"Little San, today I'll teach you another lesson! Never put all your eggs in one basket!"
"I chose the Nethermist Lizard for my third soul ring after considering several factors."
"First, the Nethermist Lizard mainly releases its soul skills through its mouth. It might change the direction of my soul skills!"
"And I could even take a gamble on gaining a spiritual soul skill!"
"Second, as I said, it carries a faint trace of fire dragon blood! That could cause a beneficial mutation in my martial soul!"
"Third, the Nethermist Lizard contains a neurotoxin!"
"Even if the first two possibilities fall through, I can still rely on its poison to become a control system Soul Elder!"
"I'd even have a fighting chance against a level-forty Soul Ancestor!"
Perhaps obtaining an exceptional soul bone had made Yu Xiaogang more talkative.
"Teacher, I understand!" Tang San's respect deepened, and he cupped his hands reverently.
As expected of the Grandmaster whose theories were unrivaled, he approached everything methodically.
"Pack up your things. We'll head home tomorrow morning."
Seeing that it was getting late, Yu Xiaogang prepared to set up camp.
"Teacher, aren't you going to test your soul skill?"
"No, I'll take my time testing it when we get back."
Faced with the dean's and Tang San's curiosity, Yu Xiaogang waved a hand.
Seeing that Yu Xiaogang was unwilling to elaborate, neither of them pressed him.
They took out the dry provisions and tents they carried, then sprinkled a ring of realgar wine around the campsite to repel insects.
Yu Xiaogang and the dean took turns keeping watch.
As night gradually fell, their surroundings sank into pitch darkness.
"Little San, go rest in the tent. Thank you for your hard work these past few days. We still have a journey ahead of us tomorrow!"
"Teacher, I'm not sleepy!"
Tang San, who was resting against a large tree, insisted.
"You won't even listen to your teacher anymore!" Yu Xiaogang's expression darkened.
"Then I'll just..."
Before he finished speaking, Tang San abruptly looked into the darkness.
Since his Purple Demon Eye had only reached the panoramic-view realm and could not see at night, Tang San could only locate things by sound.
"Little San, what is it?" Yu Xiaogang immediately grew alert.
Hearing the commotion, the dean came out of his tent as well.
"Teacher, I think something's moving over there!"
They followed Tang San's pointing finger toward a dense clump of bushes.
"Fire Snake Spear!"
The dean immediately summoned a crimson spear martial soul, its shaft wrapped in the pattern of a fiery snake.
The martial soul's own firelight illuminated the surroundings ahead.
"A thousand-year Medusa!"
All three of them could not help crying out.
Medusa was an extremely rare humanoid serpentine soul beast on the Douluo Continent, possessing the innate skill of a petrifying gaze.
It was said that once a Medusa cultivated for ten thousand years, she could evolve into a Medusa Queen, earning the title of empress among snakes!
She was cunning by nature, adept at lurking and ambushing, and highly intelligent.
Even a Medusa who had only just reached a thousand years could rival a Nethermist Lizard of around three thousand years!
Worst of all, the night was utterly dark, hampering the soul masters' vision, while Medusa could see in the dark.
The dean would have struggled to retreat alone, let alone with two burdens in tow.
"Why would Medusa appear on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest?"
The dean could not make sense of it and gripped the Fire Snake Spear tightly with both hands.
Yu Xiaogang and Tang San exchanged glances, feeling an overwhelming sense of familiarity.
Hadn't they encountered the four-hundred-year Mandala Snake in exactly the same way on their first trip into the Soul Hunting Forest?
Could I really be a lone star of calamity?
The same thought surfaced in Yu Xiaogang's and Tang San's minds.
Medusa coiled her tail, then sprang forward, shooting toward them as fast as lightning, too quickly for their eyes to follow.
"Grandmaster, watch out!"
"Fourth soul skill, Fire Python Entanglement!"
The Soul Ancestor dean raised his spear, and his fourth, purple soul ring shone. The spear he hurled burst apart, turning into a fire python that coiled toward her.
Medusa abruptly lowered her tail, then leaped into the air, evading the dean's fourth soul skill.
As a tool-type Soul Ancestor, what did he have left after losing his tool martial soul?
Unable to recall his spear martial soul in time, the dean could only cover his head and scurry away like a rat.
He was almost sick with hatred for the soul skill Yu Xiaogang had found him.
According to Yu Xiaogang, anything caught in its coils would struggle to escape-but you never said I had to aim it myself!
