Wilderness: I Tame Beasts to Survive

Chapter 470: Chapter 310: Mental Battle (2)

The burly man named Black Ray snorted. Clearly deterred by Elder Shui Qian’s imposing presence, he refrained from making another move and stepped back into place.

’What a shame... You got lucky, you idiot.’ Han Ning was furious at being randomly insulted by the ugly, foul-smelling oaf in front of him.

He had just been waiting for Black Ray to attack. That way, it would be self-defense, and he could justifiably teach him a painful lesson.

"Preparation time is over. We will now proceed with the shell toss," Elder Shui Qian announced, giving the two no more time to wait.

"Here it comes, the shell toss!" The crowd in the stands leaned forward, their faces rapt with attention.

As Han Ning and Black Ray drew closer, until they were face-to-face only two meters apart, a young man ran over from Elder Shui Qian’s side and opened his palm.

In his palm lay a seashell, shimmering with an aqua-blue light.

"If it lands face-up, Elder Sha Lei’s Beast Master will be the first to summon their Soul Beast. Otherwise, it will be Elder Shuirui’s side. Are you ready?" the young man explained. He showed them both sides of the shell; the front had a wave pattern, while the back had a straight line. The difference was distinct, leaving no room for error.

Whoever summoned their Soul Beast first was at a disadvantage, as the second person could choose a counter based on their opponent’s Attributes.

Although he already had basic information on his two opponents, there was no guarantee they would summon the Soul Beasts Shui Rui had described.

Han Ning was brimming with confidence. When it came to a contest of Spiritual Power, he had never been afraid of anyone.

"Ready," the two replied in unison.

"Alright, let the shell toss begin!"

As the young man finished speaking, he gently tossed the shell into the air. It cut through the wind, soaring more than ten meters high.

This was Han Ning’s first time participating in such a novel spiritual contest. All his previous duels had both parties summon their Soul Beasts simultaneously; there was never a preliminary phase like this.

Aside from Shui Rui explaining some of the rules to him before the match, he had no practical experience whatsoever!

The shell used for the toss, it was said, was made of a special, rare material capable of conducting and containing Spiritual Power. It was a strategically controlled resource of the Merfolk Sea—exceedingly scarce and only used for the most formal duels.

The shell toss was a contest of the Beast Masters’ Spiritual Power. The one with stronger Spiritual Power and superior skill could control which side the shell landed on, thus seizing the initiative. This was a crucial advantage.

Han Ning’s consciousness sank into his Spiritual World, connecting with the sky full of glittering stars within.

From each star, a trace of light streamed out, converging into a single, ethereal wisp of Spiritual Power that manifested in the real world in a way Han Ning did not yet understand.

Under his control, this wisp of Spiritual Power latched onto the shell’s surface, instantly blanketing it.

Simultaneously, a perfect image of the shell appeared in his mind’s eye. Every inch of its texture, the fingerprints left by others, the water stains, the specks of dust—all of it was rendered as clearly as a three-dimensional model.

Furthermore, he felt as if he could control the shell, like he had spontaneously grown a new limb.

Just as he tried to alter the shell’s trajectory to make it land face-up, an unfamiliar wisp of Spiritual Power belatedly arrived, brushing against the Spiritual Power he had already used to cover the shell.

’This is definitely Black Ray’s Spiritual Power. He’s so much slower to react than I am.’

A thought flashed through Han Ning’s mind. He immediately employed the [Spiritual Piercing] technique, splitting off a thread of his own Spiritual Power and brutally striking Black Ray’s.

Something unexpected happened. A single thread of his Spiritual Power had completely shattered Black Ray’s, and he could no longer sense it at all.

"Hnngh..." Black Ray’s brow furrowed sharply. He let out a muffled groan, his body jolting as if struck by lightning. He staggered back several steps as two streams of dark blood instantly gushed from his wide nostrils.

The shell fell swiftly, landing face-up.

Affected by gravity, the shell had only been in the air for a little over a second. Everything happened in a flash; the confrontation was over in the blink of an eye.

"Black Ray’s side will choose their combatant and be the first to summon a Soul Beast," Elder Shui Qian instructed.

