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After witnessing Ah Yin's Devouring ability, Ye Wen realized that even among evil spirit beasts, there were significant differences.
The Human-Faced Demon Spider, though introduced with great fanfare and multiple aliases, didn't actually possess an exceptional Devouring ability. Otherwise, the powerful spirit beasts of the Great Star Dou Forest would have long since banded together to eliminate it.
After all, a being capable of rapidly increasing its cultivation—like a novel protagonist—was simply too disruptive to the ecological balance of the Great Star Dou Forest.
Ye Wen believed the reason the Human-Faced Demon Spider was classified as an evil spirit beast had more to do with its toxic nature, which often harmed other spirit beasts unintentionally, and its sinister appearance.
Furthermore, judging from Tang San's external soul bone, the Human-Faced Demon Spider's Devouring ability wasn't particularly strong.
In the original storyline, when Tang San hunted his fourth soul ring, he drained a ten-thousand-year Cave Demon Spider dry. However, according to Tang San himself, the power boost he received was only temporary, and the energy quickly dissipated afterward.
As for the Dark Evil God Tiger, its existence was unique and not directly comparable. However, from the perspective of Da Ming and Er Ming (the two forest guardians), the Dark Evil God Tiger's Devouring ability must have been extremely potent, as it broke through to the sixty-thousand-year level within a century and surpassed even those top-tier spirit beasts in strength.
Still, in Ye Wen's eyes, both of these paled in comparison to Ah Yin.
At this moment, Ye Wen removed Ah Yin from her potted form. Her roots began to grow wildly, wrapping around the corpse of the spirit beast before mercilessly piercing into its flesh. The scene was gruesomely bloody.
However, the bloodshed was short-lived. The number of roots Ah Yin generated surged dramatically, eventually cocooning the spirit beast's corpse beneath her like a chrysalis.
The spirit beast's body visibly shriveled at a rapid pace, while the Dark Blue Silver Emperor, Ah Yin, grew increasingly robust and vibrant. In the blink of an eye, she broke through to the ten-thousand-year level.
From this point on, Ye Wen also noticed the difference between ten-thousand-year and thousand-year spirit beasts: each ten-thousand-year leap required significantly more resources than the previous stages. Though Ah Yin appeared insatiable, devouring everything in sight, her rate of growth had noticeably slowed compared to earlier.
Fortunately, Ye Wen's hunting target was merely a fifty-thousand-year spirit beast, equivalent to a Soul Sage-level human. Dugu Bo assured him it would be easy, and soon they replenished their supplies.
Perhaps due to her foundation as a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast, Ah Yin devoured without hesitation, following a systematic process that retraced her past growth. Ye Wen confirmed a theory many readers had speculated about in his previous life: if conditions were suitable, Ah Yin could indeed rapidly regain her hundred-thousand-year status and transform back into human form.
After all, Ye Wen believed that if his Blue Silver Soul Ascension Array theory was correct, Ah Yin could quickly recover with the support of the vast life force from the Blue Silver Grass.
But what had Tang Hao and Tang San done?
Tang Hao, whose thought process was clearly abnormal, had planted light-loving Blue Silver Grass in a pitch-black cave. It was impossible not to accuse him of ill intentions.
As for Tang San…
From Ye Wen's perspective, he couldn't tell whether Tang San's actions were well-meaning but misguided or something else entirely. While the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well accelerated the cultivation of plant-type spirit beasts by tenfold or even a hundredfold, Ah Yin possessed the Blue Silver Domain, whose ultimate secret could obviously help her "cheat." Yet, Tang San had planted her in the Ice-Fire Yin Yang Well—an environment where ordinary Blue Silver Grass couldn't survive. Did Tang San really want her to recover quickly?
In the end, Ye Wen could only conclude that Tang San truly didn't understand Blue Silver Grass cultivation. He was purely a "cheater" in every sense of the word!
Time passed slowly, and Ah Yin's devouring efficiency gradually decreased. However, within less than half a year, Ye Wen worked on restoring the Blue Silver Forest while Ah Yin steadily advanced in cultivation.
Finally, when Ye Wen prepared to activate the Soul Ascension Array, Ah Yin's cultivation reached the hundred-thousand-year mark!
Looking at the vibrant yet sinister Dark Blue Silver Emperor before him, Ye Wen sighed in admiration.
"Indeed, it's you, Ah Yin. You've recovered so quickly. Why don't you reveal yourself and meet me face-to-face?"
The Dark Blue Silver Emperor trembled slightly. As soul power surged, a faint shadow emerged from its branches, gradually solidifying into a regal yet distant figure standing before Ye Wen.
Ye Wen smiled faintly, unsurprised. The notion that only certain ferocious beasts could transform into humans was laughable. Whether through sacrifice or transformation, any spirit beast with sufficient spiritual ability could achieve it.
However, Ah Yin's gaze was complex. Once trapped in that cave, believing she would spend the rest of her days there, this man had saved her from despair.
Yet, thinking of how Ye Wen had shattered her illusions of love, Ah Yin clenched her teeth in frustration.
"What do you want?" Ah Yin asked coldly.
Ye Wen didn't beat around the bush. "I'm here to ask about your specific plan. Surely you're not planning to transform into human form now and confront Tang Hao directly, are you?"
Ah Yin: …
Ye Wen's lips twitched slightly. Ah Yin's silence was an obvious confirmation.
But how crude was this plan! Setting aside whether her acting skills were up to par, explaining her rebirth alone would be a major issue. This was akin to walking straight into a trap, practically handing over equipment to Tang Hao!
Ye Wen sighed in exasperation. "You already know what your soul rings and soul bones mean to a human. How dare you approach Tang Hao and Tang San again? Aren't you afraid they'll pull another 'Tang San in crisis' scenario and force you to sacrifice yourself again?"
Ah Yin's expression turned awkward. Did Ye Wen think she was that foolish? She had already declared her intent to exact revenge on the father-son duo—how could she possibly sacrifice herself again?
Stubbornly, Ah Yin retorted, "I won't!"
To this, Ye Wen simply replied, "Ah, mhm, yes, you won't."
Hearing Ye Wen's response, Ah Yin grew even angrier. But being tongue-tied, she didn't know how to counter him, as she truly had no concrete plan. She had simply thought that once she regained her hundred-thousand-year cultivation, she could immediately seek revenge.
By now, Ye Wen fully understood that although Ah Yin had shed her naive sweetness, she remained fundamentally a simple-minded girl without proper education in strategy or tactics.
After racking her brain for a while and failing to come up with a rebuttal, Ah Yin became flustered and puffed up her cheeks. Then, she resorted to a spirit beast's traditional skill.
Overpowering through sheer force!
Behind Ah Yin, the branches of the Dark Blue Silver Emperor began trembling and extending, brimming with latent energy, ready to strike.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down Ye Wen's forehead.
He had underestimated her! Though she was still naive, she was now truly a hundred-thousand-year spirit beast capable of rivaling a Title Douluo!
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