--- Chapter 12 ---
Soul Hunting Forest.
I walked randomly on the grass trail, holding my sister's left hand, and enjoyed the scenery. Honestly, the sight in this forest is not bad, and the air is much fresher than in our house.
Maybe this has something to do with Purple Silver Grass being my Martial Soul, so nature is my home forte. So, being in this forest is no different than being in Mimicry Training Ground.
Of course, staying in a real forest is better. After all, the life force is much stronger than your typical Mimicry Training Ground. Besides, all of these were natural.
We encountered many beasts ranging from 500-year-old to 2,000-year-old, but none were my target. So, I used them to train my sister's combat skills.
As time passed, my sister became more proficient with her 1st spirit skill and could combine the "Lunar Manipulation" with her martial techniques.
And then, there is me.
Aih, my standard for choosing Spirit Ring is too strict.
I don't want to absorb animal-type spirit rings because it would ruin the essence of Blue Silver Emperor and Thunder Hell Prison Vine. I'm not a foolish man who ruined Blue Silver Emperor by adding conflicting elements like poison.
Of course, my standard placed me in a horrendous situation because the population of plant-type Spirit Beasts is lower than that of animal-type ones. It is difficult for plant-type Spirit Beasts to grow past the 1,000-year-old mark before being devoured by others.
That's why Ah Yin, being the 100,000-year-old Blue Silver Emperor, is considered a miracle in my eyes.
The Blue Silver Clan must have experienced a lot of hardship to produce such a being.
However, all those efforts went down to nothing when "love" was involved.
That foolish Tang Hao dragged his pregnant wife to places where Spirit Hall could trace his existence. He knew damn well Ah Yin's pregnancy made the cover as a 100,000-year-old blown over.
He could have gone to the Blue Silver Forest and hid Ah Yin there for a few years, but nope! This man flushed his brain when taking a dump.
I even doubted that Tang Hao did this to make Ah Yin have no choice but to sacrifice herself when Qian Xunji and Spirit Hall's elders confronted them in that village.
After all, the temptation of a 100,000-year-old Spirit Ring and Spirit Bone is too much. Even a family would turn upside down because of these things.
There is a reason why 100,000-year-old Spirit Bones are called "Treasures of the Bloody River."
I suspect the damned Asura is involved, as everything about that event feels unnatural. Tang Hao, one of the few with the Death God Domain (part of Asura's inheritance), supports this theory.
No, I probably guessed right because Asura ruined my life and gave my body to that hateful Tang San. He's involved, one hundred, no, one thousand percent!
'Ah Yin.' I couldn't help but recall the warm, motherly memories I received when I got reincarnated for the first time.
'Don't worry, I will definitely save you!' I clenched my hands tight.
Han Yue suddenly rubbed my head, "What's the matter, Yuan? You look so irritated."
"You can tell me if you have something in mind."
I sighed in my heart and replied, "It's nothing. I was thinking about the future and imagined how amazing it was."
"Then, I realized we are still on the bottom of Douluo Continent."
"We are just ants before a giant tree."
"Well, let's climb the tree and show the world our effort then!" Han Yue declared heroically, clasping my hand warmly.
"Mm," I agree with her words.
We continued our journey in the Soul Hunting Forest, almost reaching the core area where the 3,000-year-old Spirit Beast started appearing one after another in our path.
Well, any Spirit Beast we encountered ended up in Sky Poison Pearl.
Unfortunately, a lot of Spirit Rings are 'naturally' wasted. I'm definitely going to develop something to store Spirit Rings later.
An hour later, we finally reached the core area. I got the news that a 5,000-year-old tree lives. I don't know what kind of tree, though.
A massive tree stood majestically, resembling an oak tree. I estimated the tree was over fifty meters, but weirdly, the entire trunk and branches were thoroughly charred and appeared almost like charcoal. The tree had many branches, each adorned with green-orange leaves that emitted faint yet harmless vibrations.
"What kind of Spirit Beast is this?" Han Yue blurted in confusion.
