Tang Lan had no idea—
That his charisma had already stirred Qian Renxue's heart, making her consider revealing her true identity.
He was already on his way to Star Dou Forest.
Activating Blood Escape Technique at full power—
The speed!
In just a few breaths,
He had already crossed half the continent, arriving at the center of the land—Star Dou Forest.
The Cost of Speed
But the price…
His Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone of Life dimmed, fading to an ashen gray.
His life force was completely drained, rendering it temporarily unusable.
Falling from mid-air, he landed steadily on the ground.
Welcome Party: A Hundred-Year Venom Widow
"Squeak! Squeak! Squeak—"
A hundred-year-old Venom Widow leaped at him from a tree branch.
"Pfft—"
The Eight Spider Lances appeared, and a single strike impaled the spider.
Devour Ability Activated.
The head-sized Venom Widow withered into a dry husk in the blink of an eye.
The age of his Eight Spider Lances increased slightly, reaching 95,000 years.
At this stage, the Lances were no longer limited to Man-Faced Demon Spiders—
As long as it was a spider-type soul beast, he could absorb and evolve from it.
Of course, the effectiveness varied.
Man-Faced Demon Spiders still provided the best enhancement.
Stealth Mode: "Ghost of the Forest" Returns
Activating Blue Silver Life Domain, Tang Lan masked his aura.
Then, he strolled through the forest leisurely, as if on a sightseeing tour.
Along the way, every soul beast he encountered—
Captured. Drained. Released.
Mental energy went to his Heavy Pupils.Life energy went to his Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone of Life.
With six100,000-year soul rings boosting him, his Life Soul Blue Silver Emperor was absurdly tough.
For most soul beasts under 50,000 years, escape was impossible.
And since Tang Lan was invisible, they didn't even see him coming.
It was like a haunting—
Soul beasts dropped one by one, as if they had been struck by a ghostly plague.
The dreaded legend of the forest had returned!
Two Days and Two Nights Later
After two days of hunting and resting,
Tang Lan finally replenished his life force, restoring the full power of his Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone of Life.
'Blood Escape Technique is insanely useful…'
'But the life force drain is ridiculous. Even my regenerative soul bone skills couldn't keep up.'
'Unless absolutely necessary, I better not use it often.'
Entering the Core Region
Soul beasts in the core area were all above 10,000 years.
Even the occasional thousand-year soul beasts moved in large packs.
Tang Lan toned down his arrogance.
Even though he had 96th-level combat power, it was still only for a single attack.
He wasn't strong enough to roam freely just yet.
Instead of sneaking around, he took out a Soul Communication Device and sent out a message.
Then, he set up a Tang Sect Lodge in the distance and waited.
Titan Giant Ape's Grand Entrance
Within minutes,
A violent aura surged forth—Titan Giant Ape barreled through the forest, trees toppling in its wake.
A few soul beasts drawn to the Tang Sect Lodge fled in terror.
Tang Lan revealed himself, standing atop the lodge.
"Whoosh—"
"Whoosh—"
"Whoosh—"
Three streaks of pink light flashed—
Xiao Wu had already thrown herself into his arms!
Xiao Wu's Excitement
She clung tightly to his waist, her face pressed against his chest, taking deep breaths of his familiar scent.
"Brother!"
"You finally came for me!"
Tang Lan rubbed her rabbit ears, then casually waved at Titan Giant Ape.
But Er Ming (Titan Giant Ape) just scoffed and looked away—
——He had followed Xiao Wu for thousands of years…
And now, she was stolen by some human?!
Unforgivable!
If not for Xiao Wu… I'd have smashed this guy already!
Meeting "The In-Laws"
After venting her emotions, Xiao Wu grabbed Tang Lan's hand and hopped onto Titan Giant Ape's shoulder.
"Brother, this is Er Ming—I told you about him before."
"You've met him once."
"Now let's go see Da Ming!"
"He wants to meet you too!"
Standing on Titan Giant Ape's broad shoulder, Tang Lan chuckled indulgently.
"So this is like… meeting your family?"
"Perfect timing."
"I actually brought a gift. I think they'll like it."
Xiao Wu leaned against his shoulder, her smile blooming like a flower.
Being with Brother… is the best!
As for Er Ming, who was black-faced and stomping through the forest—
She didn't even notice.
Right now, in her eyes, there was only Tang Lan—
And nothing else mattered.
Tang Lan didn't hold back, beginning a thorough "check-up" on Xiao Wu.
"Level 44 now, huh? Not bad."
"Of course!" Xiao Wu said proudly. "I've been training every day!"
"That's amazing!" Tang Lan praised her. "I brought some immortal herbs this time—you should be able to reach level 50."
"Really?!" Xiao Wu's eyes lit up with joy. "Then does that mean I can go back with you?!"
"That's why I came."
"Awesome! Horsey ride—"
Titan Giant Ape: Witnessing a Heartbreak
The lovey-dovey exchange happening right on his shoulder made Er Ming (Titan Giant Ape) furious!
You shrimp-eating pig-hearted bastard!
With a sudden leap, he tried to shake Tang Lan off his shoulder, hoping to make him fall embarrassingly.
But—
Tang Lan stood steady as a mountain.
Instead, the one caught off guard was Xiao Wu, who ended up clutching him even tighter.
Her rabbit ears twitched in panic, pressing firmly against his chest.
Titan Giant Ape:DAMN IT!
"Er Ming!" Xiao Wu scolded, pouting. "Why are you moving so suddenly?! You almost scared my brother!"
Er Ming: The Ultimate Simp
Faced with Xiao Wu's complaints, Er Ming reluctantly stopped.
He lowered his pace, doing his best to move steadily.
Tang Lan, being the smart man he was, immediately understood what was happening.
So this is what we call a "simp's revenge," huh?
He was reminded of a certain joke—
"When a simp's crush gets a boyfriend, he starts bringing two breakfast meals instead of one."
He felt a little sympathy—
Even a 100,000-year soul beast, when reduced to a simp, was just as pitiful.
But he didn't pity Er Ming in the slightest.
If Er Ming truly loved Xiao Wu, he wouldn't have let her go alone into human society.
Instead, he should've taken human form and gone with her.
At the end of the day, he was just scared to die.
And because of that, Xiao Wu ended up alone and vulnerable—
Which allowed Tang San to swoop in and take his chance.
Meeting Da Ming (Azure Bull Python)
"Mooooo—"
A deep, dragon-like bellow caught Tang Lan's attention.
A massive figure hovered in the air.
It had a bull's head and a serpent's body—
With a head spanning four meters in diameter and two lantern-sized eyes locking onto Tang Lan.
The Azure Bull Python!
"Boom—"
Er Ming leaped forward in a single bound, crossing thousands of meters and landing with a thud.
Now, Tang Lan could see Da Ming's full form—
Its snake body was covered in black-green scales, as thick as several water barrels.
Its tail end dipped into the Lake of Life, resting within the sacred waters.
"Da Ming!" Xiao Wu cheered excitedly. "Look! This is my brother! He came to take me back!"
A Brother's Judgment
Da Ming lowered its massive head, staring intently at Tang Lan.
Tang Lan smiled calmly in response.
What was interesting—
Was that Da Ming also had feelings for Xiao Wu.
But compared to Er Ming's blatant simping, Da Ming was far more rational.
"Human, you're not bad." Da Ming finally spoke. "If Xiao Wu is with you, I can rest assured."
Xiao Wu: Overjoyed!
Xiao Wu beamed with happiness—
Her man was now approved by her family!
What could be better than this?!
Er Ming: Complete Mental Breakdown
"ROAR—"
Er Ming let out an unwilling roar.
Tang Lan instantly picked up on violent fluctuations in his mental energy.
As soon as he tapped into the frequency, he understood the message—
「Big Bro!」
「You just met this human for the first time—how can you trust him already?!」
「With his strength, I could squash him with one foot!」
Da Ming glanced at Er Ming with mild irritation.
You idiot.
Xiao Wu already chose him—
And you're still whining?
"Er Ming!" Xiao Wu scolded, fuming. "That was WAY out of line! Apologize to my brother! Now!"
Er Ming froze on the spot, his massive face turning red with frustration.
Standing there—
A hundred-thousand-year-old titan looked like a giant, sulking baby.