Ye Fan reached out and poked the yellow Soul Ring.
His finger swept through the center of the Soul Ring.
It was like an illusion that did not exist.
"So this is a Soul Ring. What a fascinating thing. I wonder where it's stored normally?"
That question... even Xiao Wu could not answer.
She only knew that it had something to do with the soul.
Still, Ye Fan breathed a sigh of relief.
He had finally gotten rid of Tang San's first Soul Ring...
Tang San crouched in front of the Mandala Snake and struggled to pull the dying Luo Sanpao from beneath its jaws.
A trace of pity entered his eyes as he looked at him.
Pitiful as he was, he was also hilarious.
Luo Sanpao's eyes were rolled back, and his limbs were twitching.
Several rows of tooth marks had punctured the skin on his rear.
On closer inspection, purple venom was still flowing from the wounds, blending into Luo Sanpao's naturally purple hide.
Most importantly, his rear had been burned pitch-black.
Now it was impossible to tell which injury was the fatal one.
"Sanpao, Sanpao, are you all right?"
Tang San shook Luo Sanpao, trying to wake the fellow up.
Luo Sanpao: "..."
Do I look all right to you?
Luo Sanpao stubbornly held on, refusing to let himself dissipate.
Otherwise, his injuries would all transfer to Yu Xiaogang.
He knew perfectly well how useless his master was.
"Tang San, give it up. That snake's venom is potent... he probably can't hear you right now."
With that, Ye Fan looked at Yu Xiaogang and said in a quiet, ominous voice, "Who knows whether Grandmaster can withstand all those injuries... hopefully something happens to him."
A chill rose up Yu Xiaogang's back when Ye Fan's gaze swept over him.
Only then did he snap out of his delight.
Oh, right.
If Sanpao disappears, all of this will come back to me...
Although the damage would be reduced by more than half, it still did not seem like something he could withstand.
A burned backside, bite wounds, Mandala Snake venom...
Any one of those alone would give him a bitter cup to swallow.
Yu Xiaogang coughed, forcing himself to look calm.
"Sanpao, thank you for your hard work... but this is precisely the moment to test the strength of your will. Show your perseverance!! Show that snake venom just how strong you are!"
Luo Sanpao: "You %*!@#"
Luo Sanpao lay on the ground, opened his mouth, then slumped down helplessly and accepted his fate.
Reading Luo Sanpao's lips, Xiao Wu seemed to hear some wonderfully colorful language.
Her disdain for Yu Xiaogang grew even stronger.
He could clearly spare Luo Sanpao the suffering just by dismissing his Martial Soul.
What a turnoff!
Apart from Xiao Wu, there were no fools here.
Both Tang San and Ye Fan could tell that Yu Xiaogang was doing it deliberately.
After all, there was not even a healing Soul Master in this Soul Beast Forest. One careless mistake could get him killed before anyone could even attempt to save him.
Helpless, Tang San found a rope and strapped Luo Sanpao onto his back.
He also found Yu Xiaogang a wooden stick to use as a crutch.
Then he walked on, his face expressionless.
Carrying Yu Xiaogang was one thing, but now I even have to carry his pig...
Tang San had lost count of how many times he had regretted taking Yu Xiaogang as his teacher.
Ye Fan gloated from the sidelines.
"Keep it up, Tang San. There was just a battle nearby, so we can't stay here anyway. Still, putting a thousand meters or so between us and this place should be enough."
Was that something a human would say?
Tang San continued forward in silence.
This fellow was far too infuriating.
But they had not gone far before-
"Wait, San..."
Yu Xiaogang suddenly called Tang San to a halt, narrowing his eyes as he looked into the distance.
"Teacher, what's wrong?"
Tang San's mouth twitched. Was Yu Xiaogang about to stir up trouble again?
But as Yu Xiaogang stared at the clearing ahead, his eyes grew wider and wider.
"If I'm not mistaken... there's a hundred-year-old Plant-type Soul Beast over there," he said gravely.
A hundred-year-old Plant-type Soul Beast!?
At those words, Tang San quietly activated his Purple Demon Eye and looked over.
There was only a small purple flower in the clearing.
Its stem was so short that its petals almost touched the ground.
Yet it was the only thing growing in the entire clearing, making it look distinctly out of place.
"There's... no Soul Beast over there."
Could a little flower the size of Blue Silver Grass really be a Soul Beast?
Tang San suspected that Yu Xiaogang's aging eyes were failing him.
Before Tang San could finish, Ye Fan interrupted.
"No, there really is something there."
He could sense something over there into which he could project his inner voice.
"That's right. There's nothing else around it, so that must be a Demon Vine Tree's flower!" Xiao Wu said, backing Ye Fan up.
Tang San: "..."
Why did it feel like I was the only outsider here?
Even Xiao Wu was saying so.
Then that little flower must indeed be a Soul Beast.
Hearing both of them say so made Yu Xiaogang even more confident in his own eyes.
He instantly switched into lecture mode.
"That thing is called a Demon Vine Tree. Its petals are still pale purple, so it's no more than three hundred years old!
Although it's called a Demon Vine Tree, its main means of attack is the multitude of roots hidden underground.
Wherever its roots reach, they siphon nutrients from plants.
Where one grows, not a blade of grass survives within ten meters.
So we've wandered into its territory... San, this Soul Beast suits you very well too. It's the Plant-type Soul Beast you wanted!
Its traits should give your Blue Silver Grass tremendous staying power, as well as an area-of-effect Soul Skill!"
Yu Xiaogang was even happier than Tang San to see this Soul Beast.
If Tang San could absorb a Soul Ring, that meant he could finally be free!!
Ye Fan's brows twitched at Yu Xiaogang's words.
Was it really that convenient?
They had actually encountered such an evil Soul Beast.
With that thought, he began influencing Tang San through his inner voice.
[This Demon Vine Tree really is quite good. A Demon Vine Tree over ten thousand years old has roots stretching for a thousand miles and can even drain the earth's veins dry. It's practically a walking disaster... unfortunately, it doesn't suit me.]
Of course, everything above was nonsense Ye Fan had made up.
It was all to sell this Soul Beast to him...
Sure enough, after hearing Ye Fan's words, Tang San felt reassured.
He was just about to step forward.
"San, don't!"
Yu Xiaogang suddenly called out to stop him.
"The Demon Vine Tree's roots are like traps. They'll launch a sudden attack when you approach."
Tang San felt a shiver of belated fear.
So that was it. I'd been so excited just now that I'd forgotten what Yu Xiaogang said about it.
It attacked with its roots...
Just then, Xiao Wu suggested, "If you have a ranged attack, there's no need to fear this fellow. Flying Soul Beasts are its natural enemies."
Even such an evil Soul Beast had its weaknesses.
Its true body was that little flower.
It used it to lure in herbivorous Soul Beasts.
If Tang San could get rid of it, he would count as having done a good deed.
Tang San nodded, looking at Xiao Wu with gratitude in his eyes.
He touched the Sleeve Arrow on his wrist.
Before you continue