Ling Shuang: Heavenly Net Immortal Vine Martial Soul (Su Chen's Sixth Companion)

The Shadow Leopards had lost contact.

Not one, but five had simultaneously fallen into dead silence.

Of the ten dark spiritual threads intertwined in Su Chen's sea of consciousness, half collapsed at the same instant.

The signal had not disappeared; it had merely become thick and sluggish, as though sealed inside heavy amber.

It was a distress signal, yet it carried an absurd sense of stiffness.

Su Chen opened his eyes.

"The entire Shadow Leopard team is out of contact."

The air instantly turned several degrees colder.

Crimson flames flickered from Yan Wuji's fingertips, the shadow of a Nether Phoenix curled around Mo Qianye, and everyone's gaze locked onto the path ahead.

Jiang Tieyi swallowed the last bite of dried meat and gripped the heavy sword at his waist.

Without wasting words, Su Chen condensed his remaining spiritual power into a single thread and forcibly crashed it into the interference zone.

Fragmented images slammed into his mind.

It was Shadow Leopard Number Three's point of view. The world spun violently as dead leaves and sky alternated in a frenzy.

An eerie streak of emerald green had tightly wrapped around its waist. No matter how it struggled, it could not break free from that seemingly gentle force.

Su Chen abruptly rose to his feet.

"Follow me."

Emerald Canyon.

This had originally been the burial ground Su Chen had chosen. The cliffs on both sides looked as though they had been carved by blades and axes, while the canyon floor was so narrow that only four giant beasts could pass side by side.

But now, this meat grinder had begun operating ahead of schedule.

At the canyon entrance, ten Nether Shadow Leopards hung neatly in midair.

Jiang Tieyi charged at the front. When he looked up and saw that sight clearly, his foot slipped, and he nearly fell over.

Ten emerald vines had drilled out from cracks in the rocks, each one coiling around a Shadow Leopard.

These killers, who could usually slip into the shadows, had completely lost their ability to turn invisible.

The pale golden sap seeping from the vines forcibly stripped away the shadowy hides they had been so proud of.

The Shadow Leopards remained in all kinds of twisted poses. Some were kicking their legs, while others had completely gone limp.

They looked exactly like a row of cured meat hanging out to dry in a dark place.

When Shadow Leopard Number Three saw Su Chen, it let out an extremely aggrieved whimper.

Su Chen stopped.

He stared at those vines.

The ground throughout the canyon, the cracks in the rocks, even the fine dust in the air, were all covered by a layer of transparent webbing.

This was no ordinary plant. It was the embryonic form of some extremely high-level domain.

The moment the Shadow Leopards entered this place, they had already stepped into someone else's trap.

Su Chen crouched down and ran his fingertips across the soil.

An almost imperceptible vibration came from deep underground. The vines' roots were like living things, sensing his heartbeat and weight.

"Someone is waiting for prey to walk into the trap."

Su Chen stood, his tone icy.

Chu Yao walked to his side. Looking at the hanging Shadow Leopards, her shoulders trembled slightly as she desperately tried to hold back her laughter.

Jiang Tieyi was not nearly as restrained.

"Pfft—hahahaha!"

He slapped his thigh and pointed at the Shadow Leopard that had completely given up struggling.

"Look at those eyes. That leopard doesn't even want to live anymore!"

Mo Qianye turned his head aside, his knuckles turning white from how hard he clenched them.

Ye Linglong's silver lashes trembled, and a trace of astonishment flashed through her crimson eyes.

Su Chen expressionlessly looked deeper into the canyon.

Footsteps.

They were very light.

The vines covering the ground voluntarily retreated to either side, like obedient ministers welcoming their king.

A girl in an emerald dress slowly emerged.

She looked about thirteen or fourteen. Her long hair was tied only with a grass stem, and her delicate face was as clear as a spring in the mountains.

Whenever she moved a finger, the vines on the cliff walls twisted and contracted in response.

Ten Shadow Leopards capable of tearing apart a Soul Venerable were held immobile by her five slender fingers.

"Sorry about that."

The girl tilted her head, her smile carrying a natural innocence.

"I thought some stray cats had broken into Medicine Valley to steal a bite. I didn't expect them to have an owner."

She examined Su Chen, her smile growing even brighter.

"Yours?"

Su Chen looked at the vine net that could cover the entire canyon.

Since awakening, this was the first time he had been completely shut down on a tactical level.

"Release them."

There was not a trace of warmth in Su Chen's voice.

"Okay."

