Azure Edge Mantis, the First Spirit Ring

Ning Fengzhi, Chen Xin, and Gu Rong arrived at the back mountain.

Chen Xin sensed the area, then frowned.

"That sword aura was indeed Zhexian's."

Ning Fengzhi caught the faint scent of wine in the air.

He sighed.

"Zhexian's room is already empty."

"His savings from the past six years are inside."

"That child may seem unruly, but he is actually quite proud."

"Rongrong's words were too much for him to accept. He has even turned to drink to drown his sorrows."

Gu Rong shook his head.

"Pride without the strength to support it is nothing but a joke."

Ning Fengzhi said nothing.

Clearly, he agreed with Gu Rong.

Meanwhile, Chen Xin's brow furrowed ever deeper.

He did not want to see Li Zhexian fall into despair.

After all, he had once regarded him as his heir.

In his eyes.

A qualified swordsman could not drink.

How could a Drunkard hold a sword steady?

Chen Xin flicked his sleeve and turned around, roaring, "Drowning your sorrows in drink will never make you great!"

Just then, a graceful figure ran toward them.

"Father, Brother Zhexian has left the sect?"

Ning Fengzhi nodded.

"Zhexian has suffered a severe blow."

"Rongrong, if you ever have the chance to see Zhexian again, remember to make it up to him."

Ning Rongrong nodded with a complicated expression.

However, she felt that it would be difficult for her to ever see Li Zhexian again.

She was going to study at Shrek Academy, which was said to accept only monsters.

And Li Zhexian was destined to live an ordinary life.

"Let's go, Father."

Just as she was about to turn and leave.

Ning Rongrong suddenly felt as though she had stepped on something.

She lowered her head and lifted her foot.

A Clay Sword Pendant, broken in two, came into view.

On a winding road.

Li Zhexian rode a Spirit Beast known as a Cloud Hoof Horse, occasionally tilting back his head to take a swig of wine.

He was travel-worn, his white robe stained with dust. The long hair hanging beside his forehead had clumped together from going unwashed for too long.

He looked rather bedraggled.

Yet somehow.

He had also gained a hint of the air of a young wanderer.

Li Zhexian's destination was the Star Dou Great Forest.

His Soul Power had reached level twenty, yet he did not even have a single Spirit Ring.

Several more days passed.

Li Zhexian finally arrived at the Star Dou Great Forest.

Tap, tap—

The sound of feet crushing leaves rang out.

Even at its outskirts, the forest was so dense it blotted out the sky.

Though it was daytime, visibility was dim. Everywhere he looked, vegetation grew wild and unchecked, while the air was thick with the mingled scents of grass and decay.

The bushes, taller than a person, rustled from time to time.

"Luckily, during the six years my Soul Power stagnated, I learned a great deal about Spirit Beasts."

Li Zhexian scanned the dense undergrowth.

"Azure Edge Mantises have sword-like forelimbs and incredible speed!"

"As the saying goes, nothing under heaven can withstand speed. My Azure Lotus Sword Martial Soul requires the utmost speed and attack power!"

After half a day.

Li Zhexian had evaded the attacks of several Spirit Beasts.

At last, he found his target.

Amid the lush forest, atop a towering tree.

A giant mantis with a slender body clung to the trunk, its dark green shell gleaming with a metallic luster.

Its triangular head bore a pair of amber-like compound eyes, while its forelimbs, shaped like sharp sword blades, were folded before its chest.

Li Zhexian secretly observed the Azure Edge Mantis.

"A hundred-year Azure Edge Mantis has a green shell."

"This one is nearly black. It probably is not far from reaching a thousand years."

Li Zhexian's eyes flickered.

"It far exceeds the absorption limit for a first Spirit Ring."

"Moreover, Azure Edge Mantises are extremely formidable in actual combat. This one is nearly a thousand years old—even a level-thirty battle Soul Elder might not be confident of defeating it."

He prepared to seek another target.

He did not even have a Spirit Ring skill yet. Fighting it head-on would be far from wise.

But just as Li Zhexian was about to leave.

A sudden buzzing sound rang out.

