Magic Stone

With Yoruichi's reminder, Ye Han directly took the Demon Piercing Red Rose from the Gate of Babylon and planted it into the ground.

Everyone nervously watched their surroundings, but unfortunately, nothing changed at all.

Ye Han was not discouraged. Instead, he said sharply, "Senior Red Scale, Senior Titan, let's head straight back inside! Something must have gone wrong in the inner region!"

The group moved swiftly and arrived in the inner region. Ye Han once again planted the red rose into the ground.

Then, an unfathomable force appeared before them. A massive symbol emerged beneath their feet, and sections of it began to shatter one by one.

For a time, all the soul beasts in the inner region of the Star Dou Great Forest erupted into chaos.

"Er Ming! What is going on?" The Sky Azure Bull Python's furious roar was so deafening that even Ye Han and the others, far away, could hear it clearly.

"Big Brother, these little ones discovered it too. Other than the inner region, the soul beasts outside have truly vanished!" the Titan Giant Ape said gravely.

While these Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts discussed the matter, Ye Han surveyed the surroundings. Logically, now that the thing had been destroyed, where were the soul beasts? Had they all been killed? That should have been impossible.

"Xiao Han!" Yoruichi pointed at a soul beast nearby. "Use Appraisal!"

Without hesitation, Ye Han used Appraisal and saw the words: "Seven-Colored Deer Replica, age 56,500 years!"

"A replica?" Ye Han's pupils contracted. Then he shouted excitedly, "Senior Red Scale, capture that Seven-Colored Deer! Don't let it escape!"

Ye Han's words came abruptly, but after what had happened earlier, Red Scale immediately charged toward the Seven-Colored Deer. It seemed to sense something and tried to flee, but how could a fifty-thousand-year soul beast possibly stand against a hundred-thousand-year soul beast?

"Kid, is there something wrong with this deer?" Red Scale looked at Ye Han in confusion.

Ye Han did not answer. He walked over and carefully examined it, yet found nothing different from any other soul beast. If Appraisal had not labeled it a replica, Ye Han would have thought it was an ordinary soul beast as well.

"Xiao Han, this deer's soul is incomplete!" Yoruichi said softly.

Seeing Ye Han remain silent, the Titan Giant Ape grew anxious and hurriedly said, "What exactly is going on?! Can't you speak properly, kid?!"

For a moment, Ye Han did not know how to explain it. He could only say solemnly, "Seniors, to be honest, you may not be able to see it without abilities related to the soul. But this Seven-Colored Deer is merely a replica!"

"What do you mean?" the Sky Azure Bull Python asked sternly.

Ye Han took a deep breath. "This is really hard to explain, but if you want to know why, you'll understand once I kill this Seven-Colored Deer."

The moment Ye Han finished speaking, he felt three hostile gazes upon him. "Hmph! You'd better think carefully before saying that again!"

Ye Han could only grit his teeth and strike directly. The three soul beasts were startled as well. The lifeless Seven-Colored Deer collapsed to the ground, and sure enough, no Soul Ring appeared.

"Seniors, do you see now? A product with an incomplete soul will not produce a Soul Ring!"

The three soul beasts, who had been furious moments ago, calmed down and carefully examined the Seven-Colored Deer before them.

"Senior Red Scale, let's first go to the place where your clansmen were killed! I have a feeling that place isn't simple!" Ever since the strange barrier had vanished, Ye Han had been able to faintly sense an aura ahead of them.

This time, Red Scale no longer refused and directly led everyone to his clan's former territory.

The moment they arrived, Ye Han sensed powerful Bloodline Power. It was the lingering aura left behind by a massacre.

After scanning the area, Ye Han found absolutely nothing unusual. It could even be said that everything was perfectly normal.

"Have you found your clansmen's bodies? Were they dismembered or anything like that?" Ye Han asked calmly.

"They were left where they died! The corpses were mostly intact!" As Red Scale spoke, killing intent unconsciously radiated from his body.

Ye Han fell into slight contemplation. If powerful human Soul Masters had hunted such a clan, it definitely would not have been for Soul Rings. The most likely reason would have been Soul Bones.

If they had been after Soul Bones, the corpses naturally would not have remained intact.

Ye Han raised the red rose and tested the surrounding area, but still found nothing unusual.

"Hm?" Just as he was at a loss, Ye Han suddenly noticed that the trees opposite him looked strange. Instinctively, he used Appraisal.

"Special Mirror Space!"

Upon seeing those words, Ye Han walked over, picked up a branch from the ground, and slowly probed in that direction. One section of the branch sank into the space and vanished, yet Ye Han could sense that the branch had not been broken.

"I found something! This place seems to contain another space!" Ye Han turned and said to the others.

