Ling Clan Team Ambushed

The tense atmosphere persisted for a long while before someone finally broke the deadlock again.

The members of those major factions discussed it and joined forces to deal with the puppets. With so many Dou Venerates acting together, they were easily able to eliminate them.

"Brother Tianchen, don't you plan to make a move?" Hun Yu cautiously asked Hun Tianchen, who had been resting with his eyes closed.

"This is meant to be your training. If I step in, what would you still be training for?" Hun Tianchen glanced at Hun Yu, then left with Queen Medusa.

Whether intentionally or not, he followed closely behind the Ling Clan's group...

Within the vast Ancient Forest, the Ling Clan group looked at patch after patch of precious medicinal herbs around them, deeply breathing in the dense energy of the air.

"This really is a fine place," said a handsome man named Ling Xiu.

Among the younger generation of the Ling Clan, his cultivation ranked first.

At twenty years old, he was already a Six-Star Dou Zong, only a little inferior to Lei Dong.

Of course, their ability to reach such a high level of cultivation at this age was entirely due to their Dou Di bloodline.

"It is said that the Soul Infant Demon Tree is here. That is our goal, and it will be of great help to Young Master Ling Xiu," the middle-aged elder beside Ling Xiu said slowly as he stroked his beard.

There were seven Dou Venerates accompanying them, all of them Five-Star Dou Venerates or above. He himself was an Eight-Star Dou Venerate, the strongest member of the Ling Clan's party.

"Thank you, Elder Ling," Ling Xiu said with cupped hands.

Elder Ling shook his head, his expression somewhat grave. "No need for thanks. This is our purpose in coming here to train. As for that mysterious Hun Clan, we should not provoke them. Let them fight over that so-called Heavenly Tier Martial Skill."

"That Hun Tianchen... is simply too monstrous." Ling Xiu sighed, and the trace of confidence on his face vanished with it. "A few years ago, I remember he wasn't this powerful. Now... Elder Ling, can any of you see through his cultivation?"

Elder Ling's expression became even more complicated. Under Ling Xiu's shocked gaze, he shook his head.

"I don't know what mysterious Cultivation Technique Hun Tianchen practices. We have no way of determining his current cultivation. But judging solely from those blood blades, their power is no weaker than mine."

"At such a young age, he already possesses the strength of an Eight-Star Dou Venerate?" Ling Xiu was completely dumbfounded.

"That is why, Young Master Ling Xiu, unless absolutely necessary, you must never fight Hun Tianchen head-on. We cannot afford to."

As they chatted, they arrived at a lake nearly ten zhang across.

The lake water was exceptionally clear, yet one could not see its bottom at a glance. At the center of the lake floated a patch of land, like an island in the middle of the water. Upon it stood a small tree with an extremely strange appearance.

The entire tree was grayish silver. Its intertwining branches resembled vines, and as they stretched and curled, they formed a bizarre curve. From afar, the plant looked like a heavily pregnant woman, while within the belly formed by its layers of branches, Golden Light faintly overflowed.

"It's the Soul Infant Demon Tree!" Ling Xiu and the others were delighted and were about to advance when Elder Ling stopped them.

"Wait! Any spiritual treasure born of heaven and earth will have strange beasts guarding it. The Soul Infant Fruit is an extraordinary treasure for tempering the soul and is also immensely beneficial to certain magical beasts. How could it possibly have no guardian beast?"

Ling Xiu nodded. Looking at the strange plant, he could not help asking, "Then how do we lure it out?"

Just as Elder Ling was about to reply, a hoarse voice sounded by his ear.

"Thank you for bringing me here."

The seven Dou Venerates in the group had barely turned toward the source of the voice when a black shadow flashed through their vision, arriving between two of them in an instant.

"What incredible speed!" Elder Ling's gaze sharpened. Before anyone could react, the figure extended both hands, grabbing the faces of the two Dou Venerates with one hand each. With a sudden exertion of force, he actually sent both Dou Venerates flying!

What shocked them was that this person had not used even a trace of Dou Qi. He had sent two Five-Star Dou Venerates flying through sheer physical strength alone.

Such terrifying physical strength!

"Who are you, sir? How dare you attack the Ling Clan's party? Are you not afraid of being hunted to death by our Ling Clan?" Elder Ling stared gravely at the mysterious black-robed figure whose face was concealed, wind-attributed Dou Qi swirling around his hand.

The black-robed mysterious man did not answer. He merely fixed his gaze on Ling Xiu, then vanished from his spot in the blink of an eye!

Elder Ling immediately understood the black-robed mysterious man's intentions and shouted, "Protect Young Master!"

Elder Ling then charged toward the figure that had turned into black lightning, wind-attributed Dou Qi surging around him.

"Earth Rank High, Whirlwind Devouring Clouds!"

A great wind swept forth like monstrous waves that could devour the world, crashing fiercely toward the black-robed mysterious man.

Perhaps because of the power of an Eight-Star Dou Venerate, the black-robed mysterious man did not dare take the blow head-on. He hurriedly stepped through an uncanny cloud-soaring footwork, evading Elder Ling's powerful strike.

The other Dou Venerates also unleashed their signature techniques one after another, bombarding the black-robed mysterious man.

The corners of the black-robed mysterious man's lips curled slightly beneath his hood. With a shift of his feet, he once again displayed that swift and strange footwork.

His figure resembled a dragon soaring through clouds, swiftly moving within them.

Soul Dragon Soaring Cloud Steps.

Using the strange footwork, he evaded every attack from the Dou Venerates. Then, with a forceful twist of his waist, he lashed out with a whip kick at a Five-Star Dou Venerate.

A phantom black Giant Dragon seemed to open its bloody maw as the kick swept out, slamming fiercely into the Dou Venerate and sending him flying dozens of meters away while coughing up blood.

"What kind of martial skill is this?!" The other Dou Venerates' expressions changed drastically. A single kick had severely injured a Dou Venerate? Just who was this person?

"Damn it! Great Wind Rending Hand!" Elder Ling charged before the black-robed mysterious man with overwhelming momentum, a massive hand filled with fierce wind-attributed Dou Qi striking toward him.

The fierce wind whipped the black-robed mysterious man's robe into the air. He extended one hand forward, and a barrier resembling a mirror blocked Elder Ling's giant hand.

Earth Rank High, Myriad Soul Realm Mirror.

This move was a high-level martial skill of the Hun Clan. As it was a defensive martial skill and Hun Clan members rarely used it, the Ling Clan members had essentially failed to recognize which faction the black-robed mysterious man belonged to.

After knocking back another elder at the peak of Five-Star Dou Venerate with one punch, the black-robed mysterious man's target was clear: Ling Xiu!

He easily broke through the encirclement of the many Dou Venerates once more and arrived before Ling Xiu.

Ling Xiu's expression changed. Knowing full well how formidable this person was, he immediately used his strongest trump card so far. Raising both hands, green wind coiled around them and formed two dragon shapes.

"Heavenly Stage Low-Level, Twin Wind Dragon Soar!"