Encountering Zhu Zhuqing!

Star Dou Great Forest!

A spotted leopard was drinking by the river. On closer look, it was a Black-Striped Leopard!

Spotted leopards came in several grades: white-striped, yellow-striped, purple-striped, and black-striped. Red-striped ones had never appeared in recorded history... The grades corresponded to ten years, a hundred years, a thousand years, and ten thousand years...

And the one drinking was a Black-Striped Leopard! It was still lost in the pleasure of drinking, utterly unaware that danger had already descended.

A hundred meters away, a young man who looked eighteen or nineteen stood in a tree, his eyes gleaming green. "Three days without meat. Today, I finally get to eat some!"

That young man was Yang Que. Four years of training in the Star Dou Great Forest had made him look older, but he was still only eleven!

He had spent three straight days secluded in a cave, breaking through to level thirty-five. Now he looked almost like a wild man! His face was dusty, his clothes filthy; he clearly had not washed in days.

Even so, none of that could hide his charm! He wore a long green robe, with long hair draped loosely over his shoulders. Beneath his sword-shaped brows, his eyes shone brightly.

Just as the Black-Striped Leopard finished drinking, Yang Que charged! Its guard was lowest at that moment. After all, it was a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast; defeating it, let alone killing it, would take some effort. Eager to fill his stomach, Yang Que chose to strike when it was most relaxed!

"Whirling Slash!" Yang Que drew his somewhat battered Clearwind Sword and swung at the Black-Striped Leopard! A red sword beam slashed toward its neck, but as expected of a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, its reactions were sharp. It rolled aside and avoided the fatal blow, though the strike still caught its left leg!

Blood poured from its leg, driving the Black-Striped Leopard into a frenzy. "Roar!" It sprang at Yang Que, heedless of its wound. It wanted to tear apart the human who had hurt it!

"Ah, Whirling Slash can't do much damage to Soul Beasts at this level anymore! Then I'll test the move I recently figured out on you." Unhurried, Yang Que held his sword across his chest.

"Sword Intent: Windblown Catkins!"

That was the Sword Intent Yang Que had grasped over the past two years, and he had created a move of his own from it! In the original story, Sword Douluo seemed to have grasped Sword Intent too, even reaching the state of becoming one with his sword!

Sword Intent so dense it seemed solid swept in from every direction, slashing wildly at the Black-Striped Leopard!

"Roar! Roar, roar!" The Black-Striped Leopard howled in pain. Wounds covered its body, and blood gushed from them. Weakened by the loss of blood, it collapsed, though it was not yet dead. It glared at Yang Que with venom in its eyes, as if waiting to deliver one final, fatal blow!

"Huh! You survived that? A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast really is something! Then take one more!"

"Sword Shadow Thrust!" Yang Que sent the Clearwind Sword spinning into the air, gathered Sword Intent and Soul Power along its blade, then drove it hard toward the Black-Striped Leopard with his mental power!

At that moment, the Black-Striped Leopard unleashed its final attack. A beam shot from its mouth and slammed into the oncoming sword. Boom! In the end, the Black-Striped Leopard exhausted its strength and died beneath Yang Que's blade!

The Clearwind Sword plunged deep into its skull!

Yang Que walked over and pulled it free. The Clearwind Sword was covered in damage now; even its tip had shattered!

"Ah, old friend. You stayed with me so long, but in the end, you still broke." With a heavy heart, Yang Que put the Clearwind Sword away. As he grew stronger, so did the enemies he faced. The sword could no longer keep pace with him!

Yang Que gathered himself, hoisted the Black-Striped Leopard onto his shoulder, and walked upstream...

A huge waterfall rose ahead, its rushing waters pounding down into the river below! Towering trees lined both banks, with hills beyond them. Halfway up one of the taller peaks was a cave entrance—the cave Yang Que had dug when he arrived four years ago!

Carrying the Black-Striped Leopard, Yang Que climbed into the cave as nimbly as a monkey!

Inside stood a simple stone bed, along with a few stone stools and a stone table!

Yang Que dropped the Black-Striped Leopard and was about to light a fire to roast it and fill his stomach!

Just then, waves of Soul Power erupted from the forest not far from his cave entrance...

"Hm? What's going on? Is someone hunting Soul Beasts? They're coming closer, too! No, I can't let them find my Cave Abode. I'd better take a look!" Puzzled, Yang Que looked into the distance, then set off...

Bang! A curvaceous woman was struck and sent crashing into a large tree!

She was tall, with a shapely figure and a face lovely enough to topple kingdoms. Her tight black outfit traced every curve. Long black hair streamed behind her, and a pair of playful cat ears rose from her head! The sight stirred distinctly improper thoughts!

A trickle of blood hung at the corner of her fair-skinned face, lending her beauty a touch of tragedy!

From a tree some distance away, Yang Que watched with keen interest. "Well, well! That must be Zhu Zhuqing, right? She's even more beautiful than the original story described. No wonder Boss Dai was so infatuated with her! I wouldn't be able to resist either!"

"Those three chasing her must be from her family, right? This should be when her family hunted her down in the original story! Well, well. Three Soul Kings chasing a little girl with two Soul Rings. How impressive!" Yang Que clicked his tongue in wonder!

Bang! The woman was struck again and slammed into a tree!

She had a tall, shapely figure, a face lovely enough to topple kingdoms, and a black bodysuit that hugged her curves. Her long black hair streamed behind her, and a pair of playful cat ears sat atop her head!

