Three Little Ones in the Poison Forest

Chapter 34: Three Little Ones in the Poison Forest

The outskirts of the Sunset Forest.

Meow Meow stood atop a tall tree, gazing at the valley in the distance, shrouded by thin mist.

This place was different from the Star Dou Great Forest.

The Star Dou Great Forest brimmed with vibrant life, a chaotic mix of soul beast auras.

The Sunset Forest was quieter.

Especially after approaching Dugu Bo's territory, even the birdsong grew sparse.

The wind blew through the woods, carrying a faint bitter scent.

White Dew stood beside Meow Meow, her small nose twitching before she immediately scrunched up her face.

Gray Ear lowered his head to sniff the bark, quickly determining that someone had passed by nearby.

"Not ordinary herb gatherers."

Meow Meow looked at the barely visible footprints in the soil beneath the tree.

"Iron nail marks on the soles."

"People from the Black Eagle Family."

White Dew and Gray Ear both grew serious at once.

This wasn't a trial in Heavenly Dou City.

This was the real Sunset Forest.

Meow Meow's aura had been suppressed by his soul ring disguise to around that of a thousand-year soul beast.

White Dew and Gray Ear's auras were also cloaked by the Calming Bell.

As long as they didn't run into a Title Douluo, they shouldn't be discovered.

Of course, if they did run into Dugu Bo, whether they were found or not would depend on the old poison master's mood.

As Meow Meow thought this, his ears suddenly twitched.

From the herb cart not far away came a faint sound of swallowing.

Meow Meow turned his head.

White Dew turned her head too.

Gray Ear had already let out a low cry.

On the herb cart, a sack shifted slightly.

Meow Meow's gaze slowly darkened.

"Come out."

The sack didn't move.

"I'll count to three."

"One."

The sack still didn't move.

"Two."

From inside came an extremely soft "Mew."

"Three."

Meow Meow swiped his claw, and the sack's opening opened on its own.

Numb Tail rolled out stiffly, clutching a piece of dried food.

He was still covered in herb leaves, crumbs at the corner of his mouth, his tail curled up like a blade of grass rope.

White Dew: "..."

Gray Ear: "..."

Meow Meow: "..."

After all their precautions, they hadn't guarded against this cat sneaking into the cart.

"How did you get here?"

Numb Tail lowered his head.

"Mew."

"Don't 'mew' me."

Meow Meow stared at him.

"I'm asking how you got here."

Numb Tail let out another low cry.

The general idea is that the medicinal herb cart smells very fragrant.

Meow Meow's eye twitched slightly.

"So you're not here to carry out the mission—you followed for the food?"

Numb Tail quickly shook his head.

But halfway through, he stopped, a little guilty.

Meow Meow took a deep breath.

Can't get angry.

Cats shed when they're angry.

Besides, they were already at the edge of Sunset Forest. Sending Numb Tail back wasn't realistic.

"Since you're here, stay close."

"If you dare sneak a bite of poison grass again, This Cat won't save you."

Numb Tail nodded at once.

White Dew walked over and gently tapped him with her tail.

Gray Ear, meanwhile, let out an obvious sigh of relief.

With Numb Tail around, trouble was bound to happen.

But with Numb Tail around, there was also some liveliness.

Meow Meow looked at the three kittens and suddenly understood, a little, why the template always insisted on taking little ones on training trips.

Coming alone—efficient.

Bringing kittens—trouble.

But if you never brought them, they'd never become true Cat Net backbone.

"Let's go."

Meow Meow landed on the ground.

"Today, your three's mission is simple."

"Follow."

The three kittens nodded at once.

Sunset Forest was full of poisonous herbs.

Luckily, Meow Meow had just obtained the Spiritual Herb Identification Manual.

As they walked, he could basically tell which ones to touch, which ones not to, and which looked harmless but would knock you out with a single sniff.

Numb Tail initially wanted to sniff a small purple flower.

Meow Meow pressed him down with a paw.

"This is called a Soul-Luring Vine Flower. Three sniffs and you'll sleep for a day."

Numb Tail's eyes lit up.

Meow Meow understood what he was thinking.

"It's not for you to sleep with."

Numb Tail wilted again.

White Dew obediently went around.

Gray Ear memorized the scent.

They walked for half a day and finally neared a lowland.

The trees here were noticeably more withered and yellow.

Black water seeped from the soil.

Meow Meow crouched down and lightly touched it with his claw tip.

A wisp of black energy crawled up his claw, instantly burned to ash by the Holy Fire.

"Black Water pollution."

White Dew looked uneasily at the muddy ground.

Gray Ear caught a whiff of blood.

Meow Meow looked up.

Ahead, not far off, lay several soul beast corpses.

All low-level soul beasts.

The bodies were already rotting, with thin black threads growing from the bone gaps.

Numb Tail's fur stood on end at the sight.

