Chapter 324
Tang 3: I have a feeling that some opportunity has left me!
Tang San sat down cross-legged, focused his mind, and guided the soul ring of the thousand-year-old Ghost Vine King to fall.
The purple energy surged into his body. Although the process was accompanied by the swelling pain of soul power impacting his meridians and the erosion of the ghost vine's cold and paralyzing properties, it was not too difficult for Tang San, who had cultivated the Mysterious Heaven Skill and had a firm will.
The energy of the spirit ring was guided and refined by the Mysterious Heaven Skill, gradually merging with his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul.
After a while, the spirit ring was completely stabilized.
Tang San opened his eyes and successfully advanced to the level of Soul Master at level thirty-two.
He could clearly feel that the Blue Silver Grass had become more resilient, faintly carrying the paralyzing toxicity of the Ghost Vine, and its binding ability and resistance to attacks had been significantly improved.
The third soul skill, "Spider Web Binding," also seems to have become more sticky and resilient due to the characteristics of the Ghost Vine.
The gains were enormous, and the strength was significantly enhanced.
Logically speaking, Tang San should feel happy and satisfied.
but……
An indescribable sense of emptiness and loss, like a cold tide, overwhelmed his heart without warning.
It was as if, in that split second, he had lost something extremely important, something that could even change the course of his destiny!
It was a sense of bewilderment after a deep-seated throbbing and yearning was forcibly extinguished.
'What happened?'
Tang San looked inward and found his soul power abundant, his martial soul stable, and his soul skills perfectly acquired.
'The Ghost Vine Soul Ring worked very well, completely meeting expectations... Why do I feel like I've missed a tremendous opportunity?'
He subconsciously touched his back, finding nothing amiss, but the emptiness in his heart felt incredibly real and lingered.
He frowned slightly, his eyes filled with confusion and a hint of barely perceptible regret. He felt that this seemingly perfect acquisition of the soul ring concealed some huge deficiency that even he himself could not understand.
Lin Xia took in the fleeting confusion and faint disappointment in Tang San's eyes. In her deep eyes, the smile that seemed to control everything finally bloomed completely, like silent ripples spreading after a stone is thrown into a deep pool.
He stopped paying attention to Tang San, who was still immersed in inexplicable loss, and turned his gaze to the Snake Granny and Meng Yiran who were waiting on the side. His tone returned to its usual indifference.
"Alright, Tang San's spirit ring has been obtained. Snake Granny, Miss Yiran, now it's time to fulfill my promise to you."
Lin Xia turned around and walked in a certain direction of the Star Dou Great Forest.
His steps seemed casual, yet they carried a peculiar rhythm, always managing to avoid the tangled vines and slippery moss, carving an invisible path through the dense forest.
Shrek and his friends, along with Snake Lady and her granddaughter, immediately followed.
Although Flander had doubts—searching for a specific soul beast for someone he had just met deep in the perilous Star Dou Great Forest was a risk and time-consuming endeavor that was difficult to estimate.
But Lin Xia's unfathomable calmness and previous terrifying strength made him swallow all his doubts.
Dai Mubai, Tang San, and the others were more curious and wanted to see how Lord Lin would keep his promise.
To everyone's surprise, Lin Xia led the group not deep into the forest for long. They only bypassed a few inconspicuous mountain hollows and stopped in a relatively sparse forest clearing covered with a large number of strange blue ferns.
He raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, then turned his gaze to a short but unusually thick ancient ironwood tree in the center of the open space. In the gaps between the gnarled roots of the ancient tree, a giant snake covered with fine scales that shimmered with a dark blue metallic luster was coiled up.
It is slightly smaller than the previous crested snake, about seven or eight meters long, but its aura is more restrained and dangerous.
The triangular snake's head lacked a fleshy crest, but it possessed a pair of vertical pupils as clear and bright as sapphires. At this moment, it was vigilantly scanning its surroundings, its pale blue tongue flicking in and out of its mouth, emitting a faint hissing sound.
The most peculiar thing about it is its tail. The end is not an ordinary snake tail, but forked into three strands, like three poisoned, sharp short spears, shimmering with a faint blue light.
"A thousand-year-old blue crystal three-tailed serpent, with a cultivation period of approximately 1,500 years."
Lin Xia's voice rang out calmly.
"Its scales are exceptionally sturdy and contain a chilling poison. It possesses excellent speed and agility, and its three-pronged tail attacks are particularly cunning, ruthless, and impossible to defend against. As the third ring of the Serpent Staff Martial Soul, it can be endowed with the characteristics of toughness, toxicity, and unpredictable attacks, making it quite suitable."
Meng Yiran only glanced at it, and her big, dark brown eyes lit up instantly!
She could clearly feel the subtle connection between the snake and her martial soul, especially the forked tail, which instantly reminded her of the attack variations of her snake staff!
This is definitely one of the most suitable soul beasts for her!
It suits her fighting style better than the Phoenix Tail Crested Serpent!
Snake Granny Chaotianxiang gasped in shock, her eyes filled with deep awe and gratitude as she looked at Lin Xia.
She knew all too well how difficult it was to find a soul beast with such perfect attributes and age in such a short time. It required an intimate knowledge of the Star Dou Great Forest, a keen understanding of the characteristics of soul beasts, and unimaginable strength as a foundation! This could not be explained by the word "luck".
The rest of the process went exceptionally smoothly.
Under the suppression of Lin Xia's almost invisible terrifying aura, the wary blue crystal three-tailed snake didn't even have time to put up a decent resistance before being easily subdued by the snake woman.
With excitement and anticipation, Meng Yiran cleanly and decisively ended its life and began absorbing the deep purple soul ring.
An hour later, as Meng Yiran's soul power fluctuations suddenly intensified, a brand new purple soul ring slowly rose and pulsed beneath her.
She successfully broke through and became a Soul Master at level thirty-one!
The girl's face was filled with uncontrollable excitement and joy. When she looked at Lin Xia, her previous slight resentment had been completely replaced by gratitude and admiration.
Congratulations, Miss Yiran.
Lin Xia nodded slightly, as if in response to the Snake Granny and her granddaughter's excited words of gratitude.
Just as everyone was preparing to leave the Starry Sky Forest, a place of trouble, a series of heavy and hurried footsteps approached from afar, carrying a powerful sense of oppression.
The branches and leaves in the forest were roughly parted, and a tall, burly old man with a bristling beard and hair and a fierce, lion-like face burst into everyone's view.
It was none other than Long Gong Meng Shu!
His face was initially filled with anxiety and anger, clearly searching for his wife and daughter. But when his gaze swept across the crowd and landed precisely on the familiar figure leaning against an ancient tree, toying with a silver coin between his fingers, his expression froze instantly, then melted away like ice and snow, transforming into a huge, unbelievable surprise!
"Lord Lin?!"
Meng Shu's voice was loud and clear, filled with indescribable excitement. He took three steps at a time, almost rushing to Lin Xia's side. His burly body leaned forward slightly, his posture extremely humble, and his tone was full of eagerness and respect.
"Is it really you?! I thought you looked familiar from afar, and I thought I was seeing things! You... how come you're here? Shouldn't you be in Gengjin City? This Star Dou Great Forest is fraught with danger, how could someone as precious as you risk your life?" (End of Chapter)