Chapter 45: Tang San Excluded? NPC Snake Appears!
Faced with Tang San's questioning, Zhuge Lan confidently replied,
"If it's not powerful enough, it's not worthy of being placed in the family treasury."
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +5555]*
*[Emotion Points +2333]*
With that one line, everyone was floored!
Envy!
Jealousy!
They all wanted to join Zhuge Lan's family. Zhuge Lan continued to cast holy light so quickly that his hand seemed like a blur.
— And this was while he was limited by his soul curse; otherwise, he'd have gone even faster.
At first, he healed Red Wolf and Black Spider out of guilt since he was the cause of their injuries.
But afterward...
*[Emotion Points +99]*
*[Emotion Points +199]*
*[Emotion Points +99]*
The emotion points just kept coming, steady and strong! It showed that their feelings were intense, and their emotions were complex and chaotic.
So, even though their limbs grew back slowly, Zhuge Lan didn't hesitate, continually casting holy light on them. Xiao Wu's expression softened considerably.
— This annoying guy suddenly didn't seem so bad.
*[Emotion Points +2333]*
"Isn't this a bit much?" Ma Hongjun scoffed. "They're just hundred-year soul beasts. We could put them out of their misery with a quick kill."
You could say he understood "liberation."
But...
Xiao Wu glared furiously at Ma Hongjun!
"What's with the stare?" Ma Hongjun asked, confused.
"Stare at you? I should hit you!" Xiao Wu snapped.
The thoughtful Tang San held his head, reasoning,
"Ma Hongjun, what Zhuge is doing is correct."
Tang San logically explained,
"Excessive killing of soul beasts has already led to many species going extinct. If we don't restrain ourselves, then thousands of years from now, there might not be any soul beasts left on the Douluo Continent. And then how will soul masters break through?"
Very thoughtful.
But...
Who really cared?
Well, Ma Hongjun didn't, for one.
"Exactly!" Xiao Wu added irritably. "Soul masters who kill indiscriminately are the worst!"
"Tang San is right," Ning Rongrong agreed. "My father and grandfather also believe that."
"There's some truth to it," Dai Mubai pondered.
Seeing everyone on her side, Xiao Wu proudly raised her chin at Ma Hongjun.
How do you like that, chubby?
Ma Hongjun's mouth twitched. He wasn't stupid; if he argued more, he'd just be making enemies.
Better to avoid conflict with a woman.
He'd endure!
Turning, he noticed Zhuge Lan still casting holy light and suddenly had a realization!
*[Emotion Points +1111]*
"Brother Lan?"
Zhuge Lan looked back, confused. "What's up?"
"Your soul bone… it's 50,000 years old, right?" Ma Hongjun confirmed.
Zhuge Lan nodded.
"Then you've used your soul bone ability over a hundred times now?"
Everyone was shocked!
*[Emotion Points +1111]*
*[Emotion Points +1111]*
*[Emotion Points +1111]*
Whoa! Using a 50,000-year-old soul bone ability over a hundred times?
He wasn't even remotely tired?!
Zhuge Lan had already expected their reaction—why wouldn't he use his powers to the fullest?
He answered calmly,
"I told you, my technique restores my energy very quickly."
*[Emotion Points +9999]*
*[Emotion Points +6666]*
*[Emotion Points +8888]*
Fast recovery? That's beside the point!
This is a 50,000-year soul bone ability!
Even if a Soul Elder used it, it would consume about 10% of their soul power each time.
But with Zhuge Lan firing it off five times per second, wouldn't he be empty in two seconds?
He could recover fully in just two seconds?
Unbelievable!
Or rather, no one even wanted to try understanding it.
It was just too outrageous!
*[Emotion Points +11111]*
Zhu Zhuqing stared intently at Zhuge Lan.
His technique!
Zhuge Lan had only mastered half of it; the other half required dual cultivation.
Since she was now Zhuge Lan's girlfriend, with a Martial Soul Fusion bond to boot, wouldn't it make sense for her to be his dual cultivation partner?
If so, wouldn't she also gain such an insane recovery effect?
*[Emotion Points +23333]*
Zhuge Lan blinked.
One sentence had garnered nearly 100,000 emotion points, which he hadn't expected. If he'd known they liked this, he would have flaunted it more often.
But it wasn't too late—he'd make sure to show off his powers more from now on.
"Click—"
"Click—"
"Click—"
One by one, the Red Wolf and Black Spider soul beasts began to rise, causing everyone to watch them warily.
The conflict between soul beasts and soul masters had always been intense, often deadly.
If these soul beasts turned on them, it wouldn't be surprising...
"Grrrrsshh!" The lead Red Wolf and Black Spider chattered briefly, then led the others back into Star Dou Forest.
"Good deed of the day, done," Zhuge Lan announced. "Come on, let's find a soul ring for Oscar before nightfall."
Everyone prepared to move out.
Zhuge Lan naturally took the lead.
No one contested it—he could handle Zhao Wuji, so who would dare?
Ning Rongrong and Oscar, the two support roles, were positioned centrally.
Tang San followed closely to guard against ambushes.
Zhu Zhuqing scouted on the right with her agile movement, searching for soul beasts nearby.
Although Xiao Wu was an attack-type, her quick movements made her ideal for the left flank.
Meanwhile, Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, the two powerhouse attackers, were left at the rear.
Under anyone else's command, they'd be annoyed by this arrangement.
But with Zhuge Lan?
With his strange abilities, he wasn't someone you messed with!
Zhuge Lan charged forward, covered in thorn armor.
Whenever a soul beast appeared, he'd release a Holy Light Blessing, stunning them to the ground.
The group moved like the wind toward the inner area.
Oscar's third soul ring, boosted by whale glue, had a limit of 4,960 years.
The outer perimeter mainly contained ten-year and hundred-year soul beasts, with only occasional thousand-year soul beasts.
Spending time here would be pointless, and the soul beast quality was lacking.
"There's something ahead!" Zhu Zhuqing alerted everyone.
"At 3 o'clock, a snake with a red crest, flying low and a bit shaky—looks injured?"
Zhuge Lan was intrigued.
This sounded like… an "NPC snake."
They'd entered half a day late and still managed to run into it?
"A Phoenix-Tailed Crest Snake?" Tang San was delighted. "Perfect for Xiao Ao! How long is it? What color are its wings?"
"The wings are light red, and it's about 6-8 meters long," Zhu Zhuqing answered.
"Between 1,300 and 1,800 years—just right!" Tang San analyzed excitedly.
"The Phoenix-Tailed Crest Snake is non-toxic but very fast, storing nutrients in its crest that allow it to accelerate instantly when in danger."
"If Xiao Ao gets this soul ring, his next soul skill should be speed-related."
It was a thorough and logical analysis.
Except...
"Oh, I forgot to mention." Oscar raised his hand. "My third soul ring is 4,960 years."
Tang San: "???"
Does he even hear himself?
Most people's fourth soul ring is 5,000 years; why does his third ring have to be exactly 4,960?
"And that's thanks to Brother Lan's strengthening elixir," Oscar chuckled. "It added 3,200 years to my limit!"
*[Emotion Points +3333]*
*[Emotion Points +3333]*
Tang San and Xiao Wu turned to Zhuge Lan.
Then they looked at everyone else, who didn't seem surprised.
So…
They were the only ones who didn't know?
Why did it feel like...
They were being excluded from the group?
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