Douro Continent

Chapter 135 Oscar's Third Spirit Ring (Part 2)

Fourteen-year-old Oscar became a Soul Master, and now, twelve-year-old Tang San is about to enter that level as well.

Breaking through level 30 signifies reaching another level as a Soul Master, meaning limitless potential. Possessing a third Soul Ring allows for a qualitative leap in strength. This is a major reason why Ning Rongrong was so concerned about Oscar breaking through level 30.

Tang San, who is only twelve years old, is about to enter this level. How could everyone present not be surprised?

The only one who wasn't surprised was Tang San himself. In fact, he had already reached level twenty-nine before leaving Notting Academy, and had maintained that level for a very long time—longer than any level he had cultivated before. Today's battle with Meng Yiran was certainly an opportunity, but even without this battle, Tang San would still have broken through the level twenty-nine barrier and entered the level thirty realm in a short time.

Zhao Wuji looked at Tang San seriously, "Tell me, how old are you this year? Be precise down to the month."

Tang San answered without hesitation, "Twelve years and seven months."

Zhao Wuji nodded, his gaze sweeping over the others. "You've all seen it. Especially those of you who haven't reached level 30 yet. You've all seen it, haven't you? Tang San is the same age as you, but he's about to enter another level. This is the result of hard work. Twelve years and seven months... I think this record will forever remain in Shrek Academy's records. Forever."

Tang San's group of students is very likely to be the last batch of Shrek Academy students. Although some of the others are younger than Tang San, Zhao Wuji absolutely does not believe that anyone could enter the level 30 stage at a younger age than Tang San.

Oscar said, "Teacher Zhao, I disagree with you. Tang San's breakthrough to level 30 is not the result of hard work."

Zhao Wuji glared at him. "Then tell me why?"

Oscar chuckled and said, "Because we are Shrek Academy students. If we are monsters, then he is the monster among monsters."

Hearing Oscar's words, Zhao Wuji smiled, and the other trainees smiled as well. Even Zhu Zhuqing had a faint smile on her face.

"Brother, congratulations!" Xiao Wu whispered in Tang San's ear, excitedly hugging his right arm. "But I'll catch up with you as soon as possible."

Tang San had no doubt about Xiao Wu's words. Over the years, although he was always the first to break through, Xiao Wu, who didn't seem to work very hard, would always catch up to his level in a short time. Tang San always believed that if Xiao Wu trained harder, her strength would definitely surpass his.

"Teacher Zhao, do you think we can stay and help me find a suitable soul beast?" Tang San asked tentatively.

Zhao Wuji smiled slightly, "Of course, you deserve it. We will not only find a soul beast for you as your third soul ring, but also find the most suitable soul beast for you. It seems that we will have to extend our time in the Star Dou Great Forest this time."

Oscar obtained his third spirit ring, and Tang San broke through level 29 to enter level 30, bringing joy to everyone. After all, achieving such results on the very first day of entering the Star Dou Great Forest was enough to satisfy everyone. Even those whose strength hadn't improved much gained a lot of experience after entering the forest. The relationships between everyone also grew closer amidst this perilous situation.

Zhao Wuji didn't let everyone rest where they were, because he feared that if the Dragon Lord appeared, he would come back with the Snake Woman. Although the possibility was small, it was still a precaution. That night, he led seven Shrek Academy students about ten miles in one direction, and after covering all traces, they set up camp.

Zhao Wuji's worries were of no use. The night passed uneventfully. After a night's rest, everyone's energy had returned to peak condition.

The next morning, they continued their search for soul beasts, but this time it was Tang San who obtained a soul beast, not Oscar.

Grandmaster had already planned out what kind of spirit beast Tang San would choose for his third spirit ring. Therefore, Tang San believed that finding a spirit beast should be easier for him than for Oscar. After all, some of the spirit beasts Grandmaster had planned were quite common. As long as their cultivation years were right, they could become his third spirit ring.

However, contrary to expectations, two whole days passed, and despite the careful search led by Zhao Wuji, they still could not find a suitable soul beast for Tang San.

