Chapter 118: Xiao Wu, You Don't Want Tang San to Know About Your 100,000-Year Soul Beast Identity, Right?
After Dai Yao obtained his third soul ring, the Chaos Green Lotus not only automatically generated the third soul ring, but the previous rings also upgraded. The soul ring that had been over a thousand years old evolved into a 6-7 thousand-year ring, although its color remained purple.
With his physical condition, the fourth soul ring would be enough to absorb a ten-thousand-year soul ring. By then, the four soul rings of the Chaos Green Lotus would all evolve into ten-thousand-year rings. The four black soul rings of the Soul Sect—just the thought of it was terrifying.
"Green Lotus martial soul? Three thousand-year soul rings?" Zhu Zhuqing showed a stunned expression. Then, as if she thought of something, her delicate body trembled slightly, and she covered her mouth in shock, gazing at Dai Yao. Her voice quivered as she said, "Could it be... the legendary... Twin Martial Souls?!"
The facts were right before her eyes, but Zhu Zhuqing still had a hard time believing it—this was just too mind-blowing. Twin Martial Souls!
In the history of the continent, in the past century, there had been only two soul masters with Twin Martial Souls. Each one had made a name for themselves across the continent. The current Pope of the Wuhun Hall, Bibi Dong, was one such soul master.
Of course, the list of Twin Martial Soul possessors now included two more individuals—Tang San and Dai Yao.
Dai Yao nodded, affirming Zhu Zhuqing's guess.
The shock in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes hadn't faded, and she forgot to speak for a moment.
"Zhuqing, this is my greatest secret. You should understand what Twin Martial Souls mean," Dai Yao said, his expression growing serious. "I am destined to become the top soul master on this continent. By then, even the Star Luo royal family won't be able to stop us."
"What I need most right now is time. Twin Martial Souls need time to grow, so you must not tell anyone about this secret of mine!" Dai Yao cautioned sternly.
Hearing Dai Yao's warning, the shock in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes softened a bit, and she responded firmly, "I will keep this secret. No one will hear a word from me."
Dai Yao nodded, then turned to point at Tang San.
"Zhuqing, did you notice something unusual about Tang San? That's an external soul bone—just like the left paw bone of my Dark Gold Fearsome Bear," Dai Yao explained.
"Now, I need to take Tang San's soul bone. Do you think I'm despicable for that?"
"No matter who you are, I will always follow you," Zhu Zhuqing said softly.
After Dai Yao revealed his Twin Martial Souls secret to her, Zhu Zhuqing felt a sense of being trusted. To be trusted by someone was truly a rare and luxurious feeling.
Looking at Dai Yao, her eyes filled with tenderness, she felt deeply moved.
Dai Yao was relieved by her answer and gave a command.
"Good, then protect me. Don't let anyone disturb me."
Zhu Zhuqing scanned the surroundings with a vigilant look in her eyes and replied, "Yao Ge, after you kill Tang San, we must leave quickly. Otherwise, if that Soul Sage from Shrek catches up with us, it will be troublesome."
Dai Yao showed a surprised expression. He hadn't expected Zhu Zhuqing to think of killing for a soul bone. He then smiled and said, "Zhuqing, my method of taking soul bones is not like that of ordinary soul masters."
"I don't need to kill someone to take their soul bone. Of course, I can't take the bones from their torso or head, but for external soul bones, there's no problem at all."
Zhu Zhuqing, somewhat surprised, asked, "You don't need to kill them to take the soul bone?"
In the world of soul masters, the only way to take someone else's soul bone was by killing them. Unless one was a Title Douluo, who could use their powerful soul power to take the limbs' soul bones through amputation. However, each time a soul bone was taken, the soul master's strength would decrease by a significant amount.
In the original story, Tang Hao did this, and after removing two soul bones from the Haotian Clan, his soul power was forever limited to rank 79.
So, it wasn't surprising that Zhu Zhuqing had her doubts.
Dai Yao chuckled and explained softly, "This is a special ability of my second martial soul."
At that moment, Tang San hadn't fully absorbed the external soul bone, so it was the perfect time to strip the soul bone away. Once fully absorbed, Dai Yao would no longer be able to do anything about it.
Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing understood, Dai Yao released the soul power he had used to create a soundproof barrier.
He had to be extra careful with Tang San. After all, he was the original protagonist, and his luck often seemed to defy reason. If Dai Yao made a mistake, even with his Chaos Green Lotus, he might not come out unscathed against Tang San's unpredictable hidden weapon techniques.
Every time Dai Yao saw Tang San using the Tang Sect's hidden weapons to overwhelm his opponents, he couldn't help but complain. How could a small Tang Sect from Bashu be so powerful?
Especially when Tang San faced the god-level Qian Renxue's pursuit. With the Tang Sect technique "Avalokitesvara's Tears," he managed to pierce Qian Renxue's heart.
It could only be said that if Tang San's hidden weapon techniques weren't so OP, then Qian Renxue's god-level strength must have been really lacking.
