Han Shuo didn't immediately rest upon returning to the hotel's storeroom, but instead practiced magic as usual.
The magic yuan within his body circulated according to the principles of demon magic. Under Han Shuo's careful guidance, it flowed through every inch of his meridians, skin, muscles and bones. Whether it was his physical strength or his five senses, Han Shuo could feel that both had greatly improved.
Han Shuo resolutely continued to attack the final bottleneck according to the instructions in the Mystical Glacial Spellfire. He circulated his magical yuan to the centres of his two hands and repeatedly tried to clear the meridians in his five fingers and bones. Pain continuously erupted from his bones and meridians as his hands shook with convulsions. Faint red and purple lights emanated from the backs of his hands, like two faint lanterns.
The pain continued to increase as Han Shuo gritted his teeth and stubbornly held on. He knew that this was the critical point in the training of the Glacial Mystic Spellfire. It was up to his will to see if he could clear all the meridians in his hands and achieve successful results with the Glacial Mystical Spellfire.
The process of the magic yuan attacking the bones in his five fingers seemed to go on forever. Han Shuo sat Indian-style, sweat dripping from every pore as the veins in his forehead bulged and pounded. His originally peaceful expression became a bit sinister and ghastly, giving off a feeling of extreme evil.
After who knew how long, just when Han Shuo thought he was going to pass out from the pain, he could no longer stand the bone-crushing agony in his hands and involuntarily flailed his hands with a low roar.
Pa Pa ...
Ten crisp sounds rang out from his fingers as Han Shuo immediately felt a bit drained, but the magical yuan flowed smoothly into his fingers without any hindrance.
Ten purple-red flickers, like the flame on a candle wick, instantly appeared from his fingertips. The ten purple-red fire blossoms sparkled with breathtaking colours in the darkness of the storeroom. They were like hypnotic flowers that had suddenly blossomed, giving others a mysterious and unpredictable feeling.
The palms of both his hands were also dyed with a purple-red colour, as were his fingers. The bones in his hands were clearly visible, and even his skin shone with a translucent glow, looking extremely bizarre.
Absolutely ecstatic, Han Shuo roared in a low voice. He then quickly glanced around and slowly withdrew the magical yuan from his hands back into his stomach. Without the continued infusion of magic yuan, Han Shuo's hands slowly returned to normal and the ten blooming flames disappeared as well.
Success. This was the proof of the successful practice of the Glacial Mystic Spellfire. Even though its full power could not be demonstrated due to his insufficient magical yuan, Han Shuo was no longer a defenceless, ordinary person, thanks to his current successes.
The red flame of the Glacial Mystic Spellfire burned everything in its path, while the purple flame was bone-chillingly cold. Anyone struck by this spellfire would either be burned from the inside out or have their internal organs frozen into blocks of ice. The chances of survival were extremely low. If the caster had enough magic yuan, even more spellfire could be concentrated in the palms, unleashing even more terrifying power.
Han Shuo was overcome by a huge wave of exhaustion after successfully casting Mystical Glacial Spellfire, and he fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, dawn.
Under Fanny's leadership, the group of twelve had gathered at the entrance to the city of Drol. They gathered some food and water from the town and piled it all on Han Shuo.
"What were you doing in Master Fanny's room last night?" Lisa asked Han Shuo in a low voice as she hung a leather water skin on him.
It seemed that Fanny hadn't explained the events of last night to anyone. Han Shuo glanced at Fanny in the distance and realised that she was reminding some students of things to be careful of. He also replied in a low voice, "Nothing much. Master Fanny wanted to test some necromancy magic and used me as a test subject."
"Hmph. Don't lie to me, even if Master Fanny wanted to test some magic on you, she would test Bone Arrow. That kind of magic only needs to be practised by apprentices, would she need to test that kind of magic as an adept mage?" Lisa huffed and looked cautiously at Han Shuo.
"Master Fanny was testing bone arrow magic, isn't every spell divided into five levels? She just wanted to see what level of Bone Arrow Magic she could cast with her current strength. You can ask Master Fanny if you don't believe me."
