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**
"Brother Xie Yue, Yan, it's been a long time. I didn't expect the two of you to have met up already. Now, the four of us are finally gathered."
Ling Xiao spoke with a chuckle, while Hu Liena by his side looked quite cheerful.
"It has been a while, Ling Xiao. I didn't expect it either. Perhaps even Elder Chrysanthemum didn't anticipate that the four of us would reunite so quickly," Xie Yue said, his expression relaxing significantly upon seeing Ling Xiao and Hu Liena.
"Haha, with the four of us working together now, as long as their bloodline level isn't top-tier, soul beasts with a cultivation below five thousand years can hardly pose any substantial threat to us. Even against those over five thousand years, we can hold our own."
"In this Soul Hunting Forest, as long as we don't encounter those beasts near the ten-thousand-year rank in the deepest parts, we should be safe and sound."
"If that's the case, it's actually quite boring," Yan remarked, sounding somewhat disappointed.
Seeing this, Ling Xiao couldn't help but say, "What is it, Yan? Do you think the danger is too low? You should know that Elder Chrysanthemum brought us to this Soul Hunting Forest primarily to familiarize us with wilderness survival."
"Given our strength, he obviously knows this place doesn't offer much in terms of true tempering. This is just an outpost; our true training ground is the Mystic Trace Canyon. That is the place of real peril."
"Oh? Then I'll have to see for myself just how dangerous this Mystic Trace Canyon really is."
On the other side, Xie Yue finished catching up with Hu Liena and joined Ling Xiao and Yan's conversation.
"Yan, you mustn't look down on the Mystic Trace Canyon. Rumor has it that the periphery is shrouded in mist year-round."
"Once you enter, not only is the terrain complex and harsh, but the Evil Beasts within are incredibly frenzied and bloodthirsty, utterly devoid of reason. Most of them live in packs, and their numbers are immense."
"There are also solitary Evil Beasts with extremely high bloodline levels. Although there are no hundred thousand year level existences in the Mystic Trace Canyon, compared to other equivalent regions—excluding the innermost core of the Star Dou Forest—"
"It's danger level is arguably higher. After all, while the Star Dou Forest also has high-cultivation soul beasts, they possess high intelligence. Their minds aren't as crazed and chaotic as those of the Evil Beasts."
Ling Xiao was also quite interested in the Mystic Trace Canyon.
"I've heard that because the soul beasts inside remain completely irrational and bloodthirsty regardless of their cultivation, the Mystic Trace Canyon is also known as the Death Canyon. It's one of the foremost forbidden lands on the Douluo Continent."
"I'm actually curious—exactly what causes the soul beasts inside to lose their sanity and become chaotic Evil Beasts?"
Xie Yue shook his head.
"No one has ever discovered the cause for that."
"The Soul Master world hasn't offered an explanation either; it remains one of the continent's great mysteries. But the world is vast; it's normal to have phenomena that can't be explained. Perhaps someone will discover the reason in the future—who knows?"
"Right, Ling Xiao, how did you run into Nana? How have you two been spending these past few days? Did you run into any danger?"
"Uh," Ling Xiao paused for a moment, then recounted the events following his meeting with Hu Liena. Naturally, he omitted the part where he was teasing her.
"Hmph." Seeing Ling Xiao intentionally skip that part, Hu Liena couldn't help but turn her head away with a soft huff.
"I see. It's really been a lot of trouble for you, taking care of Nana during this time," Xie Yue said seriously.
He was well aware of Hu Liena's unique cultivation method; even though her spiritual power was very strong, she could still face danger if she encountered specific types of soul beasts. He had been quite worried before, hoping to find his sister early to protect her.
Now it seemed her luck was good—meeting up with Ling Xiao ahead of time. He knew Ling Xiao's strength very well; he was definitely not inferior to himself or Yan, and was more than capable of protecting Nana.
"It's getting late. Why don't we just find a suitable spot nearby to rest?"
"Good."
After Ling Xiao's proposal received the approval of the other three, they settled down not far away to rest and reorganize.
The sun sank behind the western mountains, and the sky gradually darkened until night fell.
However, inside this Soul Hunting Forest, it wasn't pitch black. Ling Xiao and the others sat leaning outside their tents, a campfire rising in the center. It caused the surrounding temperature to climb and served as a light source.
Among those sitting around the fire, however, Xie Yue was missing; only Ling Xiao and the other two were present. Soon, the sound of footsteps approached. From the distance, Xie Yue returned to their temporary camp carrying something in his hand.
