Years of arduous training had already honed his nerves to an incredible resilience.
The instant the Ghost Shadow Leopard pounced, his body reacted before his mind did.
He didn't retreat. Instead, he stepped toward the incoming attack and twisted his whole body at an impossible angle, narrowly dodging that fatal claw!
The Ghost Shadow Leopard missed. Its nimble body twisted forcibly in midair, and its hind legs kicked off the trunk of a nearby tree, propelling it forward again. It opened its bloody maw and lunged for Ye Feng's throat!
Ye Feng gave a cold snort. His footwork shifted, and his body slid half a step sideways like a ghost.
This time, he didn't dodge.
His left hand shot out like lightning and clamped onto the Ghost Shadow Leopard's lower jaw, stopping its stinking fangs less than half an inch from his throat.
At the same time, his right hand swept his short sword upward, tracing a cold arc.
"Pfft!"
The sharp blade cut through the Ghost Shadow Leopard's soft belly without resistance, and warm blood gushed out in an instant.
The Ghost Shadow Leopard let out a heartrending howl and thrashed violently, but Ye Feng's arm held it fast like an iron vise.
Showing not the slightest mercy, he put strength into his arm and drove the short sword upward with a savage thrust!
The tip pierced the Ghost Shadow Leopard's heart.
The ferocious predator's body stiffened. The murderous gleam in its pupils quickly faded, and at last its head drooped lifelessly.
Ye Feng let go, allowing the Ghost Shadow Leopard's corpse to slide to the ground and scatter dead leaves everywhere.
He flicked the blood from his short sword. The herbivorous Soul Beasts nearby had been startled by the stench of blood and fled in every direction. As he watched them go, the last trace of tension in his heart dissipated, replaced by a cold calm.
Night soon fell.
Ye Feng didn't dare light a campfire at a time like this. That would be no different from lighting a beacon in the darkness to lure death toward him.
Eventually, he found a sufficiently sturdy old tree nearby.
Using his short sword and bare hands, he dug a hole at the base of its trunk, just large enough for one person to curl up inside.
The work took a great deal of effort, and the rough bark rubbed his hands raw.
Once the hole was ready, he crawled inside. Then he used some moss-covered bark he'd stripped from the tree to make a lid, carefully blocking the entrance from within and leaving only a barely noticeable crack for air.
From the outside, the hole blended almost perfectly with the surrounding roots. It was an excellent hiding place.
He probably couldn't even enter the outer edge of this area. All he could do was watch what was happening inside from a hundred meters away.
At night, the roars and howls of all kinds of Soul Beasts, along with the shrieks of unknown creatures, rang out all around him, one louder than the next, like a symphony of death.
Curled up inside the narrow, dark tree hollow, Ye Feng spent the entire night on edge. He didn't dare truly fall asleep, only dozing fitfully in a hazy half-sleep.
Damn, this place was way too dangerous!
Days like this continued for four days straight.
Over those four days, Ye Feng had become like a true hunter, clashing with numerous century-old Soul Beasts.
He dodged the savage charge of a century-old Iron-Hide Rhino, nearly died in the web of a two-hundred-year-old Three-Eyed Demon Spider, and even took a direct hit from a five-hundred-year-old Vajra Ape, leaving his blood and qi churning.
At that moment, he looked a little worse for wear.
His clothes had been torn to shreds, caked with dirt and dried blood, and he was covered in injuries.
Leaning against a tree, he pulled aside the torn fabric over his shoulder. A deep claw wound, nearly exposing bone, stood out in alarming relief.
He'd gotten it yesterday while fighting a century-old Vajra Tiger.
That beast's defenses and strength far surpassed those of Soul Beasts at the same level. Ye Feng hadn't beaten it and had only managed to escape in a sorry state by relying on his footwork, but he'd gained invaluable combat experience.
He took out the wound medicine Wang Dali had given him and gritted his teeth as he spread the powder evenly over the wound.
A sharp sting hit him, and a fine sheen of sweat broke out across his forehead.
All things considered, it was worth it.
A night passed.
Ye Feng rolled his stiff neck and crawled out of the tree hollow.
He glanced at the longbow and quiver leaning against the tree, shook his head, and set them aside.
The battles of the past few days had taught him that unless he had an overwhelming advantage and could attack from ambush, a bow's accuracy in a fast-moving fight was practically zero. Carrying one was more of a burden than anything. After all, a regular bow wasn't a Martial Soul bow that could guarantee a hit.
One short sword was enough.
He took a few pieces of dried meat from his pack. They were from a Pale Moon Wolf he'd hunted two days ago. After eating a few bites, he once again approached the depths of the forest's outer reaches.
When he'd crept to within a hundred meters of the true outer forest, a powerful sense of danger suddenly struck from behind!
A golden blur tore through the air, bringing with it a wave of searing heat as it lunged without warning at his back!
Every hair on Ye Feng's body stood on end!
With no time to think, he rolled forward, condensing his Soul Power into a thin shield across his back.
"Thud!"
A dull impact rang out. A tremendous force slammed into his back, sending him flying helplessly. He rolled across the ground several times before finally managing to steady himself in a sorry heap.
His throat turned sweet, and a trace of blood trickled from the corner of his lips.
Damn it, where had this one come from?!
Ye Feng scrambled to his feet and warily faced the direction the attack had come from.
A powerfully built lion was sauntering gracefully out into the open.
Its body was covered in golden fur that shimmered brilliantly in the dappled light beneath the trees.
Its golden eyes brimmed with a ruler's majesty and a cold killing intent.
Judging by its appearance, this lion had three or four hundred years of cultivation!
Ye Feng's heart gave a thump. This was going to be tricky.
Against another kind of Soul Beast, even one that had lived for three or four hundred years, he'd dare to take it on with his agile footwork and the sharpness of his Light Blade.
But this was a lion!
Soul Beasts like lions, tigers, lesser dragons, and titans were born at the top of the food chain. Their fighting instincts and overall strength were far beyond those of ordinary Soul Beasts.
A fight with one could really cost him his life!
Ye Feng felt a little intimidated too, and had already begun calculating an escape route.
Hm? Wait...
Suddenly, he noticed something.
Along with its powerful fluctuations of Soul Power, the lion radiated a pure, sacred, searing aura.
That was... the Light attribute!
A lion with a pure Light attribute!
Ye Feng's heart began pounding wildly!
He had no idea exactly what kind of Soul Beast this was.
But without a doubt, it was far more precious than those so-called Light-attribute Soul Beasts in the illustrated guide. It was clearly a high-grade beast with an extraordinary bloodline!
You're the one!
In that instant, all his fear and desire to retreat were replaced by greed and longing!
Wasn't this the very First Soul Ring he'd dreamed of?
Take a gamble, and a bicycle could become a motorcycle!
"Roar!"
Before you continue