Douluo Continent, Boss's Martial Soul, Geniuses Work for Me

Chapter 4 Ice-Edge Mantis, Ling Qingyue's 2nd Ring

the next day.

early morning.

"These are the medicinal herbs Grandma needs; be sure to brew them for her regularly!"

Ling Qingyue handed a packet of fragrant medicinal herbs to an old woman, then gave her grandmother a few instructions before leaving the mountains with Shang Luo.

On the carriage.

"Is this old woman alright?"

Shangluo, with his hands behind his head, asked Ling Qingyue.

"No problem. Last time I secretly went out to hunt for spirit rings, I asked Granny Wang to take care of my grandmother."

"My place is remote, Li Hu and the others probably won't be able to find me."

Shangluo nodded: "You can trust me."

The two's destination was the Star Dou Great Forest.

Several days later, the two, weary from their journey, finally arrived at the Star Dou Great Forest.

Tread-

The sound of footsteps crunching on leaves rang out.

Even just the outer perimeter is so vast that it blocks out the sky.

Although it was daytime, the forest was full of crisscrossing vegetation, exuding a smell of grass and decay.

Although Shangluo lived in a small merchant village, he managed to acquire an ancient book at a low price at an auction. The book contained knowledge about various spirit beasts.

"Fortunately, during the four years I couldn't recruit any employees, I learned a lot about soul beasts."

Shangluo and Ling Qingyue traversed through the forest.

"Sparrowhawk... No, that kind of spirit beast is too common."

"The Sharp-Blade Black Tiger, only a hundred years old? Its spirit rings are of too low grade."

"The Crimson Flame Seven-Spear Grass matches the year, but its attributes are too extreme..."

Shang Luo rejected all the soul beasts that Ling Qingyue had chosen.

"How can someone who possesses a divine-level martial soul absorb such a low-grade soul ring?"

Seeing the boss's unquestionable answer, Ling Qingyue felt a surge of emotion.

She swore.

She's going to work for her boss for the rest of her life!

"For sword-type martial souls, speed is the only way to break through defenses, and the Frost Moon Sword should possess the attributes of ultimate sharpness and ultimate coldness!"

It took half a day.

After Ling Qingyue killed dozens of low-level soul beasts, the two walked into a dense thorn forest.

For some reason, these thorns were all several meters tall.

A thick chill emanated from it, sending shivers down Shangluo's spine.

Target spotted.

Shangluo put one finger to his lips and pointed with the other to the creature lying in the thorns in the distance—

There lay a giant praying mantis with a slender body and a pale blue sheen on its carapace.

On its triangular head, a pair of compound eyes were like ice crystals, and two pairs of long forelimbs were folded in front of its chest like sharp blades.

Within the sharp blade was a transparent ice crystal.

Ice Fang Mantis!

Shangluo observed the Ice Fang Mantis.

Its pale blue carapace has two blue stripes.

"A two-thousand-year-old Ice Fang Mantis, this is a bit tricky..."

Shang Luo's eyes flickered as he looked at Ling Qingyue.

"This character's attributes are extremely compatible with your martial soul, but..."

Ling Qingyue's eyes flickered slightly, and after hesitating for a moment, she shook her head:

"I can't beat it."

Shangluo gave a bitter smile.

Indeed, the Ice Fang Mantis is extremely powerful in actual combat. A two-thousand-year-old Ice Fang Mantis might be a match for even several Soul Masters.

Even if he and Ling Qingyue joined forces, they might not be a match for each other.

Let's change our target.

Just as Shangluo was preparing to leave.

The ground suddenly shook, and the two quickly ducked behind a large thorn bush.

Roar--!

A wolf's howl soared into the sky!

Dozens of enormous, silver-white wolves with claws like steel knives surged out from all directions, surrounding the Icefang Mantis in the center of the thorn forest.

It's the Silver Moon Wolf Pack!

Shangluo's heart skipped a beat.

Silver Moon Wolves are formidable fighters. Although most of them have a hundred-year cultivation level, even a ten-thousand-year-old soul beast would be overwhelmed if they attacked in packs. They usually live in the middle section of the Star Dou Great Forest, so why would they suddenly appear on the outskirts?

We must choose an excellent spectator spot.

With her view obstructed, Ling Qingyue pointed to the top of the thick thorns, then to her back, and winked at Shang Luo, indicating that she should carry him up.

Shangluo was taken aback, then smiled and shook his head.

After several leaps, he climbed to the top of the thorny bushes, which was nearly ten meters high.

Ling Qingyue was stunned.

She had initially thought Shangluo was completely defenseless, but now it seems...

His speed seems even faster than hers?!

But danger lurked everywhere on the ground. Ling Qingyue had no time to think and quickly leaped to the top of the thorns, leaning against Shang Luo.

"I see……"

Shang Luo pointed at the blue ice crystal in the mantis's pincers, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

That's ice marrow!

Logically, it should only appear in extremely cold environments like the far north.

I never imagined that the Starry Sky Forest also had this.

