Blood Wolf Mercenary Group | Bloodthirsty Demon Vine, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger Among Plant Soul Beasts

The female leader hadn't had time to react before one of the male team members beside her exclaimed in surprise:

"Little brother, the upper limit for a second Spirit Ring is only around seven hundred years. You're looking for one that's eight hundred years old?"

"Yes, big brother."

"I'll pay you. You're responsible for helping me hunt a Soul Beast. You don't need to worry about anything else."

Lin Jing could see the female leader was hesitating, so he offered her some reassurance.

Her hesitation most likely came from the clothes he wore, which had cost five Gold Soul Coins.

He had to admit, they'd been worth every coin!

She was afraid that if something really happened to Lin Jing, someone would come after her team.

"All right!"

The female leader nodded. "I won't ask any more questions. You pay, and we'll do the job."

"The age is a little high, but our team can handle it. As for the price..."

The female leader thought for a moment. "Normally, we charge thirty Gold Soul Coins to hunt a first Spirit Ring."

"With four people setting out, hiring the whole team costs one hundred Gold Soul Coins."

"Since you need one between six hundred and fifty and eight hundred years old, you can pay an extra fifty. That'll be one hundred and fifty in total."

The price she named was an absolute bargain. She was giving it to Lin Jing because he was a child—and such a cute one, too.

Lin Jing was greatly surprised by the price. He'd been worried that his four hundred Gold Soul Coins might not be enough.

He hadn't expected to spend even half of them.

Then, in a flash, he remembered something.

In the original story, Gold Soul Coins seemed to have quite a lot of purchasing power.

One Gold Soul Coin was enough to cover three months of expenses for a family of three.

And one hundred and fifty Gold Soul Coins could support a family of three for more than thirty years—almost forty!

Lin Jing reached into his pocket and handed the female leader one hundred and fifty Gold Soul Coins.

He hadn't actually taken them from his pocket. He'd put his hand inside and retrieved them from the System Space.

It was best to keep a low profile in front of these mercenaries.

They might be a legitimate team under the Empire's jurisdiction, but there was always the chance that one of them wasn't afraid of dying.

At the thought of soon obtaining his first Spirit Ring, Lin Jing was beside himself with excitement.

But he didn't let it show. After paying, he waited for the female leader to make arrangements.

The female leader glanced at the clock on the wall and asked Lin Jing, "Can we set out now?"

Lin Jing nodded. "Sure."

Led by the female leader, the five-person mercenary team escorted Lin Jing in their midst as they left the Mercenary Guild.

Outside the Soul Hunting Forest, there was a bustling market.

The place was packed with people. Mercenaries selling their services at stalls came and went, shouting to attract customers.

Standing at the market entrance, the female leader introduced herself to Lin Jing. "Our group is called the Blood Wolf Mercenary Group."

"I'm the captain, Hu Yue. My Martial Soul is a Blood Wolf. I'm a level twenty-eight Power Attack System Soul Grandmaster, with two yellow Spirit Rings."

"Hello, little brother. I'm the vice-captain, Liu Yun. My Martial Soul is a Willow Leaf Sword. I'm a level twenty-six Power Attack System Soul Grandmaster, with two yellow Spirit Rings."

"Hou Zhi. My Martial Soul is a Soundwave Giant Ape. I'm a level twenty-two Control System Soul Grandmaster."

"Nie Sheng. My Martial Soul is a Blood Hammer. I'm a level twenty-four Power Attack System Soul Grandmaster."

"Ding Hao. My Martial Soul is a Golden Eagle. I'm a level twenty-four Agility Attack System Soul Grandmaster."

One by one, the five of them gave their Soul Power Levels and Martial Souls.

Lin Jing was wondering whether he should introduce himself as well when the captain, Hu Yue, who was walking in front, set off toward the entrance to the Soul Hunting Forest.

Seeing that, Lin Jing swallowed the words he'd been about to say.

At the entrance to the Soul Hunting Forest, Hu Yue showed her permit.

The guards stepped aside and opened the enormous iron gate behind them.

Hu Yue nodded and led the way inside.

