The Arrogant Herd, Beyond Tolerance

The lead Iron-Armored Ox saw the three of them change direction, slowly veering away as it snorted and let out a low, muffled moo.

Ling Yun's perception was currently pushed to its limit, allowing him to clearly see every subtle shift in the herd.

It was a look of naked mockery and contempt.

It was as if they were saying, "Two-legged beast cub, I'm standing right here. Can you break my defense? Can you?"

Ling Yun chose to ignore them; the intelligence of a century-level soul beast, with few exceptions, was essentially that of a three-year-old child.

By the millennium mark, their intelligence generally reached that of a five or six-year-old human child, and the gap between one thousand and ten thousand years served as a watershed moment where a soul beast's intelligence would rise significantly.

Some soul beasts with racial advantages possessed intelligence no less than an average adult human the moment they reached ten thousand years. After fifty thousand years, virtually all soul beasts possessed intelligence comparable to humans.

This group of Iron-Armored Oxen were just spoiled brats; it wasn't worth bickering with children!

The trio's indifference did not lead to peace; these Iron-Armored Oxen were too comfortable, and having finally encountered some two-legged beasts, they were feeling frisky.

One of the oxen even charged in front of the three, performed a fierce pivot, then lifted its head and swished its tail before slowly walking back.

Halfway there, it turned its head to glance at the three of them.

Utterly arrogant.

After this ox, the one Su Yuntao had mentioned as being suitable for a first soul ring also charged over.

It circled the three of them twice, then lashed its tail at Su Yuntao like a steel whip.

The three had already been prepared when the first ox charged, and the Mountain-Splitting Blade in Su Yuntao's hand swung out to meet it.

With a clang, the tail attack was blocked, and sparks flew from the point of impact.

Ling Yun saw the defensive power of the Iron-Armored Ox firsthand.

Not a single hair had fallen out, and if not for the high quality of Su Yuntao's blade, the edge would likely have chipped.

"Moo!"

The Iron-Armored Ox turned its head, its eyes filled with contempt. That sense of mockery was vivid and lifelike, and with the anthropomorphic twitch of its mouth, no words were needed—any normal person could feel it.

"Arrogant! Too arrogant!" Sisi's temper was like a powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest spark, and she immediately activated her martial soul.

"Sisi, don't be impulsive!"

"The enemy is many and we are few; it is not wise to get entangled." Su Yuntao was very rational. Even though their soul power was currently full, they would be unable to kill an Iron-Armored Ox in a short time.

Once they started, the rest of the Iron-Armored Oxen would swarm them, and the final result would most likely be a wasted expenditure of soul power with nothing to show for it.

Such thankless tasks were to be avoided as much as possible within the Soul Hunting Forest.

"I can't take it anymore!"

After activating her martial soul, a soft whip appeared in Sisi's hand, and one white and one yellow soul ring rhythmically pulsed beneath her feet.

"First Soul Skill: Flame Whip!"

Seeing this, Su Yuntao pulled Ling Yun's hand to retreat from the battlefield, observing the combat situation.

The Flame Whip cracked through the air with a sonic boom, slamming heavily onto the Iron-Armored Ox.

The effect of Sisi's enraged strike was quite good; after all, she was now a Soul Grand Master.

According to the strength classification between soul masters and soul beasts, she was matched against soul beasts over five hundred years old but under one thousand.

Although this strength comparison was quite inflated—under normal circumstances, a soul master encountering a matched soul beast would likely fall into a disadvantage—this particular "cheap" ox was only a little over three hundred years old, and its defense wasn't quite up to par.

The Flame Whip left a wound on its rump, and the fur was scorched, emitting a burnt stench.

"Calling you arrogant!"

"Calling you a cheapskate!"

"You really are itching for a whipping!"

With every sentence Sisi spoke, another lash landed on the Iron-Armored Ox, causing it to moo in pain.

Especially after several lashes landed on the same spot, even its tough hide couldn't withstand it; the skin split and flesh tore, the wound filled with charred marks as blood flowed freely.

Although this injury was only minor for the Iron-Armored Ox's massive frame, if they were to fight for a long time, it would certainly be the one to die.

The flaming whip was exceptionally flexible in Sisi's hands, and another whistling sound rang out as the whip lashed from bottom to top, striking between the Iron-Armored Ox's two hind legs, drawing a heart-wrenching cry from the beast.

