Yu Tianming spoke casually. "I plan to collect a full set of 100,000-year soul bones. This set of 10,000-year soul bones is indeed precious, but it's no longer useful to me. Grandpa, just hand them over to Tianheng."
"Besides, I've also prepared a set of soul bones for Tianxin. Both of them will have their share."
Dugu Bo was silent for a long while. Hearing that Yu Tianming had so many soul bones, he finally lost his composure. "Tianheng and Tianxin both have soul bones. Do you still remember Yanyan? She's your fiancée, after all."
Yu Tianming laughed. "How could I forget Yanyan? I've also prepared a set of soul bones for her. I just thought I might find something better in the future, so I didn't bring it up."
Upon hearing this, Dugu Bo's old face beamed with a smile again. "That's more like it. She didn't worry about you in vain when you went missing."
While Yu Tianming was enjoying his happy family moment, Tang San had already been running wildly through the Star Dou Great Forest for several hours.
Since Oscar hadn't yet obtained his flying mushroom sausage, Tang San could only rely on his own legs to search for traces of the Titan Giant Ape and Xiao Wu.
As dusk fell, Tang San, completely exhausted, leaned against a large tree, panting heavily.
During his run, he had pushed his Purple Demon Eye to its limit, scanning the dense forest around him in hopes of spotting the Titan Giant Ape or Xiao Wu.
The only relief was that he hadn't found Xiao Wu's corpse. But the bitter part was, despite all his efforts, he couldn't find even a trace of the Titan Giant Ape after several hours of searching. Not even its trail remained in the forest.
Now that his stamina was depleted and no clues were found, Tang San was forced to stop and catch his breath.
But the moment he stopped, tears blurred his eyes, and waves of pain surged through his heart.
Breathing heavily, Tang San's mind replayed every moment he had shared with Xiao Wu.
Six years of sleeping side by side had etched Xiao Wu's playful image deeply into his heart. In both of his lifetimes, he had never met such a pure girl. Her liveliness and cuteness had opened the heart of a former Tang Sect assassin who had lived most of his life closed off from emotions.
Tang San never used to believe in gods. But now he did—because he was praying to them, praying for a miracle that Xiao Wu was still alive.
As his breathing steadied and some strength returned, a faint rustling sound caught his attention.
He stood up slowly, cautiously looking in the direction of the sound.
A massive spider was slowly moving toward him.
The spider's body alone was over 1.5 meters in diameter. Its eight spear-like legs were each over three meters long, stretching to nearly ten meters in total span. With his Purple Demon Eye, Tang San could clearly see the grotesque human face pattern on its black abdomen, starkly contrasting its dark body.
Having learned much about soul beasts from the Grandmaster, Tang San immediately recognized this spider. It was the nightmare of small soul beasts—the Human-Faced Demon Spider. It was also one of the Grandmaster's suggested candidates for his third soul ring.
The spider was already heavily wounded from blunt force trauma to its head and abdomen. Its belly was shriveled, clearly unable to release its deadly Spider Web Restraint skill.
Though Tang San no longer wished to add more beast-type soul rings, in this moment he was in good condition, while the spider was gravely injured. He thought, 'If I absorb its soul ring now, I'll quickly recover and have a better chance of finding Xiao Wu. This is my opportunity.'
In a flash, Tang San had made his decision. He immediately activated his first soul skill, Blue Silver Grass Binding. Countless thick vines surged up from the ground, entangling the wounded Human-Faced Demon Spider.
After a fierce battle, the spider, its eyes filled with blood, collapsed on its back beside a large tree.
Tang San sat beside it, his soul power fluctuating violently—it was clear he was absorbing the spider's soul ring.
Human-Faced Demon Spiders were rare and difficult to date. The upper limit for a third soul ring was about 1,700 years, but this one had surpassed 2,000 years.
Its soul ring was inherently aggressive, and now it exceeded the age limit. Tang San felt its intense energy tearing through his body like countless blades. Every inch of his organs screamed in pain.
Before long, tiny beads of blood began to ooze from his skin. As the soul power steamed from his body, the blood turned into a reddish mist that circled around him.
Night fully descended, and the Star Dou Great Forest echoed with the sounds of insects and frogs.
The blood mist around Tang San dispersed. Blue light radiated from him as strands of Blue Silver Grass sprouted nearby—but their appearance had drastically changed.
Blue Silver Grass, originally a small blue plant with a silvery sheen and high vitality, was now thin and willow-like. Its leaves were narrow like willow leaves, and its stem was covered in rose-like thorns.
Possibly due to absorbing three beast-type soul rings, the Blue Silver Grass had changed immensely. Even its iconic blue color had darkened to a black-red like dried blood, emitting a faint, decaying stench.
As Tang San completed the final step of absorption, a tearing sound came from behind—his back split open, and eight spider legs, each as thick as a fist and three meters long, emerged.
These legs were nearly identical to the Human-Faced Demon Spider's, with a glossy black surface and dense, sharp barbs. A faint, sickly sweetness lingered in the air.
When the eight spider legs fully unfurled, they twitched slightly. The four lower legs pierced the ground, lifting Tang San's seated body into the air.
At that moment, he looked like he had grown eight long, terrifying arms—both evil and bizarre.
