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"…"
The scene fell silent.
Aside from Ning Tian and Wu Feng, everyone else stared in astonishment at the seemingly frozen moment before them. A Mandala Snake, its maw wide open, was about to swallow the young man whole—yet Su Wen remained calm, his face utterly composed, showing no trace of fear.
That was because, at some unknown moment, a towering white-furred ape over four meters tall had appeared before him. Its body was lean yet muscular, its form elegant but not frail. A faint lavender streak marked the corner of its eyes. The giant ape gripped the Mandala Snake's tail with casual contempt and yanked it back violently.
"Hiss!!!"
The Mandala Snake shrieked in agony, but in Hurricane's grip, it was as helpless as a toy. The boy's calm face grew more distant in its vision. Terror rose as pain coursed through its body—it realized it had provoked the one being in this group it should never have challenged.
Hurricane toyed with it like a rope, swinging the serpent until a sharp whistle of wind cut through the air.
"Hurricane."
Su Wen frowned.
"Roar~"
The great ape gave a short nod, then swung the snake's tail downward, slamming its head into the ground. It immediately followed with a crushing punch. With a sickening splat, the Mandala Snake vomited a mouthful of blackened blood and went limp.
In a single instant, the Mandala Snake had been utterly crushed into unconsciousness.
Within the group, Tang Ya and Huo Yuhao stared blankly.
Tang Ya, in particular, flushed red when she recovered. She had just been bragging that Bei Bei would protect him—no wonder Bei Bei's expression had seemed strange. So this was why…
Huo Yuhao, meanwhile, was shaken to his core, his eyes wide with disbelief.
Bei Bei's fierce attacks and his Spirit Elder-level strength at just fifteen had already filled him with admiration. But even that Bei Bei, who struggled to kill a Mandala Snake, was nothing compared to Su Wen, who had just…
"Un…believable," Huo Yuhao stammered, at a loss for words.
The Skydream Iceworm, on the other hand, looked as if it were facing a deadly foe, staring at the wind ape with an increasingly wary glint in its eyes.
"A Wind Baboon? No… this feels like a qualitative change in its bloodline—some kind of mutated variant? And wait—isn't this kid's martial soul the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion? Why is there suddenly a Wind Baboon here too?!"
"Over four thousand years, I'd say."
Bei Bei deactivated his martial soul and approached, looking Hurricane up and down with open admiration. It was well-known in the Inner Court that Su Wen was a "Beast Master," and every spirit beast under his command was more monstrous than the last.
This must be the famed "Hurricane."
It really is impressive.
He has a whole retinue of underlings, so much so that the master hardly needs to lift a finger—now that's style.
This is the power of a summoner-type…
It's not a one-on-one fight. It's either you against my group of spirit beasts, or my group of spirit beasts ganging up on you.
"About right," Su Wen said with a smile.
"What kind of baboon is this? It's so handsome!" Tang Ya's eyes sparkled as she approached, carefully running her fingers over Hurricane's snowy fur, her expression brimming with envy.
"A Wind Baboon," Wu Feng answered before Su Wen could speak.
Tang Ya: "…"
The air grew even more awkward.
"Alright, all that's left is Ning Tian's third spirit ring. In that case… Hurricane!" Su Wen gave the ape a look. With a low growl, Hurricane's massive form blurred into motion, disappearing in a few flickers as it leaped through the ancient trees and into the distance.
Tang Ya drew a hidden weapon and drove it into the dying Mandala Snake's neck, ending its life.
A pale violet spirit ring emerged. She sat cross-legged on the ground and began to absorb it.
A few minutes later—
The body of a massive, clumsy black ape, over three thousand years old, fell from the trees with a crash. Hurricane landed right after it, planting a foot on the corpse and giving Su Wen a short growl.
"A Mountain Ridge Heavy Ape—leans toward… strength."
Su Wen glanced at Ning Tian.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda martial soul did not grant the same spirit skills to every user. A few rare spirit beasts could bestow unique abilities. For example, Ning Tian's second spirit skill was "Dispel," and for her third, she had chosen "Strength."
She gave a sweet smile.
"Mm."
She stepped forward decisively, blade in hand, and with some effort, ended the beast's life.
Then she began to absorb its spirit ring.
Watching them, Bei Bei's lips twitched.
Both were advancing to Spirit Elder, yet one was fifteen, and the other had only just turned eleven. Tang Ya had struggled to absorb a two-thousand-year ring, yet Ning Tian was taking on one over three thousand years old—nearly four thousand.
Su Wen's expression remained indifferent.
As the young mistress of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, Ning Tian had consumed more heavenly treasures than she could count. Things like whale gelatin were nothing; she had eaten far rarer things. Her body's endurance had long surpassed ordinary limits.
Three thousand years was no issue; she could likely even handle five thousand—though the latter carried some risk.
Pffft~
Bored, Hurricane started rubbing a stick against a log, producing a puff of smoke. The massive ape sat on the ground, finding some small amusement to break the monotony.
Bei Bei almost reminded him that starting a fire in the Star Dou Forest could easily attract spirit beasts—but then he remembered Su Wen's other pet, the Dark Golden Terrorclaw Bear. He closed his mouth. In this outer region, there were probably very few creatures that could actually threaten Su Wen.
With a wry smile, he sat back down, his gaze returning to Tang Ya.
"You've gotten this strong already?"
Meanwhile, Wu Feng, bored of watching Ning Tian absorb her spirit ring, plopped down next to Su Wen. Her fair, delicate face inched closer, her crimson eyes filled with curiosity and surprise.
The first time they met, she had been several levels weaker than him and was beaten so badly she felt like a few ribs had cracked—it had nearly left her traumatized. Yet now… the gap seemed even wider, like an unbridgeable chasm. She couldn't even see his back anymore.
Su Wen ignored her, continuing to circulate the golden core energy within him.
"Got any secrets to share?" Wu Feng leaned even closer, her warm breath tickling his cheek.
"I do." Su Wen opened his eyes, giving a helpless look to the girl now practically draped over him. "Dream less. Train more."
"Tch~~~"
Wu Feng scoffed and pulled back. She flopped onto her back, staring up at the sky.
Huo Yuhao, however, noticed that her ears had turned a little red.
"Jealous?"
In his spiritual sea, the Skydream Iceworm chuckled.
"Mm…" Huo Yuhao gave a small nod. Avenging his mother was his top priority, but as a teenage boy, it was only natural for such thoughts to stir within him.
"Back in my day in the Extreme North, I was quite the lady-killer. Even the Ice Empress, one of the Three Great Rulers, was smitten with me. It's a shame I had to leave to explore the world… I wonder how my Little Icy is doing," the Skydream Iceworm bragged slyly.
"Oh, right—when you go for your second spirit ring, you should make a trip to the Extreme North. There's a great opportunity waiting there for you."
"Okay…" Huo Yuhao committed the words to memory, nodding slightly.
(End of Chapter)