As he spoke, Zhao Linchuan casually waved his left hand. A streak of emerald light brimming with life energy, like spring rain nourishing the earth, landed precisely on the terrifying wound on Tang San's back.
A miraculous scene unfolded!
The grotesque wound, along with the torn flesh and meridians around it and even the faintly visible bones, began to writhe, grow, and heal at a speed visible to the naked eye beneath the green light!
Fresh buds of flesh sprouted, and new skin spread over them. In just a dozen or so breaths, the enormous wound that had been enough to kill him had healed completely,
leaving only a patch of slightly pink new skin, with barely a scar in sight!
If not for the large patches of blood on the ground and Tang San's still-pale, unconscious face, everyone would have thought the bloody scene they had just witnessed was an illusion!
Dragon Duke and Snake Granny, along with Zhao Wuji and the others, were all dumbstruck, too shocked to speak.
Such heaven-defying healing!
Such vast life energy!
This... this was far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary healing-type Soul Master!
Even the legendary top-tier healing Martial Soul, the Nine Heart Begonia, probably couldn't compare, could it?
Besides, they had heard about the Nine Heart Begonia's limitations and knew a little about its current successor. It definitely wasn't the young man before them!
Could this be... an even more powerful healing-type Martial Soul that had never appeared before?
Or was he the young master of some hidden clan?!
As Dragon Duke and Snake Granny's hearts churned like a stormy sea and they secretly speculated, Tang San, unconscious on the ground, twitched his eyelashes a few times. A faint groan escaped his throat, and he slowly opened his eyes.
His gaze was unfocused. He first looked around, then instinctively felt his back. It was smooth to the touch, with nothing amiss,
but a hard-to-describe weakness came from deep within him, as if something important had been pulled out, leaving him hollow.
"What... what happened to me?" He struggled to sit up. His voice was hoarse, and his head still felt foggy.
"You were nearly controlled by that evil creature and turned into a Man Faced Demon Spider."
"Fortunately, I happened to pass by and removed it from your body in time."
Zhao Linchuan's voice drifted over.
"Zhao Linchuan?!" Tang San whipped his head around. Seeing that familiar face that filled him with dread, his pupils contracted, and he cried out in shock.
"Little San, you seem pretty 'excited' to see me." Zhao Linchuan smiled warmly, as if greeting an old friend. "Did you miss me?"
"I... I..."
Tang San's heart raced as a flood of emotions surged through him—fear, anger, humiliation, confusion... and the memory of that bone-deep agony. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.
"All right, don't get too worked up. It's bad for your health." Zhao Linchuan waved a hand, cutting off his flustered response.
Then, as if he'd suddenly remembered something, he casually took an item from his Storage Soul Tool and tossed it into Tang San's arms.
It was a bone of white jade, about half the length of a forearm!
Tang San caught it instinctively. "What's this?!" He could clearly sense the pure Soul Power contained within it, and froze.
Zhao Linchuan weighed the Eight Spider Lances in his hand and spoke casually:
"This thing that grew out of your back looks pretty unusual. I'm interested in taking it back to study."
"In exchange, you can have this Torso Soul Bone."
"How about it? A fair trade."
Tang San lowered his gaze to the Torso Soul Bone glowing enticingly in his arms, then looked up at the thing in Zhao Linchuan's hand—a 'bone' that looked sinister no matter how he viewed it—and his thoughts raced.
A Soul Bone!
And one of the rarest of the six kinds, a Torso Soul Bone, which offered the greatest overall improvement to a Soul Master!
The 'Eight Spider Lances' in Zhao Linchuan's hand might be some strange treasure, but Soul Bones were treasures one could only hope to encounter!
No matter how rare or precious it was, could it really be more valuable than a Torso Soul Bone?!
He barely hesitated—or rather, the enormous allure of the Soul Bone left him little choice—and quickly made up his mind.
"Deal! It's settled!" His voice was hurried, as if he feared Zhao Linchuan might change his mind. He immediately sat cross-legged, placed the Torso Soul Bone before him, and began trying to absorb it.
To him, increasing his strength as quickly as possible was the key to facing every crisis and humiliation.
Dragon Duke and Snake Granny, along with Zhao Wuji, watched the scene, their brows furrowing involuntarily.
With their discerning eyes, they could tell the quality and age of the Torso Soul Bone.
Trading a strange object for a thousand-year Torso Soul Bone... in terms of potential value, the deal didn't seem equal.
But... Zhao Linchuan's strength was unfathomable, and he had just 'saved' Tang San. He had even offered a Soul Bone as 'compensation'. They had neither the standing nor the courage to question or stop him.
Zhao Linchuan watched Tang San begin absorbing the Soul Bone, and the smile at the corner of his mouth deepened slightly.
He put the Eight Spider Lances into his Storage Soul Tool, gave Dragon Duke and Snake Granny a slight nod, and said in an even tone:
"Everyone, now that this matter is settled, we'll take our leave."
He turned to leave with Xiao Wu and Jin Da.
However, after taking just two steps, he stopped, as if he'd suddenly thought of something amusing. He turned back and looked at Zhao Wuji, Dai Mubai, and the others, who had kept their heads lowered the whole time.
A half-smile appeared on his face as he drawled:
"Oh, right. I heard that two interesting sayings circulate around your Shrek Academy. What were they... 'A Soul Master who doesn't dare cause trouble isn't a good Soul Master'?"
"And there's another one: 'Those who don't dare cause trouble are good-for-nothings.' I wonder, is that really true?"
At his words, Zhao Wuji and the others stiffened. Their heads drooped even lower, and their faces burned as though they'd been slapped hard by an invisible hand.
The humiliation of last night, their helplessness just now, and the way he asked that question now made it the sharpest possible mockery of their so-called "monster theory."
Their lips trembled, but none of them dared answer.
Xiao Wu saw them and covered her mouth with a quiet laugh, taunting them:
"'Those who don't dare cause trouble are good-for-nothings'? That sounds pretty bold."
"But if you provoke someone you shouldn't, someone you can't afford to offend... then I'm afraid 'good-for-nothing' will be a boast you made in the first half of your life, and the epitaph on your grave in the second."
After saying this, she didn't bother to look at the Shrek students' wonderfully varied expressions. She bounced along after Zhao Linchuan, who had already turned to leave.
Jin Da silently brought up the rear. His gaze swept across everyone once more, and the invisible pressure kept them all from moving a muscle. Only after the three of them vanished into the dense forest did the suffocating oppression slowly fade.
Only heavy breathing remained in the forest clearing.
Sunlight still filtered through the leaves, yet it seemed to carry a bone-chilling cold.
The words "Those who don't dare cause trouble are good-for-nothings" now sounded like the biggest joke of all, a mocking label that nailed them to a pillar of shame.
--
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