A Mandrake Snake Got Away, It Wasn't Extinct

Outside the Soul Hunting Forest.

Xiao Wu had not come along.

It was not that she was afraid of entering the forest; she simply did not have a permit. Yu Xiaogang could not possibly bring a sensitive Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast around while searching for Tang San's first Soul Ring.

Before leaving, Xiao Wu stuffed a wooden stick into Tang San's hands.

"Take it."

"I have weapons."

"Those hidden weapons of yours cannot be shown around carelessly."

"What can a wooden stick do?"

"If you meet someone who wants to sacrifice themselves, hit them first."

Tang San ultimately brought it with him.

As for Xu Zhou, Xiao Wu had only given him a sheet of paper.

There were three sentences written on it.

Don't run around.

Don't trust maps.

Don't treat me like a Soul Ring.

The last sentence was obviously unnecessary.

Xu Zhou had not even reached level ten yet. Even if he had the nerve, he did not have the ability.

Quite a few people had already gathered outside the forest entrance.

The iron fence rose higher than the treetops, and Soul Beast cries occasionally echoed from within. Two squads of soldiers stood beside the gate, and every passing Soul Master had to present a permit.

This was much the same as the Soul Hunting Forest in Xu Zhou's memories.

The empire raised them in captivity.

Spirit Hall issued the permits.

A group of merchants outside bought Soul Beast materials.

The only difference was the row of gambling tables beside it.

"Final bets on whether Xu Zhou can return safely!"

"Betting closes the moment he enters the forest!"

"Place your bets! No refunds for death or injury!"

The moment Xu Zhou reached the entrance, the Black Ancient Book opened on its own.

[Current believers: 493.]

Seven more to go.

A gambler spotted Xu Zhou and immediately pulled out a money pouch.

"Is that him?"

"Yeah, Innate Zero Soul Power."

"He's that young?"

"Five Copper Soul Coins says he won't make it out."

[Current believers: 494.]

The remaining people gathered around as well.

"He has a Soul Elder protecting him."

"The Soul Elder has to hunt a Soul Ring for Tang San. How could he have time to watch the kid constantly?"

"I heard the Soul Beasts in the forest have already learned to catch the weakest ones first."

"I bet he won't make it out."

The number quickly surpassed five hundred.

The inked words on the page stopped changing.

[Public Script formed.]

[Script Name: Burden of the Soul Hunting Forest.]

[Common Perception: The host has no Soul Power. After entering the forest, he will only burden the group and cannot return safely.]

[Completion Condition: Leave the Soul Hunting Forest safely within three days.]

Xu Zhou put away the Black Ancient Book.

There was another mission now.

The good news was that the two Public Scripts did not conflict.

The bad news was that even returning safely had become a mission.

"Check the permit!"

The gate guards stopped the three of them.

Yu Xiaogang handed over the Soul Hunting Permit. After checking the seal, the guard looked at Xu Zhou.

"A visiting student?"

"A temporary records verification officer."

"Do you have Soul Power?"

"No."

The soldier pointed at the notice beside him.

"Ordinary children are prohibited from entering the forest."

Xu Zhou took out a temporary wooden pass.

"I am a research subject from the academy."

The soldier accepted the pass and turned it over.

It did indeed bear the dual seals of the academy and Spirit Hall.

"Researching what?"

"Why someone with zero Soul Power can still walk into the Soul Hunting Forest alive."

A soldier beside him answered for him.

"Will he still be able to walk out after the research is done?"

"Who knows."

The Black Ancient Book trembled faintly.

Soul Power entered his body.

Xu Zhou did not argue. He merely remembered the faces of those two men.

He could leave through here on the way out.

That would make it convenient to settle the score on the spot.

After entering the forest, the surroundings quickly fell silent.

Towering trees blocked the sunlight, and thick fallen leaves carpeted the ground. There were indeed paths through the woods, but no one had cleared them in a long time, and weeds had grown to ankle height.

Yu Xiaogang raised his right hand.

"Come out, Luo Sanpao."

A glow of Soul Power landed on the ground.

Luo Sanpao, now with wings, appeared before the three of them. He pressed his nose to the ground and sniffed a few times before quickly flying into the low air.

"He is responsible for scouting."

Yu Xiaogang took out two cloth bags.

"This is Snake-Repelling Powder. Scatter it around us, and it can reduce the chances of snake-type Soul Beasts approaching."

Tang San took one bag and was about to open it.

"Wait a moment."

Xu Zhou reached out and stopped him.

Snake-Repelling Powder was written on the cloth bag.

Yet the seal carried a familiar fishy-sweet smell.

He had smelled it only yesterday.

The inducing agent used by Ironthorn Vine had carried this very scent, only much fainter.

The Black Ancient Book fell beside the cloth bag.

[Proofreading has discovered an obvious contradiction.]

[Academy collection record: Two bags of Snake-Repelling Powder.]

[Cloth bag label: Snake-Repelling Powder.]

[Supplies formula: Realgar, Wormwood, Snake-Aversion Grass.]

[The current cloth bag's scent contains Snake-Luring Pollen.]

"This isn't Snake-Repelling Powder."

Xu Zhou handed the bag to Yu Xiaogang.

"Someone added Snake-Luring Pollen to it."

Yu Xiaogang poured out a little powder, ground it between his fingers, and held it beneath Luo Sanpao's nose.

"Luo, luo!"

Luo Sanpao sneezed three times in a row, then turned and tried to fly deeper into the forest.

