Xiaotian leaped onto Sword Fifteen's blade, channeling half his soul power into it. Suddenly, something astonishing happened—Fifteen grew larger! The entire sword expanded instantly, becoming three or four times its usual size.
"Fifteen!" Xiaotian commanded mentally. The sword adjusted to a practical size, storing the excess soul power within its body to nourish its flight.
With a boom, Xiaotian soared into the air atop Fifteen. Flying a stylish circle, he landed smoothly.
"So handsome!" Xiao Wu's eyes sparkled with admiration. Compared to Xiaotian's soaring sword, she felt as if she were only playing pretend.
After landing, Xiaotian sheathed Fifteen, nodding with satisfaction. Succeeding on his first try was a great surprise!
While experimenting, he discovered he could inject some soul power into Fifteen to fuel its autonomous movement. This made him extremely happy but he didn't know how much soul power Fifteen could store.
Wasn't this like having extra soul power reserve?
Similar to the Storage Soul Guide from Douluo Dalu 2, when enemies thought his soul power was drained, Fifteen could vanish, waiting for the perfect moment to strike a deadly blow.
Upon hearing Xiao Wu's praise, Xiaotian smiled, "How about I take you flying?"
Xiao Wu hesitated, "Won't we fall?"
She worried that Xiaotian might run out of soul power mid-flight, dooming them both.
"Hahaha, it's just a trial for now."
Night soon fell, and while Xiao Wu slept, Xiaotian tiptoed from the room.
Though close to Xiao Wu, he couldn't explain the rapid progress in his cultivation and thought no explanation was necessary. Leaving under cover of night would prevent unnecessary complications.
He headed away from the Soul Hunting Forest where Yu Xiaogang and the others had ventured.
Along the way, he ran while charging Fifteen, testing how much soul power the sword could hold.
Suddenly, Fifteen trembled violently as if to say, "I'm full! Don't feed me more or I'll overflow!"
Secretly calculating, Xiaotian estimated Fifteen could hold almost a tenth-level amount of his soul power. With the first soul ring boosting attributes, it could store even more.
After hours of travel, dawn broke, and the Soul Hunting Forest's silhouette appeared in the distance.
But instead of rushing in, Xiaotian found a small teahouse nearby, ordered some tea, and rested.
Though familiar with soul beasts from his past life readings, this was his first real encounter. He hoped he wouldn't make mistakes.
Back at Dormitory 7 in Notting College, Xiao Wu rubbed her eyes and glanced at the empty bed beside her.
"Hmm? Where is Xiaotian? Did he leave to practice without telling me?"
She felt annoyed.
She quickly washed and hurried to their usual practice spot, but found no one.
Okay, Xiaotian even changed practice locations—she thought of teaching him a lesson later.
Yet this was an opportunity for her to find a quieter place to try condensing her first soul ring.
After a short break, Xiaotian approached the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest.
With his strength, he could only roam the edges.
Having trained swordsmanship since childhood, his physical condition was excellent. He estimated his first soul ring's lifespan would near a thousand years.
A thousand-year soul beast, however, was another matter—there was a huge leap between hundred-year and thousand-year beasts. Without substantial soul power, victory was unlikely.
Along the way, Xiaotian passed a large bamboo grove—home to the ten-year-old plant-type soul beast Gu Zhu, the same one Tang San and Yu Xiaogang had encountered in the original story.
Xiaotian smiled to himself.
Tang San was Tang Hao's son and had been forced to absorb this weak soul ring by Yu Xiaogang, who probably wished he were dead.
Lone Bamboo was nearly useless offensively, only slightly boosting toughness.
If absorbed, it might increase Fifteen's toughness—though Xiaotian didn't really need that.
Ignoring low-impact soul beasts, Xiaotian focused on silkworm soul beasts and other plant-type martial spirits with strong vitality.
The former had low offensive power, while the latter could boost soul power and make Fifteen sturdier.
But soul skills were unpredictable, especially those from the latter category.
Suddenly, the system sounded an alarm.
[Warning! Warning! Host, evacuate immediately. A 50,000-year-old Green Wood Silkworm King is within 500 meters. Though not aggressive, it's not an opponent for a small soul warrior like you.]
Xiaotian looked around warily but found nothing unusual and relaxed slightly.
Instead, he stood still, emitting sword intent that spread outward like ethereal limbs—his own tactile extension of perception.
This sword intent was like extra hands and feet, a thinning, emitted presence to sense the surroundings.
Yet this technique consumed mental energy quickly; in seconds, Xiaotian's face turned pale.
Just as he was about to stop, he sensed movement about 400 meters away at three o'clock—something thick and still in the grass.
Huhuhu~
Sweat ran cold.
This wasn't suitable now—he needed a skull to enhance mental strength.
Calming himself, Xiaotian drew his sword and cautiously approached.
At five meters' range, he finally saw the jade-green figure of the Jade Silkworm King.
Its body, emerald with subtle chameleon patterns, clung to grass streaked with light wood grain.
Counting the segments carefully, Xiaotian confirmed it was a thousand-year-old soul beast!
Damn this crazy system again — where did this Jade Silkworm King come from?
P.S. This chapter marks a breakthrough as Xiaotian masters flying with Sword Fifteen and discovers its soul power storage, akin to a hidden reserve. The encounter with the formidable Jade Silkworm King introduces new dangers, prompting caution and strategic thinking as the journey into the Soul Hunting Forest unfolds.
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