Let the Soul Beasts Witness Human Wisdom

The Cyclops noticed Xiao Mu and lunged forward abruptly, its body surging with brute force as its sharp claws cleaved downward with a whistling tear through the air.

Xiao Mu, with his slender frame, vaulted into the air using his 3D Maneuver Gear. He spun rapidly, following the forest's currents, and drew two high-grade melee soul tools. The blades, wrapped in a fierce gale, forcefully cleaved through the monster's offensive.

The giant fist slammed into the ground with a boom, sending soil flying. Xiao Mu brushed past it, executing a clean backflip to evade the heavy strike.

He continued to maneuver, keeping his distance to familiarize himself with the controls. He rotated and repositioned in mid-air, raining down a dense web of blade light.

The giant's body was clumsy and sluggish, unable to dodge in time. Every aerial spin and strike landed precisely on its vital points.

After several leaps and turns, Xiao Mu grew tired of the game and prepared to deliver the finishing blow.

"End it!"

He used his steel cable to suddenly hoist his body upward, twisting in mid-air to generate momentum. His twin blades combined their force in a ruthless downward strike, cleanly severing the giant's neck.

The massive body crashed into the forest floor, sending dust billowing into the air.

Golden specks of spiritual power surged into Xiao Mu's body, and his two deep-yellow soul rings grew even darker.

Junwu circled overhead and let out a mocking laugh: "This Cyclops is truly trash. Back in my day, no human would dare be this arrogant while I was around."

Before the words had even faded, it opened its beak and let out a clear, piercing cry. The sound shook the entire mountain forest, making it clear that it intended to claim this territory of the Spirit Ascension Platform for itself.

The surrounding flying soul beasts fled in a panic at the sound, while the soul beasts lurking on the ground huddled deep within the thickets, not daring to move a muscle.

Their bloodlines instinctively warned them: this sound belonged to an apex predator at the very top of the food chain.

In the observation hall outside the Spirit Ascension Platform, Wu Zhangkong stood before the light screen, his face darkening. The screen played a clear replay of Xiao Mu's entire battle. Throughout the fight, he had relied mostly on his 3D Maneuver Gear and soul tools, showing almost nothing of his own true strength.

He tapped his fingers lightly against the edge of the screen, his tone cold and indifferent: "This Xiao Mu is truly skilled at using soul tools."

At the same time, a Spirit Pagoda staff member nearby was taking notes while reviewing Xiao Mu's file: Body Martial Soul.

"I should report this," the staff member thought, glancing toward another screen showing Gu Yue. "She needs to be reported as well."

Inside the Spirit Ascension Platform, a stream trickled over shallow stones. Na'er stood by the bank, her Silver Dragon Spear hanging at her side, the tip still dripping with warm blood.

Not far away, a Power Gorilla with bulging muscles lay collapsed. This pure-strength soul beast had fought with all its might, but in the end, it could not withstand the attacks of the Silver Dragon Spear.

Na'er held her spear, a hint of self-satisfaction in her tone: "I really am invincible."

No sooner had she spoken than the ground in the forest began to tremble violently, the heavy sound of footsteps approaching from afar.

The dense thicket was suddenly torn apart by brute force as a giant rhino, covered in thick, horny plate armor, charged out. Its body was stocky and massive, its hide layered like a sturdy shield, and its thick, long horn glinted with a dull, cold light. It was a Plate-Armored Rhino, a beast known for its defense.

The rhino dug its hooves into the dirt, lowered its head, and charged toward Na'er with the force of a thousand jun, the very air churning from the impact.

Just as it was about to collide, a figure plummeted from above.

Xiao Mu gripped his twin blades tightly, using the gravity boosted by his first soul skill and his own formidable strength to slash downward. The blades sliced rapidly into the rhino's neck, cleanly severing its head.

The heavy body lost its balance and collapsed with a dull thud.

"Brother, I could have handled that myself," Na'er pouted.

Xiao Mu sheathed his blades and stood steady, replying indifferently: "I know, but I don't have time to waste. We need to find the guardian of the Spirit Ascension Platform."