No wonder the Silver Moon Wolf pack came to the outskirts to plunder.

Ice marrow contains extremely strong ice-attribute primal force, making it a great tonic for ice-type soul beasts. Although this piece is far inferior to the ten-thousand-year-old Xuanbing marrow from the far north, it is still an extremely rare item in this Star Dou Great Forest.

"The boss...they..."

Ling Qingyue gasped in surprise, the level of the battle before her far surpassed any soul beast she had ever encountered before.

The Ice Fang Mantis moves with incredible speed, like a ghost.

Each time, it appears from an extremely tricky angle, its forelimbs like scythes, swinging at an exaggerated speed, leaving only blue afterimages.

Two silver moon wolves fell to the ice scythe before they could even react.

"Let's wait and see."

Shang Luo's gaze was intense as he whispered, "Our chance lies in their weakened state after they've both suffered heavy losses. This Ice Fang Mantis is a perfect match for the sharpness and iciness of your martial soul!"

Ling Qingyue's gaze also turned downwards, and she sensibly hummed in agreement.

In the valley, the battle had reached its climax.

Using its speed advantage, the Ice Fang Mantis constantly weaves through the wolf pack, each swing of its scythe splattering blood.

However, its condition was not optimistic under the siege of the wolf pack.

The steel-like, ice-blue shell was now dented in a large area, covered with vicious scratches and bite marks.

While it possesses extreme offensive power, its defense is indeed a weakness.

Unfortunately, this extreme attack was enough!

Clang—!

The Ice Fang Mantis suddenly turned around, its blade slashing out with incredible speed, tearing through the air, and hooking fiercely into the Silver Moon Wolf King's abdomen.

Large amounts of blood splattered out.

A dark aura appeared in the wolf king's beastly eyes.

"A great opportunity!"

A long sword, entirely ice-blue in color, appeared in Ling Qingyue's hand.

She knew that the opportunity to become stronger was rare, and even if it was risky, she had to try!

But Shangluo pressed her hand down and shook his head.

"It's not the right time yet."

The two turned their attention back to the battlefield.

The intense pain triggered the wolf king's ferocity.

"roar--!"

when!

The wolf king swung out a claw, which clashed with the sword blade, producing a metallic sound.

Whizzing--

The two figures separated again and then clashed violently.

Even with Shang Luo's exceptional spiritual power, he could only see two blurry shadows.

Ling Qingyue glanced at Shang Luo with gratitude, thankful that she hadn't acted rashly!

Neither the Ice Fang Mantis nor the Silver Moon Wolf King are easy targets!

Even a Soul Master could be instantly killed.

Ten breaths later.

bang——

The Silver Moon Wolf King fell from the sky, its body crashing to the ground.

The wolf's head has disappeared without a trace.

A purple spirit ring rose from the wolf king's body.

It won.

But the cost was also extremely high.

The Ice Fang Mantis's shell was almost completely shattered, one of its blades was bitten off, and there was a fatal gash on its chest and abdomen from which thick, green blood was constantly flowing.

Its last remaining scythe picked up the icy marrow from the ground, intending to heal its wounds—

Whoosh!

A flash of sword light was incredibly fast.

It flashed by suddenly!

"Boss, you better watch yourself!"

Ling Qingyue has an excellent grasp of timing in battle, and now the Ice Fang Mantis is completely exhausted.

Without the slightest hesitation, she leaped down, leaving only a moonlit shadow beneath her feet.

Shangluo couldn't help but praise, "That's what an excellent employee is like!"

She parted her red lips slightly, and her first soul ring shone brightly with purple light!

"Frost Moon Slash!"

In the dim thicket of thorns, a blinding glint of cold light suddenly appeared.

Startled, the Ice Fang Mantis quickly turned around and used its back to meet the sword light as it approached.

Its already damaged shell was now further marred by a jagged gash.

Thick, green blood kept gushing out.

"squeak--!"

The Ice Mantis cried out in pain, its compound eyes turning crimson. The ice marrow in its arms transformed into streams of icy blue energy, which finally converged on its scythe.

Ling Qingyue's pupils contracted.

One hundred dense and one sparse.

She never expected that the Icefang Mantis had no desire for the ice marrow and was prepared to fight her to the death!

After absorbing the essence of the ice marrow, the Ice Mantis's scythe was covered with a layer of blue light, and its speed was so fast that it could not be detected by the naked eye!

Whoosh—!

The scythe blade tore through the air, piercing straight towards Ling Qingyue's back.

With nowhere to grab hold of her breath in mid-air, Ling Qingyue glanced at Shang Luo with despair and self-reproach.

That employee of hers is really useless.

But Shang Luo had already disappeared from her sight.

Um……?

Where's the boss?

Ling Qingyue's vision cleared again, and Shang Luo, who had been watching the battle from a distance, had somehow appeared beside her!

"The boss?"

Shangluo did not respond; their actions were swift.

A sharp sword was drawn in an instant!

Ling Qingyue only felt a flash of blue and white light before her eyes—