Yu Xiaogang Wants to Force Xiao Lin to Admit His Mistake!

"Thank you, Teacher Li. I understand." Xiao Lin turned and left, his steps steady and without the slightest trace of panic.

He had barely stepped out of the teaching building when he spotted a familiar figure standing beside the flower bed ahead, hands clasped behind his back and a triumphant expression on his face.

Yu Xiaogang had deliberately waited for him here.

"Well, Xiao Lin?" Yu Xiaogang drawled, unable to conceal the smugness in his voice. "Have you realized that no one in the entire academy is willing to accompany you to hunt Soul Beasts?"

Xiao Lin stopped and looked at him expressionlessly.

"I told you long ago that you would regret this." Yu Xiaogang paced over to him and looked down at him, carrying himself exactly like a rooster that had won a fight.

"Still, I am a generous man, and I am willing to give you another chance. As long as you admit your mistake to me, acknowledge before all the teachers and students in the academy that your previous remarks were wrong, and then take me as your master, I will help you obtain your first Soul Ring."

He paused, then added, "Do you know how many years Tang San's first Soul Ring had? More than four hundred years! A Mandala Snake! I personally helped him hunt it down! If you take me as your master, I guarantee I can find you an equally high-quality Soul Ring!"

After hearing that, Xiao Lin nearly failed to keep a straight face.

Personally hunted it down? Are you sure you personally hunted it down? If I remember correctly, when you took Tang San to the Soul Hunting Forest and encountered that Mandala Snake in the original story, your legs went weak from fright. In the end, Tang San was the one who dealt with it using the Mysterious Jade Hand and hidden weapons, wasn't he?

You were dead weight the entire time. How had it become your kill once it came out of your mouth?

This man was not only petty, but his skin was astonishingly thick as well.

"No need." Xiao Lin refused cleanly. "I can handle it myself."

The smile on Yu Xiaogang's face froze. "You can handle it yourself? You are a child without even a Soul Ring. What are you going to use to handle it? Do you know how dangerous the Soul Hunting Forest is? It is full of Soul Beasts. Any random Hundred-Year Soul Beast could take your life!"

"That is my business." Xiao Lin walked around him and continued forward.

"You will die!" Yu Xiaogang shouted behind him. "Do you think I am trying to harm you? I am trying to save you! You are a six-year-old child. Going alone into the Soul Hunting Forest is suicide!"

Without looking back, Xiao Lin waved a hand. "Don't worry. I'm hard to kill."

"You!" Yu Xiaogang stamped his feet in fury. "Stubborn beyond redemption! Rotten wood cannot be carved! When you come back crying and begging me, let's see how you will have the face to meet me!"

Xiao Lin ignored him.

He returned to his dormitory, packed some simple provisions and water, wiped down the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute once more, then walked out through Nuoding Academy's gates without looking back.

The Soul Hunting Forest lay northeast of Notting City, roughly half a day's journey from the academy.

It was a vast primeval forest inhabited by large numbers of ten-year and Hundred-Year Soul Beasts. Thousand Year Soul Beasts occasionally appeared as well, making it the main hunting ground for Soul Masters from several nearby cities.

By the time Xiao Lin reached the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest, it was already afternoon. The setting sun dyed the entire forest golden-red, and from afar, it looked as though flames danced along the treetops.

He did not rush in. Instead, he found an open patch at the edge of the forest and sat down, seriously considering a question: what kind of Soul Beast should he hunt for his first Soul Ring?

The Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute was an exceptionally unusual Martial Soul.

It was neither a conventional weapon like a saber, spear, sword, or halberd, nor a beast Martial Soul like a ferocious beast or bird. It was an instrument.

An instrument's strength depended largely on whether its user could bring out its characteristics. The Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute's defining trait was melody.

Therefore, his ideal Soul Ring should come from some kind of Soul Beast related to sound.

Only then could the Soul Skill attached to the Soul Ring perfectly complement the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute and produce an effect where one plus one was greater than two.

Xiao Lin searched through his memories from his previous life, trying to recall which sound-related Soul Beasts existed on Douluo Continent.

Unfortunately, his memories of the original story had already been vague, and after transmigrating, he had forgotten many details. After thinking for a long time, he only recalled several common sound-type Soul Beasts, such as Howling Sky Wolves and Sonic Bats.

"I'll go in and take a look first." Xiao Lin rose to his feet and stepped into the Soul Hunting Forest.

The scene inside the forest was completely different from what people imagined. Towering ancient trees blotted out the sky, while their dense canopies broke the sunlight into countless scattered specks that fell over the leaf-covered ground.

The air was filled with the damp smell of soil and decaying plants. From time to time, beast roars sounded in the distance, echoing through the dim forest.

Xiao Lin advanced cautiously, remaining alert at every moment.

He had no Soul Ring and no Soul Skills. His only support was the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute and the physical conditioning he had developed in his previous life.

Although he had cultivated to level ten, level-ten Soul Power without a Soul Ring was only slightly stronger than an ordinary person. If he truly encountered a powerful Soul Beast, he would not even have a chance to flee.

So he had to be cautious, and then even more cautious.

Along the way, he encountered quite a few Soul Beasts. There were ten-year Gale Wolves, Hundred-Year Ironclad Rhinoceroses, and some strange, grotesque creatures whose names he did not know.

But those Soul Beasts either did not suit his needs, were too low in age, or were too difficult to deal with. He passed on every one of them.

Time ticked by, and the sun gradually sank westward. The light inside the forest grew dimmer and dimmer.

Xiao Lin's mood began to grow restless as well.

He had searched for an entire afternoon. His legs were nearly broken from walking, yet he still had not found a suitable Soul Beast. Was he really going to return empty-handed? Was he really going to bow his head to Yu Xiaogang?

No, absolutely not.

He would rather go without a first Soul Ring than lower his head to that plagiarist.

Xiao Lin leaned against a massive ancient tree and sat down wearily. He took out his waterskin and gulped down several mouthfuls of water, then pulled two dry flatbreads from his clothes and mechanically chewed them.

The bread was dry and hard, like chewing rocks, but he could not concern himself with that now. He needed to replenish his strength.

Just as he lowered his head and gnawed on the bread, an extremely faint sound suddenly reached his ears.

Bzzzzzz.

The sound was so soft that if he had not happened to stop and rest, and if he had not possessed an extraordinary sensitivity to sound, he would never have noticed it.

The sound came from underground, from deep beneath the patch of earth where he was sitting, as if countless insects were beating their wings at once.

Xiao Lin's movements abruptly froze.

He lowered himself to the ground, pressed an ear against the earth, held his breath, and listened closely.

Bzzzzzz.

The sound grew clearer. It was not one or two of them, but a swarm! A massive swarm! They moved deep underground, producing an unceasing high-frequency hum. The sound pierced through soil and stone, reaching the surface and creating a strange resonance.

Xiao Lin's heart pounded wildly.

He had a feeling—there was something good beneath him.