17 Chapter 17: Ronin
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The sun slowly rose from the east, and the morning light cast down on the Sunset Forest. Through the dense leaves and branches, slender beams of light formed, shining in the misty forest. Clear chirping of insects and birds occasionally echoed, making the entire forest appear like a dreamland.
Among the mist, a figure walked slowly, silently stepping on the ground without making a sound, drifting like a ghost in the mist.
Suddenly, a dark shadow swiftly broke through the surrounding mist and attacked the figure.
However, the figure continued to walk forward as if it knew nothing, unaware that danger had approached.
The sharp claws, illuminated by faint light, flickered with a silver glow. When it was about to touch the figure's neck, it suddenly disappeared.
In an instant, the figure appeared behind the dark shadow. A sword had appeared in its right hand at some point, the sword's body shining silver and its tip stained red. It slowly condensed into a drop of blood, falling onto a small stone on the ground, emitting a faint sound.
"Too slow."
The figure whispered, sheathing the sword. In the next moment, a loud explosion resounded, fierce wind howled, dissipating the surrounding mist, revealing the figure and the dead black leopard outside the fog.
The black shadow was a black panther. At this moment, its neck had a wound, and blood gushed out. It weakly collapsed on the ground, convulsing before eventually losing any signs of life.
The figure was a man, around 1.7 meters tall, dressed in grayish-blue clothing. His long black hair was tied into a ponytail at the back of his head, and he had bangs in front of his forehead. His eyes were clear and profound, with a handsome and pleasing face. A faint smile hung on the corners of his mouth, giving people a comforting feeling. He had two weapons hanging from his left waist—a long sword and a long knife. He possessed a free and unrestrained temperament, as sharp as the edge of a sword, yet exuding a hint of solitude.
This person was Zeng Yi!
"If you were a thousand-year soul beast or a ten-thousand-year soul beast bothering me, I could let it slide. But a four-hundred-year-old big cat treating me as prey, who do you think you are?"
Looking at the dead black leopard with a yellow halo floating above its body, Zeng Yi disdainfully muttered.
He then approached the corpse of the black leopard.
"Perfect, my food is almost finished. I'll use you as a stockpile for the time being."
After over an hour, Zeng Yi sat on a stone, holding a roasted and fragrant large leg of meat in his hand, enjoying it blissfully.
After finishing the meal, Zeng Yi cleaned up the scene, then jumped onto a big tree and found a sturdy branch. He lazily lay down, squinted his eyes, and began to rest.
A gentle breeze blew, causing the leaves on the tree to rustle. Zeng Yi's clothes and bangs gently swayed, his expression pleasant, and he felt completely at ease.
"Four years have passed!"
That's right! Zeng Yi had spent four years alone in the Sunset Forest and was now already twelve years old.
During these four years, he had wandered alone in the Sunset Forest without encountering any humans. Honestly, his luck was unparalleled. Furthermore, he hadn't left the Sunset Forest, and being unfamiliar with the area, he wandered around like a headless fly. Now, he didn't even know where exactly he was in the Sunset Forest.
If it were an ordinary person trapped in this forest for four years, they would probably go insane and lose their mind. But Zeng Yi was not an ordinary person; he was a ronin, an orphan. In this dangerous Sunset Forest, it felt like a wilderness survival game to him. Every day, he played hide-and-seek with soul beasts, practicing when he had time. Life was quite fulfilling and interesting. However, after a long time, it did become a bit monotonous and boring.
During these four years, Zeng Yi's strength had greatly improved. After all, he had been living in this dangerous soul beast forest. He had daily battles of wits and courage with soul beasts, experienced numerous life-or-death struggles, and teetered on the edge of death many times. If his strength hadn't improved, Zeng Yi might as well have found a rock and smashed himself to death.
His soul power level had successfully broken through level twenty, and he obtained his second suitable soul ring, becoming a great soul master. Currently, Zeng's soul power level was twenty-eight.
His strength wasn't very strong, but it wasn't too weak either. As long as he was cautious in the Sunset Forest, he would be able to protect himself.
As for Zeng Yi's second soul ring, it was from a plant-type soul beast with a lifespan of over eight hundred years. It was the soul ring of the Sword Bamboo. This surprised him because his first soul ring had a lifespan of a thousand years, so he had expected the second soul ring to be at least a thousand years old or even ten thousand years old. But unexpectedly, it was only a eight hundred-year soul ring.
The selection of this soul ring by his martial soul, the Ronin Sword, was similar to when Zeng Yi obtained his first soul ring. The Ronin Sword shivered and emitted a trembling chirp, indicating its need for this soul ring.
Looking at it this way, the Ronin Sword only selected suitable soul rings for himself and didn't care much about the lifespan of the soul rings. However, this made Zeng Yi feel a bit embarrassed. It seemed like he had become a tool. Come on, you are my martial soul, can't you be more considerate? This arrangement made me feel like I'm just a tool for the Sword. I don't even have a will of my own; you tell me what soul ring to get, and I have to get it.
However, afterwards, Zeng Yi understood...
In practice, the Ronin Sword's choice was correct. This second soul ring was highly suitable for him, almost perfectly complementing his abilities and greatly enhancing his strength.
Ronin Sword Daddy, from now on, whatever you say, I'll do it. If you want a certain soul ring, I'll do whatever it takes to get it for you!
Yet capturing an eight hundred years old soul beast was not something Zeng Yi could accomplish alone. So, he devised a plan, lured a nine hundred years old soul beast to fight against the previous soul beast, and when they both suffered injuries, he stepped in to deliver the final blow. Zeng Yi's plan went perfectly, and he easily obtained his second soul ring.
Thus, the brain is a wonderful thing!
After cultivating on the branch for a few hours, Zeng Yi opened his eyes, got up, and jumped down from the tree, stepping on the ground without making a sound.
Having reached the third stage of the Wind Sword Technique, Zeng Yi could skillfully utilize flowing movements to make his body light and nimble, like a swallow. He could move without a sound, greatly improving his stealth techniques. This gave him confidence in maneuvering the Sunset Forest and avoiding danger.
Now, he was about to embark on today's task—finding the soul masters who had entered the Sunset Forest. Only by finding people could he leave this haunted place. Otherwise, as a person with no sense of direction, Zeng Yi would likely be trapped in the Sunset Forest for a lifetime.
"Alright, today's journey is about to begin." Clapping his hands, Zeng Yi smiled, randomly chose a direction, and swiftly dashed like the wind.
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