A Chance Encounter? A Mysterious Girl in Black!

After leaving Notting City, Gu Ling followed the map he had purchased in advance and headed toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

As for Tang San and Xiao Wu, after graduating, their paths did not differ much from the original trajectory.

At Yu Xiaogang's suggestion, the two did not choose to enter an ordinary advanced soul master academy. Instead, they traveled together to Shrek Academy, located near Soto City in the Barak Kingdom.

Gu Ling naturally knew about these matters, but he did not care. After all, where Tang San intended to cultivate had little to do with him.

Right now, the most important thing for him was obtaining his third Soul Ring.

Several days later.

Within a dense forest not far from the main road.

Gu Ling carried a simple pack on his back as he moved unhurriedly through the trees.

According to the route marked on the map, as long as he continued south and passed through several more towns, he would reach the vicinity of the Star Dou Great Forest before long.

However, just as Gu Ling was about to continue onward.

Boom!

A dull collision suddenly sounded in the distance.

Immediately afterward, a chaotic series of footsteps and snapping branches rang out.

"Sounds like someone's fighting nearby?"

Gu Ling frowned slightly and stopped. Although this place was not exactly desolate, it was still some distance from the main road.

Under normal circumstances, few soul masters would deliberately come this deep into the woods to fight.

Moreover, judging by the sounds... both sides seemed to be fighting while moving at high speed.

Gu Ling narrowed his eyes. Rather than rushing over directly, he quickly concealed his aura, lightened his steps, and quietly approached the source of the noise.

Not long after.

Through the dense foliage ahead, Gu Ling clearly saw what was happening inside.

Whoosh!

A black figure swiftly darted through the forest. Behind her, five soul masters dressed in black and wearing black masks pursued her closely.

"Don't let her get away!"

"Get her!"

"Today, we absolutely can't let her leave here alive!"

As low shouts rang out, soul power fluctuations emerged one after another from the black-clad figures. This was clearly no ordinary conflict—it was a pursuit to kill!

Gu Ling did not reveal himself in a hurry. Instead, he leaned behind a large tree and fixed his gaze on the girl fleeing ahead.

The girl looked no older than twelve or thirteen. Her long black hair flowed loose behind her, somewhat disheveled from her frantic escape.

Her features were exquisitely delicate, and her skin was fair. Yet between her brows was a chill far beyond her age. Especially those black eyes—despite being pursued by several soul masters, they held little panic, only vigilance and stubbornness.

There was even a patch of blood near her shoulder that had yet to dry completely. She had clearly suffered a minor injury.

Yet her movements remained exceptionally nimble. Her slender figure was agile and strong, her long legs powerful. Every time she borrowed momentum from tree trunks or rocks, she could instantly shoot forward a great distance.

This was clearly a physical habit developed through long-term cultivation along the agility-attack path.

"Twelve or thirteen years old, eyes so cold they seemed to keep everyone a thousand miles away, and such an obvious agility-attack movement technique..."

"Could it really be such a coincidence?"

Gu Ling stared at the girl for several moments as a name suddenly surfaced in his mind.

At that moment, the black-clad figures behind the girl seemed to have finally lost their patience. A yellow Soul Ring beneath one of them flashed, and his speed abruptly surged.

Within just a few breaths, he closed a large portion of the distance between them.

"Second Miss, stop running. Be good and come back with us!"

As his voice fell, an attack of soul power blasted directly toward the girl's back.

The girl seemed to have sensed it beforehand. Her body suddenly twisted to the side, and the attack grazed past her before slamming into a large tree beside her. The thick trunk exploded at once, sending splinters flying everywhere.

Although the girl avoided the direct attack, the shockwave still made her stumble.

And in that brief instant.

The other black-clad figures had already quickly flanked her from both sides.

Front, back, left, and right—nearly every route had been sealed.

The girl was forced to stop. Leaning against a large tree, she panted softly.

Then, a dark and shadowy soul power erupted from within her.

Her eyes changed slightly. Sharp claw blades slowly extended from between the fingers of both hands, while the phantom of a slender cat tail appeared behind her.

"Netherworld Spirit Cat?!"

At the sight, the last trace of doubt in Gu Ling's heart vanished completely.

"So it really is her."

"Zhu Zhuqing."

Although the current Zhu Zhuqing was more youthful than he remembered, her distinctive black clothing, cold temperament, and Netherworld Spirit Cat martial soul were enough for Gu Ling to recognize her.

He simply had not expected that, on his way to the Star Dou Great Forest, he would happen to encounter Zhu Zhuqing being hunted down.

Once he recognized the person before him as Zhu Zhuqing, Gu Ling immediately abandoned his intention of continuing to watch.

Although he had no relationship with Zhu Zhuqing, since he had already run into this, it would not hurt to save her casually.

Besides...

Gu Ling swept his gaze over the black-clad figures. The strongest among them was merely a three-ring Soul Elder, while the rest were all two-ring Great Soul Masters.

Such strength was not enough to make him wary.

At this moment.

Zhu Zhuqing's back was pressed against the tree trunk, and her breathing had become somewhat hurried.

Her soul power had already been heavily depleted from fleeing all the way here. She was also injured, and now that she was surrounded by several people, her situation had clearly become extremely dangerous.

The leading black-clad Soul Elder slowly stepped forward and said coldly:

"Run, then."

"Why aren't you running anymore?"

Zhu Zhuqing did not answer. Her icy eyes remained fixed on the group, and her sharp cat claws lifted slightly. She had clearly prepared herself for a desperate fight.

But just as one of the black-clad Great Soul Masters was about to make his move.

A somewhat lazy voice suddenly came from nearby:

"A bunch of grown men chasing down a little girl. You're really something."

"Who?!"

The black-clad figures were all startled and abruptly turned toward the source of the voice.

From behind a large tree not far away, a black-clad youth slowly stepped out.

It was Gu Ling.

Zhu Zhuqing was also slightly stunned. She had clearly not expected someone to voluntarily step forward to help her at a time like this.

The leading black-clad Soul Elder sized Gu Ling up. When he noticed that Gu Ling appeared to be only around twelve years old, a cold glint flashed through his eyes as he said:

"Kid."

"I suggest you stay out of this."

"Some matters are not something someone your age can interfere with."

Gu Ling merely smiled faintly at those words.

"Is that so?"

The next second.

One yellow and one purple Soul Ring suddenly rose beneath his feet.

The instant they saw that second purple Soul Ring, the faces of the black-clad figures changed almost simultaneously.

"A Thousand-Year Second Soul Ring?!"

"How is that possible?!"

Before they could react.

A cold and powerful soul power suddenly erupted from Gu Ling's body.

"Bone Dragon, possess!"

Roar—!

A deep dragon roar echoed through the forest as pale bone armor swiftly covered Gu Ling's body, and sharp bone claws extended from the tips of his fingers.

"Second Soul Skill! Void Dragon Assault!"

With a low shout, the purple Soul Ring beneath Gu Ling suddenly lit up. The space before him twisted, and he vanished into thin air!

"What?!"

The pupils of the black-clad Great Soul Master closest to Gu Ling abruptly contracted. Before he could even see what had happened, a black figure had already appeared at his side.