"Gongyang Mo!"
"Chen Zifeng!"
The five of them stared wide-eyed in unison, all clenching their fists.
"Evil Soul Master! How dare you kill students of Shrek Academy's Inner Court? I'll kill you!"
Ma Xiaotao was furious. Her first and second Soul Rings lit up one after the other.
"First Soul Skill, Phoenix Fire Line."
"Second Soul Skill, Bathing Fire Phoenix."
With the two Soul Skills stacked, the temperature of Ma Xiaotao's first Soul Skill, Phoenix Fire Line, soared. It was only a step away from Ultimate Fire.
"Sixth Soul Skill, White Tiger Annihilation Strike!"
A gigantic character for "kill" shot from Dai Yueheng's hand.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Ice Shining Ring."
A circle of deep-blue ice shot from the ice staff in Ling Luochеn's hand, and the temperature around them plunged.
"Fifth Soul Skill..."
"Fifth Soul Skill..."
Yao Haoxuan and Xixi followed suit, unleashing their strongest Soul Skills. They were determined to make the Evil Soul Master pay in blood and avenge their companions.
Yet Qin Chuan remained completely unmoved by the immense energy gathered from so many Soul Skills. His ear twitched; he sensed someone had entered behind him.
Rather than take the attack head-on, Qin Chuan simply dodged aside.
The furious combined strike of two Soul Emperors and three Soul Kings was exceptionally powerful. As a result, Wang Yan, who had just entered the cave to scout ahead, was vaporized in an instant without even a scream.
The horrifying sight left Xu Sanshi, who followed close behind with his shield in hand, utterly shocked.
"...Teacher Wang... is dead?!"
"Teacher Wang is dead!"
Bei Bei, Jiang Nannan, Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, Xiao Xiao, and He Caitou could hardly believe it.
At the same time, Xuan Zi's furious voice rang out from beyond the cave.
"Evil Soul Master!!!"
Qin Chuan paid it no heed. With the Rakshasa Demon Scythe in hand, he once again became the God of Slaughter, vanishing in a flash and appearing behind Yao Haoxuan.
The frozen scythe rested against Yao Haoxuan's shoulder. His whole body stiffened as a tremendous sense of danger washed over him.
The scythe mercilessly reaped Yao Haoxuan's life, and Xixi fell beside him.
"Xixi!"
"Yao Haoxuan!"
The only three left—Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochеn—all gritted their teeth. Their Soul Power was completely spent. They were like lambs waiting for slaughter, powerless to fight back.
"You got here pretty fast, Xuan Zi. The four I killed today didn't have much room left to grow, but you're different. You still have an unlimited future. One day, I'll personally send you to your deaths."
Qin Chuan gave a cold laugh.
"System, send me back to Douluo Continent in the parallel world."
"Ding! One hundred Snow Hatred Value deducted. The transmission channel is now open."
A flash of black light, and before everyone's eyes, Qin Chuan, clad in a black robe and holding a scythe, vanished without a trace.
Not long after Qin Chuan disappeared, the Skeleton Knights around them turned into wisps of black smoke and vanished. The broken bones and weapon fragments scattered across the ground also sank underground, leaving no trace behind.
"Evil Soul Master!"
Xuan Zi transformed into the gigantic Godly Taotie Bull. By the time he arrived, Qin Chuan had already left for a parallel world.
Yao Haoxuan and Xixi's headless corpses lay in pools of blood, their heads rolled off to one side. Chen Zifeng's head was there, too. Gongyang Mo's heart had been pierced, and he was no longer breathing.
Xuan Zi felt dizzy. He dismissed his Martial Soul Avatar and stared at the children who had been lively and full of energy just moments ago. Now they were all cold corpses.
Fury, murderous intent, regret, and resentment filled their hearts.
"How could this happen?" Xiao Xiao covered her mouth, eyes wide as tears streamed down her face.
"Damn it! That Evil Soul Master! Now he's killed Teacher Wang, too!" Xu Sanshi gritted his teeth.
"No. We were the ones who killed Teacher Wang."
Dai Yueheng sighed. "We all launched that final attack. The Evil Soul Master must have noticed you coming, so he deliberately dodged."
"We're the academy's sinners. After the tournament, I'll return to the academy and accept my punishment."
Ma Xiaotao's eyes were vacant. The light had faded from her lively gaze.
"Evil Soul Master! Evil Soul Master!!!"
Flames roared over Ma Xiaotao's body. Under such intense pressure, her Soul Power had actually broken through to level sixty-eight.
Black flames appeared amid the crimson fire covering her body, but the ice-blue pendant around her neck suppressed them.
The pendant contained a trace of the power of Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow, which could completely suppress the outbreak of Evil Fire. Otherwise, Yan Shaozhe would never have approved Ma Xiaotao's participation in the tournament.
"...I'm sorry." Ling Luochеn quietly rose to her feet. When she lifted her head, her eyes were already red.
"No, this is all my fault." Xuan Zi waved a hand. He looked more than a decade older, like a candle flickering in the wind. Tears streamed down his face as he looked at the four bodies laid together, and he swayed unsteadily.
"Children, I've failed you. Because of my mistake back then, eleven outstanding Inner Court Students died at the hands of Evil Soul Masters. Now Chen Zifeng, Xixi, Gongyang Mo, and Yao Haoxuan have once again fallen victim to an Evil Soul Master, and I was leading the team again. Have I, Xuan Zi, truly been cursed? Must some of the children die whenever they go out with me?"
