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**
"Young Master Wang, I say we just kick him out of our hunting squad. Adding one more waste like him will only ruin our morale when the time comes."
"Besides, rather than giving this money to him, it's better spent on our squad. At least we have coordination; our strength in battle is far greater."
Next to Wang Fugui, a tall, thin man from a hunting squad spoke with a look of disdain.
In his view, adding a solo Soul Master with no teamwork experience to the group was pointless. He wasn't afraid of a lack of coordination; he was afraid this outsider would actively disrupt the synergy between the existing squad members.
"Hahahaha, the Captain is right!"
"Exactly! What damn use is a Yarn Ball Martial Soul anyway?"
"Go home and knit some sweaters!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Fine, then we don't want you. Go find another team yourself!"
"Hahaha!"
Wang Fugui and the hunting squad laughed uproariously, completely ignoring the helpless look on the Soul Grandmaster's face as they turned and entered the Soul Hunting Forest.
The lone Soul Grandmaster stood frozen in place, so dazed that he didn't even realize his fingernails had dug into his palms until they bled.
In the distance, Xiao Lin watched this scene with deep emotion.
This was the first time he had truly witnessed how difficult life was for bottom-tier Soul Masters. He had originally thought that a Soul Grandmaster, no matter how unremarkable, could at least become an attendant in Spirit Hall like Brother Tao and help commoners awaken their souls.
Xiao Lin fell silent.
If bottom-tier Soul Masters were this miserable, what about ordinary commoners? Wherever there are people, there is oppression. Xiao Lin remembered from the original story how the commoners of an entire city cheered after Tang San destroyed a Spirit Hall Branch.
Perhaps I can change this phenomenon. I can make it so Soul Masters and commoners don't have to be so lowly.
Furthermore, Spirit Hall's practice of helping commoners awaken their Martial Souls—regardless of whether their upper echelons were rotten or not—was far better than the feudal period ten thousand years later in The Unrivaled Tang Sect.
Such an act of kindness must never be allowed to end.
Xiao Lin thought for a moment and decided that when he had free time, he would publish a paper on a Soul Master's awareness of their own Martial Soul. He wanted all Soul Masters to understand the inherent advantages of their specific souls so they could choose more suitable Soul Rings.
Take that Yarn Ball Soul Grandmaster, for example.
Even without seeing his Martial Soul, Xiao Lin could guess its advantages based on the name alone. It would be long enough, thin enough, and in a place like a Soul Beast forest, it would be incredibly stealthy...
While Xiao Lin was lost in thought, Su Yuntao returned to the trio with a mission. Su Yuntao wore a bright smile and laughed heartily at the three of them.
"Alright, your Brother Tao still has some face. I found a new mission. The only thing is, you three won't get much money unless you actually contribute to taking down the Soul Beasts. Only then will you get some Gold Spirit Coins."
As he spoke, Su Yuntao picked up his backpack and led Xiao Lin's group to a new hunting squad.
"This squad is called the Battle Tiger Squad. The Captain is my good brother, Wang Neng. He has a Battle Tiger Martial Soul and is a Rank 32 Soul Elder. He's the buddy who helped me obtain my second Soul Ring."
Su Yuntao brought them before the squad and pointed to a tall, burly middle-aged man. Su Yuntao slung an arm around Wang Neng's shoulders, saying with a laugh, "You guys can just call him Brother Wang."
Xiao Wu noticed Wang Neng's Martial Soul and whispered to herself, "Battle Tiger Martial Soul? Wang Sheng's Martial Soul is also a Battle Tiger."
"Oh? You know Wang Sheng? He's from our Wang Family Village; he even has to call me Second Uncle." Wang Neng had sharp ears.
Hearing Wang Sheng's name, he grinned.
"That kid said he wanted to become a Soul Elder like me, but he hasn't even become a Soul Master yet. When I get back after this semester, I'll beat him senseless."
Xiao Lin and the others laughed.
With a mutual acquaintance as a bridge, everyone quickly became familiar with one another.
"By the way, I heard it was your idea that got Su Yuntao his second Soul Ring? I should thank you as well," Wang Neng suddenly said to Xiao Lin.
This caused Xiao Lin to look at Su Yuntao with a strange expression.
Su Yuntao, you big mouth.
"After I helped Su Yuntao get his second ring, I broke through immediately as well. Thinking of Su Yuntao's ring skill, I had a flash of inspiration and chose a similar Soul Skill." Wang Neng was very talkative.
