Just Right

Moral coercion was useless. He would walk his own path.

Tang San knelt on the ground, the blood from his knees having long since seeped into the mud. His breathing was abnormally heavy, and his entire back trembled violently.

Yu Xiaogang crouched beside him, one hand pressed against his shoulder as he muttered over and over.

"Calm down... Calm down... There'll be a way..."

Tang San ignored him.

Only one image remained in his mind: Xiao Wu clutched in that giant palm, turning to look at him. Her lips moved, but no sound came out.

"Xiao Wu..."

He suddenly raised his head, his gaze locked firmly onto Oscar.

"Mushroom Sausage. Give it to me."

Oscar froze, standing there at a loss.

"Tang San, you..."

"Give it to me!"

Tang San roared, his voice hoarse with stubborn desperation.

Yu Xiaogang seized Tang San's arm, veins bulging on the back of his hand.

"Are you insane?! Going after it alone is suicide! A hundred-thousand-year soul beast can turn you into pulp with one slap!"

Tang San violently shook off his hand, using so much force that Yu Xiaogang staggered.

"Then I'm still going."

Zhao Wuji stood several paces away and spoke with a grim face.

"Tang San, listen to me. This isn't the time to act on emotion. We need to think this through..."

Tang San was not listening at all. He had already walked up to Oscar, extending his hand and holding out his palm.

Oscar glanced at Flender, then at Yu Xiaogang. His lips trembled twice before he finally rubbed out a Mushroom Sausage and handed it over.

Tang San snatched it away. Without even looking at the others, he tilted his head back and swallowed it in one gulp.

Transparent wings unfurled from his back. His feet left the ground as he soared into the air, flying straight toward the darkness where the giant ape had vanished.

"Tang San!"

Yu Xiaogang screamed himself hoarse.

But Tang San had already completely disappeared into the dense canopy.

Overcome by panic and fury, Yu Xiaogang suddenly began coughing violently. He doubled over and spat out a mouthful of blood. He grabbed a nearby tree trunk just to stay upright, his voice completely ragged.

"Flender! Zhao Wuji! What are you standing around for?! Go bring him back! He'll die out there alone!"

Flender's face was livid, but he did not move.

Zhao Wuji looked at Flender, then turned back to Yu Xiaogang, his temper flaring as well.

"Then what about everyone else? You want me to leave them here?"

"Go after Little San first! The others can wait here! Am I the teacher, or are you?!"

Yu Xiaogang practically used every ounce of strength in his body to roar those words.

The atmosphere in the camp instantly froze.

Ning Rongrong bit her lip and lowered her pale face without saying a word.

Dai Mubai slowly straightened up from where he leaned against a tree, then looked at Yu Xiaogang. That look contained many things—disappointment, confusion, and an indescribable sense of distance.

Oscar clutched the empty sausage casing in his hand and silently took two steps back.

In this Master's eyes, only Tang San's life mattered. As for Shrek's other students, left here under the threat of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, whether they lived or died was of no importance at all.

After several seconds of silence, Flender spoke softly, breaking the deadlock.

"Old Zhao, stay behind and watch the others. I'll go after him."

Zhao Wuji nodded heavily, clenching his fists until they cracked.

Flender sighed and turned to take flight. Before leaving, his gaze swept over the camp and settled in one direction.

The spot beneath the tree where Chen Xuan had been leaning was already empty.

Chen Xuan had probably left half a minute after Tang San flew off.

He dusted off his clothes, rolled up his sleeping pad and slung it over his shoulder, then headed in another direction away from the camp.

Zhao Wuji was arguing with Yu Xiaogang when he caught sight of Chen Xuan's departing figure from the corner of his eye.

"Chen Xuan! Where are you going?"

Chen Xuan did not turn around. He merely raised a hand and gave a casual wave.

"Taking a walk."

Zhao Wuji opened his mouth but did not go after him.

On one hand, Yu Xiaogang was still losing his mind, so he could not leave. On the other, Zhao Wuji knew perfectly well that this new student had been beyond anyone's control since the very first day. The guy had even dared to stand by and watch before a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. What could he, a Soul Sage, possibly use to restrain him?

The firelight of the camp grew more distant, while the shadows of the trees grew denser.

By the time Chen Xuan rounded the third giant tree, he had completely left everyone's sight.

He stopped.

The surroundings were so quiet that only the rustling of wind through leaves could be heard. There were no sounds of fighting, no beastly roars, and no sign of pursuers.

Chen Xuan leaned against the rough tree trunk and summoned the system panel.

