"Give it a name," Yu Xiaogang suggested.
"I'll call it 'Twenty-Four Bridges on a Moonlit Night.'"
As Tang San spoke, he eagerly tried it out. But when he sent his soul power into the jade to take a look, he was dumbfounded.
"T-teacher, how much space did you say each piece of jade had?"
"One cubic meter."
Tang San thought for a moment, then handed the belt to Yu Xiaogang to inspect himself. After sending his soul power inside, he too was dumbfounded.
"Why is there only one cubic centimeter left?"
"It was already like that when I got it." Tang San looked utterly innocent.
Director Su, standing nearby, speculated, "Perhaps it's so old that the space inside collapsed."
Yu Xiaogang frowned in thought for a moment, then agreed with that explanation.
He said apologetically to Tang San, "I never expected this. Make do with this belt for now. I'll give you a better one in the future."
Tang San: "..."
How am I supposed to use one cubic centimeter?
That space isn't even as big as the jade.
Su Mo watched the farce while struggling to hold back his laughter. He secretly offered Xiao Wu the copper ring engraved with "Wu," but Xiao Wu, who had already set her sights on the rings, snatched the one engraved with "Mo" instead.
"I want this one."
"Suit yourself."
Su Mo did not mind. Both copper rings had the same amount of space inside anyway.
At noon the next day.
Su Mo and his companions finally arrived at the Soul Hunting Forest.
Outside the forest stood a sprawling marketplace lined with all kinds of shops. Paved paths crisscrossed it, and calls rang out one after another, creating a lively din.
"Six in our party, need one more! Hurry!"
"We've got a permit! Need a support!"
"..."
The group did not linger, heading straight into the depths of the marketplace.
After they passed through the marketplace, the view suddenly opened up.
A forest resembling a primeval jungle spread before their eyes.
A steel fence about ten meters high encircled the forest, with a hundred-man squad of soldiers patrolling outside it.
At the entrance to the Soul Hunting Forest, Yu Xiaogang presented a token, and the group passed through without trouble.
Once they crossed the fence and stepped into the forest, the clamor outside seemed to vanish abruptly. The fresh air lifted their spirits.
After entering the forest, Director Su and Yu Xiaogang moved to the front of the group, surveying their surroundings in every direction and advancing only after making sure there was no danger.
Su Mo kept Spiritual Detection active the entire time.
He could detect any danger that appeared within three hundred meters.
Indeed, the range of Spiritual Detection had increased.
After his physique improved, Tian Meng raised the age limits on his soul ring and soul bone. His soul ring reached twenty-four hundred years, and Spiritual Detection could cover a three-hundred-meter radius centered on him.
As they walked, Yu Xiaogang explained things to them.
They detoured around docile soul beasts and dealt with those that showed strong hostility.
At night, they found a safe place to camp.
For two days straight, they failed to encounter a soul beast suitable for Tang San.
Even with Spiritual Detection active, Su Mo saw no sign of the Mandala Snake.
Clearly, the butterfly effect had taken hold.
That night, Su Mo was sleeping soundly when he suddenly heard a cry of "Poison!" He immediately woke up and roused Xiao Wu, who was still asleep.
Catching a faint sweet, metallic scent in the air, he held his breath and looked around.
Director Su, Yu Xiaogang, and Tang San were already awake.
Tang San had been the one to shout "Poison!"
Using Spiritual Detection, Su Mo discovered a giant snake four meters long lying in the bushes ahead and to the left. It had a dark green, triangular head and two eyes like rubies.
Presumably, this was the Mandala Snake Tang San had encountered in the original story.
"Over there!"
Su Mo pointed toward the Mandala Snake.
At his words, the purple soul ring at Director Su's feet blazed with light. Without hesitation, he aimed at the bushes Su Mo indicated and unleashed his third soul skill.
"Flame Jet!"
Boom!
This time, they were not in the dormitory. Director Su did not restrain his soul skill's range, unleashing it at full force. A surging beam of flame blasted into the bushes without reserve, instantly triggering a massive explosion.
"Hiss! Hiss!!!"
An agonized shriek reached everyone's ears.
By the blazing firelight, Yu Xiaogang made out the soul beast's appearance and sucked in a sharp breath. "It's actually a Mandala Snake! What is it doing on the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest?"
Seeing that the Mandala Snake was not quite dead, Director Su prepared to finish it off.
"Spare the snake from your flames!"
Yu Xiaogang abruptly stopped Director Su just as he was about to act.
"This Mandala Snake is four meters long, so it's close to four hundred years old. It's very suitable as Little San's soul ring."
"Hmm?" Director Su was taken aback.
Even Tang San was a little bewildered. "Teacher, my martial soul is a plant, while this Mandala Snake is a beast. Won't absorbing it cause problems?"
"No."
Confidence gleamed in Yu Xiaogang's eyes.
"One of the ten core competencies of martial soul I proposed through my research is martial soul mimicry theory. A plant martial soul does not necessarily have to absorb soul rings from plant soul beasts, nor is a beast martial soul necessarily incapable of absorbing plant soul rings. Under various prerequisite conditions, these two types can absorb each other's soul rings..."
Director Su, however, disagreed.
"Grandmaster, even if your theory is correct, why must Tang San absorb the Mandala Snake's soul ring?"
"This doesn't align with the theory of Martial Soul Evolution. The Mandala Snake has neither a wood nor a life attribute. It can't strengthen the foundation of his blue silver grass martial soul at all."
Yu Xiaogang: "..."
Those blasted Ten Great Laws of Martial Souls again!
His face darkened. "Hmph, what do you know? Leaving aside whether that theory is correct, even if it is, are you so focused on strengthening the martial soul that you don't care about the power of its soul skills?"
"Why not simply have Little San absorb blue silver grass? That would strengthen it even more. But if his soul skills have no power, what will he fight with?"
"Well..." Director Su fell silent.
The Grandmaster's words were not entirely without merit.
"In that case, I won't get involved. You and your student can decide for yourselves."
Director Su waved a hand. Tang San was not his own son. Offering a word of advice was enough; the final choice had nothing to do with him.
Hearing this, Yu Xiaogang felt he had won a round.
He looked at Tang San again. "Little San, the Mandala Snake brings toughness and toxicity. This will strengthen your blue silver grass while also giving you a soul skill with a certain degree of combat power."
At this point, his tone became sincere.
"Other soul masters all sneer at my ten core competencies. Little San, are you willing to trust me?"
Tang San pondered for a moment.
Then he drew a deep breath and nodded firmly.
At the sight, a rare, gratified smile appeared on Yu Xiaogang's face.
"My good disciple!"
Next, master and disciple waited for the gravely wounded Mandala Snake to gradually quiet down. Once its breath grew increasingly faint and it no longer had the strength to struggle, Yu Xiaogang handed Tang San a sword.
Tang San took the sword and cautiously approached, piercing the Mandala Snake's brain with a thrust and dealing the fatal blow.
Faint yellow motes of light began gathering above the Mandala Snake's body.
Seeing this, the corners of Su Mo's mouth lifted slightly.
I wonder what kind of soul skill Tang San will get if I use Returning a Peach with a Plum to intercept three hundred years' worth of energy from the Mandala Snake's soul ring.