Chapter 13: 55% Aptitude! Fishing in Troubled Waters

In fact, from the moment the Dark Gold Dreadclaw appeared, Ye Ming had many opportunities to escape the battlefield.

However, he did not leave; instead, he forcibly activated the Second-Turn Shadow Follower Gu to hide himself.

He did it all for this very moment.

His aptitude as a Gu Master was only Grade C; if he followed the standard path of cultivation, he would reach at most the 3rd Turn.

To improve his talent, he had to take risks.

Walking quickly to Tang Yu's side, Ye Ming reached out to check the other's breathing.

"Not dead yet, just passed out from exhaustion."

After a moment of thought, he did not take Tang Yu's life, but instead used his outer robe to cover his eyes.

He still had to return to the Clear Sky Sect, and keeping Tang Yu alive was for the sake of greater benefits.

"I still have twenty percent of my True Essence left; fortunately, activating the Blood Skull Gu doesn't require much primeval power!"

Ye Ming summoned the Blood Skull Gu from his aperture and then tossed it toward Tang Yanran's side.

The Blood Skull Gu flew leisurely into the air, and wisps of blood flowed out from her body, drilling into the eye sockets of the Blood Skull Gu.

Having lost her blood, Tang Yanran became a shattered, shriveled Yanran.

Following the same method, Ye Ming had the Blood Skull Gu absorb the blood of the other dead disciples entirely.

This was the outer perimeter of the hills, where even Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were rare, yet now the aura of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw permeated this area.

For a short time, this area was the safest.

Raising his hand to recall the Blood Skull Gu, wisps of Blood Spring, carrying a fragrant scent, flowed from the mouth of the Blood Skull Gu, poured onto his body, and then merged into his aperture.

After the Blood Spring merged into his aperture, Ye Ming felt the capacity of his True Essence Sea begin to rise.

However, compared to the first time, the speed was undoubtedly much slower.

As aptitude improves, the further one goes, the more Blood Spring is needed! Fifty-one percent, fifty-two percent... fifty-five percent!

When his aptitude improved to fifty-five percent, the Blood Spring in his aperture completely disappeared.

"A little more, and my aptitude could reach Grade B!"

Ye Ming looked at Tang Yu lying on the ground, a smile hanging on the corner of his mouth.

"Brother Tang Yu, I hope you can be a bit more useful!"

He had seen the Dark Gold Dreadclaw's movements clearly when it left.

Bear-type Soul Beasts have poor eyesight, but their sense of smell is top-tier! The Dark Gold Dreadclaw is also a very vengeful Soul Beast; letting Tang Yu go was definitely not out of mercy!

Ye Ming guessed that this Dark Gold Dreadclaw had memorized Tang Yu's scent, planning to gather Soul Beasts and wipe them out once Tang Yu returned home! He wanted to improve his aptitude, but staying safe in the Clear Sky Sect naturally wouldn't work. He had to stir up the water so he could fish in troubled waters.

Tying his blood-stained outer robe around his waist, Ye Ming carried Tang Yu on his back and walked step by step toward the Clear Sky Sect, facing the setting sun.

At the foot of the Clear Sky Sect mountain in the small village, Tang Long looked at the four teams before him and couldn't help but gaze into the distance.

"It's already late, and Tang Yu hasn't returned yet; nothing could have happened, right!"

"That shouldn't be! We didn't even run into any Thousand-Year Soul Beasts this time. With Tang Yu's strength, even if he ran into a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast, he should be able to retreat unscathed!"

Tang Long's heart grew increasingly anxious; he had a foreboding feeling.

"Clatter, clatter, clatter!"

Just then, an Outer Sect Disciple dressed in white ran into the village in a panic.

His eyes were bloodshot, his clothes were torn by tree branches, and he had several wounds on his body.

Yet he seemed unaware of this; the moment he saw Tang Long, tears were already welling up in his eyes.

He took a sharp breath and shouted, "Brother Tang Long! Quickly save Brother Tang Yu! He's about to be killed by a Dark Gold Dreadclaw!"

"What!!"

An aura suddenly erupted from Tang Long's body; yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black—six terrifying Soul Rings rose slowly from beneath his feet, pulsing around him.

He took a step forward and arrived directly beside the Outer Sect Disciple, "What happened! What Dark Gold Dreadclaw??"

A flash of fear crossed the Outer Sect Disciple's eyes as he said distractedly, "Dead, they're all dead!"

