"There are plenty of wolf-type Soul Beasts in Sunset Forest. Gale Wind Wolves, Iron-Back Wolves, and Shadow Wolves can all be found here. There are also many wolf packs that have grown large and have clear leaders. But these Soul Beasts hold grudges and work closely together. Once you provoke them, it's a fight to the death. Are you sure you still want to try?"
Zhao Wuji asked again.
"Absolutely."
Xiao Qing answered without the slightest hesitation.
Zhao Wuji studied Xiao Qing for several seconds. He understood that this wasn't a rash impulse brought on by a burst of enthusiasm, but a choice Xiao Qing had made after careful consideration.
"All right." Zhao Wuji finally nodded. "We'll find Oscar a Clear-Heart Fox first. After that, I'll take you to an area where wolf packs are active."
"But remember this: if I think the situation is getting out of control and beyond your ability to handle, I'll intervene immediately. Your life matters. It matters far more than a single live-combat exercise. Understood?"
"Understood."
Xiao Qing replied. With a Soul Saint like Zhao Wuji keeping watch, his safety was assured. Even if he failed, he could still get away.
As they spoke, they arrived at Sunset Forest.
The carriage stopped outside a makeshift camp on the edge of the forest.
Quite a few Soul Master groups had gathered there. Some were getting ready to enter the forest; others had just come out, streaked with blood and weariness.
The clamor of voices, haggling, and exchanged information all blended together.
Zhao Wuji led Xiao Qing and Oscar toward the entrance.
His burly frame and undisguised, formidable aura drew wary and awestruck looks from many of the Soul Master groups nearby. They automatically made way for him.
"Stay close. Don't look around, and don't talk."
Zhao Wuji gave the order in a low voice, then strode into Sunset Forest.
Unlike the outskirts of Star Dou Great Forest, with their untouched, primeval wilderness and uncertain dangers, Sunset Forest bore clear traces of human activity.
The narrow path beneath their feet wound through the forest, but it had plainly been walked many times. In some places, there were even signs of crude repairs.
Every so often, they spotted the remnants of campfires in abandoned temporary camps.
Sunset Forest felt less like a gathering place for Soul Beasts and more like a hunting ground that had been repeatedly explored and developed.
Zhao Wuji chose a route that avoided several obvious popular hunting areas, where Soul Master groups had gathered and unnecessary conflicts were likely.
He led the two of them along the border between the forest and a relatively open meadow.
"Clear-Heart Foxes like to roam where the forest meets the meadows. They can use the trees for cover, then escape quickly into the open. They don't like fighting, and their senses are sharp. At the slightest disturbance, they'll flee. Patience matters more than strength when you're looking for them."
As they walked, Zhao Wuji explained in a hushed voice, mostly for Oscar's benefit.
They spent four full days searching along the edge of the transition zone.
Oscar's initial excitement gradually turned to restlessness. Four days without finding anything was torture for someone who urgently needed a Soul Ring.
Zhao Wuji noticed, but only said, "When Soul Hunting, not finding your target is the norm. You'll never become a good hunter if you can't keep your impatience in check."
Oscar took several deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.
On the afternoon of the fifth day, as the sun began to sink toward the west, Zhao Wuji stopped beside a clear stream, where the soil was damp.
He crouched down, brushed his fingers over several faint, plum-blossom-shaped prints, then leaned closer to sniff a nearby plant with pale blue flowers, its leaves disturbed.
"Fresh tracks, no more than two hours old. The size and depth of the prints fit a Clear-Heart Fox around seven hundred years old. It should be somewhere nearby. Be careful. Don't alert it."
Zhao Wuji lowered his voice further and gestured for Xiao Qing and Oscar to conceal every trace of their Soul Power, slow their breathing, and follow him.
After passing through a thicket, Zhao Wuji signaled for them to stop. They peered through the leaves ahead.
About thirty meters away, a Soul Beast was drinking from the stream with its head lowered.
