"Earth Domain's attached Soul Skill, Gravity Quagmire!"
As Lin Jing's voice fell, the ground underwent a drastic transformation.
The once firm, solid earth softened and grew sticky at a speed visible to the naked eye.
In the blink of an eye, the entire clearing had become a black swamp.
"Glug, glug."
Black mud bubbles kept surging up from the bottom of the swamp, giving off a foul, earthy stench.
The Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's enormous body sank into it at once.
Its densely packed legs thrashed wildly, trying to struggle free of the swamp.
It was no use.
The pulling force of the Gravity Quagmire was far more terrifying than it had imagined.
Its speed had been cut by more than half.
And it wasn't just its body.
Even its mind had grown sluggish at that moment.
Its battle instincts were still there. It knew danger was closing in, but its brain felt as if it were filled with lead, reacting several beats too slowly.
The Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede could only watch as the dagger in Lin Jing's hand grew larger and larger in its field of vision.
It wanted to dodge. It wanted to block.
But its body simply wouldn't obey.
So it could only... watch helplessly.
"Pfft!"
The dagger plunged straight into the center of the Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's head.
The sharp blade pierced through the layer of new shell that had yet to harden without resistance, stabbing into its brain.
"Shhh—"
Black blood with a powerful corrosive quality sprayed from the wound like a fountain.
The Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's body spasmed violently twice. Countless legs kicked wildly, splashing mud everywhere.
But this was nothing more than its death throes.
Within seconds, its movements stopped completely.
Its head lolled to one side, and it went still.
Faint purple specks of light slowly floated up from the Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's corpse.
The specks gathered in the air, coalescing until they finally formed a Spirit Ring that was purple all over.
A Thousand-Year Spirit Ring!
Lin Jing slowly landed on the ground and withdrew his Earth Domain.
The surrounding swamp quickly returned to normal, becoming solid earth once more.
He looked down at the purple Spirit Ring, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.
But Lin Jing didn't rush to absorb it.
With a thought, he unfolded his Blue Silver Devouring Domain once again.
It spread across a radius of a hundred meters as he carefully sensed his surroundings.
The result was the same as before.
There wasn't a single Soul Beast in sight.
It seemed the Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's territorial instincts were exceptionally strong.
Still, Lin Jing didn't let his guard down.
The Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede was dead.
Its presence would soon fade away completely.
When that happened, some fearless Soul Beast might catch its scent and come over to investigate.
Fortunately, the Thousand-Legged Withered Centipede's blood didn't smell bloody.
It only gave off a revolting stench of decay.
That smell probably wouldn't attract any Soul Beasts.
But just to be safe...
Lin Jing reached into his coat and pulled out a paper packet wrapped in white paper.
He opened it. Inside was some grayish-brown powder with a faintly spicy smell.
Holding the packet, he carefully sprinkled a circle of powder along the edge of the clearing.
It fell to the ground and nearly blended in with the soil.
Only after finishing did Lin Jing dust off his hands and sit cross-legged beside the Thousand-Year Spirit Ring.
The powder was called Beast Repellent Powder.
He'd picked it up at a market stall near the entrance to the Soul Hunting Forest.
According to the stall owner, it gave off a smell that Soul Beasts found extremely repulsive, driving them away.
Lin Jing had no idea whether it actually worked.
But it was better than nothing.
An extra layer of protection was always welcome.
Lin Jing took a deep breath, circulated the Soul Power within his body, and began absorbing the Spirit Ring.
He needed to finish quickly.
He would try to absorb the Thousand-Year Spirit Ring in the shortest time possible.
As he circulated his Soul Power, the purple Spirit Ring suspended in the air seemed to be drawn toward him. It slowly drifted over and finally settled around him.
A massive, violent surge of energy poured into his body in an instant.
Lin Jing's body shuddered slightly as he focused all his strength on refining the energy.
Just as he concentrated fully on absorbing the Spirit Ring, something unusual happened deep in his mind.
A new quest notification suddenly popped up on a system panel that only he could see.
[Ding!]
[System Quest triggered: Self-Defense Counterattack.]
[Quest Details: Kill Zhang San, Zhang Chang, and Zhang Gong, who are preparing to rob and murder you.]
[Quest Reward: 10 Task Points and one Fragment Roulette draw.]
The crisp notification rang out in his mind.
But Lin Jing was at a critical stage of absorbing the Spirit Ring.
All his attention was focused on resisting the violent energy.
He didn't hear the system notification at all.
Soul Hunting Forest, entrance.
"Big bro, we only sold one packet of Beast Repellent Powder today."
The speaker was a round, chubby man. The flesh on his face bunched up, and when he smiled, his eyes narrowed into slits.
"A kid bought it. He was pretty generous, too. He paid a Gold Soul Coin without even haggling."
"Third Bro and I have been keeping watch by the exit this whole time, but we still haven't seen the kid come out."
As the fat man spoke, he rubbed his plump hands together, an unrestrained, sinister grin on his face.
"Big bro, hurry up and sniff out where that kid is."
"We're sure to make a fortune today!"
This fat man was one of the stall owners who had sold Lin Jing Beast Repellent Powder at the market that day.
Standing beside him was a man as thin as a bamboo pole, who looked like no good at all.
This was the Third Bro he had mentioned.
As for the one they called Big Bro...
He was a middle-aged man of about forty, with a burly build. A scar ran from his left eyebrow all the way across to his right cheek, making him look especially ferocious.
Most striking of all, a pair of drooping dog ears grew from his head.
His whole body was covered in black-and-white fur.
At a glance, he looked just like a Husky that had become a spirit.
"Smack!"
The middle-aged man raised a hand and slapped the fat man on the back of the head.
He didn't hold back at all.
The fat man stumbled.
"Sniff, sniff, sniff! What do you mean, 'sniff your mother's leg'?"
The middle-aged man swore under his breath.
"I'm your big bro, not some dog you keep at home!"
The fat man held the back of his head, looking aggrieved, and muttered under his breath,
"Well, you kind of are..."
His voice was quiet, but the middle-aged man heard every word.
His eyes widened, and he raised his hand to strike again.
"Hey, hey, big bro, calm down, calm down!"
The Third Bro, who was as thin as a bamboo pole, hurriedly stopped him.
"Let's take care of business first. That's what matters!"
The middle-aged man snorted and lowered his hand.
He took a deep breath.
The next moment, two white Spirit Rings slowly rose from beneath his feet.
A phantom appeared behind him.
It was a black-and-white dog with... a rather foolish-looking face.
Its tongue lolled out, and its tail wagged like a propeller.
It was his Martial Soul.
"First Soul Skill, Sniff!"
The middle-aged man gave a low shout.
Then, under the accustomed gazes of the fat man and Third Bro, he dropped to the ground.
On all fours, nose pressed to the earth, he sniffed vigorously like a dog.
No.
In a sense, he was a dog now.
"How's it going, boss? Can you smell the Beast Repellent Powder?"
Third Bro came closer and asked anxiously.
The middle-aged man didn't answer.
His nose twitched constantly as his head swung from side to side, apparently trying to determine the direction.
A few seconds later, he suddenly stopped.
Then, on all fours, he crawled deftly toward the depths of the forest.
Before you continue