“Brother Chen, what kind of fish did you catch this time?
It tastes so good.”
“Yeah, I’ve never eaten such fresh fish before.”
Su Chen was not stingy.
After bringing the Sea Soul Beast back, he called over the children who had already eaten the farewell meal with him earlier.
Of course, they didn’t come empty-handed, nor were they idle.
Relying on the mountains means eating from the mountains; relying on the water means eating from the water.
Although Zanghai Village wasn’t very wealthy, it definitely couldn’t be described as struggling to make a living.
Every household had at least some savings.
Su Chen didn’t bring out the entire Sea Soul Beast; it was so huge that cutting off a single piece was enough for a big feast.
The chef was still that ambitious little girl who wanted to marry Su Chen.
“Just eat your food; why so many questions?”
“I can’t eat anymore, really, I can’t.”
The children were all clutching their stomachs and moaning.
The meat of the Sea Soul Beast was firm but not tough.
Su Chen had overestimated their appetites.
More than half of the Sea Soul Beast meat remained, and everyone was already too full to eat.
“Clean up, and take the remaining meat home.”
Su Chen was also full and satisfied, waving his hand lazily.
“Alright!”
“Great!
I’ll let Dad taste this fish meat too.
He said maybe he can catch one someday.”
In addition to the leftover cooked meat, Su Chen also wrapped up a large piece of raw meat for each of them.
Having received much care from the village over the years, Su Chen wouldn’t hoard a mere bit of Spirit Beast meat like a treasure.
“Brother Chen, are you going to the Spirit Master Academy soon?”
As they were leaving, one of the children asked.
“Yeah, leaving tomorrow.”
“Huh?”
A group of children looked dejected.
There was no helping it; Su Chen’s charisma and leadership were just that strong.
The next day.
When Su Chen prepared to leave Zanghai Village, the children and many villagers came out to see him off.
“Brother Chen, take care of yourself when you’re out there alone.”
“Xiao Chen, strive to do well and become an outstanding Spirit Master.”
“Brother Su Chen, will you come back?”
“Su Chen, take these with you.”
The village had prepared a large bag of dry rations, some clothes, and luggage for Su Chen, handing them to him only at the moment of departure.
A few fishermen uncles in the village had originally said they would take Su Chen to the Spirit Master Academy, but Su Chen refused.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to owe any more favors, but rather that Su Chen never intended to go to a Spirit Master Academy in the first place.
With the God of Destruction, that elderly grandfather in his pendant, there, why would he need to waste time in an Elementary Spirit Master Academy?
Furthermore, the God of Destruction had set another destination for him, though these things couldn’t be explained to them.
After walking Su Chen to the main road, the sturdy village chief said:
“Xiao Chen, since you didn’t want us to take you to the academy, Old He from Fuhai Village is also heading to the city.
You can just take his ox cart, and we’ll be more at ease.”
As he spoke, the village chief shouted to the ox cart slowly approaching:
“Old He, hurry up!
Are you pulling the cart or is the ox pulling it?
Stop dawdling!”
“Thank you, Uncle Village Chief.”
Su Chen had been confused earlier; he said he didn’t need to be escorted, and everyone had actually agreed.
It turned out the village chief had already arranged everything.
While riding an ox cart wasn’t exactly comfortable, it was still much easier than walking.
“Hey, you brat, you’ve learned to be polite.”
The village chief brought Su Chen to Old He’s ox cart, and without caring whether Su Chen was willing or not, he picked him up and placed him on the cart.
“Old He, Xiao Chen is the treasure of our village.
Be careful on the road; don’t let Xiao Chen get bumped or bruised.”
“Rest assured, even if I don’t do it for your old face, I’d still take good care of Xiao Chen.”
The Old He the village chief spoke of was a dark-skinned man with a face full of wrinkles.
“Xiao Chen, how about it?
My girl is still thinking about you.
How about I take you back to my place for a few days first?”
Old He had a big smile on his face, making the wrinkles on his face look even deeper.
This Old He was one of the people who had expressed a desire to adopt Su Chen.
There was no helping it; looking too handsome just came with these kinds of troubles.
“In your dreams!
Your daughter is just like you—sturdy and dark.
Don’t go scaring Xiao Chen.”
The village chief and Old He laughed and traded a few insults, then leaned close to Su Chen’s ear and whispered:
“I could tell since you were small that you wouldn’t be an ordinary person when you grew up.
That meat you had Xiao Ya take back yesterday was Spirit Beast meat, right?
You’ve got guts, kid.
You haven’t even gone to a Spirit Master Academy to learn, yet you dare to kill a Spirit Beast.
Don’t do that again in the future.”
The village chief was the most knowledgeable person in Zanghai Village.
It was said that when he was young, he had followed a fleet to the far seas, so it wasn’t strange that he could recognize that it was Spirit Beast meat.
“I know, I’m not that stupid,” Su Chen said.
“Alright, we should get going.
Stop chatting.”
Old He flicked the ox’s back with a handful of hay, and the cart began to move with a wobble.
“Uncle Village Chief, don’t let Xiao Ya keep waiting for me.
I can’t be your son-in-law.”
After the ox cart had driven some distance away, Su Chen spoke to the village chief, who was waving at him.
Xiao Ya was the little girl who had cooked two meals for Su Chen, and she was also the village chief’s daughter.
Old He, who was driving the cart, immediately let out a boisterous, bell-like laugh.
“Hey, you rascal.”
The village chief shouted with a laugh.
“I knew from the start that you were the type to flirt with trouble.
I wouldn’t dare push Xiao Ya into a fire pit like that.
Get going!”
The speed of the ox cart gradually increased, and they completely left the village behind.
“How is it, Xiao Chen?
Are you already starting to miss home?”
Old He asked, turning his head back while driving the ox cart.
“It’s alright.
We’ve barely started.
Besides, it’s not like I’m never coming back.”
Having lived in Zanghai Village for over six years, it was impossible not to have feelings for the place.
But to say he was filled with reluctance to leave?
That wasn’t quite it.
He wasn’t really just a child leaving home for the first time.
“That’s good.
You look like the kind of person who’s destined for great things.”
The two chatted idly like this until Su Chen felt a slight vibration from his pendant.
“Senior God of Destruction, what exactly is the destination you spoke of?”
Su Chen had already learned to communicate with the God of Destruction using Mental Energy, so he didn’t need to speak out loud.
“Star Dou Great Forest.”
The God of Destruction’s answer was concise and to the point.
“Star Dou Great Forest?”
Su Chen was a bit surprised.
“That’s right.”
Assuming Su Chen didn’t know where the Star Dou Great Forest was, the God of Destruction explained:
“It is the largest Spirit Beast forest on the Douluo Continent.
You will Cultivate on your way there, and by the time you arrive, your Soul Power should have reached a Breakthrough to level ten, allowing you to obtain your first spirit ring there.”
It wasn’t that Su Chen didn’t know about the Star Dou Great Forest; he was confused as to why the God of Destruction wanted him to go there alone.
He was only a six-year-old child; going to such a dangerous Spirit Beast forest all by himself?
Did the God of Destruction have some misunderstanding about his strength?
Even with the Hundred Battles Spear Art, it was impossible for him to deal with very powerful Spirit Beasts.
“Can you help deal with Spirit Beasts?”
The God of Destruction rarely avoided answering directly this time.
“You don’t need to worry about that.
You just need to Cultivate well.
When you reach the Star Dou Great Forest, you will naturally have the spirit ring you need.”
“Alright.”
Su Chen still had quite a bit of confidence in the God of Destruction’s capability to act; so far, he hadn’t failed to deliver on anything he promised.