Invincible Golden Body! You Struck Gold!

Lin Ye took out a cleaned wild chicken from his soul tool, set it over the campfire, and slowly turned it as it roasted.

Fat dripped into the flames with a sizzling sound, and the aroma gradually drifted outward.

Zhu Zhuqing sat cross-legged across from him, chin resting on her hand as she stared at the chicken slowly turning golden brown.

Her eyes were especially bright in the firelight.

"Big kitty, what are you looking at?"

Lin Ye sprinkled a little salt over the drumstick.

"The roast chicken."

"The way you're looking at it, you don't look like you're watching roast chicken. You look more like a stray cat that's been hungry for three days and just spotted dried fish."

"Hmph, you're the stray cat."

Ten minutes later, the chicken was done.

Lin Ye tore off an entire drumstick and handed it to her.

Zhu Zhuqing took it and bit down hard, her eyes curving slightly.

"Delicious."

"Of course. Anything made by Chef Lin is guaranteed quality."

Zhu Zhuqing let out a snort of laughter, then quickly put on a stern face again.

"You're so shameless."

"If my skin weren't thick, how could I shield you?"

Zhu Zhuqing huffed and did not respond.

She lowered her head and continued gnawing on the drumstick with utmost seriousness.

The campfire crackled, the night deepened, and insect calls surged in from every direction.

For Lin Ye, this was truly a rare moment of peace.

However,

just as Zhu Zhuqing was about to bite into the second drumstick,

Whoosh—!

A sharp sound of wind tearing through the air rang out.

Lin Ye instantly became serious.

Then, his spiritual power immediately caught an extremely swift presence.

At that moment, a figure shot out from the bushes thirty meters to their right!

It was absurdly fast.

"Big kitty, move!"

Zhu Zhuqing reacted at once.

Her body instinctively rolled sideways,

but the drumstick flew from her hand.

The next second,

a black figure burst out from the bushes!

That figure pounced straight toward the campfire.

More accurately... it pounced straight at the roast chicken!

"Damn it? You dare steal my chicken!"

Lin Ye reacted quickly and lifted the roast chicken with one hand.

The black figure pounced into empty air, rolled twice across the ground, then sprang up and bared its fangs at the two of them with a roar.

The firelight now revealed its full appearance.

It was a sleek, panther-like soul beast.

Its entire body was pitch-black, its limbs long, and its muscle lines unbelievably smooth.

Dark golden patterns ran along its spine, appearing and disappearing in the firelight.

Its vertical pupils were fixed firmly on the roast chicken in Lin Ye's hand.

Then Lin Ye's spiritual power instantly locked onto it.

Its cultivation was probably between eighteen hundred and two thousand years.

It was also a panther-type soul beast, and its speed was not bad either.

Looking at the soul beast before him, Lin Ye felt a surge of delight.

He quickly turned to glance at Zhu Zhuqing.

At that moment, Zhu Zhuqing was also looking at the black panther.

Her Netherworld Spirit Cat martial soul resonated faintly within her body. This was a sign of compatible attributes.

The two exchanged a glance.

"This guy came to steal our roast chicken."

Lin Ye stuffed the chicken into the Wishful Hundred Treasure Pouch and gave a cold smile.

"But it ended up delivering itself to us as a Soul Ring."

The black panther watched helplessly as the roast chicken that had nearly reached its mouth vanished in Lin Ye's hand, and a low growl rose from its throat.

Awooo—!

Its vertical pupils were filled with rage.

A panther-type soul beast with nearly two thousand years of cultivation had been lured over by the smell of two humans' roast chicken.

It would be too damn embarrassing to tell anyone.

"Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, possess me!"

Lin Ye made the first move. The instant he released his martial soul, three Soul Rings lit up beneath his feet.

Purple, purple, black.

The moment that supremely evil aura spread outward, the black panther's fur stood on end.

Its pupils shrank sharply, and its limbs tensed.

This soul beast's cultivation was not particularly high, but a beast's instincts were incredibly sharp.

It sensed an aura of danger from this human that far surpassed its own.

Aow—!

Then the black panther let out a short cry, spun around, and fled at top speed.

Damn it,

it ran.

That fast?

Its sleek body darted through the bushes, and after only a few leaps, it had already shot more than thirty meters away.

"Oh, pretty clever." Lin Ye clicked his tongue.

"Chase it!"

Zhu Zhuqing's Netherworld Spirit Cat martial soul had already possessed her body, and two yellow Soul Rings spun beneath her feet.

After consuming the Narcissus Jade Muscle Bone, her speed had undergone a qualitative leap. She turned into a black afterimage and chased after it.

Lin Ye followed close behind.

"First Soul Skill, Evil God Thirteen Slashes!"

Lin Ye curled his right hand into a claw and unleashed three slashes at once.

Black waves of slashing energy wrapped in purple arcs of lightning cut three dazzling arcs through the night, intercepting the black panther's escape route.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three large trees were severed at the waist by the slashing waves, sending splinters flying everywhere.

The black panther was forced to sharply change direction, and its speed slowed slightly.

However, in that brief opening,

"First Soul Skill, Netherworld Thrust!"

Zhu Zhuqing's figure instantly accelerated. Her claws drew an afterimage as they thrust straight at the black panther's hind leg.

She was less than half a meter from it,

just as her claw tips were about to touch its body.

A dazzling golden light suddenly exploded from the black panther's body!

Buzz!

The golden light was blindingly bright. Zhu Zhuqing's claws struck it, producing a piercing metallic clang.

Clang!

To Zhu Zhuqing's shock, dozens of claw strikes were all rebounded.

The recoil forced Zhu Zhuqing back three steps, and both her claws tingled slightly.

"What? How could this..."

Zhu Zhuqing quickly looked at the black panther.

Her first Soul Skill had not inflicted even the slightest damage on it?

And her Netherworld Thrust had not even scratched that layer of golden light?

The golden light remained around the black panther for about three seconds before fading away.

Before Zhu Zhuqing could react, the black panther used the opening to dart another dozen meters away.

"Wait—"

Lin Ye's footsteps halted for a moment.

His eyes were fixed on the direction in which the black panther had vanished, his mind racing.

That layer of golden light just now.

It covered its entire body.

And it had rendered Big Kitty's first Soul Skill ineffective.

Could it be...

"Invincible Golden Body?!"

Lin Ye said uncertainly.

Zhu Zhuqing hurried to his side and asked,

"Lin Ye, what was that golden light just now? My attack was completely useless!"

"Invincible Golden Body."

Lin Ye repeated it, his voice carrying more excitement.

"It's an extremely rare panther-type skill that can grant immunity to all physical attacks for a short time!"

He suddenly turned to Zhu Zhuqing and could not help laughing.

"Big kitty, you really struck gold this time."

"What do you mean?"

"After you absorb its Soul Ring, there's a high chance you'll gain a life-saving Soul Skill related to Invincible Golden Body!"

Zhu Zhuqing's pupils abruptly widened at Lin Ye's words.

A life-saving Soul Skill?

For an agility-attack soul master, the greatest weakness was low defense. Once caught at close range by a powerful opponent, it was almost certainly a death sentence.

If she could really obtain a life-saving skill that granted immunity to physical attacks...

then Zhu Zhuqing would have one more life when facing unknown dangers in the future!

"Big kitty, don't just stand there. Hurry and chase it! It can't get far!"

With that, the two set off again.

To be honest,

the black panther truly was not slow, but Lin Ye's spiritual power covered too wide an area. It simply could not shake him off.

After chasing it for about five minutes, they forced the black panther to the edge of a cliff, leaving it with nowhere to retreat.

Awooo—!