"This old man will definitely enslave your soul and make you suffer eternal torment, never to be reincarnated!"
Zhongli Di's sinister voice echoed throughout the entire area.
His right hand, gripping the long staff, suddenly turned gray. A layer of fine gray scales covered it, and soon those scales spread to every corner of his body, even his face was no exception.
The soul rings floating beside him were clearly eight in number. An eight-ring Soul Douluo!
Unlike ordinary soul masters, the light of his soul ring was noticeably dim, as though shrouded in a layer of gray mist.
The long staff in Zhongli Di's hand erupted with intense radiance. The gray gemstone at its tip transformed into a bizarre blood-red color, resembling an eyeball stained with fresh blood.
Not only were several blood-colored beast souls appearing around Zhongli Di, but a large number of blood-colored phantoms surged out from his staff, swarming toward Wang Qiu'er and the people not far behind her.
At such close range, everyone felt the profound impact of this evil soul master's power unleashed. A thick, bloody aura assaulted their faces. In an instant, visions of corpses strewn across the land appeared in everyone's minds. The nauseating stench made them want to vomit, and even breathing became somewhat difficult.
"Evil soul master?!" Zhang Lexuan's expression darkened.
An eight-ring Soul Douluo-level evil soul master, relying on bizarre methods, was capable of contending with an ordinary Titled Douluo.
Looking at Zhongli Tian and Zhongli Ren, who looked exactly like Zhongli Di, it was not hard to make certain associations.
In this situation, Zhang Lexuan did not immediately blame Wang Qiu'er but instead considered how to protect everyone.
Facing three eight-ring Soul Douluo evil soul masters, even she would not have an easy time.
Fortunately, Elder Song was secretly following the group, which gave her peace of mind.
Of course, if she were alone, she would have absolute confidence in withdrawing calmly.
As the generational successor to the former Sea God Pavilion Master, Zhang Lexuan was only slightly inferior compared to Xu Zihuang. Outside, she was still a genius rarely seen in a century.
Her caution stemmed from not wanting any casualties among the group.
At that moment, a golden light shone from Wang Qiu'er's delicate body. The brilliant radiance carried a regal majesty, and a terrifying pressure instantly erupted. As the aura swept forward, faint golden light patterns emanated.
All the blood-colored beast souls charging toward Wang Qiu'er and the others melted away like snow in spring, scattering amid shrieking, miserable cries. Although they did not perish completely, their soul power was clearly severely weakened.
The muscles on Zhongli Di's face twisted grotesquely in rage. Not only had he failed to obtain the ten-thousand-year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear's beast soul this time, but many of the blood-colored beast souls he had enslaved suffered serious losses.
"Very well! None of you will leave this place alive today."
The gemstone at the top of Zhongli Di's staff burst with dazzling light.
With a flash, a tiger radiating misty dark-green light appeared before him.
The Netherworld Ghost Tiger, truly one of the most powerful soul beasts standing at the peak of the soul beast pyramid. At the same cultivation level, its strength was not much inferior to the Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear; at the very least, it could confront it head-on.
However, due to their different specializations, the Netherworld Ghost Tiger's killing power was certainly far less ferocious than the Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear's terrifying Darkgolden Terrorclaws.
The last time Xu Zihuang and Zhang Lexuan entered the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt soul beasts, they had personally experienced the might of this kind of soul beast.
Moreover, unlike the other blood-colored beast souls, this Netherworld Ghost Tiger was Zhongli Di's natal beast soul, retaining most of its power from when it was alive. This could be seen from the incredibly solid form of the Netherworld Ghost Tiger beast soul.
"Second Brother, be careful. These little ones are not simple. The oldest-looking woman has cultivation not inferior to mine." The eldest of the three evil soul master brothers, Zhongli Tian, spoke gravely through soul power transmission to remind Zhongli Di.
Wang Qiu'er's ability to counter beast souls was only one of the reasons he was wary; the main reason was the surging soul power he sensed within Zhang Lexuan. The thickness of that soul power actually surpassed his own.
"Third Brother, let's make our move too."
A burst of reddish-gold light flashed, transforming in front of Zhongli Tian into a massive reddish-gold male lion.
It was his natal beast soul, the Redgold Lion. The Redgold Lion was a variant of the Golden Lion King and could be considered a branch of the golden bloodline. It was even more powerful than the Netherworld Ghost Tiger.
Zhongli Ren's natal beast soul was a leopard-type soul beast radiating brownish light all over its body, with brownish skin covered in coin-shaped patterns.
The Ghostshadow Leopard Emperor is also a top-tier soul beast at the first level.
The three Zhongli brothers were extremely cautious, and their coordination with one another was seamless. Although Zhongli Di appeared furious, he had not lost his reason.
The Redgold Lion took the center position, while the illusory Netherworld Ghost Tiger and the Ghostshadow Leopard Emperor, whose form was nearly impossible to catch as it blended into the air, flickered alternately on either side of the Redgold Lion.