Xuan Zi rose silently and slowly walked toward the exit. "Children, I'll take you back to the military camp first. Then I'll return to the academy as quickly as possible and report what happened today."
Everyone was in low spirits. No one spoke.
Huo Yuhao stared at the bodies of the four senior students, fury filling his eyes. Wang Dong stood beside him, fists clenched tight.
"Don't worry. That Evil Soul Master will pay for everything he's done today, sooner or later!" Wang Dong declared, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
"Mm." Huo Yuhao nodded quietly and helped carry the senior students' bodies.
When Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, Ling Luochеn, and the others returned to the military camp, Dai Hao was stunned by the news and broke out in a cold sweat.
An Evil Soul Master had killed four of seven Inner Court Students and even escaped from under Xuan Zi's nose. Since when had the Death God Emissary become so powerful?
"Duke of the White Tiger, please take these children to Star Luo City. I need to take the four children's bodies back to the academy," Xuan Zi said dejectedly.
"Understood. I'll personally escort them." Dai Hao sighed softly, then looked at Dai Yueheng, who was unharmed, and felt relieved.
If his eldest son had been among the four who died today, Dai Hao didn't know what he would have done.
But the tragedy had already happened. There was no undoing it.
Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochеn had suffered only minor injuries, but their Soul Power was severely depleted, almost completely spent. They should be able to recover before the tournament began.
Teacher Wang Yan, who had been leading the team, had been accidentally killed by Ma Xiaotao and the others' Soul Skills. Xuan Zi needed to return to the academy and bring another teacher to take charge.
The next day, Xuan Zi transformed into the Godly Taotie Bull and carried the remains of the four fallen students back to Shrek Academy.
After a night's rest, Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yueheng, and Ling Luochеn had recovered most of their Soul Power. More than anything, though, their expressions were graver than ever.
The three were the pride of Shrek Academy. They had never felt so helpless before.
Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Huo Yuhao, and the other reserve team members were also ready to take the field at any moment.
Four of the seven main team members had died. Their three vacant places would have to be filled from the reserve team.
At noon, after everyone had eaten, they set out for Star Luo City under Dai Hao's personal escort.
They encountered no Evil Soul Master attacks along the way, and eventually arrived in Star Luo City.
Inside the cave, which had long since collapsed, a shadow gathered once more.
Qin Chuan took off the black robe he had been wearing. The Rakshasa Demon Scythe had already been put away.
"Killing four Shrek Academy Inner Court students only gave me forty-five thousand Snow Hatred Value. It's not much, but even a tiny mosquito is still meat. I should head to Star Luo City and meet up with my sister, Guyi, Xiao Meng, and my brother-in-law."
Qin Chuan walked out of the cave. On his way down the mountain, he noticed that the Star Luo Empire had sent many more people into the mountains. It was clear that last night's events had made the already turbulent Bright Capital Mountains even more chaotic.
Qin Chuan strapped on his Flight Soul Tool and took to the sky. He reached Star Luo City by sunset.
Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy,
the atmosphere inside Sea God Pavilion was as silent as death.
Yan Shaozhe and Qian Duoduo, the academy's dean and vice dean, stood at the head of the room. Elder Lin and the other Sea God Pavilion Elders were there as well. Without exception, their heads were lowered, their expressions dark as could be.
The very picture of gloom.
"Five years ago, the Evil Soul Master who wielded a scythe was killed on Douluo Continent. Five years have passed since then. Based on Xuan Zi's description, this Evil Soul Master who suddenly appeared... must be her descendant," Mu En said solemnly.
"Teacher, the Evil Soul Masters are running rampant. They've killed four more of our Inner Court students. We can't just sit by and do nothing."
"And what do you propose?"
"Take the initiative and strike!" A murderous glint flashed in Yan Shaozhe's eyes.
"Do you know where the Evil Soul Masters are? Where the Holy Spirit Cult is?"
"Th-this..." Yan Shaozhe was at a loss for words.
"Actually, I've long suspected that the Holy Spirit Cult isn't on Douluo Continent at all, but in the Sun Moon Empire."
The moment Mu En said this, everyone turned to look at him.
"The Sun Moon Empire! So that's why we've searched practically the entire continent with the three empires and found nothing. If they're in the Sun Moon Empire, then it makes sense that we couldn't find them."
"Could the Sun Moon Empire really be sheltering Evil Soul Masters?"
"The Sun Moon Empire has never abandoned its ambition to conquer Douluo Continent. It's entirely possible they've already made a secret deal with the Evil Soul Masters."
Elder Mu spoke again. "We must learn from this lesson. Lin'er, from now on, all Inner Court Students must collect a Defensive Soul Tool and a Flight Soul Tool from your Soul Tool department. They don't need to learn how to make them; they only need them to protect their lives in an emergency."
"Understood." Xian Lin'er nodded slightly.
Yan Shaozhe, however, frowned inwardly.
"Shaozhe, I know you're biased against Soul Tools. But if Xiaotao and the others had been able to use Defensive Soul Tools, perhaps we could have avoided these casualties. This is an order, not a discussion."
Mu En's words were decisive. Yan Shaozhe had no choice but to nod.
Then Mu En looked at Xuan Zi and spoke in an even tone. "Xuan Zi, you bear the responsibility for what happened. Tell me, how should I deal with you?"
Before you continue