The others quickly gathered around, and Ye Han explained it. "This is just as strange as the place that appeared in the Soul Hunting Forest before. Could Evil Soul Masters be behind this again?"

"I don't know, but if we want to resolve this, we must go inside!" After saying that, Ye Han took the lead and walked in. Naturally, the others did not hesitate.

Only the three Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts remained outside. "I have to go in. Something happened to my clan, and this may be the truth! Titan, I'll have to trouble you to guard this entrance!" Red Scale said before entering as well.

After the group entered this special space, they saw an enormous lake. At the center of the lake was something resembling a black hole.

Even the lake water near the black hole gave off wisps of black energy, making it look extremely eerie.

It also seemed to sense Ye Han and the others' arrival. The surrounding lake water began to churn continuously, as though something was about to emerge from within.

Soon, soul beasts surfaced one after another. Their numbers were immense, with every type imaginable among them. There were soul beasts ranging from ten years old to eighty thousand years old, and black mist billowed from each of their bodies.

Ye Han selected the nearest one and used Appraisal. "Ghost Panther Replica (Incomplete), age 526 years!"

This information differed from before. Ye Han made a gesture behind him, signaling everyone to prepare for battle.

Roar!

With that roar, the soul beasts before them seemed as if a switch had been flipped, charging madly toward Ye Han and the others.

Just as Ye Han and the others prepared to meet the attack, a massive snake tail swept across them. The surrounding soul beasts suffered a heavy blow and instantly turned into black mist before vanishing.

"Kid, go deal with that black hole! I'll stop the soul beasts attacking you! How dare they touch my clan!" Red Scale's aura became almost tangible, causing the lake water around him to surge violently.

Ye Han nodded and said directly, "Everyone, the situation is unclear, but one of us has to get close to that black hole to find out what's really going on!"

"I'll go! I'm the fastest!" Yoruichi said immediately.

Ye Han shook his head. Against these unusual opponents, he felt that the Gate of Babylon was practically a divine artifact. It contained every kind of weapon imaginable—it was simply far too powerful.

"I'll go! You support me! There isn't much time left. Get ready to move!"

Faced with Ye Han's seriousness, the others naturally said nothing. This was Ye Han's decision. Aside from Esdeath, everyone charged swiftly toward the black hole in the center of the lake. The instant they stepped onto the water, the entire lake surface froze into solid ice.

As though it had seen through Ye Han's intentions, the black hole sent the surrounding Soul Beasts rushing toward him. But Red Scale, his rage soaring to the heavens, opened his mouth and fired a red energy beam that split the entire lake in two.

This also invisibly blocked the Soul Beasts attacking Ye Han and the others.

Ye Han took the lead. As if angered, the black hole unleashed a burst of black laser light straight at Ye Han in front.

"First Soul Skill! Devour!"

Honjou Kaede swiftly arrived at Ye Han's side. The Dark Night Greatshield quickly absorbed the attack, and the entire team continued forward without the slightest obstruction.

This situation seemed to make the black hole anxious. It rapidly fired more lasers, and Honjou Kaede blocked two more attacks with Devour.

At level 39, Honjou Kaede only had three chances a day. They had practically been used up in an instant, but Ye Han had already achieved his goal.

On the other side, Yoruichi had somehow already released her Shikai. She brought Lia and Todo onto an ice pillar created by Esdeath.

"This distance should be about right! Todo, can your body handle it?" Lia asked worriedly.

"Don't worry!" Todo flashed a brilliant smile, grabbed Lia behind him, and his Soul Power surged wildly. "Second Soul Skill, Wind King's Hammer!"

A tremendous force struck Todo. Using the impact, Todo rapidly shot toward the black hole.

The black hole, which had been attacking Ye Han and the others all this time, seemed to sense it in an instant. It turned and fired a black laser at Todo, startling everyone.

"Second Soul Skill, Zafkiel: First Bullet!" A bullet struck Todo from afar. Todo, who had been unable to gain any leverage, suddenly accelerated, narrowly dodging the laser and reaching the vicinity of the black hole.

"I'll leave the rest to you! Best friend! Third Soul Skill, Unrighteous Game!"

Slap!

The sound of clapping rang out. Ye Han and Todo swapped positions, and everyone began retreating. Ye Han fixed his gaze ahead and saw a black stone in the center of the black hole.

Black aura continuously seeped from it. One look was enough to tell that it was something good.

"Appraise!"

"Grievance Magic Stone: A special magic stone formed from the grievances of countless Soul Beasts!"

Seeing this description, Ye Han more or less understood. It had formed because humans had slaughtered too many Soul Beasts. But there was no time to worry about that now. Ye Han directly reached out and grabbed the magic stone.