First Soul Ring! [Please Recommend, Invest, and Collect!]

Luckily, he reacted in time, leaping to the right to dodge the attack.

But how could the Black-Striped Viper, famed for its speed, let its prey escape so easily?

Before Su Luoheng could steady himself and draw his weapon, the Black-Striped Viper suddenly accelerated. Its massive body twisted nimbly, like lightning ripping through the air, and it swiftly reached the spot where Su Luoheng was about to land, its jaws gaping wide.

Its speed was breathtaking!

It looked as though it was about to bite down on Su Luoheng.

At this critical moment, Su Luoheng's mind was astonishingly clear.

A flurry of thoughts raced through his mind as he searched for a way to break through the crisis.

Suddenly, inspiration struck!

A flicker passed through Su Luoheng's eyes. Then, instead of struggling, he deliberately lunged toward the gaping maw.

The Black-Striped Viper snapped its jaws shut, on the verge of swallowing him whole.

"Crack!"

At that very moment, a pale blue Soul Power barrier appeared in front of Su Luoheng. Ripples spread outward in layers, blocking the Black-Striped Viper's bite.

"Bang!"

Su Luoheng shifted his feet, lifted his leg, and kicked the Black-Striped Viper hard in the abdomen!

The Black-Striped Viper recoiled in pain and crashed heavily into a tree trunk.

Then Su Luoheng drew his short sword and poured a large amount of Soul Power into it. Its dark red blade stood out vividly in the night. The next instant, he slashed diagonally upward toward the right, and a blood-red arc of sword energy howled through the air, cutting into the Black-Striped Viper's vital spot. Vivid red blood sprayed everywhere.

Su Luoheng, who had anticipated this, dodged backward, avoiding getting drenched in snake blood.

With one final, anguished, pitiful cry, the Black-Striped Viper fell completely silent.

"Phew—"

After doing all that, he finally let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Looking at the Ice Crystal Bracer on his right hand, its light now dim, Su Luoheng felt a flicker of relief.

Fortunately, he had thought of it at the critical moment and activated it in advance.

If not for the Ice Crystal Bracer protecting him this time, even if he had managed to defeat the Black-Striped Viper, he would have ended up badly wounded.

After a brief rest,

Su Luoheng stood up and looked at the wrecked campsite, unable to keep a wry smile from appearing.

Forget the campsite—he had almost been eaten by the thing. The lesson he had learned firsthand was deep enough: in the Soul Beast Forest, he couldn't let his guard down for even a moment.

"Rustle!"

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared.

Su Luoheng instinctively gripped his short sword. Only when he saw that the newcomer was Su Junran did he finally relax.

Su Junran didn't ask about the battle that had just taken place. Instead, he first asked, "How did you find your day of training in the Soul Beast Forest?"

"It was very rewarding. I learned a lot."

"Do you know what you did wrong?"

"Yes."

A look of shame flickered in Su Luoheng's eyes, but he quickly began to summarize in earnest. "Danger can come at any time in the Soul Beast Forest. I have to stay alert at all times and never let my guard down. If I hadn't activated the Ice Crystal Bracer in time just now, I might really have been done for."

"Good. You summed it up well."

Hearing this, Su Junran's face showed a trace of satisfaction.

Everyone made mistakes. What mattered was learning from them.

Luo Heng had recognized his shortcomings and was willing to work to correct them. For someone his age, that was already very impressive.

"Remember what you learned from this."

"Dad, so is my training over?"

"It's over. You did well today." Su Junran smiled faintly and patted Su Luoheng on the shoulder. "Get a good night's rest. Tomorrow morning, I'll take you to hunt for a Soul Ring."

"Okay."

With Su Junran's help, they quickly set up a new tent.

After the fierce battle, Su Luoheng was exhausted in both body and mind. He soon drifted off to sleep.

Meditation could restore his energy too, but only sleep could truly help him relax.

Su Junran stayed outside to keep watch.

Looking at little Luo Heng, already deep in slumber, Su Junran smiled.

As a matter of fact, he had been the one to put that Black-Striped Viper there. Otherwise, how could it have entered Su Luoheng's campsite so conveniently?

He had done it to make little Luo Heng more alert.

It wouldn't do for his first trip into the Soul Beast Forest to go smoothly from start to finish. He needed an experience that would be etched into his bones.

That was how Su Junran himself had learned.

You could explain some truths ten thousand times, but one firsthand experience would sink in deeper.

As it stood, the result was pretty good.

Chapter 9: First Soul Ring! [Please Recommend, Invest, and Collect!]

The next morning.

After a night's rest, Su Luoheng was clearly in much better shape. Since the training was over, Su Junran didn't waste any more time. He took him straight into the depths of Maple Leaf Forest to look for a Mental Attribute Soul Beast suitable for him.

This was where having an elder along showed its advantages.

Whenever they came across a Soul Beast blocking their way, Su Junran simply stepped in and dealt with it.

That way, they didn't have to waste time dealing with them, and their search for a suitable Soul Beast went much faster.

