The Martial Soul Skeleton, in Douluo Continent's Bone-Changing Susanoo

Chapter 15 The Netherworld Bear

"Ah Liang, what are you thinking about?" Teacher Mo asked curiously, seeing Xia Liang lost in thought.

Xia Liang shook his head. "It's nothing. I just feel that Soul Masters are more cunning and better at hiding than Soul Beasts. Wouldn't it be more terrifying to be noticed by a Soul Master than to be targeted by a Soul Beast?"

Teacher Mo smiled knowingly. "Yes. Most soul beasts don't know how to hide their killing intent, while soul masters only reveal their murderous intent when you let your guard down, making them hard to defend against. In fact, when entering a soul beast's habitat as a group, the most terrifying thing is not the soul beasts themselves, but the backstabbing among teammates. A similar tragedy happened in my previous mercenary group. I survived by sheer luck, and thinking about it now still makes me shudder."

"However, life in a mercenary group is much more exciting than being a teacher at an academy. Traveling across the continent with your companions in the name of the mercenary group, venturing into forests and canyons, and interacting with various soul beasts will broaden your horizons."

At this point, Teacher Mo looked at Xia Liang and smiled, "I've made up my mind. After I finish hunting the soul beasts for you, I'll submit my resignation to the academy. I plan to form a new mercenary group with my wife and sister-in-law and start a new life."

Xia Liang was somewhat surprised. "Teacher Mo, isn't the academy's compensation good enough?"

"I suppose so," Teacher Mo said with a wry smile. "I am, after all, a level 35 Battle Soul Master. No matter which empire I join, I could become a minor nobleman. However, the salary the academy pays me is pitifully low."

"Ten years ago, I survived a betrayal by a mercenary group and went to teach at Notting College. It was just a period of reflection. Now I've let it go."

"It took me a while to realize that what I really want is the life of a mercenary. To form my own mercenary group and travel the continent with my most trusted family—don't you think that's incredibly appealing?"

After hearing this explanation, Xia Liang finally understood why so many Soul Masters didn't join sects or families; it turned out that everyone was pursuing their ideal lifestyle.

Being free and unrestrained, doing whatever I want, that feels really good.

"Teacher Mo, can I join your mercenary group?"

Xia Liang suddenly said, "Although the academy is a six-year program, you only need to obtain your first spirit ring to graduate. Once I have my first spirit ring, I want to graduate early and form a mercenary group with you to travel the continent."

"This..." Teacher Mo was a little taken aback. "Isn't this a bad idea? Even if you want to graduate early, you can still study at an intermediate Soul Master Academy. The main job of a mercenary group is to help people hunt soul beasts, and most of your time is spent searching for soul beasts. Your cultivation time will become very limited. What you need most right now is cultivation time, isn't it? Joining us is not a wise move."

"My Skeleton Martial Soul only has the rib section, making it a kind of incomplete Martial Soul," Xia Liang said truthfully. "Compared to cultivation, I'd rather find an opportunity to make my Skeleton Martial Soul complete."

"A stroke of luck?" Teacher Mo asked curiously. "What kind of stroke of luck are you talking about?"

"Adding a spirit ring to a martial soul will change its appearance to some extent. If I can find a suitable spirit ring, my skeletal martial soul might change towards a complete skeleton. Therefore, the opportunity I'm looking for should be a spirit ring produced by a certain kind of spirit beast. Joining a mercenary group is the best choice to find such a spirit beast."

After listening to Xia Liang's words, Teacher Mo nodded in deep agreement. Mercenary groups often travel in the habitats of soul beasts, and are able to find various different types of soul beasts.

Perhaps among these soul beasts, the soul ring energy generated by one of them can repair the damaged skeleton martial soul.

Looking at Xia Liang's serious face, Teacher Mo had a doubt. He had been working so hard to cultivate and study at the academy since he was six years old, and now he was trying to make his martial soul complete. Xia Liang clearly had the ambition to become stronger.

What motivates him to become stronger?

After a moment of thought, Teacher Mo remembered that Xia Liang's parents were said to have been killed by Soul Masters, which might explain his desire to become powerful.

It's better to let him join your own mercenary group for training than to let him join someone else's mercenary group, right?

While I wouldn't betray my students, others might.

"My mercenary group is just a three-person Soul Master team, mainly serving Soul Masters below the fourth ring. Ah Liang, let me make this clear first. If you want to make money, joining us probably won't make you rich. However, trust is guaranteed. At least I won't do anything to harm you."

As he spoke, Teacher Mo extended his hand to Xia Liang and smiled, "You're a very good kid. If you don't mind, you can join my mercenary group and help me with odd jobs. Consider it your Soul Master internship after graduating early."

"Okay." Xia Liang extended his hand and shook hands with Teacher Mo.

To obtain the opportunity of immortal herbs alone, in addition to knowledge of immortal herbs, one should also consider the threat of soul beasts in Sunset Forest and the existence of Dugu Bo, a titled Douluo.

Therefore, combat capability and self-defense capability are essential.

Joining a mercenary group for training allows you to accumulate experience in dealing with soul beasts and improve your combat skills, making it undoubtedly the best option for your next step.

"Once we get back to the academy, I'll ask Dean Ding for permission to let you graduate early. Right now, our priority is to find the soul beast you need."

As he spoke, Teacher Mo took out a map of the Soul Hunting Forest, which marked the specific locations where some soul beasts were kept.

The Soul Hunting Forest was built by the Heaven Dou Empire, and the types of soul beasts kept there are mostly determined by the soul rings needed by the major nobles of the empire.

It is said that the spirit rings produced by spirit beasts like the Netherworld Ghost Bear can provide an arm-type offensive or defensive spirit skill, making them one of the top choices for spirit rings for the Imperial Xuanwu Turtle spirit family.

The map that Teacher Mo showed us revealed traces of the Netherworld Bear in the areas marked with red circles, such as rivers, forests, and mountains.

"In areas with many beehives, there is a large production of honey. The Netherworld Bear loves to eat honey, so where there are beehives, there is a possibility that traces of the Netherworld Bear may also exist. However, we have searched these places several times and have not found any trace of the Netherworld Bear."

Teacher Mo put away the map, seemingly lost in thought, and said, "The Soul Hunting Forest is, after all, just a man-made forest for raising soul beasts; the soul beast resources are limited. Perhaps soul beasts like the Netherworld Ghost Bear have already been wiped out. Ah Liang, if we can't find any, do you have any backup options?"

Xia Liang shook his head. "The Soul Hunting Forest is too small. Only the Netherworld Ghost Bear is suitable as the first soul ring for a skeleton martial soul. Teacher Mo, could you please search for a few more days? We can search at night from now on, as the Netherworld Ghost Bear usually appears at night."

(End of this chapter)