Gangzi Poisoned, Blue Silver Pole Vault

Although they were on the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest, Yu Xiaogang still summoned Luo Sanpao to stand guard, just in case.

Luo Sanpao had an extremely keen sense of smell. If a spirit beast approached, it would notice immediately.

That way, Yu Xiaogang didn't need to stay alert to their surroundings himself.

His gaze remained fixed on Tang San as he quietly considered what soul skill he might obtain.

The formation of a soul skill depended on the spirit beast, the quality of the Martial Soul, and their compatibility.

Compatibility referred to the similarities between a Martial Soul and a spirit beast, such as appearance, traits, attributes, and so on.

As for quality, it depended on which side was superior.

If the spirit beast's quality was higher, its own soul skills and traits would be forcibly added to the Martial Soul.

If the Martial Soul's quality was higher, then their strengths would complement each other's weaknesses.

Although Blue Silver Grass was a useless Martial Soul, the Lonely Bamboo wasn't much better, so there was a high chance that Blue Silver Grass would inherit the Lonely Bamboo's resilience.

However, the compatibility between Blue Silver Grass and the Lonely Bamboo wasn't particularly high.

Other than both being plants, they had no other special compatibility. Even their forms stood at opposite extremes.

One was hard, and the other was soft.

This meant Yu Xiaogang couldn't clearly determine through theory alone what kind of soul skill Tang San would ultimately gain.

They would only know after he finished absorbing the Spirit Ring.

"Cackle..."

Luo Sanpao suddenly gave a warning, instantly putting Yu Xiaogang on guard. He hurriedly looked in the direction Luo Sanpao was staring.

The moment he saw it, his expression changed drastically.

A massive, pitch-black snake entered his sight. It was fully ten meters long, and its thickest section was as wide as a water barrel.

"A hundred-year Profound Yin Viper? Damn it, how is this possible?"

Even if Yu Xiaogang were beaten to death, he never would have imagined that a spirit beast of this level could appear on the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest.

There weren't any spirit beasts with particularly high cultivation in the Soul Hunting Forest. Those at the hundred-year level were already overlords.

The Profound Yin Viper's overall strength wasn't particularly impressive, but it was swift and agile. Claiming a territory in the core region would never have been difficult for it.

Why had it come to the outskirts?

"Hiss—"

The Profound Yin Viper hissed, its speed suddenly surging as it lunged at Yu Xiaogang and Luo Sanpao like a streak of black lightning.

Yu Xiaogang turned pale in shock and hurriedly poured soul power into his first Spirit Ring.

"First Soul Skill, Fart Like Thunder, Luo Sanpao Shakes Heaven and Splits Earth!"

As the first Spirit Ring on his body lit up, Luo Sanpao pushed off the ground and its entire body suddenly shot into the air.

Its belly rapidly swelled, as though it were gathering power.

"Bang!"

A thunderous fart exploded through the bamboo forest as a cloud of foul-smelling yellow gas erupted violently from behind Luo Sanpao.

It struck the Profound Yin Viper, which was already right in front of them.

The yellow gas engulfed the Profound Yin Viper, but its body only paused slightly before it rushed out of the cloud in the blink of an eye.

"Sanpao, dodge!"

Yu Xiaogang was horrified.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he and Luo Sanpao shared one body. If Luo Sanpao was bitten, the venom would return to his own body along with it.

That was a Profound Yin Viper.

Its venom might not be famous, but to a man, it was a thousand, ten thousand times more terrifying than any lethal poison.

Unfortunately, his warning came too late—or rather, the Profound Yin Viper was simply too fast.

Before Luo Sanpao had even landed, the Profound Yin Viper bit it squarely, then immediately followed with its deadly constriction.

"It's over!"

Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.

The Profound Yin Viper's venom had no cure. Once bitten, the victim would lose the functions a man ought to have within a single month.

Moreover, over the following half year, their appearance and voice would gradually become feminine.

In other words, within half a year, he, the great number-one theoretical master of the Spirit Master world, would become neither man nor woman.

If word got out, how could he ever face anyone again?

The Profound Yin Viper had already injected its venom into Luo Sanpao's body, while its coils continued to wrap tighter and tighter.

Luo Sanpao's body was being crushed mercilessly, leaving it unable to even scream.

"Beast, let Sanpao go!"

Yu Xiaogang's eyes reddened. As though he had lost all reason, he snatched up the dagger on the ground and charged at the Profound Yin Viper.

At that very instant.

Luo Sanpao finally could no longer endure the crushing pressure, and its body turned into a ray of light that returned to Yu Xiaogang's body.

The Profound Yin Viper's venom returned with it.

Yu Xiaogang's legs suddenly gave out in the middle of his charge, and momentum sent him falling straight toward the Profound Yin Viper.

Seeing this, the Profound Yin Viper immediately opened its bloody jaws, waiting for its meal to fall into its mouth.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."

The sound of arrows cutting through the air rang out. Three arrows arrived later but struck first, shooting straight into the Profound Yin Viper's mouth.

Its scales had decent defensive power, but they couldn't possibly grow inside its mouth. Its oral cavity was also its weakest point.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft..."

The three arrows embedded with remarkable precision in the Profound Yin Viper's upper jaw, piercing through its brain in the process and causing its body to suddenly go limp.

"Bang!"

Yu Xiaogang slammed heavily onto the Profound Yin Viper's body before rolling onto the ground.

"Teacher!"

Tang San used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, reaching them in just a few breaths.

However, he didn't immediately check on Yu Xiaogang. Instead, he picked up the dagger and gave the not-yet-dead Profound Yin Viper another stab.

Only after a yellow Spirit Ring rose from its body did Tang San help Yu Xiaogang up.

"L-Little San..."

Yu Xiaogang lay in Tang San's arms with a face full of agony. Other than the pain on his face, there was no visible sign that he had been poisoned.

Besides destroying male hormones, the Profound Yin Viper's venom also inflicted pain.

The agony on Yu Xiaogang's face wasn't an act. He was truly suffering, though it wasn't severe enough to make him pass out.

Tang San didn't suspect anything and merely assumed that he had been hurt in the fall.

After all, his teacher was getting on in years. It was perfectly normal for him not to withstand a hard fall.

"Teacher, are you all right?"

Yu Xiaogang endured the pain and shook his head.

Things had already come to this. Saying anything more was useless.

He struggled to sit up and looked at Tang San with eager anticipation.

"How effective is your soul skill?"

Since he was doomed to become neither man nor woman, the only person who could save him now was his good disciple, Tang San.

As long as Tang San could rise to prominence, who would dare gossip about him?

"My first soul skill is called Blue Silver Pole Vault. It can condense a Blue Silver Lonely Bamboo, allowing me to evade attacks by pole-vaulting."

Tang San's expression wasn't very good.

This soul skill was rather useless to him, because he had Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track and didn't lack evasion abilities at all.

By comparison, he wanted a control-type soul skill more.

A control-type soul skill could restrain enemies, allowing him to better unleash the power of the Tang Sect's many supreme techniques.

Besides, his teacher's plan for him had also been the control path.