The girl lightly flicked her fingertips, and all ten vines loosened at once.

Thud, thud, thud.

The Shadow Leopards crashed to the ground.

After Shadow Leopard Number Three landed, it scrambled and crawled to Su Chen's feet, buried its head in the bend of his knee, and refused to show its face no matter what.

Jiang Tieyi laughed so hard that he squatted on the ground, gasping for breath.

"Who are you?"

Su Chen's voice remained calm, though there was now a hint of scrutiny in it.

"Ling Shuang."

The girl pointed at the faintly visible stone house within the canyon. "This is my home. I've lived here for eight years."

"Alone?"

"Master left three years ago. Now it's just me."

Ling Shuang spoke calmly. That composure forged at the edge of life and death made Chu Yao's gaze tighten slightly.

Su Chen swept his eyes over the layout of the entire canyon.

This was not a Medicine Valley at all. It was a carefully arranged defensive position.

Eight years had been enough for this girl to turn every inch of land into an extension of her Martial Soul.

"Heavenly Net Immortal Vine."

Ye Linglong spoke, the faint phantom of the plant behind Ling Shuang reflected in her crimson eyes.

"A divine-grade plant-type control Martial Soul. A three-ring Soul Venerable."

Ling Shuang blinked and curiously stared at Ye Linglong.

"Your eyes are so pretty. They're like the red berries I grow."

For once, Ye Linglong did not show any disgust.

Su Chen looked at the vine roots constantly winding beneath his feet, while the tactical picture in his mind rapidly reorganized itself.

"Do you know about the Earth Tide?"

Ling Shuang's smile faded slightly, revealing a steadiness far beyond her age.

"It happened once eight hundred years ago. Master's notes recorded it."

She pointed north. "This is the only route through the western line. Ten-thousand-year soul beasts will rush through here."

"You aren't leaving?"

"This is my home. Where could I go?"

Ling Shuang crouched and pressed her palm against the ground.

The vegetation throughout the canyon pulsed with her breathing.

"My vines can burrow thirty zhang underground. The backflow of spiritual energy is a tonic for them."

She stood and brushed the dirt from her hands.

"I've waited a long time for this day. This net was prepared for them."

Su Chen said nothing more as he reassessed the girl.

She had entered the forest at five, lived alone for eight years, become a three-ring Soul Venerable, and controlled an entire canyon.

She was not a resident here. She was the god of this place.

"Ling Shuang."

"Mm?"

"You can't stop those crazed ten-thousand-year soul beasts alone."

Su Chen stared into her eyes, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

"Work with me."

"You provide control. I'll provide damage."

"You keep them here. I'll send them on their way."

Ling Shuang tilted her head and looked at the Shadow Leopards behind Su Chen, all huddled together in terror.

"I just hung your cats from streetlights, and you still want to discuss cooperation with me?"

Jiang Tieyi burst into laughter again.

Su Chen's expression remained unchanged.

"Precisely because you can hang my Shadow Leopards up there do you have the qualifications to negotiate with me."

Ling Shuang froze.

A moment later, her eyes curved as she smiled brilliantly.

"Sure. Come in."

"There's hot water in the valley. You all look filthy."

She turned and led the way, the vines parting like a tide.

Jiang Tieyi was just about to step forward when Ling Shuang raised a hand to stop him.

"Watch your step."

Jiang Tieyi lowered his head. A poisonous vine glowing with dim blue light was silently retracting into the soil.

Chu Yao's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Azure Hemp Vine? At this age, its poison will paralyze someone within half a breath of touching their skin. You planted it in the middle of the path?"

Ling Shuang turned back, her smile sweet.

"The entrance only has Azure Hemp Vine. Inside, there are also Bone-Eating Creepers, Heart-Rot Flowers..."

"They're all varieties Master left behind. I improved them a little."

Chu Yao fell silent for two seconds before turning to Su Chen.

"I like this girl. Bring her along."

Su Chen stepped into the canyon.

The vines beneath his feet trembled slightly, as though hesitating over whether to attack.

Iron Wall's enormous body followed close behind.

He cautiously extended a dark golden claw and lightly poked the vine beside him.

The vine suddenly snapped.

The king of Fearclaw Bears recoiled as if electrocuted, instantly pulling back his claw and obediently following behind Su Chen.

Su Chen looked at the verdant path leading deeper into the canyon.

This place had originally been a deathtrap.

But now, he had gained a trump card capable of ensnaring ten-thousand-year giant beasts.

The earth in the north was still splitting apart.

The hunting ground had been prepared.