Chapter 79

Soldier was somewhat excited.

The familiar scenery made him feel as if he had suddenly returned to his younger days.

It was a massive red rock, about twenty meters high, with a rust-like red color. Its texture was abnormally hard, standing like a lonely warrior in the desolate wilderness.

Soldier floated beside the boulder, gently touching the red rock, his mind filled with myriad thoughts, muttering, "You're still the same as before..."

Tang Tian was taken aback, but he did not speak.

Soldier struggled out of his emotions and regained his composure: "Determining the location inside the Soul Temple is somewhat troublesome, so we often need some scenery as reference points. This red rock, we call it the Red Sentinel. Moving forward, we will enter the Soul Hunting Zone. Fortunately, this place hasn't changed much from what it used to be."

Following Soldier, Tang Tian suddenly felt that the surroundings had become cold and eerie. In the wilderness, a stone forest appeared before Tang Tian, with strange rocks towering high, their surfaces pale and sinister, looking quite terrifying.

"Be careful," Soldier warned Tang Tian.

Without a word, Tang Tian summoned Peacock Blue and Heavenly Furnace Fire, preparing for battle. Tang Tian knew his strength was relatively weak, so he was on high alert.

Suddenly, Tang Tian sensed something and punched hard to his side.

Puff!

His fist seemed to hit something soft, and a gray shadow collided with the opposite rock and bounced back.

The small creature was not injured; it sprang up nimbly. Only then did Tang Tian see clearly that it was a fist-sized Soul General. Tang Tian was stunned; he had never seen such a small Soul General. Though small, it was well-armored and lifelike.

The little Soul General let out an angry roar and shot toward Tang Tian. It raised its small bow and swung it at Tang Tian.

Tang Tian was immediately alert and reacted, punching the flying Soul General again!

Smack!

This punch hit solidly, and the little Soul General flew back even faster, deeply embedded in the rock in the shape of a "big" character.

"What... what is that thing?" Tang Tian swallowed hard, asking with some difficulty.

"Oh, a Bud Soul General," Soldier said casually. "These things are everywhere. They are mostly the lowest-level martial souls that have evolved over time. These ancient martial soul fragments eventually transform into Soul Generals. Bud Soul Generals are the weakest, generally at the second or third rank. But you have to be careful; they are hard to kill."

Just as Soldier finished speaking, the Bud Soul General tumbled out of the rock, let out a roar, and raised its bow, shooting several arrows at Tang Tian.

Tang Tian was somewhat amused and exasperated. The arrows shot by the Bud Soul General were like small toothpicks, but he still raised his fist and punched.

The toothpick-like gray arrows shattered immediately.

The Bud Soul General's face turned red with anger, and it let out an angry roar, leaping high and raising its small bow to strike Tang Tian again.

It was hit squarely by a fist in mid-air.

Puff!

It was nailed into the rock again.

"Leave it alone. These little things aren't much of a threat, but they are hard to kill. Oh, you can devour it; that method is very effective," Soldier said.

Tang Tian imagined putting the little man in his mouth, its small hands and feet struggling, and immediately felt a chill, shaking his head, "Forget it!"

"Let's go then!" Soldier led the way inside.

As Tang Tian took a step, a sense of danger suddenly arose in his heart, and he turned and punched!

The punch hit squarely.

The Bud Soul General was thrown back again.

Tang Tian's headache grew. As Soldier had said, this thing was relentless! Without a word, he ran, trying to shake off this troublesome creature.

He had only taken a few steps when he saw a small figure chasing him from the corner of his eye. The Bud Soul General was like a bouncy ball, leaping from one rock to another at high speed. Noticing that Tang Tian was watching, it raised its small bow and bared its teeth at him.

With a flick of his wrist, a black light shot out.

A small universe sleeve arrow!

It hit accurately!

Tang Tian was overjoyed. He had tested the power of the sleeve arrow before; it could completely pierce through a thick tree trunk. This troublesome thing wouldn't escape this time!

However, the next scene left Tang Tian speechless.

The Bud Soul General was actually bounced away by the sleeve arrow.

A moment later, an angry roar, like a mad dog, came from behind the rock, growing louder as it approached. When the Bud Soul General appeared on the rock again, its small face was completely red with anger, and it waved its small bow and arrow, ready to charge over.

Tang Tian was speechless. Shouldn't it have been pierced through? Why was it bounced away?

And, please, can you not be more stubborn than me...

"If you want a pet, you can throw a soul core at it," Soldier glanced over and said.