Even so, they spent the entire morning without finding anything. But Su Luoheng knew Mental Attribute Soul Beasts were relatively rare, so he didn't grow impatient.

Hard work was rewarded.

At last, another hour later,

the father and son finally found a suitable Soul Beast.

It was a Phantom Cloud Wolf of around four hundred years, perfectly within the age range for a Soul Master's First Soul Ring.

"Luo Heng, you handle it yourself."

Su Junran said, "The Phantom Cloud Wolf is a rare Mental Attribute Soul Beast. Its speed and attack power are about the same as those of ordinary wolf-type Soul Beasts, but it can mimic the shape of clouds and mist to interfere with its opponents' vision before attacking. Be sure to watch out for that."

"Okay."

As they spoke, the Phantom Cloud Wolf sensed the presence of strangers.

"Aw—"

The Phantom Cloud Wolf let out a threatening roar, trying to drive the two of them from its territory.

Seeing a weak two-legged beast daring to invade its territory, the Phantom Cloud Wolf was thoroughly displeased. In an instant, it shot toward him like a gust of wind.

"Come on!"

Su Luoheng advanced instead of retreating. He strode forward, poured Soul Power into his short sword, and swung it forcefully!

"Bang!"

The scarlet blade clashed with a pair of wolf claws.

They were locked in a stalemate when Su Luoheng suddenly unleashed his strength. The short sword blazed with light, and several crisp cracks rang out, followed by the Phantom Cloud Wolf's miserable howls.

Its usually unstoppable forepaws had been severed at the roots. Flesh and blood were mangled, and blood streamed everywhere!

The Phantom Cloud Wolf rolled across the ground several times before managing to get back up. Its front paws bled without pause, trembling uncontrollably.

Its eyes were bloodshot as it stared fixedly at Su Luoheng.

At the same time, its speed surged. Its hazy figure transformed into a cloud of blood-red mist and rushed straight at him.

Was this its Soul Skill?

Su Luoheng was still marveling at it when the blood cloud was already upon him.

"Come out!"

At Su Luoheng's furious shout, a stretch of wasteland appeared behind him. Under the impact of his mental attack, the blood cloud suddenly halted and briefly revealed its true form.

Su Luoheng wasn't about to let this chance slip by.

The short sword, infused with a large amount of Soul Power, blazed with light. He thrust it forward, driving the blade straight into the Phantom Cloud Wolf's neck.

"Thud!"

With a wail, the Phantom Cloud Wolf fell to the ground.

Su Luoheng pulled out his short sword, and blood gushed uncontrollably from the wound in its neck.

The Phantom Cloud Wolf soon lay lifeless in a pool of blood.

An invisible energy detached itself from the corpse, forming a ring that floated above it, glowing with a faint yellow light.

This was the Soul Ring formed by the Phantom Cloud Wolf.

"Phew..." Su Luoheng let out a long breath. He looked at the Soul Ring, unable to hide his excitement.

"You made good use of your strengths and planned your tactics well."

Su Junran's praise was unstinting. Su Luoheng had performed exceptionally well in the battle, especially in using the mental impact of his Martial Soul to break through the Phantom Cloud Wolf's ability.

"The Soul Ring will remain for a while. Recover some Soul Power before absorbing it."

"Okay."

It was best to absorb a Soul Ring only after getting into the best possible condition. Su Luoheng naturally wouldn't forget that.

About a quarter of an hour later,

Su Luoheng stood up and went to the earthen-yellow Soul Ring.

He had already memorized all the precautions for absorbing a Soul Ring. Once he successfully absorbed this one, he would officially become a Soul Master!

"Luo Heng, get started."

"Okay."

After calming himself, Su Luoheng sat cross-legged and summoned his Martial Soul Projection with a thought.

As the hundred-year Phantom Cloud Wolf Soul Ring drew closer, Su Luoheng felt a powerful pressure. His bones trembled faintly throughout his body under its force.

The Soul Ring soon reached the space above Su Luoheng's head.

The next instant, it abruptly contracted and shot into his Martial Soul at lightning speed.

The absorption of the Soul Ring officially began.

The Soul Ring's domineering energy surged madly into his body, soon gathering into the phantom of a Phantom Cloud Wolf, filled with resentment, which roared as it charged at him.

Su Luoheng had expected this. He focused his mind and struck back.

The Phantom Cloud Wolf's body had already died at his hands. What was this mere fragment of consciousness?

(The setting is that Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts have Remnant Souls. The remnant left here is far weaker; an ordinary Soul Master can usually extinguish it.)

Though he held the advantage in every clash, the battlefield was inside Su Luoheng's body. The energy unleashed was indeed strengthening his Soul Power, but enduring the whole process as it rampaged through him was hardly pleasant.

"The power of a Soul Ring really is domineering!"

Su Luoheng clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, enduring the tempering of the energy contained within the Soul Ring.

But everything had two sides.

For Su Luoheng, this was also a chance to temper his mind.

And as time passed, the Phantom Cloud Wolf was only a remnant thought attached to the Soul Ring. It couldn't last forever.

As the balance of power shifted, its influence grew weaker and weaker.