"Ah!"
At almost the same time, Yu Xiaogang let out a scream too!
But Tang San had no time to look at him. The Mandala Snake was the real priority now.
If they didn't deal with it, they'd both die.
Luckily, Tang San's dagger had struck the Mandala Snake in a vital spot. It was close to death, and after thrashing for a while, it finally went still.
Only then did Tang San have time to look at Yu Xiaogang and ask, "Teacher, did you get hurt again just now?"
Yu Xiaogang snapped out of his daze. "Uh, no—wait, I don't know."
"Huh? You don't know?" Tang San looked puzzled.
Yu Xiaogang said, "My leg suddenly started hurting like crazy for no reason, as if something had smashed into it."
Tang San froze!
Are you an idiot? How can you not know?
At that thought, Tang San suddenly froze again.
His leg suddenly started hurting like crazy, as if something had hit it?
Why does that sound familiar?
Wait a minute!
My arm suddenly started hurting for no reason too, and I was obviously poisoned, as if I'd been bitten by a snake.
But at the time, the Mandala Snake hadn't bitten me. It had bitten Teacher.
And just now, the Mandala Snake hadn't swept into Teacher's leg. It had hit mine.
Yet now Teacher's leg had suddenly started hurting too!
Why was this happening?
Hiss!
Tang San's eyes lit up.
I know! I understand! I get it!
My teacher is a complete idiot!
He's copying me! He's imitating me!
It has to be. Otherwise, why would he be screaming when the Mandala Snake hadn't even hit him?
Just then, Yu Xiaogang staggered over to Tang San and held his hand. "Xiao San, how are you? Are you hurt?"
Hey, is something wrong with you? Do you even think of me as your own disciple? You're only asking how I am now?
No wonder you've never had a disciple. Low intelligence, low strength, and no social skills!
Tang San still put on a panicked, breathless look and said, "I'm fine, Teacher. It's just that the snake seems to be lying over there without moving!"
Yu Xiaogang scolded him, "Why did you suddenly let go just now? Do you know how dangerous that was?"
Tang San: ...
You bastard...
Damn you to hell! Do you think I don't know letting go is dangerous?
But holding on was even more dangerous!
What good would it do to run while you were dragging me along? Could we outrun that snake?
That was a four-hundred-year-old Mandala Snake, not four hundred heads of cabbage!
If it caught up and bit us, we'd both be meeting our maker, you know?
I really regret taking this thing as my teacher!
Though he cursed Yu Xiaogang in his heart, Tang San spoke obediently. "I don't know what happened either. My hand was sweaty, and it suddenly slipped. Teacher, I was swinging the short sword you gave me wildly just now. I think I hit the snake."
Yu Xiaogang took Tang San's hand. Sure enough, his palm was covered in cold sweat.
He could guess that Tang San had struck the Mandala Snake, and probably hit one of its vital spots, too.
Otherwise, how could such a fierce, venomous, and vindictive Soul Beast suddenly stop chasing them and lie there without moving?
"But don't go over yet. Let's wait and see. Snake Soul Beasts have incredibly strong vitality. They don't die easily. It might be pretending to be dead."
"Mm, Teacher." As if I need you to tell me that.
I've played with more snakes back in the Tang Sect than you've played with...
After cursing him in his heart, Tang San gasped heavily. He wasn't faking it.
On one hand, he was exhausted. On the other, he had been poisoned and struck in the leg. His arm and leg were both aching badly.
Only then did he suddenly remember that he had some antidote in his bag. He had made it from herbs he'd gathered in the mountains and fields near Holy Soul Village.
It couldn't completely dispel the Mandala Snake's poison, but it could effectively delay the poison's onset and slow its damage to the body.
And right then,
the effect of [Memory Erasure] became apparent.
Tang San had clearly seen the signs of poisoning on Yu Xiaogang's arm too.
But...
he forgot!
That was right. Even though it was right in front of him, he simply forgot about it!
The effects of items produced by the system were just that overbearing and unreasonable.
While Yu Xiaogang quietly crept closer to the Mandala Snake to check on it, Tang San swallowed the antidote. Feeling sensation gradually return to his numb, injured arm, he let out a long breath.
When Yu Xiaogang saw that the Mandala Snake's presence was truly growing weaker and weaker, he finally began to relax.
Then, the expression on his face changed. His earlier panic gradually turned to delight. "Wonderful! This is wonderful! Xiao San, your Soul Ring is within reach!"
A yellow Soul Ring rose from the Mandala Snake's corpse. Tang San sat cross-legged on the ground facing it, anticipation in his eyes.
Tough and venomous—this snake's attributes were exactly what Tang San needed.
And according to the logic of Soul Master cultivation,
if he could absorb this Soul Ring, he would break through the bottleneck in the Mysterious Heaven Skill and continue on to the next stage of cultivation!
"Focus on absorbing the Soul Ring. I'll keep watch," Yu Xiaogang said.
Following Yu Xiaogang's instructions, he began absorbing the Soul Ring in earnest.
A searing warmth surged into his body, spreading through every meridian and every part of him.
What domineering power!
As the energy poured into him, Tang San's consciousness suddenly brightened. He seemed to see himself immersed in an ocean of flames.
At the very center of that sea of fire, a lone stalk of Blue Silver Grass swayed with the flames. No matter how fiercely they raged, they couldn't destroy it.
His heart leaped with joy. This seemed to be the inner-vision realm of inner strength!
In his previous life, he had already been too old when he began cultivating the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, and he had never experienced this realm. He hadn't expected it to appear while he was absorbing his first Soul Ring.
This meant there was a very good chance he could break through the bottleneck in his Mysterious Heaven Skill!
With joy and excitement, he continued using the inner strength of the Mysterious Heaven Skill and the Soul Power in his body to guide the enormous energy through him. With each circuit, he felt the bottleneck grow more fragile, as if it might break at any moment!
Just then,
as heat blazed through his entire body, he felt a cool sensation in that unspeakable place in his pants.
Meanwhile,
Yu Xiaogang finished relieving himself and emerged from a nearby thicket of tall shrubs.
Tang San was utterly dumbfounded!
Did I... wet my pants?
Otherwise, why had they suddenly gotten so cool, as if they'd been splashed with water?
The [Empathy Talisman] didn't just synchronize the injuries two people suffered. It connected their sensations, too!
So when Yu Xiaogang finished relieving himself,
Tang San did the same at the exact same time.
And so,
Tang San's pants were wet.
Before you continue