The other four formed a square around Lin Jing, who walked in the middle, following close behind.

"Little brother, tell us what your Martial Soul is. That way, we can find a Spirit Ring for you. If you have a target in mind, you can tell us that, too."

Liu Yun turned around, gave Lin Jing a sweet smile, and spoke.

"Mm. My Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass. I'm looking for a Blood Curse Rose or a Blood Crown Dragon Tree."

Lin Jing thought for a moment before answering slowly.

Blue Silver Grass was unquestionably a Trash Martial Soul.

He absolutely couldn't follow the same path as Tang San. That would be nothing short of asking for death.

As for taking a support path and stacking his Spirit Rings to strengthen his healing abilities, Lin Jing wasn't optimistic about that, either.

Tang San's Blue Silver Emperor Martial Soul could indeed follow that path, but Lin Jing's Blue Silver Grass definitely couldn't.

So Lin Jing wanted to take a gamble and absorb a Soul Beast with the ability to devour.

He wanted to see if it could mutate his Blue Silver Grass and give it the ability to devour.

Even if he failed, it wouldn't matter, because the Second Martial Soul was one of the prizes in the Mall Roulette draw.

If he drew enough times, he was bound to get it eventually.

As for how he knew about those two Soul Beasts?

In Nuoding City, he'd spent one Gold Soul Coin to buy a copy of the Encyclopedia of Soul Beasts.

It recorded all kinds of Soul Beasts, including their names and abilities, as well as illustrations.

"Blue Silver Grass?!"

Everyone except Ding Hao exclaimed in surprise, including Hu Yue.

Their voices held nothing but astonishment, not the slightest hint of ridicule.

After their exclamations, no one pressed him for an explanation.

Hu Yue walked back and switched places with Ding Hao. Then she said to Lin Jing:

"Both the Blood Curse Rose and the Blood Crown Dragon Tree are rare varieties. There might not be any in the Soul Hunting Forest, but there are similar plant Soul Beasts."

"What kind of Soul Beast?"

Lin Jing's curiosity was piqued.

"The Bloodthirsty Demon Vine."

Hu Yue answered, "Half a month ago, we encountered one while helping another client hunt a first Spirit Ring. I still remember where it was."

"I just don't know if it's still there, or whether someone else has hunted it."

"Want to take a look?"

Lin Jing didn't answer right away. Instead, he asked, "How old is it?"

Hu Yue replied without hesitation, "More than seven hundred years old, but less than eight hundred."

Lin Jing nodded. "That works. If it's still there, then that's the one."

In terms of quality, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine was a grade below the Blood Curse Rose and the Blood Crown Dragon Tree.

But in terms of rarity and ability to devour, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine was unquestionably number one.

That was because humans weren't the only ones who hunted it. Even Soul Beasts would swarm and attack whenever they encountered a Bloodthirsty Demon Vine.

It was the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger among plant Soul Beasts, the Fallen Soul Master among humans—infamous far and wide.

Lin Jing hadn't expected there to be one in the Soul Hunting Forest. It was a delightful surprise.

Then again, it wasn't all that strange. A seven-hundred-year-old Bloodthirsty Demon Vine would be strong enough to dominate the Soul Hunting Forest.

Even some eight- or nine-hundred-year-old Soul Beasts wouldn't dare provoke it lightly.

As for thousand-year Soul Beasts, there were only a handful in the entire Soul Hunting Forest. They were all deep in the forest, in places humans couldn't easily find.

"Captain, the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine is still there."

Ding Hao flew overhead, his sharp eagle eyes scanning the area.

"Good!"

Hu Yue answered and smiled at Lin Jing. "Little brother, looks like we're in luck."

Lin Jing nodded, his eyes turning toward the front as well.

A vine, deep red and almost black, stood before them. More accurately, it wasn't a vine but a leafless vine tree!

It stood over three meters tall and was as thick as a barrel.

Its entire body was covered in densely packed, hollow spikes.

Not a single plant grew around the Bloodthirsty Demon Vine. The ground was desolate.

Anything with even a spark of life would be devoured and turned into nourishment to help it grow.