Notting Academy went on break.
Over the past six months, Li Ping'an had earned more than a thousand Gold Soul Coins through his connections at the clinic.
But even that much was still a little short of what he needed to buy Whale Rubber.
Still, at the rate he was making money as a crooked doctor, it wouldn't be long before he could buy some Whale Rubber to try.
Li Ping'an went into the city and bought a few gifts to take back for his parents in this life, as well as the village chief, Old Jack.
As for Xiao Wu, she successfully persuaded Tang San. They planned to use the break to hunt Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Tang San had realized how important teammates were, so he didn't turn Xiao Wu down.
Besides, he wanted to broaden his horizons in the Star Dou Great Forest, too.
And Yu Xiaogang, following Tang Hao's instructions, brought Xiao Wu along.
Two days later, outside Holy Soul Village.
Following the great river near Holy Soul Village, Li Ping'an finally found the waterfall, which stood a hundred meters tall.
Waterfall valleys like this were extremely rare, so Li Ping'an had found it without much trouble.
It was winter, and the Heaven Dou Empire lay in the north, so the river was in its dry season.
There wasn't much water in the waterfall, allowing Li Ping'an to see what lay behind it.
"Is that the cave?"
Behind the waterfall, Li Ping'an spotted a section of stone that looked stacked together, unlike the naturally formed rocks around it.
After finding his destination, Li Ping'an went to the foot of the waterfall and prepared to climb.
He had already cultivated his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul until he could control it as easily as his own limbs.
His Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul was now easier to use than a rope. It felt like an extension of his body.
So Li Ping'an climbed up to the cave without much effort.
He moved a stone aside, and a rotten stench wafted out from behind it.
"This is the place, all right!" Li Ping'an breathed a sigh of relief.
If he'd found the wrong place, these two days would have been wasted. The longer this dragged on, the greater his risk.
Li Ping'an moved the stone aside and waited for the air inside to fully circulate before crawling in.
In the cave, one section of the stone wall was clearly different from the rest. It seemed to be a stone door, though it was covered in dust.
"Looks like Tang Hao hasn't been here in a long time!"
Li Ping'an searched for a while and finally found the switch for the stone door.
With a rumble, the door swung open. Inside, there was no light at all; it was pitch-black, so dark he couldn't see his hand in front of his face.
Li Ping'an used his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul to make out the layout by the faint light of his Soul Power.
In the middle of the secret chamber was a small mound of earth, with a little grass growing on top.
Even in this dark environment, that Blue Silver Grass was still alive.
Anyone with a brain could tell that this Blue Silver Grass was no ordinary plant.
Li Ping'an looked toward the ceiling of the secret chamber and, sure enough, spotted an extremely long lead box.
"Is this where the Soul Bone is?"
Li Ping'an used his Blue Silver Grass to pull the Soul Bone down. Only after confirming there were no traps did he step into the secret chamber.
He opened the heavy box and saw a right leg bone lying quietly inside. It was a deep blue shot through with gold, its surface wrapped in vine-like patterns.
The right leg bone carried the aura of a grass emperor. Li Ping'an felt as though it was nourishing his Martial Soul.
"I'd better absorb it right away, before anything else can go wrong!"
Li Ping'an didn't take the Soul Bone away. Instead, he decided to absorb it right here.
He pressed the Soul Bone against his right leg and activated his Soul Power.
As soon as the Soul Bone touched Li Ping'an's Soul Power, it slowly sank into his right leg.
Absorbing a Soul Bone didn't carry the same risks as absorbing a Soul Ring.
Before long, Li Ping'an had fully absorbed the Soul Bone, and a wave of Soul Power rippled out from him.
That was the boost from the Soul Bone. His Soul Power rose from level fifteen to level seventeen.
"This is only a Soul Bone. If it were a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, my Soul Power might break through level twenty in one go!"
The Blue Silver Emperor's Soul Bone had granted Li Ping'an two skills.
One was "Wildfire leaves nothing but ash, yet the spring breeze brings it back to life," which had tremendous healing power.
As long as he wasn't dead and still had Soul Power, he could recover from his injuries very quickly.
"Can this Soul Bone strengthen my first Soul Skill, too?" Li Ping'an wondered.
A Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone could have two Soul Bone Skills. The other one was flight.
"Looks like I won't have to climb down. I can just fly!"
Who wouldn't want to soar through the sky and burrow into the earth after arriving in a world with extraordinary powers?
The Blue Silver Emperor's Soul Bone had helped Li Ping'an achieve that goal, in a roundabout way.
"But I can't use this Soul Skill carelessly, or people might realize I have a Soul Bone!"
"Especially Tang Hao. He's seen a lot; he'll definitely notice something strange!"
After all, no matter how much you trained, a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul shouldn't be able to fly, right?
Time to go, Li Ping'an thought.
Just then, Li Ping'an suddenly saw the Blue Silver Grass in the middle of the secret chamber gently rustle its leaves.
The Blue Silver Grass moved without a breeze, giving him a fright.
"Tang San's mom—had she already awakened?"
"Wouldn't that mean I've been caught stealing the Soul Bone?" Li Ping'an thought.
"What should I do?"
Li Ping'an stepped forward and pinched the Blue Silver Grass.
Sure enough, its leaves suddenly shone with blue light.
Golden lines appeared across its leaves, making it look completely different from the Blue Silver Grass outside.
The Blue Silver Emperor's leaves curled around Li Ping'an's arm.
"What?!"
Li Ping'an was so startled that he nearly used Xiao Wu's Self-Created Soul Skill, Rabbit Fist, to punch it.
"Please, save me. Take me outside!"
A gentle female voice spoke directly into Li Ping'an's mind.
"Who are you?" Li Ping'an asked, though he already knew.
The voice sounded again. "I'm the Soul Beast that is this Blue Silver Grass in your hand."
"Your Martial Soul's aura awakened me. If I stay by your side, it will help you cultivate your Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul!"
"Take you outside? No way. What if you hurt me?"
How could Li Ping'an dare take Ah Yin with him? He didn't have a Storage Soul Tool that could carry living things.
In fact, he didn't even have a Storage Soul Tool at all. Carrying a blade of Blue Silver Grass around would draw too much attention.
Ah Yin was frantic. She had just awakened and had accidentally revealed herself.
If Li Ping'an pulled her out, she wouldn't die, but she would turn back into a seed and fall into an even deeper slumber.
So she had chosen to speak to Li Ping'an first, and see if she could persuade this human to let her stay by his side.
Only after leaving this cave could she grow faster.
Best of all would be returning to the Blue Silver Forest. She might even have a chance to regain her cultivation and come back to life.
"I wonder how Second Brother and our child are doing..."
Seeing that Li Ping'an wasn't willing to take her, Ah Yin hurriedly added, "I'm just a blade of Blue Silver Grass. I can't hurt you."
"You can take me outside and leave me somewhere with sunlight and rain!"
How could Li Ping'an possibly agree? He had absorbed the Blue Silver Emperor's Soul Bone.
In a way, they were half enemies.
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