Xue Yue

"You're so beautiful and so adorable. Of course I liked you. I just didn't know you meant this!" Wang Sheng could only sigh helplessly. This little girl's way of thinking was far too different from that of ordinary people.

"Really?"

Mei Hu blinked her beautiful big eyes at Wang Sheng, as though she wanted to see straight into his heart.

Wang Sheng wore a sincere expression. "Of course it's true! I wouldn't lie to anyone, least of all you!"

She was just too adorable! As he spoke, Wang Sheng could not resist pinching Mei Hu's cheeks twice.

Mei Hu froze. No one had ever treated her like that before. Yet she did not react too strongly, merely somewhat displeased as she slapped Wang Sheng's hand away.

Even she did not understand it. If it had been before, she would have definitely slapped him to death.

"We should get out of here quickly! It'll be bad if that Earth Soul Ape King comes back for us!"

Wang Sheng pulled Mei Hu to her feet.

"Alright!" Mei Hu obediently agreed.

And so, the two tacitly fell into step together and began their journey.

A day later, Mei Hu and Tang San arrived at a small valley deep within the forest.

"Brother Sheng! This is the place. I found it when I passed by with my family before. Hehe!"

When Mei Hu learned that Wang Sheng still needed to hunt for his Second Soul Ring, she immediately volunteered the information that she had once seen a very suitable soul beast here: a hundred-year Blood Phoenix Bird.

This was a soul beast with Phoenix Bloodline. Though it possessed only a trace of it, that was still extremely extraordinary.

Naturally, Wang Sheng was more than willing!

At the same time, their day and night together had rapidly brought them closer. Their forms of address had become Brother Sheng and Meier.

Having reached their destination, Wang Sheng was in a fine mood.

But he immediately noticed something was wrong. There were quite a few footprints at the mouth of the valley!

"Huh? It looks like someone has been here, and just now at that. Don't tell me they got here before us?"

Mei Hu immediately leaned over to look. Sure enough!

Her little face instantly fell. "Hmph, how hateful! I found that soul beast for Brother Sheng. Who had the nerve to steal it?"

After saying that, she immediately dragged Wang Sheng and rushed into the valley.

Soul beasts possessing divine beast bloodlines were incredibly rare. Naturally, Wang Sheng was eager to obtain it.

But the soul beast belonged to no one. If someone had gotten there first, could he really snatch it by force?

Still, he understood that Mei Hu was worried for his sake, so he said nothing. A warm feeling even rose within him. After all, in this world, during the past six years, Mei Hu was the first person who had truly considered his well-being.

To say he was not moved would have been a lie.

When they entered the valley, there were indeed already people there. Three soul beasts lay on the ground: a rhinoceros, a crimson bird, and a strange snake!

Moreover, someone was already absorbing a soul ring.

Three people stood guard around that person, protecting him: two children of six or seven, and a beautiful woman around thirty years old who was clearly their leader.

They were probably from some family or academy, with an elder who had come out to help them hunt soul rings.

"Brother Sheng, look! That crimson bird is the Blood Phoenix Bird I told you about! I never thought someone would actually hunt it for us! Hurry over and absorb it!"

Wang Sheng had naturally seen it too. Of the three soul beasts, only one person was absorbing a soul ring, and the target was the rhinoceros! The Blood Phoenix Bird's soul ring had not yet vanished. It was the perfect time to absorb it.

But this was a soul beast someone else had hunted. Why should they let him absorb it?

Furthermore, the other party was at a critical point in refining a soul ring, when their nerves would be stretched the tightest.

Showing himself now could easily cause a misunderstanding. If things went badly, they might attack immediately.

He could not help but smile bitterly.

But Mei Hu at his side could not wait any longer. If they missed the Blood Phoenix Bird's soul ring, it would truly be a terrible waste!

So she immediately tried to pull Wang Sheng out.

"Meier, don't make trouble!"

At last, their movements were noticed.

The beautiful woman across from them immediately shouted, "Who's there? Come out!"

At the same time, her soul rings emerged: two yellow, two purple, and one black!

She was a Spirit King with the optimal soul ring configuration! No wonder she dared to bring three children here alone to hunt soul beasts! She had even killed three thousand-year soul beasts without suffering the slightest injury.

The other two children immediately moved to either side, shielding the child who was absorbing the soul ring between them. However, both of them were merely one-ring soul masters.

The three of them were clearly on full alert! After all, the child absorbing the soul ring could not be disturbed in the slightest.

"Don't misunderstand. We came to hunt soul rings too. We just didn't expect to run into you by such a coincidence!"

Since they had already been discovered, continuing to hide would only make them suspicious. It was better to step out openly.

"Whew!"

Upon seeing Wang Sheng and Mei Hu, the three people opposite them collectively breathed a sigh of relief. After all, Wang Sheng and Mei Hu looked to be only around ten years old.

But they soon became suspicious again. How could two half-grown children possibly come here alone to hunt soul beasts?

They might have been nervous, but Mei Hu did not care about any of that. Pointing at the Blood Phoenix Bird, she proudly declared, "I saw this one—"

Wang Sheng slapped his forehead. This girl's emotional intelligence was truly worrying! Didn't she see that the woman opposite was a five-ring Soul Elder? What kind of tone was that?

He was completely defeated!

In his view, Mei Hu had been spoiled by her family. But he had never considered that Mei Hu simply did not know how to get along with others.

"Meier!" Wang Sheng pulled her behind him, stopping her from continuing. If she went on, a nonissue would become an issue. Even a possibility might become impossible.

"My apologies for disturbing you. My Younger Sister simply saw that soul beast was very suitable for me, so she acted somewhat rudely."

As he spoke, he bowed politely and continued, "I apologize to you all here. However, I see that you do not intend to absorb this soul beast's soul ring. Might it be possible—"

"Hmph! These three soul beasts were all hunted by Teacher Xue Yue. Why should we let you absorb one?" one of the boys immediately shouted in displeasure.

"Teacher? Then these people are from an academy!" Wang Sheng's eyes lit up. Compared to members of great families, people from academies were relatively easier to reason with.

Teacher Xue Yue, however, was observing Wang Sheng and Hu Mei.

Their clothes are ordinary. They probably aren't from a family. Even if they're academy students, they can only be work-study students! It's quite possible they really came here alone to hunt soul rings!

Besides, even if someone was hiding nearby, with these two children beside her, they could serve as hostages if anything happened! That would be advantageous to them!

What was more, it would be a waste to leave that soul ring unabsorbed!

Even in the worst-case scenario, if no one else was around, then these two little fellows would simply benefit from it! They would not suffer any real loss!

(End of Chapter)