Well, I don't know. My knowledge about Spirit Beast is not perfect. The books Grandpa Mu gave me do not cover the entire spectrum of Spirit Beasts.
Thankfully, I have the Eyes of Truth.
I activated my talent and scanned the tree.
The result is a shocker.
[Name: Thunderstruck Tree]
[Race: Spirit Beast (Plant-type)]
[Cultivation Age: 5,000 Years Old]
[Description: A lucky oak tree developed spirituality and transformed into a spirit beast. Unfortunately, the luck of this tree was over when a strike from a 100,000-year spirit beast's Lightning Tribulation appeared and hit it accidentally, causing its whole body to get charred beyond repair. The tree survived and gained a tyrannical Lightning Attribute but had been holding its dear life by sucking the nutrient of this Soul Hunting Forest]
[Obtainable Spirit Skills: Whip of Lightning(80%), Lightning Affinity (15%), Life Drain (3%), Explosive Leaf(2.5%), Thunder-Wood Change (0.5%)]
[Thunderstruck Tree's weakness: Thunderstruck Wood has maintained a delicate balance between its life force and lightning power. However, once this balance is 'strongly' broken, the lightning will go out of control and kill it]
I narrowed my eyes at Thunderstruck Wood's introduction. This guy can't be more perfect for Purple Silver Grass.
Then, I looked down at the weakness part and mumbled. "Balance is 'strongly' broken? That means a strong stimulation, right?"
"Well, what lightning is stronger than Ultimate Lightning?"
After knowing this, I glanced at my sister and shared my discovery. She was excited but worried I couldn't handle a 5,000-year-old Spirit Ring.
I smiled confidently, "We have been training together for a year. You should know just how physically strong I am."
"T-Then, be safe." Han Yue bit her lips.
I gave my sister a peck on the cheek, "Watch me."
Then, I walked to the 5,000-year-old Thunderstruck Tree. My step is calm and steady.
The tree obviously noticed me, sensing a threat from Purple Silver Grass in my hand.
"System, task."
[Please enter the input]
"I will end this Thunderstruck Tree in one strike."
[Input Taken!]
[Task: Defeat the Thunderstruck Tree with one attack]
SHRIEK!
The tree vibrated as several electrifying roots launched at me. They are five meters long and as thick as an adult's thigh, enough to obliterate Spirit Ancestors into ashes.
I used Flash Step to dodge every root and made a Chidori, pouring nearly all my Spirit Energy to generate more lightning power. I didn't realize this because I focused on the Thunderstruck Tree, but my Chidori turned purple from the previous blue color.
"So beautiful..." Han Yue stared at the Chidori.
Countless green-orange leaves fell from Thunderstruck Tree, chasing me like a bunch of trackers. Then, they exploded one after another, sending a barrage of destruction to my face.
A cloud of dust appeared.
"Yuan!" Han Yue's worried voice echoed in the forest.
Swoosh!
I broke out from the dust clouds and made my way to the Thunderstruck Tree, slamming my Chidori into its trunk.
BOOOOOM!
THUD!
My hand stuck in the trunk, and I pulled away hurriedly, retreating from the tree Spirit beast.
I waited patiently, watching a purple pulse spread from the area I struck and spread to other parts of the Thunderstruck Tree's body like a curse.
Then, the extreme energy gathered inside the Thunderstruck Tree burst out.
The tree was unwilling but also relieved at the same time.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!
I used Stone Edge and crossed my arms, protecting myself from the explosion.
Finally, I saw a bright purple Spirit Ring rise from dust clouds. I clenched my hand, "I got it!"
"Phew... That was harder than I expected."
When the Explosive Leaf chased me and exploded, I actually used Spirit Beast's corpses in the Sky Poison Pearl as a meat shield. If not, I would have gotten seriously injured.
[Ding! You have completed your Task]
I sighed in relief, "Phew, I wasted so much good quality meat, but all those sacrifice feels worth it now."
"Now, let's absorb the Spirit Ring..."