Dai Yao's eyes glinted greedily as he stared at the eight spider spears on Tang San's back.
"Tang San's soul ring is almost absorbed. I must speed up the process. To avoid him noticing, I should knock him out first."
He extended his hand, forming a blade-like shape, and approached Tang San cautiously, keeping an eye on the eight spider spears. Then, with one swift movement, he struck Tang San's neck.
As the soul rings absorbed, Tang San, who had begun to wake up, slumped his head and immediately lost consciousness.
Actually, Dai Yao had considered killing Tang San. Right now, as he absorbed the soul ring, Tang San had no means of resistance. With one strike, his head would fall. However, Dai Yao couldn't bear the consequences.
Tang San's father, Tang Hao, was a 95th-level Title Douluo. While not a Super Douluo, after the Soul Fighting Tournament at Wuhun City, when Tang San was in danger, Tang Hao unleashed his martial soul avatar. Even with the combined efforts of Title Douluos like Bibi Dong and Ghost Douluo, they couldn't overpower him. This showed just how powerful he was.
Therefore, once Dai Yao killed Tang San, Tang Hao would surely find out. While Dai Yao was protected by the Wuhun Hall and wouldn't lose his life, he would never be able to leave the Wuhun Hall again.
And if he did, Tang Hao's life-threatening vendetta would be waiting for him.
Dai Yao couldn't accept this. He knew the plot, knew many opportunities were ahead, but he couldn't stay forever in the Wuhun Hall.
"Tang San, your Eight Spider Soul Bones are mine. This is just the beginning!" Dai Yao's eyes flashed as a victorious smile appeared.
Tang San's existence was destined to be at odds with the Wuhun Hall. Dai Yao's revenge required the help of the Wuhun Hall.
Dai Yao and Tang San were fated to stand on opposite sides.
Therefore, using his advantage of knowing the future, Dai Yao intended to weaken Tang San continuously—it was his best choice.
The first soul ring of the Chaos Green Lotus in Dai Yao's hand glowed brightly. The next moment, the Godslayer Spear appeared in his hand.
Chillingly cold, Zhu Zhuqing merely glanced at the spear and felt a sharp pain in her eyes. She quickly turned her head away.
With the spear planted in the ground, Dai Yao closed his eyes, connecting the power of the Godslayer Spear with his soul power. Then, with a sudden movement, he opened his eyes, and his pupils turned blue.
In Dai Yao's vision, Tang San appeared as a humanoid figure made of blue light points. His right hand was a deep blue, shaped like Blue Silver Grass, and his left hand was black, shaped like a hammer.
"This should be the Haotian Hammer. Speaking of which, I've never seen the Haotian Hammer before," Dai Yao thought to himself.
His gaze swept past these two martial souls and focused on Tang San's back.
There, eight spider spears glowed purple, radiating an evil aura.
"There are no evil soul bones, only evil soul masters. Since Tang San is so pure, these evil soul bones clearly don't suit him. Let me take on this evil soul bone instead."
Dai Yao muttered under his breath.
Without further hesitation, he channeled his soul power recklessly into the God-Slaying Spear, activating its disintegration ability to separate the Eight Spider Lances spirit bone from Tang San's blue-purple body.
To Dai Yao's eyes, the colors of purple and blue were slowly pulling apart. But to Tang San, it felt as if his bones were being severed. He couldn't help but let out a cry of agony.
Seeing Tang San about to wake up, Dai Yao quickly darted forward and delivered another chop to his neck. The almost-conscious Tang San collapsed again in a daze.
"Don't mess around, Tang San! I'm performing surgery here! Stay still, or things could go very wrong," Dai Yao thought irritably as he cast a glance at Tang San before resuming his work with the God-Slaying Spear.
His soul power drained rapidly, and sweat poured down his face, soaking his entire body as if he had just been pulled from a pool. Despite the exhaustion, Dai Yao's spirits soared when he saw the Eight Spider Lances detach from Tang San's back, leaving behind a gory mess of blood and flesh.
With a series of clanging noises, the eight spider-like appendages fell to the ground, the metallic sound echoing through the air.
Panting heavily, Dai Yao's eyes shone brightly despite his drenched appearance. Retracting his Chaos Green Lotus martial soul, he quickly stepped over to the unconscious Tang San. Gripping the tail of the Eight Spider Lances spirit bone, he carefully picked it up and slid it into his Hundred Treasures Pouch soul tool.
The tips of the Eight Spider Lances were venomous, and any carelessness could result in poisoning. Hence, Dai Yao handled them with utmost caution, even using the hand bones of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear as a barrier to avoid direct contact with the poison.
Suppressing his excitement, Dai Yao reminded himself that this wasn't the time to absorb the Eight Spider Lances. The Shrek group could arrive at any moment, and he needed to clean up the scene quickly to avoid suspicion.
Glancing at Tang San's mangled back, he felt it was still a bit too conspicuous.
He activated a thread of green light, brushing it over Tang San's back. The previously horrifying wound began to heal visibly.
"What are you doing?!"
