Chapter 44: A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring?

"Does Tang San's brain really work differently from normal people?"

Dai Mubai shuddered at the thought.

Outwardly, he maintained a calm demeanor, nodding slightly and keeping silent, adopting the role of the aloof expert.

Time passed, and after another half an hour, Xiao Wu successfully condensed her soul ring.

When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Dai Mubai and Tang San.

"Xiao Wu, congratulations on becoming a Soul Elder."

Seeing that Xiao Wu had awakened, Tang San quickly approached her with a smile. He didn't even stop to further investigate his Blue Silver Grass's bizarre third soul skill, Shedding.

I'll save the questions for when we're back at Shrek Academy, he thought.

He trusted his teacher, Yu Xiaogang, unconditionally—Teacher would never be wrong.

Seeing Tang San reach out toward her, Xiao Wu instinctively pulled back slightly and cast a quick glance at Dai Mubai out of the corner of her eye.

She was worried that Dai Mubai would misunderstand…

Tang San: "…"

For some reason, his head suddenly felt itchy, as though something was growing there.

Suppressing the strange feeling, Tang San ignored the matter and looked around before asking curiously.

"Xiao Wu, what kind of soul beast did you hunt for your soul ring?"

This was odd. Usually, when someone absorbed a soul ring, the body of the hunted beast would remain. But there was no trace of any soul beast here.

Xiao Wu froze briefly. After all, she hadn't hunted a soul beast—she had condensed the soul ring herself. Naturally, there was no corpse left behind.

"Xiao Wu hunted a 1,700-year-old Lightning Rabbit. I like rabbit meat, so I put it away," Dai Mubai said smoothly, his expression perfectly calm.

Tang San, who knew how much Dai Mubai could eat, didn't find this odd at all. A thousand-year-old rabbit was nothing for Dai Mubai's appetite.

Without suspicion, he simply nodded.

Xiao Wu, however, was stunned.

He said he liked rabbit meat?

Her pink eyes flickered uneasily. She knew this all too well after last night…

What really puzzled her, though, was how Dai Mubai could pinpoint her third soul skill without seeing it.

Her third soul skill was Teleportation, which would make sense if it came from a Lightning Rabbit.

How did Dai Mubai know?

Had something… changed between them after last night? Could he read her thoughts now?

Of course, Dai Mubai's reasoning was much simpler: I just made it up.

At that moment, Flender and the others returned at a leisurely pace. Oscar had successfully obtained his soul ring without any issues.

"Huh? Xiao Wu, you already got your soul ring?"

Flender's tone was one of surprise.

Xiao Wu was still in a semi-martial-soul state, with her three soul rings—two yellow and one purple—clearly visible.

Dai Mubai quickly repeated the story he'd told Tang San: that Xiao Wu had hunted a Lightning Rabbit for her third soul ring. Naturally, he made up the details as he went.

"Well done. Let's escort you all out of the forest first, and then we'll return to help Mubai find his soul ring."

Flender nodded with satisfaction.

Who would've thought Xiao Wu would actually get lucky and wait for a rabbit to come straight to her?

The others didn't comment—this was the plan they had agreed on earlier.

By the time the group exited the Star Dou Forest, it was already late afternoon. Tang San, Xiao Wu, Oscar, and the others returned to the inn where they had stayed the previous night.

Meanwhile, Dai Mubai, Flender, and Zhao Wuji ventured back into the Star Dou Forest.

With only three people now, they didn't need to be as cautious as before.

With two Soul Saints guarding him, Dai Mubai was confident.

"Mubai, what kind of soul beast are you looking for? What age range are you aiming for?" Flender asked.

"Ideally, I want a light-attribute or a powerful attack-type soul beast," Dai Mubai replied casually. "As for its age… one to two ten-thousand years would be ideal."

The moment Dai Mubai finished speaking, both Flender and Zhao Wuji stumbled in shock, nearly falling flat on their faces.

Powerful attack-type soul beasts? That, they understood.

But… ten-thousand-year soul beasts?

This guy was looking for his fourth soul ring, not his fifth!

Absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring? Was he trying to die?

"Mubai, are you tired of living?" Zhao Wuji asked incredulously.

Dai Mubai: "…"

"Do you realize that even Soul Kings have to think carefully before attempting to absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring?"

"The energy within a ten-thousand-year soul ring isn't a joke!"

For many Soul Kings attempting to absorb ten-thousand-year rings, the risk of their bodies exploding was all too real. Even with a fifth soul ring, the gamble was immense.

"Dean, Teacher Zhao," Dai Mubai said calmly, "do you really think I can eat so much just because I'm a glutton?"

"Haven't you heard? With great power comes great appetite."

"My physical strength isn't just above average—it's stronger than even the top-tier Soul Kings."

Pausing for effect, Dai Mubai continued.

"As long as the soul ring doesn't exceed 23,000 years, I'm confident I can absorb it successfully."

Zhao Wuji and Flender: "…"

The two Soul Saints exchanged glances, unsure what to say.

Could it be… that Dai Mubai's physique really was as powerful as he claimed?

In reality, Dai Mubai was being modest. His body was far stronger than most Soul Kings.

"Fine," Zhao Wuji relented. "If you're so confident, I won't argue. But if you fail, don't expect to live long afterward."

"Taking risks isn't always a bad thing."

Zhao Wuji's comments stemmed from his ignorance. Having been bedridden for over a month, he hadn't been able to keep up with Dai Mubai's growth.

Flender, on the other hand, was more thoughtful. He calculated Dai Mubai's capabilities and suspected that absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring really might be possible for him.

"Let's go. Be careful—ten-thousand-year soul beasts aren't easy to deal with."

Soul beasts of this caliber usually roamed the area between the forest's outskirts and its core.

While rare in the outskirts, some ten-thousand-year beasts did occasionally wander out.

The deeper one ventured into the core of the forest, the older—and deadlier—the soul beasts became.

Against a fifty-thousand-year soul beast, even Flender and Zhao Wuji combined might not be able to win.

As they entered the transitional zone, the trio's movements grew more cautious.

"I don't know why, but helping you find a soul ring is making me more nervous than when I got my seventh soul ring," Zhao Wuji grumbled, glancing at Dai Mubai.

After all, this kid was aiming for a soul beast over 20,000 years old—for his fourth soul ring!

If this was just the fourth ring, what about the fifth?

(End of Chapter)