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Shi Quan stayed in the library all morning, and after lunch, Marde finally returned in the afternoon.
He also brought news that the Hall Master of Nuoding City's Spirit Hall wanted to personally meet him.
To avoid delaying tomorrow's Soul Hunting, Marde briefly instructed Shi Quan and then personally took him to the Spirit Hall.
Unlike the Spirit Hall in the small village, Nuoding City's Spirit Hall was very grand; its front width alone exceeded one hundred meters, it stood twenty meters high, and was divided into three levels.
Led by Marde, Shi Quan went directly to a room on the third floor, pushed the door open without knocking, and entered.
"Dean Ma, you're back so soon?" A powerful voice rang out from inside the room, and there was no anger at being suddenly disturbed in the voice.
This was a bright office, very large, at least seventy to eighty square meters, with a wide desk in the center behind which sat a middle-aged man, dressed in a neat Spirit Master uniform, with an emblem engraved with a five-sword symbol on his chest.
Spirit Scholar, Spirit Master, Spirit Grandmaster, Spirit Elder, Spirit Ancestor.
It showed that he was a Spirit Ancestor-level Battle Spirit Master, just like Marde.
"I don't want to delay this child's Cultivation." Marde pointed to the middle-aged man and introduced, "Shi Quan, this is Dawson, the Hall Master of Nuoding City's Spirit Hall. You can call him Hall Master Dawson."
"Hello, Hall Master Dawson," Shi Quan greeted politely.
"You must be Shi Quan, right? Good, good, good. As expected, heroes emerge from the young. Come here, let me see." Dawson's eyes visibly brightened when he saw Shi Quan. He rose from his desk, walked out, and beckoned Shi Quan over as he approached him.
He said 'see', but in reality, it was an examination.
How could someone who could become a Hall Master of the Spirit Hall be an ordinary person? During Marde's absence, Dawson had already learned Shi Quan's general situation from Su Yuntao, who had helped Shi Quan Awaken.
If anyone else had told him that a Spirit Scholar with only Rank One Innate spirit power could Breakthrough to Rank Ten within a year and a half, his first reaction would have been to suspect a wicked Spirit Master.
If Marde hadn't repeatedly vouched for him and tirelessly explained for a whole morning, Dawson certainly wouldn't have believed it.
After checking Shi Quan's body and spirit power, Dawson also examined Shi Quan's Martial Spirit, and even asked Shi Quan to personally demonstrate his Cultivation process.
Only then did Dawson begin to trust him.
After confirming that Shi Quan's strength was not problematic and was all due to his own Cultivation, the conversation finally returned to Soul Hunting.
After a brief discussion, Marde and Dawson decided that they would personally take Shi Quan to the Soul Hunting Forest to hunt Spirit Beasts tomorrow.
After leaving the Spirit Hall and returning, Marde again exhorted Shi Quan to rest well.
Back in the dormitory, Shi Quan did not relax; he still Cultivated all night.
The next day, early in the morning, after getting up and tidying up, Shi Quan left the academy with Marde and got into the carriage prepared by Dawson.
Two Spirit Ancestors going together to hunt a hundred-year Spirit Beast was an easy task, so the three of them didn't need to prepare anything else.
They set off directly.
"Take a look. These are the Spirit Beasts currently remaining in the Elementary Soul Hunting Forest. This record was updated just last week, so there won't be much discrepancy."
Saying that, Dawson took out a booklet from his pouch and handed it to Shi Quan.
The Spirit Beasts in the Soul Hunting Forest are specially bred, so the Spirit Hall naturally keeps some simple records. The enforcement team in the Soul Hunting Forest, besides enforcing laws, also regularly records the status of Spirit Beasts in the forest. This is the origin of the booklet in Shi Quan's hand. Such booklets are exclusively for internal use by the Spirit Hall and are generally not shown to outsiders.
Shi Quan flipped through the booklet in his hand, and a hint of surprise appeared in his eyes. This booklet not only recorded the types of Spirit Beasts existing in the Elementary Soul Hunting Forest but even detailed their approximate age and location. This booklet was completely an internal map of the Soul Hunting Forest.
Rustle, rustle, rustle, the sound of the booklet flipping kept ringing. Shi Quan didn't want to flip so fast, but there was no choice. In such a large Soul Hunting Forest, plant-type Spirit Beasts over four hundred years old were pitifully few; most were beast-type Spirit Beasts. After looking at seven or eight plant Spirit Beasts in a row, none were suitable.
"No way... there won't be what I want, will there?"
Shi Quan continued to flip through the booklet with a bit of anxiety and nervousness.
