Yu Xiaogang had never imagined that he would see the wanted notice for that man outside Spirit Hall, only to run straight into his hands moments later.
Was he really that unlucky?
Wait... unlucky?
Yu Xiaogang suddenly thought of that little brat and remembered what he had said.
He'd said that... misfortune was coming his way.
No, seriously, was there really a Martial Soul that could see through other people's fortunes?
Damn it.
You'd already stopped me three times. Why couldn't you stop me a few more?
How could a person have so little perseverance?
Wang Hu's raised broadsword instantly shattered all of Yu Xiaogang's thoughts.
"Uuuh..."
Yu Xiaogang desperately whimpered, trying to make his identity known.
Unfortunately,
with his jaw dislocated, he couldn't get out a single complete sentence.
"What's all that gibberish?"
"Whatever. Doesn't matter."
"Don't worry. My blade is fast. I won't let you suffer too much."
Wang Hu grinned.
"Uuuh..."
Every one of Yu Xiaogang's limbs was shattered. Like a maggot, he could only wriggle backward by twisting his waist, and the whimpering never stopped.
By now, fear had completely consumed him.
The blood-red blade hanging over his head was like the Grim Reaper's scythe.
Death was just an inch away.
"Hm?"
Wang Hu was about to bring down his blade when he suddenly turned around, as if he'd sensed something.
"Damn it, how did they get here so fast?"
Spirit Hall's enforcement squad had been hunting him all along, but he hadn't expected them to find his trail so quickly.
Wang Hu abruptly crouched and snapped Yu Xiaogang's dislocated jaw back into place with two quick movements.
Yu Xiaogang: "???"
Before Yu Xiaogang could recover, Wang Hu hacked off one of his arms.
"Ah..."
Unable to bear the pain, Yu Xiaogang let out a miserable scream.
Wang Hu rushed out of the courtyard and fled.
The reason he'd managed to break through the encirclement several times was that he'd used wounded people to hold some of the enforcement squad back.
What could he do? They were too softhearted.
Wang Hu had barely left when five people came running at the sound.
"Damn it, that trick again."
"Lao Wu, stay here and help the injured. The rest of you, follow me."
The leader tossed out an order and chased after Wang Hu with the other four, leaving one man behind to stare helplessly at Yu Xiaogang, who was still screaming on the ground.
"What the hell are you standing there for? Hurry up and take me to a doctor! If we're too late, they won't be able to reattach my arm. Can you afford to take responsibility for that?"
Yu Xiaogang roared, gritting his teeth against the pain.
"Hm?"
Lao Wu's brows furrowed, and his gaze turned dangerous.
He truly didn't want to save a guy like this.
Maybe he should just kill him and pin the blame on Wang Hu.
"What are you looking at? I'm Yu Xiaogang, son of Yu Yuanzhen, the Sect Master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Sect. I'm also on close terms with your Pope, Bibi Dong."
"I'm telling you, if I die here, you wouldn't have enough lives to make up for it even if you had ten. Every last one of you will pay with your lives."
Yu Xiaogang's brow was beaded with cold sweat, but his voice was still full of force as he threatened him.
Lao Wu's pupils shrank.
No wonder he'd dared to act so arrogantly.
Not just anyone would dare impersonate Yu Yuanzhen's son or claim to be the Pope's close friend.
At that, Lao Wu no longer dared entertain any wicked thoughts.
He immediately picked up Yu Xiaogang's arm, carried him out of the courtyard, and hurried away.
After leaving the city, Lin Chen found a secluded grove outside Nuoding City.
He gathered some dry branches and started a fire.
Then he took out the iron tongs he'd prepared earlier, gripped the Whale Rubber, and began roasting it over the flames.
To make it easier to store, Whale Rubber was always dried out. It looked like a lump of plastic, but as it was roasted at high heat, it gradually began to soften.
A strange fragrance slowly spread through the air.
Just smelling it made Lin Chen feel his body temperature rising. A fine sheen of sweat appeared on his skin.
But that was all. He didn't feel any urges of that sort.
After all, he was only six years old. His body hadn't fully developed yet.
Soon, the Whale Rubber softened completely, looking like a lump of jelly.
Lin Chen immediately took out a small knife, cut off a piece, and tossed it into his mouth.
"Gah, gah..."
He grimaced and chewed a few times before forcing it down.
He repeated the process several times, and soon he'd swallowed the entire piece of Whale Rubber.
Lin Chen quickly sat cross-legged and began circulating his cultivation technique to refine the medicinal properties of the Whale Rubber.
Warm energy welled up from his abdomen and spread through his limbs and bones.
The energy continuously tempered his body. Lin Chen could clearly feel his physical strength soaring.
At the same time,
his body temperature continued to rise, making him feel as if he were sitting inside a furnace.
Aside from the heat, though, he had no other reaction.
Time passed little by little, and the Whale Rubber's effects gradually began to fade.
Until they finally disappeared completely.
"Open panel!"
With a thought from Lin Chen, his status panel abruptly appeared before his eyes.
[Name: Lin Chen] [Martial Soul: Sky Thunder Whip] [Level: 10] [Spirit: 10] [Physique: 23] [Cultivation Techniques and Secret Arts: [Tap to expand]]
"More or less what I expected. A seven- or eight-hundred-year Spirit Ring shouldn't be a problem."
Looking at his physical strength, Lin Chen murmured to himself.
"Now I just need to sort out the warrant, or I could go straight to the Star Dou Great Forest."
The Soul Hunting Forest wasn't somewhere you could simply walk into. You needed to show a warrant issued by Spirit Hall or a Soul Hunting Warrant issued by a noble of one of the kingdoms.
Lin Chen thought of Xiao Chenyu.
The boy had said Lin Chen could come to him if he ever needed anything. Getting a warrant wouldn't be difficult.
It was just that...
There weren't many kinds of Spirit Beasts in the Soul Hunting Forest, and high-quality ones were even rarer.
The Star Dou Great Forest had a greater variety of Spirit Beasts, but it was also far more dangerous.
The danger didn't just come from Spirit Beasts. Sometimes, humans were even more dangerous.
At least the Soul Hunting Forest had soldiers patrolling it. Most people wouldn't dare cause trouble there. But once he entered the Star Dou Great Forest, he'd be at the mercy of fate.
"Forget it. My life comes first."
After thinking it over for a moment, Lin Chen decided to try the Soul Hunting Forest first. If it didn't work out, he could always go to the Star Dou Great Forest afterward.
After all, he had plenty of time, but only one life.
Better to play it safe.
Lin Chen put out the fire completely and returned to Nuoding City.
After entering the city, he went straight to the City Lord Mansion.
Xiao Chenyu wasn't home, but he seemed to have given the household guards a heads-up. As soon as they heard Lin Chen was the Divine Calculator, they immediately took him to see the city lord.
City Lord Xiao was very welcoming and even offered to send someone to help him hunt for a Spirit Ring.
Lin Chen politely declined, saying he'd already found someone to help.
Seeing that, the other man had no choice but to drop the matter, though he still kept Lin Chen at the Xiao Family's home for lunch.
It was over lunch that Lin Chen learned Xiao Chenyu had already drawn blood.
After lunch, City Lord Xiao helped him get a Soul Hunting Warrant.
Lin Chen left the Xiao Family and immediately boarded a carriage headed for the Soul Hunting Forest.
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