"Miststep!"
Yu Xiaogang seized the opportunity. Pale-purple soul power surged into his right leg, and he leaped up, unleashing a Gangzi flying kick.
The terrifying stomp crashed down with level-thirty-one soul power behind it. Unable to dodge in time, Medusa was kicked flying.
It was back!
Everything was back!
This was the power a theoretical Grandmaster like him deserved!
"Teacher!" Tang San cried excitedly.
He had never expected the soul skill contained in that soul bone to be so powerful!
Tang San could tell at a glance that Yu Xiaogang's combat strength came entirely from that thousand-year right leg bone!
The instant Yu Xiaogang landed, he planted his foot firmly and drove through his right leg again, shooting forward like an arrow.
"Grandmaster, don't chase a cornered foe!" the dean hurriedly shouted.
But it was clearly already too late.
Yu Xiaogang had become so carried away that he completely forgot Medusa's true killing move was her pair of petrifying eyes.
The next instant.
Two gray-white petrification beams blasted straight out.
Yu Xiaogang braked with his right leg, hurriedly turning to dodge.
Whether it was because Yu Xiaogang had not fought in too long or for some other reason, he could not tell.
The instant he tried to turn sharply, the muscles in his right leg suddenly ached, and then his lower body went rigid.
"No!"
"Wish-Granting Tree, this wasn't the wish I wanted!"
Yu Xiaogang instantly remembered the wish he had made before leaving.
He was consumed by regret. Why had he clung to that pitiful shred of pride? He had only been reciting it silently in his mind, yet he had still worded it so vaguely.
Fortunately, Medusa's petrification beams had a time limit. As long as his body was not shattered, he could still recover...
Just as that thought settled, Medusa was already upon him. Her thick tail tore through the air and slammed into his right leg.
"Aaaaaah..."
Yu Xiaogang let out an agonized howl. The dean and Tang San were too far away to come to his rescue.
They could only watch as Yu Xiaogang's right leg shattered, the Thousand-Year Soul Bone flew out, and his soul power dropped ten whole levels!
It's over. My five hundred gold soul coins.
The first thought that surfaced in the dean's mind was that Yu Xiaogang would no longer be able to repay him.
"Teacher!" Tang San stared unblinkingly at the Thousand-Year Soul Bone, a grief-stricken cry escaping his lips.
Having landed her blow, Medusa was about to strike again when she suddenly saw the dean recall his flaming spear.
She dared not linger and swiftly darted into the forest.
The instant the soul bone hit the ground, Tang San rushed forward using Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, picked it up, and ran to his teacher.
"Teacher, your soul bone, your soul power..."
Hearing Tang San's words, Yu Xiaogang's vision went black.
He had become that useless Soul Grandmaster again. He was even worse off than before-his soul power was only level twenty-one now.
"Heavens! Why do you treat me, Yu Xiaogang, so cruelly!"
Not only had his soul power regressed to the Soul Grandmaster rank, but he had also become a cripple.
"Little San!" Overcome with grief, Yu Xiaogang looked at Tang San. "Absorb this soul bone and inherit my will. You must become the strongest soul master on the continent!"
Although it was only a Thousand-Year Soul Bone, its quality was exceptional, scarcely inferior to an ordinary Ten Thousand Year Soul Bone!
It was also an excellent match for Tang San's second martial soul, the Clear Sky Hammer. By stabilizing his weight through his right leg, it would allow him to unleash even greater power!
Without Tang Hao's intervention, this was already the finest soul bone Yu Xiaogang could obtain!
In an age when soul bones had a price but no sellers, obtaining one comparable to a ten-thousand-year bone was already a blessing wrested from heaven!
Even if Clear Sky Douluo stood here, he would have nothing to criticize.
"Teacher, I won't let you down!"
Tang San seized the soul bone and refined it in an instant!
With this exceptional Thousand-Year Soul Bone, he would set foot on the path to becoming the strongest!
The next morning, at Nouding Academy.
While cultivating his Purple Demon Eye, Xu Yuan suddenly remembered that Tang San had fallen unconscious for three days and nights after absorbing the Blue Silver Emperor's Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.
If he waited until the holidays to search for it, Xiao Wu would probably follow him, and the two of them would have to make a detour to the Star Dou Great Forest together.
In that case, there would be many things he could not explain.
After thinking for a moment, Xu Yuan decided to set out early in search of the soul bone of the hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor.
Before you continue