[The daily draw has reset. Draw now?]

"Draw."

The roulette began to spin.

The light was dim. There was no golden glow, nor any purple glow—just a hazy gray flicker.

Something dropped down, heavy in his hand.

Chen Xuan reached out and caught it.

A small knife. The handle was thick and the blade short. It looked like an ordinary outdoor multipurpose knife, without a trace of soul power fluctuation.

[Ordinary household item: Portable multipurpose knife. Durable material, suitable for cutting branches, peeling, and preparing prey.]

Chen Xuan weighed the knife in his hand and curled one corner of his mouth.

Luck really was conserved. That arrow he used to save Ning Rongrong during the day had used up all his good fortune, so tonight he got a fruit knife to balance things out.

He put the knife into his system backpack, neither disappointed nor surprised. He had never expected a midnight draw to produce some life-saving divine artifact. What could save his life would always be the things already in his own hands.

Chen Xuan raised his right hand.

A dark yellow glow surged from his palm and swiftly covered his entire arm. A pair of rough, dark-gold metal claws appeared out of thin air, tightly wrapping around his fingers and the back of his hand.

As he flexed his fingers, the metal joints scraped together with dull cracking sounds.

Earth-Splitting Claws.

This piece of equipment had long been sitting in his system backpack. He had been using ranged weapons in the previous battles, so these close-combat claws had remained hidden.

He closed his eyes and sensed the changes within his dantian.

Five Light-Shadow Stones floated quietly there: the Fire Shadow Stone, Water Shadow Stone, Wood Shadow Stone, and Earth Shadow Stone each circulated with different radiances. Four had already been lit, while only the final golden one remained shrouded in gray mist.

Chen Xuan focused all his attention on the Wood Shadow Stone.

On its surface was a crack finer than a strand of hair, glaringly obvious amid the green light. The backlash from absorbing the Phoenix-Tailed Cockscomb Snake's energy during the day still remained.

Chen Xuan tried drawing upon the Water Shadow Stone's energy.

He slowly guided that soft, deep-blue water-element energy toward the Wood Shadow Stone. The moment water flowed into wood, the stinging pain around the crack eased by the slightest bit. It was faint, so faint it was nearly imperceptible, but it was real.

Water nourishes wood.

Chen Xuan opened his eyes.

He could feel that something had indeed suppressed the crack on the Wood Shadow Stone a little. Though it had not healed, the tearing sensation had truly eased.

If water could nourish wood, then could earth provide wood with a foundation?

The cycle of the five elements was one of mutual generation, never a one-way transfer.

He needed to verify whether this chain could function in actual combat. To completely stabilize the crack, theoretical deductions alone were far from enough. He had to draw upon earth-element power in battle to make up for the Wood Shadow Stone's deficiency.

A low roar suddenly sounded ahead.

It was neither near nor far, carrying an intense, earthy stench that made one frown.

Chen Xuan raised his head and looked in that direction.

He lightened his steps, lowered his center of gravity, and used the trees' shadows to creep toward the bushes. The Earth-Splitting Claws on his right hand reflected a dark-gold gleam in the darkness.

The bushes ahead shook violently. Heavy footsteps rumbled through the ground, every step landing solidly.

Two scarlet points of light emerged from the shadows.

Its fangs protruded from its mouth, while saliva dripped from its jaws and sizzled against the ground, corroding the dead leaves into charred black patches.

The earthy stench grew even stronger, nearly boring its way into his brain.

Chen Xuan raised the claws on his right hand and slowly spread his fingers. Dark yellow light spilled from the claw tips, flickering faintly through the night mist.

He took a step forward and spoke so softly that only he could hear it.

"Just what I needed—a whetstone."

The bushes were violently smashed aside.

The soul beast stepped out, its entire body exposed beneath the faint moonlight. It was far larger than Chen Xuan had anticipated, with thick limbs and heavy dark-yellow scales covering its body. It radiated an extremely dangerous aura.

Chen Xuan tightened his grip on the Earth-Splitting Claws and quickly ran through his plan in his mind. First, he would test this soul beast's strength. Then he would see if he could use it to verify the five elements' cycle in actual combat.

At the lower right corner of the system panel, the crack icon on the Wood Shadow Stone still glowed with a faint red light, showing no sign of going out.

Chen Xuan explosively pushed off with both legs, turning into an afterimage as he charged straight at the massive beast. The dark-gold claw light carved five sharp arcs through the air, shooting directly toward the soul beast's throat.