Star Dou Core

Three days later, an inconspicuous black carriage quietly departed Spirit City under the escort of ten elite guards, heading toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

Inside the carriage, Yang Yu rested with his eyes closed. Zhu Zhuqing sat across from him, her aura even more restrained and cold than before. A faint, elusive trace of dark energy lingered around her—it was the result of her initial attempt to control the power of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger. Her Soul Power had steadily reached level thirty-six. Xiao Wu sat near the carriage door, watching the scenery rush past outside the window, her gaze complicated and carrying a trace of barely perceptible anticipation and nervousness.

For this journey, Yang Yu had brought only his core forces. Yue Guan had yet to return, and Holy Son's Palace in Spirit City had been left in the care of several promoted officials and the guards remaining behind. After the display of power last time, he believed no one would dare provoke them lightly for the time being.

The convoy traveled swiftly. Upon seeing the Holy Son of Spirit Hall's token, every checkpoint respectfully let them pass. Several days later, the vast, boundless Star Dou Great Forest, steeped in a primitive and ancient aura, came into view.

The closer they drew to the forest, the more active—and dangerous—the fluctuations of Soul Power in the air became. The roars of various soul beasts faintly echoed from deep within the forest.

The convoy stopped and made camp in a relatively safe area at the forest's edge.

Yang Yu stepped down from the carriage, his gaze sweeping over the lush, seemingly endless sea of trees before him. In his perception, several extremely powerful auras lay dormant deep within the forest. Two of them burned like torches in the night, fierce and ancient.

"Rest for the night. At dawn tomorrow, we enter the Mixed Zone," Yang Yu ordered.

The guards immediately got to work, setting up sentries and building a temporary camp.

Xiao Wu stood at the edge of the camp and took a deep breath of air scented with grass and trees. This was the smell of home. But she knew that this time, her identity was no longer the same.

At night, the campfire flickered.

Zhu Zhuqing silently polished her Claw Soul Tool, adjusting herself to peak condition. Xiao Wu sat some distance away, staring blankly at the dancing flames.

Yang Yu walked over to her, his voice calm. "Tomorrow, you'll lead the way and find a suitable soul beast for Zhu Zhuqing. The target is at least fifty thousand years old, with speed, attack, darkness, or spiritual attributes."

Xiao Wu's body trembled almost imperceptibly. "Fifty thousand years... They can only appear deep in the Mixed Zone. It's very dangerous there. We might alert even stronger beings."

"I know." Yang Yu looked into the darkness deep within the forest. "You only need to lead the way. Don't concern yourself with the rest."

The absolute confidence in his tone made Xiao Wu swallow the words she had yet to say. She nodded and fell silent.

At first light the next morning, the group entered the Star Dou Great Forest. Dense canopies blocked most of the sunlight, leaving the woods dim. The air was thick with the smell of damp earth and rotting leaves, as well as the lingering scents of countless soul beasts.

Xiao Wu walked at the front. Extremely familiar with the area, she always managed to avoid unnecessary trouble and the territories of low-level soul beasts. The guards spread out around them, keeping watch vigilantly.

As they continued deeper, the soul beasts they encountered grew increasingly powerful, and thousand-year soul beasts began appearing frequently. But before the well-trained guards, these soul beasts posed little threat. They were usually driven away or killed before they could even approach.

Zhu Zhuqing remained highly alert throughout. Her Netherworld Spirit Cat Martial Soul was extremely sensitive to auras, allowing her to detect hidden dangers in advance.

For three consecutive days, they encountered several ten-thousand-year soul beasts, but neither their age nor attributes met Yang Yu's requirements.

At noon on the fourth day, as they crossed a swamp shrouded in pale purple mist, Xiao Wu suddenly stopped, her expression changing slightly.

"Careful. Ahead is the territory of a Ghost Face Demonic Spider. One about thirty thousand years old is entrenched here," she warned in a low voice. "This kind of soul beast is incredibly fast, and its webs carry potent venom and a powerful spiritual paralysis effect."

The instant her words fell, the swamp ahead began to churn. A massive black spider with savage ghost-face patterns suddenly leaped out. Its eight compound eyes glimmered coldly as it opened its mouth and sprayed an overwhelming white web toward them!

"Form up!" the captain of the guards shouted, and the team instantly drew together. Their spirit abilities lit up as they prepared to block the web.

But Zhu Zhuqing moved even faster!

The moment the web shot out, her figure flickered. Her Fourth Spirit Ability, Instant Movement, activated, and she appeared directly above and to the side of the Ghost Face Demonic Spider! At the same time, a trace of struggle flashed through her eyes before being replaced by coldness. A strand of dark energy silently coated her claws!

Netherworld Hundred Consecutive Strikes! Dark Corrosion!

Screech! Screech! Screech! Screech!

Dense claw shadows, like black lightning, instantly enveloped the Ghost Face Demonic Spider's head and joints!

The Ghost Face Demonic Spider let out a piercing shriek. Its hard carapace, struck by claws infused with dark energy, was effortlessly torn apart as if it were paper! The agonizing pain and that strange corrosive force instantly distorted its movements, causing the web it spat out to veer off course.

The guards' spirit abilities arrived in time and blasted the crooked web apart.

Zhu Zhuqing landed without pausing. Like a parasite clinging to bone, she frantically attacked the Ghost Face Demonic Spider from all sides. Her speed completely suppressed it, while the corrosion of dark energy continuously weakened its defenses and vitality.

In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, the thirty-thousand-year Ghost Face Demonic Spider was covered in horrific wounds. Dark energy ravaged its body, and it finally collapsed with a thunderous crash, its aura extinguished. A deep purple soul ring emerged.

The battle ended cleanly and decisively.

The guards looked at Zhu Zhuqing with increased awe in their eyes. They could sense that the vice-captain had grown stronger again, and her methods of attack had become even stranger and more domineering.

Xiao Wu watched the Ghost Face Demonic Spider get killed so quickly, her pupils contracting slightly. The power Zhu Zhuqing had displayed, along with that dark aura, unsettled her deeply.

Yang Yu glanced at the soul ring and shook his head. "Its age isn't enough, and its attributes aren't a complete match either. Keep going deeper."

The group continued onward. Xiao Wu led them even more cautiously, deliberately detouring around several regions where she sensed especially powerful auras.

Two more days passed, and they gradually approached the core area of the Mixed Zone. The trees here were taller and thicker, and the pressure filling the air made even the guards struggle to breathe.

Just then, Xiao Wu, who was walking ahead, abruptly stopped. Her face turned pale in an instant, and her body began to tremble slightly.

"What is it?" Zhu Zhuqing immediately noticed something was wrong.

Xiao Wu pointed at a seemingly tranquil valley ahead that nevertheless radiated a heart-pounding aura. Her voice trembled with fear. "N-no... We can't go any farther... Ahead is... Er Ming's territory..."

Er Ming? The Titan Giant Ape?

The guards' faces changed as well. That was one of the forest's emperors, a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast! It was utterly beyond their ability to contend with!

Yang Yu looked toward the valley. He could clearly sense a terrifying aura, as heavy as a mountain and brimming with power, lying dormant there.

"Go around it," he ordered decisively. This was not yet the time to confront the Titan Giant Ape head-on.

Xiao Wu sighed in relief and was just about to lead the group away.

Suddenly!

"ROAR!!!"

A deafening roar erupted from the direction of the valley! The sound waves were nearly tangible, violently shaking the surrounding trees and sending fallen leaves flying everywhere! Then the earth began to rumble as an enormous black silhouette, like a small mountain, slowly rose from within the valley! Its lantern-sized eyes, filled with fury and rage, instantly locked onto their direction!

The Titan Giant Ape had been alerted!

It seemed to have sensed Xiao Wu's aura, as well as... the auras of those unfamiliar and detestable human Soul Masters!

"Not good! Retreat!" the captain of the guards shouted sharply.

But the Titan Giant Ape was far faster than they had imagined! With a single casual step, it crossed several hundred meters. Its massive shadow instantly engulfed them! A giant palm covered in rock-like skin descended upon them with the force to crush everything!

The terrifying pressure nearly froze the air itself! Before such absolute power, the guards found it difficult even to unleash their spirit abilities!

Xiao Wu's face went deathly pale, her eyes filled with despair.

Zhu Zhuqing gritted her teeth as dark energy surged out of control once more. She was about to risk everything!

At that moment, Yang Yu moved.

He did not look at the descending giant palm. Instead, he raised his right hand, palm facing the Titan Giant Ape. The phantom of the Dragon of Eternity and Time flashed behind him and vanished.

"Stop."

He uttered the single word softly.

Buzz!

An invisible fluctuation, seemingly originating from the very source of all rules, spread outward from Yang Yu.

The giant palm, powerful enough to smash apart a mountain, abruptly halted less than ten meters above their heads! It was not blocked by force. Rather, it seemed to have sunk into an invisible mire, its speed becoming incredibly slow, as though time itself were playing in slow motion!

Even the Titan Giant Ape's colossal body and berserk momentum seemed as though someone had pressed a slowdown button, its movements turning sluggish!

Time Slowdown Domain!

With Yang Yu's current strength, he could not completely immobilize a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. But greatly slowing its movements was already enough!

"Go!"

Yang Yu's low shout woke the stunned group.

The guards came to their senses and immediately grabbed the still-dazed Xiao Wu, retreating at full speed!

Zhu Zhuqing took one deep look at the stalled giant palm and Yang Yu's calm back before swiftly withdrawing as well.

The Titan Giant Ape let out an even more furious and baffled roar. It felt as though time around it had become unusually viscous, making it difficult to use its proud strength and speed. It struggled desperately, and its slowly descending giant palm began to accelerate. But during that delay, Yang Yu and the others had already retreated beyond its immediate range of attack.

Yang Yu looked at those enormous eyes, filled with rage and a trace of alarm, and the corner of his mouth lifted in an almost imperceptible arc. He did not attack again. With a flicker, he vanished from where he stood and caught up with the retreating group.

The Titan Giant Ape's massive palm finally came down, blasting a huge crater into the ground and sending dirt and stones flying, but it did not touch a single person.

It stood where it was and roared unwillingly, its cry shaking the wilderness, yet it did not pursue them further. Its enormous eyes stared in the direction where they had vanished, filled with confusion and... a trace of barely perceptible solemnity. The power that had stalled its movements just now filled it with wariness born from the very level of life itself.

In the distance, the group that had escaped danger was still shaken.

Xiao Wu looked back toward the Titan Giant Ape, her emotions impossibly complicated. Er Ming had acted to protect her, but Yang Yu and the others...

Zhu Zhuqing looked at Yang Yu, her eyes filled with shock. Slowing a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast with a wave of his hand... Was that truly something human strength could achieve?

Yang Yu looked as calm as ever, as though he had merely done something trivial.

"Change directions. Continue searching for soul beasts."

His voice pulled everyone back from their thoughts.