"This is!"
Shi Quan's flipping motion finally froze.
"Found a suitable one?" Marde curiously tilted his head to look at the booklet in Shi Quan's hand.
"Man-eating Vine?" When he saw the age description that followed, Marde's brows immediately furrowed. "Around five hundred and fifty years, the age is too high."
"I think we can try." Shi Quan's gaze, however, was fixed directly on the Man-eating Vine.
The name 'Man-eating Vine' sounds scary, but it is actually a very common Spirit Beast. In its normal state, this vine will coil into a ball, appearing delicate and vibrant. If a person or Spirit Beast approaches within a certain range, the Man-eating Vine's tendrils will instantly spread out, growing several times in a short period, like a large mouth, engulfing people and Spirit Beasts, and tightly bind them.
The Man-eating Vine's tendrils are very special; their toughness is not strong among vine Spirit Beasts of the same Rank, nor are they thick, and they have no toxins. But their tendrils have a very special characteristic, which is growth. As long as you can't break free from its bind in one go, its broken tendrils can quickly heal and then continue to grow.
Growing fast and being able to heal, these two points, when applied to plant-type Spirit Beasts, are a manifestation of vigorous Life force.
What Shi Quan wanted was a Spirit Beast known for its Life force, and the Man-eating Vine's characteristics could also meet his requirements for his first Spirit Ability.
In fact, according to Shi Quan's estimation, given his current situation, he could successfully absorb some more powerful top-tier Spirit Beasts of the same age. For ordinary low-Rank Spirit Beasts like this, he could completely challenge the limit age for a second spirit ring, which is over seven hundred years. But he couldn't.
Once the age of the spirit ring he absorbed was too high, or its quality too strong, his true situation would be suspected. Therefore, he had to make some trade-offs with the first spirit ring of the Blue Silver Grass Martial Spirit, to make himself seem special, but not too conspicuous.
So, on the basis of sacrificing the spirit ring's age and strength, his requirement for his first spirit ring was to definitely obtain a satisfactory auxiliary skill!
And the Man-eating Vine's characteristics met Shi Quan's requirements. If he absorbed the Man-eating Vine's spirit ring, the Blue Silver Grass would most likely gain a Spirit Ability related to rapid growth.
Although using Internal Energy could also extend the length of the Blue Silver Grass, as the distance increased, the spirit power consumption would multiply. If there was a growth skill, it could not only reduce the consumption of the Blue Silver Grass's extension but perhaps also increase the Blue Silver Grass's attack control range.
"Let's see if there are any other suitable ones?"
Shi Quan was not in a hurry to finalize; he also wanted to see if there were any other more suitable Spirit Beasts. However, after looking through the entire booklet, from all aspects, the most suitable was the Man-eating Vine. Under Shi Quan's insistence, the target for this trip was finally set as the 'Man-eating Vine'.
Nuoding City was several hundred li away from the nearest Soul Hunting Forest. It wasn't too far, nor too close. The carriage traveled continuously, and the group finally arrived at the small town on the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest around noon the next day.
"Team up to hunt speed-type Spirit Beasts..."
"Seven people waiting for a warrant..."
Various shouts were incessant, and looking around, there were also many different shops catering to Spirit Masters.
"So many people." Through the carriage window, Shi Quan couldn't help but curiously observe his surroundings.
The carriage did not stop in the market town. After leaving the market, Shi Quan couldn't help but show a look of shock when he saw the large forest in the distance.
Tall trees intertwined in patches; such a scene could not even be compared to the primeval forests of his previous Life.
On the outskirts of the forest, there was a huge iron fence. Outside the fence, Spirit Hall soldiers, clad in fine iron full body armor and armed with long spears, patrolled with strict military discipline.
The carriage drove directly into the Spirit Hall soldiers' encampment before stopping. The carriage they were riding in had the exclusive Spirit Hall insignia, so no one even checked them along the way.
After getting off the carriage, the three did not linger. As they walked towards the entrance of the Soul Hunting Forest, Marde began to give instructions on some precautions within the Soul Hunting Forest.
As he spoke, the three had already arrived at the entrance of the Soul Hunting Forest.
Dawson, walking at the front, took out a token from his pouch and showed it to the guarding soldiers. With a loud shout, the soldiers quickly cleared a path, personally leading Dawson into the forest.
"Sir, the location you mentioned should be in this direction." The soldier respectfully pointed towards the southeast.
Dawson nodded and looked at Marde beside him, "Marde, delays cause trouble, we should make quick work of this."
