The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

"Third Soul Skill - Bone-Clinging Gangrene—!"

Inside the Sunset Forest, Dugu Xin was surrounded by three Soul Ring, two yellow and one purple. As soon as he arrived, he used his Weiyi Thousand-Year Soul Skill.

As the purple light on the Soul Ring intensified, a dim, yellowish smoke was exhaled from Dugu Xin's mouth, spreading out in the air in the blink of an eye and covering an area of five or six zhang in front of him.

After the yellowish smoke spread, a strange fragrance appeared in the air, like rotten fruit. At first, people and animals who smelled the smoke did not notice anything, but in a short while, they would become dizzy and stiff.

Most importantly, because this is not a highly toxic smoke, nor is it a pungent odor that easily alerts people, it is difficult for ordinary Soul Master and Soul Beast to defend against this move in the first place.

At this moment, Dugu Xin was possessed by the "Jade Phosphorous Serpent" Martial Soul, his waist became slightly thinner, a diamond-shaped green scale appeared between his eyebrows, his green eyes became exceptionally sharp, and his cold aura was devoid of any human emotion, treating the dozens or even hundreds of "Purple Shadow Leopard Cat" around him as nothing.

On a tree branch dozens of meters away, Dugu Bo watched silently with a calm and composed expression.

Compared to two months ago, Dugu Xin has grown a lot. His grasp of the timing of battle and his precise control of his Soul Skill have both improved significantly.

"Heaven Dou City" and "Sunset Forest" are not "small ponds" like "Water Wood Duchy".

While both are Great Soul Fighting Arena, the quality of participants in the Heaven Dou Great Soul Fighting Arena is incomparable to that of the Wood Plant Great Soul Fighting Arena. Not to mention, the environment of the Sunset Forest is far superior to the ordinary Soul Beast forests within the [Water Wood Duchy].

Because of the "Third Soul Skill - Bone-Clinging Gangrene", basically all the "Purple Shadow Leopard Cat" that smelled that strange fragrance became stiff. The first few hundred-year-old "Purple Shadow Leopard Cat" that rushed up were easily dealt with by Dugu Xin before they could even launch an effective attack.

Instead of annihilating them, Dugu Xin forcefully suppressed this wave of attackers and calmly walked out of the smoke-shrouded area, leaving the "Purple Shadow Leopard Cat" to fend for themselves.

Having reunited with Dugu Bo, the father and son set off together once again.

About half a day later, led by Dugu Bo, the two arrived at the front of an unremarkable mountain in the Sunset Forest.

The mountain is about 500 meters high, and more than half of it is shrouded in thick fog. Especially at the top, the fog obscures the view, and only a faint outline can be seen when the midday sun is shining brightly.

"Etc!"

Just as Dugu Xin was about to walk towards a relatively hidden cave at the foot of the mountain, as before, Dugu Bo suddenly grabbed him and looked up at the mountainside shrouded in thick fog with a solemn expression!

"Father?"

Dugu Xin secretly mobilized his Soul Power, observing his surroundings with full concentration. Based on his understanding of his father, he must have discovered some danger, and a danger that could threaten his father, a high-level Soul Emperor.

Thus, Dugu Xin, a "weakling" at the level of a Three-Ring Soul Elder, could do was not to hold the team back.

After a long silence, lasting several dozen breaths, Dugu Bo finally said in a deep voice, "Let's go!"

After saying that, he grabbed Dugu Xin and walked back the way they came without looking back.

Dugu Xin did not resist, and his pace unconsciously quickened.

They only slowed down after walking several miles.

Dugu Xin finally couldn't hold back any longer. He turned his head and glanced at the direction of ' Fog Mountain,' which was now obscured by the towering trees along the way, and spoke to Dugu Bo once more, "Father?"

This time, Dugu Bo did not remain silent. He frowned and said in a low voice:

"Just now, I sensed something on that mountain watching us!"

"Spying?" Dugu Xin frowned slightly upon hearing this. "Is it Soul Beast? Or Soul Master?"

"It's hard to say—" Dugu Bo shook his head, narrowed his eyes, and said, "If my ' Jade Phosphorous Serpent ' Martial Soul weren't so sensitive to the flow of energy, that deeply hidden being might not have been detected!"

"However, whether it's Soul Beast or Soul Master, I'll escort you out of the forest in a bit, and you can return to the city on your own. I'll go back and check on it..."

Upon hearing Dugu Bo's words, Dugu Xin, just like before at the foot of "Fog Mountain," did not object. He simply nodded obediently and said, "Father, be careful. Brother Yi said, 'Where there's life, there's hope.' Safety first!"

"Don't worry." Dugu Bo raised his hand and ruffled Dugu Xin's hair, chuckled, and said, "Your father is a level 69 Soul Emperor, and now he's only one step away from level 70. Even if we encounter a 50,000-year-old Soul Beast and can't beat it, we can still run away."

"Don't forget, I've also practiced those body-forging techniques of that kid Ling. If I use the 'Third Form - Swan Goose Soars into the Vast Heavens ', with the amplification, I can catch up to Agility Attack System Soul Emperor in a short time—"

Although both father and son are Soul Master who follow the Control System path and their Martial Soul "Jade Phosphorous Serpent" is known for its poison, snake-type Martial Soul have always had a significant racial advantage in terms of agility.

Dugu Xin was well aware of this, and without any hesitation, he nodded and said nothing more.

After escorting Dugu Xin to the outskirts of Sunset Forest and watching him walk out of the forest, Dugu Bo turned around and headed in that familiar direction once again.

Without Dugu Xin by his side this time, Dugu Bo was much faster, and in just over two hours, he returned to the spot where he had been standing.

Unlike before, Dugu Bo now utilized the characteristics of his snake-type Martial Soul to conceal his aura as much as possible, hiding in the canopy of a large tree and silently observing.

One minute, fifteen minutes, one hour, two hours...

Time flowed slowly, the light in the sky gradually dimmed, and the western horizon was tinged with blood red, as if foreshadowing something.

As the moon rose high in the sky, the sounds of insects chirping and beasts roaring filled the entire Sunset Forest. Dugu Bo remained motionless, like a clay sculpture, nestled within the canopy of a large tree, his aura merging with the tree itself.

"Shhh—"

Sudden!

A dark figure moved through the forest, approaching "Fog Mountain".

Halfway up the mountain, a pair of scarlet eyes opened, looking down into the forest below.

In the forest, amidst the tree canopy that is over thirty meters high, Dugu Bo squinted, using his peripheral vision to observe the ground several dozen meters to his right.

There, a black worm, as thick as an adult's waist, was slithering around. At first glance, it appeared to be at least twenty meters long!

"Jade Water Viper"?

Judging from its size and stature, it must have cultivated for more than five thousand years, right?

By the sparse moonlight in the forest, Dugu Bo could make out the face of the dark figure and thought to himself.

Tragic! Paronychia. It's on the side of the nail of my left ring finger. I squeezed out pus. I went to the hospital at 10 pm. They gave me a bottle of iodine solution to soak my finger in, and also prescribed cephalosporin antibiotics.

That's all for tonight. I'll continue writing tomorrow when my fingers feel better.

Goodnight everyone