The Red-haired Punk

"A red-haired young man?" Su Chen stiffened, a name surfacing in his mind.

"Yes. You can tell at a glance that he's no good. Yesterday, he was chatting away happily with Huanhuan, and today, he had his arm around Lanlan as if nothing had happened. If this goes on, every girl in Holy Soul Village will have her reputation ruined!" Old Jack said worriedly.

Su Chen thought, Could it be Ma Hongjun?

Then Su Chen dismissed the idea. According to the timeline, Ma Hongjun should have been getting along wonderfully with a girl named Cuihua at this point!

"All right. Grandpa Jack, do you know where he's staying? I'll go have a word with him!" Su Chen replied.

Su Chen looked at the villagers around him, their farming tools in hand. Even though they knew this place was dangerous, their concern for him had still driven them to venture into the forest. This was what being true neighbors meant.

"We don't need to know where he's staying. He comes to our village every afternoon. Judging by the time, he should be arriving about now!" Old Jack said.

"In that case, take me to meet him!" Su Chen said with a faint smile. He wanted to see just who this person was, too!

"Su Chen, what should we do about this mission? I chased him through several villages!" Hu Liena asked, somewhat unwilling to let it go. Her gaze rested on the Evil Soul Master's corpse.

In three years, Hu Liena would have to compete in the Continental Elite Soul Master Tournament. If she could not earn five thousand points within two years and receive a Purple Merit Badge from her teacher, Bibi Dong, it would be an utter disgrace to her.

"Work it out with Zhang Ping. That includes the points from the mission to kill the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent," Su Chen said with a smile.

"Really?"

Joy welled up in Zhang Ping's heart. She had indeed contributed earlier, but the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent had died at Su Chen's hands. Under the rules, Su Chen would receive most of the points in the end. She had thought she might have made the trip for nothing, never expecting Su Chen to give her all the points.

"Yes." Su Chen nodded.

Even if Su Chen had not arrived in time today, Zhang Ping would still have completed the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent mission. Besides, with a Titled Douluo secretly protecting Zhang Ping, Su Yuntao and Ma Xiunuo would not have been in mortal danger either.

"All right, in that case..."

Overjoyed, Zhang Ping rested her index finger against her red lips and thought for a moment before saying, "You didn't contribute to killing the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent, and I didn't contribute to killing the Evil Soul Master. If Su Chen hadn't intervened, you would certainly have killed him. I'll take the points for killing the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent, and you take the points for killing the Evil Soul Master. Does that work for you?"

"Yes." Hu Liena nodded.

Zhang Ping and Hu Liena quickly reached an agreement that pleased them both.

By then, Su Chen had already taken out a dagger and cut the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's corpse into several pieces.

"Grandpa Jack, have the villagers distribute its remains." Su Chen gave the hand holding his dagger a slight shake, flicking off the blood, then put the dagger into his ring Soul Tool.

"You want us to eat its meat?" Old Jack asked in surprise.

"Yes. The Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent is one of the rare nonvenomous snake Soul Beasts. It had over a thousand years of cultivation, so its meat contains a wealth of energy. Eating it can strengthen your body and prolong your life!" Su Chen replied with a smile.

"It can do all that?" Old Jack was tempted.

"Yes. Also, snakes are solitary animals. Outside the breeding season, they don't attract one another, and even then, they only attract their own kind. Phoenix-tail Crested Serpents are very rare around here. You can keep its spine and place it in the village. It can help intimidate and repel rats and certain other animals," Su Chen added.

"Good." Delighted, Old Jack looked Su Chen over with satisfaction and pride.

After six years away, Su Chen had learned more than Old Jack had in his entire life. Holy Soul Village relied on crops as a major source of income, and rodents and insects were a serious scourge on those crops. If they could reduce the damage those pests caused, it would be a great blessing for Holy Soul Village.

Old Jack immediately waved his hand, signaling for the villagers present to carry the snake meat and bones back.

"Su Chen, tell your Grandpa Jack-what level are you now?" Old Jack asked with concern.

"A level forty Soul Grandmaster!" Su Chen answered honestly.

"Level forty already?" Old Jack's eyes widened.

One could become a Soul Saint after reaching level seventy, yet Su Chen was only twelve, and his Soul Power had already reached level forty. To Old Jack, this meant Holy Soul Village was about to produce another Soul Saint!

Nearly two hundred years had passed since the village's last Soul Saint appeared. So much time had elapsed that many people believed it was merely a legend. If Holy Soul Village produced another Soul Saint, Old Jack wanted to see who would still dare claim that its name was undeserved.

No-Old Jack looked at Su Chen. The boy was only twelve, yet his Soul Power had already reached level forty. Could it be that this time, Holy Soul Village would produce not a Soul Saint, but a Soul Douluo?

If Su Chen really became a Soul Douluo, what should they rename the village? Luo Dou Hun Village? No, that sounds awful. How about Soul Fighting Village?

All along the way, Old Jack's mouth seemed to have been smeared with honey, his smile utterly radiant. That only changed when he reached the village entrance.

"Su Chen, that's him!" Old Jack's gaze landed on a red-haired young man ahead.

The red-haired young man was tugging at a girl. He was broad and plump, with red hair styled into a mohawk, red clothes, and slightly reddish skin. From a distance, he looked like a ball of flame.

The red-haired young man was trailing a purple-haired girl, repeatedly trying to hold her hand. Yet every time he made an intimate move, she pulled free. Her expression was utterly resolute.

"Sisi, give me one more chance. I'll definitely control myself."

"No. I can't stand the way you behave. My mother told me not to associate with men like you!"

"Sisi, haven't I treated you well?"

"You've treated me very well, but you're always getting handsy with me. My mother said I should save my most precious thing for my wedding night. Every time, you say you can control yourself, but every time we go on a date, you get handsy. It looks like my mother was right. You men only date us women because you want to do that!"

"Sisi, my feelings for you are sincere!"

"Oh, spare me. You've said that to Huanhuan and Lanlan too, haven't you? Ma Hongjun, don't come looking for me again. I won't be with you."

"Haven't I treated you well?"

"You've treated me very well, but your Martial Soul and your personality make you impossible for me to bear."