Xiao Wu understood that asking Su Ming to resolve the conflict between spirit masters and spirit beasts was an impossible request. Even with the system at his disposal, solving such a monumental issue would undoubtedly be challenging.
She stayed silent, her face still pale. Su Ming knew she was distressed, but he refrained from offering words of comfort—they wouldn't help anyway.
He also wasn't like the Tang San of the original work, making lofty promises to Xiao Wu, such as only hunting the most wicked spirit beasts and never harming the kind-hearted ones.
Tang San might have said it all, but he never lived up to it. A classic hypocrite. Take, for instance, how he labeled the three Ant Brothers who took over Da Ming and Er Ming's territory as "evil spirit beasts." Yet by then, Da Ming and Er Ming were already dead, and those three near-100,000-year-old spirit beasts were simply the rightful rulers of the region. Claiming that land was completely reasonable.
And then there was the time when Tang San removed some of his own spirit rings to resurrect Xiao Wu. To replace them, he went on a rampage in the Sunset Forest, slaughtering nearly all spirit beasts over 50,000 years old, leaving the forest devastated.
Zhao Wuji handed his dagger to Oscar, saying, "Oscar, stab it into the Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent's venom gland. This spirit ring is yours. Quickly now—let's not waste time."
Oscar eagerly took the dagger. Just as he was about to plunge it into the serpent's venom gland, a raspy voice suddenly shouted, "Stop!"
Su Ming muttered to himself, Here we go. It must be Serpent Grandmother and Meng Yiran.
Oscar's hand paused midair at the sharp rebuke. Everyone turned to look in the direction of the voice.
Two figures appeared: one elderly and one young. The older figure wielded a snake staff, her six spirit rings glimmering. She was a Spirit Emperor!
Beside her stood a stunning teenage girl, around sixteen or seventeen, dressed in snug battle gear that accentuated her figure. She too held a snake staff, albeit adorned with only two yellow spirit rings.
Zhao Wuji looked at the elder with the snake staff and suddenly recalled someone. His tone softened slightly as he asked, "What do you want?"
His change in demeanor surprised Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun. When had their teacher ever sounded so... polite?
The Serpent Grandmother saw that Zhao Wuji was a Spirit Sage with seven rings, making reclaiming the Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent much trickier. But she decided to try anyway—perhaps her and Dragon Duke's reputation would deter them.
She coughed lightly and respectfully said, "Esteemed Spirit Sage, would you kindly allow us to take this Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent? My granddaughter needs it to break through to rank 30."
Zhao Wuji gestured for Oscar to lower the dagger before responding, "Why should we? We were the ones who subdued it."
The Serpent Grandmother pointed at the serpent's abdomen. "Because we found it first. Those three gashes on its belly? I inflicted those earlier. Otherwise, how else would we have arrived so suddenly?"
Everyone looked at the serpent and saw the three distinct scars. Oscar couldn't help but retort, "Even if you found it first, we're the ones who captured it. Without us, the Phoenix-Tail Crest Serpent's speed would've let it escape easily!"
Oscar had a point. If the serpent had fully utilized the venom gland's propulsion to flee, the two women wouldn't have been able to catch up, especially since both wielded tool-based martial spirits rather than agility-based ones. The Serpent Grandmother also had to protect her granddaughter, further hindering their speed.
The young girl beside the Serpent Grandmother spoke up, "Even if you're right, we weakened it first, making it possible for you to capture it. At best, you were just lucky. Besides, I need this spirit beast for my third spirit ring. Do any of you here even require a rank 30 spirit ring?"
Xiao Wu puffed her cheeks and muttered, "Why not say 'wait by the snake' instead of 'wait by the tree'? What did rabbits ever do to you?"
Su Ming chuckled, ruffling the rabbit ears on Xiao Wu's head. She was just too adorable.
Oscar raised an eyebrow at Meng Yiran, looking at her as if she were a fool. "Can't you see I was about to kill this spirit beast to absorb its ring? Of course, someone here needs it. Otherwise, why would we even be arguing?"
The Serpent Grandmother's face darkened slightly. "Young man, are you saying you've reached rank 30? You don't look older than fourteen or fifteen."
Oscar grinned proudly. "I'm fourteen and already rank 30. This spirit beast suits me perfectly, so..."
Zhao Wuji interjected, "If I'm not mistaken, you must be Serpent Grandmother, one half of the renowned Dragon Duke and Serpent Grandmother duo?"
Zhao Wuji's unusually courteous attitude was partly due to his earlier defeat, which had humbled him a bit. More importantly, however, if the Serpent Grandmother was here, the Dragon Duke couldn't be far away.
The Dragon Duke had been a high-ranking Spirit Sage years ago. If he'd advanced to Spirit Douluo by now, it wouldn't be surprising. Zhao Wuji knew he couldn't contend with him alone. Furthermore, the pair's martial spirit fusion skill, Dragon Serpent Strike, was infamous for its overwhelming power. Without a Title Douluo's strength, it was nearly impossible to withstand.
Thus, Zhao Wuji decided to tread carefully. Fighting wasn't an option, especially since he'd need to continue helping Tang San search for spirit rings later. Encountering them again in the forest would spell disaster.
The elder woman said humbly, "I wouldn't dare claim such renown. My name is Chao Tianxiang, though the spirit master world does call me Serpent Grandmother. My husband, the Dragon Duke Meng Shu, and I came to the Star Dou Forest to find a suitable third spirit ring for our granddaughter."
Chao Tianxiang subtly implied her husband's presence nearby, a clear warning to Zhao Wuji: don't act recklessly unless you're prepared for the consequences.
Zhao Wuji understood her meaning immediately. He had briefly considered eliminating both women, but while the younger one might be easy to handle, Chao Tianxiang was another story. If the Dragon Duke appeared mid-battle, things would take a turn for the worse.
In the end, Zhao Wuji softened his tone. "Junior Zhao Wuji greets Serpent Grandmother. As you can see, we also have a student at rank 30 who needs this spirit beast for his third spirit ring."
[T/N:
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