NOVEL FROG Chapter 100: Bloodline of the Soul Beast
From the western frontier of the duchy, 'Roaring Wind Canyon', to the central region's 'Wooden Town', the straight-line distance is roughly over five hundred li, while the journey along the official road amounts to more than eight hundred.
Along the way, Ling Yi and his companions gallop their horses, passing through towns, forest edges, riverbanks, and lake shores, towering mountains and valleys, and the ridges of hills...
In terms of area, the 'Waterwood Duchy' ranks at the tail end among the countries in Douluo Continent. But excluding deserts and a few other landscapes, it has all the necessary environments.
Whenever their horses showed signs of fatigue and needed rest, Ling Yi and the others would stop to take a break, feeding and watering the horses, while also replenishing their own food and water supplies.
As night fell after a day's ride covering nearly seven hundred li, 'Wooden Town' was not far off anymore.
In the wilderness, on the leeward side of a hill, the orange glow of a campfire dispelled the surrounding darkness.
In the sky, the moon and stars were sparse, while on the ground, clusters of 'Blue Silver Grass', under the radiant moonlight, emitted a speckled blue shimmer, as if a celestial river had fallen to earth.
In recent years, throughout the entire 'Waterwood Duchy', the quantity of 'Blue Silver Grass' had surged exponentially. Except for farmed lands and people's dwellings, it could be seen everywhere.
Long Yin fed the last piece of bean cake to his bay horse, stroking its neck to feel the hot blood coursing through its muscular body. Turning excitedly, he looked towards Ling Yi by the campfire and said,
"Yi Ge, it really works!
I followed your advice, and while this guy was running, I slowly infused my soul power into it. Not only did it run faster, but its endurance improved as well!”
“Not just that,” Qingqiu Xin patted the grey horse next to him. Watching it wander over to nibble on some "Blue Silver Grass," he approached and said, “I can feel it, following the method Brother Yi taught us. By channeling the soul power route of the first stance of 'Beast Martial Soul: Xingyi Fist'—'Galloping Steed'—through these horses, their physical attributes have noticeably improved in just one day!”
“Yeah, their appetite has increased a lot too,” Zhang Mufeng added as he walked over.
Behind him, a horse with white fur adorned by brown patches casually grazed on the "Blue Silver Grass" on the ground, then trotted over to join the brown and grey horses.
About twenty meters away, Ling Yi’s black horse, with its snow-white hooves, appeared to be feasting at a buffet. It alternated between biting into a bean cake placed on a rock, grabbing a few stems of "Blue Silver Grass" with its mouth, and nibbling on the fresh green leaves from a nearby twig.
“Completely normal,” Ling Yi commented nonchalantly, as he stirred the fire pit with a smooth branch. “When Treading Snow first accepted my soul power infusion, its appetite almost increased tenfold.
“You guys are only just mastering the 'Galloping Steed' stance, controlling a small amount of soul power to stimulate them. For the three of them, it's just the initial awakening of their potential—”
“Alas! What a pity—” Long Yin suddenly sighed with regret.
Qingqiu Xin looked at him in astonishment, unable to fathom what was bothering his friend.
Zhang Mufeng also looked at Long Yin with curiosity and asked, “Brother Yin, what’s bothering you? Isn’t it great that our horses are growing stronger with the stimulation of soul power?”
Hearing this, Long Yin glanced at Ling Yi, who appeared calm, then looked at the expectant Qingqiu Xin and Zhang Mufeng before nodding toward the four horses that were grazing in two separate groups, and said:
"It's really a pity that our four horses are just ordinary ones, without any soul beast bloodline. Otherwise, with Brother Yi's secret technique, who knows, we might be able to breed soul beasts!"
Long Yin began, his eyes twinkling at the thought.
"Imagine if each of us could ride out on a soul beast horse in the future, that would be something—hey!"
His face morphed into an expression of pure delight at the prospect.
Hearing this, both Zhang Mufeng and Qingqiu Xin gave Long Yin a disdainful glance for getting lost in such a dream, yet they couldn't help but reveal expressions of longing themselves.
"Clap—!"
