Douluo: Martial Soul Iron-Eating Beast, Never a Slave

Also an Immortal Herb, the Earth Dragon Golden Melon was no inferior in quality to the Infernal Delicate Apricot and Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass. Using it as his fourth soul ring did not seem like a loss no matter how he looked at it.

Having made up his mind, Zhao Mu called over Heibai, who had just eaten its fill and was about to lie down for a nap.

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

You cannot exercise or move strenuously right after eating~

Heibai reluctantly lumbered over, slowly voicing its complaints to Zhao Mu, afraid that Zhao Mu was about to drag it off to study something strange again.

Ruffling Heibai's large head, Zhao Mu said, "Don't worry. I'm not making you train this time. I want you to find something to eat."

If the Earth Dragon Golden Melon grew in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, it would grow underground. Zhao Mu could not possibly turn the entire Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well upside down, so he could only rely on Heibai, which possessed some treasure-finding ability, to search for it.

At that, Heibai raised one eyebrow, its face full of suspicion.

This supposedly delicious food did not sound very reliable.

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

What kind of delicious food? What does it look like?

Though skeptical, Heibai could not help asking. It could not let even the slightest possibility slip away.

"What does it look like..." Zhao Mu was stumped as well. He could not really describe what the Earth Dragon Golden Melon looked like. After struggling for a long while, he could only tell Heibai, "It's probably golden and looks like a melon."

Heibai: -_-||

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

That's it? Does it have any other features?

Heibai howled as it asked.

All it got in response was Zhao Mu patting its butt and urging, "That's all. Go look for it first!"

With a baffled expression, Heibai began wandering around the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, its nose pressed close to the ground. A perfectly fine Iron-Eating Beast had now turned into a melon-sniffing dog.

When it caught a scent at one spot, Heibai abruptly stopped. Its nose twitched every so often, as though carefully confirming something.

Awoo~

After confirming it, it called out to Zhao Mu.

"You're saying there's something delicious here?" Zhao Mu walked over and asked.

Heibai nodded.

"Then why aren't you digging already? What are you waiting for?"

Heibai: (●-●)

Wasn't it only supposed to search? It had to dig too?

Hearing Heibai's complaint, Zhao Mu replied, "There are only three people here. If you don't dig, who will?"

Heibai lowered its head and secretly glanced at Zhao Mu. Its meaning was obvious.

"You want me to dig? What are you thinking?" Zhao Mu smacked Heibai on the head and continued, "Dig already. I'll reward you with a bamboo stalk afterward!"

Only then did Heibai reluctantly bend down and start scraping at the ground with its front paws.

It had to be said that after eating so many good things and having its body continuously strengthened, Heibai's digging efficiency had improved considerably. Within a few minutes, it had dug a pit over twenty centimeters deep. It then stuck its head inside, fumbled around for a while, and pulled out something resembling ginseng.

Zhao Mu shook his head at the sight. Though he did not recognize this ginseng-like Immortal Herb either, it was definitely not the Earth Dragon Golden Melon. It was not even a melon or fruit. Even a ginseng fruit would not grow like that.

"Wrong. Keep looking!"

Heibai reluctantly let go of the ginseng-like Immortal Herb, set it down, and resumed its search.

Before long, it discovered another spot. It immediately dug it open with its front paws and pulled out the Immortal Herb hidden inside.

"Wrong. This thing looks like a radish. It definitely isn't the Earth Dragon Golden Melon! Keep looking!"

Dejectedly setting down the radish-like Immortal Herb, Heibai once more trotted around with its nose close to the ground.

"Wrong, wrong. This one looks like ginseng again!"

"This one is practically a tree root. How could it be?"

"..."

"This one is smooth and round, but it isn't golden. Keep looking!"

"Heibai, are you even capable of this? You've searched for so long and still haven't found it."

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

That's because you didn't explain it clearly.

After more than ten searches in a row, none of the finds matched Zhao Mu's image of the Earth Dragon Golden Melon. Both Zhao Mu and Heibai had lost much of their enthusiasm.

Heibai slowly wandered among the pits. Then the nose pressed against the ground suddenly twitched, and it bent over, skillfully scraping away the soil with its front paws.

After the repeated disappointments of its earlier failed searches, Heibai had gradually figured out what it was supposed to find.

First, it had to be round. Then, it had to be golden. That was all.

As it drew closer and closer to the Immortal Herb, Heibai slowed its digging, carefully brushing the soil away bit by bit with its front paws.

The soil was pushed aside, revealing a corner of the Immortal Herb beneath.

Heibai's gaze fell upon the exposed portion, and its dull eyes suddenly lit up again.

Golden!

The long-awaited golden color.

Heibai used its paws to even more carefully clear away the dirt, silently praying that it would be round.

Most of the soil had been removed, and the Immortal Herb beneath was almost fully exposed. It was not quite round, at most oval...

But an oval was round too!

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

Heibai excitedly called for Zhao Mu. It could finally get off work~

Hearing Heibai's cry, Zhao Mu hurried to its side.

By then, Heibai had already snapped off the Immortal Herb and pulled it from the pit in its mouth.

It was a vine-like plant, with three golden fruits the size of fists growing on it.

"The color is indeed golden, but does this shape really look like a melon? Why does it look more like a potato?" Zhao Mu muttered as he looked at the three golden fruits Heibai had pulled out.

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

This is it, this is it!

Hearing Heibai insist that this was the Earth Dragon Golden Melon, Zhao Mu asked in return, "What? You recognize it?"

Heibai's expression froze. Of course it did not recognize the Earth Dragon Golden Melon. Otherwise, it would not have searched so many times and dug so many pits.

It just wanted this to end sooner so it could eat sooner. It did not want to dig anymore.

"Should we give it a try?" Zhao Mu asked Heibai.

After searching so many times, they had already found most of the Immortal Herbs beneath the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. These three golden fruits best matched, and were probably closest to, the appearance Zhao Mu imagined for the Earth Dragon Golden Melon.

As Immortal Herbs from the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, even if they were not Earth Dragon Golden Melons, they could not be too bad.

As for whether they were poisonous, there was even less reason to worry. Not to mention Heibai's cheat-like stomach and body, after consuming both the Infernal Delicate Apricot and the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, Heibai itself had already become immune to all poisons.

Wanting to rest and eat, Heibai naturally nodded vigorously.

"Then eat these three!"

At that, Heibai instinctively wanted to pick one up, bite it apart, and swallow it, but it stopped at the very last second.

Awoo~

It suddenly remembered the sweet taste from mixing the Infernal Delicate Apricot and Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass together. This time, it wanted to mix them too. Perhaps it could discover a new flavor again.

"Mix them?"

The problem was that Zhao Mu did not recognize the other Immortal Herbs.

All food and ingredients had rules of compatibility and incompatibility, and Immortal Herbs should be no exception. If the effects complemented each other, that would be fine, but if they clashed, it would not be worth the loss.

"Stop being so particular. Hurry up and eat these three! You weren't this fussy before!"

Awoo, awoo, awoo~

Heibai raised both arms and howled, showing no intention of eating.

Iron-Eating Beasts never yielded!

"You little brat, what are you dawdling for? When are you going to get your fourth soul ring?"

Just as Zhao Mu was about to continue using food, Heibai's weakness, as leverage, an impatient voice suddenly rang out.

By the time Zhao Mu reacted, Dugu Bo had already arrived at his side.

"Right away!" Zhao Mu replied.