Noon, the next day.
The Soul Hunting Squad and Xiao Lin's group, all visibly exhausted, finally trudged out of the Soul Hunting Forest.
The unexpected turn of events had taken a toll on everyone present, so they found a nearby inn to rest for the night before doing anything else.
As for Xu Yi, he was already much better after receiving treatment from Tang San's Blue Silver Regeneration Bracelet and Xiao Gui's Laurel Blossom.
The remaining poison in his system had also been expelled by Tang San using a special method, so now he was just a little weak.
At this moment, everyone had gathered in Su Yuntao's room to divide the spoils from the black-robed elder's storage soul tool.
First up: the storage soul tool itself.
The space inside wasn't very big—about half a cubic meter—roughly the same size as Xiao Lin's.
None of the group showed any desire to keep it. For them, low-level storage soul tools were better off sold for money.
Ultimately, the distribution was calculated based on their contributions in defeating the black-robed elder:
Xiao Lin received 30% for himself.
Tang San and Xiao Wu shared 20% together.
The remaining 50% was split equally among the rest, giving each person 10%.
Next: the contents inside the soul tool.
The black-robed elder didn't have much money—his total wealth only amounted to 2,013 Gold Soul Coins.
These were naturally divided up according to the same contribution system.
Xiao Lin got 600 Gold Soul Coins,
Tang San and Xiao Wu together received 400,
The rest got 200 each.
Thanks to this income, Xiao Gui was able to fully repay the fee for her commissioned soul ring in one go.
Then, Xiao Gui was once again left completely broke. The group, feeling generous after receiving so much, gave her the remaining 13 Gold Soul Coins.
Aside from that, the only other item of interest was a single blood-red fruit.
This fruit was unfamiliar to everyone—even Tang San didn't recognize it.
However, they found records of it in some of the black-robed elder's journals.
It turned out to be a Blood-Soaked Loquat Fruit, formed when the elder killed numerous soul beasts and soul masters, using their blood and flesh to nourish a rare treasure called the Honey Loquat Fruit.
The effect of this Blood Loquat Fruit was to increase a person's innate soul power by one level, but the side effects included:
Addiction to the fruit,
Intense hallucinations,
And no further increase in soul power, even if one consumed more.
Besides the one-time benefit, it was essentially a fruit that corrupted and tempted people into darkness.
Nobody present was tempted by it.
Especially not Xiao Lin, who already had full innate soul power. What use was it to him?
Seeing the lack of interest, Su Yuntao suggested destroying the fruit outright.
However, due to concerns about the odor or essence leaking, Xiao Lin was entrusted with the task of handling it.
The others trusted Xiao Lin—after all, someone with full innate soul power wouldn't give up a bright future for such a corrupt item.
In truth, Xiao Lin had no intention of eating it. But a curious idea struck him:
What would happen if a soul beast ate it?
Xiao Lin believed it was worth researching. If it polluted the soul beast or resulted in tainted soul rings, he would never touch it again.
But if it didn't, he thought perhaps it could strengthen the beast, push it into hallucinations, making it easier to kill and extract a stronger soul ring—maybe even force out a soul bone under the torment of illusions.
Once the spoils were dealt with, Xiao Lin clung to Sister Xiao Gui.
He wasn't tired and was very curious about the results of her soul ring absorption.
"Sister Xiao Gui, what were you thinking when you absorbed the soul ring? How did the soul incantation come to you? Does your Martial Soul feel any different now?"
Xiao Lin trailed behind her, never more than a step away, notebook in hand.
Inside the room she shared with Xiao Wu, the latter had grown irritated.
"Brother Lin, can't this wait until tomorrow? We beauties need our beauty sleep."
"Beauty sleep? You silly rabbit! You were the most useless one in the fight. You should be thinking about how to get stronger!"
Xiao Lin shot back without any kindness, effectively silencing Xiao Wu.
Seeing her sulk, Sister Xiao Gui gently patted her head, then smiled warmly:
"Actually, I thought the same way you told me to."
"Whatever you told me to think, I thought just that. While I was reciting the soul incantation, a new thought suddenly popped into my head, and the name of the incantation just came to me."
"As for my Martial Soul, I didn't feel any discomfort—in fact, I felt great, bursting with energy."
As she spoke, Sister Xiao Gui smiled radiantly, her eyes reflecting a touch of gratitude.
"I see. Looks like converting into a food-type soul master isn't too hard after all,"
Xiao Lin nodded and muttered to himself, then took his leave.
On his way back to his room, he was still jotting notes on Xiao Gui's Martial Soul:
Martial Soul: Laurel BlossomUsable both internally and externally.Healing ability is single-target but can be split for reduced effectiveness.Initial evaluation: Soul ring skill S-rank, on par with Tang San's.However, growth potential is lacking—due to the Martial Soul's and Xiao Gui's own innate limitations.Signs of possible evolution detected.Based on Xiao Gui's potential and future path, call it benign mutation, B-rank.If her second and third soul rings are carefully chosen high-quality rings, an A-rank Martial Soul is achievable.A-rank = top-tier Martial Soul.
Still, Xiao Lin didn't believe Xiao Gui had the talent for it. Soul evolution also tested a soul master's natural gifts.
Even Yu Xiaogang had a powerful Martial Soul in theory—the Golden Sacred Dragon—but due to his poor talent, it had only awakened as Luo Sanpao.
Besides, Xiao Gui's current Martial Soul was like a tree without roots—too weak.
Soul beasts that could boost both vitality and Martial Soul foundation were extremely rare.
Xiao Lin shook his head, closed his notebook, and entered his room.
Inside, Tang San was sitting cross-legged on the only bed, cultivating Xuan Tian Skill.
Seeing Xiao Lin enter, he opened his eyes and smiled.
"Brother Lin, how'd it go?"
"Not bad. Sister Xiao Gui's Martial Soul can't compare to yours. Getting high-quality soul rings to improve it will be hard."
"As for Blue Silver Grass becoming a food-type, not a huge challenge."
Xiao Lin shared his analysis with Tang San, who fell silent after hearing it.
"In short, becoming a healing or food-type soul master isn't difficult—because I'm walking the path of vitality right now."
"But mimicking beast-type soul skills, like those of a Mirror Beast, is still far off, right?"
Tang San wasn't disappointed. He was just glad there was a way to save his mother.
"By the way, Brother Lin, that…"
"Shh—walls have ears. Let's talk when we're home."
Suppressing his excitement to check the loot again, Xiao Lin squeezed Tang San to the side of the bed.
"Scoot over—you sleep inside. I need to get some real rest."
Yaaawn!
He yawned, pulled the only blanket over his stomach, and fell into a deep sleep.
(End of Chapter)