Suddenly, the woods rustled, and a fluffy, pink rabbit poked its head out. Xiao Mu didn't give it a chance to react; his first soul ring lit up, a terrifying gravitational pressure crushed down, and he slashed his blade.

But this Soft-Bone Rabbit didn't give Xiao Mu any chance at all—it was instantly reduced to a pulp of blood.

"This..." Xiao Mu was speechless. What about the Invincible Golden Body? The teleportation? Why didn't this Soft-Bone Rabbit use them? What kind of new skill is this?!

"Brother, forget about that hundred-year Soft-Bone Rabbit, let's go."

Na'er reminded him, and the two set off side-by-side, walking steadily toward the depths of the dense forest.

The canopy blocked out the sky, the path ahead was dim and deep, and the vegetation brushed against their clothes with a rustle.

High above, Junwu spread its wings and soared freely, followed by several Green-Feathered Birds—subordinates it had just subdued. The birds followed in perfect formation, not daring to overstep by even a fraction.

Na'er glanced up at the flock of birds and murmured: "That guy is fast. It gathered a bunch of lackeys in the blink of an eye."

Xiao Mu looked up at the sky and cautioned casually: "Don't attack recklessly. We need to find the Spirit Ascension Platform guardian first."

Junwu let out a soft cry in response, and the flock of green birds continued to follow in formation. Throughout the forest, ordinary soul beasts caught the scent from afar and hid themselves away.

As the two walked deeper into the forest, Xiao Mu keenly sensed two auras—one fast, one heavy—rapidly closing in on them.

Suddenly, silver light flashed, and a figure landed beside them in an instant.

A low rumble shook the ground behind them, and a massive body pushed through the bushes and stepped out. Its entire body was covered in a layer of glistening crystal shells—it was a thousand-year Crystal Bear.

"It's not Gu Yue. What happened to you? You brought a blind bear over!" Xiao Mu wasn't surprised in the slightest, nor did he care about the thousand-year soul beast.

The Crystal Bear was a mutated Dread-Claw Bear. It was a weakened mutation, and its strength was actually inferior to a Dread-Claw Bear. However, it possessed a special ability: any opponent it attacked would begin to crystallize, and a follow-up attack would shatter them. Only formidable soul power could resist the crystallization, or one had to quickly excise the crystallized area to avoid damage.

The Crystal Bear's weakness was that it could only fight in melee and had no long-range attack capabilities.

Gu Yue said indifferently: "An accident. It was all an accident."

The Crystal Bear dug its limbs into the ground and lunged forward, wrapped in crystalline light.

Xiao Mu raised his hand, and his first soul ring suddenly lit up. A heavy suppressive force slammed down, locking the Crystal Bear's body in place and making its movements sluggish, to the point where it could barely move at all.

Several colors of light swirled around Gu Yue as the four elements—water, fire, wind, and earth—unfolded simultaneously. Tongues of fire scorched the crystal shell, wind blades sliced through flesh, and layers of earth bound the bear's paws.

"Hit its eyes," Xiao Mu called out.

Na'er gripped the Silver Dragon Spear tightly, channeling her soul power into the shaft until the silver radiance became blinding. Taking advantage of the brief moment when the Crystal Bear was hindered by gravity suppression and elemental entanglement, its vision obscured, she lunged forward. Her spear struck with pinpoint precision, the sharp tip driving deep into the Crystal Bear's vulnerable eye.

The giant bear let out a roar of agony, its massive body trembling violently as its claws flailed wildly in every direction.

Seeing this, Na'er retreated immediately; she dared not risk contact with those claws, and in the short term, her soul power was insufficient to break the crowd control.

Xiao Mu witnessed the scene and sighed helplessly; this long-range mage was dealing zero damage. He glanced at Gu Yue, who was severely underdeveloped.

As expected, he would have to carry the team himself.

With that, he pulled the Thunder Cannon from his storage soul device, preparing to let the Crystal Bear experience the true ingenuity of humanity.