At the moment of tension, Yue Zhengyu, standing up high, couldn't help but yawn, complaining, "Wulin, why do we have to stay here? Wouldn't it be better to launch an attack with the main force?"
Beside him, Yuanen Yehui also wore a gloomy expression and responded in a deep voice, "Yes, if something happens in the battle, it won't be easy to provide support here!"
Only Lan Muzi pressed his lips together, looked at Tang Wulin, and softly said, "Wulin, Zhengyu and Yehui aren't wrong, but I believe you must have your own reasoning. Could you tell us why?"
Tang Wulin heard this and replied seriously, "Yehui, Zhengyu, Elder Lan Muzi..."
Before he could finish, Lan Muzi waved his hand to interrupt, saying, "No need to call me Elder, just call me Senior Brother. After all, I'm not much older than you guys!"
Tang Wulin paused for a moment, then continued the previous topic...
"Actually, it's because my spiritual power is stronger than most Soul Masters, so I can clearly sense no fewer than ten Hyper Douluos within the Holy Spirit Cult!"
"Therefore, we must stay here and try our best to prevent them from joining the battle at the rear!"
Yue Zhengyu's eyes widened in disbelief, "What? Ten Hyper Douluos?? How is that possible! Didn't the four Dark Heavenly Kings of the Holy Spirit Cult already fall?"
Yuanen Yehui frowned, "Wulin, could you have sensed wrong? The Holy Spirit Cult clearly took a heavy blow, how could they still have so many powerful evil Soul Masters!!"
But Tang Wulin denied their words with certainty, "No, it can't be wrong. These evil Soul Masters didn't even hide their presence!!"
Lan Muzi calmed down, contemplating, "Since Wulin is so certain, it seems the Holy Spirit Cult does indeed have many such powerful evil Soul Masters!"
"If this doesn't even include the Ghost Emperor, the Ming Emperor, and that Demon Emperor, then it's terrifying!"
At the same time, he marveled at Tang Wulin's strong spiritual power, knowing that even he hadn't noticed anything!
Yue Zhengyu also restrained his emotions and suggested, "Since there are so many powerful evil Soul Masters, shouldn't we inform the federation and other forces about this?"
Yuanen Yehui agreed, "Yes, let them send more strong individuals; the chances of winning this battle would be higher!"
Tang Wulin was about to say something, but suddenly swallowed his words...
"No, it's too late. The federation's forces have already begun to advance towards the Holy Spirit Cult Headquarters, and battle is about to commence!!"
Yue Zhengyu and the others also released their spiritual power, indeed finding large groups of federation members closing in on the Holy Spirit Cult...
Lan Muzi coldly stated, "It seems that, as Wulin said, sending back intel now is too late. Prepare for battle!!"
...
Outside the Holy Spirit Cult Headquarters!
A crowd of evil Soul Masters gathered together, each emanating a strong aura of malice...
"Hahaha, those foolish idiots dare to intrude on our Holy Spirit Cult's territory; they're courting death!"
"That's right, although our Holy Spirit Cult lost the four Dark Heavenly Kings, we now have more than a dozen protectors, absolutely not afraid of them!!"
"Great, today we can finally slaughter freely and show them the terror of us evil Soul Masters!!"
"Not only that, I heard that the Sect Hierarch has already set up a Heaven and Earth Net around this area; no one can escape!!"
"Hush... stop the chatter, don't you see the Vice Sect Hierarch hasn't spoken yet!"
Halosa, in the lead, merely watched the front with emotionless, icy eyes...
Suddenly, as if sensing something, his expression finally changed slightly...
He thought to himself, "Have they come? The federation's forces!!"
Then he looked at all the present evil Soul Masters and ordered, "The federation's forces are closing in. You can use any means at your disposal. The objective is simple: kill all of them!!"
"Understood?"
The evil Soul Masters immediately grew excited, seemingly anticipating the upcoming bloodbath...
...
In the past, within the mountains of the Tiandou Empire!
Soldiers sitting around the campfire were cheerfully holding their wine pouches, discussing among themselves...
Suddenly, one of the soldiers felt a strange sense of being watched from behind, like being targeted by a Primordial Behemoth. He quickly turned to look back...
Yet, all he saw was an empty rock wall, with nothing there!
He returned to his senses, somewhat trembling, "Why does it feel so eerie here, could there be something terrifying present?"
The other soldiers, upon hearing this, mercilessly mocked him, "You're such a coward. What's possibly here? This is a godforsaken place, stop scaring yourself!"
"Exactly, we've already scouted this mountain thoroughly this morning, didn't see a shadow of any living creature!"
"Hmph, if there was something terrifying here, we wouldn't need to eat dry rations for breakfast tomorrow. Right, brothers?"
"That's right, keep drinking, guys!!"
The originally tense atmosphere became lively again...
But a few minutes later, the previous soldier felt a chill creeping up his back...
He stood up, startled, "No, something really is watching me!!"
The other soldiers saw his genuine expression but thought it was a bit too far-fetched!
The leading man frowned, reprimanding, "What a load of fuss. Fine, you few come with me to check it out and ease your mind!"
The selected soldiers reluctantly stood up but still complied with his orders...
They stumbled their way toward the surrounding forested mountains...
But as they reached a certain spot, faint breathing could be heard...
The leading man's eyes sharpened, realizing something was indeed amiss...
He immediately released his Martial Soul, his first Soul Ring glowing beneath his feet...
Dim shadows before them were driven away by a massive beam of flame shooting into the sky...
What appeared before them were dozens of soul beasts with crimson eyes...
Upon discovering their presence, they opened their bloody maws...
"Roar!!!"
The soldiers were immediately terrified, retreating several steps...
"Those, those are soul beasts, definitely soul beasts, and there are dozens of them!"
"Damn it, why are there so many soul beasts here!"
"Judging by the aura, these soul beasts have at least thousands of years of cultivation; we're no match, let's flee!!"
The leading man made a decisive decision, "Retreat!!"
...