Soul Hunting

The two entered the Spirit Hall Branch. Ma Xiunuo was sitting behind the counter, polishing a bronze Soul Tool. When he saw Wang Xingyu come in, he smiled. "Xingyu? Here to borrow more books?"

"Grandpa Ma Xiunuo, do you know any capable mercenary groups?"

Ma Xiunuo shook his head and jerked his chin toward the back courtyard. "Su Yuntao's in there. You two can ask him. He should know some."

Su Yuntao was sorting documents in the back courtyard. Wang Xingyu walked in and got straight to the point. "Deacon Su, we'd like to ask you a favor. It's time for Tang San to add his First Soul Ring. We want to go to the Soul Hunting Forest. Do you know any reliable mercenary groups?"

Su Yuntao put down the documents in his hand and glanced at Tang San. "What Soul Beast?"

"Iron Thorn Vine."

Su Yuntao thought for a moment. "There are some in the marshes east of the Soul Hunting Forest. Between two hundred and four hundred years old."

He rummaged through a drawer for a slip of paper, wrote a few words on it, and handed it over. "The Iron Rock Mercenary Group, on the north side of the west market. Look for the flag with an armored rhinoceros embroidered on it. Their leader is a level twenty-three Battle Soul Master, and they specialize in taking newcomers out. Mention my name. Five Silver Soul Coins as a deposit, then another five when the job's done. Fair price, and they're dependable."

Wang Xingyu took the slip and thanked him. The two left the Spirit Hall and headed straight for the west market.

The Iron Rock Mercenary Group wasn't hard to find. A drab gray flag stood by the entrance, an armored rhinoceros embroidered on it.

Tie Yan was a burly, bald man in his forties, squatting by the entrance and sharpening a blade. Wang Xingyu mentioned Su Yuntao's name, and Tie Yan took the five Silver Soul Coins as a deposit and weighed them in his hand. "Iron Thorn Vine, eastern marshes. Wait here. I'll get a few people."

He turned and went inside. Wang Xingyu and Tang San waited at the entrance, and after about half an hour, two people arrived one after the other. One was tall and thin, with two short blades tucked into his belt. His name was Liu Dao, a level nineteen Agility Attack System Battle Spirit Master. The other was in his thirties, carrying a round shield on his back. His name was Cheng Dun, a level eighteen Defense System Battle Soul Master. Tie Yan came out of the building and slung a short hammer over his shoulder. "Everyone's here. Meet at the city gate."

Wang Xingyu said they would return to the academy to pack first, and Tie Yan nodded.

The two walked briskly toward the academy. On the way, Wang Xingyu suddenly remembered something. "Little San, there's something we're missing."

"What?"

"A Storage Soul Tool. Look at Tie Yan and his men. They carry their weapons and rations on their backs, bundles big and small. When we go Soul Hunting in the future, we can't do that every time."

Wang Xingyu paused, then shook his head. "But those things are extremely precious and expensive. Ordinary mercenary groups can't afford them at all. Tie Yan and his men don't have one either."

Tang San nodded. "We'll talk about it later."

According to the original plot, Grandmaster should give Tang San a Storage Soul Tool, and Tang San also needed one to hold his Hidden Weapons. It seemed Wang Xingyu needed to earn money quickly.

Wang Xingyu pushed the thought aside for now. The two returned to Dorm Seven. Xiao Wu wasn't there; she had probably gone out again.

Wang Xingyu stuffed rations and a waterskin into a cloth bundle, then tucked a coil of hemp rope into his pocket. Tang San didn't have much to pack, so he stood at the door waiting for him.

When the two reached the city gate, Tie Yan and the other two were already waiting. Liu Dao leaned against the city wall, Cheng Dun squatted on the ground tying his shoelaces, and Tie Yan rested his short hammer on the ground. When he saw them approach, Tie Yan said only two words. "Let's go."

The Soul Hunting Forest lay east of Nuoding City. After they had walked for more than half an hour, the trees began to grow denser. From outside, it looked like an ordinary old forest, but the light dimmed the moment they stepped inside. The canopy blotted out the sky and sun, and the ground was covered in tangled roots and fallen leaves, soft underfoot.

Tie Yan walked at the front, clearing the way, with Liu Dao on the left and Cheng Dun on the right, sandwiching Wang Xingyu and Tang San between them.

Wang Xingyu summoned his Blue Silver Grass and pressed it into the soil, sending its roots down.

That sense of connection returned. The places its roots reached spread through his mind like a hazy net. He could sense where tree roots grew thick and where little insects were.

The range was just too small to be much use in a real fight. It seemed this would only become useful in combat once he grew stronger or absorbed a Soul Ring.

"East, toward the marshes." Tie Yan inclined his head.

After about an hour, the ground began to turn muddy. Wang Xingyu's cloth shoes sank in, muddy water covering the tops of his feet with every squelching step. More vines hung from the trees, their dangling tendrils growing denser and denser.

Liu Dao suddenly raised a hand. Everyone stopped.

A vine coiled around an old, crooked tree ahead. It was dark brown, with metallic patterns along its length that glinted faintly in the light filtering through the canopy.

Its thickest main vine was as thick as a child's arm, spiraling up the trunk like a sleeping iron snake. An Iron Thorn Vine. It was roughly three hundred years old.

Tie Yan tightened his grip on his short hammer. An iron-gray light shone from his body, and his skin grew rough like iron armor. He strode forward, and the Iron Thorn Vine sensed the vibrations. The entire plant sprang off the trunk and wrapped around him.

