Douro Continent

Chapter 289 The King of the Earth Beneath the Crimson Dragon's Feet (Part 1)

Although Tang San lived here for half a year, he was always at the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well. Only when he left did he briefly experience the scenery of Sunset Forest under the guidance of Poison Douluo.

Upon arriving at Sunset Forest again, Tang San still felt completely unfamiliar with it.

Compared to the Star Dou Great Forest, the Sunset Forest differs significantly in size and many other aspects. The Star Dou Great Forest is located in the central region of the continent and is the largest soul beast forest in the central area.

That area is also within the tropics, and the forests are mostly composed of tropical plants.

Sunset Forest is located in the center of the Heaven Dou Empire. Although it is not exactly a cold zone, the temperature is much lower than that of Star Dou Great Forest. This results in the fact that the plants here are mostly temperate plants that are unique to the north.

Tropical plants feel denser and more humid. Temperate plants, while feeling cooler, don't have the same density as tropical plants. Therefore, moving around in Sunset Forest is much easier than in Starry Sky Forest.

Of course, powerful spirit beasts generally prefer tropical rainforests like the Star Dou Great Forest. Therefore, although there are quite a few spirit beasts in Sunset Forest, few have cultivation levels exceeding ten thousand years; most remain between a thousand and ten thousand years. Furthermore, the unrestrained hunting by spirit masters has led to a general decline in the quality of spirit beasts. Now, to hunt a suitable spirit beast, one needs not only strength but also patience.

There are still two weeks until the official start of the Elite Soul Master Academy Tournament, which is also the deadline for the Shrek Seven Devils to hunt soul beasts. Within two weeks, regardless of whether they have any success or failure, they must return to the academy to participate in the preliminary rounds of the Heaven Dou Empire's Heaven Dou City division.

They had been in the Sunset Forest for half a day. The number of spirit beasts they encountered along the way was about the same as in the Star Dou Great Forest, but their quality was much lower. Although they had encountered a few thousand-year-old spirit beasts, most of them were just over a thousand years old, clearly not what the group had hoped for. These spirit beasts also did not provoke their large group.

"Let's take a break. We'll continue searching tomorrow." Flander glanced at the darkening sky and called out to the Shrek Seven Devils who were searching around.

Thanks to the soul tools, everyone was well-prepared, and in no time, two tents were erected to allow for faster reactions within the Soul Beast Forest. The tents chosen were large and sturdy. The four teachers stayed in one tent, and the Shrek Seven Devils stayed in the other. The night watch was naturally taken turns by the Shrek Seven Devils.

This wasn't their first collaboration, and the Shrek Seven Devils worked together seamlessly. Ma Hongjun, Oscar, and Dai Mubai were responsible for setting up the camp, while the girls, led by Liu Erlong, prepared food. Tang San, meanwhile, walked around the area, using special powder on his body to demarcate their campsite. This not only deterred spirit beasts but also prevented snakes, insects, and rodents from invading.

When Tang San returned to the camp after his inspection, the tents had already been set up. Ma Hongjun was using his purified phoenix flames to light a campfire, and an iron pot was placed on the fire. The water was brought by everyone using their soul tools and was being heated.

Tang San looked at Grandmaster with some doubt, "Teacher? Isn't it bad to start a fire?"

Before the master could speak, Flander laughed, "Don't worry, this isn't the Star Dou Great Forest. There won't be any terrifying beings like the Titan Giant Ape here. Even if a Soul Master comes looking for us, they won't cause us any trouble. Don't forget, our Golden Iron Triangle is now complete. As long as they're not Title Douluos, no one can harm you. There are only about a dozen Title Douluos on the entire continent. Even if we happen to encounter one, it's nothing. Why would someone of their status compete with you for Soul Beasts? The North is different from the South; it's cold at night. With a campfire and hot soup, you'll be more comfortable, and you'll be in better spirits tomorrow to search for Soul Beasts!"

Tang San suddenly understood. So that's how it is. This is experience. It seems I haven't experienced enough. The same thing can change in different circumstances. Perhaps this is where I need the most experience.

Dinner was plentiful. After dinner, Flander gave a few brief instructions to the Shrek Seven Devils and then went to his tent to rest.

Although their tent only accommodated four people, it was still smaller than the one used by the Shrek Seven Devils.

