C17 Bullying and Insulting

A bronze hammer!

Upon seeing the dog-head hammer, Zuo's demeanor shifted dramatically. Known for his gentle nature among Elder Shee's group, Zuo was deeply stirred by the sight of the solitary hammer. Eryou, his twin brother, might have irked him with his actions at times, but blood was blood.

How could their brotherly bond ever be severed?

This question haunted Zuo, particularly since he and Eryou had only recently awakened their Martial Spirits when their village fell prey to a formidable Soul Master thief. After looting the village, the thief began a brutal slaughter, leaving only Zuo and Eryou alive, hidden by their parents in a dry well.

The two seven-year-olds endured their hardest days in that well.

"Brother, when will Mom and Dad come for us?"

"Big brother, I'm so cold! Have Mom and Dad abandoned us?"

Eryou's plaintive voice echoed in Zuo's memory. In the well, Eryou had secretly handed over the last bit of green moss to Zuo, a silent sacrifice of his own life to ensure his brother's survival.

Fortune smiled upon them when a passing caravan rescued Zuo and Eryou. The brothers, however, did not accompany the caravan to the nearby towns but ventured deeper into the Soul Beast Forest. Together, they hunted their first centennial Soul Beast and set out on a path of vengeance.

After vanquishing the mountain bandits, they encountered Elder Shee. The trio settled on the mountain, claiming it as their own. They became the feared bandits of the region, striking terror into the hearts of Soul Masters and merchant caravans alike.

The Soul Rings behind Zuo shimmered, radiating the imposing aura of a Soul Ancestor from him as its epicenter.

Elder Shee, en route, suddenly darkened with a grim expression. A chilling presence enveloped him, and a fierce look crossed his weathered face. "First, Eryou unleashed his Soul Point, and now Zuo has released his Martial Spirit! Zuo is a Soul Ancestor-level Soul Master. It's impossible for anyone beyond that level to survive in the outer reaches of the Star Dou Great Forest!"

The Soul Beasts inhabiting the outer circle of the Star Dou Great Forest were typically millennia-old, with the rare few reaching the ten-thousand-year mark. The optimal Soul Ring configuration for a Soul Master was yellow, yellow, purple, black, black. Upon breaking through to become a Soul Ancestor, a Soul Sovereign would typically select a Soul Beast of eight or nine thousand years. As for a Soul Ancestor advancing to a Soul King, the choice would be a ten-thousand-year-old Soul Beast.

Zuo's soul power hovered around level 47. Elder Shee believed that only a Soul Master of the Soul King caliber could pose a threat to him.

"Brother, let's not be hasty!" Eryou cautioned, clutching his right side as he emerged slowly from the underbrush, leaving a trail of blood on the ground.

Seeing Eryou still alive, Zuo's intimidating aura noticeably subsided. He frowned, retrieved a jade bottle from his pocket, and sprinkled its powdery contents over the bloodstains.

In the Star Dou Great Forest, human blood was a delicacy to Soul Beasts. Even from a distance, the scent of blood could lure them.

"Eryou, what on earth happened? Elder Shee warned you not to go off on your own. We mustn't provoke beings more powerful than ourselves. We're merely Soul Ancestors; if we encounter a Soul King, we dare not harbor ill will."

With a wry smile, Eryou replied, "Brother, I ran into a peculiar kid. He had no soul power, yet he could absorb a Soul Ring. And the speed at which he did it was astonishing—he absorbed the Soul Ring of a century-old Gold Devouring Rat in less than three minutes!"

Zuo examined the wound on Eryou's abdomen, which emitted a stench akin to rotting apples. The skin around it was charred black, oozing a thick, yellowish fluid.

"What happened here? What kind of Soul Beast carries such potent venom?"

Zuo quickly assessed the injury, concluding that only Soul Beast venom could inflict such damage so rapidly.

Eryou gestured towards a youth on his right and whispered, "He's the one who injured me. He wields an unusual dagger—a true rarity."

"A treasure?"

Following Eryou's gesture, Zuo's gaze settled on a pale-faced young man sitting beside a deep crater left by a dog-headed hammer. Zuo detected no soul power emanating from him. "He has no soul power. Eryou, you're a Soul Sovereign; how could a mere child have injured you?"

Eryou helplessly shook his head. During the battle, he had intended to subdue his opponent in one fell swoop, but Ye Cann's swift turn had caught him off guard. The rusty dagger pierced through his Soul Sovereign-level armor, wounding his flesh. To make matters worse, the boy had coated the blade with Soul Beast poison, exacerbating Eryou's injury.

After administering a pill to Eryou, Zuo strode over to Ye Cann with a thunderous presence. Standing over Ye Cann, his face twisted with rage, he hissed, "Hand over the antidote if you want to live, or I swear I'll break your bones this instant!"

Ye Cann's eyes fluttered open, a subtle smirk playing on his lips. "Do you take me for a fool? If I hand over the antidote now, you'd tear me to shreds. Besides, there is no cure for that Soul Beast poison."

"No antidote?" Zuo's eyes twitched with barely contained fury as he muttered, "Are you playing games with me, kid?"

With an air of smugness, Ye Cann retorted, "A group of Soul Masters ganging up on someone who hasn't even awakened their Martial Spirit—don't you fear becoming the laughingstock of others?"

"Laughed at?" Zuo pressed the Tiger Head Hammer, his Martial Spirit, against Ye Cann's temple, his aura razor-sharp. "Guess what will happen if I decide to strike you with this hammer?"