Inside the Soul Hunting Forest.
A blazing streak of blade light swept across the area, cleaving a path through the wall of thorny vines ahead.
Klay shifted his Blazing Fire Blade Martial Soul to one side, then flexed his somewhat stiff right hand.
"Is this right, Xiao Gang? Are you sure there's a Ghost Vine here?"
"I'm sure." Yu Xiaogang stepped forward, scooped up some dirt, and held it to the tip of his nose. He sniffed carefully and caught the faint scent of blood in the air.
"The soil here is moist and soaked in blood. These thorns are also companion plants of the Ghost Vine. There's no doubt about it."
Klay nodded, then looked at Mo Hen.
Understanding what he meant, Mo Hen raised his right hand and circulated his Soul Power. A Black Writing Brush appeared out of thin air in his hand, and two Yellow Soul Rings flew from his body and settled around it.
He then gripped the brush. Its first Soul Ring flickered faintly, and the brush seemed to come alive, sketching a mysterious black rune in midair.
Mo Hen pointed the brush, and the black rune drifted lightly toward Klay, landing on him.
This was Mo Hen's first Soul Skill, "Soul Power Rune." It conserved a Soul Master's Soul Power and sped up the release of Soul Skills.
The group continued searching ahead. Along the way, Yu Xiaogang repeatedly judged their direction by examining the soil, while Klay carved a path with his blazing Blade Qi.
After a little over ten minutes, they finally passed through the barrier of thorny vines and reached the Ghost Vine Nest within.
Before them stood a massive Ancient Tree with a trunk roughly three meters in diameter. Wrapped around its trunk was an enormous vine as wide as a person. It was blue-black and looked just like a giant python.
This was the target of their expedition: the Ghost Vine.
The instant the group stepped into the nest, the Ghost Vine raised its body like a python. It shuddered, and countless wrist-thick vines burst from the ground, reaching to ensnare them.
Klay's face lit up with excitement. He brandished his Blazing Fire Blade and charged forward.
Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang immediately called out from behind him, "Those are only its tendrils. Don't get bogged down fighting them. The Ghost Vine's weak point is the heartwood of that Ancient Tree."
Klay casually acknowledged him. The first Yellow Soul Ring on his Blazing Fire Blade glimmered, and several streaks of blazing Blade Qi shot out, carving open a clearing around him.
He then plunged the blade into the ground. The second Yellow Soul Ring flashed, and a highly compressed surge of fire-attribute Soul Power was injected underground, rapidly spreading ahead.
Boom!
A long pillar of fire erupted from beneath the earth, instantly incinerating the vines nearly twenty meters in front of Klay. The Ancient Tree within was also laid bare.
Klay channeled Soul Power into his legs, turning into a blur as he darted toward the Ancient Tree.
Then his third, Purple Soul Ring lit up. He swung the Blazing Fire Blade, sending out a semicircular arc of Blade Qi ten meters wide.
The Ancient Tree and the Ghost Vine wrapped around it were cut down in an instant. A blue-black heart fell from the heartwood, and the surrounding vines drooped limply.
Seeing that the battle was over, Yu Xiaogang and the others came over to the Ancient Tree.
Klay grinned at them. "Well? Blade Qi, Earth Burst, Half Moon Slash—in one combo, and a 600-year Soul Beast is easy pickings."
The others nodded without comment. Klay laughed heartily, then clapped Mo Hen on the shoulder. "I have to say, Little Mo, your Soul Power Rune is pretty useful. I can swing my blade much faster than before. Keep it up, young man—you've got a bright future!"
Mo Hen laughed and replied that it was all thanks to Dean Klay's impressive strength; he had merely benefited from it.
Yu Xiaogang glanced at them and paid them no further attention. Instead, he directed Tang San to draw his dagger and stab the blue-black heart on the ground.
The dagger pierced the heart. Foul-smelling blood flowed out, and a Yellow Soul Ring emerged, floating in midair.
Tang San sat cross-legged on the spot, released his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, and guided the Soul Ring onto it. Then he began absorbing its Soul Power.
The others guarded him where they stood. Just as the sun was about to set, Tang San finally finished absorbing his second Soul Ring, and the system's entries updated as well.
[Entry updated: 600-year Ghost Vine Soul Ring]
Inside a dormitory on the top floor of Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy.
