Peerless Dragon-Snake

"Isn't this map wrong?"

Danheng looked at the terrain before him, which clearly differed from what the map indicated, and could not help but feel a headache coming on.

The deeper he went, the more frequently the map turned out to be wrong.

But thinking about it carefully, it made sense. Maps of the Star Dou Great Forest sold in small towns only needed to be roughly accurate.

Further in, the danger rose geometrically, making precise surveying extremely difficult.

"Let's keep going. I should be fine even without a map."

Danheng lightly ground his foot into the ground, leaving behind a marker.

That way, even if he went the wrong way, he could follow the marks back here.

If that did not work, he could just return to a human city and wrap himself up tightly.

If no one could see his face, he probably would not attract attention...

Right?

And so, Danheng wandered through the Star Dou Great Forest like some idle loafer, looking here and there.

Whenever he encountered soul beasts that wanted to attack him, he simply stabbed them to death with a single thrust.

"Another Soul Bone? Didn't they say these things were extremely rare?"

After chopping the Yin Candle Python before him into five, six, seven, eight pieces with several spear strikes, Danheng pulled a skull bone out of its head.

"Judging by this, it should have been around forty thousand years old."

Looking at the four purple markings on the Yin Candle Python's corpse, Danheng roughly determined its age.

"I got a twenty-thousand-year one before too. Why does it feel like these things are so easy to get?"

Danheng took out another left arm Soul Bone. It had been dropped by a twenty-thousand-year-old bear-type soul beast that had ambushed him earlier.

"You three over there, have you watched enough?"

After putting away the Soul Bones, Danheng turned his gaze toward a tree not far away.

Those filthy peeping toms had been watching for so long and still would not come out?

"Ahem, young man, this old man is Meng Shu. Most people call me the Dragon Duke."

A tall, thin old man with a head full of silver hair slowly stepped out from behind the tree. His expression shifted uncertainly, and his gaze toward Danheng was filled with wariness.

Behind him followed an elderly woman with similarly graying hair, as well as a young girl.

"Dragon Duke? I feel like I've heard that somewhere before."

Danheng murmured softly, feeling that he had heard the title Dragon Duke somewhere.

Dragon Duke and Snake Granny... they seemed to be a duo, didn't they?

"Then this must be Snake Granny Chao Tianxiang, and that girl... their granddaughter?"

Recalling the Peerless Dragon-Snake he had heard of before, Danheng had already confirmed the identities of the three before him.

He had heard that their Martial Soul Fusion Skill was quite strong, supposedly capable of fighting a Titled Douluo?

How did it compare to Tang Hao? He wondered whether they could keep him entertained.

"Old man, what do we do?"

Seeing that Danheng remained silent, Chao Tianxiang quietly shielded their granddaughter Meng Yiran behind her and asked in a low voice.

"Hard to say. This young man killed a forty-thousand-year Yin Candle Python alone and emerged completely unscathed. His strength must be extraordinary."

The Dragon Duke Meng Shu's two white eyebrows twitched uncontrollably. As an eight-ring Soul Douluo, he could not detect even the slightest Soul Power fluctuation from Danheng.

What did that mean?

It meant they could not beat him!

"We were spying on someone else, and we even saw the Soul Bones in his hands. It all depends on his attitude. If things go wrong, Yiran, you leave first."

The Dragon Duke also had a headache over the situation. If it had been an ordinary Titled Douluo, he and Snake Granny could still contend with them using their Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

But he could not even sense the other party's Soul Power fluctuations, which meant the other party's strength was far beyond that of an ordinary Titled Douluo.

And there had never been word of such a young Titled Douluo on the continent, had there?

So there was only one answer:

Danheng had to be some old monster in disguise!

But why would a Titled Douluo come here for no reason?

This was not even the inner region of the Star Dou Great Forest yet. The soul beasts here were basically chicks to a Titled Douluo powerhouse like Danheng.

"Grandpa, I don't think this senior is that kind of person. How about we apologize?"

Meng Yiran's words made both Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang sigh.

This child... did she think a Titled Douluo was so easy to fool?

Especially when they had seen the Soul Bones in his hands.

Wouldn't any Titled Douluo silence you lot to prevent the news from leaking if this happened to them?

After all, those were two Ten Thousand Year Soul Bones!

"If you have nothing else to do, leave now. I don't want there to be a next time."

Considering that they had a child with them, Danheng felt it would be inappropriate to use them for sparring practice. There was no point wasting time here, so he directly told them to leave.

"Huh?"

Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang both stared in astonishment.

Was this senior really so easy to talk to?

"Y-Your Excellency, are you really willing to let us go?"

After exchanging glances, the husband and wife both understood what the other meant. Meng Shu cautiously asked.

"Otherwise, would you like to spar with me?"

"That won't be necessary!"

Spar?

Wouldn't that mean turning these two old bones of theirs into actual "old bones"?

"This junior, Meng Shu, thanks Senior for sparing our lives!"

Fearful as they were, since Danheng had chosen to let them go, they naturally had to be more respectful.

If they simply left, what if he slit their throats the moment they turned around?

"No need. Hurry up and leave."

Danheng waved dismissively, then began considering whether he should continue exploring or follow the trail of marks he had left and depart Star Dou Great Forest for Heaven Dou Imperial City.

"This junior, Meng Yiran, thanks Senior for your great kindness! Senior, you're such a good person!"

Meng Yiran's shout nearly scared the souls out of Meng Shu and Chao Tianxiang.

"Um, Senior, I have failed to discipline her properly. Please forgive her!"

Meng Shu grabbed Meng Yiran and pulled her over, apologizing as he pushed her away.

Little ancestor, was this the time to say that? Just because he said that, did she really think he was a good person?

"...Just leave already. I have things to do."

Danheng rubbed his brow. Little girl, she was probably about to get scolded by her grandparents.

"Yes, yes, yes, we're leaving right away. Please go about your business, Senior."

Meng Shu breathed a sigh of relief. He stopped pushing Meng Yiran and instead grabbed her by the collar, swiftly fleeing into the distance.

"Waaah! Grandpa, what are you doing?! You're going too fast!"

That was the last thing Danheng heard Meng Yiran say.

"That kid, honestly..."

Danheng casually muttered a complaint. She was just a child, so it was understandable. Weren't those two on the train always acting like children too?

"I should collect this snake's corpse. Someone might want it."

Looking at the Yin Candle Python's "remains," which he had chopped into six, seven, or eight pieces, Danheng ultimately decided to put them away.

If someone bought it, that would be another bit of money!

He couldn't spend credit points here, and the Gold Soul Coins he had "scrounged up" before were nearly gone. He needed to find a way to make some money!

Acquiring and understanding this continent's currency also counted as "Trailblazing," after all!

"I should keep heading deeper and see if I can run into a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast."

Thanks to boss Caib_CA for the donation and monthly ticket.

Thanks to boss Strongest Head-Pat King for the monthly ticket.

Thanks to boss Suyin for the monthly ticket.

Thanks to all the bosses for your support.