Zhao Wuji Fights for His Life, a Black Shadow Suddenly Appears

With Ning Rongrong and Oscar—the two non-combatant Soul Masters—no longer requiring his constant protection, the pressure on Zhao Wuji suddenly eased.

He instantly halted his sprint, spun around, and faced the terrifying pressure and the trembling earth, a look of grim resolve flashing in his eyes.

"Seventh Soul Skill: Avatar of the Martial Soul, Vajra Bear!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Zhao Wuji let out a low roar, and the deep black seventh soul ring on his body suddenly erupted with blinding light.

His body expanded rapidly within the radiance, his muscles bulging like inflating balloons and his bones popping with thunderous cracks. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a giant bear over five meters tall, its entire body covered in dark golden fur!

In his Avatar of the Martial Soul state, Zhao Wuji's aura surged violently. The pressure belonging to a Soul Saint was released without reservation, forming a brief but intense clash against the terrifying aura of the Titan Giant Ape in the distance.

Although Zhao Wuji's momentum remained at a distinct disadvantage, he managed to forcefully carve out a relatively stable zone directly in front of him.

Having completed his transformation, Zhao Wuji did not charge toward the Titan Giant Ape; that would have been tantamount to suicide.

What he needed to do was buy Xiao Qing and the others even one more second of escape time.

His massive bear paws slammed into the ground, and earthy-yellow soul power surged into the earth.

"Third Soul Skill: Gravity Enhancement!"

"Fifth Soul Skill: Gravity Squeeze!"

Centered on Zhao Wuji, the gravity within a hundred-meter radius suddenly increased to three times the normal state!

Simultaneously, a powerful inward-crushing force converged from all directions toward the path of the oncoming Titan Giant Ape, attempting to hinder its massive frame and increase the resistance of every step it took.

Under the weight of this dual gravity, the ground beneath Zhao Wuji's feet groaned under the unbearable strain, sinking downward.

Immediately following this, Zhao Wuji swung his palms in rapid succession, sending solid, dark golden palm shadows crashing toward the roots of several towering ancient trees and a few hill-sized boulders half-buried in the path the Titan Giant Ape was destined to take.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Zhao Wuji did not expect these to injure the Titan Giant Ape in the slightest; he only hoped to slightly obstruct its vision and interfere with its pace, even if it only caused a momentary pause or forced a slight detour.

Having done all this, Zhao Wuji did not linger. His massive bear body erupted with a speed that defied his size, and he turned to chase wildly in the direction where Xiao Qing and the others were retreating.

He knew that the obstacles he had set were laughably fragile in the face of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, and the time he could buy was extremely limited.

He had to put as much distance as possible between them before the Titan Giant Ape broke through the obstacles and regained its speed, or... prepare for the next interception.

Meanwhile, up ahead, Xiao Qing, standing atop Thunder Feather, shouted to Dai Mubai, Tang San, and the others on the ground: "Everyone, listen to my command! Abandon straight-line running; switch to serpentine maneuvering!"

Xiao Qing rode on Thunder Feather's back, while the bird maintained a low-altitude flight, keeping its speed at the absolute limit that Dai Mubai and the others could follow.

"Thirty paces to the left front, that ox-shaped rock—go around it!"

"The three Hemlock trees on the right in a triangular formation—pass through the middle!"

"There is a small stone forest straight ahead; move in a zigzag pattern!"

The route Xiao Qing chose was no longer flat and easy terrain, but one deliberately biased toward areas with massive boulders, dense ancient trees, or complex, undulating topography.

For Soul Masters like them, who were relatively small and highly agile, these natural obstacles could be navigated quickly or used for leverage through technique.

But for a mountain-like entity such as the Titan Giant Ape, these would become natural speed bumps, forcing it to either expend effort to destroy them or slightly adjust its stride to bypass them.

Dai Mubai, Tang San, Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu, and Ma Hongjun had pushed their soul power to the limit. Aided by Ning Rongrong's speed boost, they gave their all to keep up with the route Xiao Qing indicated.

They trusted Xiao Qing's judgment; although the serpentine movement increased the distance they had to run, it effectively utilized the terrain.

However, they had still vastly underestimated the terrifying strength of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, especially one as renowned for its power as the Titan Giant Ape.

Behind them, the gravity field and obstacles Zhao Wuji had set up in his Avatar of the Martial Soul state had bought the group less than a quarter-hour of breathing room.

"ROAR!!!"

A roar filled with rage and impatience exploded once again, closer than any time before! The sound carried an undisguised, manic ferocity.

The frenzied Titan Giant Ape did not choose to "go around" or "destroy" those obstacles; it seemed completely indifferent to the gravity squeeze Zhao Wuji had set, as the triple gravity had negligible impact on its incomparably sturdy physical body.

It adopted the simplest, crudest, and most absolute display of power—it plowed through!

Towering ancient trees? Smashed to pieces! Blocking boulders? Trampled to dust! Gravity squeeze? Ignored!

Anything that dared to stand in its direct path—be it trees, rocks, or undulating terrain!

It didn't even bother to specifically attack those obstacles; it simply crashed through them with its body while sprinting in a straight line, carving out a path!

Where it passed, it left a trail over ten meters wide, as if a giant plow had ruthlessly tilled the earth.

Moreover, perhaps because it had been slightly slowed by these "minor nuisances," the Titan Giant Ape became even more irritable, and its charging speed actually increased a notch beyond what it had been before!

The rocks and trees in which Xiao Qing had placed such high hopes for stalling were, before the Titan Giant Ape, like children's toys.

It didn't even need to throw a punch; the mere impact of its body was enough to snap trees as thick as a man's embrace and shatter boulders the size of houses.

The gap was simply too great!

This was not a gap that could be bridged by technique or tactics; it was a chasm in the hierarchy of life and absolute power.

Just as the Titan Giant Ape's mountain-like black silhouette rapidly magnified in everyone's eyes, Zhao Wuji finally caught up to the team, once again placing himself between them and the beast.

Zhao Wuji glanced back.

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun were flushed red, veins bulging on their foreheads, their breathing sounding like broken bellows; their soul power and stamina were on the verge of exhaustion. Tang San and Zhu Zhuqing were in slightly better condition, but they were also pale and their breathing was unstable.

Xiao Wu's expression was the most complex, filled with fear, anxiety, and a trace of indescribable pain. Ning Rongrong and Oscar, having not run themselves, still had relatively steady breathing.

Zhao Wuji's heart sank. He understood that these children were reaching their limits. Fleeing for their lives under the oppressive, terrifying aura of the Titan Giant Ape was taking a staggering toll on their mental and physical stamina.

If they continued to run like this, they would collapse long before the Titan Giant Ape could even catch them.

They could run no further, and there was nowhere left to run!

The massive, dark shadow of the Titan Giant Ape was already within reach; Zhao Wuji could even clearly see the coarse fur covering its body.

A flicker of ruthlessness flashed in Zhao Wuji's eyes. His massive bear-like frame stood firm, facing the charging beast as the light of his seventh soul ring grew blinding once more, pushing the power of his Avatar of the Martial Soul to its absolute limit.

He intended to stake his old life on this, unleashing his most powerful attack, even if it could only stall the Titan Giant Ape for a single moment, even if it could only gamble for a sliver of hope—however infinitesimal—for these "little monsters" who represented the future.

He was a teacher of Shrek, he was Zhao Wuji.

However, just as Zhao Wuji gathered all his soul power, preparing to launch a suicidal attack—

A figure wrapped in a wide, tattered black robe appeared abruptly within the line of sight of Xiao Qing and the others, standing with his back to Zhao Wuji and the group, facing the Titan Giant Ape.