?! That kind of Spirit Beast is quite rare. The fleshy crest on its head has many wonderful uses. Oscar, you're in luck. It's a pity we don't know exactly how old this Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent is. Gu Yuena, keep an eye on the direction it's heading. Report to me immediately if anything changes."

"It's here." At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing's voice came from nearby. With a low shout, she dove down from midair without the slightest fear, despite facing a thousand-year Spirit Beast. Her claws and the first Spirit Ring on her body lit up at the same time. Hell Stab, activate.

The Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent reacted swiftly. Even while charging forward at high speed, it hurriedly tilted its head aside. Zhu Zhuqing's claw missed the fleshy crest and struck its body instead. A dull thud rang out, immediately slowing the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's charge by several degrees.

Immediately afterward, with Ning Rongrong's support, Tang San and Ma Hongjun restrained the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent. Zhao Wuji also acted, releasing his Fourth and Fifth Spirit Abilities and successfully subduing it.

Zhao Wuji pulled a short blade from his waist and handed it to Oscar. "Too long, too many complications. Do it. Pierce it here beneath the fleshy crest, and you'll puncture its brain. This Spirit Ring will be yours."

Oscar excitedly accepted the short blade. At this moment, the thousand-year Spirit Beast before him was nothing more than a lamb awaiting slaughter. His Third Spirit Ability was within reach, and he was so excited that even his hands trembled.

Just as Oscar was about to thrust down with the blade, a hoarse shout suddenly rang out. "Stop!"

Immediately afterward, two figures darted out from the direction the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent had come from and appeared before them.

The newcomers were Snake Grandma Chao Tianxiang and Meng Yiran. Their arrival startled everyone, but when they saw the six Spirit Rings on the old woman's body, they all relaxed. After all, the seven Spirit Rings on Zhao Wuji's body were no joke, especially those several deep-black ten-thousand-year Spirit Rings, which openly displayed their intimidating power.

At that moment, Gu Chen frowned. He had read the original Douluo Continent story many times, and every time he reached this part, it annoyed him.

The next instant, Gu Chen appeared behind Oscar, grabbed his hand, and drove it downward.

The dagger viciously plunged into the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's skull.

The Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent died instantly, and a purple Spirit Ring rose up.

"You actually stole my Spirit Ring?!" Meng Yiran roared.

"Heh, what makes you say it's yours? Spirit Rings belong to those capable of taking them. You say it's yours, so it's yours? You're really that good at playing tricks? When your mother took you shopping, did everyone ask her, 'Ma'am, how much did you pay for that monkey?'" Gu Chen shot back.

I can mail out the contract tomorrow. The status should probably be changed in a few days.

Oh, let me mention this: we haven't created a group yet. I'll create one on the day the status gets changed. So please don't ask for the group number yet. I'll post it in a separate chapter when the time comes. You definitely won't miss it, so don't worry.

Once again, please send some recommendation votes~