A pack of Gale Demon Wolves, drawn by the noise, surrounded Tang San and circled him cautiously.
In the darkness, several glowing wolf eyes flickered around him.
Sensing the wolves, Tang San slowly opened his eyes. Purple light gleamed within as he glanced at the spider legs on his back, then at the thorny Blue Silver Grass underfoot. He quickly understood what had happened.
Tang San smiled faintly. Countless black-red vines surged from the ground and wrapped around the unprepared wolves. The barbs pierced into their flesh.
Though the transformed Blue Silver Grass was still fragile, the poison from the beast soul rings had turned it into toxic vines.
These wolves were only century-level soul beasts—how could they resist his venom? Within moments, their howls weakened.
In the dark, Tang San calmly approached the wolf leader and muttered, "Gale Demon Wolves prey on the weak, bully the few with the many, and slaughter the helpless soul beasts of the forest. Today, I'll eliminate a menace to the Star Dou Great Forest."
As soon as he finished, his eight spider legs struck out, piercing the wolf leader's body.
Tang San's second soul skill came from the Bloodsucking Bat—Powerful Drain. Applied to the Blue Silver Grass, it could only absorb soul power and a bit of life force. But when empowered through the similarly absorbing Eight Spider Lances, its effect underwent a qualitative transformation.
No blood flowed from the pierced wolf leader. Moments later, its once-fierce body shriveled like a mummy.
Any soul master passing by would instantly shout three words: "Evil Soul Master."
When the wolf leader was drained of all life, Tang San closed his eyes in satisfaction. After a long breath, he muttered, "Just draining one evil beast gave me the equivalent of half a month's cultivation. If I absorbed more, wouldn't I reach Soul Ancestor in no time?"
After a moment of silence, Tang San grinned—a manic laugh echoing like an owl's cry through the forest.
He muttered bitterly, "Yu Tianming, with your power… just how many innocent soul masters have you drained? If you can do it, why can't I? If I had your strength, would Zhao Wuji even matter? Would Xiao Wu have ever left me?"
He quickly finished absorbing the remaining Gale Demon Wolves, then retracted his Eight Spider Lances and headed toward the forest's edge.
Retracing his path, it didn't take long before he saw the Shrek team's glowing tent.
Seeing Tang San return, Zhao Wuji was the happiest—he hadn't gone after Tang San right away, and afterward couldn't find him. Now that Tang San was back, the Clear Sky Douluo wouldn't take his life. Naturally, Zhao Wuji was relieved.
He rushed over in three quick strides. "After you left, we happened upon a soul beast suitable for Xiao Ao. After he got his ring, we couldn't find you again. I'm just glad you're alright."
Tang San's expression was stiff. "Teacher Zhao, I'm fine. What skill did Xiao Ao obtain?"
"He got Mushroom Sausages—he can fly now. It's a great support skill. Since you're safe, let's help you get your third soul ring."
"No need. I came across a heavily injured Human-Faced Demon Spider on the way. I've already obtained my third soul ring and reached level 33, Soul Elder."
Zhao Wuji was curious. "Oh? What's your third skill?"
Tang San's face was grim. "It's called Spider Web Restraint. It fires a poisonous web to trap enemies—a decent control skill."
Just then, light footsteps suddenly approached. Zhao Wuji tensed and looked into the darkness. "Who's there?"
"Teacher Zhao, it's me."
A slender figure ran out from the woods. Not only were the Shrek members stunned, Tang San immediately burst into tears.
It was Xiao Wu—the one taken by the Titan Giant Ape.
Though a bit disheveled, with torn clothes and messy hair, her face was flushed and seemed more mature than before.
'After seeking her in vain a thousand times, I found her where the lights are dim.'
Tang San rushed over and held her shoulders, trembling. "Xiao Wu, you're alive?"
Xiao Wu nodded. After seeing the Azure Bull Python's corpse, she had been devastated. But to investigate its death, she asked the Titan Giant Ape to return her.
Now reunited with Tang San, Xiao Wu realized that in just six years, Tang San had become just as important to her as the Azure Bull Python. But she couldn't tell him the truth.
Facing the group's suspicion, she calmly delivered the excuse she had prepared. "The Titan Giant Ape grabbed me and ran into the forest. But not long after, there was a loud bellow—like a cow. It got scared and threw me aside before running off."
"A cow? What kind of cow could frighten the Titan Giant Ape? And then?" Tang San frowned in concern.
Xiao Wu's eyes flashed with fear. "Before leaving, it let out a roar. I felt dizzy and fainted. When I woke up, all I saw were dozens of unconscious soul beasts nearby. But the ordeal must have triggered my breakthrough—I reached level 30."
Zhao Wuji, who had remained quiet, was shocked. "What? You're level 30 too? Who's older—you or Tang San?"
"I'm a few months younger than Tang San," Xiao Wu said calmly.
Zhao Wuji was speechless. Two twelve-year-olds already at level 30? They were little monsters.
But what Xiao Wu said next shocked him even more.
"I was terrified. Maybe the breakthrough came from the stress. I found a thousand-year soul beast that had fainted and used the chance to kill it and get my third soul ring."
(End of Chapter)
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