Tang San's Powerlessness, Encountering Xiao Wu and Er Ming?

After saying this, Luo Chen did not even glance at Tang San again. He tucked the Gulu Ball into his pouch, turned, and walked into the dense forest. His long, silver-white hair flashed once between the shadows of the trees before he vanished.

Tang San stood rooted to the spot, his fingers still hooked onto the trigger mechanism, his knuckles turning white. His lips were pressed into a thin line, the muscles of his jaw twitching slightly. There was something indescribable in his eyes—not anger, not fear, but the bitter unwillingness of someone being looked down upon to the very marrow of their bones.

Yu Xiaogang recovered from the effects of the Ghost Vine's toxin, leaning against a tree trunk to stand up, his face still pale. He watched the direction in which Luo Chen had disappeared, remaining silent for a long time before speaking. "This person possesses at least the strength of a Spirit Ancestor. I have never seen that martial soul of his before."

Tang San did not answer.

He crouched down and picked up the shattered remains of the hidden weapon that Luo Chen had crushed.

Metal powder slipped through his fingers and was scattered by the wind. The Tang Sect Hidden Weapon Manual, which he took such pride in, had been as fragile as paper in front of that man.

Yet, he soon shook his head. This was merely the most basic hidden weapon from the Tang Sect Hidden Weapon Manual; once he managed to craft those ranked at the top... Thinking of this, his sense of frustration eased significantly.

Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "It is fine. After all, he is much older than you. You need not be discouraged; with your talent, surpassing him is only a matter of time."

Tang San stood up, put away the Zhuge Crossbow, and gazed into the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Teacher, I want to stay for a few more days."

"You..."

"I will not provoke him. Xiao Wu is still missing; I must find her first."

Yu Xiaogang looked at Tang San's stubborn face, sighed, and did not stop him.

After leaving the clearing, Luo Chen continued to head deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest.

The pocket watch against his chest grew slightly warm, guiding his way. Zhao Xi's aura was further inside the forest, in an area where ten-thousand-year spirit beasts roamed—a place even Spirit Ancestors dared not tread lightly.

However, he possessed the power of time, the spiritual power of the Spirit Abyss Realm, and the Evil Emperor as his old cheat code. The Evil Emperor could already utilize a portion of his former abilities, so as long as he was careful, it should not be a major problem.

He walked for about two hours, and the sky gradually darkened. One had to know that the nights in the Star Dou Great Forest were far more dangerous than the days. Nocturnal spirit beasts began to stir, and low, deep roars echoed from afar, causing the leaves to rustle.

His Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power remained projected outward, covering a radius of several hundred meters. He could clearly perceive the movements of every spirit beast nearby.

Everything was normal.

However, his spiritual power suddenly caught an exceptionally powerful aura rapidly approaching from the southwest. That aura was as heavy as a mountain, carrying a sense of ancient, primal oppression. It was at least a ten-thousand-year spirit beast, perhaps even a hundred-thousand-year one!

Another aura was light and agile, like a gust of wind, but equally strong—at least a thousand-year cultivation.

Luo Chen's brows furrowed. Two spirit beasts? And one was a hundred-thousand-year beast? Just as he prepared to slip away quietly, the two auras suddenly stopped, less than three hundred meters to his southwest.

Then, a crisp female voice rang out in the night.

"Er Ming, you can just take me to the edge of the forest, then you should go back. Tell Da Ming that I will be careful!"

Da Ming? Er Ming?

Luo Chen's pupils contracted sharply.

The Titan Giant Ape. A hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, one of the overlords of the Star Dou Great Forest. In the original story, it was known as "Er Ming," the brother of the hundred-thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit, Xiao Wu.

Da Ming was naturally the Azure Bull Python.

That female voice must be Xiao Wu.

Luo Chen's heart sank. His current position was far too close to Xiao Wu and Er Ming.

With the hundred-thousand-year sensory capabilities of the Titan Giant Ape, it was impossible for him to retreat without being discovered. He had no choice but to gamble—gamble that Xiao Wu held no malice, and that Er Ming would not attack a human unprovoked.

But he had gambled wrong.

The aura as heavy as a mountain suddenly surged, and the ground began to tremble slightly. A low roar came from the dense forest; it was not loud, but it shook Luo Chen's chest until he felt stifled.

He had been discovered.

Luo Chen did not hesitate. He leaped from the canopy and sprinted in the opposite direction of those two auras. The power of time flowed beneath his feet, and his speed instantly increased by a notch. But the aura behind him was faster; the sound of trees being snapped echoed with a crackling din, crushing everything in its path like a bulldozer.

"Er Ming, wait!" Xiao Wu's voice chased from behind, but the Titan Giant Ape had already locked onto Luo Chen.

In less than ten seconds, a massive black shadow burst from the dense forest, blocking Luo Chen's path.

It was a giant ape over five meters tall, covered in black fur with knotted muscles, resembling a moving mountain.

Its eyes were golden, like two lanterns in the night, staring fixedly at Luo Chen. An invisible pressure radiated from its body, forcing the surrounding trees to bow.

The Titan Giant Ape, Er Ming.

Luo Chen stopped in his tracks, his left hand reaching for the Gulu Ball at his waist, while the silver-white power of time on his right hand had already taken shape. He knew he could not defeat this hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, but he was not without a chance to escape.

"Human, you should not have come here." Er Ming spoke, his voice deep like rolling thunder. "This is not a place for you to set foot."

Luo Chen took a deep breath, just about to speak, when a figure stepped out from behind Er Ming.

It was a young girl who looked to be eleven or twelve years old, dressed in a pink outfit with her long hair braided into a scorpion tail hanging over her chest, and a pair of rabbit-ear hair accessories on her head. Her features were delicate, and her large eyes glowed with a faint pink light in the night. She stood beside Er Ming, curiously sizing up Luo Chen.

Xiao Wu. A hundred-thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit in human form.

"Er Ming, he doesn't seem like a bad person." Xiao Wu tilted her head and looked at Luo Chen twice. "But he has the scent of many spirit beasts on him."

Luo Chen felt a jolt in his heart. Could Xiao Wu perceive the laws of time and space within him? As expected of a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast in human form; her perception far exceeded that of humans.

"No matter who he is, trespassing into our territory makes him an enemy." Er Ming clenched his fist, causing the gravel on the ground to jump.

Luo Chen knew he had no chance of winning. Even with the power of time and his Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power, facing a hundred-thousand-year Titan Giant Ape would only buy him a few extra seconds. He did not hesitate and immediately triggered the Time Indicator's acceleration—double speed, lasting three seconds.

Silver-white light surged from his chest, enveloping his entire body. Everything around him slowed down: Er Ming's punching motion, the way Xiao Wu turned her head, the sound of the night wind rustling the leaves—all turned into slow motion.

Luo Chen seized this fleeting gap, ducked under Er Ming's arm, and sprinted toward the deeper parts of the forest.

Three seconds later, the time acceleration ended.

Er Ming was stunned, clearly not expecting this human to slip away right under his nose. Immediately, he let out a heaven-shaking roar and gave chase.

Xiao Wu stood in place for a moment, watching the direction in which Luo Chen had disappeared, and murmured thoughtfully, "The power of time... this person is quite interesting." Then, she tapped her toes and lightly followed after Er Ming.