Chapter 74: Encountering a Three-Thousand-Year Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear, Next Time Invite the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger Into My Soul Bone.
One day later, Star Dou Great Forest.
"Hoo…"
Zhu Zhuqing stood quietly at the forest's edge, gazing at the endless sea of trees stretching before her.
A moment later, a figure in a priest's robe darted out from the forest.
"Greetings, Elder."
He bowed respectfully.
"I am Spirit Hall Red-Robed Bishop Brand. I was ordered by the Grand Worship to receive you here."
In front of the Pope and the elders, the girl might only be a secret disciple with little authority.
But once outside, every member of Spirit Hall had to respectfully address her as Elder.
A reserve elder was still an elder.
"Lead the way."
Zhu Zhuqing said calmly.
"Yes!"
Brand immediately turned and leapt into the forest.
Zhu Zhuqing followed closely behind, the two racing through the woods.
Neither spoke along the way, yet Brand's heart grew more shocked with every passing moment.
He was a Soul Saint, yet in terms of speed, he could not keep up with Zhu Zhuqing at all.
This inevitably reminded him of a rumor.
[A mysterious student, on the very first day of enrollment, swept through Spirit Hall Academy with unparalleled dominance, severely injuring a teacher before being personally expelled by the vice dean.]
Could it be… this very person?
Thinking of this, his attitude became even more respectful.
Half an hour later, he stopped and pointed to a dark patch of forest ahead.
"According to our intelligence, the 30,000-year Man-Faced Demon Spider has been active in this area."
Zhu Zhuqing concentrated and sensed the surroundings.
Indeed, there were only the auras of ordinary soul beasts nearby. There was no trace of that familiar bloody stench.
"Would you like me to search with you?"
Brand asked cautiously.
If a 30,000-year Man-Faced Demon Spider went berserk, even a Soul Douluo might not be able to handle it.
At minimum, a Titled Douluo would be needed to guarantee safety.
Personally speaking, he really did not want to stay here for long.
"No need."
Zhu Zhuqing shook her head.
"You can leave first. I'll handle it alone."
"Yes. For the next ten days, if anything happens, you can find me outside."
Brand nodded decisively.
In his mind he thought, 'Anyone daring to hunt a ten-thousand-year Man-Faced Demon Spider must have a Titled Douluo secretly accompanying them.'
"No one is following," Bai Lu's voice sounded.
Thanks to the transformation of his spiritual sea by the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, his spiritual power had been steadily increasing.
During this entire journey, he had not sensed the aura of any Titled Douluo trailing behind them.
This could only mean one thing.
Qian Daoliu truly was a gentleman of the Douluo Continent.
If he says something, he means it. He actually allowed his top genius to go out hunting alone.
Bai Lu could not help but admire him.
This man's moral standards were simply too high. If he had taken action a few years earlier in the original story, the Douluo Continent would probably have been unified long ago.
"Then I'll start searching!"
Zhu Zhuqing took a deep breath. Her martial soul possessed her body, transforming her into a Hell Spirit Cat girl.
To prevent being ambushed by the Man-Faced Demon Spider, her fourth soul ring lit up beneath her feet, and her entire figure sank into the shadows.
She searched using Shadow Stealth State. Whenever her soul power ran low, she would leave the area, recover, and then return again.
Repeating this process again and again, an entire day passed in the blink of an eye.
Just as the girl prepared to enter the dark forest once more, she suddenly sensed another extremely sharp aura.
"This aura… could it be that?"
Bai Lu said uncertainly.
"Be careful. Let's go take a look."
"Hell Shadow Assault!"
The girl's fourth soul ring flashed as she slipped into the shadows and rushed toward the source of the aura.
When she approached, she saw a huge bear standing in a clearing filled with fallen trees.
Its body was tall and powerful. Its dark-gold fur was covered with numerous scars.
Green light shone from its eyes.
The claws on its two bear paws were extremely long, over two feet in length.
The claw on its right paw was even longer and sharper than the left.
It gave the impression that it could cut through anything.
Beside it lay the body of a ten-thousand-year Bloodthirsty Demon Tiger, cleanly sliced in half at the waist.
