His movements seemed slow, but were actually as swift as lightning.
His body twisted at an unbelievable angle, narrowly evading the fatal strike.
The Shadow Leopard's claws brushed past the hem of his clothes, tearing off only a strip of fabric.
Having missed its strike, the Shadow Leopard nimbly twisted in midair and landed steadily.
It lowered its body and let out a threatening growl, its ghostly green eyes fixed on this unexpectedly agile human.
Situ Xuan finally gave the Soul Beast a proper look. His gaze was terrifyingly calm, as though he were examining an inanimate object.
"Too slow."
He said softly, slowly curling the fingers of his right hand into a fist.
The Shadow Leopard seemed to have been enraged. Its hind legs exploded with force as it pounced again.
This time, it was even faster, its body trailing a blurry afterimage through the air.
But Situ Xuan was faster.
His right foot stepped forward half a pace, and his body leaned slightly ahead. Just as the Shadow Leopard lunged before him, his fist shot out like a cannonball leaving its barrel.
"Bang!"
The dull impact echoed through the jungle.
That punch struck the Shadow Leopard squarely on the bridge of its nose—one of a feline's most vulnerable spots.
The Shadow Leopard let out a pained howl, its forward momentum coming to an abrupt halt.
Situ Xuan gave it no chance to catch its breath.
His fists fell like raindrops, every blow accompanied by the sound of air tearing apart.
There were no dazzling soul skills, no brilliant flashes of light—only the purest, most primal violence.
"North Star Hundred Rending Fists!"
A barrage of fist shadows engulfed the Shadow Leopard's entire body. Its head, spine, and ribs—every one of Situ Xuan's punches struck a vital point with unerring precision.
The Shadow Leopard tried to resist and evade, but beneath that impenetrable web of fists, every struggle was futile.
The sound of shattering bones rang without end. The Shadow Leopard's wails gradually weakened from their initial piercing pitch, until only feeble whimpers remained.
Situ Xuan's final punch went straight for the Shadow Leopard's heart.
The punch seemed gentle, but it contained a terrifying hidden force.
The instant his fist touched its fur, the Shadow Leopard's entire body convulsed violently before collapsing limply to the ground.
It was dead.
Situ Xuan slowly withdrew his fist. His breathing was as steady as before, as if that storm of attacks had not drained even a trace of his strength.
Then, something strange happened.
The Shadow Leopard's corpse began to emit a gentle white glow before gradually turning transparent.
A few seconds later, the corpse vanished completely, replaced by a milky-white halo the size of a fist.
The halo floated through the air as though alive, radiating pure energy fluctuations.
It slowly drifted toward Situ Xuan, circling around him before finally stopping in front of his chest.
Situ Xuan extended a finger and lightly touched the halo.
The halo immediately transformed into countless specks of light, like fireflies on a summer night, eagerly pouring into his body.
A warm current flowed along his meridians before finally gathering in his dantian. He could clearly sense that his Soul Spirit had improved slightly.
"Is this the Spirit Ascension Platform's spiritual energy halo?"
Situ Xuan muttered, feeling the changes in his Soul Power.
But what truly thrilled Situ Xuan was the exhilaration of battle!
No need to restrain himself!
No need to hide!
No need to hold back!
Violence begets violence!
Bloodshed begets bloodshed!
Blood for blood! Skulls for the throne of skulls!
This was how battle should be!
This was how killing should be!
This was how a man should be!
At that moment, the pent-up gloom buried deep within Situ Xuan's chest suddenly transformed into a bold spirit that demanded release.
Situ Xuan stopped absorbing the spiritual energy halo. According to the original work, such halos were not only greatly beneficial to outside Soul Masters, but were also an irresistible temptation to the Soul Beasts within the Spirit Ascension Platform.
Feeling the Soul Power within him become slightly more active after absorbing that halo, Situ Xuan's lips curved into a wild smile wholly out of place in the tranquil forest.
What he needed was not this insignificant improvement, but a battle that could truly make his blood boil and let him unleash all his power!
Wasn't this Spirit Ascension Platform the perfect stage?
No longer moving cautiously, he instead picked a direction and strode forward as if taking a walk through his own backyard.
The thick layer of dead leaves beneath his feet crunched loudly as he weaved between massive tree trunks, making no attempt to conceal his tracks. The milky-white spiritual energy halo that he had yet to fully absorb still lingered around him like a swarm of fireflies, making him exceptionally conspicuous amid the dim forest.
They radiated pure, alluring energy fluctuations, like the brightest beacon in the darkness, announcing to every predator in the forest that a "moving feast" was here.
Before he had gone far, the treetops to his right shook violently. A giant bear covered from head to toe in armor like stone charged out with a roar, its scarlet eyes locked onto Situ Xuan... or rather, the spiritual energy halos around him.
A hundred-year Soul Beast, the Rock-Armored Bear, possessed astonishing strength and formidable defense.
"Perfect!"
Situ Xuan neither dodged nor retreated, charging straight at the giant bear. As it rose onto its hind legs and swung down paws powerful enough to smash boulders, he lowered his body and slipped into its embrace like a phantom.
"Beidou Bone-Breaking Fist!"
His fist did not strike the hard rock armor. Instead, it hit a gap between the plates with flawless precision, sending a soft yet immensely penetrating hidden force through its body.
"Crack!"
A bone-chilling sound of breaking bones came from within the Rock-Armored Bear.
The giant bear's massive body stiffened abruptly, its roar cutting off as it crashed to the ground like a toppled mountain. The ferocity in its eyes rapidly faded.
Soon, another spiritual energy halo floated up and joined the "halo formation" circling Situ Xuan.
He did not even glance at it as he continued onward.
A Venomous Water Python lurking in a muddy swamp suddenly launched an attack, spraying foul-smelling venom toward him like arrows.
Situ Xuan shifted his steps, his body leaving behind several afterimages as he effortlessly evaded the venom. At the same time, he held his fingers together like a blade.
"Flying Bird Sky Slash Wave!"
His hand blade slashed down through the air. An invisible blade of force tore through the air and precisely severed the Venomous Water Python at its vulnerable point.
The python's enormous body writhed weakly a few times before becoming the third halo.
A pack of ten-year Gale Wolves, seven or eight in number, tried to surround and hunt him.
They worked together seamlessly, pouncing from different directions. Situ Xuan spun, his legs sweeping out like a whirlwind.
"Beidou Thousand Consecutive Kicks!"
Leg shadows filled the air, every kick striking the Gale Wolves' most vulnerable waists, bellies, or joints. The sounds of shattered bones merged into one as the wolf pack howled and flew backward, utterly wiped out in an instant.
There were another seven or eight halos around him. By now, the spiritual energy halos circling his body resembled a small nebula, radiating a vast and alluring aura of energy.
Wherever he passed, the roars and cries of Soul Beasts rose and fell, only to quickly return to silence, leaving behind more drifting spiritual energy halos like a starlit road laid out for the god of death.
The atmosphere in the forest grew increasingly oppressive. Some weaker Soul Beasts sensed the gathering energy and the invisible Malevolent Qi radiating from Situ Xuan, and had long since fled in terror.
Yet at the same time, more powerful auras were drawn in, casting greedy and dangerous gazes from deep within the forest.
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