"This is what we need to investigate."

Meow Meow said.

"The Black Eagle Family wants to divert the Black Water pollution near Dugu Bo's poison formation."

"If they succeed, something major will go wrong here in Sunset Forest."

Numb Tail shrank his neck.

He finally understood now that this trip wasn't about eating medicinal herbs.

Meow Meow waved a claw, and the Purifying Holy Fire descended.

The black lines on several soul beast corpses slowly burned away.

But just as the black lines snapped, the ground suddenly trembled.

Gray Ear whipped his head around.

"Mew!"

There's something underground!

Meow Meow sensed it too.

The next moment, black beetles crawled out from the soil one after another.

These beetles were the size of fists, their carapaces bearing a metallic sheen, eyes red, mouthparts sharp.

Not ordinary bugs.

They were soul beasts mutated after being polluted by Black Water.

"Fall back."

Meow Meow's voice was very calm.

The three kittens immediately retreated.

But the beetles were too numerous.

A pitch-black mass surged from the muddy lowland, as if awakened by the Purifying Holy Fire.

White Dew's holy fire flared up, her calming aura protecting herself and Numb Tail.

Gray Ear circled to the side, searching for a weak point.

Numb Tail wanted to run at first.

But after two steps, he looked back at White Dew and Gray Ear.

He gritted his teeth and, surprisingly, didn't flee alone.

Meow Meow took note.

"Not bad."

"But don't push yourselves."

He flicked a claw lightly, and a line of holy fire landed in front of the three kittens.

The approaching beetles all halted.

They were afraid of the holy fire.

That was good.

Meow Meow originally planned to burn this whole area, but soon realized something was off.

These beetles weren't emerging from one place.

Black dots were surfacing all around the lowland.

They seemed to be summoned by something.

Meow Meow's gaze darkened.

"There's something controlling the bugs from behind."

Gray Ear caught the scent too.

He yowled toward the east side.

Meow Meow looked over and saw a half-buried black iron nail stuck in the soil behind a withered tree.

The nail was wrapped in the Black Eagle Family's formation patterns.

"A Bug Luring Nail."

"They really invested quite a bit."

Meow Meow waved a claw, and the Ten Thousand Array Diagram flashed once.

That Bug Luring Nail was yanked out by formation force, instantly exploding into black smoke.

The beetle swarm was thrown into chaos for a moment.

White Dew and Gray Ear seized the opportunity, leading Numb Tail through a gap on the side.

But before they could fully break free, an even larger beetle burst out from underground.

This beetle was the size of a small calf, with Dark Gold Patterns on its carapace, its soul force aura close to a thousand years.

Not a problem for Meow Meow.

But for the three little ones, it was a genuine big trouble.

The beetle lunged at White Dew.

White Dew's Holy Fire flickered as she barely dodged.

Gray Ear pounced and bit the beetle's antenna, only to be flung away.

Numb Tail saw this, his eyes went wide, and the whole cat charged forward.

Thud.

He slammed into the beetle's side.

The beetle just wobbled.

Numb Tail himself rolled three times.

Meow Meow: "..."

This kid still likes to ram things with his body.

Still, that collision made the beetle veer half an inch off.

White Dew took the chance to retreat, and Gray Ear steadied himself.

Meow Meow stopped watching from the sidelines.

The three little ones had done well enough.

He raised a paw.

"Holy Fire Judgment."

A wisp of platinum-white flame landed on the beetle's forehead.

The black aura on the beetle instantly erupted, as if something inside was screaming.

The next moment, the black aura was pulled out of the beetle's body by the Holy Fire.

The beetle's once ferocious eyes went blank.

It wobbled, then fell to the ground—not dead, just unconscious.

Meow Meow glanced at it.

"It can still be saved."

For soul beasts that could be saved, Meow Meow didn't want to kill them casually.

The Black Water Pollution wasn't their choice.

He tapped a few more times, and Holy Fire Judgment swept across the surroundings.

Most of the ordinary beetles, their inner black aura burned away, burrowed straight back into the ground and stopped attacking.

The three little ones finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Numb Tail collapsed on the ground, his chest heaving.

"Mew..."

Meow Meow walked up to him.

"Ramming again?"

Numb Tail lowered his head.

Meow Meow looked at the mud stuck to his forehead and couldn't help but smile.

"This time, it wasn't bad."

Numb Tail's eyes lit up.

"But next time, think of a plan first. Don't treat yourself like a rock."

Numb Tail nodded immediately.

Gray Ear came over and rubbed against him.

White Dew also gently licked his dust-covered ear.

Meow Meow watched this and didn't interrupt.

The bond between the three little ones had grown even tighter than during the trial.

That was the meaning of real combat.

He gathered the remaining black aura from the big beetle's body into the outer ring of the Calming Bell, sealing it with Purifying Holy Fire.

