Chapter 143 – Planning for Another External Spirit Bone
When Hu Liena entered the City of Slaughter, she already possessed two spirit bones—one, a skull granted by Bibi Dong, and the other, her fox-tail external spirit bone.
That fox-tail bone suited her perfectly.
Dugu Feng suspected she must have acquired it while absorbing a spirit ring; if she'd stolen it from someone else, the timing would be far too coincidental.
Based on information gained through the pearl planted in Yan's body, at present Hu Liena had not yet obtained that external bone.
Could it be she would gain it while absorbing her fifth spirit ring?
After all, there was no way she had reached rank sixty before the City of Slaughter. This would be her only chance to acquire one before that.
But if Hu Liena had indeed gained the external bone at this time, why hadn't she used it later during the Spirit Master Tournament against Tang San?
The timeline didn't add up.
Dugu Feng recalled the battle between the Shrek Team and the Spirit Hall team at the tournament.
In that match, Xie Yue and Hu Liena executed their martial soul fusion skill flawlessly, dominating the entire fight.
They had complete control—until the very end.
Both Xie Yue and Hu Liena believed they had already won, but Tang San unleashed the Bat Wing Reincarnation Technique, using splinters from his Eight Spider Lances as hidden weapons to cut Hu Liena's skin.
The terrifying poison of the Human-Faced Demon Spider spread instantly, paralyzing both her and Xie Yue, robbing them of their strength.
That was it.
It was just like Dugu Feng's own duels—when one could win easily, they never revealed their trump cards, such as external spirit bones.
He smiled thinly. He'd deduced the truth.
The Spirit Hall team had lost purely out of arrogance.
Especially Xie Yue, that showy prodigy of the Hall.
After Tang San's Eight Spider Lances collided with his Crescent Moon Blade and shattered completely, leaving Tang San heavily injured, Xie Yue hadn't followed up to finish him.
Instead, he stopped to talk—only to be struck dead by Tang San's poison moments later.
Truly idiotic.
Inside a private chamber, Dugu Feng stood silently, his expression flickering with alternating light and shadow.
External spirit bones—rare, miraculous treasures of fate.
He already possessed two, but who would ever think they had enough?
After a moment's thought, he called for Old Scorpion.
Together, they departed Soto City, taking to the skies in the direction of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Old Scorpion was startled by Dugu Feng's sudden decision but didn't question him—he simply followed quietly.
Their pace was slow, as though Dugu Feng were sensing something invisible.
Not until a full day had passed did he fix his direction. Then, riding the two Emerald Serpent Dragons, they dove deep into the Star Dou Forest.
Guided by the serpents, they ventured carefully into the thousand-year beast territory.
With Hu Liena's talent, her fifth ring would certainly come from a beast in this zone.
Coincidentally, this was precisely the path her group would take into the forest.
"Old Scorpion, find us a hidden spot," Dugu Feng ordered softly. "I'll send the Emerald Serpents to scout the surroundings."
The ten-thousand-year region was perilous; beasts of that age not only possessed formidable strength but also intelligence and unique abilities.
Even with the twin serpents and a Spirit Saint as an ally, caution was essential.
Old Scorpion grinned and quickly found a suitable hideout—a burrow in the earth.
Its walls were marked with countless grooves and narrow tunnels less than half a meter wide.
"This was a Gravity Ant nest once," he said gleefully. "But the colony's long gone. Perfect place to hide."
His expertise with earth techniques made him naturally drawn to underground territory.
"Gravity Ants?"
Dugu Feng's eyes brightened as he recalled something.
The three Gravity Ant Emperors—those same 90,000-year beasts that Tang San had once slain for his spirit ring.
The ant colonies spread beneath nearly all of Star Dou Forest, vast in number but weak individually. Their strength lay in raw physical power—but also in self-destruction and cannibalistic behavior, often turning into the prey of stronger beasts.
When Dugu Feng had been young, Dugu Shuo had taught him much about their kind.
Each colony was ruled by a queen, possessing ferocious jealousy. Whenever a soldier ant grew too strong—say, to the thousand-year level—the queen herself would attack and kill it.
Thus, true elite Gravity Ants were rare.
Only those who escaped the queen's control—or, rarer still, slayed her—could continue evolving.
The three Gravity Ant Emperors Tang San had encountered were precisely such mutations—having killed their queen and devoured her carcass to evolve.
They had once even challenged the Titan Giant Ape and Azure Bull Python but failed and were driven from the forest.
"Old Scorpion," Dugu Feng said slowly, "with your power, could you locate some active Gravity Ant nests and capture their queen ants?"
Old Scorpion blinked. "With my earth techniques, catching a few queens will be easy work."
"Good. Find as many strong ones as possible—the more, the better."
"Yes, Young Master!"
With that, Old Scorpion tunneled swiftly into the ground, vanishing in moments.
Dugu Feng released the two Emerald Serpent Dragons again, instructing them to explore deeper for any sign of a powerful Gravity Ant King.
He knew the Titan Clan's own leader, Tai Tan, had obtained his eighth spirit ring from a Gravity Ant King, proving such monstrous specimens existed here still.
On the way, Dugu Feng pondered how to deal with Chrysanthemum Douluo.
With that Titled Douluo's protection, even a subterranean ambush would end in disaster before they could escape. The gap between a new Spirit Saint and a Titled Douluo was too wide.
At first, he'd planned to let the Emerald Serpents lure one or two powerful ten-thousand-year beasts toward their position to provoke chaos. They could then seize the opportunity to abduct Hu Liena amid the confusion.
Now it seemed the Gravity Ants could serve an even better purpose.
Mature Gravity Ant Kings fed on their own queens; by using live queens as bait, they could attract the true giants.
His plan formed perfectly: capture multiple queens, infect them with poison, then let the serpents tease a mighty Ant King into frenzy—drawing it straight toward Hu Liena's group.
During the battle's chaos, he and Old Scorpion would strike.
And he had plenty of time to orchestrate it.
Judging by the pearl's distance, Hu Liena's group, Chrysanthemum Douluo among them, had only just reached a nearby supply town. Their large party would move cautiously, searching for a suitable beast once inside Star Dou Forest.
That gave Dugu Feng more than enough time to prepare.
The more he thought about it, the more confident he became.
His mental focus locked onto the pearl, while the twin Emerald Serpents slithered across the forest at astonishing speed.
Finding formidable Gravity Ants would not be a problem—Star Dou was the largest soul-beast habitat on the continent. Nothing was impossible to find here.
Another day passed. Dugu Feng quietly meditated inside the burrow, energy circulating smoothly.
By now, the captured queens numbered more than a dozen—still weak from his toxins but alive.
When healed, their combined scent and aura would easily draw in nearby Gravity Ant Kings.
It was only a matter of time.
(END CHAPTER)
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