Tang Sect and the Golden Dragon Claw

Tang Wulin had just spent a great deal of time breaking through the Golden Dragon King's seal and was now in an extremely hungry state.

Fortunately, there was a stream nearby, allowing Huo Yutong to catch a few fish and grill them for him.

Her cooking skills utterly stunned Tang Wulin.

"Th-this is... Sister Yutong, how did you make this so delicious?"

Watching Tang Wulin wolf down the food, Huo Yutong smiled and said:

"My Martial Soul is my eyes, so my Heat Control is extremely precise. The most important thing when grilling fish is controlling the heat, so I suppose I'm benefiting from my Martial Soul."

"I see."

As Tang Wulin ate the Grilled Fish, he became even more convinced that she had a very close connection to Huo Yuhao.

One of Huo Yuhao's Martial Souls was also his eyes. The two of them were very likely relatives.

Just then, someone called out.

"Yutong, is that you?"

Huo Yutong looked toward the voice in surprise.

"Sister Xiaoya?"

The voice paused before ringing out again, filled with delight.

"Beibei, Yutong is here! She's still alive!"

Very soon, the owners of the voices came into view.

They were a pretty, youthful Young Girl and a refined, easygoing Youth.

The moment the Young Girl appeared, she threw herself onto Huo Yutong and burst into tears.

"Waaah, that's wonderful! Yutong, you're alive! If anything had happened to you, I would have been guilty beyond redemption!"

"S-Sister Xiaoya, it's not that serious!"

Since meeting Huo Yutong, this was the first time Tang Wulin had seen such a flustered expression on her face.

The refined Young Man walked over to Tang Wulin and greeted him.

"Hello, I'm Beibei, and she's Tang Ya. Little brother, what's your name?"

"I'm Tang Wulin." Tang Wulin asked curiously, "Brother Beibei, did you and Sister Yutong already know each other?"

Beibei shrugged.

"We did, though we'd only known each other for less than a day. Xiaoya reacted that way because not long after Yutong left, a Heaven and Earth Anomaly occurred in the direction she had gone. Xiaoya was worried about her."

At this point, Beibei gently asked Tang Wulin:

"What about you, little brother? What is your relationship with Yutong?"

Tang Wulin replied:

"I just met Sister Yutong too. She saw that I was alone and said it was too dangerous, so she wanted to take me out of the Star Dou Great Forest with her."

"You were alone?"

Hearing that, Beibei frowned.

"It really is dangerous for a child like you to be alone in the Star Dou Great Forest. Where are your parents?"

At those words, Tang Wulin's expression darkened.

"My parents... I probably will never see them again."

"Ah, I'm sorry."

Seeing Tang Wulin's sorrowful expression, Beibei cursed himself for being so careless.

Indeed, what parents would be willing to leave such a well-behaved, adorable child alone in the Star Dou Great Forest?

Beibei asked with concern:

"Wulin, where do you plan to go after leaving the Star Dou Great Forest?"

Tang Wulin shook his head in confusion.

"I don't know. In any case, I first need to find a way to support myself."

"Do you have no other relatives?"

Tang Wulin fell silent once more and shook his head.

Thinking about it carefully, he truly was alone and without support in this world, with no family to turn to.

Seeing him like this, Beibei hesitated before asking:

"Then how about it, Wulin? Would you like to join our sect?"

"What?"

Tang Wulin looked up in surprise.

Beibei explained:

"Xiaoya and I are currently maintaining a small sect with only the two of us. If you are willing to join, I'm willing to give you a place to belong. What do you think?"

Tang Wulin felt his heartbeat gradually quicken.

A sect with only two members ten thousand years ago...

He asked:

"What is the sect called?"

"The Tang Sect."

"I'll join."

Tang Wulin answered without the slightest hesitation.

His attitude surprised Beibei somewhat.

"Won't you think it over some more? There are only two of us."

"No, there's no need. I'll join."

Tang Wulin spoke firmly.

The legendary tales of the Tang Sect had spread throughout the entire continent ten thousand years later.

The thought of becoming part of that legend filled him with excitement.

"All right."

Beibei nodded, half helpless and half delighted, then called out to the side:

"Teacher Xiaoya, I've already recruited someone. How is your progress?"

"What? Damn it! Yutong, do you want to join the Tang Sect..."

Hearing Beibei's words, Tang Ya seemed to come alive with boundless energy as she enthusiastically began promoting the Tang Sect to Huo Yutong.

And so, the time passed amid laughter and cheerful conversation.