The Iron-Armored Ox stopped being "cheap" and turned to madness instead.

An ox can be killed, but not humiliated.

The Iron-Armored Ox whipped its head around, its entire body's soul power converging toward its horns and four hooves, followed immediately by a Savage Charge.

The soul-power-infused horns radiated a dangerous aura, gleaming with a metallic luster under the sunlight.

The Iron-Armored Ox aimed its horns at Sisi, its hooves kicking up a massive cloud of dirt as it charged like a high-speed mountain.

Under a full-force charge, the Iron-Armored Ox had no way to turn nimbly.

Sisi performed an agile side-jump, seizing the opportunity to activate her second soul skill. The flames intensified; while the first soul skill only coated the soft whip in fire, the second soul skill made the original form of the whip invisible.

At this moment, Sisi was holding a whip made of magma.

The Iron-Armored Ox's Savage Charge couldn't hit anyone at all, and Sisi backhanded a lash while in mid-air, leaving a deep wound across the ox's back.

The Iron-Armored Ox felt the pain, its footing becoming even more unstable as it charged straight ahead, its horns slamming into a tree as thick as a man's embrace.

The trunk of the tree was pierced through with ease by its horns, and as the Iron-Armored Ox shook its head, the tree snapped in two.

In the distance, the herd began to grow restless. The lead Iron-Armored Ox let out a low bellow, and upon hearing their leader's command, all the Iron-Armored Oxen lined up in unison, their hooves stomping incessantly against the ground.

Their soul power converged simultaneously onto their horns and four hooves.

"Moo!"

Following the bellow, the herd launched a collective charge. Mud splattered, the ground trembled, and the small animals in the vicinity fled in all directions, though a few bold ones watched from afar.

"Sisi, the herd has gone mad, retreat!"

Sisi, who was putting her heart and soul into draining the Iron-Armored Ox, heard Su Yuntao's voice and turned her head to see the herd charging toward them.

Reason told her to retreat immediately, but her heart was filled with unwillingness. If she had just ten more seconds, she could render this wretched ox incapable of fighting, and once that happened, the herd wouldn't keep guarding it.

A crippled ox could only wait for death!

She made her decision: she would heavily wound the Iron-Armored Ox before them and then retreat, returning to deliver the finishing blow once the herd had dispersed.

In this way, Ling Yun's soul ring would be secured!

"Ten seconds, give me ten seconds and I can make it lose its combat ability!"

"We'll retreat after ten seconds! That way, Little Yun's first soul ring will be settled."

Su Yuntao understood Sisi's plan. "Little Yun, stay here and watch, protect yourself."

"Lone Wolf, possess!"

Su Yuntao charged out, rushing toward the herd without a second thought; his goal was to buy time.

"Second soul skill, Wolf King Roar!"

Su Yuntao went all out from the start, a wolf howl with immense penetrating power sweeping toward the herd.

Under the amplification of his twenty-six-level soul power, the pressure of the Wolf King—the predator—acted upon the herd.

Except for the lead Iron-Armored Ox and two others with horns over forty centimeters long, the rest of the Iron-Armored Oxen instinctively faltered. The Iron-Armored Oxen under a hundred years of age chose to turn and flee.

This was a herd instinct, a genetic threat stemming from the wolf pack.

Seeing the two of them working so hard, Ling Yun did not just stand by and watch. He summoned his martial soul. "Brother Tao, Sister Sisi! I'm here to assist you!"

The laws of heaven and earth on the Douluo Continent restricted his soul power growth, but his spiritual power and physique remained unaffected.

He held the Yin-Yang Mirror, which radiated red light, and shone it upon the herd. He used his spiritual power to trigger the attack of the Yin-Yang Mirror.

The herd saw a sea of blood.

Streaks of dark red chains crisscrossed, locking onto their souls; this was one of the powers of the Yin side of the Yin-Yang Mirror, acting directly upon the soul.

"Soul-Locking Light!"

After this move, Ling Yun's face turned noticeably pale, but the effect was significant. All the oxen stiffened in their limbs, and those charging the fastest tumbled to the ground due to their own momentum.

Sisi and Su Yuntao were incredibly shocked.

They immediately noticed his condition. "Little Yun, how are you? Is it serious?"

"It's nothing, just a bit of a heavy drain."

"Brother Tao, Sister Sisi, hurry and deliver the finishing blows! I can't trap them for long with this move, I need to recover!"