NOVEL WEB chapter 181
181. The Sinister Plan of the Soul Shards
Lin Nuo collected many soul shards from various beasts, and these soul shards were very different from those he had collected before.
To be precise, they were mixed with private tasks.
These soul shards, something was not right.
“Goodness, you really have some nerve, but these are just the leftover tricks of the old man.”
Lin Nuo muttered to himself. These soul fragments had been enchanted and were incredibly concealed, so much so that they would go unnoticed without a thorough examination.
Even with an examination, one would need the corresponding means to detect them. Clearly, this was a secret art. As the saying goes, to defeat magic, one must use magic; to break a secret art, one must use a secret art.
Lin Nuo had used such secret arts before. When he was an apprentice, he was fortunate enough to work in the Demon Refining Sect’s library. That’s where he first encountered these secret arts, though he only had a vague impression of them, as the disciples of the Demon Refining Sect were not proficient in such arts.
After Lin Nuo left the Demon Refining Sect to work independently, his strength steadily increased. He encountered the black market and used the coins he earned from various commissions to purchase the cultivation methods for secret arts. While cultivating demon magic, he also practiced these secret arts.
Eventually, he mastered these secret arts. When he was not yet powerful enough, he would resort to such underhanded tactics. He would enchant the spirit beasts with soul fragments, let the enemy kill the spirit beasts to obtain the soul fragments, and then boom—the unexpected explosion would kill the enemy.
Now, to encounter such a thing was indeed fortunate.
These secret arts originated from an ancient tribal shaman. After the tribe encountered some troubles, some shamans left the tribe. Originally, these secret arts were tribal secrets, not to be revealed.
However, there are plenty of betrayals in this world. Once people leave the tribe, they won’t mix with it anymore, and it’s impossible to keep secrets. Once the secret arts are leaked, they can be profitable.
Some leaked the arts, and thus shamanic secret arts existed among the common folk. But because they were too treacherous, they were eventually banned.
Rare things are precious; banned secret arts fetch high prices on the black market. Some shamans are cultivated, gradually becoming akin to members of underground organizations. Some even join the Dark Alliance or various underworld organizations, starting to wreak havoc.
Lin Nuo saw these soul fragments like a ticking time bomb, uncertain when they might explode.
First, stabilize.
Lin Nuo used his long-collected secret art, fingers coming together, casting a spell on the soul fragments. Quickly, the secret art inside seemed to freeze, and even if a shaman outside tried to detonate it, it would not work.
First, collect them; they might be useful later.
Lin Nuo roughly guessed the intentions of these foreign invaders. First, they launched a wave of fierce beast attacks, then they took a large number of soul fragments, and finally, they planned to bomb the area from the outside.
This tactic was indeed sinister. If he didn’t know about it, he would probably become one of the cannon fodder.
Now, Ling Meng was on a killing spree. She learned some more advanced demonic techniques from Lin Nuo and was now slaughtering wildly. A large number of fierce beasts were injured, and the ground was littered with corpses. Lin Nuo didn’t even have time to collect the soul fragments.
“Damn it, this woman is so fierce. This must be a demonic technique! Has the righteous group invited the Demon Refining Sect’s people?”
Lang Yu gritted his teeth. Ling Meng had thwarted this wave of attacks. He could feel the strong demonic aura dispersing, and from the moves, it was clearly an intermediate demonic technique with extremely strong group damage. In his experience, such techniques were only known by the middle and upper echelons of the Demon Refining Sect.
Had the righteous group invited the middle and upper echelons? Could it be that the Demon Refining Sect had become their reinforcements?
This was serious, very serious.
According to the original plan, they were to push forward, allowing more cultivators to join and obtain soul fragments, and then the shamans would cast spells and bomb them all at once.
Now, Ling Meng had intercepted them, and another figure cloaked in a grey cloak had collected the soul fragments.
Who was that person, always collecting soul fragments without taking action?
That person seemed weak. The strong ones took action, while the weak were responsible for collecting soul fragments.
Could the righteous group cooperate to such an extent?
If the secret art was to explode, it could only target these two.
Lang Yu felt uneasy; this was a losing business.
“Retreat, retreat!”
The wolf’s whistle was carried away by the wind, and with a turn of its head, it led a large pack of beasts away.
Ling Meng had her fill of excitement; though she reveled in the slaughter, her spiritual and demonic soul powers were greatly depleted, and she quickly fell into a state of exhaustion.
“Take two pills to ease it.”
Lin Nuo handed Ling Meng two medicinal pills, one to replenish demonic soul power and the other for spiritual power, for her recovery.
“Thank you, Master.”
Ling Meng took the pills and popped them into her mouth, soon starting to recuperate.
However, the recovery was slow, and a short rest seemed almost enough.
Lin Nuo surveyed the pile of corpses on the ground. Honestly, extracting the soul fragments from each body consumed spiritual power. Being a mere third-tier novice, his spiritual power was limited. Even playing a supporting role, picking up items cost him dearly.
As for Ling Meng, she had just fought a group battle and needed to recover, so he didn’t bother her.
“Master, these beasts’ soul fragments.”
“It’s alright, I’ll handle it. You rest for a bit.”
Despite saying so, the multitude of corpses, including many mid-level spiritual beasts, meant a significant consumption of power.
Suddenly, footsteps approached.
Lin Nuo looked towards the sound and spotted three men emerging from the woods.
Durun led the way, flanked by two other cultivators.
Durun surveyed the corpses on the ground and said with a smile:
“Not bad, rookie. You’ve just arrived and already eliminated so many beasts. But there are some things I must tell you. As a newcomer, there are rules you need to understand. In the righteous faction, if you want to make a name for yourself, you must contribute. There’s no one else here, so many corpses, so many soul fragments, I suggest you don’t touch them, leave them to us. Otherwise, you’ll suffer.”
Durun rubbed his fists, feeling an urge to fight. The three of them were more than a match for the two newcomers, and he figured if they resisted, they’d teach them a harsh lesson.
Ling Meng was furious. The beasts she had taken down were hers; why should she share the soul fragments with them?
“You…!”
“Don’t be rash.”
Lin Nuo stopped Ling Meng, then turned to Durun and his companions with a smile, “Alright, the soul fragments are yours, consider it a welcome gift from us juniors.”
“Master, how could you!”
“Sigh, you don’t understand. The seniors look after us, and we must show some gratitude. Another wave of beasts will attack soon, and we should focus on defense. Besides, we didn’t come for the soul fragments.”
Lin Nuo spoke calmly, but Ling Meng felt frustrated and angry, bullied yet her master yielded.
She had no choice but to listen.
“You’re quite sensible, good. We’ll look after you in the future.”
Durun and the others extracted the soul fragments from the beast corpses, while Lin Nuo and Ling Meng could only step aside and watch them collect the fruits of their battle.
“Master, I don’t understand, why should we…” Ling Meng fumed with pent-up anger.
“Alright, that’s enough.”
“Ah, almost what?”
“Take theirs.”