Ghostly, Wounded at a Glance; Five-Colored Star Butterfly

The people hunting Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest were students of Spirit Hall Academy.

They were also talented students favored by Spirit Hall, students in whom Spirit Hall had placed great expectations.

Thus, the ones leading them in their hunt for Soul Beasts were two Titled Douluo. One of them was that black shadow—Ghost Douluo Ghostly.

"Old Ghost, what are you doing?"

Chrysanthemum Douluo saw Ghostly cocking his ear, motionless for quite some time.

"There seems to be some movement over there. I'm wondering whether I should take a look."

Chrysanthemum Douluo said, "Perhaps some Soul Beasts are fighting. What's so strange about that? Our task is to ensure these children's safety."

"Perhaps."

Ghostly felt that the disturbance did not sound like Soul Beasts fighting, and he remained curious.

Although Spirit Hall was not far from the Star Dou Great Forest, even Spirit Hall did not dare claim to fully understand the Star Dou Great Forest.

Suddenly, an even greater disturbance came from afar.

This time, it was not only Ghostly. Yue Guan also felt the earth trembling.

Yue Guan warily watched his surroundings. Only after quite a while did the trembling finally cease.

"I'll go take a look over there. Spirit Hall is too close to the Star Dou Great Forest. If a beast tide appears, Spirit Hall will bear the brunt of it."

After giving his instructions, Ghostly prepared to leave.

"Fine. Go and return quickly. Don't go too deep."

"I know."

With that, Ghostly turned into a wisp of black smoke and silently vanished into the distance.

Ghostly was quite confident in his ability to hide. His title was "Ghost," and he was like a phantom himself. As he moved at high speed, he made almost no sound.

Ghostly sped toward the source of the tremors. The Star Dou Great Forest was filled with towering trees and dense woods, severely obstructing his vision.

Suddenly, Ghostly came to an abrupt halt.

Though countless trees stood between them, he could still sense some powerful aura ahead.

That faint sensation alone made Ghostly's scalp tingle.

He had a premonition that if he drew any closer, he would very likely be in danger.

Yet the more it was like this, the more curious he became about what lay ahead.

"Could a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast from the core region have come out?"

Just as Ghostly was still hesitating over whether to move closer, an intense sense of danger descended upon him.

"Not good."

Two streaks of golden light shot toward him at incredible speed. The dense forest before Ghostly was pierced through by them, leaving two narrow tunnels through the woods.

Ghostly had no time to think. He immediately transformed into dozens of ghostly shadows and scattered in every direction.

His reaction had already been swift, but the golden light was even faster.

More than a dozen ghostly shadows that were struck were instantly pierced through and rapidly dissipated.

Even the clones caught in the attack, despite not being directly pierced by the golden light, became incredibly faint.

A gust of wind swept past, and those clones scattered with it.

Only Ghostly's true body remained, fleeing at top speed.

"What exactly was that? This is still far from the core of the Star Dou Great Forest. How could such a powerful Soul Beast appear here?"

Ghostly still looked like nothing more than a black shadow, his expression impossible to discern.

Yet drops of dark red blood fell from him as he moved, enough to prove that he had not escaped unscathed from that golden light.

The shock in Ghostly's heart was beyond measure.

With his strength, even against a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, even if he could not defeat it, he should not have been crushed at the first touch.

He had not even seen his opponent's face before suffering severe injuries.

Driven by overwhelming curiosity, Ghostly looked back as he fled. The two tunnels through the woods gave him a little visibility.

In that hurried glance, all he saw was a patch of gleaming golden fur.

Yet from that tiny glimpse alone, Ghostly could infer just how enormous the other party's body was.

Run!

That was the only thought in Ghostly's mind.

If he were caught, he would not even have a chance to resist.

"Battle Saint Ape, was there someone over there?"

Lin Qi saw the Battle Saint Ape suddenly look in one direction. Two streaks of golden light shot from the Battle Saint Ape's eyes, crossing the barriers of countless trees in the blink of an eye.