Because of his previous encounter with the Snake Granny and her granddaughter, Chaotianxiang, Zhao Wuji was somewhat wary. In addition, the inherent dangers within the Star Dou Great Forest made Zhao Wuji's strategy for finding soul beasts rather conservative. He did not venture deep into the Star Dou Great Forest, but instead led everyone to search the outer perimeter.

Although they encountered several thousand-year-old soul beasts along the way, none of them were suitable for Tang San. The rest were all hundred-year-old soul beasts.

It's not fair to blame Zhao Wuji for taking a conservative approach to the search for spirit beasts. After all, he was the only teacher on this trip. While they could handle low-level spirit beasts, he wasn't confident he could protect everyone if they encountered powerful ones. These students were all little monsters at Shrek Academy, some even from extraordinary backgrounds, and Zhao Wuji dared not take any risks. If anything happened to any of them, it would be a fatal outcome.

Two days have passed. Although food supplies are not a problem for everyone, living in the perilous forest every day still puts them under a lot of stress and makes them feel tired more easily.

However, upon entering the Star Dou Great Forest, it was precisely because of this inherent danger that the students' teamwork gradually became more seamless. Tang San, Dai Mubai, Xiao Wu, and Ma Hongjun were responsible for fighting any spirit beasts they encountered. Zhu Zhuqing was responsible for scouting within a certain distance. Oscar and Ning Rongrong provided support. Even without Zhao Wuji's help, as long as the spirit beasts weren't over a thousand years old, they posed no threat to their small group.

Teamwork is something that can only be developed through constant coordinated combat, and this dangerous environment is clearly the best place to hone it. The fact that these students were even admitted to Shrek Academy already proves their excellence; monsters are geniuses, and they successfully transformed pressure into motivation. With Zhao Wuji's guidance, their soul power progress didn't change much, but their combat experience and overall strength steadily increased.

Night fell, and it was time to rest. Lighting fires was forbidden in the Star Dou Great Forest. While most soul beasts feared fire, a small minority were extremely fond of it, and these few were mostly deadly.

Zhao Wuji no longer needed to give orders; the male students were responsible for setting up temporary tents, while the female students were responsible for preparing food. Of course, Oscar was an exception, as he was directly included among the female students by Dai Mubai and Tang San.

The tent wasn't large enough for everyone to lie down and sleep, but it was perfectly adequate for everyone to sit and cultivate. For them, maintaining peak combat readiness was far more important than sleep.

As the teacher, Zhao Wuji naturally took on the task of keeping watch at night.

After a quick dinner, Zhao Wuji told everyone else to go into their tents to rest, but called Tang San to his side.

"Little San, are you getting impatient?" Zhao Wuji looked at the young man in front of him with a smile.

Tang San shook his head and said, "Finding soul beasts is all about luck. There's no use rushing. Teacher Zhao, don't worry, I have patience."

Zhao Wuji sighed softly and said, "Now even the Star Dou Great Forest is starting to become desolate. Many years ago, I still remember how bustling this place was. Back then, even on the outskirts of the forest, thousand-year-old soul beasts could be seen everywhere. But now there are far fewer soul beasts. I don't know if they've all moved to live inside the forest, or if there are other reasons."

Tang San said, "Whatever the reason, it was all caused by us. Soul beasts may be ferocious, but we humans are even more ferocious. Aren't we?"

Zhao Wuji was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Tang San said, "Our teacher once said that although the number of Soul Masters is small, it only takes a few decades for a Soul Master to grow from the beginning of their cultivation to a powerful one. Within these few decades, a powerful Soul Master needs at least six Soul Rings. That means they need to hunt at least six Soul Beasts. Among these, there are those that are hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years old. The cultivation of Soul Beasts is much more difficult than that of humans; otherwise, they wouldn't classify strength according to age. Although they are numerous, if this kind of killing continues, the number of Soul Beasts will only continue to decrease, especially powerful Soul Beasts, where every one killed is one less. Many years later, it will probably be difficult to see any that are over a thousand years old."

Zhao Wuji said thoughtfully, "Master is right. But which Soul Master would think about this? Who doesn't want to become stronger? Even if the Spirit Hall tries to restrain us, it will probably be useless."

(End of this chapter)