Sensing Spirit Cat Wu Xue's aura, Yu Yan called Xiao Wu, raised the fragrant silk immortal product, and together with Zhu Zhuqing passed through the strengthened poison barrier. At the gate of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well they saw a black kitten lying on a boulder.
Seeing Yu Yan emerge, Wu Xue mewed, leapt into Xiao Wu's arms, and nestled comfortably.
"Wu Xue, where's the Void-Splitting Shadow Leopard you found?"
Stroking Wu Xue, Xiao Wu asked where a suitable-aged Void-Splitting Shadow Leopard might be.
"Meow~"
Wu Xue flicked its tail toward a spot deep in the Sunset Forest.
"Lazy little thing," Yu Yan muttered. He grabbed the scruff of the Spirit Cat's neck and tossed it forward. "No slacking—lead us to the leopard, then you can rest."
Flipping its tail, the flung-out Wu Xue hissed at Yu Yan, then trotted ahead to guide the trio toward the leopard.
They advanced without incident and soon spotted the Void-Splitting Shadow Leopard in the heart of the Sunset Forest.
Over five metres long, the sleek black beast had silver eyes. Seeing the humans, it dropped into a feline crouch and snarled a warning.
Sensing danger from Yu Yan, Xiao Wu, and Wu Xue, the leopard hoped to scare them off rather than fight.
Yu Yan raised a hand; Profound Ice Chains erupted and caged the beast in an eye-blink. From its features he judged it at about 9,900 years—only a slim Opportunity away from becoming a Ten Thousand Year Spirit Beast.
Inside the ice prison the leopard raked the air, carving faint scratches into the chains with wisps of spatial energy.
After repeated slashes even a dull beast realises the cage will not break.
Feeling Yu Yan's might, the leopard's silver eyes flashed; without warning it triggered its innate gift, Rift Flash, and vanished.
Rift Flash, like Xiao Wu's Teleportation, ignores terrain and re-locates the user far away.
Yu Yan rode a chain to a high vantage but saw no trace; the leopard had executed an extreme-range Rift Flash.
After such a leap the creature would now be weakened.
"Xiao Wu, I'll need your help."
Unable to track it at range, Yu Yan looked to her.
"Leave it to me."
Xiao Wu activated her Second Spirit Ability, Moon God Possession; soft Moonlight Energy spread and quickly locked onto the leopard.
She Teleported, and two breaths later returned, depositing the limp beast beside Zhu Zhuqing.
Gratitude already spoken countless times, Zhu Zhuqing knelt, ended the leopard's life with Hell Rush Stab, and watched a deep-purple, near-black spirit ring rise.
Drawing a steady breath she sat, guiding the ring into her body.
The absorption went smoothly. The Nether Cat Martial Soul evolved slightly; her spirit power, already refined by the liquid-compression method, was of supreme quality, and her Physical Body—fortified by ninety percent of two Immortal Herbs—was unshakeable.
Half an hour later she opened her eyes: Spirit Power Level 34, aura rock-solid.
"Zhu Zhuqing, what's your third Spirit Ability?"
Yu Yan was curious which of the leopard's gifts had become her new skill.
Xiao Wu said nothing but looked on expectantly.
"My third Spirit Ability is Nether Rift Flash: it boosts my speed, lets me pierce space in an instant, and delivers a full-force claw strike that ignores part of the target's defence."
She summarised the knowledge flowing from the ring, smiling.
"It fuses Rift Flash and Void-Edge Claw—better than you'd hoped. Care to demonstrate?"
Yu Yan understood her delight; she'd wanted either ability, not a hybrid of both.
"Of course."
She wouldn't refuse, and wanted to gauge its power herself.
Her third spirit ring flared with dark-gold light; after a brief charge she became black lightning, flashing through a five-man girth tree and the boulder behind it.
The rock split cleanly; Yu Yan inspected the mirror-smooth cut and whistled approval.
"Excellent. How's the spirit power cost?"
The stronger the ability, the faster it drains.
"Ten uses at my current capacity," she answered after a moment's thought.
"Keep practising the liquefaction method. Once your spirit power reaches this state you can use it freely."
Xiao Wu raised a hand, showing a glob of viscous liquid spirit power as a long-term goal.
"I will."
Watching that dense energy and comparing it to her own half-liquefied pool, Zhu Zhuqing set her next target.
Their discussion finished, Yu Yan asked for further details, filing away ideas for her future abilities; cat-type beasts were not his forte, so more research awaited back at the academy.
With Zhu Zhuqing's spirit ring secured, the trio retraced their steps toward Exotic Beast Academy.