The Shrek Academy group seemed to have only stopped briefly in the town. After leaving, they quickly headed northwest.
Lin Xiao didn't follow too closely. Once he confirmed their direction, he stopped. Though Fan Yu was a soul engineer, his eight-ring cultivation gave him perception far surpassing Lin Xiao's. It was fine in the town, but outside, where people were scarce, he could easily be exposed.
"Sir, are you interested in rare minerals?"
A skinny man suddenly approached Lin Xiao stealthily, just moments after he paused at the town's entrance.
Lin Xiao turned sharply, causing the man to freeze. "Sir, don't get worked up. I'm just here to discuss a deal."
"Not interested," Lin Xiao said, sizing up the man. Though he had soul power fluctuations, they were faint, indicating low cultivation.
Being near the border, it wasn't unusual to encounter black-market dealers selling rare minerals, but with this man's strength, he likely didn't have anything valuable.
"You jest, sir. You don't look like a local, so you must have a need for coming here. Why not hear my information first before refusing?" The man, older than Lin Xiao, maintained a fawning smile.
"If you don't believe me, follow me," he said, not waiting for Lin Xiao's response before heading toward a secluded spot.
Selling information?
Lin Xiao considered for a moment and followed a couple of steps, keeping his distance. The man didn't mind. Seeing few people around, his expression changed, and two soul rings—one white, one yellow—rose around him.
Lin Xiao raised his right hand slightly, scanning the surroundings warily, but no other figures appeared.
"Look, sir," the man said, his smile returning. After releasing his martial soul, his already gaunt cheeks grew even thinner, and a few long whiskers sprouted. "To be honest, my martial soul is the Treasure-Seeking Rat, capable of finding minerals others can't."
"But as you can see, with my strength, even if I find something valuable, I can't hold onto it. So I sell the information instead."
Lin Xiao glanced at the faint golden rat shadow at the man's feet. It was indeed a rat-type, but whether it was a Treasure-Seeking Rat, he couldn't tell.
"With such a skill, why not serve one of the great empires? Your ability should be in demand," Lin Xiao said.
"You jest, sir," the man said, glancing around furtively. "With the vast territories of the great empires, they can recruit plenty of soul masters with martial souls like mine. Why would they care about someone whose cultivation can't break past Level 30?"
"Then aren't you afraid, revealing your martial soul like this, that I might capture you to find minerals for me?" Lin Xiao asked.
"How could that be?" The man gave an awkward smile. "You don't look like one of those evil soul masters. You wouldn't do such a thing."
Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes, making the man visibly nervous.
"Alright, name your price," Lin Xiao said, his gaze shifting elsewhere.
The man rubbed his hands discreetly. "Sir, just ten gold soul coins."
"That cheap?"
Lin Xiao scrutinized him again. If he was selling information about rare minerals, he should know their market value. How could such information be worth only ten gold soul coins?
The man seemed to realize his price sounded odd and leaned closer, his expression more awkward. "Sir, to be honest, I only vaguely sensed something there. I'm not sure what it is."
"It's likely rare minerals, but it could be something else. If I charged too much, I'd worry you'd come back to trouble me, right?"
Lin Xiao turned and walked away without hesitation. Trying to pull a scam on an evil soul master like him?
"Sir, sir, wait! It's not far from here, just northwest. If you don't find anything good, come back, and I'll refund you, alright?"
Lin Xiao stopped abruptly, turning to stare at the man, a glint flashing in his eyes. "How many people have you sold this information to?"
The man, as if caught out, hurriedly avoided Lin Xiao's gaze. After a moment's silence, he stammered, "Not… not many. You're the second customer this morning…"
"Teacher Fan, the place that person mentioned should be around here," Zhang Lexuan said.
Fan Yu stopped, scanning the surroundings. There weren't many trees, just endless mountain ranges stretching into the distance, nothing particularly noteworthy.
"Let's keep looking. Minerals don't appear in small patches. If we find something, it'll be a substantial resource. The academy is short on materials, and a discovery could ease a lot of problems," Fan Yu said.
Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo didn't say more, carefully searching the area.
However, they found no minerals. Instead, a sudden roar erupted from beneath their feet.
The soil under Zhang Lexuan's feet rolled away, threatening to pull her down. A golden rope wrapped around her waist, yanking her to safety.
"Careful!"
Fan Yu took the lead, eight soul rings—two yellow, two purple, four black—circling him. He raised his right hand, where a mechanical arm-like device extended.
In an instant, a cave appeared where Zhang Lexuan had stood, with surrounding gravel and dirt still falling inward.
"Roar—"
Another roar, clearer this time, accompanied by a rumbling sound. A towering figure emerged before the trio.
It resembled a brown bear but with a much longer snout. Its fur stood on end, gleaming with a metallic sheen under the sunlight. Standing nearly ten meters tall, its mere presence was immensely oppressive.
"Teacher Fan, what kind of soul beast is this?" Zhang Lexuan asked.
"I've never seen it," Fan Yu replied, inwardly shocked.
Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo were outstanding Martial Soul Department students, set to compete in the soul dueling tournament next year. If even they didn't recognize this soul beast, it likely wasn't recorded in Shrek Academy's archives.
Though unfamiliar, a soul beast's strength could often be gauged by its size. At nearly ten meters, this creature's power was not to be underestimated.
"We must have entered its territory. Be careful," Fan Yu cautioned. His soul rings glowed, and he charged forward. The mechanical arm on his right shoulder lit up, jets of air shooting from its ports as it swung forward with his arm.
"Clang—"
A piercing sound rang out. Fan Yu staggered back several steps, looking at the soul beast in shock. His strike had felt like hitting solid metal.