To avoid wasting time on training and to adapt to his recent improvements, plus the fact that he was traveling on foot, Zhu Wu's pace was not fast. It took a full ten days before he finally reached the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest. Looking around, towering ancient trees stretched up to the sky, blocking the sunlight and casting deep shadows below. Even the shrubs on the forest floor had dark leaves, giving the place a somewhat eerie feeling.
Especially since it was already dusk when he arrived—the setting sun was like blood in the sky, adding a strange, ominous atmosphere to the endless primeval forest ahead.
"No wonder this is the continent's number one gathering place for soul beasts, a forbidden zone even the Martial Soul Hall hasn't conquered," Zhu Wu murmured, deciding not to enter today.
He set up camp on the spot, ate dinner, and then practiced his Longevity Technique as usual. After absorbing the right leg bone of the Blue Silver Emperor, his physical strength had undoubtedly increased greatly. Naturally, this meant he could train the Vajra Longevity Technique for longer periods each day.
The night passed quietly. Early the next morning, Zhu Wu got up, ate breakfast, and resumed training the Vajra Technique.
By the time he finished, it was already past nine in the morning.
"小白, let's go!" he called, releasing Xiao Bai and striding into the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Xiao Bai, possess me!" Soon, they encountered the first soul beast. Zhu Wu immediately instructed Xiao Bai to transform into the Three-Eyed Demon Fox and merge with him.
When his grandfather Zhu Gang was alive, he was indeed afraid of dying. But now, as long as he didn't die first, he would fight with everything he had!
Life and death—this is where true potential is awakened. Combat is undoubtedly the best way to understand one's own abilities, find the fighting style that suits oneself best, and sharpen one's combat skills efficiently. The soul beasts in this forest were his perfect teachers, and his desire to survive was the best motivator and guide. Instinct is humanity's strongest skill.
Of course, he wasn't stupid—he didn't start by fighting the thousand-year-old soul beasts.
In terms of combat experience, he was still a novice and needed a gradual learning curve. The right leg bone of the Blue Silver Emperor gave him the capital to train by dueling soul beasts; as long as he didn't get too badly injured, he could recover on his own. But if he encountered enemies far stronger than himself, even a single area-of-effect (AOE) attack could knock him out, making such "training" meaningless.
A person can be arrogant and brave, but must also be self-aware. A soul master who never dares to stir trouble is a mediocre talent—no, a fool, a brainless idiot!
"Come on, if you dare!" Zhu Wu shouted, rallying his courage.
A roar echoed three meters away—a colorful tiger, nearly three meters long and over 600 years old, snarled fiercely and charged.
No wonder it was a soul beast—this size was truly overwhelming!
Zhu Wu neither used charm spells nor clones but stayed calm and focused, keeping his eyes fixed on the tiger's most threatening claws and teeth.
He was already familiar with the tiger's weak points: its nose, eyes, and soft belly.
The soul master knowledge he had learned from Yu Xiaogang was truly useful.
Even the veterinary knowledge from his previous life suddenly came in handy—very useful indeed.
After all, veterinary studies involved learning animal anatomy and performing dissections. Though he had never dissected a tiger, he had done cats before.
Cats are humans' friends, but for the sake of his studies and credits, he had no choice—not that he wanted to!
"Pfft!" Seeing the giant tiger's hind legs coil as it prepared to leap, Zhu Wu didn't hesitate and dodged sideways.
Trying to slide and kick its belly? That was a joke!
Holding a man weighing over a ton was like being crushed by a mountain. Also, despite its thick waist and broad shoulders, the tiger was a true feline, extremely agile and capable of twisting mid-air.
"Roar!" The tiger leapt, but Zhu Wu dodged, and the beast flipped in midair, extending its limbs and spreading its claws, attempting to grab its prey while protecting its vulnerable belly.
Zhu Wu kept his distance until the tiger's limbs retracted and it landed with the typical feline grace.
"Now!" The word flashed through Zhu Wu's mind. His body instantly tensed, adrenaline surged, veins bulged in his neck, his face flushed red, and he moved swiftly forward with a powerful kick.
"Pfft!" The blow struck the tiger's side. The tiger lifted its hind leg, wobbled, and twisted its hips.
"Wow, am I really this strong?!" For the first time, Zhu Wu gained some real understanding of his physical strength.
Of course, he knew this power came with the bonus from the spirit beast possession. More specifically, it was the first soul ring's enhancement.
Through personal experience, he discovered that when Xiao Bai transformed into the Three-Eyed Demon Fox, the first soul ring would glow. When it merged with him, his physical attributes immediately increased. Based on the original lore, he believed this boost came from the energy stored in the first soul ring. His reasoning was influenced by the Haotian Sect's "Ring Explosion" technique.
That skill instantly shatters the soul ring, releasing its pure energy into the user's body, causing a huge surge in the soul master's attributes, which illustrates how much the soul ring's energy boosts the user.
When absorbing soul rings, a soul master can't take in all the energy; otherwise, the rings would disappear completely after energy depletion, making the display of soul rings pointless.
In a way, soul rings serve as energy storage mediums.
Mostly, the energy is used to power soul skills. The soul master must activate a soul skill first to gain attribute boosts, or the energy directly enhances the skill itself—this is the difference between output-type and self-buff-type soul skills.
The "Ring Explosion," however, releases all the energy at once to boost the soul master, but the user loses the soul skill since the ring shatters.
"Roar!" The colorful tiger, surprised by the human child's power, growled angrily in pain.
It no longer dared to attack recklessly but instead circled, looking for an opening.
"If not charm or clones, what else can I use?" Facing such a large foe for the first time, Zhu Wu didn't dare be reckless. While closely watching the tiger, his mind raced.
Suddenly, inspiration struck as he glanced behind.
"Puff puff puff"—the tiger charged without roaring, no longer leaping but opening its huge jaws, trying to tear the child apart using its size advantage.
Zhu Wu tensed and jumped aside.
Under the Three-Eyed Demon Fox possession, his speed had increased considerably—he was now much faster than the tiger.
"Roar!" Frustrated at the missed chance, the tiger let out a roar that made Zhu Wu's ears ring.
"Got a loud voice, huh?" Zhu Wu suddenly admired the tiger's sonic attack.
"Good thing it's not a thousand-year soul beast; otherwise, this roar might have given me a concussion!" He had never seen a thousand-year tiger soul beast use this move, so he couldn't be sure.
As this thought crossed his mind, he channeled soul energy to his fox tail.
He felt the fur slowly bristle.
While possessed, the fox tail moved like another limb, controlled effortlessly by thought. However, extending and stiffening it to strike was something he hadn't tried yet.
Maybe he should try?
"Grow longer!" he commanded, pushing soul energy toward the tip.
The tail indeed lengthened, and Zhu Wu instinctively swung it toward the tiger.
"Roar!" The tiger stopped its continuous roars and snapped its jaws with lightning speed, biting the tail.
With a sharp tug, Zhu Wu was hit by a strong force, his body pulled uncontrollably toward the tiger.
Too careless—didn't dodge!
(End of Chapter)
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