Chapter 177 - 166: Sharp Claw Lynx

Chapter 177: Chapter 166: Sharp Claw Lynx

The forest was dense with lush foliage, blocking out much of the light. A thick carpet of fallen leaves and dead branches covered the ground, crunching under their feet as they walked.

The four of them walked slowly. After entering the forest, each of them tightened their grip on their weapons.

"A Soul Beast!"

They hadn’t been in the forest for long when Li Heng caught the scent of blood on the air. At the same time, the other three smelled it too.

A feline creature, a Tier One High-Grade Soul Beast called a Sharp Claw Lynx, appeared in their line of sight.

"A Sharp Claw Lynx, a Tier One High-Grade Soul Beast! Its front claws are extremely sharp!"

Just as Li Heng finished reviewing the information on the Sharp Claw Lynx, Jiang Hongtao immediately spoke up, his arrow already nocked on his bowstring.

"Should we engage?"

"Yeah!"

Upon hearing it was a Tier One High-Grade Soul Beast, Bao Yaoyao was the first to react, asking her teammates what to do.

But the first one to act was the flat-chested girl. After a one-word reply to Bao Yaoyao, she charged forward, two scimitars in hand.

Back on the Flying Boat, when Bai Shasha and Qian Yun were sparring, Li Heng had seen that the petite girl’s skill with short weapons had improved significantly.

As Bai Shasha attacked, her twin scimitars glinted coldly, slicing toward the Sharp Claw Lynx’s neck.

As a Tier One Upper Grade beast, the Sharp Claw Lynx wasn’t about to stand by and wait for death when facing a Soul Master in the Soul Pupil Realm. The moment Bai Shasha moved, it raised its claws to meet her head-on.

And so, Bai Shasha and the Sharp Claw Lynx were locked in a fierce struggle.

The Sharp Claw Lynx’s "moves" were vicious. Its attacks were not only powerful, but they almost always aimed for Bai Shasha’s neck or abdomen.

But if the Sharp Claw Lynx was vicious, the flat-chested girl was even more so. The frequency of her twin scimitar attacks increased, and her target was simple: only the Sharp Claw Lynx’s head.

"Is... is Bai Shasha always this... straightforward... and fierce?"

Watching Bai Shasha fight the Sharp Claw Lynx, Jiang Hongtao couldn’t help but marvel. He swallowed hard, especially when he noticed the nicks and cuts already appearing around the Sharp Claw Lynx’s eyes, nose, and ears.

Bao Yaoyao felt much the same as Jiang Hongtao. This was also her first time seeing Bai Shasha in action. She knew that short-range weapons necessitated a vicious style of fighting.

But the degree of Bai Shasha’s ferocity was a stark contrast to her small frame. Bao Yaoyao found it hard to imagine how she could unleash such brutal force!

Moreover, her flexibility and agility were outstanding; throughout the entire fight with the Sharp Claw Lynx, she hadn’t been scratched by its claws even once.

’If I didn’t have my cheats... I’d be left in the dust by this flat-chested girl!’

Seeing Bai Shasha fighting a Tier One High-Grade Soul Beast without taking any damage, Li Heng didn’t say anything, but he was deeply impressed.

He had to admit, Bai Shasha’s improvement was immense!

About three minutes later, Bai Shasha chopped off the Sharp Claw Lynx’s head, finally getting a splash of blood on herself.

The moment the Sharp Claw Lynx died, a green ball of light floated out from its body.

’It dropped something?’

As the green ball of light appeared, all four of them focused their attention on it.

But aside from Bai Shasha, the other three made no move, simply watching her and the green light from a distance.

The flat-chested girl paused for a moment, then reached out and touched the ball of light. A fur-lined strap appeared in her hand.

A Lynx-hide Strap!

Its main function was to secure a weapon, but it also helped maintain it.

"It seems to be for securing short weapons or hidden weapons. Does anyone need it?"

Bai Shasha generously showed the Lynx-hide Strap to the other three while directing her question toward Li Heng.

"I use a bow, and besides, Bai Shasha earned this herself. I don’t have the nerve to ask."

"Bai Shasha should just keep it!"

Jiang Hongtao and Bao Yaoyao spoke one after the other, making their positions clear.

"If you get a kill on your own, you keep the drop. If we kill something as a team, we’ll discuss who gets the item. If there are any disputes later, we can settle them when we get back to the academy. What do you guys think?"

Li Heng took this opportunity to lay out the loot distribution rules for the team.

The rules Li Heng proposed were simple, and he didn’t go into detail about distribution principles, but the other three saw no problem with them and unanimously agreed.

Bao Yaoyao wasn’t very interested in the Soul Energy Items that dropped. As far as she was concerned, as long as it wasn’t edible, she didn’t care who got what.

Bai Shasha felt she understood Li Heng. She knew his character and integrity well, so she didn’t give it a second thought.

And Jiang Hongtao cared even less. He was just there to ride their coattails and get through safely. He wasn’t thinking about any "gains" at all; he just wanted to make it out of the forest in one piece.

So, after quickly settling the distribution, Bai Shasha put away the Lynx-hide Strap. Then, she hacked off the Sharp Claw Lynx’s four legs and handed them to Bao Yaoyao.

The latter understood immediately. After all, the taste of roasted Soul Beast legs was exceptionally good, especially when cooked by Li Heng.

"Bai Shasha, what about... the rest of this Sharp Claw Lynx? Do you still want it?"

"Do as you wish!"

"Thanks! Thank you so much!"

Just as Bao Yaoyao finished packing away the four lynx legs and the group was about to move on, Jiang Hongtao suddenly asked Bai Shasha a question. She paused for a moment, then indicated she didn’t mind.

After getting Bai Shasha’s approval, Jiang Hongtao pulled a small knife out of nowhere and began cutting at the Sharp Claw Lynx’s abdomen.

Li Heng glanced at Jiang Hongtao’s actions, then at the dismembered Sharp Claw Lynx, and immediately understood what he was doing.

This Sharp Claw Lynx was male...

The two girls were naturally curious about what Jiang Hongtao was up to, so they also looked over. But upon seeing what he was doing with his hands, Bao Yaoyao’s face instantly turned red, and she whipped her head away. Bai Shasha, however, remained expressionless.

Jiang Hongtao’s archery was good, but his knife skills seemed crude by comparison. It took him nearly a minute to finish.

When he was done, he noticed the suddenly awkward atmosphere in the group. Jiang Hongtao scratched his head and said, a little embarrassed.

"I can’t help it, I can’t help it! My girlfriend is a Soul Warrior, but I’m only in the Soul Pupil Realm. Sometimes my stamina... can’t keep up. I hope you all understand."

After his sheepish explanation, Jiang Hongtao unconsciously sidled up to Li Heng and whispered.

"Boss! The effect of soaking these things in wine is out of this world. After the outing is over, I’ll... set you up with some too?"