Soul Hunting Forest

A few days later.

Inside a carriage.

Yu Xiaogang was chatting idly with the Nuoding Dean.

The Nuoding Dean was a rather handsome middle-aged man with a gentle personality. He always wore an easygoing smile and was not the type to keep a stern face at all times.

Because of this, Jiang Jiu's "door-blocking" invitation had gone quite smoothly.

He had agreed readily enough, though he needed some time to arrange his upcoming work, which was why Jiang Jiu and the others only set off a few days later.

On the other side, the invitation for the master-disciple duo of Yu Xiaogang and Tang San had also gone well.

Tang San himself had no objections, but he needed to consult his teacher first.

As for Yu Xiaogang, after some consideration.

Later, upon learning from his conversation with the Nuoding Dean that a bold little genius had come knocking to ask for help with a soul hunt—and that his friend the Dean had already agreed—Yu Xiaogang naturally had no further issues.

Once the preparations were complete, the group naturally boarded the carriage bound for the Soul Hunting Forest together.

Over on Jiang Jiu's side.

Tang San was explaining his previous experience in the Soul Hunting Forest to him and Xiao Wu, placing special emphasis on key points regarding wilderness survival.

It had been nearly half a year since Tang San hunted his first soul ring. After six months of study, his knowledge of soul beasts had increased significantly, and he was taking this opportunity to enter the Soul Hunting Forest once more for practical experience.

It was precisely based on this consideration that Yu Xiaogang felt that reading books alone without practice was ultimately lacking.

Furthermore, he also had the idea of assessing these "team members" for Tang San.

In Yu Xiaogang's plan, Tang San was currently being developed in the direction of a Control-type soul master.

The Control-type was the "brain" of a team, and with a "brain," one naturally needed powerful "fists and feet."

It was rare to have such geniuses in a small place like Nuoding Academy, so there was no need to look far; this soul-hunting trip would be a good chance to see if they could develop some chemistry.

As for the Nuoding Dean, he was chatting with Yu Xiaogang, but his attention was also on Jiang Jiu and the others.

While listening to Tang San talk about the Soul Hunting Forest, Jiang Jiu's expression was serious and focused, not letting a single useful piece of information slip by, while Xiao Wu was clinging to Jiang Jiu's arm, looking somewhat indifferent.

The Dean was very satisfied with Jiang Jiu's performance and was certain in his heart that he would surely achieve great things in the future—at the very least, he would have a much brighter future than a primary academy dean like himself.

Although he was often called a "good man," he wasn't the type to help just anyone who came to him; after all, he was a level 41 Tool Soul Ancestor.

In Nuoding City, his soul power cultivation was already among the best.

Additionally, it had to be said that Xiao Wu's presence was a bonus.

A girl with innate full soul power could do whatever she pleased; perhaps she would even become a Titled Douluo in the future.

The key was that she didn't need Nuoding Academy's help to hunt for a soul ring; essentially, she was just a passerby.

But as it happened, she had that connection with Jiang Jiu.

Doing a favor for Jiang Jiu killed two birds with one stone, and since Jiang Jiu was someone he admired, why not? In any case, at most they would just be hunting a century-level soul beast; it wasn't a difficult task.

A day later, the carriage arrived at the Soul Hunting Forest.

Outside the forest was a sizable market. Tang San relayed the relevant information that Yu Xiaogang had told him half a year ago to Jiang Jiu and the others.

After a brief look around, they didn't linger, and the group headed straight into the forest.

"Xiaogang, it's truly convenient having you here." Entering through the forest gate guarded by soldiers, the Nuoding Dean couldn't help but sigh.

It wasn't just the token Yu Xiaogang provided that allowed them to enter the Soul Hunting Forest with ease; his storage soul tool was also quite enviable.

A decent storage soul tool could easily cost tens of thousands of gold soul coins. Even for a Soul Ancestor like him, combined with his status as a primary soul master academy dean, acquiring one would still be a painful expense.

Yu Xiaogang had at least two.

A storage soul tool.

Jiang Jiu had no interest in the token, but this storage soul tool was truly a good item. Who wouldn't want spatial equipment?

Unfortunately, obtaining one through normal channels was prohibitively expensive; at the very least, he wouldn't be thinking about it for a few years.

Once inside the Soul Hunting Forest, Yu Xiaogang released Luo Sanpao.

With the Nuoding Dean, a Tool Soul Ancestor, present, Yu Xiaogang could now play the role of a scout-type soul master, and Luo Sanpao's keen sense of smell was more than enough for this Soul Hunting Forest.

"Jiang Jiu, do you have any thoughts on your target for the soul hunt?" the Nuoding Dean asked Jiang Jiu.

Since he had agreed to hunt for Jiang Jiu, he naturally wanted to ensure he was satisfied and could prioritize his preferences.

"Bear, lion, tiger, leopard, or wolf—anything between two hundred and four hundred years old is fine," Jiang Jiu said.

In truth, there wasn't much to be picky about when hunting a soul ring; as long as the age and category were appropriate, it was good enough.

If one really wanted to pursue the evolution of bloodlines or the promotion of a martial soul, they wouldn't be coming to the Soul Hunting Forest.

The soul beasts raised in the Soul Hunting Forest were essentially insignificant in terms of bloodline quality.

"I recall you have a Rabbit martial soul, right? Why not look for a rabbit-type soul beast?" the Nuoding Dean asked, somewhat surprised.

"If I happen to encounter one, that would naturally be best, but conditions are limited, so I won't delay the two teachers any further."

"I've already come out with you, so there's no such thing as a delay. If we're going to look, we should look for the best possible one!" Nuoding Dean waved his hand.

"However, rabbit-type spirit beasts are generally not very strong, so perhaps those you selected are indeed better," he added.

Xiao Wu secretly curled her lip. Your family's rabbits are the weak ones!

Their ability to escape and save their own lives was top-tier, thank you very much.

Combat power... well, once they reached a hundred thousand years, that wouldn't be a problem either.

"Right, Xiao Wu, is it? I recall that you also have a rabbit spirit. Perhaps your first spirit ring could provide some reference for Jiang Jiu?" Nuoding Dean had naturally reviewed the files of the most outstanding students in the academy.

"Ah? Me? I... my first spirit ring was from a four-hundred-year-old Soft Bone Rabbit."

"There really are four-hundred-year-old Soft Bone Rabbits? That's rare."

"I told you to read more books. There are records of thousand-year-old Soft Bone Rabbits, though at that age, the Lightning Rabbit species is more common," Yu Xiaogang joined the discussion.

Hearing Xiao Wu say that her first spirit ring came from a four-hundred-year-old Soft Bone Rabbit, Yu Xiaogang roughly understood where Jiang Jiu's requirements for his first spirit ring's age had come from.

So, Xiao Wu had truly absorbed a four-hundred-year-old spirit ring; it was no wonder he had set the benchmark at four hundred years.

"When it comes to spirit beast research, how could I compare to you? I'm only responsible for the manual labor; I'll leave the identification of spirit beasts and their ages to you, Xiaogang," Nuoding Dean shook his head.

"Little San is doing quite well now, too," Yu Xiaogang said proudly, watching his disciple carefully observe the situation within the forest.