"Miss..."
Mu Xue immediately stepped in front of Vina, warily eyeing Liu Feng.
Liu Feng activated Breath of Nature, silently slipping through the crowd until he appeared beside the injured Soul Beast.
He raised the Purple Star Spirit Bow again and faced down the surrounding Soul Masters.
The Scorpion Tiger, however, didn't charge over. A powerful Soul Saint had stopped it.
"Roar...!!!"
The Scorpion Tiger was furious, its fearsome might on full display as it opened its bloody maw.
Its savage eyes seemed ready to spit fire.
The Soul Masters surrounded them in layer upon layer.
A dangerous air spread through the scene, and the Soul Masters stood ready to strike.
Though their cultivation levels weren't especially high, there were still Soul Kings and Soul Emperors among them. Naturally, Liu Feng and the Scorpion Tiger couldn't hope to stand against them.
"Everyone, stop!!!"
Vina shouted an order.
Only then did the tense atmosphere stop escalating.
Liu Feng breathed softly, discerning the scents around him.
That female Evil Soul Master seemed to have used some trick to mask her scent.
Perhaps she was hiding among the people here!
"Mr. Liu Feng, why are you doing this? Is there some connection between you and this Soul Beast?"
Vina asked gently, stepping forward of her own accord.
Liu Feng shook his head and looked toward the Jade Plate Sheep lying on the ground, its four limbs broken.
The horns on the Jade Plate Sheep's head grew in spirals and were as smooth as jade, which was how it got its name.
Two streams of tears ran from its eyes as it looked helplessly at Liu Feng.
Liu Feng crouched and gently stroked the Jade Plate Sheep's head.
If it were an ordinary Soul Beast, Liu Feng might not have stepped in to save it. After all, he still hadn't found a way to keep Soul Beasts from having to become Soul Rings.
Even if he saved this one now, Vina would still kill other Soul Beasts.
But...
He pointed to the Jade Plate Sheep's swollen belly and explained:
"It's pregnant. It'll give birth soon. Even hunters know not to kill a creature that's raising its young. So I won't let you..."
Before Liu Feng could finish, a sharp voice suddenly rang out from the crowd.
"He's going to harm Her Highness! Kill him, quickly!"
The shriek immediately set everyone on edge.
Liu Feng reacted swiftly. He caught the scent of the female Evil Soul Master—it was the person who had shouted.
In one quick motion, he drew his bow and loosed an arrow.
"Whoosh...!"
A second, short scream followed.
The crowd parted, revealing a female Soul Master lying on the ground.
A gaping hole quickly dissolved through her neck, leaving her head connected by only a few strips of skin.
The crowd erupted in an uproar and tensed again. Some even unleashed their Soul Skills.
Vina hurried forward. "Calm down!!!"
She let out a piercing cry. Waves of sound rippled outward, ringing directly through everyone's minds.
A sharp pain shot through their heads, but the tense atmosphere also began to ease.
Liu Feng rubbed his head. It must have been a Soul Skill; even he found it unpleasant.
Vina spoke in a calm, orderly manner. "Mr. Meng, please verify her identity and see whether she was an Evil Soul Master."
"Things had already calmed down, yet she suddenly shouted to provoke chaos. That's very suspicious."
"Liu Feng came here to hunt down Evil Soul Masters in the first place. If he really did kill one for us, that would be a good thing."
Vina was meticulous and quickly sorted out the situation.
Mr. Meng was the Soul Saint who had held back the Scorpion Tiger. He stepped forward to examine the woman's body.
The Scorpion Tiger took the opportunity to leap to Liu Feng's side. Its massive body curved like a crescent moon, shielding him from behind.
"Miss, she... really is an Evil Soul Master!"
Mr. Meng said in a grave voice.
"!!!" Everyone was astonished.
The woman who had followed them all this way was actually an Evil Soul Master?
What had she been planning by infiltrating their group?
If she had been targeting Princess Vina, could she have succeeded in assassinating her at such close range?
The thought sent a chill through everyone.
When they looked at Liu Feng again, much of the hostility had faded from their faces.
Liu Feng spoke frankly. "Vina invited me to dinner and gave me a set of clothes. I helped you get rid of a threat. We're even. Now, this Soul Beast..."
Vina immediately shook her head, smiling warmly.
"No, Liu Feng. Have you forgotten? We're friends. Why should friends keep score over things like this? If you don't want me to hurt it, then I'll let it go."
"We also have a healing-type Soul Master here who can treat it. Consider that compensation."
Vina spoke gently, offering Liu Feng her goodwill.
But Liu Feng could "smell" that, unlike the Three-Eyed Golden Lion and the other Soul Beasts, she wasn't as pure; other scents were mixed in.
"No need. I was going to kill her anyway, and my friends are waiting for me. I have to leave."
As he spoke, Liu Feng leaped onto the Scorpion Tiger's back.
He brought the Jade Plate Sheep along as well.
"Wait, Liu Feng. Don't you want to learn about Soul Tools? And meditation techniques? I..."
Vina tried to persuade him again, a note of urgency creeping into her voice.
Over the course of a meal, she had already figured out most of Liu Feng's situation.
She could even guess what he needed now and what interested him.
She had thought she had everything under control, but Liu Feng's reaction had exceeded her expectations!
Liu Feng glanced at Vina and frowned slightly.
He wasn't used to such complicated scheming.
Even if he really did lack meditation techniques and they would help his cultivation, he still didn't want to accept them from Vina too easily.
"No need. Perhaps we'll meet again!"
After Liu Feng spoke, the Scorpion Tiger turned to leave.
Vina watched Liu Feng's retreating figure, startled.
She was an imperial princess, and her Body Martial Soul was her brain. Her ability to read people far surpassed that of ordinary people.
Anyone she wanted to like her always did.
But now she could clearly tell that Liu Feng was somewhat put off by her.
It left her deeply discouraged, with a vague, unnameable sense of loss.
She lowered her arms, managing to keep a smile on her face.
Seeing this, Mr. Meng flashed forward and blocked the Scorpion Tiger's path.
With his hands behind his back, he said coolly:
"Little friend, if not for Miss Vina, you'd have met a grim fate with any other Soul Master you came across."
"Now Miss Vina only wants to spend a little more time with you. Will you really cruelly refuse even such a small request? I hope you'll think it over."
Seeing this, Vina raised her voice. "Mr. Meng! Don't..."
Liu Feng's expression turned cold, and he met him head-on.
"If she hadn't treated me kindly, every one of you would already be dead!"
"Arrogant...!"
Mr. Meng snorted and released a trace of Soul Power pressure, intending to teach Liu Feng a lesson.
"Stop...!"
Vina cried out furiously.
But another figure was faster still!
"Bang...!"
Golden light flashed as the Three-Eyed Golden Lion suddenly sprang from the darkness and swatted Mr. Meng away with one paw.
Like a kite with its string cut, Mr. Meng flew through the air, spitting out a stream of blood.
"Roar..."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion stood in front of Liu Feng, radiating the mighty aura of a Titled Douluo!
She didn't care about these humans and unleashed her full aura.
In an instant, everyone was forced to their knees.
Fear spread through their hearts, and they all immediately understood one thing.
If the Three-Eyed Golden Lion wanted to kill them, no one would escape!
The strongest among them, Mr. Meng, couldn't withstand even a single blow. The others stood no chance at all!
Vina fell to her knees too, her mouth hanging slightly open. She suddenly understood why Liu Feng had said that.
With a backer like this, they were the ones who ought to feel lucky!
If they had harbored any ill will toward Liu Feng, they would already have been corpses strewn across the ground!
Before you continue