This thing could be taken back for study.

Then, Meow Meow placed a Cat Net Node Expansion Card in the center of the Lowland.

A small stone tablet rose from the ground.

The tablet was not tall, with only a single cat paw print on its surface.

When the cat paw print lit up, both White Dew and Gray Ear could sense a familiar aura.

This was the first node of the Heavenly Dou Cat Network on the outskirts of the Sunset Forest.

From now on, if anything unusual happened here, Heavenly Dou City would receive the message immediately.

"It's done."

Meow Meow nodded in satisfaction.

But the moment the node was erected, a cold gaze suddenly pierced through the distant depths of the Poison Mist.

Meow Meow's body stiffened.

Dugu Bo?

No.

That gaze vanished quickly.

As if it had only swept over them unintentionally.

But Meow Meow no longer dared to be careless.

He immediately suppressed his soul ring disguise to the minimum.

The entire cat became like an ordinary little white cat.

White Dew and Gray Ear were also enveloped by the Calming Bell.

As for Numb Tail, Meow Meow pressed him into the grass with a single claw.

Numb Tail: "..."

In the distance, the Poison Mist churned.

A jade green little snake crawled across a tree branch.

It didn't approach, only glanced over from afar a few times before disappearing.

Meow Meow breathed a sigh of relief.

"That old poison master has quite a few eyes."

The three little ones dared not make a sound.

Meow Meow looked toward the depths of the Poison Mist.

That should be the direction of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

But he couldn't just charge in now.

The Black Eagle Family's Bug Luring Nails hadn't been cleared yet.

And Dugu Bo wasn't someone easy to fool.

If he barged in recklessly, even a hundred-thousand-year cat could get caught by the Poison Douluo.

Meow Meow thought it over and decided to first scout the perimeter.

He had just led the three little ones out of the lowland when Gray Ear suddenly stopped.

"Meow."

Someone ahead.

Meow Meow looked up.

Footsteps came from the forest.

Several black-clad soul masters were approaching from the other side.

The one in the lead wore a Black Eagle Pattern Cloak, his face dark and gloomy.

"The Bug Luring Nails are broken."

"Someone is clearing our formation."

"Find them."

Meow Meow's eyes turned cold.

The Black Eagle Family.

Just in time.

He didn't act rashly, instead leading the three little ones to hide in the canopy.

Below, the group passed by.

One of the Soul Ancestors crouched down to inspect the ground, his expression grim.

"The pollution has been purified."

"It's not Dugu Bo's poison."

"It's a different kind of fire."

The lead Soul Master frowned.

"Crown Prince's Mansion?"

"Doesn't seem like it."

"Then who?"

No one answered.

Meow Meow crouched in the tree, listening intently.

The lead Soul Master spoke again:

"The Medicine Garden can't wait any longer."

"His Highness is pressing for it."

His Highness?

Meow Meow's heart stirred.

This 'His Highness' wasn't Qian Renxue.

Then who?

Xue Xing?

Or a prince from Star Luo?

The Black Eagle Family had ties to both sides—the title was too vague.

Meow Meow didn't act immediately.

He wanted to hear more.

But just then, Numb Tail's nose twitched.

A strip of Dried Meat hung from the waist of the Black-robed Soul Master ahead.

Numb Tail's eyes lit up.

Meow Meow instantly pressed down on his head.

Numb Tail froze.

Don't move.

Good.

Progress.

Yet even though Numb Tail stayed still, that Soul Ancestor suddenly turned around.

"What's that smell?"

Meow Meow: "..."

No way.

Numb Tail still carried the scent of dry rations from the herb cart.

The Soul Ancestor's gaze swept toward the canopy.

"Up there!"

A Soul Skill blasted over in an instant.

Meow Meow sighed.

Forget it.

No more eavesdropping.

He raised a paw and swatted.

Holy Fire formed a small shield, blocking the Soul Skill.

The next moment, White Dew and Gray Ear quickly retreated, and Numb Tail rolled toward another tree.

The Black-robed Soul Masters immediately unleashed their Martial Souls.

Two Soul Ancestors, three Soul Elders.

A decent lineup.

But for Meow Meow now, not enough.

"Don't kill."

Meow Meow said to the three little ones.

"Keep them alive."

The three little ones blinked.

The way he said it made it sound like they could actually kill anyone.

But White Dew immediately released the Peaceful Holy Fire to interfere with the enemy's spirit.

Gray Ear circled to the side, found an opening, and bit through the Signal Tube at the waist of a Soul Elder.

Numb Tail, surprisingly, didn't charge at anyone this time—instead, he dragged away the Talisman Pouch hanging from the opponent's belt.

Meow Meow glanced over with satisfaction.

Not bad.

The Snack Thief Cat had finally learned to steal.

The leading Soul Ancestor was enraged at the sight.

"A few cats?"