"What? Am I seeing things? Black Ray actually lost the Spiritual Power contest!" Standing beside Elder Shui Qian, Sha Lei was utterly astonished, his face a mask of disbelief.

’Impressive... Han Ning’s Spiritual Power really has reached Tier Four!’ A glimmer of hope sparked within Shui Rui as she watched.

...

Black Ray gave Han Ning a long, hard look, all his earlier arrogance gone. He casually wiped the filthy blood from his face, then silently turned and walked off the stone platform to confer with his teammates about who would go first.

Given the Deep Sea Race’s immense power in the Celestial Sea, Han Ning refrained from any verbal taunts, simply watching him leave in silence.

A moment later, a figure stepped out from the opposing three-person team. It was a humanoid Beast Master whose lower body was a cyan fish tail. He had a few scattered scales on his cheeks and appeared to be in his early twenties to early thirties.

Each time his cyan fish tail slapped the ground, it propelled his body forward several meters. It looked strange and cumbersome, but his speed was anything but slow.

In a few bounds, the Beast Master leaped onto the stone platform. He performed a Merfolk salute toward Han Ning. "Your Spiritual Power is impressive," he said, "but battles between Beast Masters aren’t decided by Spiritual Power alone. It’s a shame..."

"A shame about what?" Han Ning shot back.

"It’s a shame you’re so unlucky. You ran into me. I’m afraid you won’t get the chance to meet your next opponent. Remember the name—Hai Yu!"

Hai Yu sighed, his words dripping with narcissism.

"...Don’t get ahead of yourself." Han Ning was a little stunned by the guy’s confidence.

The battle arena was relatively small, with a maximum distance of just over fifty meters between opponents. This placed a greater emphasis on a Soul Beast’s Spiritual Control Power.

"Spiritual Secret Techniques may be used in this duel, but only to enhance the Soul Beasts. They cannot be used to directly attack the Beast Masters."

Then, at Elder Shui Qian’s direction, Hai Yu summoned his Soul Beast.

The air shimmered, and a long, thick form appeared, coiled steadily on the paved stone ground.

It was a massive serpent, over twenty meters long, covered in black scales. A row of menacing bone spikes protruded from its forehead.

Its massive body was shrouded in an illusory mist, flickering in and out of sight. A pair of bright yellow pupils, like two lanterns, stared directly at Han Ning.

’A Sea-Imprisoning Profound Python... So it’s true... the intel was fake. According to Shui Rui’s information, Hai Yu was supposed to summon a Storm Thunder Eagle.’

This was the first time Han Ning truly felt the treachery of the outside world. If he were just an average Beast Master who had trusted Shui Rui’s intel, he would have suffered a devastating loss.

Sea-Imprisoning Profound Python, B Talent. It followed the path of enhancing its own serpentine bloodline rather than transforming into a Flood Dragon. It was proficient in Water and Ice Type Soul Techniques, which were a variation of the Water Type.

[

Race: Sea-Imprisoning Profound Python

Gender: Male

Talent: B

Level: Lord IV

Talent: Deep Sea Eye

Mastered Elements: Water

Introduction: A serpentine Soul Beast born in heavy water, possessing astonishing defense. Using its unique Talent, it can transform into a Sea Eye, absorbing most elemental damage. As it exists in a state between physical and elemental, it has considerable defense against both physical Soul Techniques and Spiritual Ability Soul Techniques.

]

’This introduction... They came prepared. This is specifically to counter Yin Yi. No wonder that kid is so damn arrogant!’

Han Ning immediately realized they must have learned about his battle at Tingchao Pavilion a few days ago. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have dispatched such a specific counter.

Aside from her vine whips, Yin Yi was almost a Pure Elemental Soul Beast. Facing a Soul Beast that could absorb elemental damage would be an arduous and unrewarding struggle.

’This Soul Beast would be even more troublesome for Mengting and Luo Chen. I’d better deal with this problem for them.’

Han Ning made up his mind. He would be the one to fight this match.

’But... a counter is just a counter. Yin Yi is still stronger than the Sea-Imprisoning Profound Python. Defeating it shouldn’t be too much of a problem.’

"SQUEAK SQUEAK!"

Just as he was about to summon Yin Yi to join the battle, Egg Pancake, currently in his Soul Beast Space, suddenly sent him a Spiritual Message.

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