Zhao Lin walked into the room, pulled up a chair, and let out a long sigh.

Hard work truly pays off. After nine days of sleeping in ice and snow, he had finally absorbed the Wind Fox’s Essence Soul.

Not only had he obtained Wind Attribute True Qi, but he had also broken through to the First Layer of the Blood Realm!

"That wasn’t easy. It almost got away!"

Zhao Lin mused, his mind replaying the events that had just transpired.

When he heard a faint "CHIRR CHIRR" from his snow burrow, he knew the Wind Fox had arrived and immediately pressed his eye to the peephole to watch.

Not far away, an early-rising pheasant emerged from the thicket, wandering near the river valley. Suddenly, it caught a scent and started running toward his snow burrow.

Through his observations over the past few days, Zhao Lin had learned that pheasants were most active at dawn. That was why he had crumbled up a biscuit the night before and flicked the pieces out of the peephole, luring them in to feed.

The "CHIRR CHIRR" sound wasn’t loud, but to Zhao Lin’s ears, it was exceptionally clear.

Just a moment later, an azure shadow came into view, flying over from the camphor pine forest.

The Wind Fox rode the wind as it traveled, its fur undulating like waves, making it look like a fish swimming through water.

This time, Zhao Lin finally got a clear look at the Wind Fox. It was covered in spotted, azure fur and was about the size of a house cat, though much more slender. Its two eyes shone with an eerie red light.

The pheasant, completely unaware of the impending doom, was still rummaging through the snow for biscuit crumbs.

’Just a little closer!’

Zhao Lin’s heart hammered in his chest. He tightened his grip on his iron ruler, sank into a slight squat with one leg forward, ready to burst out at a moment’s notice.

The Wind Fox quickly flew over the pheasant’s head. It circled once before suddenly diving, extending two sharp claws to grab the pheasant by the neck and haul it into the air.

The pheasant let out a long, wretched cry, flapping its wings in a desperate struggle.

The Wind Fox raised a claw, about to pierce its prey’s chest.

’Now’s my chance!’

Zhao Lin shot out from the snow burrow like an arrow loosed from a bow, his legs exploding with power. He swung the iron ruler in his hand, bringing it crashing down on the Wind Fox.

The Wind Fox’s reaction was incredibly fast. Sensing danger, it immediately flung the pheasant forward, using the momentum to dart away in the opposite direction.

It was a charged strike with astonishing explosive force. The iron ruler split the pheasant in half, and without losing any momentum, continued on toward the Wind Fox’s back.

The Wind Fox was incredibly evasive. In a flash, it twisted its body in mid-air, performing an unbelievable maneuver to avoid a fatal blow.

With a dull thud, the iron ruler struck the Wind Fox on the flank, only to be repelled by some unseen force.

The Wind Fox stumbled and landed on the ground, but its legs were a blur as it took off across the snow like a wisp of smoke.

Zhao Lin gave relentless pursuit, inwardly astonished. Even after being injured, the Wind Fox was still incredibly fast.

As he watched the distance between them grow, he pulled a small bottle from his robes and smashed it with his fist.

BANG! The bottle shattered, releasing a cloud of black powder that was carried by the force of his blow onto the Wind Fox.

The Wind Fox ran even faster before suddenly leaping into the air. A current of air swirled around it as it soared straight to the north.

One glance was all it took for Zhao Lin to know he could never catch it in the air. He settled for following its path at a brisk pace on the ground.

The black powder he’d used was a specially prepared Musk. Now that the Wind Fox was covered in it, he could track the beast to the ends of the earth.

The Wind Fox must have been terrified; it didn’t even stay in Ancient Rock Mountain, fleeing north instead.

Before long, Zhao Lin spotted the Wind Fox’s footprints on the ground, along with a few drops of blood.

He followed them for a while until the tracks vanished and the scent led upward into the air again.

’Looks like the Wind Fox’s ability to fly isn’t endless. It’ll have to stop and rest sooner or later.’

