Nine Treasures Has a Name, Fourth: Defense

It rained outside Sunset Forest.

The soil in the forest was soft, and water droplets clung to the leaves of the bushes. The Shrek team had walked less than five miles when Ma Hongjun had already stepped into two mud pits, his black team uniform trouser legs covered in yellow mud.

"I shouldn't have worn this."

"You're just as dirty in red." Oscar handed him a Recovery Sausage. "Want some?"

Ma Hongjun glanced at it. "We just left the city, and you're already feeding me this?"

"Forget it, it's only two Silver Soul Coin."

"Are you robbing me?"

The two bickered all the way, but Ning Rongrong, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. She raised her hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then looked down at a patch of grass that had been flattened.

A few small scales remained on the leaf surface, grayish-blue in color, with a metallic sheen at the edges. There was also a scratch on the tree trunk next to it, only knee-high, but two inches deep into the wood.

"Scale Armor Beast."

Tang San picked up a scale. "Its body length should be around three meters, and its cultivation level is over five thousand years. Its scales can withstand the impact of physical strength and Soul Power, which is perfect for the defensive enhancement that Rongrong needs."

Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up. "Let's find it."

Zhao Wuji walked over to the scratches and looked at them. "The Scale Armor Beast is timid; after being beaten, it likes to burrow into places with lots of rocks. There's a scree slope ahead; it's not too far."

The team immediately changed positions. Zhu Zhuqing went first to scout ahead, Tang San and Xiao Wu guarded Ning Rongrong's flanks, and Dai Mubai was at the very front. Yuan Yu lagged behind, the Rock Pattern inside his blade slowly brightening with the subtle tremors of the ground.

The tracks left by the Scale Armor Beast were not continuous.

Every so often it would slip into a crevice in the rock and circle around through another exit. Zhu Zhuqing chased after it twice but lost track of its scent each time, so Tang San had everyone scatter and search for freshly turned soil. Ning Rongrong quickly found half a footprint under a fallen tree, the edges of which were covered with damp moss from the rain.

"East," she pointed to the scree slope, "It just goes past here."

This assessment saved the team half an hour of detour.

Half an hour later, a low roar came from the scree slope.

The Scale Armor Beast lay crouching in the crevice of the rocks, its body resembling a giant pangolin, with layers of interlocking scales on its back and a short horn on its forehead. Upon spotting Zhu Zhuqing, it did not flee but quickly curled up and rolled down the slope.

Gravel was sent flying everywhere.

"Spread!"

Tang San released his Blue Silver Grass, which entangled the tree trunks on both sides. The group used the force to swing away, Scale Armor Beast rolled through the middle of the group, crashing into two small trees and breaking them in half.

Dai Mubai pounced on it before it could get up again.

The White Tiger Bodyguard Barrier and the White Tiger Vajra Transformation activated simultaneously. He pressed his palms against the back armor of the Scale Armor Beast, causing the ground beneath his feet to sink. The Soul Beast possessed immense strength, and with a twist of its body, it threw him aside, its short horns following up as it rammed into Ning Rongrong.

"The Nine Treasures Have Names: First: Strength; Second: Speed; Third: Soul!"

The three amplifications landed on Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, and Tang San. Ning Rongrong herself retreated swiftly without the slightest hesitation.

Blue Silver Cage rose from the ground.

The Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill trapped the Scale Armor Beast in the center, and the vines that had just closed were cut open by its sharp scales. As it broke out of the cage, Zhu Zhuqing had already stepped onto the stone wall next to her, Nether Slash straight at its abdomen.

The Scale Armor Beast immediately shrank its body.

"Its third row of scales on its belly closes slowly!"

Ning Rongrong called out from a distance.

She didn't make a move, but her eyes followed the Scale Armor Beast every time it turned. The three rows of abdominal armor would reveal a narrow gap when it ran, which was one of the few weak points on its body.

Yuan Yu did not draw his sword. The Rock Pattern beneath his feet shifted, and the rubble in front of the Scale Armor Beast simultaneously rose up, forming a stone embankment half a person's height.

The Scale Armor Beast crashed into the stone embankment, slowing its speed by a beat.

