"I want to make a deal with Dugu Bo. I'm sure he'll be more than willing."
Meng Shenji's hand paused around his teacup. He lifted his eyes and studied Luo Chen, his gaze appraising.
"You want to make a deal with that Old Poison? What could you possibly offer him? That man is a Titled Douluo, a ninety-second-level one, with poison skills so masterful they're beyond compare. His temper is so strange even I can't be bothered with him. You're a Soul Grandmaster at level thirty, and you haven't even obtained your third Soul Ring yet. What could you possibly use to bargain with him?"
Luo Chen didn't answer right away. He raised his right hand, and silvery-white temporal energy glowed in his palm. It was warm and gentle, carrying an ancient aura that was difficult to describe.
"Temporal energy," Luo Chen said. "The poison from Dugu Bo's Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor Martial Soul is turning against him. He's been poisoned deeply, and his life is already in danger. My temporal energy can't cure him, but it can help suppress the poison and delay its effects. He also has a granddaughter in the same predicament. Is that bargaining chip enough?"
Luo Chen smiled faintly. Dugu Bo might not care about his own health, but he couldn't possibly not care about the health of his only granddaughter.
"The Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul really has such a backlash?" Meng Shenji was clearly surprised.
"That's right. I'm sure he'll agree!"
"Since that's the case, I'll send someone to deliver this letter to Prince Xue Xing."
After that, Luo Chen took Luo An'an back to the inn where they were staying to wait for news. Luo Dashan was contacting someone who was selling a house, hoping to rent a place for the family to live.
Three days later, someone arrived with a letter from Meng Shenji. Dugu Bo wanted to meet him and told him to go to the outskirts of Sunset Forest, where he would be waiting.
As soon as Luo Chen received the message, he didn't waste any time. He told his parents where he was going, then took little An'an with him to Sunset Forest.
The siblings arrived at Sunset Forest.
"Brother, are there little rabbits in the forest?"
"Yes."
"Are there little birds?"
"Yes."
"Are there big tigers?"
Luo Chen thought for a moment. "Maybe. Are you scared, An'an?"
Luo An'an puffed out her little chest. "No! Brother will protect me!"
Just then, Luo An'an spotted a little gray rabbit crouched beside a bush, nibbling on grass.
She let go of Luo Chen's hand and tiptoed toward it. The rabbit's ears shot up in alarm, and it darted into the grass.
"It ran away!" Luo An'an stamped her foot, puffing with annoyance.
Luo Chen was about to comfort her when a flash of purple light flickered in his left eye. His Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power detected a dangerous presence not far ahead: a powerful aura, brimming with killing intent, lay in wait.
"An'an, come here. Stay close to me!" Luo Chen lowered his voice, then released all of his Soul Beasts.
Sensing something was wrong from her brother's tone, Luo An'an obediently hid behind him, clutching the hem of his clothes.
In the bushes ahead, a pair of ghostly green eyes lit up.
It was a tiger—a black tiger!
It was enormous, a full one and a half meters tall at the shoulder and over three meters long.
Dark gray fur covered its body, striped with black. The markings weren't ordinary tiger stripes; they rippled and shifted like smoke, making anyone who looked at them feel dizzy.
Its eyes were ghostly green, its pupils narrowed to slits, and it stared fixedly at the Luo siblings.
It was a Ghost Tiger! Famous for its speed, stealth, and shadow attacks, the Ghost Tiger was extremely rare. A century-old Ghost Tiger could hold its own against an ordinary thousand-year Soul Beast, because it possessed a bizarre ability: Shadow Assault.
It could slip through shadows and appear behind its prey in an instant, killing with a single strike.
In the original story, Zhu Zhuqing had hunted a Ghost Tiger with over four thousand years of cultivation in Sunset Forest.
The Ghost Tiger before him was indeed far beyond a century old in both size and aura. Judging by its presence, it had at least four thousand years of cultivation.
Could it be the same one?
He really hadn't encountered a Soul Beast over four thousand years old before. Still, with his Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power, he should be more than capable of dealing with this Ghost Tiger. Besides, he had an artifact that could control time!
The Ghost Tiger didn't attack at once. It paced slowly through the bushes, its ghostly green eyes fixed on Luo Chen as if assessing his strength.
As it moved, its body gradually blurred, as though melting into the surrounding shadows. This was the Ghost Tiger's innate ability: concealing itself in the darkness so its enemies couldn't pinpoint its position.
But that wouldn't fool Luo Chen. A brilliant purple light shone from his left eye. He unleashed the full force of his Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power, forming an invisible detection net across the area within dozens of meters. His spiritual power caught the Ghost Tiger's movements!
The Ghost Tiger sprang into action! It vanished into the shadows, then reappeared a moment later three meters to Luo Chen's left. A massive tiger paw ripped through the air, lunging straight at Luo An'an.
Luo Chen's heart jumped. He scooped up Luo An'an, bent his knees, and sprang straight backward. He had all his Soul Beasts surround her, then faced the Ghost Tiger alone.
The Ghost Tiger reacted incredibly fast. It twisted in midair, landed on the ground, and swiftly melted back into the shadows.
Neither side had gained the upper hand in that exchange.
Luo Chen frowned. This Ghost Tiger was more troublesome than he'd expected. It was fast, hard to detect, and clever. When its attack failed, it immediately retreated, giving him no chance to counter.
In a one-on-one fight, Luo Chen was confident he could wear it down. But Luo An'an was behind him, and he couldn't stray too far from her.
Dark Gulu Ball, he silently repeated in his mind.
Back in Hailun City, after his Gulu Ball Martial Soul broke through to level thirty, it had awakened a new form: the Dark Gulu Ball. In dark surroundings, the Dark Gulu Ball greatly increased the chance of capturing dark-type Soul Beasts, and could even give a captured Soul Beast an enhanced or mutated dark attribute.
The Ghost Tiger was a shadow-type Soul Beast, highly compatible with dark attributes. The Dark Gulu Ball's chance of capturing it would be very high.
"Just behave and become my third Soul Ring!" Luo Chen murmured.
Then he took out the Time Indicator, an artifact of time.
"Today, I'll see what time acceleration can do!"
It doubled the flow of time for three seconds within a five-meter radius. He only had one chance to use it each day, so he had to choose the moment carefully!
The Ghost Tiger attacked again.
This time, it pounced from the canopy overhead. Luo Chen had already locked onto it with his spiritual power. The instant it leapt down, he moved.
"Here's my chance! Time acceleration!"
In an instant, the Ghost Tiger's movements seemed to speed up before Luo Chen's eyes. But its thoughts hadn't kept pace, throwing its movements out of sync. It couldn't stop itself in time and slammed headfirst into the ground.
At the same moment, Luo Chen turned off time acceleration. The Ghost Tiger's time flow returned to normal, but the impact had left it dazed.
Luo Chen immediately used Evil Eye Gaze, aiming straight between the Ghost Tiger's brows. It froze on the spot, and Luo Chen seized the opportunity to throw the Dark Gulu Ball at it.
Before you continue