Soul Skill, Angel Anthem! (Fifth White Soul Ring)

The light deep within the woods had dimmed until the path was barely visible.

Qin Chuan observed the surrounding environment; the time and setting were just about right.

He activated his Samsara Eye, and purple patterns began to swirl within his pupils. Everything within a ten-kilometer radius instantly transformed into a transparent framework of energy.

The density of soul beasts here was several times higher than at the periphery. Ten-thousand-year beasts were everywhere, and twenty-thousand-year ones were not uncommon. Each occupied its own territory, living in mutual non-interference.

Qin Chuan's gaze swept over these soul beasts one by one, never lingering.

He was searching for a soul beast that was tiny, weak, and easily overlooked.

Its name was [Humanoid Elf Beast].

Yu Xiaogang's notes were very clear: the Humanoid Elf Beast was an extremely rare species, so few in number that there were likely no more than a hundred in the entire Star Dou Great Forest. They were minuscule in size, their energy fluctuations so faint that they were easily drowned out by the dense background of soul power in the forest.

It was not something one could find just by wanting to.

Qin Chuan adjusted the sensory mode of his Samsara Eye.

He stopped scanning large areas and instead focused his energy on regions where the energy fluctuations were abnormally weak.

No matter how weak an ordinary soul beast was, its soul power fluctuations still possessed a certain intensity.

But the soul power fluctuations of a Humanoid Elf Beast were so weak they were almost identical to the surrounding plants. If the forest were a noisy tavern, other soul beasts would be the ones shouting, while the Humanoid Elf Beast would be the one in the corner, head bowed over a cup of tea, its voice so soft it was completely drowned out.

To find it, he had to filter out the "loudmouths" first.

Qin Chuan closed his eyes, his spiritual power condensing into fine threads that extended outward one by one.

Each thread was responsible for a specific direction. They passed through tree trunks, rocks, and soil, weaving a precise web across a ten-kilometer radius.

Time ticked away, second by second.

Qin Chuan stood motionless, his web of spiritual power maintaining its operation.

A few minutes later, Qin Chuan made a discovery: about four kilometers to the east-southeast, there was a faint energy signal.

After discovering this suspicious target, Qin Chuan's figure flashed, and he darted toward that direction.

The four-kilometer distance was covered in no time.

Qin Chuan landed on a branch of an old locust tree and looked down.

At the base of the old locust tree grew a cluster of exceptionally lush orchids. The orchid petals were pale purple, emitting a faint, elegant fragrance.

Right on the stamen of one of those orchids, Qin Chuan saw what he was looking for.

A tiny figure.

It was squatting on the stamen of an orchid, holding the stigma with both hands, its head bowed as if licking the nectar from the flower.

The small figure was only twenty or thirty centimeters tall, generally resembling a human with a head, four limbs, and a torso.

This was the [Humanoid Elf Beast].

It had a pair of cat ears. They were small, pointed, and stood upright on top of its head, twitching from time to time to collect surrounding sounds.

On its back were two pairs of wings, thin and transparent, with vein patterns very similar to those of a dragonfly. The wings were not folded away but held half-open, refracting a faint, iridescent glow in the dim light.

A long, slender tail trailed behind its buttocks, with a small tuft of fur at the tip.

The skin of its entire body was pale gold, shimmering with a faint fluorescence against the soft light emitted by the orchid stamens.

Qin Chuan observed carefully; this was a female [Humanoid Elf Beast], and its age should be around 88 years.

It had not noticed Qin Chuan's presence at all. Its entire attention was focused on the drop of nectar on the stamen, its little mouth sucking on the style, its cheeks puffing in and out.

Its cat ears occasionally turned, but it was merely a habitual, instinctive movement, not true vigilance.

It was eating with total absorption.

Qin Chuan recalled the records in Yu Xiaogang's notes.

Humanoid Elf Beast, an extremely rare species, mostly female. Size about twenty to thirty centimeters, possessing two pairs of dragonfly wings, cat ears, and a tail. Eyes are deep red. Primary diet is nectar and pollen. Fast flight speed, agile movement.

Innate soul skill—Angel Anthem.

Yu Xiaogang had placed a large question mark after the words "Angel Anthem."

This was because even he was not certain of the specific effects of this soul skill. He had merely transcribed the record from an ancient text written hundreds of years ago, which stated: "Those who hear this song become as if intoxicated, entering a realm of illusion and dreams. What one sees depends on the individual."

"Depends on the individual" meant that everyone who heard the Angel Anthem saw something different.

Yu Xiaogang had scribbled another line in the margin: "It is said that what one sees is related to the listener's future destiny. Subject to verification."

Qin Chuan stared at the little creature for a few seconds.

An 88-year-old Humanoid Elf Beast, Angel Anthem.

This would be the fifth soul ring for Illusion Bell.

Qin Chuan leaped down from the branch, his toes tapping against the trunk of the old locust tree as he landed silently beside the orchid cluster.

The moment he touched the ground, the Humanoid Elf Beast squatting on the stamen jerked its head up.

Two small red eyes stared blankly at Qin Chuan, who had appeared out of thin air before it, and it remained frozen for a full two seconds.

Then, its two pairs of dragonfly wings vibrated simultaneously, the frequency so rapid that their edges were nearly invisible.

Run! This little thing's reaction speed was incredibly fast.

With a push of its legs, its entire body catapulted off the flower stamen, wings flapping at full speed like a golden streak of light, zipping toward the tree canopy in a flash.

The speed was indeed not slow.

For a little creature only twenty-some centimeters tall with a mere 88 years of cultivation, this speed was already quite astonishing.

But in front of Qin Chuan, it was not enough.

"Bansho Ten'in." Qin Chuan raised his left hand.

An invisible gravitational force locked onto that small golden figure with precision.

The Humanoid Elf Beast's wings were still flapping desperately, emitting a buzzing sound.

But its body could no longer move. The gravity held it firmly, like an invisible rope, pulling it back from mid-air.

It struggled violently. Its four wings beat at high speed, its cat ears pressed tightly back against its head, its tail held straight, and its entire body twisted fiercely in the air.

It was still emitting a sharp, tearful cry from its mouth.

The sound was quite unique; it didn't sound like a bird or an insect, but rather like a small child crying and throwing a tantrum.

Qin Chuan opened his palm, and the Humanoid Elf Beast was pulled before him by the gravitational force.

He did not reach out to grab it, but instead wrapped it in a thin layer of Heavenly Dao Power, fixing it in the air half a meter away from him.

The Humanoid Elf Beast stopped struggling.

It floated in the air, its two pairs of wings folded behind its back, its body slightly curled.

Those two deep red eyes stared at Qin Chuan, the pupils watery.

Its chest heaved rapidly, and its small body trembled slightly within the shroud of Heavenly Dao Power.

Suddenly, this [Humanoid Elf Beast] activated its soul skill, Angel Anthem!

Qin Chuan did not resist.

He heard a burst of ethereal and familiar music drifting leisurely from some corner between heaven and earth.

That was... the Angel Anthem.

The Star Dou Great Forest vanished.

Qin Chuan saw himself standing in a vast, open space. Beneath his feet were white stone slabs, clean and devoid of even a speck of dust.

Directly in front of the clearing, a colossal statue stood tall.

The statue was entirely golden and at least several dozen meters high.

It was a statue of a human figure.