"Brother Feng is dead, and Yanran is dead too! Everyone is dead!"

"There are Dark Gold Dreadclaws in the outer hills, one at the thousand-year level, and one at the three-thousand-year level!"

"Brother Tang Yu fought that Dark Gold Dreadclaw to the death to save me, and now I'm afraid... I'm afraid..."

At this point, the Outer Sect Disciple could no longer hold on, collapsing to the ground and covering his head while sobbing, "Wuu wuu." Tang Long was shocked and barked, "Where! Where are they!"

The disciple hurriedly stated the location, and upon hearing it, Tang Long immediately channeled his soul power and charged out of the village.

When he rushed out of the village entrance, he saw a scene that left him incredibly astonished.

Under the setting sun, a figure walked slowly toward him.

The clothes at his waist shimmered in the sunlight; those were light spots reflected from the fresh blood.

On his back, a blood-drenched figure hung its head, its hands dangling powerlessly at its sides.

"Tang Yeming! Tang Yu!!"

Tang Long cried out in alarm and quickly leaped across the distance to reach the two of them.

When he drew near, a scent of blood rushed straight to his nose.

Ye Ming saw the person approaching and revealed a strained smile on his indifferent face.

"Brother Tang Long, I've brought Brother Tang Yu back."

"I'm sorry, my strength was insufficient; Brother Feng and the others... I couldn't save them."

Hearing this, the man in his thirties felt his nose sting at this moment.

His eyes turned red, and he reached out to pat Ye Ming on the shoulder, taking Tang Yu from him.

"Good lad, you've already done very well."

……

At the peak of the mountain gate, inside the great hall of the Clear Sky Sect.

Tang Xiao sat in the high hall, with five Elders sitting on both sides below; on the right side, there was also a woman wearing a sky-blue long dress, possessing extreme beauty.

"After Tang Yeming carried Tang Long back, I went to that place to investigate."

"The corpses of Tang Feng and the others have already been completely gnawed away by Soul Beasts; judging from the traces of the battle at the scene, two powerful Soul Beasts did indeed appear."

"They should be Dark Gold Dreadclaw bears. However, I was unable to discover their tracks."

Standing below, Tang Long lowered his head, his face full of shame.

Before Tang Xiao could speak, the Third Elder sitting below let out a cold snort.

"In other words, if it weren't for that kid Tang Yeming, Tang Yu would likely have been fed to the Soul Beasts?"

"Is this the Soul Beast clearing operation you requested?"

"Seven sect bloodlines, just like that, buried in the mouths of Soul Beasts!!"

Tang Yu was his grandson, and now that he was lying on a sickbed and had yet to wake up, how could he not be angry?

Tang Long lowered his head, not daring to reply.

Tang Xiao, sitting in the high hall, rubbed his temples and sighed: "Tang Long deserves punishment this time, but the fact that Dark Gold Dreadclaw bears were lurking on the outskirts of the Ancient Trace Hills is something no one could have foreseen!"

"However, if it weren't for his operation discovering this point, once those two Dark Gold bears grew up, our Clear Sky Sect would likely have had even more disciples lose their lives."

"After this matter passes, Tang Long, you go to the Cliff of Repentance yourself to reflect for one month!"

"The remaining three-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Dreadclaw bear is left to you! Within ten days, you must use its blood to pay tribute to the fallen sect disciples!"

"Additionally, those disciples who died must be given a grand burial, and we must do our best to compensate their families."

Tang Long lowered his head and cupped his hands, "Yes!"

Seeing this, the other Elders no longer spoke.

Tang Xiao pondered for a moment and mused: "Tang Yeming has merit in saving people; reward him with one thousand Gold Soul Coins and promote him to an Inner Sect Disciple."

"For him to be able to absorb a thousand-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw bear for his First Soul Ring, he is definitely not a mediocre talent."

"Although his martial soul has undergone a reverse mutation, I imagine he is someone who will achieve success late in life."

"After he enters the Inner Sect, all you Elders should pay more attention to him."

The few people below nodded hurriedly.

After Tang Xiao finished speaking, he looked at the woman with an ethereal appearance and noble temperament, and said softly: "Tang Yuehua, you just said that Xiao Hao's son is returning to the sect soon?"

"Yes, he is called Tang San, and he is a very outstanding child."

……

(End of chapter)