"Xiao Wu!"

Tang San's Blue Silver Grass wrapped around its hind legs. Xiao Wu leaped up from the side, her Scorpion-Tail Braid wrapping around the short horn, and with Waist Bow, she forcefully lifted the heavy body off the ground.

Dai Mubai seized the opportunity and punched it in the abdomen.

The Scale Armor Beast crashed into the mud, its belly armor splitting open. Ning Rongrong, who had already grasped the Short Sword Flender had given her, strode forward and thrust it through the gap.

The Soul Beast struggled a few times, then gradually stopped moving.

A deep purple Spirit Ring rose up.

Ning Rongrong sat on the dry Stone Platform, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda suspended in her palm, and slowly pulled the Spirit Ring toward herself. Flender stood behind her, a smile always on his lips, but he didn't nag about tuition fees as usual.

The impact of over five thousand years of cultivation was not light. Ning Rongrong's hands trembled, and the nine-colored light on the tower malfunctioned several times. The Aromatic Silk Beauty had modified her Martial Soul and body. Whenever the power of the Spirit Ring rushed into her meridians, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda would cast a layer of soft light, guiding that power back to the path of the Soul Power.

An hour later, the fourth purple Spirit Ring landed steadily.

Ning Rongrong didn't rush to get up. She performed three more cycles of energy circulation, channeling all the abundant Soul Power brought by the Scale Armor Beast into her meridians. With each layer of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda that lit up, a nine-colored halo rippled around her. The light from the fourth layer was even deeper than the previous three, and when it fell on a person, one could clearly feel that their skin and bones had an extra layer of support.

Ning Rongrong opened her eyes, and four Spirit Ring rose up simultaneously.

" Of the Nine Treasures Have Names, the fourth is defense!"

Six beams of nine-colored light shot out from the tower's tip, landing on his teammates. Dai Mubai clenched his fist, and a faint layer of light appeared on his skin. Zhao Wuji casually struck out with his palm, Dai Mubai only took half a step back.

"Defense increased by fifty percent." Ning Rongrong stood up, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "I'm level forty-one now."

Zhao Wuji increased his Soul Power by another ten percent and struck Dai Mubai's shoulder with his second palm. A section of the stone beneath Dai Mubai's feet shattered, but he only took two steps back.

"It's very useful in direct combat," Tang San said. "When Rongrong's four amplifications drop simultaneously, our front line can withstand one more round of Soul Skill."

Ning Rongrong looked at Flender: "Dean, how was this Spirit Ring selection?"

Flender nodded, hands behind his back. "His taste is barely similar to mine."

Zhao Wuji chimed in, "Tang San recognized the Scale Armor Beast, and Rongrong found its weakness."

Flender coughed. "I'll lead the way."

"You led us astray once."

"Old Zhao, give me some face in front of the students."

Oscar was the first to lean over. "Rongrong, could you give me extra credit next time?"

"It depends on their performance."

"I've been protecting you all day."

Ma Hongjun teased, "You've been selling sausages the whole way."

Laughter echoed across the gravel slope, startling the birds in the trees into flight.

Yuan Yu stood in the center of the battlefield left behind by the Scale Armor Beast. The Myriad Phenomena Origin Embryo deep within the Sun Wheel Blade. The Water Pattern absorbed the residual moisture after the rain, while the Rock Pattern gathered a small amount of free elements from between the broken scales and rocks.

The two forces are filtered through the inner tank and flow forward along the six bright channels.

The wheel still only rotated half a circle.

Yuan Yu looked at it for a while, then pushed the sword back into its sheath. "It's still missing a spark."

Ma Hongjun immediately patted his chest and walked over.

"That's easy. Once I find the Soul Beast, there will be plenty of fire."

Zhao Wuji gestured with his chin towards the depths of the forest.

There's something smoking over there.

In the distance, the trees swayed continuously, and a dark red scorpion tail swept across the canopy, causing the damp grass to curl up in its wake.

Tang San looked at the scorpion's tail, his gaze slightly narrowed.

"King of the Earth"

"Fatty, your fourth Spirit Ring has arrived."