Emperor of Soul Pets

Chapter 49: Mysterious Egg

Three weeks later, an exhausted Rao Wu collapsed on the platform with Ju Tu and Xian Da, the trio panting hard as they struggled to calm their breath. Rao Wu, too tired to open his eyes, heaved as he painfully asked, "Hey, what was our time?"

The golem opened its eyes and looked at the sweating youth. "Congratulations, Rao Wu. With a time of 27 hours, 43 minutes, and 14 seconds, you successfully beat the previous record of 27 hours, 40 minutes, and 43 seconds.

"Yes!" Rao Wu shouted but then exploded in a fit of coughs as he struggled to catch his breath. When he finally got himself under control, Rao Wu forced himself to sit up and then grinned at Ju Tu and Xian Da. "Hear that, guys! We finally did it!"

"Yaay~" Ju Tu, planted facedown on the ground, weakly raised its right arm to acknowledge the achievement.

"Ruwu~" Xian Da, laying on the ground with its tongue out, lazily glanced at Rao Wu. "I'm tired. Let me sleep."

Rao Wu chuckled at his companions' lazy demeanor. He didn't blame them because he completely understood.

The fourth test had been immensely difficult!

On its own, the obstacle course was already three times more deadly and dangerous than the second test. Rao Wu, Ju Tu, and Xian Da nearly lost their lives on numerous occasions despite being ultra-careful.

But then, the test decided the course was not enough. It actually sent in numerous soul monsters to disrupt Rao Wu's path. The soul monsters ranged from powerhouses like an Ice Leopard to the seemingly harmless Bungee Bug.

Strangely, though, Rao Wu's party found the powerhouses easier to deal with than the 'harmless' monsters. That was because battles against the powerhouses were straightforward fights that tested their strength, cunning, and strategy. The harmless monsters, however, focused on tripping them up while they navigated the obstacle courses.

On one incredibly close call, a Bungee Bug smashed into Xian Da while it jumped between two suspended platforms. The impact knocked Xian Da off-course, and it would have fallen into a boiling spring below if Rao Wu did not recall it on time.

That was not to say the path was without injuries. On the contrary, Rao Wu, Xian Da, and Ju Tu each had their fair share of breaching the pearly gates—especially during the first run. Fortunately, the Eternal Spring Water was always on hand to save their lives.

To increase their chances of survival, Rao Wu smartly tied one jug to Ju Tu and Xian Da so that the Eternal Spring Water was always available for healing no matter who got injured.

Of course, after Ju Tu accidentally smashed its own, Rao Wu reduced the quantity in the jugs to less than a cupful since that was enough to buy time to bring out the larger quantities from his spatial ring.

Rao Wu sighed as he took note of their progress over the past three weeks. Stimulated by the constant life and death-struggles, Xian Da and Ju Tu both progressed one stage to 2nd Phase-Stage Seven and 2nd Phase-Stage Eight, respectively.

Three weeks to grow by a single stage was slow by Rao Wu's standards, but he knew it was inevitable. Soul Monsters grew exponentially faster during the first and second phases of their lives. Afterward, it could take weeks or even months to increase a stage—mostly because soul cores and crystals were not as freely available in the outside world as they were in the test chamber.

Due to his monsters' 'slow' growth, Rao Wu's soul did not grow much either. He was currently a Third Stage Soul Student, unlocking space for a new soul pet.

Fortunately, though Rao Wu's soul did not grow, there was one area that did see a vast improvement in the last few weeks, and that was his cultivation of the Trickster manual. The manual boosted his physical state to 1st Phase Stage Seven. Not only was Rao Wu much stronger, but he also unlocked a new skill at the Sixth Stage.