It was small, a little smaller than an ordinary fox, and its entire coat was a rare moon-white. A long, fluffy tail swayed gently behind it, lending it an elegant air.
Its most striking feature was its clear, pale-purple eyes, which seemed remarkably intelligent.
This was their target: a Clear-Heart Fox that had cultivated for roughly seven hundred and thirty years.
Zhao Wuji didn't rush to attack. He surveyed the surroundings, making sure no other Soul Beasts were lurking and no other Soul Master groups were nearby.
Then he gestured to Xiao Qing to watch closely and silently mouthed to Oscar to get ready.
The next moment, Zhao Wuji moved.
There was no dazzling glow from a Soul Skill. Relying on his physical strength alone, he exploded forward with astonishing speed, almost leaving an afterimage in their sight as he charged straight for the Clear-Heart Fox by the stream.
The Clear-Heart Fox was highly alert. Almost as soon as Zhao Wuji sprang into action, it sensed the deadly danger.
It gave a short, shrill cry and kicked off hard with all four legs, about to dart toward the woods to one side.
But the Soul Saint's pressure, unleashed by Zhao Wuji in an instant, made it falter for a heartbeat.
That single heartbeat decided the outcome.
Zhao Wuji's great hand had already come down, sealing off every escape route.
Just as Zhao Wuji's hand was about to touch the Clear-Heart Fox, a strange glimmer suddenly flashed in its pale-purple eyes. Its gently swaying tail stiffened and began to tremble rapidly at an unusual frequency.
An intangible yet unmistakable ripple instantly spread out from the Clear-Heart Fox, sweeping over the charging Zhao Wuji and the watching Xiao Qing and Oscar behind him.
Xiao Qing's pupils contracted slightly. The moment the ripple touched him, he felt a gentle yet irresistible force brush across his mind.
Now, all that remained in Xiao Qing's heart was an absolute calm, free of desires and wants, like a handful of clear spring water beneath the blazing sun, or absolute silence suddenly descending amid a clamor.
He could clearly see Zhao Wuji charging forward and the Clear-Heart Fox trying to flee, but it all felt as though he were watching through a pane of transparent glass. Nothing could stir the slightest ripple within him. Even the act of "observing" itself seemed utterly unimportant.
This was the Clear-Heart Fox's ability. It wasn't an attack or a means of control, but a forced "peace" that reached deep into the mind. It didn't take away your awareness; it stripped away every desire to act and every emotional impulse.
Zhao Wuji's charge didn't slow. His powerful spiritual strength, at the Soul Saint level, kept him from being affected.
With a muffled thud, his hand, wrapped in dense Soul Power, struck the side of the Clear-Heart Fox's neck with perfect precision. The blow was strong enough to rob it of the ability to move, but not to kill it.
The Clear-Heart Fox gave a mournful cry and collapsed to the ground. The strange ripple of Soul Power vanished along with it.
Xiao Qing felt the forced calm that had lingered in his heart recede like the tide. His normal thoughts and emotions quickly returned.
Zhao Wuji carried the unconscious Clear-Heart Fox back and set it on the ground in front of Oscar.
Oscar gripped the short knife Zhao Wuji had given him earlier, his fingers turning faintly white with the force of his grip.
He lowered his head to look at the Clear-Heart Fox at his feet, his gaze complicated. Even unconscious, it still gave off a faint aura of peace, continuing to affect Oscar as he stood close to it.
He raised the knife and pointed it at the Clear-Heart Fox's throat, but his arm trembled slightly. He tried to press down, only to find it difficult to summon the "killing intent" within himself.
Under the influence of the Clear-Heart Fox's aura, anger, fear, resolve—all the emotions that might have driven him to strike—had been soothed away, leaving only an empty calm.
He even felt that it wouldn't be so bad to simply lower the knife and walk away.
"Oscar!"
Zhao Wuji's low, stern voice exploded beside his ear like a thunderclap.
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