"Holy Crap! A three-thousand-year Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear!"
Bai Lu exclaimed in shock.
Zhu Zhuqing asked curiously,
"Is this bear very strong?"
"Extremely strong. Among all bear-type soul beasts, it's probably the strongest."
"In terms of attack power alone, it can definitely rank within the top ten among all soul beasts."
After thinking for a moment, Bai Lu gave an example.
"A three-thousand-year Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear can rival a ten-thousand-year soul beast."
"A ten-thousand-year Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear can even compete with a hundred-thousand-year Titan Giant Ape."
[T/N: It's not that exaggerated, in my opinion, that Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear must have attack power similar to Dark Demon Evil God Tiger of the same level. However, if they clash, I would favor Dark Demon Evil God Tiger because this creature is on an entirely different level. So, I think within about 50,000 to 60,000 years, Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear can fight or even defeat Titan Giant Ape with 100,000 years of cultivation. That is my opinion; if I'm wrong, let me know know]
"So strong?"
A hint of mischief flashed in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes.
"Then how does it compare to you at one hundred thousand years?"
"Don't ask questions that harm team unity."
Bai Lu rolled his eyes.
"Of course I'm stronger. I'm the existence that almost killed a 50,000-year Dark Demon Evil God Tiger."
"Fifty thousand years? That tiger is that strong?"
Zhu Zhuqing asked curiously.
"Of course. Even when the Sky Azure Bull Python and the Titan Giant Ape joined forces, they couldn't seriously injure it. Yet I almost killed it."
Bai Lu said proudly.
That thing was basically the chosen one of Douluo's first generation.
Fortunately, that tiger had been clever enough to run away instead of activating the life-and-death arena.
Otherwise, if Bai Lu's final move, Soul Impact, had shattered the barrier and both of them had reverted to six years old, it would have been hard to say who would laugh last.
"Unfortunately… The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger evolved from a white tiger fused with evil god power. Its devouring ability is among the best."
"My injuries recovered too slowly. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been forced to sacrifice myself to you, this little kitty."
"I see. Then should I thank the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger?"
Zhu Zhuqing laughed.
"You definitely should."
Bai Lu nodded.
"Next time we meet it, we'll invite it to come live in your soul bone."
"Alright."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded firmly in her heart before asking,
"Then what about this bear? Are we dealing with it?"
"Kill it and see if it drops a soul bone."
Bai Lu said decisively.
"Okay!"
Zhu Zhuqing immediately moved.
A mass of shadow shifted, and in the blink of an eye, it appeared beneath the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear as it was enjoying its meal.
By the time the beast noticed something was wrong, the shadows had already begun to ripple.
"Whoosh!"
Zhu Zhuqing leapt out of the darkness. Her sharp cat claws carried the immense hell power as they stabbed toward the bear.
At the same moment, the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear activated its soul skill.
Its massive body instantly hardened like iron, shining with dark-gold light.
Its defense resembled an indestructible body.
However—
"Hell Shadow Assault, Hell Piercing Strike!"
The girl activated two soul skills simultaneously.
One ignored 50% of armor. When stacked together, they nearly ignored conventional defense entirely.
"Pfft!"
The sharp claws pierced into flesh, instantly leaving two bloody holes in the Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear's body.
"ROAR!!!"
Overwhelming pain surged through it, and the bear released a furious roar that shook the forest.
Its two claws swung at the same time, tearing the air as two dark-gold claw strikes crashed down toward Zhu Zhuqing.
"Hell Rush Stab! Phantom Flash!"
Zhu Zhuqing exploded with soul power, stomping the ground and vanishing from her original position, instantly widening the distance between them.
The claw strikes missed, carving two bottomless trenches into the ground.
What terrifying attack power!
Her heart trembled.
If that strike had landed, even with her full defense, she would have been heavily injured.
But there was no fear in her eyes.
Only excitement.
"White Tiger Killing God Transformation!"
Scarlet light enveloped the girl's entire body. Killing intent condensed into a tangible aura as her battle instincts surged dramatically.
—
End of Chapter