In the end, both Tang Wulin and Huo Yutong agreed to join the Tang Sect.

It was also during this process that Tang Wulin learned Huo Yutong was an orphan with no remaining family in this world.

Then what exactly was her relationship with Huo Yuhao?

As they walked deeper into the forest, Tang Wulin gazed at Huo Yutong's delicate profile and pondered absentmindedly.

Just then, Beibei suddenly shouted in a low voice.

"Careful, get back!"

Tang Wulin instinctively obeyed his command. Then Beibei threw something upward ahead of them, and a thick, long snake crashed to the ground.

At the sight of the snake, Tang Ya cried out excitedly.

"A Thousand-Year Mandara Snake! Beibei, I want this one!"

"Fine, protect Yutong and Wulin!"

Beibei nodded heavily, stomped the ground, and lunged forward.

Seeing Beibei approach, the Mandala Snake raised its head, opened its jaws, and spewed out a cloud of pink mist.

Beibei snorted. A blue electric net spread around him and collided with the pink mist, producing a sizzling sound. Clearly, the mist posed no threat to Beibei.

However, the pink poisonous mist still slowed him down. The Mandala Snake forcefully struck the ground with its tail, leaped into the air, and attacked Tang Wulin and the others.

"!"

Seeing this, Beibei hurriedly retreated.

Even among thousand-year soul beasts, the Thousand-Year Mandara Snake belonged to the stronger ranks. Tang Ya would not be able to hold it back for long.

But how could his speed compare to that of a thousand-year soul beast? In almost an instant, the Mandala Snake charged before Tang Wulin and the others.

What do I do, what do I do, what do I do...

Tang Wulin stared at the enormous snake so close before him, his mind nearly freezing.

It was also his first time encountering a thousand-year soul beast. Its immense Sense of Oppression made it hard for him to breathe.

At that critical moment, a gentle strand of Spiritual Power formed a connection with him.

Then, an incredibly detailed three-dimensional image unfolded in his mind.

Tang Wulin immediately felt as though the flow of time had slowed.

This was...

Tang Wulin did not need to turn around to know this was the effect of Huo Yutong's soul skill.

Because among everyone present, aside from Beibei, she was the only one with soul rings lit up.

Then, within that image, the pink flower atop the Mandala Snake's head was distinctly marked.

"Attack there? Understood!"

Tang Wulin gritted his teeth and stepped forward.

"Wulin?!"

Tang Ya's startled cry rang out beside him, but he could no longer concern himself with it.

Huo Yutong had already done everything she could. He had to contribute as well.

He was the only boy who could protect Tang Ya and Yutong. He had to protect them with all his strength.

His blood sped up, and Tang Wulin felt his entire body grow hot.

Then, a faint Dragon Roar sounded, and his right hand transformed into a golden dragon claw.

"Urgh!"

Among everyone present, Beibei had the strongest reaction upon seeing the dragon claw.

His legs went weak as an incomparably intense fear took root in his heart.

"What is that..."

Tang Wulin had no time to answer his question. He raised the Golden Dragon Claw high and swung it down with all his might according to Huo Yutong's Spiritual Power guidance.

"Crack!"

With a crisp sound, the Mandala Snake was viciously slammed to the ground by a single claw strike.

Judging from that sound, Tang Wulin's blow had likely shattered its skull with Cracks.

"Sister Xiaoya!"

Hearing Huo Yutong's urgent shout, Tang Ya finally snapped back to her senses.

She stepped forward and swung her dagger.

The heavily injured Mandala Snake had no time to resist before Tang Ya took its life.

I'm afraid some people might raise questions about the power scaling, so let me explain first.

In the original third series, after Tang Wulin had just absorbed the First Seal, his strength was significantly greater than that of a Two Rings Assault System Soul Master. Even without the Golden Dragon Claw, he would not have been much weaker than a low-ranked Soul Elder. While using the Golden Dragon Claw, he could be considered half a Soul Elder.

Compared to that period, my Tang Wulin here has also absorbed half of the Second Seal. While using the Golden Dragon Claw, he is a genuine Soul Elder-level fighter. Against the Mandala Snake, it would be a forty-sixty matchup—he gets forty, the snake gets sixty.

But Huo Yutong's Spiritual Detection is assisting him here. For how great an enhancement Spiritual Detection gives Soul Elders, refer to Beibei and Xu Sanshi's battle: it can turn a fight between two people of originally similar strength into a one-sided crushing victory. On top of that, Spiritual Detection marked the snake's weak point, so I do not think Tang Wulin Instantly Killing the snake is too excessive.