Suddenly, Long Yin clapped his hands together, looking extremely serious, "I need to write to my father and tell him to get me a horse with a soul beast bloodline!"
Seeing Long Yin's eagerness, Qingqiu Xin couldn't resist dousing him with a dose of reality, "Are you sure your father would get you a horse with a soul beast bloodline, or just give you a slap to wake you up?"
In the grand duchy of Shumu, their family, known for its generations of soul masters, was somewhat influential, holding a fair amount of social resources.
Though arranging family businesses takes some effort, they could manage a few hundred thousand gold soul coins.
If it were about acquiring cats or dogs with soul beast bloodline, even if considered impractical by some, and given the right excellence from Long Yin, his father might indeed use some connections and expenses to procure one.
After all, felines and canines with soul beast bloodlines occasionally emerge and are not entirely uncommon in human society, mostly descendants of past hybridizations even several generations apart.
In the entire Douluo Continent, descendants with the bloodline of a Soul Beast Horse are incredibly rare.
After all, Soul Beasts are immensely proud creatures. No Soul Beast would allow itself to be captured. If gravely injured by an enemy and facing capture, a Soul Beast would choose to self-destruct its soul power and die.
Among Soul Beasts, the feline and canine families might occasionally produce offspring with domestic cats and dogs due to certain seasonal reasons. However, equine Soul Beasts are far fewer in number compared to the other families, and breeding them is considerably more challenging than with cats or dogs.
On the vast Douluo Continent, the "Tian-Hun Horses," exclusive mounts of the Royal Knights of the [Tiandou Empire], are the most renowned.
The Tian-Hun Horses are excellent hybrids with some Soul Beast bloodline. Although they lack offensive capabilities, their incredible speed, tremendous load-bearing capacity, and exceptional endurance make them the cavalry's top choice.
Even armored, along with a knight clad in shiny armor on its back, the weight does not hinder these steeds in the slightest.
Once such a cavalry unit charges forward, their power is immensely formidable, so much so that even Soul Kings and Soul Emperors dare not face them head-on.
The Royal Knights have always been a prestigious force meticulously cultivated by the [Tiandou Empire] royal family. Numbering fifty thousand, their captains, particularly those above the rank of a hundred, are composed of Soul Masters.
The enormous financial cost translates into equally significant deterrence!
At the very least, under the banner of the [Tiandou Empire], the numerous kingdoms and duchies do not dare act rashly in the face of this threat.
To this day, the world remains unaware of how the royal family of the [Tiandou Empire] has managed to breed so many Tian-Hun Horses.
However, once the Tian-Hun Horse is out in the wild, the Tiandou Empire will undoubtedly launch a thorough investigation.
At that time, not just Long Yin's father, who possesses the power of a Soul Master, but even the entire Shuimu Principality would not be able to withstand the wrath of the Tiandou Empire.
As soon as Qingqiu Xin voiced his concern, Long Yin instinctively shrank back, though he protested defiantly, "I never said I wanted to take a Tian-Hun Horse anyway...
I just don't believe that throughout the whole Douluo Continent, there's no other descendant of Soul Beast Horses around!"
"Of course there are," Qingqiu Xin nodded, continuing, "I've heard that when the Xing Luo Empire's royalty takes to the road, their carriages are pulled by horses descended from soul beasts. Unlike the Tian-Hun Horses of the Tiandou Empire, they're a different breed.
And besides, there's..."
"Alright!" Long Yin jumped up and plopped down beside Ling Yi, moving away from Qingqiu Xin and grumbling, "I guess I'm just daydreaming, right?"
At this point, Zhang Mufeng chuckled, interrupting the bickering between Long Yin and Qingqiu Xin. "Alright, let's follow Brother Yi's method and use our soul power to stimulate the vitality and strengthen the bodies of these horses.
Eventually, they won't be any weaker than those Tian-Hun Horses!"
Long Yin agreed emphatically, "Exactly! If you ask me..."
Listening to the spirited discussion of his three friends, Ling Yi didn't join in. He merely smiled and watched, his soul power circulating smoothly within him, as he harmonized with the surrounding 'Blue Silver Grass,' mimicking and sensing their presence.
(End of Chapter)