Since Han Shuo had lied to Lisa, her attitude towards him had indeed changed drastically. But women were like that. Even if she didn't like him, she would still treat you as her personal property if she knew you liked her. If you developed an ambiguous relationship with someone, she would be the first to feel uncomfortable.
Lisa was the same way. Although she didn't think much of him, once she 'understood' Han Shuo's thoughts, she naturally thought that Han Shuo would only like her until he died, and shouldn't have anything to do with Fanny. Han Shuo had heard this from others before, and now it seemed to make some sense.
"Forget it, you wouldn't dare lie to me anyway!" Lisa looked at Fanny, spoke carelessly to Han Shuo and then turned to leave.
"Bryan, let's go. The trees and bushes in the Dark Forest are growing strongly and the paths are winding and uneven. We can no longer ride horses and must proceed on foot. They carry too many resources and cannot be dragged down. There are many vicious magical creatures in the Dark Forest. It would be tragic if you were dragged down and killed by them. Fanny looked at Han Shuo from a distance and called out.
Fanny's attitude towards Han Shuo had unconsciously changed after yesterday's events. She seemed to value him more now, but the gentle attitude she had towards him was gone, replaced by a brusque frustration.
"Coming, coming!" Han Shuo had taken advantage of Fanny yesterday and she'd also witnessed his ugliness in her bathroom last night. It was natural that she no longer looked kindly upon him. It was actually a kind of improvement now that Fanny was slowly changing her attitude towards him.
Drol was unusually busy during the day, with many of the shops already up and running. A few sleepy merchants and adventurers emerged from the nearby alleys, their clothes in disarray. They, too, were getting ready for work after a night of debauchery.
Merchants and adventurers formed groups and headed into the Dark Forest with their belongings in tow. They either sought to capture magical creatures or to trade with the minorities within the forest.
Under Fanny's constant urging, Han Shuo's party of twelve also put their affairs in order and followed Fanny and Gene's footsteps into the Dark Forest.
The Dark Forest was vast and endless, inhabited by various wild and violent magical creatures, as well as some unusual races. Elves, goblins and savages were the main races within the forest, but even these races usually lived on the outskirts of the forest.
The true inner world of the Dark Forest was full of mystery and danger. The largest and most terrifying magical creatures lived in this inner world, and it was the most enticing and mysterious part of the Dark Forest. Though legends spoke of great treasures and precious items within the core, few dared to go there. Those who dared to go in and came out alive were the best of the best.
"Follow me, we'll go south." Fanny called loudly as they entered the Dark Forest, changing the group's direction and heading straight for the southern part of the forest.
The roads inside the Dark Forest were indeed rough. There were all kinds of sturdy rocks and towering trees with branches tens of metres long. There were also many merchants and adventurers heading south at the beginning, but they all went their own way as time went on. The others disappeared in an instant, and no one knew where they had gone.
Suddenly, the sound of several swift footsteps reached Han Shuo's ears. He paused, concentrated his hearing, and then immediately said, "A sound is approaching, and it doesn't seem to be the footsteps of humans."
"Bryan, you're just an errand boy. What danger can you hear? So ridiculous." Bach was the first to laugh out loud, mocking Han Shuo.
Ever since Han Shuo had started training his Magic Yuan, his five senses had become much sharper than before. Besides, he was confident with his hearing to begin with. It was impossible for humans to send out the rapidly approaching flashes of light, and there seemed to be more than one.
Han Shuo had only spoken because he understood from Fanny and everyone else the dangers of the Dark Forest, but seeing that no one paid any attention to him after his words, Han Shuo refrained from speaking further.
The group continued to walk slowly south, but Fanny frowned and then exclaimed in surprise after two minutes. She said in her sweet voice, "There are indeed magical creatures approaching. Everyone put your things down and prepare to fight. Since we're still on the edge of the Dark Forest, the creatures shouldn't be too strong. Nothing to worry about."
The students started, then looked at Han Shuo strangely after Fanny spoke. They quickly shed their backpacks and formed a defensive circle.
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