Zhu Shen took a deep breath, leaped down from the tree, and landed at the edge of the altar.
"Well, this is quite a lively gathering."
His voice wasn't loud, but it rang out clearly over the Evil Soul Masters' chanting.
The chanting stopped abruptly.
Every Evil Soul Master turned to look at the unexpected guest who had suddenly appeared.
Blood Shadow slowly lowered the bead. A low laugh came from the shadow beneath his hood. "Yu Xiaogang, you actually dared to come."
"You invited me. How could I not?" Zhu Shen brushed the dust from his clothes and glanced over the children on the altar. "Besides, it'd be rude not to invite me to such a lively gathering."
Su Nuo's expression changed. "Grandmaster, you..."
"Shut up." Blood Shadow cut him off and looked at Zhu Shen. "I'm curious. How did you find this place?"
"Take a guess." Zhu Shen smiled. "But I have a question for you. What exactly does your Evil God Temple do? All you ever do is hold sacrifices and bleed people. Don't you get tired of it?"
Blood Shadow fell silent for a moment.
"You don't need to know." He waved a hand. "Kill him."
The Evil Soul Masters surrounding the altar sprang into action.
More than twenty Evil Soul Masters released their Martial Souls at once, their colorful Soul Rings lighting up the night. Their strength varied, ranging from Two-Ring Soul Grandmasters to Four-Ring Soul Ancestors, but every one of them reeked of sinister energy.
Zhu Shen sighed.
"Do we really have to fight?"
With a thought, he released his Dragon God Martial Soul.
The phantom of a Golden Dragon appeared behind him, with two purple and two black Soul Rings circling at his side. Dragon Might spread like a tangible force, making the few Evil Soul Masters in front falter. Their faces instantly went deathly pale.
Beast Martial Souls were the least able to resist Dragon Might. The Martial Souls of those Evil Soul Masters were all beasts—wolves, tigers, snakes, and the like—and under the pressure of the Dragon God Martial Soul, they began to tremble instinctively.
"Dragon Might Intimidation!"
Zhu Shen's third Soul Ring lit up, its purple light blazing.
An invisible pressure surged outward like a tidal wave. The Evil Soul Masters with Beast Martial Souls screamed as their Martial Souls were forced back into their bodies. They crumpled to the ground, limp.
But the rest of the Evil Soul Masters kept charging.
An Evil Soul Master at the Four-Ring Soul Ancestor level released his Martial Soul—a scorpion black from head to tail. A ghostly blue gleam shone from its stinger as it thrust toward Zhu Shen.
Zhu Shen dodged to the side and reached out with his Dragon Claw, snatching the scorpion by its tail.
Crack.
The tail snapped clean off.
The Evil Soul Master screamed. Before he could react, Zhu Shen was already in front of him.
The Dragon Claw came down.
Bang!
The Evil Soul Master flew backward, smashed into the altar, and passed out, spitting blood.
Zhu Shen turned to face the other Evil Soul Masters charging at him.
Most of them were around the three-ring Soul Elder level. They were no match for him. His Dragon Claw swept through them, and wherever its golden light passed, the Evil Soul Masters fell like wheat before a scythe.
In less than ten breaths, more than half of the twenty-odd Evil Soul Masters were down.
The few who remained were deathly pale and didn't dare approach.
Blood Shadow hadn't moved once. He had simply watched in silence. Only after Zhu Shen had dealt with the cannon fodder did he speak. "Not bad. You're even stronger than I expected."
"Thanks for the compliment." Zhu Shen flicked the blood from his hand. "You're next."
Blood Shadow laughed.
He stepped forward, his cloak stirring without a breeze. Dark red Soul Power surged from his body, turning into a tangible mist that swirled around him.
Seven Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet.
Two yellow, two purple, and three black.
It was a standard Soul Saint configuration, but the sinister aura he gave off was enough to make anyone shudder.
"Yu Xiaogang, do you know why I chose the night of the full moon for the ritual?" Blood Shadow's voice held a strange delight. "Because on the night of the full moon, my Martial Soul can unleash a hundred and twenty percent of its power."
As he finished speaking, the seventh Soul Ring on his body suddenly blazed to life.
"Seventh Soul Skill, Blood Wolf True Form!"
Dark red light exploded. Blood Shadow's body began to swell and change shape. His cloak tore apart, revealing the grotesque form beneath.
It was a blood-red giant wolf, over three meters tall. Twisted black markings covered its body, and its eyes were a pure dark red, gleaming with madness. It opened its jaws, revealing a forest of white fangs. Drool dripped to the ground, burning little pits into the earth.
"Awooo—!"
The Blood Wolf threw back its head and howled. Its roar became a tangible shock wave, making the surrounding trees shiver.
The children on the altar were so frightened they couldn't even cry. They huddled together, trembling.