After explaining the sequence of events, he scratched his head, a bashful look appearing on his honest face.
"Brother Xiao Lin, could you also help our Wang Sheng think about how to choose his future Soul Rings? I don't even want my share of the money from this hunt if you'll help him think of a good one."
"Brother Wang, forget about the money. Wang Sheng is our classmate; if I can help, I definitely will." Xiao Lin found it hard to ask for money from people he knew.
Moreover, Wang Sheng's aptitude wasn't great, and it was impossible for him to get a "perfect" Soul Skill anyway. For Xiao Lin, thinking of a plan was as easy as flipping his hand.
Soon, after the pleasantries were finished, Xiao Lin's trio and the hunting squad entered the Soul Hunting Forest to begin the mission. As they walked into the interior, the noisy sounds from outside instantly faded. Xiao Lin's group was arranged at the very back of Wang Neng's squad.
In the middle was the client—a girl about twelve or thirteen years old, wearing plain clothes. She didn't look like she came from a wealthy family.
Tang San and Xiao Wu were extremely sharp, constantly observing the environmental changes around them. Tang San even left marks of his Blue Silver Grass along the path to prevent them from getting lost.
"Our hunting squad is a full-offense team. The Vice-Captain is Shi Dan, Rank 26, Martial Soul: War Chicken; he's an Agility Attack System Soul Master. Then there's Xu Yi, Rank 24, Martial Soul: Lazy Pig; he's a Power Attack System Soul Master."
Wang Neng introduced the Martial Souls of the remaining two members.
The Soul Master named Shi Dan was relatively thin, but his eyes were sharp, looking every bit the part of a "War Chicken." The Soul Master named Xu Yi was somewhat broad and plump, with a fleshy build, and he gave a simple, honest smile.
Xiao Lin nodded.
"I see. Even though you call it a full-offense squad, this team is actually very well-rounded."
"Captain Wang Neng has the Battle Tiger, undoubtedly for Power Attack. Vice-Captain Shi Dan is the scout and Agility Attack System. As for Xu Yi's Lazy Pig, as far as I know, that Martial Soul has significant defensive capabilities while not being weak in offense."
"Counting Brother Tao's Lone Wolf, this squad should be quite competitive here in the Soul Hunting Forest."
Xiao Lin felt a strong sense of approval for this squad.
With such a configuration, even if they couldn't guarantee finding the perfect beast, protecting the client should be no problem.
Soon, following Xiao Lin's analysis, Vice-Captain Shi Dan underwent his Martial Soul Possession. His arms transformed into chicken wings, and he flew ahead to scout.
Much like powerful Dragon or Phoenix Martial Souls, while the War Chicken wasn't as strong, the species naturally possessed a counter-effect against poisonous insects.
Once Shi Dan possessed his soul and his soul power spread, the insect-repellent powders Tang San had intended to use were no longer necessary.
"Brother Xiao Lin truly has rich theoretical knowledge. Good grades and strong power—you're much better than my Wang Sheng." As he spoke, Wang Neng began to grit his teeth again, annoyed by Wang Sheng's lack of effort.
However, he quickly returned to explaining the mission, pointing to the twelve-year-old girl.
"This client is also a student at Nuoding Academy, named Xiao Gui. Her talent isn't great; her Martial Soul is just ordinary Sweet Osmanthus. She wants to obtain a healing Soul Skill so she can help support her family in the future."
"The money for this hunt is currently owed on credit; she will pay us back after she becomes a physician or a Healing System Soul Master. I originally wanted her to join our squad so she wouldn't have to pay, but it's too dangerous, and she refused."
"Xiao Gui's target this time is a healing-type Soul Beast with nearly three hundred years of cultivation. It was because that Grandmaster Lin Dong said one can absorb Soul Rings at their limit."
"Now, many people are willing to push themselves to get better Soul Rings. Xiao Gui would rather be in debt just to secure a superior Soul Skill."
As Wang Neng spoke, a trace of respect and gratitude for "Lin Dong" flickered in his eyes.
Thanks to Grandmaster Lin Dong's paper, their current hunting missions allowed them to make a lot of money from just a single job.
**
Hello everyone,
Thank you for your support! If you enjoy my work, you can check out my Patreon—there are 10 free chapters available, plus 60+ early access and exclusive content. I update 5 advanced chapter from Monday-Saturday
www.patreon.com/c/FanficTranslator
I truly appreciate it!