"No problem." Marde agreed, embracing Shi Quan, "Let's go!"
As his voice fell, their figures shot out. Both of them were Spirit Ancestor Rank, so hundred-year-level Spirit Beasts posed no threat to them.
The two traveled at high speed. The Spirit Beasts they encountered were mostly low-Rank ten-year Spirit Beasts, with few hundred-year Spirit Beasts. Dawson, leading the way, released his Spirit Ancestor-exclusive spirit power fluctuations, so no short-sighted Spirit Beasts troubled them along the way.
A few hours later.
"It should be around here." Dawson's speed gradually slowed.
The surroundings were still dense jungle. After walking for a short while, Dawson's figure stopped, "Found it."
Following Dawson's gaze, there was a dark red flower, ring-shaped, as vibrant as a scorching sun. But if one looked closely, the petals of this seemingly flower were actually made up of long, slender vines piled together.
"That red flower is it." Dawson subtly tilted his chin forward as he spoke, his gaze shifting to Marde.
Marde strode forward, his cloudy eyes instantly becoming sharp. A dark golden iron rod appeared in his hand, and as spirit power surged around him, four spirit rings—white, yellow, yellow, purple—circled up from beneath him.
Whoosh, the long rod swung, bringing forth a gust of wind.
Before the powerful and heavy blow could land, a rustling sound of rapidly trembling branches and leaves continuously rang out. The dark red large flower seemed to explode, and a large number of dark red slender vines suddenly scattered, wrapping around the long rod.
"Is this a Spirit Beast?" Looking at the suddenly erupting Man-eating Vine, Shi Quan felt a tingling sensation on his scalp.
A scene immediately appeared in his mind: someone curiously stepping forward to examine it, only to be wrapped into a vine cocoon by the erupting Man-eating Vine.
It was Shi Quan's first time witnessing a Spirit Beast's attack method and the battle between a Spirit Beast and a Spirit Master, and his heart couldn't help but surge with excitement.
He secretly put himself in the situation, wondering how he should react if he faced such a situation.
Marde's response was very simple and brutal: with each swing of the powerful and heavy dark gold iron rod, a large number of vines were directly snapped.
What made the Man-eating Vine most troublesome was its ability to constantly regenerate its vines. However, its disadvantage was also obvious: because its vines were relatively slender and their toughness was not very high, a strong attack system Tool Spirit Master like Marde could easily crush it as long as his spirit power was slightly higher.
Under the powerful swings of the heavy long rod, the Man-eating Vine's regeneration speed clearly couldn't keep up with Marde's destructive speed. Moreover, the Man-eating Vine's vines couldn't regenerate indefinitely; that would require consuming spirit power.
Under Marde's violent long rod, the Man-eating Vine soon had only its last section of vine trembling weakly on the ground, occasionally moving but appearing very soft and powerless.
"It's ready, Shi Quan, come over." Marde held the long rod and only spoke after confirming it from top to bottom.
Hundred-year Spirit Beasts have no wisdom, only the instincts of beasts, so generally, before ten thousand years, there's no need to worry about a Spirit Beast feigning death and counterattacking.
"Thank you, Teacher." Shi Quan immediately came back to his senses. He hadn't expected Marde, who usually seemed gentle, elegant, and a bit stubborn, to be so fierce in battle.
As his thoughts drifted, Shi Quan had already strode to Marde's side. Marde then took out a long dagger from his waist and handed it to Shi Quan.
Shi Quan took the dagger, crouched down, and thrust the dagger diagonally into the central vine of the Man-eating Vine.
After the Man-eating Vine's final death throes, a faint yellow light slowly emerged from its corpse, gradually transforming into a yellow spirit ring.
"Be careful." Marde patted Shi Quan's shoulder worriedly. Now that it had come to this, he could only cheer Shi Quan on.
Shi Quan nodded, sat down cross-legged, took a deep breath, and then summoned his Martial Spirit.
The blue light intersected with the yellow light in mid-air. The yellow spirit ring in mid-air, guided by the Blue Silver Grass, immediately floated down to Shi Quan's head at an extremely fast speed, then quickly shrunk, finally becoming the size of a golden bracelet and falling straight down, settling onto the Blue Silver Grass in Shi Quan's hand.
The next moment, Shi Quan's body suddenly trembled violently.
Marde and Dawson, standing nearby, fixed their gazes on Shi Quan.
"The spirit ring's energy is starting to surge. Shi Quan, hang in there, you must hold on!" Marde's fists had unknowingly clenched, and his gaze towards Shi Quan, besides worry, held even more anticipation—anticipation of Shi Quan's success!