My System Logged-in Too Early! (Soul Land Fanfiction)

Chapter 12: Warning! A 50,000-Year-Old Jade Silkworm King Detected!

Whoosh!

Xiao Tian leaped onto the Xuan-Yuan Sword, channeling half of his soul power into it. Something remarkable occurred: the sword expanded! Its blade grew to three or four times its original size.

"Xuan-Yuan, shrink a little!" Xiao Tian's mind issued a command, and the sword promptly shrank to an appropriate size. The excess soul power he had injected was stored within the blade, acting as fuel for future flights.

Boom!

In the next moment, under Xiao Wu's astonished gaze, Xiao Tian soared into the sky, performing an elegant loop before descending gracefully back to the ground.

"So cool!" Xiao Wu's eyes sparkled with admiration. Compared to Xiao Tian's stunning sword flight, her earlier experience of floating on the Xuan-Yuan Sword felt like child's play.

After landing, Xiao Tian dismissed the sword and nodded in satisfaction. To think he had succeeded on his first attempt! The possibilities this discovery unlocked filled him with excitement. He'd realized that he could store a portion of his soul power within the Xuan-Yuan Sword, enabling it to act autonomously.

This revelation thrilled him. It was akin to the soul power storage effect of a soul guide container from the Douluo Dalu 2 era. If his enemies believed he was exhausted, the Xuan-Yuan Sword could feign inactivity before suddenly launching a fatal strike. The thought alone made Xiao Tian grin.

Hearing Xiao Wu's praise, Xiao Tian laughed. "How about I take you flying next?"

Xiao Wu hesitated. "Are you sure it won't drop me halfway?"

She was genuinely worried. If Xiao Tian ran out of soul power mid-flight, the consequences would be catastrophic.

"Don't worry, we'll keep it short and low," Xiao Tian assured her.

Night fell quickly. As Xiao Wu drifted off to sleep, Xiao Tian tiptoed out of their dormitory. He didn't want to explain his rapid cultivation progress to her just yet, especially since they had only known each other for a few days. Avoiding unnecessary questions seemed like the best course of action.

Leaving the city behind, Xiao Tian headed in the opposite direction of the Soul Hunting Forest where Tang San and Yu Xiaogang had gone. As he traveled, he continued to charge the Xuan-Yuan Sword with his soul power to test its storage capacity.

Before long, the sword began to tremble violently in his grasp, almost as if to say, "Enough! I'm full! Don't force-feed me any more!"

Xiao Tian chuckled. Based on his calculations, the Xuan-Yuan Sword could currently store an amount of soul power equivalent to one-tenth of his total reserves. After obtaining his first soul ring, it should be able to store even more.

As dawn broke, Xiao Tian finally reached the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest. However, instead of rushing in, he stopped at a small roadside teahouse, ordering tea to recover his strength. This would be his first time encountering a soul beast, and although he had theoretical knowledge from his past life, facing one in reality was a different matter entirely.

---

Back at Nuoding Academy

Xiao Wu rubbed her sleepy eyes and glanced at Xiao Tian's empty bed.

"Huh? Where did he go? Did he sneak off to train without me?" Her face soured as annoyance bubbled up. "That idiot! He didn't even wake me up!"

After quickly freshening up, she hurried to their usual practice spot, only to find it deserted.

"Did he even change his training location to avoid me? Just wait until he comes back—I'll definitely teach him a lesson!"

Still, this presented an opportunity for her to quietly condense her own soul ring without interference.

---

Near the Soul Hunting Forest

After resting, Xiao Tian ventured cautiously into the outskirts of the forest. Given his current strength, he knew he could only handle soul beasts from the periphery.

His physical condition was excellent thanks to years of sword training, and he estimated he could safely absorb a soul ring from a beast close to a thousand years old. However, he didn't dare challenge one outright—soul beasts at that level had undergone a qualitative change, far surpassing their hundred-year counterparts.

As Xiao Tian advanced, he stumbled upon a bamboo grove teeming with Lone Bamboo, the same type of ten-year plant-type soul beast that Yu Xiaogang had originally guided Tang San to absorb in the original novel.

Xiao Tian couldn't help but smirk. If Tang San's first soul ring came from such a soul beast, well… Yu Xiaogang must have a death wish to even suggest that in the passing.

Lone Bamboo had no offensive capabilities, and the soul ring it provided would only slightly increase toughness. It was utterly unsuitable for Xiao Tian. His goal was clear: he sought silkworm-type soul beasts or plant-type beasts known for their immense soul power. These beasts would not only boost his soul power but also enhance the Xuan-Yuan Sword's resilience.

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[Warning! Warning! Host, evacuate immediately! A 50,000-year-old Jade Silkworm King has been detected within a 500-meter radius! Although it is non-aggressive, it is not a creature you can handle!]

Xiao Tian froze. 'What the hell? A 50,000-year-old soul beast?!' His expression shifted from confusion to dread to realization but he didn't lower his guard.

Xiao Tian activated his sword intent, which radiated outward like an extension of his limbs, allowing him to perceive his surroundings.

However, the technique drained his mental energy rapidly. Within seconds, his face turned pale. Just as he was about to retract his sword intent, he detected faint movement 400 meters to his right. Something thick and serpentine lay motionless in the grass.

Sweat beaded on Xiao Tian's forehead as he gripped the Xuan-Yuan Sword tightly, cautiously approaching the source of the disturbance. When he was finally within five meters, his heart nearly stopped.

Clinging to the grass like a chameleon was the Jade Silkworm King. Its emerald-green body shimmered with light, patterned with faint wood-like grain. Xiao Tian counted ten distinct segments on its body—this confirmed it was a thousand-year-old soul beast, at the very least!

'Damn this system! Where did it even get the idea of a 50,000-year-old Jade Silkworm King!'