Blood lingered at the corner of her lips, making her fair face look all the more tragically beautiful!

Yang Que stood in a distant tree, watching with interest. "That should be Zhu Zhuqing, right? She's even prettier than the original story described. No wonder Boss Dai was so smitten with her!"

"The three chasing her must be from her family. Three Soul Kings against a little girl with two Soul Rings—how impressive!"

"Who are you people? You've chased me from the Star Luo Empire all the way to the border of the Star Dou Empire! What do you want?" Zhu Zhuqing demanded through gritted teeth!

Their answer was an arrow!

Thwack! The arrow buried itself in Zhu Zhuqing's right leg!

Zhu Zhuqing gritted her teeth and endured it without a cry. "Heh. You don't have to tell me. My dear elder sister sent you, didn't she? She really won't stop until I'm dead. Is she so cold-blooded she can't let me go? Fine. Kill me, and you can go back to report." She had given up resisting. After fleeing so far for so long, her Soul Power was exhausted. Only her fierce will had carried her this far...

The three Soul Kings said nothing. One raised his bow, ready to put an end to the affair. He drew and fired. Whoosh!

The arrow flew straight at Zhu Zhuqing! She slowly closed her eyes, ready for death!

Clack! A pebble flew in and knocked the arrow off course. It buried itself in the dirt beside Zhu Zhuqing!

"Who's there?" The Soul King in the lead scanned the surroundings, suddenly on guard!

When death did not come, Zhu Zhuqing opened her eyes, wondering who had saved her!

"Heh. Three Soul Kings hunting one little Soul Master. How interesting!" Yang Que's voice rang through the forest, seeming to come from near and far at once!

"Who's there? Show yourself! What sort of hero hides in the shadows?" The three Soul Kings felt a chill. The unknown was frightening!

"You think you're worthy of seeing me? Get lost. This girl is under my protection!" Yang Que rasped at the three Soul Kings, putting on a hoarse voice!

"Heh, a rat who won't show his face! Brothers, don't be afraid. He's only bluffing. Let's send our young lady on her way, then go back and report. That rat won't dare come out!" The speaker was clearly the leader. He was shrewd enough to know those words might force Yang Que into the open!

"So it really is you! What a cold-blooded family. Isn't that right, Ming Yi, Ming Er, Ming San?" Hearing them call her "young lady," Zhu Zhuqing quickly recognized the three men. She stared at them coldly!

"Heh. Young lady, we're only following orders. You stood in someone's way," Ming Yi said.

"Heh! Then it seems we'll have to fight!" Yang Que feigned anger, hoping to scare off the three Soul Kings. But he was doomed to disappointment. Rather than retreat, they released their Martial Souls and closed in on Zhu Zhuqing!

All three Soul Kings possessed the Hell Spirit Cat Martial Soul, and each had a standard Soul Ring Configuration: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black! Fifteen Soul Rings appeared in all, and their terrifying Soul Power swept through that patch of forest!

Ah, so I really do have to fight. I'm going to get hurt today. Three Soul Kings—how am I supposed to beat them?

Yang Que slowly stepped out of the forest! The Blood Sword, wreathed in Blood Fiend Aura, appeared beside him. Three Soul Rings rose around his body!

Purple, purple, black!

His powerful Soul Power surged forward, colliding with and countering the pressure from the three Soul Kings!

"What? What kind of Soul Ring Configuration is that? What sort of monster is this guy?" Ming Yi's eyes widened in disbelief! The other two looked equally stunned!

Even Zhu Zhuqing was shocked. Who is he? He looks so young, but that Soul Ring Configuration is terrifying!

Those last two Soul Rings were the fruits of Yang Que's four years of training! One came from an eight-thousand-year Explosive Demon Tiger, the other from a twenty-thousand-year Demon-Toothed Giant Crocodile! Their abilities were Armor-Piercing Blade, which did just what its name suggested, and Burning Blade, which burned blood qi for a burst of strength! The latter was a move that hurt its user almost as much as the enemy!

When they saw Yang Que's face, Ming San burst out laughing. "Hahaha! I thought you were some hidden master! You're just a brat!" Contempt filled his face!

Ming Yi addressed Yang Que with a grave expression. "You're a prodigy. Why wade into these muddy waters? Leave now, and we'll pretend nothing happened!" They were in the Star Dou Great Forest. A prodigy like this would surely have a powerful guardian accompanying him for training, and Ming Yi wanted no complications!

But he was wrong. Yang Que really was alone!

"Go! Don't worry about me! We're strangers who met by chance. There's no need to risk your life for someone cast aside like me," Zhu Zhuqing said bleakly.

"The boss is letting you off, so get lost! If you want to play hero and save a beauty, pick your target better! Hahaha!" Ming Er jeered.

Yang Que said nothing. He activated his Soul Skills!

Blood Qi Burning!

Third Soul Skill: Burning Blade!

First Soul Skill: Blood Blade!

Three massive blood blades slashed toward the three Soul Kings!

"Damn! That Soul Skill is strong! Block it!" Ming Yi reacted first, releasing his Soul Power to defend himself!

Yang Que seized the chance to scoop up Zhu Zhuqing and run! He was outnumbered and outmatched—what else should he do, stay and wait to die? If there had been only one Soul King, he would have fought him!

With Burning Blade boosting his strength through blood qi and Blood Blade adding power to his attack, he could not kill the three men, but he could wound them and hold them back for a moment. That should give us time to put some distance between us, Yang Que thought...