"Ah! It hurts so much!"
Intense pain surged over him, and Tang San, who was at the critical moment of absorbing the Eight-Spider Spear, was shockingly interrupted. Xu Ran cruelly and forcibly pulled the nearly fused Eight-Spider Spear out of Tang San's body, causing him immense pain.
"Ah! Who is it?" Tang San spat out a mouthful of blood as the absorption of the attached soul bone was interrupted, especially with such brute force, which immediately caused his soul power to become chaotic, and his breath turned decidedly weak.
Tang San was furious. Who was targeting him?
Why couldn't he absorb an attached soul bone in peace?
"Xu Ran, is it you?" Tang San's eyes widened in anger. Seeing Xu Ran's face, his pupils constricted suddenly, clearly leaving him with a deep shadow from their previous encounters.
"Xu Ran, what are you doing here? Get the hell away from me." Tang San spat out another mouthful of blood. He was terrified to discover that his attached soul bone was being stripped away by Xu Ran. After a brief moment of shock, a deep pain swept through his entire body.
A dark red hue from the rib bone reflected on his body, making it seem somewhat ferocious and terrifying.
"I've come for the Eight-Spider Spear, naturally. An attached soul bone like this is a treasure coveted by the capable," Xu Ran said indifferently. The attached soul bone had been one of Tang San's strongest advantages in the original story, but not anymore.
"Xu Ran, no, you can't take away my attached soul bone. You're so powerful, so talented, and so wealthy, you surely don't lack my soul bone." Tang San's complexion turned pale, and he watched Xu Ran in terror, his mentality collapsing.
Xu Ran was so wealthy, rich enough to rival a nation, and he willingly gave precious attached soul bones to Bai Chenxiang, that wench. Did Xu Ran really need his soul bone?
This was just an attached soul bone from a Man-Faced Demon Spider that had barely passed ten thousand years, not particularly powerful. What was Xu Ran's motive?
Couldn't Xu Ran just leave him alone?
"Who said I don't need it? Attached soul bones are universally acknowledged as treasures."
"But you're willing to give attached soul bones to Bai Chenxiang, and you must not care for my soul bone, you definitely won't. This spider soul bone has nothing to do with your Martial Soul; it's no use to you," Tang San muttered with blood continually trickling from the corner of his mouth. His internal soul power was in turmoil. The violent soul power assaulted his body to the point of unbearable pain, wishing he could pass out immediately.
Having the refinement and absorption of a soul bone interrupted, if it were anyone else, they might have gone mad or even bled from every orifice and died. The fact that he was still holding on was not easy.
However, at this moment, he couldn't fall. The attached soul bone was crucial for him, capable of significantly boosting his strength; he absolutely couldn't lose the Eight-Spider Spear. Moreover, the soul bone was already connected to his body. If Xu Ran forcibly took it, the pain could kill him, or at least destabilize his foundation.
"I can't use it for myself, but can't I give it to someone else?" Xu Ran smiled as he spoke, looking at Tang San's frustrated expression with sheer delight. Why did he feel so satisfyingly good inside?
"You, you don't have any spider-type Martial Souls around you. Other Martial Souls aren't compatible. My Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, and the spider can strengthen its tenacity," Tang San analyzed, looking desperately at Xu Ran.
"No way. Even if I don't have one, I can still use it to score with girls. The Pope of the Martial Soul Hall, Bibi Dong, has a spider-type Martial Soul," Xu Ran said with a wicked smile, meaningfully glancing in Yu Xiaogang's direction.
Yu Xiaogang's face turned dark, and his eyes were cold.
"Damn you, Xu Ran. You really have no good intentions. The Eight-Spider Spear would be even more effective for Bibi Dong than for Tang San. How could I not have thought of that?" Yu Xiaogang's expression changed drastically, cursing Xu Ran in his heart.
But just now, he hadn't failed to realize that the attached soul bone of the Man-Faced Demon Spider would be very effective for Bibi Dong. However, in his eyes, Bibi Dong was just a plaything, merely a stepping stone on his path to success.
The stronger Bibi Dong became, the more it showed his incompetence. Although he wanted to be with Bibi Dong, to use her fame as the Pope, he also wished she became a useless woman to accompany him.
That way, if they were together, no one would gossip. Otherwise, if a peerless powerhouse like the Pope had a useless man, he would be ridiculed.
As for Tang San, Tang San was his disciple, and he naturally wanted him to be as strong and impressive as possible. Only then, as his teacher, could he hold his head up high.
"Xu Ran, are you determined to oppose me? Can't you spare me just this once?" Tang San was on the verge of tears. No matter how much he pleaded, Xu Ran simply wouldn't let him off.