Zhu Shen's expression turned grave.
A Soul Saint's Martial Soul Avatar was beyond what he could handle right now.
But with the arrow on the string, he had no choice but to let it fly.
He took a deep breath and drove his Soul Power to its limit. The golden light of his Dragon God Martial Soul blazed brighter. Dragon Wings unfurled behind him, and golden scales reflected the moonlight in a dazzling gleam.
"Third Soul Skill, Dragon Might Intimidation!"
"First Soul Skill, Dragon Scale Possession!"
"Second Soul Skill, Dragon Claw Rending!"
All three Soul Skills activated at once, and Zhu Shen's aura surged to its peak. He kicked off the ground and became a streak of golden light as he charged at the Blood Wolf.
A look of contempt flashed in the Blood Wolf's eyes. It raised a forepaw and slammed it down.
Boom!
Golden and dark red light collided, unleashing a thunderous blast.
Zhu Shen flew backward, plowing a trench more than ten meters long through the ground. He steadied himself, felt something rise in his throat, and coughed up blood.
There was no question who had won that clash.
The gap between a Soul Ancestor and a Soul Saint couldn't be bridged by a few Soul Rings.
The Blood Wolf walked toward him, Zhu Shen's reflection visible in its dark red eyes. "Kneel now and join the Temple. I can spare your life."
"Join you?" Zhu Shen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "With your habit of holding sacrifices and bleeding people, you have the nerve to call yourselves a Holy Temple?"
"Ignorant fool." The Blood Wolf's voice was low and hoarse. "This world needs a new order. Soul Masters stand above everyone else, ordinary people are treated like ants, and Soul Beasts are reduced to Soul Rings and Soul Bones... It's all wrong."
"So you're going to kill children?"
"Sacrifice is necessary." The Blood Wolf raised a forepaw, its claws gleaming coldly. "When the Temple descends, the world will know true equality. There will be no Soul Masters or ordinary people. Everyone will gain eternal life."
Zhu Shen understood.
These lunatics wanted to summon some evil god and use its power to reshape the world.
"Keep dreaming."
He gritted his teeth and charged again.
This time, he didn't meet the Blood Wolf head-on. Instead, he used the speed of his Dragon Wings to circle it, his Dragon Claws striking again and again to leave wounds across its body.
But the dark red mist quickly repaired them.
The Blood Wolf's recovery was too powerful.
"It's useless." The Blood Wolf struck with a forepaw, forcing Zhu Shen back. "On the night of the full moon, my recovery is ten times faster than usual. You can't hurt me."
Zhu Shen panted heavily, his mind racing.
He couldn't win in a direct clash, couldn't wear it down by dodging, and his Soul Skills weren't strong enough...
Wait.
He looked at the black box on the altar.
The box still sat in the center of the altar, while the dark red bead had been embedded in a hollow at its top. The light around the bead grew brighter and brighter. The air around it began to warp, and a blurry phantom was gradually taking shape.
That was what they were summoning.
If he could destroy the bead, the ritual would be interrupted. Then the Blood Wolf would lose the full moon's blessing, and its strength should drop.
But how could he get past it?
The Blood Wolf was guarding the altar. There was no way through.
Zhu Shen gritted his teeth. He had to risk it.
He turned and ran.
Not away from the altar, but toward the depths of the forest.
The Blood Wolf froze for a moment, then sneered. "Trying to escape?"
It dug in with all four legs and chased after him.
A man and a wolf raced through the forest, felling trees and kicking up clouds of dust. Zhu Shen drove his Dragon Wings to their limit, reaching top speed, but the Blood Wolf slowly closed the distance.
He couldn't match a Soul Saint's speed.
Just as the Blood Wolf was about to catch up, Zhu Shen abruptly veered off and flew in another direction.
Toward the core area of the Soul Hunting Forest.
The Blood Wolf's pupils contracted. "Are you crazy?"
Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts roamed the core area of the Soul Hunting Forest. Even Soul Saints wouldn't dare venture in lightly.
But Zhu Shen plunged straight in without a second thought.
The Blood Wolf hesitated for an instant, then followed.
It couldn't let Zhu Shen escape. His Dragon God Martial Soul could purify sinister energy. If he got away alive, he would cause serious trouble for the Temple's plans in the future.
Deeper in the forest, the trees grew even denser.
Zhu Shen lowered his altitude and wove between the trunks. He pushed his senses to the limit, searching for a particular aura.
There it was.
Not far ahead, a powerful wave of Soul Power stirred. A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was resting in its lair.
Zhu Shen grinned and raced toward it.
The Blood Wolf sensed that something was wrong, but it was too late.
Zhu Shen rushed into a clearing. A massive black bear lay at its center, snoring like thunder.
A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast—the Shadow Demon Bear.