Tie Yan neither dodged nor retreated, letting the vine coil around his arm and shoulder. It tightened sharply, its metallic patterns flashing as it creaked and groaned. Tie Yan let out a low roar and braced his arms against the vine to keep it from tightening further. His feet sank into the mud, and he stood as steady as a rock.

Liu Dao moved. His short blades flashed from their sheaths as he circled around the side and hacked at the Iron Thorn Vine's roots. The vine sent several thin branches to entangle him, but Liu Dao was fast. He dodged left and right, his blades whirling, severing the branches one by one. Dark green sap seeped from their cut ends.

Cheng Dun held the front, his round shield blocking the broken branches and sap flying toward them. He didn't retreat a single step.

Tang San's Blue Silver Grass shot from his palm and wrapped around the Iron Thorn Vine's main vine. His Blue Silver Grass was far tougher than ordinary Blue Silver Grass. It twisted together with the Iron Thorn Vine and, for the moment, wasn't torn apart.

Even so, it didn't look like it would last much longer.

Wang Xingyu watched from behind. At level four Soul Power, his Blue Silver Grass was too fragile. Going forward would only give the Iron Thorn Vine an extra meal. But he had something of his own to do. He sent his Blue Silver Grass's roots deeper, spreading them through the soil. Through the underground network of wild Blue Silver Grass roots, he found Tang San's Blue Silver Grass and sent his Soul Power over.

The moment he sent it, Wang Xingyu felt as though part of his body had been hollowed out. Tang San's Blue Silver Grass darkened a shade and grew a little harder, but unfortunately, it was still struggling.

The Iron Thorn Vine struggled more and more fiercely. It had squeezed bloody marks into Tie Yan's arms, but he didn't make a sound. His arm muscles bulged as he held it back with all his might.

Liu Dao's speed didn't slow in the slightest. His short blades danced in two blurs of white light, cutting through the thin branches one after another. Cheng Dun's shield was covered in dents, but his feet didn't budge.

Tie Yan held the main vine back, Liu Dao cut off the side branches, and Tang San's Blue Silver Grass locked the main vine down. The Iron Thorn Vine's struggles began to weaken.

But Wang Xingyu could feel the Iron Thorn Vine tightening around Tang San's Blue Silver Grass bit by bit, crushing it. The Blue Silver Grass gave faint creaks under the pressure, and the metallic patterns trembled slightly.

Wang Xingyu gritted his teeth and sent more Soul Power over. He hadn't had much to begin with at level four, and after sending it to Tang San, his own hands began to tremble.

Tang San's Blue Silver Grass darkened a little more and barely managed to hold its strangling grip.

And this was only one of the Iron Thorn Vine's tendrils.

The two Blue Silver Grass plants and the Iron Thorn Vine were locked tightly together, neither letting up. Tie Yan's short hammer smashed down on the Iron Thorn Vine's roots again and again, each blow ringing with a dull metallic impact.

At last, a crack appeared in the Iron Thorn Vine's roots. Tie Yan gave a low roar and thrust his arms outward, snapping several of the vines wrapped around him. With his hands free, he gripped the hammer in both hands and brought it down on the crack with all his strength.

The Iron Thorn Vine convulsed violently, and its metallic sheen faded completely. The entire plant slid off the trunk and fell motionless to the ground.

Tie Yan hurriedly told Tang San to finish it off. Tang San drew a small knife and stabbed the Iron Thorn Vine. Before long, a yellow red ring floated out.

Wang Xingyu dropped onto his backside, gasping for breath. Sending his Soul Power over had nearly drained his stamina, and both hands shook like sieves.

Tang San was panting too, his forehead covered in sweat, but his Blue Silver Grass was still wrapped around one of the Iron Thorn Vine's tendrils, holding tight.

Tie Yan rested his short hammer on the ground. His arms were covered in bloody welts, but his face was nearly expressionless. Liu Dao tucked his short blades back into his belt and shook the sap from his hands. Cheng Dun unstrapped the round shield from his arm. More than a dozen dents of varying depths marked its surface.

"Not bad." Tie Yan glanced at Tang San. "You held on."

Once they had rested enough, Tang San sat cross-legged and extended his Blue Silver Grass toward the Yellow Soul Ring. The instant they touched, his body jolted, and yellow light spread along the Blue Silver Grass toward him.

Sweat began to bead on his forehead, his breathing grew heavier, and his fists clenched tight. Tie Yan told him to "hold on" from the side, then said nothing more.

Wang Xingyu sat on the ground, panting as he watched Tang San. The Iron Thorn Vine was around three hundred years old, and Tang San had Innate Full Soul Power. Absorbing it would put him under pressure, but he should be able to endure it.

In the battle just now, Tie Yan had held the front, Liu Dao had cut down the side branches, and Cheng Dun had blocked the broken branches. Each person had held their own position.

Tang San opened his eyes, gasping for breath. His Blue Silver Grass emerged from his palm, a shade darker than before. An extremely fine metallic line now traced the edge of each leaf, glinting faintly in the light.

At a thought from Tang San, the Blue Silver Grass shot out and wrapped around a nearby dead tree as thick as a bowl, then tightened sharply. With a creak, it squeezed a deep groove around the trunk, and the bark burst apart.

Tie Yan glanced at the dead tree and nodded. "Not bad."

Wang Xingyu climbed to his feet and walked over to Tang San. "What's your first Soul Skill called?"

Tang San thought for a moment. "Iron Thorn Strangulation."

"All right. Straightforward enough."

The four retraced their route. By the time they left the Soul Hunting Forest, the sun was already slanting west. Tie Yan collected the remaining five Silver Soul Coins and slung his short hammer back over his shoulder. "Come find me again next time you have work." Wang Xingyu nodded.