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The third brother's fate was far more tragic. He was firmly restrained by the Soul Saint, and aside from the wounds he suffered at the hands of Xue Tianxing, he had no other serious injuries.
But when the venom of the Green Phosphorus Snake enveloped him, he truly experienced what it meant to be worse than death. The moment the poison mist touched his skin, he felt a burning pain. His previously intact skin was corroded at a speed visible to the naked eye, revealing the bright red flesh underneath.
At the same time, the poisonous gas flowed into his body through his mouth and nose, and his internal organs felt like they were being gnawed by countless small insects, causing waves of tearing pain.
"Ah—! Help! I was wrong! Forgive me!"
The third brother let out a shrill scream and struggled frantically in the ice shell, but he was unable to break free.
He could clearly feel his skin, muscles, and internal organs being corroded bit by bit, and his life was rapidly slipping away in pain, but his consciousness was extremely clear and he could only watch himself die.
After a few minutes, the third brother's screams gradually weakened and finally disappeared completely. His body fell limply into the ice shell, leaving only a shell corroded beyond recognition by the poison.
Xue Tianxing looked at the scene in front of him - the eldest brother's body was stiff in the ice, the third brother's body was corroded beyond recognition by the poison, and the five bodies not far away had already been corroded by the poisonous fog, revealing their bones.
He shook his head slightly, his eyes full of disdain:
"I thought they were assassins sent by some powerful faction, but they turned out to be just a bunch of idiot thieves who were greedy for money."
Although the boss's confession was reasonable and explained their motive for the ambush, Xue Tianxing did not completely let down his guard.
He learned the name of this mercenary group from the boss - "Black Wind Mercenary Group".
In a dangerous place like the Star Dou Great Forest, a mercenary group with no background dared to easily attack a young soul master who was dressed gorgeously and had considerable strength. It remains to be seen whether there were no other forces behind this and fanning the flames.
"Cao Qing, are you okay?"
Xue Tianxing turned to look at Cao Qing, who was recovering from his injuries, and his tone softened considerably.
Cao Qing shook his head, with a trace of guilt on his face:
"Your Highness, I was impulsive and almost held everyone back."
"I'm glad you're okay."
Xue Tianxing patted his shoulder and continued:
"When you encounter danger in the future, protect yourself first, don't force yourself."
Then Xue Tianxing paused and continued:
"Let's wrap up here for now. Let's find a suitable soul beast for you. When we return to Barak City, I'll send someone to investigate this 'Black Wind Mercenary Group' to see if there are other people behind them."
Ning Rongrong and Oscar also came over, and Oscar handed over a few recovery sausages:
"Everyone, please replenish your spirit power first. The battle just now consumed quite a bit of it."
The Shui Bing'er sisters and Dugu Yan also put away their martial spirits, with a hint of relief on their faces - after dealing with the ambushers, they could now concentrate on finding spirit rings for Cao Qing.
Seeing that the danger was over, the two Soul Saints quietly retreated into the dark, continuing to hide their aura and guarding the safety of everyone.
Xue Tianxing looked at his companions in front of him, then looked at the corpses on the ground, and a hint of determination flashed in his eyes.
In this Douluo Continent where the strong prey on the weak, only by being strong enough can you protect yourself and those around you.
He turned his head and looked towards the lake:
"Let's go, let's continue looking for soul beasts and help Cao Qing break through to the Soul Sect as soon as possible."
Everyone nodded in agreement, composed themselves, and walked towards the lake.
Before long, a vast expanse of water appeared before our eyes. This was the famous "Mirror Moon Lake" in the central circle of the Star Dou Great Forest. The water was crystal clear, reflecting the towering ancient trees on the shore. The sunlight shone on the lake, creating ripples, and the scenery was exceptionally beautiful.
But beneath this beautiful appearance, there are countless dangers.
Looking around, a large number of soul beasts gathered by the lake and in the water:
In the water, several gigantic thousand-year-old crocodiles lurked beneath the surface, revealing only a pair of cold eyes; a group of colorful thousand-year-old piranhas swam in the waters near the shore, occasionally jumping out of the water, exposing their sharp teeth;
On the beach near the shore, a dozen black-shelled turtles with thick shells on their backs were crawling slowly, nibbling on the water plants and mud.
Nearby, in the woods, several herds of thousand-year-old antelope and hares gathered by the water's edge, drinking and vigilantly observing their surroundings. Among these soul beasts, there were powerful solitary beings, as well as large groups.
While drinking water or foraging, they keep an eye on the movements of other soul beasts. Once they detect danger, they will immediately flee - in this forest where the strong prey on the weak, vigilance is the first rule of survival.
As Xue Tianxing and his group approached, the atmosphere by the lake suddenly became tense.
Those soul beasts that were less than three thousand years old, such as several thousand-year-old hares, antelopes, and the small black-shelled turtles on the shore, panicked instantly after sensing the soul power fluctuations emanating from Xue Tianxing and others.
The hares and antelopes ran away and quickly dived into the woods; the small black-shelled turtles rolled and crawled into the water and swam towards the deep water; the piranhas in the water also quickly evacuated the shore and disappeared into the depths of the lake.
In a short moment, only the older soul beasts remained on the shore. Several giant crocodiles over five thousand years old raised their heads from the water, staring at Xue Tianxing and his group with icy eyes, letting out low roars.
An exceptionally large, thousand-year-old giant bear, which had been lying by the lake basking in the sun, slowly stood up and slapped the ground with its paws, making a "dong dong" sound, as if in protest.
There are also several ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts hiding in the woods or water, their auras looming and ready to move, and they obviously do not take these young soul masters seriously.
"Everyone be careful, these advanced soul beasts are difficult to deal with."
Xue Tianxing reminded in a low voice, his eyes quickly scanning the surrounding soul beasts, looking for a defensive soul beast suitable for Cao Qing.
At this moment, Oscar suddenly pointed to the beach not far away and shouted excitedly:
"Tian Xing! Cao Qing! Look over there! Among those black-armored turtles, there are several that are of a suitable age for Cao Qing!"
Xue Tianxing and Cao Qing immediately looked in the direction Oscar pointed - they saw several soul beasts on the beach that were a circle larger than the black-armored turtle that had just escaped, moving slowly. Their shells were dark black, covered with hard lines, and emitted rich soul power fluctuations. They were the adult individuals of the black-armored turtle clan.
Cao Qing's eyes instantly locked onto one of the black-armored turtles - the shell of this black-armored turtle was thicker than that of its peers, and the patterns were denser. Its soul power fluctuations were stable at around five thousand years, which was the most suitable age for his fourth soul ring.
Moreover, the Black-Armored Turtle is a purely defensive soul beast, and its soul skills are mainly focused on enhancing defense and reducing damage, which perfectly matches its evolved Black Tortoise Shield soul.