A... Ball

The next moment, in the real Transparent Space, Xiao Nai opened her eyes.

"Xiao Nai!" Zheng Li called.

Hearing Zheng Li's voice, Xiao Nai looked over. "Xiao Li? A bubble? Weren't you in the middle of a deep adventure?"

Zheng Li was puzzled. Just as he was about to answer, a calm voice announced, "Round Two: cleared."

Hearing that announcement again, Xiao Nai immediately understood. That had been an illusion too... She'd been tricked? Fine, that was certainly something.

"Xiao Nai, why did you think I was on a deep adventure?" Zheng Li asked through the bubble.

"Nothing." Xiao Nai shook her head.

Seeing that Xiao Nai didn't want to say more, Zheng Li didn't press her. He was more curious about how she'd cleared the round.

Wang Xin'er, standing nearby, finally realized what was going on. She certainly was slow on the uptake...

So Zheng Li and this older sister were partners?

Once she'd figured it out, Wang Xin'er looked at Zheng Li resentfully and muttered, "A fine cabbage, ruined by a pig..."

Zheng Li: ??

The moment Wang Xin'er finished muttering, the calm voice spoke again. "Those who cleared Round Two will enter Round Three: a true adventure! There are no limits on the challenge. It may be easy for you, or it may be difficult! After clearing Round Three, you will receive a reward chosen by the Valley."

Before Zheng Li and the others could say anything, golden and silver lights flashed, and all three vanished from the Transparent Space.

They appeared on a highway bordered by woods, with lush greenery and a pleasant setting. But the ground was stained with blood, and more than a dozen bodies lay scattered across it.

Wang Xin'er appeared out of nowhere.

She looked around in confusion, then jumped in fright when she saw the bodies.

"Where am I?"

Just then, a line of text appeared before her: Six years ago, on the highway near South City, Star Luo Empire.

As soon as the words appeared, a streak of emerald light descended from the sky. A person emerged from it.

When Wang Xin'er saw who it was, she froze, then cried out happily, "Great-grandmother!"

She rushed over.

To her surprise, she passed straight through her great-grandmother, who didn't seem to notice her at all.

Wang Xin'er stared blankly at her hands. What... was going on?

Right, the words "six years ago" had appeared just now. Was this a scene from six years ago?

Thinking of this, Wang Xin'er hurriedly watched.

What did that Valley want her to see?

Then she saw her great-grandmother lift a baby from beneath the corpse of a beautiful woman beside a carriage. For some reason, the sight of the baby stirred something deep within Wang Xin'er.

The baby was covered in blood, with a deep sword wound across her body. She looked dead, and wasn't even breathing.

But her great-grandmother said, "She can still be saved."

An emerald glow enveloped the baby. Before long, the child came back to life, without even a scar left behind.

"Pale blue hair and emerald eyes. She looks a bit like I did when I was young. We must be fated to meet..."

Watching this, Wang Xin'er seemed to understand. She stared dazedly at the beautiful woman and the bodies around her...

Even after Wang Xian'er flew away with the baby and the other bodies, which she had stored in a Soul Guidance Ring, Wang Xin'er still hadn't come to her senses.

After a long while, the calm voice spoke beside Wang Xin'er. "How can you repay the kindness of the one who raised you? You must also know the love of the one who gave birth to you. As your birth mother lay dying, she used her own still-warm body to protect you, though you were gravely wounded. Otherwise, you might not have survived until your great-grandmother arrived."

At those words, Wang Xin'er's eyes reddened, and her body trembled slightly.

The calm voice continued, "I'm telling you this because the people who killed your birth parents are still roaming free in Risheng City, Sun Moon Empire. You cannot leave your parents' deaths unavenged! This information is also part of your reward."

"Your true adventure is over. Return."

"Wait." Wang Xin'er gritted her teeth and spoke.

"Speak!"

"Could you put the faces of my birth parents into my memory? I didn't remember them..."

As she said this, Wang Xin'er lowered her head, looking deeply ashamed.

"Granted! You will also be shown the faces of your enemies."

"Thank you. You're a good person... No, a good Valley."

"..."

Elsewhere, Zheng Li and Xiao Nai arrived in a forest. They glanced at each other, about to speak, when a beast's roar suddenly sounded nearby.

A... Ball

"A Spirit Beast forest?"

Some forests were ordinary, with only ordinary wild animals and no Spirit Beasts. Others were gathering places for Spirit Beasts.

From the roar, it was clear that the Valley of Love and Emotion had sent them to a Spirit Beast gathering place. They just didn't know which one...

"This is a small-to-medium-sized Spirit Beast gathering place called the Floating Light Forest. It's named after a rare Spirit Beast with a light attribute. That beast is almost impossible to find even in the Star Dou Great Forest, so it's practically unique to the Floating Light Forest."

"The Spirit Beast is called the Night Glow Beast, and it's quite troublesome to deal with. I'm telling you this because the Night Glow Beast would be perfect for your Second Soul Ring."

"Night Glow Beast?"

Night glow? What a strange name. If it's called a Night Glow Beast, why is the forest called the Floating Light Forest? Zheng Li grumbled inwardly.

The calm voice continued, "Your true adventure is to kill a Night Glow Beast and obtain its Soul Ring."

"Judging by the strength of your body and spirit, you should be able to withstand a Second Soul Ring of around thirteen hundred years! But the Valley has sent you near a Night Glow Beast that's two thousand and one years old..."

"Wait!" Zheng Li interrupted, the corner of his mouth twitching. "You're not joking, are you? With our abilities, even a Spirit Beast that's lived for a thousand years would be pushing it!"

His giant Light Sword could indeed stand up to a Soul Elder or a thousand-year Spirit Beast, but... would that be enough?

