"I can't believe you've been hiding a Storage Soul Device from me!"
Romantina suddenly realized just how cautious Zhou Qing and Tang San were—but instead of being upset, a faint blush colored her cheeks. She covered her face with her hands, breathing a little faster.
"That feeling of not being trusted... it's actually kind of exhilarating!"
Zhou Qing quietly put away the Storage Soul Device and instinctively stepped a few paces away from Romantina. This woman is seriously crazy.
"Xiao San, keep a close watch on our surroundings. Xiao Wu, you too. Baron Dalis might come after us just for that soul bone."
Remembering the brutal battles over soul bones from the original story and the Soul Saint's diary, Zhou Qing couldn't afford to be careless. He pulled out three Zhuge Crossbows from the Storage Soul Device.
These were weapons crafted by Tang San himself.
Starting at age four, Tang San had been forging weapons. He'd gathered scrap iron from the villagers of Saint Soul Village and made the Zhuge Crossbows ahead of time. After studying parts of the soul core formation patterns etched on soul crystals, he improved their design.
Now, these Zhuge Crossbows were legitimately offensive soul-guided weapons. Their arrows no longer needed to be made of refined iron, lowering material demands significantly. As long as soul power was infused, they could fire soul-powered crossbow bolts.
However, because the Saint Soul Village lacked premium materials, Tang San's tests showed that although the Zhuge Crossbow's shots had tremendous piercing power—able to punch through tree trunks as thick as an adult's body and theoretically capable of dealing heavy damage even to Soul Masters or Soul Ancestors—the crossbows themselves wore out quickly, breaking after about three volleys.
Still, they were more than enough for the threats they might face now.
"You made these weapons?"
Romantina blinked in surprise as she looked at the bow-like soul-guided crossbow. "I didn't expect you could make such weapons. But crossbows are regulated; outside of soul weapons, civilians aren't allowed to own them."
Tang San was used to such comments.
In his previous life, the government also prohibited widespread civilian possession of bow and crossbow weapons. Even though the Tang Sect had the Zhuge Crossbow, it was not mass-produced, or else the government would have branded them rebels.
As long as the number was small, it wasn't a big problem.
"I'm giving you one as a bribe to keep your mouth shut."
Zhou Qing took another Zhuge Crossbow out of the gray pouch and handed it to Romantina. "But it can only be fired three times."
"If I refuse, are you going to pin me down and give me a thorough beating?"
Romantina grabbed the crossbow, shivering with excitement. Her thoughts veered to some unspeakable places as she hugged the weapon tightly against her ample chest, rubbing it eagerly.
"I think it's better to keep some distance from this woman in the future."
Tang San muttered.
"Nooo!"
Romantina threw her arms around Zhou Qing without caring about propriety and pleaded nonstop.
"Anyone bold enough to poke the Mouchun Ox's rear like you has got to be a total pervert... Please, please let me join your future adventure team!"
Zhou Qing took a deep breath and growled one word: "Get lost!"
"Alrighty then!"
Romantina rolled around on the ground like a masochistic acrobat, and still cheekily asked, "So? Was my rolling performance good or what?"
Damn it!
If this crazy golden spirit really joins their team, training and adventuring will never be boring again!
Zhou Qing sighed and changed the subject: "Haven't you reached level ten yet? Have you decided what kind of soul ring you want? If not, I can help you choose."
"No."
Romantina sprang up energetically from the ground, dusting herself off with a shake of her head.
"I didn't hit level ten by graduation, so the teachers at Notting Academy never took me on any soul beast hunts. Besides, they weren't sure which soul beasts would produce suitable soul rings for my brain-type spirit."
"A brain spirit... it's definitely closely linked to spiritual power. So the best soul beasts for you would be spirit-type. Those are pretty rare," Zhou Qing explained. "I've heard there's a one-eyed giant in the Star Dou Great Forest that's spirit-type, plus creatures like Ice Silkworms and Purple Spirit Wolves."
"Does it have to be spirit-type?" Romantina hesitated. "I want to be a knight who can tank and fight!"
"Spirit power is usually something only title Douluos can master. But with your brain spirit, once you get your first soul ring, you can control it. You don't want that?" Zhou Qing countered.
"That sounds pretty good... But are those one-eyed giants, Ice Silkworms, or Purple Spirit Wolves found in the Hunting Soul Forest?" Romantina asked.
"No."
Zhou Qing shook his head. "That's the sad reality for talented people born in small towns like us. We can't just go to the far north or the Star Dou Great Forest for our first soul ring hunts. Those are privileges reserved for disciples of major sects."
Xiao Wu interrupted, "So why even say anything?"
Zhou Qing snorted. "However, the Notting Hunting Soul Forest might hide some spirit-type soul beasts."
"What?" Romantina leaned in.
"The Mouchun Ox."
Zhou Qing pointed to the gray pouch at his waist. "Don't forget, the Mouchun Ox I hunted dropped a soul bone its head bone, no less."
"Though soul bones are incredibly rare, soul masters have learned some patterns: Strength-type soul beasts generally drop arm bones; speed-type usually drop leg bones; only spirit-type soul beasts drop skull bones."
"The Mouchun Ox is a soul beast with strong vitality and endurance. Yet it dropped a head bone after death, proving it has hidden spirit attributes."
After obtaining the Mouchun Ox's soul ring, Zhou Qing felt a new vitality running through his spine like the coming of spring.
He believed there was over an 80% chance the Mouchun Ox's spirit attribute was related to "spring," the season.
Although the Mouchun Ox isn't a pure spirit-type soul beast, realistically, since Romantina can't hunt in places like the Star Dou Great Forest or the far north for her first soul ring, it's the best choice she currently has.
There might be better options, but those would require years of research into whether other soul beasts in the Notting Forest have spirit attributes.
If she misses this best cultivation window, her soul power growth will be delayed and catching up won't be easy.