Zhou Linlan walked quickly among the trees of the Star Duo Forest, her heart pounding not only from the physical exertion of walking for many hours, but also from the excitement of seeing him again.
When Zhen Len appeared among the trees, she couldn't help but shout with joy. "Master, I'm back!"
Zhen Len approached with a neutral expression, but a slight tension was visible in his eyes. From the moment he sensed the collar Zhou Linlan wore, which he could now detect from about 40 kilometers away, he knew she was approaching. He had cautiously scanned the surroundings to check if she was accompanied, since she wasn't supposed to return unless it was to seek her third soul ring, making it strange that she was alone. The only other possibility was that she was on vacation, but that was quickly dismissed as it was still too early. That's why he only approached her after confirming she was completely alone.
"[Why did you return early, and at night?]" he asked through the spiritual communicator.
Zhou Linlan stopped. "Master, I came because I want your help to get my third soul ring. I reached level 30 a month ago, and you promised to help me find the one most suitable for me. Also, I snuck out at night without anyone noticing, except I left a message for my roommates to cover for me, so I have to get back as soon as possible."
Zhen Len raised an eyebrow slightly, which from Zhou Linlan's perspective made him look endearing."[Didn't I give you a complete list of compatible soul beasts? You could've asked your professor for help.]" On the phone-like soul tool, he had made sure to give her a detailed list of compatible soul beasts, so it seemed odd she would come alone, when she was supposed to come with her team and under the supervision of a teacher. That's the usual protocol at Shrek and other academies.
She lowered her gaze a little, the excitement on her face softening. "Yes, but... I'm not sure they would listen to my opinions. During one of the theoretical classes that Title Douluo Yu Xiaogang gives us every few months, he analyzed the martial souls of all the students. When it was my turn, upon seeing my Wooden Bow, he said that the most suitable soul beasts for me were poisonous spiders. According to him, that would reinforce the bowstrings, making the arrows faster, and I could even gain the poison attribute."
Zhen Len didn't change his expression, but Linlan knew him well enough to notice his displeasure.
"I wanted to argue," she continued quickly, "but I didn't want to challenge his authority in front of my classmates. Besides, you said he was a very narrow-minded person, so my professor planned to look for poisonous spider soul beasts based on his recommendation."
Zhen Len sighed softly. "[Yes, spiders were on the list... but almost at the end, and it specified that priority be given to weaver spiders. Also, the poison attribute is not only hard to use without natural affinity, since your martial soul doesn't have it inherently, but it also takes time to take effect. Unless the poison is extremely lethal, in a soul master battle, fights are decided in minutes, which wouldn't give you enough time to fully poison your opponent. Your martial soul has no relation to poison, so the cost-benefit of obtaining that attribute is... poor. And following that path would mean wasting all your soul rings just to adapt your martial soul to poison, which would reduce its potential by forcing it into something it's not made for. I know I once told you that if you absorbed a poisonous porcupine you might gain that attribute, but it would only be a secondary benefit. The main thing is to focus on your strengths.]"
She nodded."I know. That's why I'm here. I only trust you with this. And don't forget your promise to help me get my soul rings."
Zhen Len remained silent for a few seconds before turning around. "Get on. I'll take you to a soul beast I found for you."
Hearing this, Zhou Linlan showed a happy expression. When she climbed on him, she hugged his neck tightly, wrapping her legs around Zhen Len's body, with no intention of letting go. Though her heart raced from the excitement of being with Zhen Len again, she knew if she wasn't careful, she'd end up completely battered due to how intense he got when she rode him.
So, once she was fully settled on Zhen Len's body and completely comfortable, he began running at full speed for an hour, dodging obstacles, crossing rivers, climbing slopes, and avoiding encounters with 100-year-old and even 1000-year-old soul beasts that were appearing more frequently, until they reached a deeper part of the forest.
When he stopped, Zhou Linlan's heart was pounding and she felt like she was going to die. She had just experienced what it was like to hand the wheel to someone who always drove at full speed like a maniac who ignores the laws and runs red lights in a city packed with traffic.
When her heartbeat finally began to slow, Zhou Linlan closely observed the place around her. She had never been so deep into the Star Duo Forest. Everything was new, but she ignored all of that because now that they had stopped, and being so close to Zhen Len, Zhou Linlan noticed a faint scent around him. It was the result of him having been screwing her mother until he sensed Zhou Linlan's presence. So to her, it was a scent that felt familiar, but also not, and for some reason, she had a bad feeling. But before she could investigate further.
Zhen Len, seeing that she had calmed down, said, "[It's close, no more than fifty meters. Do you see that tree over there? Although it doesn't look different from the others, it's surrounded by a mutated Gale Vine. It's 2,300 years old and compatible with you, but if you don't want to take the risk, there's a 1,700-year-old soul beast nearby.]"
She swallowed hard. Although Yu Xiaogang's theory was a joke, she knew it was fairly accurate, because it was general knowledge among many soul masters—unless they had overwhelming talent or physique, as Zhen Len had explained to her. But if he pointed out that soul beast, it was because he believed she could handle it, and she wanted to honor that trust.
