Chapter 201: The Interception Squad – Part 5
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The mission of Ye Tianxin's soul-hunting squad was to hunt a Human-Faced Demon Spider with over 1,500 years of cultivation in the outer regions of the Great Star Forest.
Tang San had many cheat-like advantages, but undoubtedly the most prominent one was the Eight Spider Spears he obtained early on. It compensated for his initial lack of offensive power as a soul master, allowing him to thrive all the way to the Soul Master Tournament.
The most outrageous aspect was that even after the Eight Spider Spears shattered, Tang San could use them as hidden weapons and regrow them—a truly broken game mechanic.
The Human-Faced Demon Spider was notoriously infamous among spirit beasts, often referred to as the "Evil Terror Slayer."
It could increase its own lifespan by consuming vast amounts of prey, making it almost as despised among spirit beasts as the Dark Evil God Tiger.
Though the group generally possessed Soul Lord-level combat strength, they didn't dare underestimate this spider spirit beast, which boasted astonishing defense, incredible speed, and a venomous attribute.
The atmosphere grew tense as the Human-Faced Demon Spider grew restless, its eight blood-red eyes fixed intently on the group.
Though it sensed that the group was stronger than itself, low-level spirit beasts weren't known for their intelligence—especially insect-type spirit beasts like spiders, which lacked brains and relied purely on instinctual killing.
Ye Tianxin took the lead, her voice cold.
"Focus your attacks on its limbs, but don't kill it outright."
The Human-Faced Demon Spider, lacking patience, launched the first attack. Its massive body rushed forward, its sharp, grotesque legs stabbing directly at Ye Tianxin.
Ye Tianxin remained cautious. Underestimating an opponent in any battle could lead to disastrous consequences.
She immediately activated her True Body Armor and engaged in close combat.
As the two sides clashed, a violent blizzard suddenly engulfed the area.
Ye Tianxin, being an extreme fire-attribute user, wasn't significantly affected by the storm. Since the blizzard wasn't targeting the group but merely altering the weather, its impact on them was minimal.
However, this sudden drop in temperature was catastrophic for the Human-Faced Demon Spider.
Insects were naturally vulnerable to low temperatures, and even the Human-Faced Demon Spider couldn't escape this weakness.
"Great opportunity! Third Soul Skill—Charge!"
Seizing the moment, Ye Tianxin swiftly severed half of the spider's legs, causing it to lose balance and collapse to the ground with an ear-piercing shriek.
Not to be outdone, Ye Tianchen raised his Tiantan Ice Dragon Blade and swung it down.
The sharp strike instantly turned the Human-Faced Demon Spider into a writhing log.
The intense pain caused the spider to thrash and scream, squirming violently on the ground.
The sound was akin to demonic noise piercing the ears, making Ye Tianxin extremely uncomfortable. She turned to Ye Tianchen and said,
"Make it shut up, Xiaochen!"
"Third Soul Skill—Extreme Ice Seal~"
With a swing of his blade, Ye Tianchen gathered the surrounding cold air, completely freezing the spider's head in ice.
Feeling this wasn't enough, he slashed a few more times, creating icy restraints that firmly immobilized the Human-Faced Demon Spider in place.
While lower-level soul masters could increase their capacity to absorb higher-year soul rings by strengthening their bodies, mastery over elemental control relied on mental fortitude.
Even though Ye Tianchen, at such a young age, could withstand the soul shock of a ten-thousand-year soul ring, Ye Wen felt this wasn't sufficient.
The earlier one began interacting with elements, the better they could control their abilities. Thus, Ye Wen personally hunted an Ice Jade Scorpion from the Extreme North for Ye Tianchen, granting him the ability to manipulate his extreme ice powers externally.
The results were impressive—he could now control his extreme ice powers freely, even outside his body.
Seeing the Human-Faced Demon Spider thoroughly subdued, Ye Tianxin nodded in satisfaction. After some thought, she turned to a handsome young man in the group and said,
"Jingwen, you'll harvest its soul ring."
"Yes, Senior Sister," the young man replied without hesitation.
He quickly finished off the already half-dead Human-Faced Demon Spider. His martial soul was the Demon Vine King.
Now in his forties, Ye Wen's youngest five disciples were around thirty years old.
Though still relatively young for soul masters, many of them had already started families due to familial pressure—even soul masters couldn't escape the societal push for marriage.
Xu Jingwen, the son of Xu Teng, was one such example.
Proximity to opportunity often brought benefits.
Besides Ye Wen's ten direct disciples, there were also numerous outstanding female soul masters among the vast number of honorary disciples. Xu Teng had formed a partnership with one of them.
Thanks to Ye Wen's foundational theories, the once-mutated martial soul of the Demon Vine had evolved into the Demon Vine King. Xu Teng's child inherited this powerful martial soul, which, while not reaching the pinnacle of life force, was still quite formidable.
As Ye Tianxin was Ye Wen's child, she was of the same generation as Xu Teng, so Xu Jingwen naturally addressed her as "Senior Sister."
Xu Jingwen was born with full innate soul power. Combined with an excellent mimicry training environment and systematic cultivation, he had already reached level 40 as a Soul Lord at just thirteen years old.
Given his absorption threshold, he could handle even a ten-thousand-year soul ring.
This time, Ye Wen decided to let him try his luck. After all, the region wasn't large—if luck favored him, Xu Jingwen could become a replica of Tang San.
At worst, it would only cost him a ten-thousand-year soul ring—an acceptable risk.
Everyone present fixed their gaze on Xu Jingwen. They had been informed of the potential opportunity when they set out on this soul-hunting mission—it all depended on luck.
As for how Ye Wen knew so much, no one questioned it. By now, within Tianxing Academy, Ye Wen had been mythologized.
This Human-Faced Demon Spider was the third one they had hunted, but Ye Tianxin clearly had insider information—this spider's cultivation was closest to the timeline Ye Wen had provided.
Having connections certainly paid off.
Even those honorary disciples who didn't receive the greatest opportunity weren't at a loss. After all, the soul skills of a Human-Faced Demon Spider were still formidable. They had been pre-screened, and nearly all of them were control-type soul masters.
Xu Jingwen slowly opened his eyes.
One yellow and three purple soul rings surrounded him.
Though the fourth soul ring was the faintest in color, Xu Jingwen showed no sign of disappointment.
As the eldest sister, Ye Tianxin asked, "How does it feel, Jingwen?"
Xu Jingwen chuckled lightly but didn't elaborate. Instead, his clothing rippled behind him, revealing eight emerald-green spider legs protruding from his back.
This unmistakably marked the legendary and rarest type of external spirit bone.
Everyone except the three Ye siblings gazed at him with envy.
Spirit bones were already considered blood river treasures, but external spirit bones were the rarest of all. Powerful soul masters might even be willing to massacre entire cities to seize them.
At this moment, Liu Erlong emerged from the shadows.
"Prepare yourself. I'll help you fully absorb this external spirit bone."
"Yes, Teacher Liu," Xu Jingwen replied respectfully.
One of the greatest advantages of Tianxing Academy was that all rewards from soul-hunting missions belonged entirely to the person who obtained the soul ring.
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