The Cause, the Rising Storm

The Cause, the Rising Storm

"You want the Nine-Section Jade's Venom?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"To show my sincerity, I'll go buy that Spirit Beast first. Please wait a moment."

With that, the doctor went to where the Spirit Beasts were being sold. Twenty Gold Soul Coins were several years' worth of savings for him, so leveraging his standing in the town, he ultimately bought the Spirit Beast for seventeen Gold Soul Coins. He then brought it back to the hillside. He had never expected that, after receiving the key, the child would open the cage directly.

"Danger—" Before he could finish, the previously savage Spirit Beast calmed down at once. Like a docile pet, it allowed the child to stroke its head. If not for the wounds still covering its body, he would never have connected it with that vicious Spirit Beast from before.

"Here is the Venom you wanted."

"Aren't you going to ask why I need it?"

"I'm not interested. But you should understand that it's a deadly poison that kills at the sight of blood. Even a wound as small as a needle prick would be enough."

"Thank you for the warning, but it doesn't matter anyway." With that, the person turned and left. Having completed her task, Xiao Wu happily returned to the forest.

At the edge of the forest, Ye Qing saw Xiao Wu returning as well, but something unexpected happened.

Task: Key Character Xiao Wu: Series Three: The True Sister Xiao Wu (?? ten thousand points) completed. Fifty thousand Self-Discipline Points have been issued.

"What happened?" Ye Qing blinked, utterly bewildered.

"And why is the task still here after it was completed? Aren't they the same?"

Task: Key Character Xiao Wu: Series Three: The True Sister Xiao Wu (??? ten thousand points)

Task: Key Character Xiao Wu: Series Three: The True Sister Xiao Wu (?? ten thousand points)

"Please observe carefully, Host. There is clearly a huge difference between them."

"Are you making me spot the difference? It's just one question mark... one question mark?"

"Wait? So three question marks here mean the task is divided into three parts, and the rewards can be issued three times?" As the thought flashed through Ye Qing's mind, the system dealt a heavy blow to his worldview.

"Yes. Congratulations, Host, for discovering this blind spot."

"Fifty thousand points... Do I have enough Self-Discipline Points now?"

"Yes, Host."

"Exchange them. Exchange them for the Shape Transformation method."

"Yes. The exchange has been completed. Would you like to integrate the memories now?"

"Integrate—wait, how long will it take? Are there any side effects?"

"It will take some time. It will not be long, but it may hurt a little."

"Then let's wait."

Xiao Wu and Xiao Qing had arrived as well. Ye Qing planned to ask Xiao Wu what she had done just now. He had only seen her wave at a monkey, and then the task had mysteriously been completed by one-third.

"Uncle, I succeeded! Look!" Xiao Wu said, waving the little money pouch in her hand.

"Mm, very good, Xiao Wu. Uncle wants to ask you something. What did you do just now?"

"Just now? Someone called me Sister Xiao Wu. I'm not the youngest anymore."

"Oh? What exactly happened?"

"It was like this, Uncle. Earlier, a monkey was captured by humans. Then Aunt Qing and I rescued him. When we released him back into the forest just now, I asked if he had a name. He said no, so I gave him one—Da Ming. He was really happy, and then he asked whether I could name his friend too. He said his friend was older than him, so I gave him another name, Er Ming, and had his friend call him Da Ming. They invited me to visit their home later, and they even called me Sister Xiao Wu..."

Setting aside the rest of the irrelevant chatter, Ye Qing said, "Da Ming... Er Ming... Xiao Wu, that monkey wasn't a Titan Giant Ape, was it?"

"Probably not. It should have been a Strength Ape."

"No, Xiao Wu. That was what a Titan Giant Ape looked like in its juvenile stage. Juvenile Titan Giant Apes and Strength Apes are very similar, but Titan Giant Apes are much stronger. There really isn't much difference between them, only the patterns on their bodies are different. A Strength Ape's patterns are smoother. If those humans had better eyesight, they probably wouldn't have sold it. That was a Titan Giant Ape," Xiao Qing said from the side.

"Aunt Qing, you're so amazing?"

"Read more books. Your uncle's encyclopedia has detailed classifications of Spirit Beasts. I just happened to see that page before."

"Xiao Wu, let me guess. Was his friend a snake?"

"I think it was called something like a Bull Python... Uncle, how did you know?"

"Me? I guessed. Come on, let's go back. You can play however you want today."

By now, Ye Qing understood how that portion of the task had been completed. Sister Xiao Wu—Da Ming and Er Ming had been the first to call her that. As the Sky Azure Bull Python and the Titan Giant Ape, why would they call a Soft Bone Rabbit, far weaker than themselves, their elder sister, and be willing to protect her to the death? Ye Qing believed it was because Ah Rou had helped them when they were young. Given Ah Rou's personality, taking care of the weak was perfectly normal.

Now that Ah Rou lived in Ye Qing's home and was far away from the outskirts, perhaps that was why the juvenile Titan Giant Ape had been captured by humans and mistaken for a Strength Ape. By a twist of fate, Xiao Wu rescued him. That "Sister Xiao Wu" had come from the bottom of his heart. He had called her that because he was grateful she had saved him, and it had nothing to do with anyone else. Therefore, the system had judged part of the task complete.

"Oh, right, Xiao Qing. Did that human ask you for your Venom?"

"Yes, my lord. I saw that he did not have even a trace of Soul Power, so I gave it to him. He probably wanted it for self-defense, considering how weak he was..."

"Xiao Qing, you underestimate humans..."

Xiao Qing did not understand what Ye Qing meant.

"Because he is weak, he will encounter many things. And weakness means he can only endure them. But when that endurance reaches a certain point, it will erupt. And such an eruption is often earth-shattering."

Ye Qing had guessed correctly. After leaving, the doctor gave all his remaining possessions to his neighbors. After returning to his room, he burned a portrait he had cherished for years and embarked on his final journey.

Inside a Spirit Hall branch somewhere. Spirit Hall had only recently been established, and no one knew how many corpses had been left behind on its path to founding. That ordinary doctor was now inside this Spirit Hall, but a longsword had already pierced through his abdomen.

"Why did you come here to die?"

"Revenge."

"This is the trend of the times. Unification is inevitable. She refused to recognize what was good for her. And what can a piece of trash with no Soul Power like you do?"

"Hehe, I can drag you down with me. Pfft!" A mouthful of blood sprayed from the doctor's mouth onto the other man's face. Blood inevitably seeped into his eyes. Before he could make another move, he felt his vision disappear, followed by excruciating pain shooting straight into his brain.

"This old man can only use his Martial Soul to temporarily preserve your son's life. The other party acted too decisively. Unless we find the source of the poison and make an antiserum, there is nothing I can do."

"Is it really that difficult? You're a healing-type Soul Saint."

"To obtain such a terrifying poison, the murderer's methods must have been ruthless. To be honest, I do not recognize this poison either. If most of the toxins had not remained inside the murderer's body, I would not have been able to save him." He had never imagined that someone would hide deadly poison in his mouth, deliberately allow himself to be stabbed, then bite open the poison sac when his opponent approached and spit his poisoned blood at him. What kind of hatred did that take?

"I understand. I'll send people to investigate immediately..."

None of this had anything to do with Ye Qing. At that moment, his body was undergoing an enormous transformation...

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