Yu Xiaogang quickly caught him and pulled him back.

"It really does have an attracting effect."

Tang San stared at the cloth bag.

"Someone switched our supplies?"

"The label and seal were untouched. It was probably added in the academy warehouse."

Xu Zhou put away the Black Ancient Book.

"They want snake-type Soul Beasts to come looking for us on their own."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

A voice came from the bushes behind them.

All three turned around at once.

The leaves shook twice, but no one emerged.

Yu Xiaogang frowned.

"Someone is following us."

"They've been following us since the entrance."

Tang San's right hand settled on his waist.

He did not mention Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges at Night by name.

Xu Zhou had already recognized it anyway. Saying it again would only make the belt even more dangerous.

"Leave them alone for now."

Xu Zhou looked at the powder bags.

"They are using Snake-Luring Pollen to attract Soul Beasts. Their goal is probably to make Tang San take the Mandrake Snake route again. As long as we do not scatter it, they will naturally have to think of another way."

Yu Xiaogang stored both bags in his Soul Tool.

"Keep moving."

They had not gone far when Luo Sanpao flew back from ahead.

"Luo, luo!"

He circled a slender bamboo stalk twice.

A wooden sign hung from the bamboo.

Four-hundred-year Solitary Bamboo, backup for Tang San's first Soul Ring.

Tang San looked at the wooden sign.

"Do Soul Beasts have tags now?"

"So people can recognize them more easily."

A man in a straw hat stepped out from behind the tree.

"This Solitary Bamboo is the right age, its attributes are mild, and it can also strengthen Blue Silver Grass's toughness. For just fifteen Gold Soul Coins today, I can even sell you proof of the hunt."

"Fifteen?"

Yu Xiaogang walked over to the Solitary Bamboo and counted its segments.

"It isn't even thirty years old."

The straw-hatted man waved his hand.

"Bamboo segments cannot represent age. That is manga-version lore."

"Which manga?"

"I can't remember."

"Then where did the four hundred years come from?"

"The game interface showed it."

"Where is the interface?"

"It was deleted after the update."

Xu Zhou removed the wooden sign.

There was another line of small print on the back.

After this product is sold, no responsibility will be taken for disputes regarding its age.

It was written quite honestly.

It was just hung upside down.

"Let's go."

Xu Zhou returned the wooden plaque to him.

"This Solitary Bamboo isn't suitable."

The man in the straw hat hurried after them for a few steps.

"Ten coins!"

No one paid him any attention.

"Five coins!"

"A free Solitary Bamboo shoot included!"

Tang San quickened his pace considerably.

For the first time, he realized that Innate Full Soul Power was not entirely a good thing.

At least ordinary students entering the Soul Hunting Forest would not have people chasing after them, trying to sell them Soul Beasts.

The three continued deeper inside.

They encountered several ten-year Soul Beasts along the way, but Yu Xiaogang did not make a move. Instead, he took the opportunity to explain the types, ages, and attack traits of Soul Beasts to Tang San.

There was not much difference between this and the original work.

Yu Xiaogang liked studying Soul Beasts.

Tang San was willing to listen.

Luo Sanpao was responsible for keeping watch.

If not for the merchants hiding behind them, this soul-hunting trip should have been perfectly normal.

Near the western riverbank, Luo Sanpao suddenly dropped to the ground.

It stared at a patch of flattened grass, its wings drawn tight as a low growl rumbled in its throat.

Tang San crouched down to inspect it.

A trail left by a slithering snake marked the mud.

Several dark green scales lay nearby as well.

"Mandrake Snake."

Yu Xiaogang picked up a scale.

"It should be over three meters long, with an age close to four hundred years."

Tang San did not immediately rejoice.

"Has the one that was relocated returned?"

"Not the same one."

Xu Zhou unfolded the academy patrol records.

"That four-hundred-and-twenty-three-year Mandrake Snake had an injury on the right side of its abdomen. It would leave intermittent tracks as it passed."

The trail before them was completely unbroken.

"There are other Mandrake Snakes in the forest."

Yu Xiaogang nodded.

"Mandrake Snakes are a species. It is impossible for there to have been only that one in the original work."

That made perfect sense.

Tang San had nearly been led astray by recent events.

The Soul Beast Protection Faction relocating one did not mean that Mandrake Snakes could no longer be found anywhere in the Soul Hunting Forest.

The original route had indeed been affected, but it had not disappeared completely.

Just then, a porcelain bottle flew out from behind a tree.

Crack!

The bottle landed beside Xu Zhou's feet and shattered into several pieces.

A fishy-sweet scent spread through the air.

The grass beside the snake scales immediately rustled.

Yu Xiaogang recalled Luo Sanpao.

Tang San stepped in front of Xu Zhou, his right hand already gripping a hidden weapon.

A dark green serpent raised its upper body from the bushes. The fleshy crest atop its head flared open, and its tongue flicked several times toward Xu Zhou.

Someone lowered their voice behind the trees.

"The original route has returned."

Xu Zhou looked down at the Snake-Luring Potion by his feet.

The Black Ancient Book flipped to a new page.

[Multiple parties' assessment: The host will become the Mandrake Snake's first target.]

[Assessment not yet complete.]

Xu Zhou kicked up half a shard of porcelain.

The shard skimmed along the ground and shot into the underbrush.

The next moment, the Mandrake Snake turned its head and charged straight at the people hiding behind it.

"Wait!"

A scream came from behind the trees.

"Didn't it bite the master first in the original work?"