Reassured, Zhao Lin followed the scent out of Ancient Rock Mountain. After running for several miles, a black pine forest appeared ahead.

As he entered the black pine forest, the scent of Musk grew stronger.

Zhao Lin deduced the Wind Fox must be somewhere in the woods. He slowed his pace, scanning his surroundings, and suddenly spotted a dead squirrel on the ground.

There was a bloody hole in the squirrel’s neck; its throat had evidently been torn out, causing it to suffocate.

An idea struck Zhao Lin. He looked up and saw a tall tree nearby with a hollow in its trunk about forty or fifty feet up.

’So that’s what happened!’

’The Wind Fox Beast must have hidden in the hollow to recover from its injuries, killing the squirrel that lived there and tossing it out,’ he realized.

He listened closely and, sure enough, could hear faint panting from within the hollow.

’Perhaps it never thought I’d follow it this far, or maybe its injuries are so severe it didn’t have time to dispose of the body.’

’Either way, I have to seize this chance.’

Zhao Lin didn’t dare take another step. The crunch of his feet on the snow would surely alert the Wind Fox, but trying to fly over would create the sound of rushing air.

He glanced at the large tree next to him, and an idea came to mind. He quietly began to climb, not stopping until he was level with the hollow where the Wind Fox was hiding.

He took a deep breath, then kicked hard off the trunk, his body shooting out like a spear toward the other tree’s hollow.

The Wind Fox heard the commotion and poked its head out of the hollow, only to be met by a massive iron-hard fist.

BANG!

The punch, containing all of Zhao Lin’s strength, landed squarely on target.

The tree trunk exploded. Amidst a shower of splinters, an azure figure fell like a kite with a severed string, landing motionless on the ground below.

Zhao Lin remained where he was, releasing an ultrasonic pulse to scan the surroundings.

A moment later, an azure light rose from the Wind Fox’s body.

’An azure Essence Soul...’

Zhao Lin wasn’t surprised. The Ice Silkworm’s Ice Attribute Essence Soul was the color of gleaming silver, and the Thunder Catfish’s Thunder Attribute Essence Soul was gold, so it was only natural that the Wind Fox’s Wind Attribute Essence Soul would be azure.

The Essence Soul slowly coalesced, taking on the form of the Wind Fox.

Zhao Lin glanced at the Spirit Beast Scroll in his mind and felt a jolt of surprise. The portraits of both the Golden Leopard and the White-throated Needletail were flashing simultaneously.

’What? Both of them can evolve?’

He had assumed the Wind Fox’s Essence Soul would upgrade his White-throated Needletail, but he never expected the Golden Leopard would be eligible as well.

’That’s it! The Wind Fox is a high-tier Spirit Beast, and its speed is unparalleled both on the ground and in the air. So these two Essence Souls can merge into one and evolve together?’

As if reaching an epiphany, Zhao Lin pumped his fist.

If he was right, absorbing this Essence Soul wouldn’t take up an additional slot—it would free one up!

At that thought, Zhao Lin strode forward and inhaled sharply.

The Wind Fox’s Essence Soul transformed into a ball of azure light and entered his body. He immediately felt a surge of abundant power flowing through his five major organs: heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.

His Qi and Blood churned within his organs, and his body felt like it was inflating like a balloon.

BOOM!

A violent tremor wracked his body. Zhao Lin was stunned to discover that a layer of flowing light now coated the surface of his five organs. With every breath he took, he could feel his stamina and power increase.

First Layer of the Blood Realm.

The azure Qi didn’t stop there. It continued to circulate among his six hollow organs, pushing his Qi and Blood to permeate them as well.

Zhao Lin knew this was paving the way for the Second Layer of the Blood Realm, so he relaxed his mind and allowed the process to unfold.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the azure Qi receded like the tide.

"Still not enough to break through to the Second Layer of the Blood Realm, but this is already great!"

Zhao Lin muttered to himself in satisfaction. Turning his senses inward, he saw a new mass of azure energy swirling within his Qi Sea.