A sharp, angry voice rang out.
Dai Yao turned to see Xiao Wu storming toward him, her eyes blazing with fury.
Having been dropped off by Er Ming earlier, she had rushed back. Though she had only seen Dai Yao from a distance, vaguely noticing him remove something from Tang San, the sight of Tang San's bloody back now sent her into a rage.
"Zhuqing, stop her!"
Realizing Xiao Wu had witnessed his actions, Dai Yao's heart sank. He immediately turned to Zhu Zhuqing and commanded her.
Right now, the most important thing was to erase the evidence. As long as Tang San's wounds disappeared, there would be no proof of what had happened.
Even the blood on the ground could be explained away as the result of Tang San absorbing a soul ring beyond his limit.
The moment Dai Yao spoke, Zhu Zhuqing reacted without hesitation. She activated her martial soul and entered her Ghostly Dominion state. After a few agile leaps, she blocked Xiao Wu's path.
The icy aura emanating from Zhu Zhuqing was like the chill of the Nine Hells, and the innate nobility in her every move made Xiao Wu feel as if she were facing a judge of life and death.
"Only the dead may pass," Zhu Zhuqing said coldly.
Her pitch-black eyes gleamed with frost, and her slender, fiery figure, accentuated by her black, form-fitting combat suit, appeared both alluring and intimidating, further enhancing her icy demeanor.
With her blades flashing and her two yellow and one purple soul rings circling her, Zhu Zhuqing exuded immense power, completely barring Xiao Wu's way.
"You..."
Xiao Wu adopted a combat stance, a trace of hesitation in her gaze. Glancing at the unconscious Tang San, her anxiety deepened.
Her eyes suddenly flashed pink.
"Second Soul Skill: Charm!"
Zhu Zhuqing felt a moment of sluggishness but quickly shook her head, breaking free from the effect of Xiao Wu's charm.
Having consumed the Violet Lotus, Zhu Zhuqing's Ghost Spirit Cat martial soul had evolved into Ghostly Dominion, significantly enhancing her physical capabilities. At this point, even an average assault-type soul master couldn't compare to her.
Thus, she overcame Xiao Wu's charm in an instant.
Seeing Zhu Zhuqing unaffected, Xiao Wu was stunned. She gritted her teeth and, as she approached Zhu Zhuqing, her third soul ring began to glow.
"Third Soul Skill: Teleportation!"
Within five meters, Xiao Wu could instantly reposition herself.
Not wanting to waste time fighting Zhu Zhuqing, she focused solely on Tang San's condition.
Just as Zhu Zhuqing bent her knees to prepare for Xiao Wu's attack, she noticed Xiao Wu's pink figure vanish. The familiar aura now appeared behind her, rushing toward Dai Yao.
As Xiao Wu felt a brief surge of relief, a flash of purple light appeared, and Zhu Zhuqing once again blocked her path.
"I told you—you can't get through without my permission," Zhu Zhuqing said icily.
"So fast!"
Xiao Wu was astonished. Zhu Zhuqing's speed was among the best even for agility-type soul masters.
Realizing she couldn't use her third soul skill to bypass Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu steeled her resolve. Her gaze shifted from hesitation to determination as all three of her soul rings lit up simultaneously.
Teleporting beside Zhu Zhuqing, her eyes glowed pink again—Charm! Her scorpion braid snapped like a whip, while her waist unleashed explosive force.
All three of Xiao Wu's soul skills erupted at once, catching Zhu Zhuqing off guard as she tried to end the battle swiftly.
"A strength-type soul master going head-to-head with an agility-type? This should be easy!" Xiao Wu thought smugly.
But Zhu Zhuqing smirked. Xiao Wu's waist throw sent her flying, but Zhu Zhuqing barely defended herself. When she landed, Xiao Wu was shocked to find that Zhu Zhuqing was completely unharmed.
"How… how is this possible?" Xiao Wu muttered, wide-eyed.
Dusting herself off, Zhu Zhuqing said coldly, "You won't get through."
Just as she was about to use another soul skill, Dai Yao's voice interrupted:
"Zhuqing, let her through."
During their skirmish, Tang San's wounds had already healed, and his tightly furrowed brows had relaxed.
Hearing Dai Yao's words, Zhu Zhuqing stepped aside. Xiao Wu warily glanced at her before rushing toward Tang San.
Ignoring Dai Yao, she immediately cradled Tang San and began checking his condition.
Seeing that Tang San was merely unconscious from absorbing the soul ring, she breathed a sigh of relief. Then, glaring at Dai Yao, she said furiously:
"I'll tell Tang San and Teacher Zhao everything you've done! Just wait—justice will find you!"
Dai Yao chuckled lightly, unfazed. He had already thought of a solution while treating Tang San.
Leaning close to Xiao Wu, he whispered, isolating the sound with soul power:
"Xiao Wu, you wouldn't want Tang San to learn about your identity as a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, would you?"
Xiao Wu's rabbit ears perked up in shock, her face paling as cold sweat dotted her forehead.
(End of Chapter)
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