Another Azure Edge Mantis landed on the giant tree.

This Azure Edge Mantis was also dark green, but it was twice the size of the first one.

Li Zhexian stared in surprise.

"This is... a Female Azure Edge Mantis?!"

Insects were different from animals.

Among animals, males were larger.

But for insects, it was the opposite. Females were larger than males.

Li Zhexian wondered why this female mantis had flown over.

Then.

He saw the Male Azure Edge Mantis climb onto the female mantis.

Li Zhexian: "..."

He picked up the Celadon Gourd hanging from his waist.

Glug, glug—he took a mouthful of wine.

Li Zhexian did not leave.

He was not a pervert.

He had simply suddenly recalled one of a mantis's habits.

Within the dense undergrowth.

Li Zhexian concealed himself.

On a towering tree a dozen yards away, the two Azure Edge Mantises were mating.

About half an hour later.

The Male Azure Peak Mantis suddenly withdrew its tail appendage, spread its wings, and flew toward the sky.

But the Female Azure Edge Mantis had expected this.

It spun around sharply, its blade-like forelimb slashing out with such speed that it tore through the air, viciously hooking into the male mantis's chest and abdomen.

Green blood sprayed out.

Li Zhexian's eyes lit up at the sight.

This was exactly what he had been waiting for!

After mating, female mantises would eat the males!

And male mantises generally would not simply wait to be eaten!

Therefore, they were bound to fight!

"Such a perfect opportunity has presented itself before me."

"Even if it exceeds the Spirit Ring absorption limit, I have to give it a try."

Six years of silence.

Had taught Li Zhexian how precious the chance to grow stronger was.

He had to seize this opportunity.

With that thought in mind, Li Zhexian looked toward the two Azure Edge Mantises locked in battle.

The searing pain stirred the male mantis's ferocity.

It screeched and spun around, its blade-like forelimbs flashing like lightning as they struck at the female mantis's head.

The female mantis drew back its blade-like forelimbs and crossed them before itself to block.

Clang!

The two pairs of blades collided, producing the sound of metal striking stone.

Whoosh! Whoosh—

Whoosh! Whoosh—

The two mantises beat their wings and soared into the air.

They clashed fiercely overhead.

With Li Zhexian's eyesight, he could only see two dark green bolts of lightning colliding madly.

"Good thing I didn't rashly attack!"

"Azure Edge Mantises are terrifyingly powerful in battle!"

"If a level-thirty battle Soul Elder lets down their guard for even a moment, they might be killed instantly!"

Li Zhexian drank mouthful after mouthful of wine.

The Wine Martial Soul was a full-Soul-Power Martial Soul on the same level as the Azure Lotus Sword.

Though it had not been fitted with Spirit Rings, it still possessed heaven-defying effects.

Besides enhancing Soul Power and healing injuries.

The more Li Zhexian drank, the sharper his Azure Lotus Sword became.

The sword and Wine Martial Soul complemented one another.

The wine flowed down his throat.

The lotus patterns on the Azure Lotus Sword in Li Zhexian's hand slowly bloomed.

A startlingly sharp aura burst forth.

The sounds of metal clashing rang out without end.

Severed limbs and shredded wings continually fluttered down.

Several dozen breaths later.

Boom—

The male mantis fell from the sky.

The female mantis crashed down right after it.

It had won.

But it had also suffered grave injuries.

One compound eye had been sliced away, most of one blade-like forelimb had broken off, and its slender neck bore a huge gash that flowed with thick green blood.

It went to the male mantis's corpse.

And began tearing into its prize in huge bites.

As the male mantis went down its throat, its dark green shell gradually became deeper and blacker.

The Female Azure Edge Mantis was stepping into the realm of thousand-year Spirit Beasts!

And just as it lost itself in its feast.

Buzz—!

A streak of sword light suddenly flashed.

In the dim forest, a blinding cold gleam appeared.

The Female Azure Edge Mantis's chewing froze.

The next instant.

Green blood splashed.

The Female Azure Edge Mantis was severed in two at the neck.

A pale purple Spirit Ring rose from its corpse...