Chen Mo knew Dugu Bo had his best interests at heart.
However, when it came time to hunt Soul Beasts, he would give Dugu Bo a huge surprise.
That evening, Chen Mo returned to his little thatched hut and wrote his fourth diary entry.
[X year, X month, X day. Clear skies.]
[Something funny happened today.]
[I told Dugu Bo I had innate level 20 Soul Power and had already reached level 30, and asked him to take me Soul Hunting.]
[He was completely dumbfounded. He froze for two or three minutes, then shot into the sky without another word.]
[That scared the life out of me. I thought he was angry.]
[But an hour later, he came back with his granddaughter, Dugu Yan.]
[Dugu Yan is eight or nine and quite pretty. A quarter of her hair is azure blue, which is pretty distinctive.]
[She has also been afflicted with Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor Poison and needs my help to detoxify it.]
[Oh, right, Dugu Bo also asked me how I absorbed a thousand-year first Soul Ring.]
[I thought about it and decided to tell him.]
[My innate level 20 Soul Power nourished my body, and I took some "special medicinal herbs" to strengthen it.]
[But as a "master herb grower," Dugu Bo naturally knew those things were aphrodisiacs. Haha.]
[I told him that taking them after special processing could temper the body, and he was dumbfounded.]
[Dugu Yan even asked what an aphrodisiac was and got scolded by Dugu Bo. So cute.]
[But I demonstrated my strength by lifting a five- or six-hundred-jin rock with one hand, leaving Dugu Bo dumbstruck.]
[So he agreed to take me Soul Hunting tomorrow.]
[For my second Soul Ring, I want a 4,000-year one!]
[For my third Soul Ring, I want a 9,500-year one!]
[For my fourth Soul Ring, I want a 15,000-year one!]
[Haha, just thinking about it is exciting.]
[Oh, right, that rabbit Xiao Wu should still be at Nuoding Academy, shouldn't she?]
[Once I've finished hunting for Soul Rings, I'll go to Nuoding Academy to find her.]
[I can't let Tang San have such a cute rabbit.]
As he finished writing the last word, a flash of light swept across the diary.
[Ding! Diary entry generated. Distributing copies...] [Copy recipients: Xiao Wu, Dugu Yan.] [Rewards obtained: Free Attribute Points ×3, wood affinity +10.]
Chen Mo added the three free attribute points to his Soul Power.
Soul Power: Level 40 → Level 40 (experience increased)
Chen Mo stared in puzzlement at the Soul Power level on his system panel, which had not risen even after he poured three attribute points into it.
[Detected that the host's Soul Power has reached level 40 and undergone a qualitative change. From now on, every level increase requires 10 attribute points.]
The notification on the system panel put Chen Mo at ease.
"Good, good. It doesn't matter. As long as I can add points, I can get stronger."
Meanwhile, at Nuoding Academy.
Xiao Wu froze when she read today's diary entry.
"Innate level 20? Level 30 at six years old?"
Xiao Wu's eyes widened. "Chen Mo, just what kind of monster are you?"
"And... he said he wants a 4,000-year second Soul Ring, a 9,500-year third Soul Ring, and a 15,000-year fourth Soul Ring?"
Xiao Wu covered her mouth.
"Is he crazy? How could a six-year-old child possibly absorb Soul Rings that old?"
"He must be joking. Yes, that's right."
"But... he said he'd come to Nuoding Academy to find me."
Her voice grew quieter as she spoke, while her face flushed slightly and her heartbeat quickened.
She was growing more and more curious about this Chen Mo whom she had never met.
Meanwhile, at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Dugu Yan was sleeping when a diary suddenly appeared out of thin air beside her pillow.
Startled, Dugu Yan hurriedly picked up the diary.
Her eyes widened as she read its contents.
"He... he said I'm quite pretty? And..."
Dugu Yan tilted her head and thought, What exactly is an aphrodisiac? Why won't Grandpa let me ask?
"But... he was so gentle when he helped detoxify my poison today."
Dugu Yan hugged the diary, a silly smile spreading across her face.
In the valley at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.
Chen Mo put away his diary and looked toward the valley entrance.
Tomorrow was the day to hunt Soul Beasts.
Early the next morning, Dugu Bo set off with Chen Mo.
Dugu Yan was left in the valley.
"Young friend Chen Mo, where shall we go Soul Hunting?" Dugu Bo asked.
"Deep in Sunset Forest," Chen Mo said. "The Soul Beasts there are older."
Dugu Bo nodded and flew toward the depths of Sunset Forest with Chen Mo.
After flying for about an hour, the two landed in a dense forest.
"Young friend Chen Mo, most of the Soul Beasts here are several hundred to several thousand years old. I'll first find you a plant-type Soul Beast that's a few hundred years old so you can try absorbing its ring. If you can absorb it easily, we'll look for an older one."
Chen Mo smiled and said, "
Senior, there's no need to look for one that's a few hundred years old. Let's go straight for a plant-type Soul Beast around 4,000 years old."
Dugu Bo froze, then frowned.
"Young friend Chen Mo, are you sure? Absorbing a 4,000-year Soul Ring is dangerous even for a Soul Elder, and you've only just reached level 30..."
"Senior, don't worry."
Chen Mo said earnestly, "You saw my physical strength and the quality of my Martial Soul yesterday. I'm confident I can absorb a 4,000-year Soul Ring."
Dugu Bo hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded.
"All right. I'll trust you this once."
"But let me make this clear first. I'll only help you wound the Soul Beast. You must deliver the final blow yourself."
"You can only absorb a Soul Ring if you kill the Soul Beast yourself. You can't absorb one from a beast someone else killed."
Dugu Bo spoke earnestly.
"I understand, Senior."
Chen Mo nodded. "You only need to help me wound it. I'll deliver the final blow."
Dugu Bo released his Soul Power and began searching for nearby plant-type Soul Beasts.
Before long, Dugu Bo found a target.
"There's a 4,200-year Soul Devouring Vine up ahead."
Dugu Bo spoke in a low voice.
"It's a plant type, highly aggressive, with barbs on its vines. Do you want it?"
Chen Mo's eyes lit up.
A Soul Devouring Vine.
It was exactly what he wanted.
It was highly aggressive and had a paralyzing effect. The Soul Skill obtained after absorbing its ring would most likely be a control-type skill.
"That's the one, Senior," Chen Mo said earnestly.
Dugu Bo nodded and released his Martial Soul.
A phantom Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor appeared, and Dugu Bo walked toward the Soul Devouring Vine.
Sensing danger, the Soul Devouring Vine sent countless vines bursting out of the ground to coil around Dugu Bo.
"Hmph." Dugu Bo snorted coldly and casually waved his hand.
A cloud of green poisonous mist surged out, instantly withering more than half the Soul Devouring Vine's vines.
But Dugu Bo did not deal a killing blow. He only wounded the Soul Devouring Vine's main body, stripping it of most of its fighting strength.
"Young friend Chen Mo, I've wounded it. You deliver the final blow!" Dugu Bo called.
Chen Mo nodded, took a deep breath, and released his Divine Tree of Creation Martial Soul.
Emerald-green light enveloped his entire body as Chen Mo charged toward the Soul Devouring Vine.
Although the Soul Devouring Vine was wounded, it still retained some fighting strength.