Normally, the three Zhongli brothers would never be willing to let their natal beast souls take action. Although these natal beast souls were powerful, they were completely fused with their own souls. If the natal beast soul suffered heavy damage, they themselves would also suffer backlash.
But they had already lost too many beast souls earlier, and Wang Qiu'er's killing of that ten-thousand-year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear had caused their plans to fall short.
To suffer such a loss in vain, the anger in their hearts could be imagined.
The three Zhongli brothers had never been people with good tempers. Only by enslaving and tormenting the souls of the Shrek Academy group could they vent their hatred.
Most importantly, they had previously used these three natal beast souls to jointly suppress that peak-state ten-thousand-year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear. They did not believe that the current Xu Zihuang and the others could be stronger than that ten-thousand-year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear.
Facing the combined assault of the Redgold Lion, Netherworld Ghost Tiger, and Ghostshadow Leopard Emperor, the group's reactions varied.
Zhang Lexuan reacted first, stepping in front of everyone. She released her martial soul, preparing to use her abilities to resist the three Zhongli brothers' natal beast souls. Right beside her stood Wang Qiu'er, showing no intention of retreating whatsoever.
Li Yongyue, Mo Xuan, and Ning Tian were inner court disciples, but they had never experienced such a scene before.
The cultivation of the Redgold Lion, Netherworld Ghost Tiger, and Ghostshadow Leopard Emperor all exceeded thirty thousand years. Their combined aura was comparable to an ordinary hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
Under this aura's pressure, the three of them instinctively slowed by half a beat.
Dai Luoli, with only forty-level soul power, fared even worse; his face turned deathly pale, and the soul power in his body became somewhat uncontrollable, unable to condense properly. Fortunately, Zhang Lexuan and Wang Qiu'er were blocking in front, preventing him from losing consciousness on the spot.
Two yellow, two purple, three black, one red, eight soul rings flashed one after another around Zhang Lexuan. Her body seemed to pause for some reason, then she gave a slight nod.
A faint silver mist rose from beneath her feet, enveloping an area hundreds of meters around and including everyone within it.
Under the illumination of that silver mist, every scene and object in the area seemed to gain an additional layer of dreamlike beauty.
This was the innate domain-like ability of Zhang Lexuan's Silver Moon martial soul. While within it, her soul power and Silver Moon martial soul abilities were amplified, and it also had the effect of concealing one's figure and aura.
Under the influence of the silver mist, Zhang Lexuan's soul power and aura were rising at an astonishing speed, as though she were accumulating power. The crescent silver moon hanging above her head gradually grew larger, approaching the shape of a full moon.
Her beautiful eyes also shone with silver light.
Wang Qiu'er felt an indescribable palpitation from Zhang Lexuan. She, who had originally intended to meet the enemy head-on, hesitated for a brief moment.
Then she saw the first, second, and third soul rings on Zhang Lexuan light up almost simultaneously. The silver full moon in the sky immediately began pouring down beams of moonlight one after another, dense and numerous, like a soul guidance device firing soul guidance rays.
However, her attacks were not aimed at the three Zhongli brothers' natal beast souls, but at their main bodies.
Seeing the blood-red hundred-thousand-year soul ring beside Zhang Lexuan, the three Zhongli brothers felt both shock and greed.
They were shocked that Zhang Lexuan had successfully absorbed a hundred-thousand-year soul ring at rank eighty, and greedy because a person with a hundred-thousand-year soul ring very likely possessed a hundred-thousand-year-level soul bone.
A hundred-thousand-year soul bone would more than make up for their previous losses.
No matter what attribute it had, a hundred-thousand-year soul bone was never ordinary. High-quality soul bones could already improve a soul master's aptitude to a certain extent, and a hundred-thousand-year soul bone could truly be said to have the effect of allowing an ordinary soul master to be reborn and defy fate, no exaggeration.
If any one of the three brothers could fuse with a hundred-thousand-year soul bone, they would surely break through to the Titled Douluo realm in the future.
At that time, their status within the Holy Spirit Cult would naturally rise.
Yet Zhang Lexuan's choice to attack their main bodies caused the three Zhongli brothers to be momentarily stunned in unison.
"You think attacking our main bodies can stop our natal beast souls' assault?" After reacting, they sneered disdainfully in unison.
The three brothers simultaneously raised their staffs high. Blood-colored light surged. Three beams of blood light supported each other, forming a massive blood-colored barrier that enveloped their bodies.
Although the pouring silver moonlight carried considerable power, it was still blocked by the three Zhongli brothers working together. Ripples appeared on the blood-colored barrier, deep and stable.
They did not forget to drive their natal beast souls forward, intending to tear everyone apart.
All three brothers revealed cruel and icy smiles. After cultivating for decades, how could they not have considered their relatively weak defensive power? That was why they had spent immense effort and astronomical funds to craft the staffs in their hands.
These were genuine eighth-grade soul guidance devices.
But in the very next instant, the smiles on their faces froze abruptly, their pupils contracting.