Even before the tent was set up, Flander had already arranged the sleeping quarters: Liu Erlong on the far left, followed by the Master, himself, and Zhao Wuji on the far right. Even the Master couldn't object to this arrangement. After all, while he dared not accept Liu Erlong's love, he would never want his beloved woman to be too close to another man, especially in the ambiguous atmosphere of the night.

Flander and Zhao Wuji went back to their tents to rest, and Liu Erlong glanced at the master a few more times by the campfire before also crawling into her tent. But the master hesitated at this moment.

He had carefully examined the beds in the tent; almost everyone was packed together, and turning over would mean touching each other through the blankets. Although he considered himself a gentleman, he couldn't be sure his heart would waver if the woman he had loved for many years was lying next to him. For a moment, the master sat by the campfire, his mind in turmoil.

As for the Shrek Seven Devils, Dai Mubai was in charge of keeping watch for the first half of the night, a request he made himself. As the leader of the Seven Devils, he was the oldest and had the greatest spirit power, so he naturally had to set an example. Tang San would take over for the second half of the night. Oscar and the girls could then get a proper rest.

Camping in the wild is different from training in an academy.

At the academy, one can easily spend the nights meditating and practicing meditation.

However, the biggest drawback of meditation is the need for concentration. After a night of practice, while the physical condition improves, there will be a period of mental fatigue. Hunting spirit beasts is unacceptable in this situation. If one loses concentration under the attack of a spirit beast, it could lead to irreparable damage. Therefore, during spirit beast hunts, everyone must rely on sleep at night to restore their optimal condition.

Ironically, this theory was proposed by a master.

The rest of the Shrek Seven Devils went into their tents, except for Dai Mubai, who remained by the campfire. "Master, you should go and rest too. I'll go and patrol the area."

The master nodded and said, "Go ahead. I'll go to sleep later."

Dai Mubai asked doubtfully, "Aren't you tired? You should get some rest. We'll be searching in the Soul Beast Forest all night tomorrow."

The master had the lowest soul power among them. From traveling to Sunset Forest to searching for soul beasts, he had hardly had any rest that day. Even Dai Mubai felt a bit tired. He didn't believe that the master wouldn't feel the same way.

Tang San naturally wouldn't casually talk about the matter between Liu Erlong and Grandmaster, so the other members of the Shrek Seven Devils weren't very clear about it.

The master sighed inwardly. "Oh well," he thought, "I'm tired anyway. I'll just go in and sleep." With that thought, he nodded to Dai Mubai and then slipped into his dormitory.

The mystery of these bunk locations wasn't only found in the master's tent; the Shrek Seven Devils' tent was also decided upon after discussion.

Ma Hongjun was the one the girls least wanted to get close to, so they kicked him to the far left bunk.

Zhu Zhuqing volunteered to be on the far right.

The problem is this: of the seven members of the Shrek Seven Devils, three are girls and four are boys. This means that one girl and one boy will inevitably have adjacent bunk beds.

Dai Mubai was willing to sleep next to Zhu Zhuqing, but Zhu Zhuqing refused sternly.

Oscar preferred to stand next to Ning Rongrong, but Ning Rongrong immediately rejected that idea.

That leaves Xiao Wu as the only possible girl sleeping in the middle of the tent. And the only person next to her is Tang San.

Tang San was initially unwilling, but everyone used their sibling relationship as an excuse, so he had no choice but to arrange the beds this way. From left to right, they are Ma Hongjun, Oscar, Dai Mubai, Tang San, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing.

At this moment, Dai Mubai was keeping watch outside. Although everyone was fully clothed and crawling into bed, Tang San and Xiao Wu, who were very close to each other, were both feeling their hearts pounding like deer.

Xiao Wu was slightly more at ease, after all, she had Ning Rongrong on her other side, but Tang San's other bunk was empty. As soon as he got off, he immediately straightened his body and didn't dare to move at all, for fear of bumping into Xiao Wu.

Even so, the faint fragrance emanating from Xiao Wu kept wafting into my nostrils.

Last night, while combing Xiao Wu's hair, Tang San realized why the fragrance in her hair seemed familiar. It was because the scent was extremely similar to the Fragrant Silk Immortal Herb, which could counteract all poisons. Tang San vaguely remembered that the Xuan Tian Treasure Record had mentioned that this fragrance, when it appeared on a person, was called the Innate Fragrant Silk Fragrance. Although it couldn't counteract all poisons like the Fragrant Silk Immortal Herb, it had great benefits for the human body. If one could smell it every day, it would not only prolong life but also enhance one's immunity and give one a sense of intoxication.

(End of this chapter)