Chapter 163: Ghost Tiger
Seeing the clearly formidable soul beast before her, Zhu Zhuqing tensed up. The Netherworld Spirit Cat appeared behind her, ready for defense.
A few seconds later, a wolf-type soul beast emerged from the other side of the forest, its gaze also fixed on the two of them with intense eagerness.
Slowly, hundreds of soul beasts of different kinds began emerging from the forest, appearing before them.
The little cat's heart sank; what was happening? She only wanted to find a soul beast around ten thousand years old, but how did she end up disturbing a beast nest?
Women subconsciously always long for protection, and with danger looming, Zhu Zhuqing involuntarily moved closer to Ning Bei.
"Ning Ning Bei, we should run. This..."
Ning Bei turned to look at the panicking little cat and gave her a reassuring look.
"I think a soul beast around 9,000 years would be most suitable for your current strength. That Extreme Shadow Leopard would work well."
Ning Bei pointed to a gray leopard-like soul beast in the middle of the group of beasts and asked Zhu Zhuqing for her opinion.
After hearing Ning Bei's words, the little cat immediately pushed aside her fear and looked at him anxiously.
"Ning Bei, I need a ten-thousand-year soul beast."
"But..."
"I understand, but I can't fall too far behind my companions!"
Before Ning Bei could persuade her further, Zhu Zhuqing interrupted.
Ning Bei was taken aback. The little girl had such strong pride, but then he nodded in agreement. At worst, he could give her a life-saving pill if needed, and she had a foreign soul bone as well. There was no need to worry too much.
"Alright, let's go with the Ghost Tiger on the left. It seems to have just broken through to ten thousand years."
Zhu Zhuqing looked in the direction Ning Bei pointed out, and indeed, there was a Ghost Tiger. However, she couldn't determine its age.
But since Ning Bei said so, she chose to trust him.
"Let's go with that one, Ning Bei, but how will we escape from all these soul beasts?"
While Zhu Zhuqing was still worried about how they would escape from the crowd of beasts, Ning Bei summoned Er Ming and Da Ming, then withdrew the Dan Tower.
"Get rid of them!"
"Understood, Big Brother!"
"Got it, Ning Bei!"
Er Ming and Da Ming immediately transformed into their true forms and roared at the group of beasts. With the Dan Tower no longer a target, the soul beasts panicked and fled in all directions.
Ning Bei had already set his sights on the Ghost Tiger, and his figure disappeared next to Zhu Zhuqing. He reappeared directly above the Ghost Tiger's head.
"Light-speed kick!"
Ning Bei's right leg erupted with dazzling light, and he delivered a powerful kick to the Ghost Tiger's waist.
The Ghost Tiger let out a wail and collapsed to the ground.
Ning Bei had controlled his strength; otherwise, the soul ring would have been completely destroyed!
Carrying the severely injured and unconscious Ghost Tiger, he quickly returned to Zhu Zhuqing, who was still standing there, lost in thought.
"Stop daydreaming, come over quickly, this tiger's about to die!"
"Ah! Coming!"
Snapping out of her daze, Zhu Zhuqing cursed herself for being clueless and hurried over to Ning Bei.
She extended her external soul bone and used her claw to stab the Ghost Tiger's eye.
Soon, a dark yellow soul ring slowly rose from the corpse.
Zhu Zhuqing took a deep breath and looked at Ning Bei gratefully.
"Ning Bei, I'm starting now!"
The little cat greeted, then took the life-saving pill that Ning Bei had prepared for her and began absorbing the soul ring.
"Wait a moment!"
"Huh?"
Zhu Zhuqing looked at Ning Bei in confusion, thinking that he was going to remind her again.
Ning Bei didn't speak but tossed her a Soul Nourishing Pill.
"It'll help with the soul impact. Take it before you begin!"
Zhu Zhuqing's eyes lit up as she nodded and quickly swallowed the Soul Nourishing Pill.
She then sat cross-legged next to the Ghost Tiger's corpse, starting to absorb the soul ring.
Ning Bei withdrew Er Ming and Da Ming into the Dan Tower and began to keep an eye on their surroundings.
As soon as the soul ring was placed on her body, Zhu Zhuqing felt an overwhelming pressure. Her whole body tensed up.
Seeing the pain on the little cat's face, Ning Bei felt a cold sweat for her. Even with all the pills available, if Zhu Zhuqing failed to absorb the soul ring, she wouldn't be in mortal danger, but it would definitely cause irreversible damage to her martial soul.
Zhu Zhuqing's delicate face was no longer as soft as before; her features twisted in pain, and she was groaning softly, clearly enduring immense agony.
After several minutes, Zhu Zhuqing's exposed skin began to ooze a large amount of blood, her silver teeth clenching tightly, making a "crackling" sound.
Seeing this, Ning Bei's expression tightened. He moved closer to her, ready to interrupt her soul ring absorption at any moment.
This scene lasted for several hours, and fortunately, things didn't worsen. The little cat's expression slowly began to relax.
Ning Bei finally let out a sigh of relief, his gaze toward Zhu Zhuqing full of complexity.
"She really is a strong woman."
Two more hours passed, and Zhu Zhuqing finally awoke from her meditation. Her eyes were filled with excitement and a hint of relief.
"Thank you, Ning Bei. If it weren't for your Soul Nourishing Pill, I don't think I could have held on!"
Ning Bei smiled and shook his head, praising her.
"I only provided a bit of help. The most important thing was your own perseverance!"
Zhu Zhuqing looked at Ning Bei gratefully, wanting to say something more, but he interrupted her.
"Alright, no need for formalities. How's the soul skill? Does it work?"
The little cat felt her own soul power for a moment, then looked at Ning Bei with joy.
"Ning Bei, I'm level 43 now. My fourth soul skill is Netherworld Shadow Clone, which allows me to create three physical clones for a period of time. They can use my own soul skills."
Ning Bei nodded. It seemed that according to the original plan, the little cat's fourth soul skill was indeed this one, but the soul ring's age had been increased to the ten-thousand-year level, so the effect would be significantly stronger.
"Not bad, with that skill, you'll be able to face your sister head-on. You still have less than two years to prepare, so keep working hard!"
"Yes, Ning Bei!"
Zhu Zhuqing's mood had improved significantly. After that huge mental burden was lifted, she became much more lively.
She was no longer the aloof person she had been before.
"Ning Bei, should we return to the sect now?"
Ning Bei chuckled and pinched his nose, shaking his head.
"I think it's better if we find somewhere in the town to take a bath first!"
"Huh?"
Zhu Zhuqing was stunned by Ning Bei's actions. She looked down at her body and suddenly cried out in shock!
Her skin, exposed outside her clothes, was covered in dried blood, and now it was starting to give off a foul smell.
The little cat's face turned bright red, and she shyly glanced at the man in front of her.
"Ning Bei, let's hurry up and leave!"
"Not going back to the sect? I thought cats liked this smell?"
Hearing Ning Bei's teasing, Zhu Zhuqing stomped her foot angrily and then ignored him, running ahead toward the forest's edge.
"You're the one who likes this stinky smell!"
(END CHAPTER)
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