A cyan-glowing hawk phantom appeared in front of Zhang Lexuan and Wang Qiu'er. A cyan light blade swept past like a sharp edge, accompanied by a powerful sonic boom.
The speed of that cyan light blade was simply too fast, as though it had pierced through space. It struck the Redgold Lion, Netherworld Ghost Tiger, and Ghostshadow Leopard Emperor simultaneously, leaving three deep gashes.
Elder Song's figure drifted down gracefully, her gaze cold.
"Mu Lao was right. Those evil soul masters have indeed grown into a real threat."
Having their natal beast souls heavily injured, the three Zhongli brothers seemed to endure immense pain. Their bodies trembled uncontrollably, and their auras rapidly weakened.
"Super Douluo?!" Their voices were hoarse as they gnashed their teeth.
An ordinary Titled Douluo could never so easily inflict heavy damage on their natal beast souls. Only a Super Douluo-level powerhouse could possess such an ability.
Fearful emotions began to sprout in their hearts.
It was also at this moment that Zhongli Tian keenly noticed that one person was missing from the Shrek Academy group.
"Not good!" Guided by the qi connection, the eldest and strongest Zhongli Tian felt a shock. He suddenly raised his head, his eyes practically splitting as he roared furiously: "Second Brother, watch out!"
Zhongli Di and Zhongli Ren followed Zhongli Tian's gaze and looked upward.
A youth entirely wrapped in black-purple lightning descended from the sky with a cold, stern expression. His right hand was raised high. Golden light converged, and a brilliant golden spear appeared in the youth's right hand.
Immediately afterward, he drew his right arm back across his chest to gather power. A ring of blood-red soul rings flashed around him, and black-purple lightning instantly enveloped the spear.
The spear's form also changed, as though a long spear formed purely from condensed black-purple lightning had perfectly overlapped with the golden spear.
A brand-new purple-gold long spear was formed.
The purple-gold long spear was hurled out, swift as lightning. The surrounding space distorted violently. The sharp aura fused with the terrifying might of thunder, ruthlessly piercing through the blood-colored barrier jointly released by the three Zhongli brothers.
The blood-colored barrier shattered with a boom. The three Zhongli brothers staggered back several steps.
"Pfft—"
After penetrating the blood-colored barrier, the long spear's momentum did not weaken.
Under precise control, the long spear pierced straight through Zhongli Di's brow, nailing him firmly to the ground.
His life force was instantly erased.
Before dying, Zhongli Di's dull yellow eyes were still filled with incredulous terror.
The youth was none other than Xu Zihuang. He had coordinated with Zhang Lexuan and Elder Song to execute the plan he had devised.
From the very beginning, he had used mental power to convey to Elder Song the idea of annihilating these three evil soul master brothers. Later, he had requested Zhang Lexuan's cooperation.
Although Elder Song was a Super Douluo-level powerhouse with immense strength, evil soul masters had bizarre methods. If these three evil soul masters disregarded everything and fled desperately while using the Shrek Academy group as hostages, she would inevitably have some reservations.
Among the Sea God Pavilion's elders, Elder Song had always been the most open-minded. For example, she had strongly supported the development of Shrek Academy's soul guidance system from early on.
When she heard Yu Tianhuang's feasible plan and his guarantee of absolute self-preservation, she decisively agreed. Evil soul masters of this level, if left alive, would only bring disaster to the continent.
Of course, Elder Song's agreement to carry out the plan was also based on confidence in her own strength and speed. Even if the plan failed, she could still protect Yu Tianhuang in time.
The core of this plan was to have Zhang Lexuan and Elder Song provide dual cover for Xu Zihuang.
When Zhang Lexuan and Elder Song displayed their strength, the three Zhongli brothers would inevitably be especially wary of the two of them, and their attention would be focused on those two.
That was when Xu Zihuang's opportunity arrived. By killing one of the three Zhongli brothers, annihilating the remaining two would become much easier.
Xu Zihuang landed on Zhongli Di's corpse, gripping the purple-gold long spear. The lightning dissipated, and it returned to the original form of the Golden Dragon Spear.
The Golden Dragon Spear was also a key part of his plan. The concentration of the golden dragon bloodline within his body surpassed even Wang Qiu'er's, so he could naturally wield this Golden Dragon Spear.
With a divine artifact-level Golden Dragon Spear, plus the enhancement of the Thunder God's Spear, such destructive power was entirely reasonable.
Xu Zihuang glanced indifferently at Zhongli Tian and Zhongli Ren not far away. Deep purple eyes overflowed with killing intent.
Back then, when his family was persecuted by Xu Tianran and his son colluding with the Holy Spirit Cult, the hatred he harbored toward these evil soul masters was no less than his hatred for Xu Tianran.
His eyes opened and closed. Xu Zihuang pulled out the Golden Dragon Spear, stepped on Zhongli Di's corpse, and pointed the spear tip proudly at the two of them.
"The words he said, I return them to you unchanged. Today, not a single one of you will leave this place alive."
The calm voice carried a chilling coldness as though it came from the depths of the nine hells.
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