The Dying Wind Shadow Wolf, Martial Soul Hall's Wanted Poster

As Xiao Qing drew closer to the wailing, the scent of blood in the air grew increasingly pungent.

The wailing came from a thicket. Xiao Qing carefully stepped forward and parted the branches, revealing a Wind Shadow Wolf with a broken left foreleg, its breathing shallow and weak.

A Wind Shadow Wolf?! It looks like it was hunting with its pack and got mauled by another spirit beast.

The moment he saw the Wind Shadow Wolf, Xiao Qing guessed the reason for its presence here.

Although Wind Shadow Wolf packs were known to care for their elderly and disabled, such cases were rare; most severely injured wolves were left to "leave" the pack and fend for themselves.

Hearing the noise, the Wind Shadow Wolf struggled to open its eyes and look at Xiao Qing, its wails growing slightly louder as if pleading for help.

Xiao Qing could feel the intense desire for survival radiating from the Wind Shadow Wolf.

"You want me to save you? If you want me to save you, then shut up and stop howling."

To Xiao Qing's surprise, the moment he finished speaking, the dying Wind Shadow Wolf on the ground actually went silent.

The gasping Wind Shadow Wolf stared at him quietly, waiting for his next move.

At this moment, the Prism Ball in Xiao Qing's hand pulsed, urging him to throw it at the Wind Shadow Wolf before him.

But could he really save this dying creature?

Xiao Qing, initially hesitant, glanced at the Prism Ball in his hand and let out a sudden, sharp laugh.

"Besides trusting you, who else can I trust now?"

Clearing his mind, Xiao Qing threw the Prism Ball with decisive precision.

The moment the Prism Ball touched the Wind Shadow Wolf, the creature transformed into a streak of light and was sucked into the sphere.

After absorbing the wolf, the Prism Ball hovered in the air, swaying symbolically for a moment before returning to Xiao Qing's hand.

The instant he held the Prism Ball, Xiao Qing finally understood the true utility of his spirit soul!

Xiao Qing, with his Prism Ball spirit, was not a support-type spirit master at all!

The Prism Ball spirit allowed Xiao Qing to summon the spirit beasts he had captured, making him the first trainer on the Douluo Continent!

More importantly, the strength of the spirit beasts he captured was not static; they gained experience points through combat!

With enough experience, they could increase their age, thereby raising the age of Xiao Qing's spirit rings.

That said, when Xiao Qing saw the white spirit ring appear at his feet, he still couldn't help but lose his composure.

Although he hadn't reached level ten yet, he had already obtained his first spirit ring, putting him far ahead of his peers.

But according to his plans, he should have hunted a century-old spirit beast at level ten to serve as his first ring, not a ten-year spirit ring!

"Forget it. Having a first spirit ring won't affect my future cultivation, and since the ring's age can grow, I'll just have to settle for white."

Xiao Qing put away the Prism Ball and shrugged indifferently; one shouldn't be too greedy.

With this small detour resolved, Xiao Qing continued toward the lake; nothing would stop him from reaching his destination.

By the time Xiao Qing arrived at the lakeside, it was already afternoon.

The lake was as vast as the notes had described, with the opposite shore a blurry green curve at the edge of his vision.

Four rivers, each over ten times wider than the stream in Clear Spring Village, flowed into the lake.

Xiao Qing didn't linger to admire the view; his priority now was to build a safe shelter.

Fenghe City, Martial Soul Hall branch.

Matthew, having returned to the Martial Soul Hall, sat in a private room chatting with the local branch manager.

Though "chatting" was a generous term; in reality, the manager was busy apologizing to Matthew.

Heaven knows how shocked and terrified he had been to hear that Matthew had encountered a once-in-a-century spirit beast riot in Clear Spring Village.

He had even mentally prepared his last will and testament, waiting for the Martial Soul Hall to announce his death.

Fortunately, Matthew was not a petty man and immediately stated that he would not blame the manager for his negligence.

"Lord Matthew, thank you for your mercy! I have already followed your instructions and had my men create a portrait of Xiao Qing based on the descriptions from the villagers of Clear Spring Village. Please, have a look!"

The manager's face, usually accustomed to lording over others, wore a rare, fawning smile that hadn't been seen in years.

Matthew took a sip of his tea and calmly raised his eyes to look at the portrait the manager handed over.

The Xiao Qing in the portrait was depicted in exquisite detail, even capturing the faint scar on his left cheek.

"Hmm, you've done a competent job. Pass on my order: quietly add this person to the wanted list! Offer a bounty of one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!"

Hearing the bounty, the manager couldn't help but gulp—one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins! All for a child who didn't even have a spirit ring.

"However, I have a requirement: this person must be brought to me in one piece! Otherwise, the bounty is void."

"Also, I do not want anyone from our Martial Soul Hall to participate."

Matthew's words carried a hint of warning. A hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins would entice average spirit masters to hunt Xiao Qing, providing him with sufficient tempering.

But Matthew did not want anyone using the power of the Martial Soul Hall to arrest Xiao Qing just to curry favor with him; that would defeat the purpose of the tempering!

After all, there was nothing in this world that the Martial Soul Hall could not accomplish.

After the manager withdrew, Matthew stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing quietly in the direction of the Star Dou Forest, and whispered to himself.

"Xiao Qing, I hope that when we meet again, you will have displayed strength worthy of your ambition!"

As Xiao Qing's name appeared on the wanted list, the villagers of Clear Spring Village were thrown into an uproar.

Although they did not know why someone would put a bounty on Xiao Qing, in their minds, as long as Xiao Qing was not dead, he would certainly return to Clear Spring Village.

This was not only because Clear Spring Village was his nominal hometown, but also because the graves of Xiao Qing's parents were buried on the hill behind the village.

The people of Clear Spring Village were instantly seized by the urge to return, for in their eyes, Xiao Qing was now worth one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!

This was especially true for Chang Feng, who had failed to secure even a minor post in the Martial Soul Hall; he was now counting on this bounty to compensate for his losses.

Just like that, the villagers of Clear Spring Village, who had originally been settled by the Martial Soul Hall, all found excuses to leave and set out on the journey back to Clear Spring Village.

The official from the Martial Soul Hall responsible for handling the refugees from Clear Spring Village did not stop them; it was just as well, as their departure would reduce his own workload.

"How strange. Why insist on returning to that pile of ruins instead of living a life with food and drink provided?"

He had already heard from colleagues who had returned from scouting Clear Spring Village that it had long since been reduced to ruins by spirit beasts.

Our protagonist, Xiao Qing, knew nothing of all this.

Right now, Xiao Qing was thinking about how to kill the Golden Winged Bird in the tree hollow before him.

The tree hollow of this Golden Winged Bird faced a lake and was surrounded by abundant resources; it was the dream home Xiao Qing had always wanted!

"According to the notes, the Golden Winged Bird is a diurnal predator that rests at night, and its night vision is extremely poor."

"It seems the best plan is to wait until dark, then use the moonlight to sneak into the tree hollow and deliver a fatal blow to the Golden Winged Bird!"

After finalizing his plan in his mind, Xiao Qing found a spot not far from the tree hollow to rest.

Nightfall descended quickly, and the pale moonlight spilled over the earth, illuminating the Golden Winged Bird's tree hollow for Xiao Qing.

Clenching his long blade between his teeth, Xiao Qing climbed bit by bit toward the exterior of the tree hollow, his eyes scanning the interior with a cold gaze.