The Soul Masters Hu Liena had organized to scout the surrounding areas were all Land Soul Masters, and they could not have been more familiar with forests—
What Soul Master who had hunted Soul Beasts in a forest did not understand?
On the other hand.
When the Sea God Warriors on the island hunted Soul Rings, they mostly went out to sea to hunt Sea Soul Beast tribes that had desecrated the Sea God's faith. In the eyes of Land Soul Masters, their ability to conceal their tracks in the woods was utterly amateurish.
Even though the Sea God Warriors had already cleared the footprints on the forest floor, they had done so far too crudely. The Soul Masters assigned to scouting knew perfectly well which areas were frequently traversed, which had never seen human activity, and which were only rarely visited. One particularly experienced Soul Master even noticed that someone had been in these woods from fallen green leaves and the faint scratches on branches disturbed by rapid movement.
"Split up!"
The seasoned Soul Master spoke while making a hand signal. The others immediately understood and scattered in groups of three.
This also caught the attention of the Sea God Warriors hiding in the forest. They too split apart, intending to use their familiarity with the terrain to secretly fire arrows and kill these intruders.
Little did they know.
Though the Land Soul Masters might not have known the woods as well as the natives born and raised on this island, the natives lagged behind them by countless levels when it came to fighting in a forest.
Moving through the woods in groups of three was meant to lure the Sea God Warriors hiding in secluded thickets into specific locations.
Amid the swaying shadows of the trees, dozens of