Soul core! Tang Tian, who had been annoyed by the Bud Soul General, immediately threw a green sandalwood ape soul core without a word.

The Bud Soul General's expression froze. Its small nose twitched, and the red face that had been angry immediately calmed down. It rushed to the soul core, eyes narrowing, and tucked the small bow behind its back, picking up the soul core with both hands.

Tang Tian breathed a sigh of relief.

If it were any other time, wasting a soul core would have pained him greatly, but Tang Tian was so relieved to resolve the issue with just one soul core.

Money really can make the devil push the mill, and the Bud Soul General was no exception!

Tang Tian regained his composure and continued walking.

Puff, puff, puff sounds came from behind.

Tang Tian turned to see the Bud Soul General holding the soul core, following him step by step. Tang Tian was at a loss, spreading his hands, "I've given you the soul core, why are you still following me?"

"Yi yi yi yi!"

The Bud Soul General put down the soul core, looking extremely excited, and gestured with its small hands.

"Oh, he says he recognizes you as his master," Soldier, who was familiar with the situation, translated calmly.

"Recognize me as his master?" Tang Tian stood there, pointing to his nose.

"Yep, Bud Soul Generals are the easiest to win over. Usually, if you throw them a soul core, they will be won over. They make good pets; they are very smart," Soldier explained.

Tang Tian shook his head like a rattle: "Forget it, I can barely take care of myself, let alone a pet! I don't want it!"

The Bud Soul General's small mouth pouted, and tears fell like pearls, dripping down. It cried while angrily wiping its eyes with its small hands.

Tang Tian's mouth dropped open; he was completely stunned.

"Oh, once you accept a Bud Soul General, other Bud Soul Generals won't bother you," Soldier added.

Tang Tian immediately reacted, imagining a swarm of Bud Soul Generals rushing toward him, and immediately changed his mind, nodding quickly, "Alright, alright, you can follow me!"

The Bud Soul General's tears vanished, and it was full of joy, picking up the soul core and bouncing on the ground, leaping onto Tang Tian's shoulder.

Tang Tian was a bit uncomfortable; he had never had a pet before.

"Give it a name," Soldier said.

Tang Tian frowned and thought for a long time, "Let's call it Bud."

Soldier's tone immediately became mocking, "In the old days, there were at least a thousand or eight hundred Bud Soul Generals in the army."

Tang Tian rolled his eyes, "But now there's only one."

Soldier fell silent.

Tang Tian suddenly realized that his words were inappropriate and quickly apologized, "Uncle Soldier, I'm sorry."

"What's there to be sorry about?" Soldier's voice was as usual, "Even the strongest army will eventually fade away. What in this world can last forever? It's a natural law, but in our time, we left our mark, and that's enough."

Tang Tian was silent.

Soon, they passed through the stone forest and came to a ruin.

After gazing at the ruins for a moment, Soldier said, "Let's go in."

※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※

From behind a distant rock, several people suddenly appeared.

"They really went into the ruins!" A tall, thin man said in a low voice, his head wrapped in a purple headscarf, his expression sinister.

"Our leader is truly clairvoyant!"

"Even this, our leader could guess! He's amazing!"

The others were all amazed; they hadn't expected the young man to really enter the ruins.

The purple headscarf leader's face showed no pride, "Stay alert. That boy's Soul General is very powerful. The Panda Bandit Gang fell to him, and we can't afford to make a mistake!"

"Don't worry, leader! Those three idiots from the Panda Bandit Gang can't compare to us!" A muscular man patted his chest.

The purple headscarf leader sneered, "If you call them idiots, you're not much better."

The muscular man's face turned sheepish.

The purple headscarf leader's expression was uncertain. This ruin had always been quite mysterious, with many people entering to explore, but very few coming out alive. He had once accidentally discovered that this ruin was a base of the former Southern Cross Army. What made his heart race was that there was an armory inside the base.

An armory of the Southern Cross Army!

This discovery made him so excited that his whole body tingled. If this news got out, it would cause a storm. Even his subordinates and companions knew nothing about it.

The Southern Cross Army, one of the three major armies of the past, was renowned for their unparalleled bronze machinery. Even the later Scorpion Dynasty, known for its machinery, was in decline.

An armory!

Even if they could get one piece, they would be rich.

However, what he hadn't expected was that just as he made his discovery, he saw someone riding a bronze mechanical ostrich racing down the street!

The bronze mechanical ostrich was another symbol of the Southern Cross Army.

He immediately realized that this person must be heading for the ruins!

This boy must not have realized that while the mantis was catching the cicada, the oriole was behind!

A cold smile appeared on his face.