Was Tang San destined to be overwhelmed by Xu Ran?
Could it be that every time he tried to absorb a Soul Ring or soul bone, he would encounter Xu Ran?
Could he get any more unlucky?
Tang San felt an indescribable sense of injustice, his eyes nearly brimming with tears. His hard-earned self-confidence had been shattered once again.
The outside world was too terrifying; he needed to get to Spirit City as quickly as possible. Once he was on Martial Soul Hall's turf, Xu Ran would have no chance to touch him.
"I can't let you off. But I promise you, just this once, I won't take your soul bone next time," Xu Ran said, his Soul Power adhering to Tang San's back and exerting a slight force, the Eight-Spider Spear, eight small spider leg bones, peeled away from Tang San's body.
"Ah, Xu Ran, I hate you!"
"Ahhh!"
"I won't let you off!"
"Xu Ran, you're as good as dead. Sooner or later, I'll deal with you!"
Seeing that Xu Ran was determined to take his attached soul bone, Tang San stopped trying to appease him, furiously cursing Xu Ran and continuously letting out pained howls.
"Ding, congratulations to the 'Host' for acquiring the attached soul bone Eight-Spider Spear."
"Ding, congratulations to the 'Host' for receiving a mission reward of two thousand Skill Points."
"Not bad, not bad, these eight pieces of Blood Bone vaguely show a tendency to evolve," Xu Ran remarked as the Eight-Spider Spear separated from Tang San's body, still smeared with his fresh blood, looking like actual blood bones.
"Xu Ran, I'll kill you! Give me back my attached soul bone," Tang San despaired, looking at Xu Ran with sorrow, no longer considering the difference in strength between them, swinging his fist at Xu Ran.
He was on the verge of collapse. Why did Xu Ran always arrive so punctually, as if he had timed it perfectly? No matter what Tang San did, whether he went to the Seven Treasures Glaze Sect, flirted with his cousin, or absorbed a soul bone... Xu Ran would always suddenly show up and strike him.
Was Xu Ran doing this deliberately?
Naturally, Tang San was unaware that System Miss could track his movements, allowing Xu Ran to appear at just the right time every time.
"You're too weak; it won't do," Xu Ran said, waving his hand and sending Tang San flying.
"Recognize the gap between us; stop daydreaming so much. Also, if the Soul Hall's Saintess is missing even a single hair, you're the only one I'll hold responsible," Xu Ran stated and then turned to leave.
"Ah, damn it, you even think about using the Eight-Spider Spear to seduce the Pope, now you want to lay your hands on the goddess? Brother Xu Ran, you're full of crap, I'll make you regret it. I will become the Martial Spirit Hall Holy Son and do everything that a Saint Heir is supposed to do," Tang San roared in anger. What was a Saint Heir supposed to do? Of course, it was to woo the goddess. The goddess was meant to be the Saint Heir's wife, and once he became the Martial Spirit Hall Holy Son, Xu Ran would be screwed.
Xu Ran still wants to make a move on the goddess? Wishful thinking.
"Harboring ill intentions, you deserve a beating!" Xu Ran turned back, a gust of palm wind sent Tang San flying, spinning 720 degrees in the air before crashing heavily to the ground.
"Xiaosan. Don't..." Seeing Tang San about to speak further, Brock hurriedly covered his mouth, a trace of a cold smile appearing on his face.
"Xiaosan, don't worry, I've secretly left a powder I developed on Xu Ran's body..." A cold, yet triumphant smile appeared on Brock's face. His powder had a great allure for soul beasts; a mere sprinkle could drive countless soul beasts wild, let alone an entire bottle's worth which he had left on Xu Ran.
Such a precious powder, crafted from exceptional treasures, could attract powerful soul beasts of tens of thousands of years, and even lure even more formidable ones, especially the female soul beasts. This would be enough for Xu Ran to have his hands full.
Although Xu Ran was strong, the fact that he hadn't noticed Brock's little maneuver just now showed that Xu Ran was nothing special after all.
"Haha, Master, you're so showy, that's awesome; this is the way to deal with Xu Ran," Tang San said, his spirits lifting upon hearing Brock's recount. His previous depression and pain vanished instantly; now all he wanted was to see Xu Ran in trouble or even in agony.
No matter how strong Xu Ran was, he couldn't fight off many hands on his own. If truly countless frenzied soul beasts were drawn in, he'd be left dead without a complete corpse, or worse, the powder might attract endless female soul beasts leaving Xu Ran no peace even in death.
"Haha, well said, Xu Ran deserves to suffer for bullying us; this is the fate he deserves," Brock laughed, feeling like the most clever plotter. This strategy of killing Xu Ran by using soul beasts was simply too clever.