"Grab them!"

Meow Meow's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Grab who?"

He didn't reveal his hundred-thousand-year aura.

He simply gave the Calming Bell a gentle shake.

Ding.

The movements of several Black-robed Soul Masters froze.

The Sacred Flame Domain pressed down, and their soul power flow turned sluggish.

Before they could react, the array patterns beneath their feet lit up.

The Ten Thousand Array Diagram drew on the terrain, trapping the five of them in place.

The Soul Ancestor tried to break free, only to find that the more he struggled, the more chaotic his soul power became.

"This is an array?"

"Impossible!"

"What kind of soul beast are you?!"

Meow Meow strolled slowly up to them.

"I'll ask you a few questions."

"Answer well, and you live."

"Answer poorly, and you also live."

The group was stunned.

Meow Meow continued:

"But it'll hurt a lot."

White Dew shot Meow Meow a look.

Gray Ear kept his head down in silence.

Numb Tail hugged the Talisman Pouch and carefully shuffled backward.

Meow Meow raised a paw and pointed it at the leading Soul Ancestor's forehead.

"Where did the Black Water come from?"

The Soul Ancestor gritted his teeth and refused to answer.

Meow Meow activated the Holy Fire Judgment.

A wisp of holy fire drilled into the Soul Ancestor's mind.

The Soul Ancestor's face instantly turned deathly pale.

It wasn't mere pain.

It was burning out, bit by bit, the evil thoughts and lingering traces within him that were connected to the Black Water Pollution.

After a moment, the Soul Ancestor trembled like a sieve.

"The... the Black Water Marsh."

"Who sent you to the Sunset Forest?"

"Your Highness."

"Which Your Highness?"

The Soul Ancestor's face twisted in agony, as if he dared not speak.

Meow Meow's gaze darkened, and the holy fire pressed in another inch.

The Soul Ancestor finally roared out in a low voice:

"Prince Xue Xing!"

Meow Meow understood in his heart.

There he was indeed.

But that wasn't enough.

Xue Xing didn't seem like the type who could control Black Water.

"Who's behind you?"

The Soul Ancestor's lips trembled.

"I don't know."

Meow Meow could tell he was telling the truth.

He asked again:

"What do you want the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well for?"

The Soul Ancestor's gaze went blank.

"The Medicine Garden..."

"Spirit Herbs..."

"Stabilizing samples..."

"And... opening the Great Marsh Seal."

Meow Meow's tail stopped.

Opening the Great Marsh Seal?

The Black Water Great Marsh was only seeping outward now.

If the seal were truly opened, it wouldn't be a minor pollution anymore.

Sunset Forest, Heavenly Dou City, even the entire Heaven Dou Empire would be dragged into it.

Meow Meow released the Soul Ancestor.

He looked at the others.

Their faces were pale with terror.

Meow Meow couldn't be bothered to question them further; he directly used the Calming Bell to suppress their minds, confirming they all knew roughly the same things.

Then, with a claw, he cast a transmission array, sending their location to Qian Renxue.

"Qinghe will send people to take over."

"You're lucky."

"This Cat doesn't feel like killing today."

The few Black-robed Soul Masters didn't dare say a word.

They now only felt that this White Cat was more terrifying than Dugu Bo.

Meow Meow withdrew the array but didn't release them; he only used the Ten Thousand Array Diagram to trap them in place.

They wouldn't escape before the Crown Prince's Mansion's people arrived.

Done with that, Meow Meow looked at Numb Tail.

"Talisman Pouch."

Numb Tail immediately set down the Talisman Pouch.

Inside were a few Soul Coins, a Black Eagle Token, a fragmentary route map, and three pieces of Dried Meat.

Meow Meow tossed the Dried Meat far away first.

Numb Tail's gaze followed it out.

"Come back."

Numb Tail struggled to pull his sight away.

Meow Meow opened the route map.

The map marked several points on the outskirts of Sunset Forest.

One of them was very close to the edge of the Poison Mist.

Beside it were written two words:

Seal.

Meow Meow's gaze turned cold.

"Looks like they're making their move tonight."

White Dew and Gray Ear also looked over.

Numb Tail didn't understand the map, but he understood Meow Meow's expression.

He didn't dare think about the Dried Meat anymore.

Meow Meow put away the route map.

"Let's go."

Gray Ear asked a question.

Meow Meow looked into the depths of the Poison Mist.

"To the Seal."

"If the Seal of the Black Water Marsh is really here, we have to block it tonight."

The three little ones immediately followed.

On the other side of the Poison Mist, an old man with white hair and green robes suddenly opened his eyes.

Dugu Bo stood on the hillside, gazing at the place scorched by the Holy Fire in the distance, his brows deeply furrowed.

"What is that?"

"Cats?"

He let out a cold laugh.

"This old man's Medicine Garden—since when did even cats dare to come here?"