After roasting a rabbit over the campfire, Gu Han and Bibi Dong returned to the tent to rest.
Outside, Ghost stood watch for the night.
Of course, Yue Guan was there too. For a Contra-level powerhouse, going a day or two without sleep was hardly worth mentioning.
"Old ghost," Yue Guan said, sitting casually by the fire, "have you noticed we're getting old?"
He pulled two jugs of Hundred Flower Brew from his soul tool, handed one to Ghost, and stared at the flames with a touch of nostalgia.
Ghost took a slow sip, his gaze lifting toward the crescent moon hanging in the night sky.
"Are you feeling a little… overshadowed, seeing Her Highness's talent—and Xiaohan's?"
"A little," Yue Guan admitted with a faint smile. "Xiao Dongdong is something else entirely—born with full soul power, twin martial souls, and now her body's condition is resolved. As long as she cultivates steadily, she'll reach Title Douluo one day. Then she'll be able to absorb a second martial soul's ring. Her future is limitless."
He swirled the wine in his cup. "Xiaohan might lack innate talent, but the boy's clever. His self-created skills have real potential, and he's found ways to compensate for his weaknesses. If there really is immortal grass where we're headed, his future won't be small either."
Yue Guan chuckled softly. "Seeing these kids makes it feel like our youthful days were just yesterday."
Ghost didn't speak much—he simply listened, letting Yue Guan's sighs drift into the crackling firelight.
Inside the tent, Bibi Dong was already asleep. Gu Han sat cross-legged in meditation.
His spiritual cultivation had reached a plateau—divine sense turning inward—so progress would be slow for now. Half his time was now spent refining soul power instead.
His talent wasn't high; even with a mysterious cultivation method, his speed was still far behind true geniuses. The only way to keep up was with persistence.
Years of effort had pushed his first soul ring from four hundred years to six hundred, increasing its attack bonus from ten to fifteen percent.
He thought of Chen Xin's Seven Kill Sword—the same type of martial soul, yet far superior. Even the mighty Clear Sky Hammer couldn't match it in raw quality. Naturally, the Seven Kill Sword's bonuses were greater—thirty percent for its first skill.
Still, Gu Han didn't let it bother him. He had his own "hang-ups"—literally. And while he hated cheats in principle, when the cheat was in his own hands… well, it was hard to complain.
The second ring had less progress—too new, and his energy was divided.
But tonight was different. In deep meditation, he felt his speed soar. Perhaps it was due to his spiritual breakthrough—he slipped into cultivation faster, sensed the ambient energy more clearly, and mobilized it with ease.
The joy of faster progress rekindled his long-lost enthusiasm.
Dawn came. Gu Han opened his eyes right on time. Beside him, Bibi Dong was still curled up in the quilt, cheeks round and soft, smiling faintly in her sleep.
Shaking his head, he rose quietly and stepped outside.
Yue Guan and Ghost were making mushroom soup—Yue Guan's morning pick from the forest.
"Diligent boy," Yue Guan said with a smile. "Meditated all night, didn't you? Come, drink."
They had, of course, checked on him during the night—finding him practicing instead of sleeping had only increased their appreciation.
"Thank you, seniors. And thank you for keeping watch."
Gu Han accepted the steaming bowl and drank.
"You're still so polite," Yue Guan teased, though he didn't mind it in the least.
Bibi Dong soon emerged from the tent, rubbing her eyes.
"Good morning, Senior Yue Guan, Senior Ghost, brother."
"Senior sister, you're awake. Come have some soup."
Breakfast was quick. Out here, washing was limited to a splash from the water skins. Soon, they set out again.
They reached a dense jungle where purple mist hung in the air.
Poison.
Yue Guan and Ghost released their soul power to shield the juniors.
"This is the Purple-Winged Magic Spider's territory," Yue Guan warned. "Cunning little beast—stay alert."
A sudden tremor ran through the forest. A dark blur shot away at startling speed.
The spider had woken to intruders, released its poison mist, then—sensing the humans' strength—immediately turned tail.
"Trying to run? Golden Petal Meteor Shower!"
Yue Guan's sixth ring flared. Golden petals rained down like meteors, sealing the spider's escape path without striking to kill.
Ghost slipped into the shadows without a word, streaking ahead like living darkness.
The spider's six pairs of paper-thin wings flared wide, boosting its speed as it zigzagged desperately.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The golden rain crashed into the jungle, toppling trees and pitting the ground with craters, forcing the spider to weave and slow.
"Old ghost!" Yue Guan called.
"Third soul skill—Netherworld Ghost Claw!"
A massive claw of shadow burst from beneath the spider, snapping shut in an instant. The beast was pinned.
"Cunning indeed," Ghost said as he rose from the darkness.
And just like that, a nine-thousand-year soul beast was in the hands of two Contras.
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