Fang Ling was running deeper into the forest, heading toward the area populated by century-old soul beasts.
He hoped to encounter either a powerful soul beast or a soul hunter.
Anyone would do, he just needed something to change the situation!
In the vast, lush primeval forest, the chase between man and beast played out once again.
The man was still the same, but the beast had been replaced with a stronger one.
Fang Ling had reached his limit.
It had only been a few days since he arrived in the Star Dou Forest. Other than the first couple of days with his teachers, everything after that had been a constant escape.
And he couldn't stop running.
Faced with soul beasts whose attacks were off the charts and could easily kill him, how could Fang Ling dare to pause?
Each time, the result was the same: he'd be sent flying.
Seeing that it couldn't kill him quickly, the giant centipede-like creature began treating him like a plaything, batting him around like a ball.
Though it seemed playful, it was cunning and maintained the caution unique to seasoned soul beasts.
It relentlessly chased Fang Ling, applying pressure and wearing down his stamina and soul power.
After each collision, it would follow up with a series of deadly swings.
It aimed to break his weapon while he was fatigued.
And it was working.
The once-glimmering scythe's blade was now broken in half, and the thick handle was covered in spreading cracks.
Since his martial soul was damaged, Fang Ling himself was severely injured, blood poured from his mouth and nose, and he was surviving solely through sheer willpower.
Another collision struck.
"Hah!"
Blood filled Fang Ling's eyes as he gripped the long handle of the scythe tightly and swung with force.
The silver-white, broken scythe clashed with the massive, claw-like mandibles, each nearly as long as his forearm.
Aside from the first clash, he hadn't activated the Cursed Blade again.
He had been too distracted and rushed to properly use Weakness Detection. And even if he did use it, it likely wouldn't help much.
This giant centipede moved fast and was covered in thick armor. He couldn't penetrate its defense at all.
Even its mandibles weren't damaged by the Cursed Blade.
Fang Ling couldn't break through its defense!
So he could only observe and wait for an opportunity, giving up on counterattacks for now.
Every bit of soul power he had was used to power his soul bone, except for unavoidable collisions during sudden charges.
He had to buy time, either find a turning point or uncover a weakness in this giant purple-red centipede.
Boom!
Another loud crash rang out, and yet another piece of his scythe was broken.
The blade, originally over 40 centimeters long, was now reduced to only 10.
The cracks on the handle spread even further. Fragments and debris scattered in all directions, eventually turning into soul power particles and vanishing.
Fang Ling had long since switched to holding the scythe with both hands, but it didn't stop his palms from cracking and bleeding profusely.
His arms were in searing pain, every muscle torn.
He barely had enough strength left to fend off the next attack.
Was this where he was going to die?
"No!"
"I survived the hardships of being a beggar, there's no way I'll die here!"
Fang Ling refused to believe he would lose.
Even as blood began to stream from his eyes, he remained calm, thinking hard about how to escape this situation alive.
If there was no turning point, he would have to gamble.
Gamble on the effectiveness of his Absorb specialty!
Absorb couldn't take someone else's life force or soul power to make him stronger. It could only replenish his own lost soul power and help recover from injuries.
It was a self-recovery skill.
Fang Ling recalled the life force and soul power he had absorbed when he killed the one-eyed giant-horned antelope. His eyes narrowed slightly.
Absorb filtered the energy according to a set ratio and then transferred the purified life force and soul power into him.
But at just Level 2, it wasn't very powerful.
So he had to ensure that his injuries remained just short of fatal, staying alive by clinging to the edge of death, so that Absorb could keep him from falling over the line.
He continued dancing on the blade's edge.
He silently analyzed every collision, estimating that he had enough soul power left to activate the Cursed Blade one more time.
The hand gripping the scythe had gone pale from blood loss.
A faint shadow of death flickered in Fang Ling's eyes.
He whispered to himself:
"It's time for the final gamble."
After this... he would either live or die.
Hidden in the branches of a concealed tree, two figures, one large, one small, watched the dangerous chase unfold.
The larger was a middle-aged man.
Tall and lean, he looked on with genuine admiration for Fang Ling, who continued to fight despite his broken martial soul.
"What an impressive kid," he said.
For most soul masters with weapon-type martial souls, any damage to their soul weapon would cause unbearable pain, reaching deep into the mind and soul.
That kind of pain was nearly impossible to endure.
And it made the weapon even more fragile.
Outwardly, this meant others could easily shatter your martial soul with a single strike.
Yet this one-legged boy was severely injured, his soul weapon nearly half-destroyed, and he could still run as if nothing had happened.
The endurance and willpower that implied were unimaginable.
The smaller figure was a beautiful girl whose appearance far exceeded her actual age. She had shoulder-length black hair, fair skin, and a cool, distant aura.
Beautiful as she was, her sorrowful eyes were devoid of life.
As she watched Fang Ling struggle to flee, something stirred faintly in her heart, an unexplainable feeling that suddenly prompted her to speak:
"Uncle Li, save him."
"At once, young miss!"
The tall, lean man didn't ask why.
He also wanted to save this boy with such tenacity and promise.
But as a bodyguard, it wasn't his place to speak for the young miss.
He could make decisions about her safety, but not about unrelated matters like rescuing strangers.
The young miss had come to the Star Dou Forest to hunt soul beasts, her safety was the top priority.
Making decisions like this on his own would have been overstepping his role.
Now that the beautiful girl had given the order, the man called Uncle Li immediately activated his martial soul, transforming into a black shadow as he dashed out.
With black ears and a black tail, his form resembled that of a black cat.
Another shadow quickly took his place beside the girl.
The boy they were discussing, Fang Ling, had no idea help was on the way.
Even with his strong reflexes, he had no attention to spare for anything else in the life-or-death situation he was in.
He quickly cut off soul power to the external soul bone on his right leg. His eyes blazed with a ferocious, blood-red glow.
Facing the charging centipede once again, he didn't defend.
He merely shifted his position, aiming to take the hit with his abdomen instead of his more vital chest.
This time, he would fight back.
His target: the centipede's wide-open maw.
It was one of the few spots not protected by hard armor and the only place where a fatal blow might land.
Whenever the massive centipede opened its pincers, its mouth would open slightly.
Fang Ling had noticed this subtle habit during their earlier battles.
This was his only chance to turn the tide!
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