And how was he supposed to absorb a two-thousand-year Soul Ring?

It would burst him apart! Zheng Li immediately asked that question, too.

"What is an adventure? The Valley just told you it might be easy or it might be difficult. You can blame your bad luck. The Valley knows about the age limit. Once you've successfully killed it, the Valley will intervene. One last reminder: this Soul Ring does not count toward your final reward."

"Go on, children! Fight hard!"

After leaving them with those seemingly encouraging words, the calm voice faded away.

"..."

Fight hard? How the hell was he supposed to do that? Zheng Li's brows twitched. He hadn't forgotten that the Valley of Love and Emotion had called the Night Glow Beast troublesome.

"Xiao Nai, did you hear that?" After a moment, Zheng Li asked the lovely girl beside him.

Xiao Nai nodded. "Of course. What should we do?"

"Make do..." Zheng Li replied with a bitter smile. A two-thousand-year-old Spirit Beast wasn't something to take lightly. Just then, another roar came from several hundred meters to the southeast, and a faint golden glow caught their attention.

"It should be over there. Xiao Nai, return to my Sea of Consciousness first. I'll go take a look. With both of us, we'd be easier to spot. Besides..." Zheng Li looked her over.

Xiao Nai understood at once. The glow around her was rather conspicuous. "Got it. Be careful, Xiao Li."

"Okay."

After Xiao Nai entered, Zheng Li concealed his aura, lightened his steps, and quietly moved toward the Night Glow Beast.

Why... does this feel like a lamb walking straight into a wolf's mouth?

The distance of a few hundred meters wasn't far. A few minutes later, Zheng Li was hiding behind a thick tree some distance away, watching the Night Glow Beast.

"A glowing, fluffy ball with wings?" Zheng Li exclaimed. The faint golden glow came from the Night Glow Beast's wings. No wonder it was called the Floating Light Forest. Just imagine walking alone through a quiet forest at night and suddenly seeing a ball of light drifting back and forth...

Well... would you be curious, or terrified?

"Damn it! The Valley of Love and Emotion isn't going to screw me over, is it?" Zheng Li had a light-based ability too. Could its Soul Skill just make him glow brighter? Like going from a thousand watts to ten thousand?

Then I can sigh and say, 'So this is what it was like to live in darkness before.'

Zheng Li shuddered. He didn't dare imagine it.

"If you slander the Valley again, the difficulty of your adventure will increase!"

Zheng Li: "..."

I can't afford to provoke it, I can't afford to provoke it... Zheng Li shook his head and turned his attention back to the Night Glow Beast.

Although it was difficult, it wasn't hopeless.

The Night Glow Beast was currently fighting another Spirit Beast Zheng Li recognized.

During his year at Shrek Academy, he'd read plenty of books about Martial Souls and Spirit Beasts.

Two Spirit Beasts were reflected in Zheng Li's eyes. One was around twenty centimeters in diameter, with white fur and two pairs of pale golden wings on its back, like a four-winged angel's. The wings were somewhat transparent, like a butterfly's, and their span was more than twice the diameter of its body. All in all... it looked like a cute fluffy ball.

The other was a Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf. It was ugly as hell...

It had six hairless tails covered in mucus, like the tentacles of an octopus. Its body was grayish-brown, and hedgehog-like spikes covered its back. It even had triangular eyes. It was truly hideous...

What a stark contrast. By the way, the Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf was the one roaring. It didn't sound like a wolf's howl; it was oddly shrill.

The Night Glow Beast made a sound like "chirp, chirp"...

"Xiao Li, you're not going to go easy on it, are you...?"

Xiao Nai genuinely worried he might.

Zheng Li rolled his eyes. "I really don't know what you think of me, Xiao Nai. I know what I should and shouldn't do."

"Good."

The Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf was repeatedly lashing out at the Night Glow Beast with its six tails. Was it trying to bind it?

The Night Glow Beast's two round, watery golden eyes showed its disdain.

It clearly hated those six slimy tails.

And Zheng Li finally understood why the Valley of Love and Emotion had called the Night Glow Beast troublesome...

How big could a ball about twenty centimeters across be, even with wings? Even one of the Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf's tails was much longer than the Night Glow Beast's body was wide.

What was the advantage of a small body?

Agility. Exactly—agility.

The Night Glow Beast was incredibly agile! The Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf had tried several times to strike with its tails, but the Night Glow Beast had led it in circles!

With its size, it could probably slip through the Light Sword Soul Skill with ease.

This wasn't going to be easy...

The Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf was nearly two meters long, and its cultivation was around two thousand years.

"You may be ugly, but please, do your best! If you seriously injure the Night Glow Beast, this'll be much easier..." Zheng Li muttered under his breath, watching the two beasts without blinking in case he missed the right moment to strike.

A few minutes passed.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp..." The Night Glow Beast nimbly dodged the Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf's six tails as they lashed wildly. It even found a rhythm in its movements, like a dancing sprite. It kept making cheerful chirping sounds, though Zheng Li could hear the taunt in them.

"You're really enjoying yourself... Hope it doesn't come back to bite you." Zheng Li silently offered his heartfelt "blessing."

"Chirp, chirp~"

Unexpectedly, the Night Glow Beast's chirps turned frantic the next moment. Then one of the slimy tails struck it head-on!

The Multi-tailed Thorn Wolf's earlier, measured attacks hadn't landed, but its chaotic flailing had hit the Night Glow Beast by chance.

The blow was powerful. It sent the Night Glow Beast slamming into the ground, but...

"Chirp, chirp~"

Its round body hit the ground face-first, then bounced high into the air, like a basketball...

Zheng Li: "..."