Standing not far behind Zhao Su, Zhu Zhuqing gazed at his back, a hint of dreaminess creeping into her eyes.
Not only his manner of speaking, but also the kitten he had given her and the strength he possessed had stirred unfamiliar feelings in her heart.
Zhu Zhuqing had been born into a noble family as well.
Yet from the moment she was born, the elders of her family had already locked her life into place.
They had betrothed her to Dai Mubai, a prince of the Star Luo Empire, when she was little.
Her entire life had been bound to Dai Mubai's since childhood.
She did not like that kind of life.
Under the persuasion of her parents and the elders of her family, however, she had gradually come to accept a life completely arranged by others.
Otherwise, she would never have come to Shrek Academy in Suotuo City to find Dai Mubai.
But after seeing Dai Mubai again and witnessing his debauched lifestyle, she had lost even more hope for her future.
That was why she wore a blank expression every day and remained so cold.
Zhao Su, however, made her feel something different.
"What are you still doing here? Go back to bed!"
Just then, Zhao Wuji's piercing voice rang out, jolting Zhu Zhuqing out of her daze as she stared at Zhao Su.
She took a deep breath to settle her thoughts, then returned to their room with Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong.
By the time this little interlude ended, it was already late.
They had to get up early the next morning and head to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt soul beasts.
Zhao Su and Zhao Wuji finished drinking as well and returned to their respective rooms to rest.
The next morning, dawn had barely broken.
Zhao Wuji roused everyone to set out for the Star Dou Great Forest.
They were still over a hundred li from the Star Dou Great Forest. They needed to get there as quickly as possible, hunt a suitable soul beast for Oscar, and leave the forest before dark if they could.
With Zhao Su as their powerful backstop, Zhao Wuji felt considerably more at ease.
Still, for safety's sake, it was best to leave before nightfall.
The Star Dou Great Forest was different from the forests where the empire kept soul beasts.
Not only did it contain a vast variety of soul beasts, but it also housed exceptionally powerful ones tens of thousands of years old.
Although Zhao Su's group traveled on foot,
Oscar's restorative sausages kept them going, allowing them to move very quickly.
Before long, Zhao Su's group reached the Star Dou Great Forest.
The forest seemed boundless, its towering trees blotting out the sky and sun.
Before they actually entered the Star Dou Great Forest, Zhao Wuji gave Tang San and the others another few words of caution.
Zhao Wuji led the way, Tang San and the other six stayed in the middle, and Zhao Su brought up the rear.
With Zhao Su there, they really did not need to go to all this trouble. They could simply head straight in to find a suitable soul beast.
But Zhao Su said nothing and merely followed quietly behind them.
Zhao Su knew they could encounter the Titan Giant Ape, Er Ming, here. He was now considering whether to kill Er Ming right away or wait and hunt him together with the Sky Azure Bull Python.
There was also that hundred-thousand-year-old Plum Blossom Deer, who had appeared only briefly in the original story.
Before long, with Zhao Wuji's help, they captured a thousand-year-old Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent for Oscar.
"Wait!"
Just as Zhao Wuji urged Oscar to finish off the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent and absorb its soul ring,
a voice rang out, interrupting Oscar.
They looked toward the voice and saw an old man who appeared to be in his sixties, accompanied by someone dressed as a boy whose features were too delicate for a boy and looked more like a girl's.
Zhao Su recognized the old man. He had seen him before at Spirit Hall. He was She Long, the Snake Lance Douluo, one of the two Titled Douluos at Qian Renxue's side.
Zhao Su looked at the figure dressed as a boy. It was indeed Qian Renxue.
"What guidance might you have for us, senior?"
Anyone who could-or dared to-come to the Star Dou Great Forest was no ordinary person.
Thus, even Zhao Wuji, a Soul Saint above rank seventy, kept a low profile.
All the more so because Zhao Wuji sensed soul power from She Long that far surpassed his own.
"We found this soul beast first. Please return it to us."
She Long looked at Zhao Wuji, Zhao Su, and the others, realizing they must have come from some academy to hunt soul beasts for their students.
He did not take them seriously at all.
"It belongs to whoever holds it, and whoever kills it gets it. Who the hell are you to open your mouth and claim it's yours?"
Before Zhao Wuji could speak, Zhao Su stepped forward and spoke.
At the same time, a dagger appeared in his hand. He passed it to Oscar, signaling for him to finish off the thousand-year-old Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent and absorb its soul ring.
Oscar glanced at Zhao Wuji. Only after seeing him nod did he take the dagger.
He stabbed at the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent's vulnerable spot, seven inches below its head.
"Hmph, what big words! Let me see just how capable you are!"
She Long snorted coldly when he saw that Zhao Su's group did not regard him at all.
His anger flared. A burst of azure light shone, and a bluish-purple serpent lance appeared in his hand as he attacked in Oscar's direction.
He intended to stop Oscar from killing the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent.
"That's all?"
Zhao Su flashed in front of Oscar and casually reached out to catch the bluish-purple serpent lance.
"You're too weak. Wait until your companion gets here, then the two of you can join forces and fight me!"
Both She Long and Porcupinefish Douluo were responsible for protecting Qian Renxue.
Since Qian Renxue and She Long had appeared here, Porcupinefish Douluo was surely nearby as well.
"You know who I am?"
Zhao Su had casually caught his serpent lance barehanded, and his words only added to the shock.
She Long's heart jolted, and he did not attack again.
"If I said that, then naturally I know!"
"Since you know who I am, why do you insist on opposing me?"
"So what if I oppose you? Besides, the soul beasts in this Star Dou Forest belong to no one. Whoever gets them owns them. You're the one being unreasonable and trying to snatch it away, so don't blame me for showing no courtesy!"
"Fine, fine! No one in the Soul Master World has ever dared speak to us like this!"
Watching Oscar finish off the Phoenix-tail Crested Serpent and begin absorbing its soul ring, She Long knew he could no longer obtain it today.
Coupled with Zhao Su's expression, which showed that he did not take him seriously in the slightest,
it utterly enraged She Long.
He sent out the special signal he used to contact Porcupinefish Douluo, summoning him to their location.
On Shrek's side, only Zhao Wuji, who was above rank seventy, looked somewhat older. Everyone else was young, a few years younger than Qian Renxue.
Yet She Long did not dare let his guard down in the slightest. After all, Zhao Su alone had acted just now and easily stopped his serpent lance.
More importantly, he still had to protect Qian Renxue. He could not allow her to be endangered.
Killing intent had already risen in She Long's heart.
He wanted to kill every last member of Zhao Su's group.
After all, if he killed someone in the Star Dou Great Forest, he did not have to worry about retaliation from their sect or academy.
This was another of the Star Dou Great Forest's dangers.
One had to watch out not only for the many kinds of soul beasts that could appear at any moment, but also for ambushes from fellow humans.
Not every soul master who entered the Star Dou Great Forest came to hunt for soul rings. Some specialized in murder and plunder.
The Suotuo City Six Freaks were among the more notorious examples.
"I'll give you a chance. Once your companion arrives, you can attack together. That will also let the two of you see each other one last time!"
Zhao Su glanced at Oscar, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground, integrating his soul ring.
He knew there were no problems now. The soul ring had already fully merged with Oscar; all that remained was for him to adapt to its soul power and absorb it completely for his own use.
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