"I'll just sneak away for a bit. Should be fine..." Xuan Zi muttered.
He waved in front of Su Wen, called his name a few times, then, reassured, placed a fan nearby—a centuries-old defensive soul tool from Sea God's Pavilion, infused with his aura. Even if he left, it would mimic his presence and trigger protection if needed.
Unless a hundred-thousand-year beast showed up, it was more than enough.
"This is just the edge of the core zone. Two- or three-ten-thousand-year beasts are everywhere, but hundred-thousand-year ones are rare—and if danger appears, the fan will activate and I'll hurry back."
Satisfied, Xuan Zi vanished.
"Ha~"
Su Wen slowly awoke—no Xuan Zi, just a fan by his side. He was startled.
"Not good!"
Gale returned to the spirit ball.
No clue where Xuan Zi went.
But examining the fan...
It was a defensive soul tool!
Su Wen's mouth twitched. Clearly, Xuan Zi had snuck off for wine and snacks.
His Taotie Divine Bull martial soul needed constant food to maintain power, but this was the Star Dou core zone! And he just left?
Su Wen wasn't pleased, but at least Xuan Zi left some protection.
He exhaled and scanned around.
Maybe because of the fan, even with Xuan Zi gone, no soul beasts dared approach.
He relaxed a little.
"Well, might as well eat."
Su Wen sighed.
The sun was setting, fires had been lit at Shrek's camp in the distance.
Agile as a monkey, Su Wen descended the thousand-meter tree, grinning. In the Douluo world, even a mere soul master could surpass his previous world's limits.
Of course, some of that was Gale's stat feedback.
"Eh? Xiao Wen, why are you here?" Zhang Yi greeted him in surprise.
"Elder Xuan… was gone when I woke up. I got hungry and couldn't wait, so I came for a bite," Su Wen rubbed his stomach.
Training used up a lot of energy, needing plenty of meat or soul-rich food.
"Ahaha, just in time. I just butchered a blood-red baboon—half a ton of meat, eat your fill..."
Zhang Yi laughed, clearly used to Elder Xuan's unreliability, and invited Su Wen to eat.
"Eat slowly, don't choke."
Ma Xiaotao was the most excited to see Su Wen, giving him her own share of roast meat: "Don't worry, there's so much baboon meat, we can only finish it in two days. The rest we'll leave for the beasts."
"But I roasted it..." Zhang Yi grumbled.
Ma Xiaotao ignored him, eyes shining at Su Wen.
"Mm..."
Su Wen gulped a piece, feeling that this silly girl saw him as her little brother.
Maybe because she found him?
But it was warm...
Smelling the meat, Gale popped out of the spirit ball, staring expectantly.
"Here," Zhang Yi, knowing Gale was Su Wen's 'external martial soul,' cut a chunk of raw leg and handed it over. With Su Wen's nod, Gale eagerly tore into it.
"Tasty?" Su Wen grinned, then paused. "Wait, Gale, aren't you a baboon too?"
"Roar~" (Bro, so tasty)
Su Wen: "..."
"Heh, baboon tribes often fight and eat each other. Wind baboons are usually food for others," Zhang Yi explained.
"I see," Su Wen nodded, swallowing some meat.
He paused.
The panel showed stat changes.
[Wind Baboon]
Level: 13
Strength: 0.22 (+0.01)
Speed: 0.30 (+0.01)
Endurance: 0.22 (+0.01)
Defense: 0.15 (+0.01)
...
Eating meat could increase levels?
Su Wen was startled.
Of course! Not just spiritual fruit—eating strong beasts' meat could also boost cultivation! Many soul beasts gained power this way: the Bear Lord, Ten Thousand Demon King, etc.
A true "Bro, you're delicious."
It's like draining Ten Thousand Year Ice Silkworm—just another form of 'eating meat.'
Sadly, Gale wasn't a Taotie...
If he had a Taotie pet, feeding it would make training as easy as drinking water.
"Should I... raise Elder Xuan?"
But regardless, seeing his own stats jump several times in a day, Su Wen couldn't help but smile. Pet growth converted to his own stats—this could increase his cultivation speed by a third!
Around the fire, the Shrek team was relaxed.
Even after hearing Elder Xuan was gone, the smooth journey had lowered their guard.
Even Zhang Lexuan sat quietly, deep in thought.
"Wait, something's wrong..."
Su Wen frowned.
The fan's handle flashed red.
This high-grade soul tool, integrating defense, detection, and aura masking, was warning of a powerful enemy!
That nervous feeling seemed to come from within the soul tool itself, setting Su Wen on edge.
His face paled.
Only a hundred-thousand-year beast could trigger a red warning...
<><><>>><><><><><><><>
Advanced chapter here: p-atreon.com/Sajaboyzzz
<><><><><>><>>><><><><>
Keep the Chapters coming - Support with Power Stones!
Every 200 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter!