Hunting Spirit Rings

The smoke of battle had yet to clear from Star Dou Forest when Yang Jun and Bibi Dong quietly infiltrated Spirit Hall territory. Under the night sky, Spirit Hall loomed like a colossal beast, Soul Power circulating across its dome as guards stood watch everywhere. Yang Jun concealed himself in the shadows, Earth Vein Power spreading like vines as he sensed the tremors of every inch of land. Suddenly, his heart stirred. Lowering his voice, he said to Bibi Dong, "There's movement three zhang to the southeast. Not Soul Masters... Spirit Beasts."

Bibi Dong's black robe shifted slightly as spider silk silently wound around a tree trunk. Sure enough, a Silver-Patterned Phoenix-Tail Fox leaped from the bushes, its blue eyes warily studying them. Earth Vein Power surfaced in Yang Jun's palm, Golden Patterns flowing over his fingertips. "Phoenix-Tail Foxes are the forest's sentries. If we force our way around it, we'll alert the patrols." He lightly touched the ground, and Earth Vein Power seeped into the soil, unexpectedly resonating with the fox's paw prints. The Phoenix-Tail Fox let out a low growl, abruptly turned, and swept its tail across a patch of Vines, revealing a hidden path.

"Follow it." A glint flashed through Bibi Dong's eyes. Spider silk wrapped around Yang Jun's sleeve, and the two concealed themselves as they followed the fox's trail. The Phoenix-Tail Fox would leap onto treetops one moment and slip through cracks in the rocks the next, nimbly avoiding the low growls of Dark-Patterned Leopards and the hisses of Jade-Scaled Pythons along the way. Yang Jun's Earth Vein senses worked seamlessly with the Phoenix-Tail Fox's keen instincts, allowing them to reach the edge of Spirit Hall's territory even faster than expected. Bibi Dong glanced at the faint golden patterns appearing and vanishing in his palm. "Your resonance with Spirit Beasts... is stronger than before."

"After absorbing the Earth Vein Spirit Ring, I can sense their fear and their pleas." Yang Jun looked toward the distant figures of patrolling Soul Masters. The Phoenix-Tail Fox suddenly stopped and tapped the ground with its claw, signaling for the two to crouch down. Yang Jun's heart stirred. Earth Vein Power surged forth, forming a Silent Earth Domain beneath their feet. As they passed through it, they were as soundless as falling leaves, smoothly evading the patrol.

When they infiltrated the Bishop's council hall, they happened upon a secret meeting. Through the barrier of restrictions, Yang Jun heard the Bishop's gloomy voice. "By the Pope's decree, the Earth Vein Soul Locking Array has been destroyed, but the 'Abyssal Seed' has already been successfully planted in the earth veins of Star Dou Forest. Once it matures, the rift can still be opened... Find that Earth Vein Guardian at all costs. Capture him alive!" Outside the council hall, the roots of a Thousand-Year Tree Demon silently extended, blending their presence with the rustling of leaves and cutting off all Soul Power fluctuations.

Bibi Dong pressed down on Yang Jun's wrist, which trembled slightly from shock, while spider silk quietly coiled around the restriction barrier. "Don't act rashly. The 'Abyssal Seed' they mentioned should be a parasitic soul creature cultivated by Evil Soul Masters. It can erode the Earth Vein Origin. If we leave it unchecked, Star Dou Forest's seal will rupture once more." The Tree Demon's roots suddenly tightened, and Soul Power surged within the council hall. It was the Pope's phantom descending! The Tree Demon sent silent tremors through its roots. Yang Jun abruptly understood and poured Earth Vein Power into them, forming a Symbiotic Barrier that blocked all detection.

As the night deepened, the two raced toward Bone Erosion Valley. Along the way, Bibi Dong suddenly stopped, her spider silk ensnaring a Spirit Hall Shadow Guard who had launched a sneak attack. Yang Jun's Hoe and Sickle Spirit appeared in an instant, and golden light cleaved down, shattering the Shadow Guard's Soul Core. A Jade-Scaled Python slithered out from the darkness, its forked tongue tasting the lingering evil soul aura on the Shadow Guard and releasing a warning hiss. Bibi Dong frowned. "This Shadow Guard's Soul Power fluctuations... are different from the Bishop's personal guard." Yang Jun crouched to inspect the corpse. Earth Vein Power seeped from his palm into its meridians, and he suddenly raised his head. "An Evil Spirit Mark! The Bishop really is deeply colluding with the Abyssal forces!" The Jade-Scaled Python raised its head, its scales glowing faintly as it drew the evil soul aura into its body and transformed it into a warning mark—this was the Spirit Beasts' natural resistance to Abyssal Erosion.

Before his words had faded, a mournful cry rose from the earth veins in the distance—from the direction of Bone Erosion Valley, blood-red Soul Power shot into the sky! The Phoenix-Tail Fox and Jade-Scaled Python both let out piercing howls. As Yang Jun and Bibi Dong raced onward, the Phoenix-Tail Fox leaped ahead, flicking its tail to release a streak of silver light. It was Star Dou Forest's Spirit Beast Guiding Talisman, pointing them toward the shortest path. Along the way, a Thousand-Year Vine Demon extended Vines from underground and wove them into a Swift Vine Net. The two stepped onto the web, and their speed abruptly increased.

Bone Erosion Valley lay ahead, and the sight was terrifying—hundreds of prisoners were bound to array patterns with chains, their blood being drawn out by an evil array and poured into the earth veins. At the eye of the Remnant Pattern Array, the Bishop controlled blood-red talismans with Soul Power as Abyssal aura filled the air. The Spirit Beast hordes in the valley were restless. A Ten-Thousand-Year Azure Luan dove down from high above, scattering azure light from its feathers and temporarily suppressing the Abyssal Seed's erosion within the prisoners. Bibi Dong caught sight of the Azure Luan, and surprise flashed through her eyes. "The Azure Luan is a guardian of the forest. Why would it reveal itself willingly?"

"The earth veins' cries awakened them." Yang Jun gritted his teeth, swinging his Hoe and Sickle Spirit at the array eye. Golden light collided with blood-red patterns, and the earth veins rumbled violently. The Bishop gave a savage laugh. "You came at just the right time! With the blood of the Earth Vein Guardian, activate the remnant array—" In an instant, Bibi Dong's Spider Emperor Spirit erupted, and the Eight Spider Lances pierced the night sky. The Azure Luan gave a long cry, countless feathers transforming into azure blades that intertwined with the spider lances into a net, trapping the Bishop.

Yang Jun leaped into the center of the array and drove the Hoe-Sickle into an earth vein node. The dim glow of his spirit rings flared sharply. The pain was like ten thousand ants gnawing at his bones, and his father's dying words surfaced in his mind: "Earth Vein Guardian, till with your heart, nourish with your blood..." He bit his fingertip, letting blood drip into the array patterns. Golden light suddenly blazed! The blood patterns at the array eye began to reverse, and the prisoners' blood was slowly purified by Earth Vein Power. The Jade-Scaled Python slithered beside the array, spreading its scales and transforming the purified blood into essence the Spirit Beasts could absorb, healing the prisoners' wounds.

The Bishop broke free from the spider silk restraints, releasing the pressure of a Soul Douluo. "Traitors! How dare you betray Spirit Hall!" His soul skill surged toward Bibi Dong like a black tide. The old wound on her left shoulder burst open, yet her Spider Emperor Spirit erupted with unprecedented violet radiance and forcibly withstood the attack. The Azure Luan's feathers gathered into a shield, blocking the fatal blow for Bibi Dong, but it exhausted a thousand years of cultivation and dissolved into a streak of azure shadow.

In the midst of unbearable pain, Yang Jun suddenly understood: Earth Vein Power was not about conquest, but balance. Roaring, he poured Soul Power into the Hoe-Sickle. The golden light of the array patterns clashed fiercely against the Abyssal blood patterns. Suddenly, a strange sound came from deep within Bone Erosion Valley—countless black insect eggs emerged from the purified prisoners' blood. They were the Abyssal Seeds! The Phoenix-Tail Fox leaped into the mass of eggs, its silver patterns burning as it used its own Soul Power to detonate the eggs, perishing together with the Abyssal Seeds. Yang Jun's pupils constricted, but Bibi Dong roared, "Use your spider venom! Erode the source of the eggs!"

Bibi Dong bit through her lip, mixing spider venom into her Soul Power as violet radiance swept across the insect eggs. The eggs exploded, but their evil aura was swallowed by the golden light of the earth veins. The Bishop seized the chance to launch a sneak attack, his soul skill transforming into a giant blade that cleaved toward Yang Jun's back! The Jade-Scaled Python coiled around the giant blade, its scales shattering, but it bought Yang Jun a moment. His Hoe and Sickle Spirit erupted with intertwined blue and gold light, shattering the blade. At the same time, Earth Vein Power surged out, forming shackles that bound the Bishop.

"Your conspiracy ends here." The Earth Vein Origin Blue Crystal appeared in Yang Jun's palm. Blue light enveloped the Bishop, and the Evil Spirit Mark within his Soul Core gradually surfaced. The Jade-Scaled Python's battered body transformed into a faint glow and merged into the Blue Crystal, helping him completely cleanse the evil soul. The earth veins of Bone Erosion Valley regained their clarity, and the prisoners fell to their knees in thanks. The Spirit Beast horde let out long cries. The Phoenix-Tail Fox's silver patterns had dimmed, but it raised its head toward Yang Jun and gave a grateful low growl.

Yang Jun looked at Bibi Dong's pale face, dim light flowing through the stone marrow in his palm. "Next, it's time to face Spirit Hall's true enemy." Bibi Dong smiled faintly, her spider silk quietly wrapping around his sleeve as she glanced at the Phoenix-Tail Fox. "Lord Earth Vein Guardian, it seems we won't just be the 'number one traitors.' We'll also have to seek justice for the lives of Star Dou Forest..."

Under the night sky, their figures gradually merged with the starlight. The golden glow of Bone Erosion Valley's earth veins was like a silent oath, illuminating the unknown undercurrents and storms ahead. The Phoenix-Tail Fox's silver patterns flickered faintly as it led the Spirit Beast horde quietly back into the depths of the forest, leaving devastation behind but not a trace of Abyssal aura.