Douluo: I am the True Master

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Due to Ye Wen's familiarity with the spirit beasts in the nearby forests, he felt that some of them were unworthy of his disciples. Thus, he decided to organize a large-scale soul hunting expedition, leading his seven disciples to the outer regions of the Star Dou Great Forest to acquire soul rings.

Hunting mere hundred- or thousand-year spirit beasts wasn't difficult—anyone with hands could do it.

Although Ah Yin wanted to join this group activity, Ye Wen firmly rejected her, citing the dangerous mix of creatures in the Star Dou Great Forest.

However, one admirable trait of Ah Yin was her willingness to listen to advice and avoid causing trouble for others.

If it had been Xiao Wu, heh, despite knowing her own identity, she still wandered around recklessly. Her so-called sacrifice was entirely self-inflicted.

Even the deaths of Da Ming and Er Ming were indirectly related to her. If they hadn't stayed behind to buy her time to escape, their strength as devoted protectors would have at least allowed them to retreat to the Life Lake for sanctuary, if not defeat the Spirit Hall's hunting team outright.

But there were no "ifs." Both brothers became Tang San's soul rings and bones, contributing to his overpowered journey.

"Master, we've arrived at Bait City," announced Huo Quan, who was driving the carriage.

Though Ye Wen initially considered running to the Star Dou Great Forest himself, he ultimately decided to purchase a carriage for the sake of the five young disciples whose bodies were still too frail.

After all, he was already on the verge of becoming a Soul King.

Bait City was the closest city to the Star Dou Great Forest from Notting's side. However, traveling back and forth was inconvenient, so Ye Wen planned to settle his disciples in this small town first while he went ahead to hunt for his fifth soul ring.

In the meantime, he wanted these children, who had grown up in small villages, to experience the vastness of the world.

"The five of them are now in your care, siblings. With your cultivation nearing the Soul Elder level, as long as you don't cause trouble in Bait City or visit questionable places, there shouldn't be any issues. I'll return in half a month."

With that, Ye Wen vanished in an instant.

The seven disciples exchanged glances before silently entering the bustling streets of Bait City. Under Ye Wen's guidance, they were well aware of the dangers of the world, so caution and prudence became their guiding principles.

Meanwhile, Ye Wen had already entered the Star Dou Great Forest. His target this time was a common type of spirit beast found in the forest:

Ants or bees.

Individually, these spirit beasts weren't particularly strong, but they possessed a unique racial talent—the ability to construct nests.

Ye Wen's interest in hunting these spirit beasts stemmed from the spatial attribute mutation of his Void Cloth martial soul. He speculated that it might allow him to create a defensive barrier capable of blocking enemy attacks.

He even envisioned using this trait to achieve flight.

After prolonged physical training, Ye Wen believed his body could withstand the soul ring of a spirit beast up to 30,000 years old. However, considering the soul shock from ten-thousand-year soul rings, he decided to proceed cautiously.

While these types of spirit beasts were widely distributed, finding one over a thousand years old was challenging. Once they surpassed a thousand years, queen ants or queen bees would often order their destruction. Finding a spirit beast over ten thousand years old, let alone close to thirty thousand, was exceedingly rare.

After a week of searching, Ye Wen still hadn't found what he was looking for.

Finally, he decided to venture into the Mixed Zone. With his Void Mimicry soul skill, he was confident that as long as he avoided encountering a fifty-thousand-year-old ruler of a species, he wouldn't be detected.

To be honest, the Star Dou Great Forest in Douluo I was truly understated. The ferocious beasts hidden in the Life Lake were masters of concealment.

Finally, after five more days of searching in the Mixed Zone, fortune smiled upon Ye Wen. He discovered a ten-thousand-year-old ant-type spirit beast.

It was nearly a meter long, covered in black armor, with two large eyes and four smaller ones. Wasn't this the legendary Thousand-Pound Ant King?

It seemed that the exploits of the three Thousand-Pound Ant Emperors had influenced some lower-tier spirit beasts. This particular ant had rebelled against its colony, allowing it to grow to such a size.

A faint smile appeared on Ye Wen's lips.

Though it couldn't compare to the Thousand-Pound Ant Emperors hunted by Tang San, this Thousand-Pound Ant King likely possessed a cultivation level close to 30,000 years.

"It's you," Ye Wen muttered, raising his hand and firing an arrow.

*Clang!* 

The sharp sound of metal colliding echoed through the quiet forest, causing Ye Wen's previously confident expression to harden into seriousness.

His once-infallible arrow now lay bent and twisted on the grass, its finely forged iron tip deformed. Meanwhile, the Thousand-Pound Ant King's head bore only a small dent, seemingly unharmed.

"As expected of a ten-thousand-year insect-type spirit beast. Its exoskeleton is comparable to fine iron—it's no wonder my arrow couldn't pierce it."

Startled by the sudden attack, the Thousand-Pound Ant King shook its head to clear the dizziness caused by the impact. It then scanned its surroundings. Though it wasn't a dominant force in the Mixed Zone, its hard shell and powerful bite deterred most spirit beasts from provoking it.

Unlike real-world ants, which are blind, this spirit beast was not. Its six eyes granted it exceptional vision, offering a full 360-degree field of view.

Looking toward the direction of the arrow, it saw nothing but empty trees and no trace of an attacker, leaving it puzzled.

"What was that? It hurt!"

However, the limited brain capacity of an ant meant it quickly dismissed the incident. After sensing no further attacks, it resumed wandering freely.

Meanwhile, Ye Wen observed the Thousand-Pound Ant King thoughtfully.

"Never would I have imagined that my self-created soul skill would make its debut against a creature like you. Though there are no spectators, I'll show you the power of one of the universe's four fundamental forces—gravity."

With that, Ye Wen summoned two Void Cloth cubes, overlapping them and expanding them.

From within, he retrieved ten sharp swords, releasing them into one of the Void Cloth spaces.

The might of nature manifested as the swords shot out from the upper Void Cloth cube.

Ye Wen didn't interfere further, but the swords' speed increased exponentially until they formed a shimmering silver curtain.

This self-created soul skill was both simple and complex. By utilizing the spatial portal properties of Void Cloth, it created a channel that harnessed the world's gravitational force and the swords' mass to generate immense inertia.

Its name—Gravity Slash!

Unrestricted, the swords' speed now reached supersonic levels.

"Farewell," Ye Wen murmured, adjusting the direction of the Nabu portal.

*Whizzzz!*

A piercing, ear-splitting sound sliced through the air as the swords, resembling meteors, crashed into the unsuspecting Thousand-Pound Ant King, who was still wandering aimlessly.

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