Yu Xiaogang summoned the system and opened his personal status panel.
[Name: Yu Xiaogang] [Soul Power: Level 29] [Martial Souls: Luo Sanpao, Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon] [Skills: Mysterious Heaven Skill—Third Stage (0%), Purple Demon Eye—Omniscience (30%), Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track—Minor Mastery (30%), Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon—Minor Mastery (30%)]
"My Mysterious Heaven Skill has already reached the third stage. If I convert that into Soul Power, I've retrained to Level 20 over these three years."
Because he had his original Soul Power as a foundation, Yu Xiaogang had cultivated the first two stages of the Mysterious Heaven Skill extremely quickly—even faster than his own disciple, Tang San.
"If only I could keep progressing this quickly. Unfortunately..."
After entering the third stage, he had clearly felt his Soul Power circulate with difficulty. His cultivation efficiency had dropped by more than half compared to before.
Yu Xiaogang shook his head, cast aside these distracting thoughts, scrolled down the panel, and selected the new entry.
[Selected entry "600-year Ghost Vine Soul Ring." Corresponding mission initiated: Enter the Illusion Realm and defeat the 600-year Ghost Vine.]
He selected the Challenge Mission button. After a dizzying spin, Yu Xiaogang found himself standing in the Ghost Vine Nest.
Thick vines surged toward him from every direction. Yu Xiaogang immediately used Martial Soul Possession and activated his first Soul Skill, Thunderous Poison Dragon Claw.
Illusory dragon claws, each thirty centimeters long, instantly appeared over his hands. Yu Xiaogang swung them, cutting through the vines as he rapidly approached the Ancient Tree at the center.
The Ghost Vine immediately directed its vines to block him, but the Dragon Claws were immensely powerful. Before long, he had broken through the vine cage it had set up.
Yu Xiaogang leaped toward the heartwood of the Ancient Tree, reaching to grab it. The Ghost Vine's main body immediately intervened, lunging at him like a giant python.
Whoosh!
The Dragon Claws sank only halfway in before they could go no farther. Yu Xiaogang used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, flipping away several times to put some distance between them.
Just as he was considering how to attack, countless tiny vines rapidly sprouted from his body. The thorns scraped against the illusory Dragon Scales covering his skin but failed to pierce his defenses. However, there were too many vines, and they were about to cover his entire body.
Yu Xiaogang swiftly channeled his Soul Power. While he could still move, he immediately formed hand seals and summoned Luo Sanpao.
"Fart like thunder, Earth-Shattering Luo Sanpao!"
A thunderous blast erupted. Its powerful shock wave sent both the attacking Ghost Vines and Yu Xiaogang himself flying.
The vines on his body were shattered as well. Thanks to the powerful physique granted by Martial Soul Possession, Yu Xiaogang swallowed the sweetness rising in his throat and kept his mind clear.
He keenly spotted his chance. Adjusting his position in midair, he used Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to borrow force from the air and change his flight path.
Once he had aimed himself at the Ancient Tree, Yu Xiaogang channeled all his remaining Soul Power into his first Soul Skill. The Dragon Claws on his hands lengthened, blue arcs of electricity dancing across their surface with muffled crackles.
Luo Sanpao's first Soul Skill might have only one kind of attack, but its impact was truly formidable. Its power had already been demonstrated when it sent the Mandala Snake tumbling earlier.
Now, Yu Xiaogang used that force to propel himself like an arrow loosed from a bow, piercing the Ancient Tree in the blink of an eye.
He had studied the structure of the Ancient Tree's heartwood back in the Soul Hunting Forest, so while adjusting his direction, he had already aimed for the Ghost Vine's heart.
The Dragon Claws gouged through the heartwood. Foul-smelling blood surged out, and the Ghost Vine was finally dead.
[Mission complete. Obtained 600-year Ghost Vine Soul Ring.]
The scene shifted, and Yu Xiaogang's soul returned to his body.
He steadied himself, then looked at the panel.
[Choose what to do with the Soul Ring: 1. Absorb 2. Decompose]
Yu Xiaogang didn't hesitate for long before selecting the "Decompose" icon on the panel.
He then added the Soul Ring's age to the 400-year Mandala Snake Soul Ring of his Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, and added the Soul Skill to Luo Sanpao.
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