Arriving in Suotuo City, Rose Hotel

A call of Ye Lingling.

A glimmer of surprise appeared on the cold girl's face.

"Swish!"

In the end.

Filled with doubt and shock.

She made her move.

"What are you looking at? I'll stand guard for you while you absorb the spirit ring."

Ji Feng saw Ye Lingling staring at him.

So he said.

Ye Lingling's gaze faltered.

Clearly, she could not accept this so easily.

To think someone would speak to her in such a tone.

Ye Lingling hesitated for a moment.

She sat cross-legged.

And began to absorb the spirit ring.

As for Ji Feng, he had successfully gained experience points from the battle with this 700-year-old spirit beast.

He reached level 16.

One hour later.

Ji Feng sat under a towering tree, closing his eyes to rest.

He did not need to rely on meditation to increase his spirit power.

Suddenly.

He opened his eyes.

Before him.

Looking down from above.

A girl wearing a purple dress.

Stood right in front of him.

Her delicate, beautiful legs were clad in silk stockings.

Her chest was slightly raised, not yet fully developed.

She possessed the unique charm of a young girl, like a lotus bud just beginning to show its point.

Her eyes gazed at him coldly.

Ji Feng stood up: "Are you finished?"

The other party continued to look at him with indifference.

Ji Feng was speechless.

He had thought that this Ye Lingling would be difficult to get along with.

But he hadn't expected her to be this difficult.

Therefore.

He took a step forward.

At this moment.

Ye Lingling flashed in front of him.

She reached out and produced a token.

"Heaven Dou Royal Academy!"

Good grief.

Seeing the token in her hand.

Ji Feng's eyes narrowed.

The other party's expression was icy.

She didn't say a word, just flashed the token.

He had no idea what she was trying to express.

Could it be that she was threatening him?

Swish!

At this moment.

Ye Lingling's expression tightened.

It became even more solemn.

This expression fell into the eyes of Ji Feng.

Before he could react.

He felt a tugging sensation on his body.

He was being pulled by her gentle hand, moving at high speed.

"Running away?"

At this moment.

This thought crossed Ji Feng's mind.

By the time he regained his senses.

The two of them had appeared in a hidden spot.

Ji Feng was just about to ask.

At this moment.

In the distance.

Thunder rumbled.

The figure of an aged, middle-aged man appeared.

He held Thor's Hammer in his hand.

"Tang Hao!?"

Could this person be Tang Hao?

The moment he appeared.

He inflicted a sense of suffocation upon every living creature in the vicinity.

It made it impossible to breathe.

This pressure.

Lasted for a long time.

Before it finally vanished.

"Tang Hao is gone."

Seeing this, Ji Feng finally let out a sigh of relief.

He slowly stood up, frowning as he said, "Could it be that I stole Tang San's spirit ring, Tang Hao found out, and now he's actually coming to hunt me down?"

As he spoke.

Ji Feng looked up.

His gaze met Ye Lingling's.

In her cold eyes.

He seemed to catch a glimmer of something unusual.

However, it was only for an instant.

Then it vanished.

Dusk.

"Ye Lingling, let's team up. With you here, every spirit beast in the entire Soul Hunting Forest will be ours."

Ji Feng wore a confident expression.

Ye Lingling did not show any reaction.

She merely cast an extra glance at his bow.

Ji Feng keenly captured this detail.

That made sense.

A level 16 spirit master who could use three spirit skills—she must be very shocked, right?

The next day.

Ji Feng woke up.

He did not find Ye Lingling's figure nearby.

"I thought that because of my help, she would choose to team up with me."

"It seems she left early."

Ji Feng muttered to himself.

A sudden thought occurred to him.

In the original work.

Ye Lingling was a member of the Heaven Dou Royal Team.

In the next battle, she would head to the Suotuo City Great Soul Arena to face off against Tang San's Shrek Team.

Naturally, she wouldn't be wasting time here with him.

Five more days passed.

Swish, swish.

Soul Hunting Forest.

Ji Feng opened his system panel.

Two consecutive beams of golden light descended.

He had leveled up again.

Name: Ji Feng Martial Soul: Hou Yi Soul Power: Level 20 Soul Master (1400/17000)

"Through my painstaking efforts and supreme talent, I have finally broken through to level 20 and can now seek my second soul ring."

[Ding]

[Detected that the host has broken through to level 20 soul power, unlocking sub-profession: Mining Technique]

[Mining Technique]: Honor Continent equipment requires materials obtained through mining to forge god-tier gear.

"Mining Technique! It's finally here!"

The system prompt rang out.

It filled Ji Feng with immense excitement.

All this time, he had been relying solely on base stats to grind.

Without equipment.

He was just a very ordinary soul master.

At most, he had three more soul skills than others.

Although stronger than the average person.

He couldn't pull much of a lead over plane-born protagonists like Huo Gua or Tang Dog.

Now that he had a lead on equipment.

It was only a matter of time before he took off.

"Open panel."

Swish!

With a single thought.

[Mining Technique]

LV1 Primary Mining Can mine: Black Iron, Iron Ore, Copper Ore Effect: Increased mining speed; can only collect basic common iron, cannot damage spirit ores.

"The Mining Technique is only level one?"

Seeing the sub-profession's attribute panel.

Ji Feng's expression froze.

Mining Technique.

To level up.

He had to mine.

But the Soul Hunting Forest where he currently resided.

Had no mines.

"The nearest mine where I can mine is in the Balaque Kingdom."

"It seems fate has decreed that I must make a trip to the Balaque Kingdom."

Thinking of this.

The corners of Ji Feng's mouth curled upward.

Before leaving.

He prepared to absorb his second spirit ring before moving on.

Soul Hunting Forest.

Deep within.

A spirit beast lay sprawled across the path.

Ji Feng walked to this spot.

He did not choose to defeat it and seize its spirit ring.

There was only one reason.

That was that he did not want to die.

"Three-Headed Demon-Devouring Spider! 4,000 years of cultivation."

Upon learning the creature's age.

Ji Feng was dumbfounded.

He widened his eyes.

There was no need to even think about it.

Only one word filled his mind.

And that was to run!

"Luckily, I wasn't spotted by that 4,000-year-old venomous spider; otherwise, my level 20 spirit power wouldn't even be enough to withstand a single blow."

Having fled the scene.

Ji Feng broke into a cold sweat.

Although he was extremely reluctant.

For the sake of his own life.

He chose to temporarily set aside his plans to absorb a second spirit ring.

He headed straight for Suotuo City in the Balaque Kingdom.

To search for a mine.

Seven days later.

Ji Feng had traveled the entire way by carriage.

He finally arrived at Suotuo City in the Balaque Kingdom.

Suotuo City.

The entrance to the south city gate.

Suotuo City, as one of the main cities of the Balaque Kingdom.

Was undoubtedly very prosperous.

The moment he entered the city.

The buildings inside were densely packed.

The sound of hammering rang out from blacksmith shops.

Blacksmiths stood there, bare-chested.

Their muscles were as robust as an ox's.

Ji Feng wanted to find a master to learn the craft.

However, the blacksmith shops in this Suotuo City were not ideal for apprenticeships.

The starting point was too low.

"In the future, I should just go to Gengxin City and take the exam for a blacksmith certificate directly."

Forging equipment required blacksmithing skills.

Right now, what he needed most was to find a mine, dig, and grind his mining skill proficiency.

Rose Hotel.

The largest chain hotel in Suotuo City.

Ji Feng had just arrived in the city.

He prepared to settle down at this very hotel.

"I wonder if Tang San has arrived here yet?"

According to his calculations of time.

He should have arrived before them.