Once she saw clearly what Xie Yue was holding, Hu Liena couldn't help but pout.
"Brother, I asked you to find something to eat, so why did you bring back a wolf? Wolf meat doesn't taste good."
Hearing Hu Liena's slight grumbling, Xie Yue said helplessly, "Nana, we're out in the wild; just make do with it. This isn't Spirit Hall."
"Fine, fine."
Ling Xiao shook his head and laughed.
Suddenly, as if he had discovered something, a faint smile played across his lips. He stood up, knees slightly bent, and with a light push from his feet, he leaped onto a thick tree trunk at least ten meters off the ground.
The soul ring on his left finger glowed slightly, and a large silver-white bow and a steel-tipped arrow were retrieved from within. The longbow emitted a distinct aura of soul power; it was clearly a Soul Tool weapon.
The riser was forged from a large amount of Black Iron combined with the bones of a thousand-year cultivation ice-attribute soul beast, while the bowstring was taken from the sinew of a Dragon-Tendon Snake, a mid-level soul beast of thousand-year cultivation.
Its sinew not only had bone-strengthening effects but was also an excellent material for bowstrings.
Ling Xiao drew the bow and notched the arrow, pulling the entire riser into a full moon. Aiming at a spot in the woods ahead, he released the string. With a swoosh, an arrow-shadow pierced through the air, letting out a sharp whistling sound.
Puff!
As Ling Xiao fired the arrow, another sound followed immediately after, ringing out almost simultaneously. It seemed Ling Xiao had hit his mark. With the corners of his mouth hooked in an arc, Ling Xiao leaped down and walked over to pick up his target.
It was surprisingly a rabbit, its body emitting a faint trace of soul power.
"Oh, it's a Soft-Boned Rabbit!"
Seeing the item in Ling Xiao's hand, Hu Liena spoke in pleasant surprise, instantly becoming happy. It looked like they wouldn't have to eat the meat of that Gale Demon Wolf after all.
"Excellent archery. Ling Xiao, I didn't expect you to be skilled in the arts of the bow as well," Xie Yue said with considerable admiration.
From the process of Ling Xiao drawing and firing just now, he could tell that this was definitely a level of skill that only came after years of practice.
"Brother Xie Yue overpraises me. I wouldn't say I'm skilled in archery. This third-rank Soul Tool bow was gifted to me by my teacher a few years ago; I usually use it for strength training. My archery is only average."
Ling Xiao wasn't lying about this.
When Mu Chen had handed him the bow years ago, he had told him that although cultivating soul power and practicing the Ox Demon Force Fist to cast the body's foundation could increase physical strength.
Regularly drawing a bow to train was also helpful in strengthening the physical body. After all, besides taking pills and cultivating soul power, drawing a bow was the premier method for building power in conventional strength training.
Ordinary training methods were diverse—carrying iron sand, strapping on lead weights, or swinging stone locks—but none could compare to drawing a bow. It was just that he had no real talent for the Dao of the Bow; his archery could only be considered mediocre.
"Looking at this Soft-Boned Rabbit you shot, although it's an adult, its cultivation is only around ten years. It's too weak," Xie Yue said helplessly after seeing it.
"While the Gale Demon Wolf can't compare to a Soft-Boned Rabbit in terms of deliciousness, the wolf I caught is a hundred-year soul beast. The soul power contained within its meat is much stronger."
Ling Xiao spread his hands slightly and said helplessly, "There's nothing to be done. Nana doesn't care for the bit of soul power in that wolf meat. By comparison, she prefers meat that is a bit more tender."
After speaking, Ling Xiao smiled toward Hu Liena.
"How about it, is this one okay? Consider it my compensation, alright?"
Hu Liena nodded in satisfaction, a smile blooming on her pretty face.
"In that case, I'll be the bigger person and forgive you."
Watching this scene, Xie Yue felt a bit helpless.
Well, it seemed there were things going on between them that he didn't know about.
Glancing at Yan, who didn't seem to care much about the situation, Xie Yue couldn't help but say, "It looks like this Gale Demon Wolf will have to be settled by me and Yan. That little rabbit isn't enough to share among four people."
"Alright, everyone get ready. Eat your fill as quickly as possible and then rest. We have to continue our training tomorrow. I'll take the first watch tonight."
**
Enjoying the story? Support the translation and get early access to future chapters here: www.patr eon.com/c/FanficTranslator
Thanks for reading!
I have 100+ advanced chapter now on Patreon. I will post 5 advanced chapter on Patreon everyday except Sunday