But Sanpao had mutated in the wrong direction. My Innate Soul Power was only half a level, which meant I was destined never to break through level 30 in my lifetime. All I could do was study Martial Souls in theory."
"Uh..." Tang San was taken aback. He realized he'd hit Yu Xiaogang where it hurt. "I'm sorry, Teacher..."
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it." Yu Xiaogang waved a hand and laughed at himself. "I've gotten used to it over the years.
"Come, let me introduce him. This is Luo Sanpao. You can call him Sanpao, too. He got his name because he goes 'Luo Luo' when he cries out. 'Sanpao' refers to his attack—he can only use it three times."
"Oh, so that's how it is. He can only shoot three times. That's a little short," Tang San thought, though he showed no sign of it.
In fact, he even reached out and amiably patted Luo Sanpao's dog head.
"Hello, Sanpao."
"Luo Luo!" Luo Sanpao stuck out his tongue like a real dog, a fawning expression on his canine face.
"All right, let's get started. Sanpao, lead the way." Yu Xiaogang gave the order.
"Luo Luo!"
Luo Sanpao waddled off at the front, his fat body swaying and his head bobbing. The two master and disciple saw only his back and the pig's tail swinging from side to side.
Meanwhile, Lin Ye and the others' carriage stopped outside the Soul Hunting Forest.
After their Token had been checked, Lin Ye led the group as they streamed into the forest.
They had something unusual to take care of this time, so he'd brought both the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress along. What if Xiao Wu ran away while no one was watching the house?
There was no helping it. He'd just have to bring them all along.
That meant the whole group had to come.
"You already have a Soul Ring, so what are you doing here?"
The speaker was Lin Qiu'er. She was draped lazily over Lin Ye's shoulder, looking quite comfortable.
"I don't need a Soul Ring. This time, I'm here to give someone else one," Lin Ye replied with a smile.
He was in unusually high spirits today, and there was a smile on his face.
"Give someone a Soul Ring? What do you mean? Who are you giving it to?" Lin Qiu'er asked three questions in a row, a huge question mark practically appearing above her head.
"You'll find out when the time comes." Lin Ye spoke cryptically.
"That Titled Douluo has appeared again." The Snow Empress frowned and gazed into the distance. She'd sensed Tang Hao's presence.
He was still far away, and their cultivation levels differed greatly. She could sense Tang Hao, but he couldn't detect them.
"Is it Tang Hao?" Lin Ye asked. Though he phrased it as a question, he already knew the answer. In this remote backwater, there wouldn't be any other Titled Douluo around.
The Snow Empress nodded, confirming his guess.
Lin Ye grinned mischievously. "Heh, that saves us some trouble. Big Sister Xue Nu, keep an eye on Tang Hao for me. We'll follow him, but stay back and make sure he doesn't notice us."
The Snow Empress gave a slight nod. After a brief pause, she asked, "Do you have a grudge against him?"
Lin Ye smiled. "Didn't we make enemies yesterday? And there's his son, too. My target this time is that Little Scumbag."
At that, the Ice Empress joined in. "You have a grudge against his son, too?"
Lin Ye nodded again, his tone firm. "There can only be one tiger on a mountain. Either he dies, or I do."
As he spoke, a flash of murderous intent appeared in his eyes and vanished.
The two women were visibly moved. Lin Ye had always been kind to people, greeting everyone with a smile. This was the first time they'd seen him look so vicious.
After a brief silence,
"I'll go take care of the father and son." The Ice Empress rolled up her sleeves, volunteering to help Lin Ye kill Tang Hao and his son.
Lin Ye hurriedly grabbed the hot-tempered woman. "Bing'er, don't go. I still want to torment them properly. If you kill them, there'll be nothing left to play with. We'd lose half the fun."
The Ice Empress fell silent.
"If you're taking him so seriously, that... Little Scumbag must be something special, too. Aren't you afraid it'll get out of hand?"
Hearing the Ice Empress call Tang San Little Scumbag nearly made Lin Ye burst out laughing.
"Enough, don't worry about it. I know what I'm doing."
Just then, Xiao Wu, who'd barely made her presence felt until now, jumped in. With her hands on her hips, she said fiercely, "If you ask me, we shouldn't have let Tang Hao go yesterday. We should've given him a good beating—at the very least, enough to leave him unable to look after himself.
"And that Little Scumbag, his son—he can't be any good, either."
It was obvious that Xiao Wu hated Tang Hao. Her resentment had spilled over, and she'd come to hate Tang San, too.
Lin Ye nearly burst out laughing again. Xiao Wu was calling Tang San Little Scumbag and wanted to beat him up, too. Heh heh heh, how interesting. So very interesting.
Hahaha, who knew you were like this, Xiao Wu!
To be honest, he wanted to kill Tang San, too. But the Asura God had already taken an interest in Tang San. If Lin Ye killed him, that bastard Asura God would just show up and resurrect him.
Then the resurrected Tang San would grow wary and hide everywhere like a sewer rat. That would be disgusting.
By comparison, Lin Ye felt it was better not to alert Tang San too soon. That way, Tang San would remain out in the open.
The Parchment had said it, too: Tang San couldn't be killed, but his talent could be destroyed bit by bit until he became a useless Little Scumbag.
He took Lin Qiu'er down from his shoulder and held her in his arms, petting her vigorously—first her head, then her belly.
Lin Qiu'er was fed up with it, but there was nothing she could do. For the sake of good food, and to avoid having her fur secretly shaved, she endured it.
Endure for a moment, and the storm will pass; take a step back, and the world will open up.
"Fine, so I was sticking my nose where it didn't belong." The Ice Empress looked a little unhappy.
Seeing her pout, Lin Ye moved closer and gave her a shameless grin. "How could that be? Bing'er, you're the best to me."
He knew the Ice Empress was worried about him and wanted to eliminate Tang San as a potential threat. His heart warmed, and he thought that the past year he'd spent feeding her hadn't been in vain.
"Stay away from me." Lin Ye was too close, and the Ice Empress felt uncomfortable. She pushed him away with one hand.
Lin Qiu'er seized the chance to escape Lin Ye's clutches. Once she jumped to the ground, her body quickly grew to its full three-meter length.
Lin Qiu'er bounced around in place a few times, looking delighted. Being free to move like this was much better than being held and petted like a cat.
It was only inconvenient to return to her true form in human cities.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was small compared to other Soul Beasts, but next to six-year-old Lin Ye, she still counted as big.
Looking at Lin Qiu'er's enlarged form, Lin Ye's eyes shifted as if he'd thought of something fun. He excitedly leaned close to her ear and whispered a few words.
"Y-you... You wish!" After hearing his request, Lin Qiu'er bristled and glared at Lin Ye in embarrassment and anger.
He actually wanted to ride her! The nerve! The Emperor Auspicious Beast had her pride. How could she submit to having a human ride on her back?
Before you continue