"[This is the most suitable soul beast for your third soul ring. You're not here to take the easy path, because unlike your classmates, you weren't born with great innate talent, so you have to work twice as hard and push past your limits to surpass them. This soul beast has a very flexible structure, can strengthen your bowstrings, and add a rapid contraction property to your shots. But the most important thing is its innate ability.]"
"Innate ability?"
"[Yes. This specific mutated type developed a detection system through wind flow, making it very sensitive to wind. When it shakes its vines, it releases small blades and wind gusts, allowing it to detect when something gets too close and attack if it feels threatened.]"
"[I'll attack it first, then you'll finish it off.]"
The Eye of Truth on Zhen Len's forehead began to illuminate the dark surroundings with a small purple flame before launching a spiritual attack, but this time, he limited it to the weakest level possible, making it far less powerful than usual.
As a result, the mutated Gale Vine began shaking its body and launching random attacks in every direction. Though it was a reflex reaction to the feeling of being attacked, without detecting anything nearby, it kept attacking to preserve its life, wasting all its soul power by continuously launching attacks due to the effect of burning its spiritual sea. When it finally ran out of energy and soul power, it was on the brink of death, and only a little remained before the fire consumed its spiritual sea and burned outward until extinguishing. The whole process took only a few minutes.
"[Done. Take care of the rest.]"
Zhou Linlan nodded firmly. She activated her martial soul. The arrow flew swiftly, but the vines moved slightly to avoid the projectile.
Zhou Linlan moved quickly. The creature barely stirred among the forest roots. Its vines hung limp, trembling slightly like an old dog unable to rise. Its spiritual sea was damaged, and it had expended most of its energy and soul power.
She activated her second soul ring.A yellow glow ran along her bow. With each shot, the next arrow would be faster, stronger, and have increased piercing power, because her second soul ring made it so that, for three minutes, each arrow she fired would be 20% faster than the previous one. However, the soul power cost increased with every shot.
She fired the first arrow.Then the second.By the third, the projectile's whistle sliced through the air like a fine knife.By the fifth, the speed was such that nearby branches trembled as they passed.
Without stopping, she kept firing more arrows. And after nearly two minutes had passed, her eyes sharpened. She was irritated that the Vine was still clinging to life despite being on its deathbed. Being a plant...
"Now." She murmured to herself and activated her first soul ring. A burst of energy extended from her bow. Each arrow fired became four. Like a controlled, precise, and brutal rain, the enhanced versions of her shots fell on the dying body of the Gale Vine.
There were only dry cracks from the arrows piercing the Vine, and also slightly damaging the tree trunk it used for support. The sound of vines being torn, wood breaking, and air splitting filled the forest.
When she stopped, Zhou Linlan slowly lowered her bow. The creature no longer moved. Nothing remained that could be called a threat.
Zhen Len did not intervene, did not say a word. He simply observed in silence while controlling the spiritual fire so the Vine wouldn't die from his attack.
A purple ring slowly rose from the vine.
Now that everything was over, Zhen Len looked at her and said, "[Did you know you could've killed it much more easily and quickly if you'd aimed at its main stalk that connects to the root?]"
When she heard him, she felt a bit foolish for forgetting something so basic about vine-type soul beasts.
She gave him a sad look and asked, "Master, why didn't you remind me?"
"[Information is also power, so keep that in mind when facing humans or soul beasts. I didn't tell you so you'd understand how important knowledge is as long as it doesn't delay your cultivation. So start absorbing the soul ring; it may take you longer due to its age.]"
Zhou Linlan sat in lotus position. She didn't need time to prepare. Her breathing was controlled, her heartbeat steady. It was the third time she had done this, and while absorbing it, she used the Mysterious Heaven Skill technique, making the process much easier. But even so, she could be seen sweating heavily and frowning.
Many hours passed, and the sun had long since risen. Zhen Len felt a bit guilty for not actively absorbing the purple qi with his Purple Demon Eyes technique, but the Eye of Truth could do it on its own by gazing at the sun for a few minutes. So he remained by Zhou Linlan's side until she was finally able to absorb the soul ring.
Zhou Linlan looked quite flushed but full of energy, and she quickly approached Zhen Len before hugging him and saying joyfully, "Master! I did it! With this, I can aspire to become a Title Douluo!"
Zhen Len nodded with a slight smile on his muzzle. "[What ability did you acquire?]"
She raised her bow and held it firmly. "It's called Windlash Arrow. I can concentrate the wind around an arrow, allowing me to control its trajectory, and when it hits, it unfurls like a whip of wind that strikes all nearby enemies. It can also slow them down, and if I hit well, it can even immobilize them for a moment."
Zhen Len nodded again. "[Very fitting. Make good use of that ability. In the hands of a precise archer, it can change the course of a battle.]"
"[Well done. And sorry to interrupt your big moment, but I think it's time to send you back.]"
Only then did Zhou Linlan notice the sun had already risen, and it seemed it wasn't recent. She began to feel anxious. "I have to go back. I wanted to greet mom before leaving, but I don't think that will be possible…"
Hearing this, although Zhen Len couldn't sweat, for a moment he felt as if he was sweating cold, because Zhou Linlan's mother must be a mess, and it would be very uncomfortable if she tried to see her. "[You'll see her during the holidays. I'll help you get back quickly.]"
Zhen Len began leading her to the nearest area where they wouldn't be seen by soul masters.