"His Highness may call this subordinate Monkey. A human approached from that direction, but this subordinate has already driven him away."

That had merely been a casual strike from the Battle Saint Ape. His Highness was human, and he worried that directly killing another human might leave a bad impression on His Highness.

Lin Qi nodded slightly.

The Star Dou Great Forest was the largest Soul Beast Forest on the Douluo Continent. It was nothing strange for people to come here to hunt Soul Beasts.

"Monkey, the divine ability of your eyes is quite powerful."

The Battle Saint Ape scratched his head and laughed.

"It is this subordinate's honor to receive praise from the Young Master."

As he spoke, the Battle Saint Ape smugly raised his chin at the Six-Winged Golden Mantis.

The Six-Winged Golden Mantis rolled its eyes and did not bother arguing with that mad monkey. Instead, it said to Lin Qi:

"His Highness, did you come to the Star Dou Great Forest to obtain a Soul Ring?"

Seeing Lin Qi nod, the Battle Saint Ape immediately slapped his chest.

"What kind of Soul Beast does His Highness need? This subordinate will find one for you right away."

The Battle Saint Ape did not hesitate in the slightest.

Soul Beast was a collective term, not the name of a single race.

Even members of the same race slaughtered one another, much less Soul Beasts of different races.

The Battle Saint Ape upheld the will of the Ancient Beast God and cared about the future of Soul Beasts as a whole, but he did not feel the slightest guilt about helping Lin Qi hunt Soul Beasts.

Countless Soul Beasts died in the Star Dou Great Forest every day. To become His Highness's Soul Ring was that Soul Beast's honor.

"No need. Perhaps my Soul Ring has already arrived."

Lin Qi looked in the direction where golden light had shot from the Battle Saint Ape's eyes. A crooked, wavering figure was flying toward them.

"Hm?"

The Six-Winged Golden Mantis followed Lin Qi's gaze.

"It's a Five-Colored Star Butterfly, and it seems to be injured. Monkey, it must have been caught in your attack."

"Nonsense."

The Battle Saint Ape glared.

"For a Five-Colored Star Butterfly that hasn't even reached Ten Thousand Years, let alone being caught in my attack, it couldn't withstand even one of my sneezes."

"His Highness, are you planning to absorb this Five-Colored Star Butterfly's Soul Ring?"

It was Master Meng's area of expertise again.

"Five-Colored Star Butterflies are indeed suitable for Little Qi to absorb. This type of Soul Beast possesses all Five Elements Attributes, and its Soul Ring can provide boosts to five attributes."

Master Meng had long been speechless over Lin Qi's luck.

Wasn't it merely a severely wounded Soul Beast happening to fly here at just the right time, happening to be perfectly suited for Lin Qi to absorb?

It was not the first time. He was already used to it.

Xiao Wu was even less surprised.

Having seen it all, she felt that this was only fitting for Lin Qi, the inheritor of the Ancient Beast God.

That Five-Colored Star Butterfly staggered through the air and finally flew over.

This Five-Colored Star Butterfly was more than seven thousand years old. With its wings spread, it was three meters wide.

It was in terrible condition, not far from drawing its final breath.

Finally, when it flew before Lin Qi, the Five-Colored Star Butterfly could no longer fly and fell before him. Lin Qi did not even need to take a single step.

The Five-Colored Star Butterfly that had fallen to the ground touched Lin Qi's hand with its long antennae. There was even a gleam of relief in its eyes.

"I won't say much more. Thank you for offering your Soul Ring."

After hearing Lin Qi's words, the Five-Colored Star Butterfly seemed to regain some vitality in a final burst of life.

It used its antennae to pull Lin Qi's hand and pressed it against its own head.

The next moment, the Five-Colored Star Butterfly's life force completely faded away.

"What a wonderful Soul Beast. It was even worried that I would not have the heart to act. Even in death, it wanted to help me complete this step."

The Battle Saint Ape and the Six-Winged Golden Mantis said in unison:

"His Highness is blessed by heaven and destined to become the lord of all beasts. All Soul Beasts are willing to offer their lives for you."