Entering the Soul Hunting Forest, they quickly noticed the limitations of this smaller hunting ground. The quality of the soul beasts was, quite frankly, poor. Most of the ones they encountered at first were mere infants, barely even ten years old. Absorbing such soul rings wouldn't improve their strength—it might even cause a regression.
Thus, the group had to delve deeper into the forest.
They needed to at least reach the central region of the Soul Hunting Forest, where soul beasts of several hundred years would begin to appear.
"Finding suitable soul beasts for Huang'er and Lingqi won't be too difficult—just any appropriate aged power-type or agility-type will do. However, Gouhuo, your situation is a bit unique. You mentioned that your martial spirit can change the type of soldier tokens based on the absorbed soul rings, right? Currently, the only soldier token you have is the Servant Blade Soldier, which is a defensive type, with a shield in the left hand and a short blade in the right. What kind of soldier token would you prefer next?" Lan Xue asked, looking at Xun Yu.
"First of all, Lady Wang, my name is Xun Yu. Secondly, I'd like my second soldier token to summon a power-type troop, like great sword soldiers or spear soldiers," Xun Yu replied.
In fact, Xun Yu's martial spirit could be considered a top-tier one, capable of being a powerful offense, agility, defense, and control spirit all at once.
For example, summoning Servant Blade Soldiers or Rattan Armored Soldiers would provide defensive capabilities.
Great Sword Soldiers, Spear Soldiers, Heavy Hammer Soldiers, and Heavy Cavalry would serve as offensive forces. He could even summon Archers and Crossbowmen for ranged attacks.
Agility could be represented by the fast-attacking Throwing Knife Soldiers.
And control? He could summon Chain Soldiers or Female Soldiers. As for how female soldiers would provide control, they would mimic the techniques of Hu Liena from the original story.
Among all these troop types, the Throwing Knife Soldiers, known for their impressive attack range and speed, and the powerful charge of the Heavy Cavalry, were undoubtedly the strongest.
These two troop types would definitely be reserved for later stages, requiring higher-level soul rings to summon. This would reduce the soul power consumption, ensuring a steady stream of elite troops.
For the early stages, Xun Yu had already discussed a strategy with Nan Feihuang.
Defense would rely on Servant Blade Soldiers, power attack would come from Great Sword or Spear Soldiers, ranged attack from Archers, and control from Female Soldiers—this combination should be sufficient.
In truth, for pure control, Chain Soldiers would be a better choice.
But why did they end up choosing Female Soldiers instead? Well, it's simply because they were both men, indulging in a bit of their own mischief.
"Great Sword Soldiers or Spear Soldiers, you say? In that case, you'll need to hunt for a soul beast known for high physical attack and close-combat prowess. I understand," Lan Xue nodded. Such soul beasts wouldn't be too difficult to find.
As they ventured deeper into the forest, they began to encounter century-old soul beasts here and there. Most were only around two or three hundred years old, which, for these children who had consumed whale glue, was insufficient.
Their bodies were already far superior to ordinary people and even more so after consuming whale glue. For them, the starting point needed to be a five-hundred-year soul ring, preferably reaching six hundred years.
"Swish, swish, swish…"
Suddenly, the sound of something cutting through the air reached their ears. They glimpsed three or four figures darting through the forest at incredible speed.
Nan Feihuang's eyes narrowed, quickly tracking their movements.
"Mother, those are three feline soul beasts!"
"Huang'er, your eyesight is truly impressive. You can even follow the movements of century-old agility-type soul beasts. Many two-ring soul masters would struggle with that," Lan Xue praised. "These should be Soul-Devouring Cats, a step below the Nether Spirit Cats. They're fast, have sharp claws, and possess both offensive and soul-devouring abilities. Not a bad choice, but we need to check their ages. If there's one around five hundred years old, it could be suitable for Lingqi."
With that, Lan Xue circulated her soul power. Even without using her martial spirit, her ice attribute soul power was enough to freeze ten-thousand-year soul beasts, let alone a few mere hundred-year-old Soul-Devouring Cats.
A series of cracking sounds echoed as the three cats were instantly encased in ice.
Following the source of the noise, the group soon came across three pitch-black cats.
The cats varied in size, with the largest one being significantly bigger than most canine soul beasts.
"All three are indeed century-old. The smallest is around two hundred years, the largest eight hundred—not ideal. The middle one, however, seems just right. I estimate it to be around five hundred and fifty years," Lan Xue assessed. As a top graduate of Tianshui Academy, she was not only exceptionally strong but also had extensive knowledge of soul beasts.
"Yes, yes, yes!" Lü Lingqi nodded excitedly.
She could tell that the cat had good attack power and was fast, making it a suitable match for her.
Lan Xue nodded back, "Alright then, go ahead and break the ice."
The ice she used to trap the cats was not reinforced with her martial spirit, so it wasn't particularly strong. Lü Lingqi's top-tier weapon martial spirit should be more than enough to shatter it.
Lü Lingqi unsheathed her Flying Winged Halberd and brought it down on the middle Soul-Devouring Cat. The massive force instantly shattered the ice into countless fragments, along with the cat inside, breaking it into pieces.
A yellow soul ring quickly materialized.
Lü Lingqi began to absorb it. Despite her slender appearance, as the daughter of the fierce warlord Lü Bu, she possessed incredible strength, only slightly inferior to Dian Wei's.
If she had been born male, she might have surpassed even her father.
Seeing her calmly absorb the five-hundred-year soul ring, Lan Xue felt relieved. If a girl could handle a soul ring exceeding a hundred years, then her son would have no issues.
She had long known that her son's innate physique was the strongest among the group.
It made sense, given that when Nan Feihuang created his character in the game, he had set his attributes to be comparable to Lü Bu's, with the same physical limits, possessing a god-like body. His physical prowess even surpassed Dian Wei's.
Soul ring absorption required time, so the group sat cross-legged, closing their eyes to cultivate lightly, using the time for some rest.
Lan Xue lifted the ice seals on the other two Soul-Devouring Cats and said coldly, "Leave!"
The two cats, already terrified, darted into the forest without a second thought, showing no desire to avenge their fallen comrade.
These soul beasts, not yet enlightened, only had a primitive instinct to seek fortune and avoid disaster. If Lan Xue hadn't concealed her aura earlier, they would have known her strength and wouldn't have dared to approach.
As night fell, Lan Xue started a small fire.
With her deep soul power and ice attribute, she wasn't afraid of the cold, but the children were only six years old.
In truth, lighting a fire in such a place was risky, as it could attract many soul beasts.
However, for them, this was more of a blessing than a threat. They might find suitable soul beasts for Nan Feihuang and Xun Yu from the attracted creatures.
After all, with Lan Xue's formidable presence, this wasn't the Star Dou Great Forest, just a small Soul Hunting Forest. A Soul Douluo could walk through it as if it were flat ground.
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