Chapter 125: Nourishment of the Soul
When Mo Lin saw through the false appearance of the “Dragon-Binding Net” and the seven Earth-Rank beings—realizing that they were nothing more than extensions of Monk Jingyue’s soul—he decisively made a move that shocked Jingyue.
It bit down hard on the Dragon-Binding Net and began violently tearing at it.
Jingyue stared dumbfounded at Mo Lin’s crude actions, as if it had reverted to a primitive wild beast, then sneered coldly:
“Hmph, I thought you this Anaconda Demon truly had some means. Turns out you are all bluster with nothing inside. In the end, you actually wish to rely on such methods to escape my control? What a disgrace to the face of an Earth-Rank Demonic Beast.”
Jingyue originally did not take Mo Lin’s beast-like actions seriously.
But soon he realized something was wrong.
“？”
After Mo Lin had seen through the dream, Jingyue no longer needed to painstakingly construct the illusory world. He placed all his focus on killing Mo Lin.
But to his shock, despite mobilizing his full soul power, the degree of pressure he could exert on Mo Lin was no greater than before. Instead, he even felt a strange heaviness, as if it was harder.
“Why does it feel like part of my soul is missing?!”
Jingyue was greatly alarmed.
A portion of his soul power had mysteriously vanished!
“What is going on?!”
After a brief moment of surprise, Jingyue sharply turned his gaze to Mo Lin, who was struggling and savagely tearing at the Dragon-Binding Net. His eyes filled with doubt and suspicion:
“Could it be that the portion of soul I lost… is the doing of this Anaconda Demon?”
Mo Lin, who was feasting on the Dragon-Binding Net, suddenly realized that the Net seemed to expand severalfold as if it possessed a soul, pulling itself away from him.
Through the gaps of the Dragon-Binding Net, he saw Jingyue staring at him in fright:
“Anaconda Demon, what have you done?”
“Why has a part of my soul disappeared!”
Looking at Jingyue, who was shaken with fear, Mo Lin gave a cold snort, flicked out his snake tongue, and let out a chilling laugh:
“Heh, bald donkey, your soul is quite delicious. I rather like it.”
At these words, Jingyue gritted his teeth.
“Anaconda Demon, so it truly is your doing! Just what have you done!”
Mo Lin twisted its body twice.
“Ah, I just got myself a little tasty nourishment. I feel much more comfortable now.”
Seeing Mo Lin’s shameless expression, Jingyue wished he could rip that flickering snake tongue right out of its mouth.
This Anaconda Demon!
Its temperament was far too vile!
Unwilling to accept it, Jingyue once again pressed the Dragon-Binding Net down toward Mo Lin while carefully sensing with his soul.
Mo Lin didn’t indulge him. Instead, it tore at the Dragon-Binding Net again, devouring it mouthful by mouthful, swallowing Jingyue’s soul essence into its belly and refining it into its own.
Originally, its soul still ached from having been cut eight times within Jingyue’s dream, but Jingyue’s soul now served as the best nourishment to mend it.
Mo Lin felt as if a pair of cool hands gently caressed the places where its soul had ached. Wherever they passed, it felt icy cool, no more pain, only a tingling numbness.
Meanwhile, Jingyue finally noticed something was very wrong after carefully sensing.
The portion of his soul transformed into the Dragon-Binding Net, once swallowed into Mo Lin’s mouth, should have returned to him as pure soul essence.
After all, Mo Lin was at this moment merely a soul body as well. What benefit could swallowing another’s soul bring it?
Normally, it would only provoke rejection.
Yet in his perception, once that portion of his soul entered Mo Lin’s soul body, it suddenly went “snap”—its connection with him severed without warning.
As if the ownership of that soul fragment had been rewritten, now belonging to Mo Lin.
Jingyue’s expression drastically changed.
This Anaconda Demon was devouring his soul!!!
Watching Mo Lin still “wolfing down” his essence, Jingyue’s face grew twisted—something that had not even happened earlier when Mo Lin mocked him upon awakening.
Even though Mo Lin had seen through his dream, Jingyue had still believed everything was under his control, that Mo Lin was still trapped in the illusion.
No matter if Mo Lin saw through it or not, Jingyue was confident he could make it die within his dream.
Victory had seemed certain.
But now, he realized the situation had gone wrong. The Anaconda Demon was actually eating his soul!
He had thought Mo Lin’s words—“your soul is delicious”—were just a taunt, but unexpectedly, it was literal!
This made Jingyue’s composure collapse completely.
All his life wandering the martial world, his most relied upon move was “Dual Dream.”
He had encountered those immune to being drawn into his dream.
He had encountered those who saw through the dream after entering it.
He had even encountered those who broke the dream by sheer might.
But never—not once—had he seen someone like Mo Lin, who, after “waking,” immediately began devouring his soul!
This was wrong!
Shouldn’t Mo Lin be panicking, despairing, trying to use spiritual power to break the illusion—so that he could sneer and tell it, “it is useless”?
Why was it eating already?!
Since when was his soul food to be eaten?!
What kind of Anaconda Demon was this?!
How could anyone play with such a creature?!
Jingyue’s face turned dark and terrifying. Watching Mo Lin still devouring, he waved his hand, and the scene before them abruptly shifted.
Mo Lin suddenly felt it had bitten down on nothing.
Opening its eyes, it found itself no longer beside the Ning River water system with the Yongzhou Chamber of Commerce, nor the mountains where it had wandered two or three days before falling asleep again.
Instead, it was back at the very place where it had first fallen asleep, waiting for a month until the Mountain Lord and other Demonic Beasts launched the “Falcon Beak” operation.
Mo Lin realized it had already emerged from Jingyue’s dream.
Still, wary that this could be some layered “dream within a dream,” it swallowed a stone into its belly. Confirming it was not Jingyue’s soul, it finally relaxed—certain it had truly awakened.
On the other side, Jingyue’s expression twitched as he watched Mo Lin shove a stone into its mouth.
Of course he knew Mo Lin still mistook that stone for his soul.
That only enraged him further.
Upon exiting the dream, he nearly stumbled—clear signs of overexerted soul power surfacing after awakening.
Ordinarily, he wouldn’t have been this weakened—if not for Mo Lin devouring his soul.
Meanwhile, Mo Lin, having consumed part of his soul, actually appeared in better condition than Jingyue, the very caster of the dream.
Mo Lin woke fully, raised its body, and looked at Jingyue. This was its first time seeing him clearly in the real world.
A rather delicate monk.
Like Wuzhen and Jingchen, the kind of man one would turn back for another look at.
Mo Lin muttered to itself—were all the monks of White Horse Temple this handsome?
Or did White Horse Temple only like to recruit such pretty ones?
Jingyue, on his side, measured Mo Lin in silence. Though shaken by Mo Lin’s shocking actions, his temperament gradually returned to calm and aloof, as if restored from the blow.
He then took the initiative to speak:
“Anaconda Demon, though I do not know what method you used, I must admit—among the countless Demonic Beasts I have transcended, you are the most unusual.”
“Seeing that your cultivation is not low, and your soul foundation deep, this poor monk is also one who cherishes talent. Would you be willing to enter my White Horse Temple and become my mount?”
“In the future, if you succeed in your cultivation, you may become one of White Horse Temple’s Eight Heavenly Dragon Protectors.”