The convoy traveled for several days. Once they went farther, they would leave the Northwest Field Army's jurisdiction, and Dai Hao couldn't stay with this small group forever and escort them all the way to Shrek Academy.
After leaving a squad of elite soldiers behind, Dai Hao led the rest of his people away.
The remainder of the journey had already taken them deep into the Xingluo Empire, and they weren't far from Shrek Academy either, so everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
They all thought there was no chance of anything unusual happening here. But that very lapse in vigilance was exactly what the people from the Holy Spirit Cult had been counting on.
Night.
An official-road post station, serving as a temporary camp.
Xu Tianyao sat alone in his room, gazing out at the night. To him, both day and night were excellent times for cultivation.
During the day, the sun shone brightly, allowing the Soul Power of his Sunlight Martial Soul to be generated and circulate at maximum efficiency.
At night, he could also make full use of the moon's sacred, yin power to temper the Sunlight Martial Soul's violent energy, transforming and absorbing it.
Just as he was about to begin cultivating for the night, Qian Duoduo sent someone to invite him over, saying there was something to discuss.
Xu Tianyao naturally couldn't refuse. He followed the student in Shrek uniform straight upstairs.
But while he was still wondering what Qian Duoduo wanted with him,
the young man leading him, dressed in a Shrek Academy uniform, flashed a red glint in his eyes.
Without warning, the young man flung several Soul Tool bombs behind him. They exploded with a roar, and a tremendous blast shook the post station. A moment later, similar explosions erupted on every floor.
As the billowing smoke cleared, Xu Tianyao held a Soul Tool shield in one hand, blocking the sudden blast. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he fixed his gaze on the student who had ambushed him.
When the man saw that even four instant-activation Level Five Soul Tool bombs hadn't killed this so-called Prince of Sun Moon, his face filled with shock.
But he had only tried his luck. Even if he couldn't kill Xu Tianyao, the man wouldn't escape tonight—not with his strength.
Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black. Six enormous Soul Rings rose from his body, and a vicious Demon Wolf appeared behind him.
Sure enough, this man wasn't a member of Shrek Academy. And with such a heavy aura of murderous violence about him, he clearly wasn't an ordinary Soul Master either.
There could be only one answer: this bastard was a lackey of the Holy Spirit Cult.
His Evil Soul Master aura was so strong, yet he'd hidden it so well that Xu Tianyao hadn't seen through him at first. The Holy Spirit Cult really couldn't be underestimated.
"Fourth Soul Skill—Demon Wolf Six-Fold Slash!"
The entire post station was in chaos now, with fighting breaking out on every floor. The Titled Douluo from Shrek Academy still hadn't appeared. Most likely, even more powerful Evil Soul Masters had held them up.
Looks like I have no choice but to fight. Xu Tianyao was facing a Soul Emperor-level powerhouse for the first time, and excitement surged through him as his blood began to boil.
A blazing sun slowly rose behind him, radiating scorching light.
"Second Soul Skill—Sunlight Battle Body!"
As a purple Soul Ring lit up around Xu Tianyao, the sun behind him sprayed out countless streams of molten fire. They instantly engulfed his body, then slowly condensed into pieces of armor that covered him from head to toe.
The Sunlight Battle Body was a powerful Soul Skill that activated the solar bloodline within him, granting an all-around enhancement and fully revealing the domineering nature of his Sunlight Martial Soul.
As the Evil Soul Master's Demon Wolf Six-Fold Slash came at him, Xu Tianyao repeatedly threw punch after punch. Each one conjured a miniature sun, and when they collided with the slashes, they unleashed violent shock waves.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the post station,
Meng Hongchen and Xiao Hongchen were also being surrounded by several Evil Soul Masters whose strength surpassed theirs.
But as the grandchildren of Mingde Hall's master, they had no shortage of Soul Tools. Especially on this trip to a hostile continent, Jing Hongchen had armed his precious grandchildren to the teeth and reinforced their equipment.
Xiao Hongchen activated his Martial Soul and stood at the front, facing the Evil Soul Masters' fiercest attacks.
Behind Meng Hongchen, a Vermilion-Eyed Ice Toad appeared, and a bone-chilling cold began to spread through the area around her.
The Soul Rings around Meng Hongchen rang out one after another. Countless waves of cold and ice rained down from above, sealing the area tight.
Her wine-red hair had also turned a soul-stirring white because of her Martial Soul Possession.
"Second Soul Skill—Ice Poison Ring!"
A massive ice-blue ring appeared around Meng Hongchen. Within it, the poison hidden in every cloud of frost and every chunk of ice would be amplified without limit.
Only then did the Evil Soul Masters, who had been straining to break through Xiao Hongchen's metal and Soul Tool defenses, realize something was wrong.
"Not good, there's poison in the mist! Retreat!"
Whatever their purpose, the Evil Soul Masters they had sent out were generally not very strong.
The students from Sun Moon could even use their extensive supply of Soul Tool weapons to hold their own against opponents at a higher level, keeping themselves safe and buying time.
That gave the teachers and students from Shrek a chance to rescue them.
"Duoduo, Lin'er and I can handle things here. Don't get bogged down in a fight. Get downstairs and protect the children. Not one of them can come to harm."
Above the post station, Elder Song and Xian Lin'er were locked in a fierce battle against three Evil Soul Masters of unknown origins, each a Titled Douluo.
Elder Song was the oldest, most experienced, and most thorough of them all. What worried her most now was whether the Prince of Sun Moon in the post station was in danger.
The Evil Soul Masters' goal was obvious. They meant to target the children from the Sun Moon Empire, especially the prince, whose status and talent were both exceptional.
They wanted to use this to spark conflict between the Sun Moon Empire and the Three Great Empires, then profit from the chaos.
That was the last thing she wanted to see—and the last thing any of the great empires wanted.
So she was willing to face all three Titled Douluo alongside Xian Lin'er, no matter the danger,
just to send Qian Duoduo away from the battle at once, so he could get the children from Sun Moon out of there.
Qian Duoduo held a huge shield etched with a dragon pattern. Hearing his mother-in-law's words, he nodded firmly.
At the same time, the eighth Soul Ring around him lit up. "Eighth Soul Skill—Black Dragon Protection!"
Before leaving, he also cast a sturdy shield over Elder Song and Xian Lin'er.
Only after seeing that the two of them could handle the three Titled Douluo without too much trouble did he force his way downstairs.
When he returned to the post station, what he saw inside truly took him by surprise.
The students from Sun Moon had gathered in groups of two and three. Their Soul Power was already considerable, and with their Soul Tools supporting them, they were putting up a strong counterattack.
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