Zhao Ling landed the Cloud-Piercing Shuttle on the outskirts of Sunset Forest, about a hundred li away from Heaven Dou Imperial City.
Standing at the bow, he gazed into the depths of Sunset Forest, considering whether to go ahead and claim the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well for himself.
After all, there were many immortal-grade herbs within the well. These valuable treasures could not only benefit him greatly but also help Ah Yin and Dong'er.
Moreover, he had just obtained the system's reward: the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record. With this, he figured he should be able to recognize most of the herbs inside the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, if not all of them.
He could harvest the mature herbs and store them in his storage space for future use.
Not to brag, but his storage space was nothing like those useless storage soul tools.
No matter what item he placed inside, it would remain exactly the same when retrieved—almost like time stood still within the space.
This meant anything he stored would stay as fresh as possible.
This discovery was thanks to a time in Soto City when Zhao Ling bought a few piping hot buns, intending them as snacks for Ah Yin. But back then, Ah Yin would fall asleep every time they entered the Soul Arena.
So the buns got tossed into his storage space and forgotten. A few days ago, while organizing the space, he pulled the buns out—only to find they were still steaming hot. He even took a bite to confirm.
That was when he realized his storage space had excellent preservation properties. The only downside was that it couldn't store living creatures.
Still, with mature immortal herbs stored there, as long as Zhao Ling stayed alive, they would remain as fresh as the moment they were picked—no matter how many years passed.
With this in mind, Zhao Ling made up his mind to make a nighttime trip to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to harvest the mature herbs, leaving the immature ones to continue growing.
Having decided, he went back into the cabin, where he saw Ah Yin reading The Empress Ran Off with the Baby under the lamplight, giggling from time to time.
Bo Saixi, influenced by her, had picked up The Domineering Crown Prince Fell in Love with Me and was reading with great interest. Occasionally, the two would exchange thoughts on the plot.
Zhao Ling sighed softly and said to Ah Yin, "Yin'er, your husband is heading out for a bit. Do you want to come with me?"
"No, no, I don't have time. You go ahead, hubby." Ah Yin didn't even look up, just waved him off.
Zhao Ling was a bit annoyed. What was up with this girl? She was so engrossed in that trashy novel that she didn't even want to come along with him?
He glanced over at Bo Saixi, but the next second, he looked away.
Forget it. Even Ah Yin, who had already shared the intimacy of marriage with him, didn't want to go. Why should he expect anything from Bo Saixi, who didn't care for him at all?
So, Zhao Ling left the Cloud-Piercing Shuttle alone and ventured into the depths of Sunset Forest.
Now, Zhao Ling had grown bold with his power. If this had been ten years ago, he would never have dared to enter Sunset Forest alone at night.
Even though Sunset Forest wasn't as dangerous as the Star Dou Great Forest, it was still highly perilous for most humans.
There were countless soul beasts with ten-thousand-year cultivation, and even some hundred-thousand-year ones weren't unheard of.
But for Zhao Ling now, whether it was ten-thousand-year or even hundred-thousand-year beasts, none of them could easily cause him trouble.
Of course, there were still some low-level soul beasts—like century- or millennium-old pigs or wolves—that didn't know any better. Seeing a lone human wandering into the forest at night, they followed him with ill intent, hoping to eat him.
Zhao Ling, being ever helpful and kind, took care of those foolish beasts and stored them in his storage space.
He was a meat lover, after all. Those low-level beast meats would be perfect for roasting later—add some oil, cumin, and chili powder, and the flavor would be incredible.
The most annoying encounter was with a pack of over a hundred Nether Wolves. These creatures were pitifully weak but loved to hunt in packs.
They didn't dare attack Zhao Ling directly and instead tried sneak attacks, mistaking him for an ordinary person since he hadn't released any soul rings or shown his power.
However, Zhao Ling had already killed quite a few soul beasts by then, and the scent of blood on him let the wolves pick up all kinds of blood traces.
So they lingered tens of meters away, not daring to get close but not willing to give up either.
Finally, Zhao Ling released a small amount of his Title Douluo aura—and immediately, all the Nether Wolves collapsed in fear. Those farther away and slightly stronger fled in terror.
Zhao Ling had thought of kindly "liberating" all the wolves, but he gave up on that idea. He already had enough wild boar, wolf, and even leopard meat in his storage to last a lifetime.
Instead, he approached the Nether Wolf King, which seemed to be around 700 or 800 years old—a complete weakling by Zhao Ling's standards, unworthy even to be his first soul ring.
The Wolf King, sensing Zhao Ling's cold gaze, trembled instinctively in fear of the strong. It wanted to flee but didn't even have the courage to stand up, only burying its head lower.
Seeing its pathetic fear, Zhao Ling walked up and gave it over a dozen hard slaps across the head—smack smack smack...
Only when the Wolf King's head swelled like it had been stung by a dozen bees did Zhao Ling give it a sinister smile.
"Remember this face. Remember my scent. If I come back to Sunset Forest and you dare bring your pack to trail me again—I'll skin you alive."
With that, he continued deeper into the forest. The Wolf King watched his figure disappear, then let out a howl and led the rest of the pack to flee in panic.
Though it hadn't developed full intelligence, it still understood that Zhao Ling had spared its life as a warning.
Naturally, it chose to run. As long as it could escape, it would never have to meet that terrifying human again.
As for revenge? Ha! It didn't have the guts. The aura Zhao Ling had released earlier was far stronger than that of the ten-thousand-year beasts in the heart of Sunset Forest. It had no interest in tempting fate ever again.