Cats can scratch!
Cat lovers generally know that cats are proud animals and generally don't like being petted. If a stranger reaches out to them, they are very likely to retaliate with a claw. Sure enough,
Ma Hongjun now has three bloody claw marks on his hand. Petting a cat comes at a price, before you gain the cat's approval.
The Netherworld Cat has a fierce temperament and is definitely a proud cat.
But it's precisely this kind of cat that makes petting it interesting and challenging.
You keep petting it, and it keeps scratching you. When one day it stops scratching you, you will experience a strong sense of conquest!
But actually, the cat may just have accepted you as its slave.
As evening fell, night descended!
After a day's journey, the Shrek group had traveled over four hundred miles and were only one hundred miles from the Star Dou Great Forest.
A small town appeared ahead, and Flander and the others were leisurely walking along the main road leading into the town.
They would rest in the town tonight, adjust their condition, buy equipment and supplies, and then enter the Star Dou Great Forest tomorrow.
Entering the town, they found it much more bustling than they had imagined. The town was about three times the size of the village where Shrek Academy was located. Except for the lack of city walls, it resembled a small city, with shops lining the streets, offering all sorts of goods.
Surprisingly, the shops mainly dealt in items related to Soul Masters, such as weapons, armor, antidotes and recovery potions, and even clothing with over a dozen pockets for carrying various items, suitable for Soul Master adventures.
It was similar to Musu Town in that it was near a Soul Beast settlement, but this forest was larger, making the town relatively wilder.
Ma Hongjun sighed, "The saying 'those who live near mountains live off the mountains, those who live near water live off the water' probably applies here. This town clearly relies on the Star Dou Great Forest for its survival, and there are probably quite a few towns like this around the Star Dou Great Forest. It's
just that this place is nearly a hundred kilometers away from the Star Dou Great Forest, yet it's still so lively—it's truly a spectacle."
Flander turned his head and said,
"You're used to the national captive spirit beast forests. Those captive spirit beasts are relatively docile and don't actively attack humans. Wild spirit beast habitats like the Star Dou Great Forest are different. The spirit beasts are not only much fiercer, but some of the outer spirit beasts even frequently venture out of the forest. If a town is too close to the Star Dou Great Forest, it might not be good."
Flander randomly found a hotel and settled in.
After traveling all day, they had been eating sausages, each person probably eating at least ten. Fortunately, Oscar's spirit power had increased, making it very easy to make large sausages. In fact, once his spirit power increased further, he could even make hundreds at once.
Generally, food-type spirit masters in the army provide food supplies for a legion.
Just like Teacher Shao Xin with his Candy Bean Martial Soul, with a wave of his hand, he could easily create a basketful of colorful candies.
However, after eating sausages all morning, he was almost sick of them, and they only replenished his soul power, not filling him up.
Entering the hotel, teachers sat at one table, students at another. Ma Hongjun waved his hand, letting everyone order freely.
"Crispy roasted chicken legs,
stir-fried wild mushrooms,
braised beef
..."
Ma Hongjun searched for a long time but couldn't find any dishes he liked. He vividly remembered treating his underlings to a meal at the Mu Su Soul Master Academy, ordering a huge table full of dishes—truly a wonderful memory. It was during that time that Ma Hongjun fell in love with spicy rabbit heads.
He subconsciously glanced at Xiao Wu. Ever since Ma Hongjun's conversation with her that day, Xiao Wu had become less lively and depressed.
These past two days, her movements had been more exaggerated than usual when she was with Tang San.
When they booked the room earlier, she even requested a separate room, probably tonight she'd be cooking rabbit meat for Tang San alone.
Looking at Xiao Wu's adorable appearance, Ma Hongjun truly felt that eating rabbits was a bit cruel, and couldn't help but recall a popular saying from his previous life:
"Rabbits are so cute, how can you eat them!"
As the dishes were served, everyone started eating, and there wasn't much conversation. Tang San and Xiao Wu were in low spirits, and the whole atmosphere seemed tense and awkward.
The restaurant was already about 60-70% full when a group of eight people—one adult and seven children—suddenly entered.
Leading the group was a middle-aged man who appeared to be in his forties, quite handsome, with impeccably combed hair. His moon-white Soul Master robe was exquisitely crafted, embroidered with silver threads that shimmered with light as he moved.
Behind him were seven young people—six men and one woman—all around twenty years old, wearing the same moon-white Soul Master robes, though without the silver threads embroidered on the middle-aged man's robe.
However, both the middle-aged man and the seven young people behind him had a cyan circular mark on their left shoulder, with two characters of the same color embroidered inside: Cang Hui.
Their attire clearly indicated they were Soul Masters. Ma Hongjun and his group were dressed casually, looking no different from ordinary people, while these people were much more ostentatious.
It was peak dining time, and the restaurant was already crowded. This group rudely shoved aside anyone who blocked their way.
The restaurant owner, seeing them enter, hurriedly greeted them, bowing and scraping with excessive politeness. As mentioned before, this small town relied on the Star Dou Great Forest for its livelihood—in short, on Soul Masters. Being a Soul Master was not only a noble profession but also a lucrative one, so the owner naturally dared not be careless.
This behavior angered many people in the restaurant, but no one dared to speak up, all harboring resentment but unable to utter a word.
"Ahem, Hongjun!"
Flander coughed and called Ma Hongjun's name casually.
Ma Hongjun understood immediately; Flander had once told them that a Soul Master who dared not cause trouble was not a good Soul Master. As the saying goes, those who dared not cause trouble were mediocre.
"What is Canghui Academy? Have you ever heard of it?"
Ma Hongjun's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, as if he were having a normal conversation, without trying to hide it from the eight people who were sitting two tables away from them. They could hear Ma Hongjun's voice clearly.
After speaking, Ma Hongjun winked at Dai Mubai.
Dai Mubai replied, "Never heard of it, it probably isn't anything!"
As soon as he finished speaking, all eight people from Canghui Academy looked over, their faces grim, already on the verge of anger.
"Say that again!"
A slightly older young man stood up and pointed at Ma Hongjun.
"And what are you?!"
Dai Mubai retorted.
"You're not a thing!"
"Then what are
you?" "Just think of him as a fart! " "
Should I fart or not?"
"We're eating now, farting isn't good!"
"Then I won't fart!"
Ma Hongjun finished speaking and shot out his chopsticks.
"Whoosh!"
Ma Hongjun's technique wasn't skilled enough, not as profound as Tang San's. He didn't use soul power with the chopsticks, so they just lightly hit the young man.
It felt like an ordinary person throwing chopsticks when they had a fight.
"You're insulting me!" the young man said angrily.
"I already know, why did you say it?"
Ma Hongjun looked at him like he was looking at a fool.
"Bang!"
The young man angrily flipped the table like a crow and rushed over to fight.
He had a firm grasp on the aura, it seemed he had been in many fights.
Xiao Wu jumped up: "Don't move, let me handle this! I haven't fought in ages!"
Since becoming the big sister at Notting Academy, Xiao Wu hasn't had a fight in ages, which has really been pent up for her.
She's got a bellyful of resentment, and the punching bag just happened to be delivered to her doorstep.