Join my Patreon to be 30 chapters ahead of the webnovel releases:
patreon.com/ZeroMoney
I would appreciate your help if you could join my Patreon and support me because it would keep me motivated.
******
Rustle—
A burst of rustling leaves echoed from the distance. Zhang Lexuan narrowed her eyes and stepped forward, shielding Su Wen behind her.
Moments later…
As the rustling grew more intense, a troop of wind baboons emerged into view. Agile and nimble, they leaped between the branches of ancient trees, as if the entire group was migrating.
The leader of the pack seemed to notice Zhang Lexuan. It abruptly halted, its snowy white fur bristling as it let out a low, menacing growl, baring its fangs.
"Wind baboons," Zhang Lexuan said calmly, her attention on Su Wen. "The leader just broke into the hundred-year level. The rest range from a few years to a few decades in age."
At that moment, Su Wen wore a look of utter astonishment.
He stared at one of the wind baboons, his face full of disbelief.
[Wind Baboon]
[Cultivation: 14 years]
[Attribute: Wind]
[Potential: 8]
[Evaluation: Fated Godslayer—bestowed with a unique destiny by the continent, it is one of the rare few soul beasts with the potential to achieve god-slaying might. Capturing it would be an absolute gain...]
"I want that one!" Su Wen declared without hesitation, pointing directly at the wind baboon.
"Which one?" Zhang Lexuan's eyes sharpened as she followed the direction of his finger.
Silver-white soul power surged from her body—undeniably the power of a Soul Sage. The pressure she released caused the entire troop, whose strongest member had barely reached the hundred-year mark, to freeze in place, cowering together in fear.
"That one!" Su Wen repeated, barely able to contain his excitement.
The other baboons immediately scurried aside, leaving one lone wind baboon frozen in place, its eyes filled with confusion.
It glanced around nervously, attempting to edge closer to its group—but that persistent finger remained fixed on it, following its every move.
"You're the one!"
Su Wen hurled the white sphere in his hand. It drew an elegant arc through the air, heading straight for the wind baboon.
Buzz—
The sphere transformed into a beam of light, enveloping the creature. Seconds later, the brilliant beam faded, the sphere vanished, and in its place stood a disheveled, wind-blown wind baboon.
"Success!" Su Wen grinned.
With the successful capture, his first soul ring changed. It wasn't quite like a typical soul ring anymore, but more akin to an extension of his martial soul itself.
Roar—
The wind baboon let out a low growl toward its tribe before cautiously retreating to stand behind Su Wen. As it looked at him, the feral red glint in its eyes faded, replaced with a slightly dazed, almost docile expression.
Upon checking the interface again, the data appeared far more detailed:
[Wind Baboon]
[Level: 12]
[Strength: 0.14]
[Speed: 0.20]
[Stamina: 0.14]
[Defense: 0.10]
[Skill: Wind Blade (Basic)]
[Attribute: Wind (Basic)]
[Potential: 8 (Exceptional)]
[Next Evolution: Storm Baboon]
It can evolve?!
Su Wen's pupils contracted sharply. No wonder it was labeled a godslayer—the potential was absurd. Even among hundred-, thousand-, or ten-thousand-year soul beasts, a potential rating of 8 was exceedingly rare.
However, the conditions for its evolution weren't specified. Would it require his own soul power to rise, or perhaps the wind baboon's stats to reach a certain threshold? That would have to be figured out through trial and error.
As for the attributes, they were easy enough to interpret. A value of 0.14 likely equated to its 14 years of cultivation. In other words, every 100 years might correspond to 1 point in a base stat. The variations reflected the wind baboon's natural strengths—like speed—and weaknesses—like defense.
Satisfied, Su Wen finally took a moment to examine the extraordinary soul beast up close.
It stood around a meter tall, covered in white fur. Its arms were thick and powerful, while its legs were noticeably short. The claws on its hands were particularly sharp—one swipe would likely tear away a chunk of flesh. It bore a striking resemblance to a monkey from his past life, but its eyes—unlike the others in its troop—were exceptionally bright and expressive.
After the capture, Su Wen noticed something else—his own speed had slightly increased. It seemed that capturing soul beasts could provide feedback to his own attributes.
"Let's go."
Zhang Lexuan waved her hand, dismissing the pressure.
The remaining baboons leaped into the forest canopy as if fleeing, vanishing from their sight in an instant.
"From now on, I'll call you Hurricane," Su Wen chuckled, standing on his toes to pat Hurricane's head. At six years old, he stood only about 1.3 meters tall—barely half a head taller than his new soul beast.
Growl—
Hurricane gave a soft grunt of approval.
Zhang Lexuan smiled gently, ruffling Su Wen's hair. "Let's head back, Xiao Wen. Now that you've obtained your first soul beast, we should return to camp. With Elder Xuan gone, we shouldn't stay out too long and risk something happening."
"Okay!" Su Wen nodded, then frowned slightly.
A sudden thought struck him—about that hundred-thousand-year soul beast that was due to appear. Since he had already joined Shrek Academy, he couldn't just sit back and watch tragedy unfold. But how exactly could he help?
I'll have to stay close to Elder Xuan, he decided.
According to the original story, Elder Xuan had gotten drunk and passed out, completely overconfident in Zhang Lexuan's group. That overconfidence nearly led to the annihilation of the entire team—one of the story's most notorious plot holes. Though he was considered Shrek's most unreliable figure, there was no denying he possessed real strength.
As for the conspiracy theory—that Elder Xuan was secretly a Grand Elder of the Holy Spirit Sect—
Su Wen's mouth twitched. That would be a nightmare-level plot twist.
He shook his head, clearing the ridiculous idea.
This wasn't an impossible situation. With Elder Xuan, one of the continent's strongest at Rank 98, on their side, a mere soul beast that had just broken through to 100,000 years couldn't possibly pose a threat to them—not unless a Fierce Beast with 500,000 or 600,000 years of cultivation showed up.
So, as long as he could keep Elder Xuan from passing out and ensure he stepped in at the right moment, everything would be fine!
Yes, that's the key, Su Wen thought, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.
Back at the Camp
"Today's events are not to be discussed. Don't ask about his martial soul or anything else," Zhang Lexuan instructed, sweeping her gaze across the group with a serious expression. "Xiao Tao… on second thought, you can do as you like."
"Don't worry, Senior Sister. Our lips are sealed," said a skinny male student, pushing up his glasses with a grin.
"Pfft, yeah right. You've got the biggest mouth here. The second we're back at the academy, the entire inner court will have heard about it," a short-haired girl with delicate features scoffed.
"You—! That's slander! You've ruined my reputation!" the boy shouted, baring his teeth in mock rage.
"Hmph. If you've got a problem with it, come and bite me," she snapped back.
The other disciples chuckled at the scene, but their eyes kept drifting toward Su Wen, filled with a mixture of shock and curiosity.
It was just as they suspected.
This child's talent was absolutely top-tier. Elder Xuan personally leaving to report, Eldest Senior Sister Lexuan personally helping him capture his first soul beast, and now this "non-disclosure agreement"—it was all the proof they needed.
"Looks like Shrek Academy has found its next monster…" someone sighed.
(End of Chapter)