Departure, Ambush

Eastsea City, Soul Guide Train Station

Finally, the day Li Ziming was to leave for Heaven Dou City had arrived. Mu Chen brought Mu Xi to the Soul Guide Train Station to see Li Ziming off on the train to Heaven Dou City.

"Senior Brother, once you get to Heaven Dou City, you must cultivate properly. Don't let anyone surpass you," Mu Xi said, gazing at the young man before her with admiration.

"Alright, alright. I'll definitely cultivate diligently and won't let down your favor, Junior Sister."

"Master, this is far enough. I'll definitely study forging techniques properly under Martial Uncle. The next time we meet, I'll make you gasp in surprise." The golden-haired young man, whose presence was powerful and blazing like the scorching sun, spoke to the father and daughter before him.

"Ziming, I know your talent. Becoming an eight-star Saint Craftsman won't stop you, but that isn't what worries me. This time, your journey to Heaven Dou City may not be peaceful. You must be careful."

After saying that, Mu Chen turned and cupped his hands toward the blue-haired elder beside Li Ziming. "Elder Ye, I'll have to trouble you with my unworthy disciple's safety this time."

This elder was a high-ranking member of the Forging Masters Association headquarters, sent to escort Li Ziming to Heaven Dou City. He came from one of the guardian families of the Forging Masters Association.

According to Mu Chen, he was one of the rare Super Douluos within the association, immensely powerful and trustworthy.

"Ah, there is no need for this. It is this old man's duty. To witness the association producing so many outstanding young people in succession is truly fortunate. How could it be called trouble?"

Elder Ye shook his head, then checked the time and said to Li Ziming, "Alright, the train is about to depart. Let's go."

"Master, Junior Sister, I'm leaving. I'll be back during the New Year." With that, Li Ziming hurried after Elder Ye.

"Goodbye, Senior Brother!" Mu Xi waved.

"Have a safe journey!"

As Mu Chen watched the golden-haired young man's receding figure, he gradually felt as though he had released a blazing sun from a frog's dried-up well into the boundless starry sky.

"You should go to the stage that truly belongs to you."

Mu Chen murmured softly.

"Dad, what did you say?" Mu Xi asked curiously.

"Nothing."

At that moment, Li Ziming was riding the Soul Guide Train from Eastsea City to Heaven Dou City. He sat by the window as the train sped along, while staff occasionally pushed carts through the aisles, asking whether passengers wanted a meal.

"Viewing the scenery like this has its own charm." Li Ziming looked at the landscape outside, blurred by the train's high speed.

Yet even the finest scenery became dull after too long, let alone the hazy view outside. Li Ziming soon closed his eyes to rest.

The journey to Heaven Dou City was not short. With Elder Ye at his side, Li Ziming began studying the forging notes Mu Chen had given him aboard the train.

Suddenly, a bone-chilling sensation jolted him awake. Li Ziming emerged from his studies and scanned his surroundings.

There were many passengers in the carriage, and quite a few children were curiously looking out the windows. Nothing seemed unusual.

Yet the unease in Li Ziming's heart did not diminish in the slightest. His skin had even begun to prickle. His intuition was warning him—danger was coming, and it was no small threat.

Following Elder Ye's gaze, Li Ziming looked outside. Could the threat be coming from beyond the train?

Li Ziming looked out the window. The scenery was still blurred, but since the Soul Guide Train had left the city, the surroundings had lost some of the bustle of a major city and gained more of the pastoral feel of the countryside.

There did not seem to be anything unusual—except for several dazzling flashes in the distance.

Wait, flashes? Li Ziming focused his eyes. Those were not flashes at all. They were clearly several high-grade fixed-installation Soul Guide shells.

Trailing blinding sparks, they were hurtling straight toward the carriage. If they struck directly, he and Elder Ye would be fine, but few of the other people in the carriage would likely survive.

Suddenly, a figure flashed into view. Long blue hair flew wildly as nine Soul Rings—four purple, four black, and one red—circled his body. He casually swung his sword, and the shells exploded in midair. Only after the intense light faded did Li Ziming see clearly that Elder Ye had stopped them.

Li Ziming turned around and realized that Elder Ye had left his seat at some point.

Suddenly, Elder Ye's gaze sharpened. Li Ziming clearly noticed something was wrong as well and looked farther beyond the window.

In the distant sky outside the train, a cluster of black dots was speeding through the air.

"Mechs?"

Li Ziming extended his spiritual power slightly and discovered that they were indeed mechs. Their designs were noticeably different from those used by the military.

The Soul Guide mechs of Douluo Continent were basically humanoid, but these mechs before them gave off an eerie aura, cold and damp, making people deeply uncomfortable.

"Enemies."

Li Ziming's spiritual power was only one step away from the Spirit Abyss realm, so he could perceive more—for example, the dense malice emanating from those mechs, and the Soul Guide shells mounted on them, which were already poised to fire.

Even so, Li Ziming's expression remained calm, as though he was not worried in the slightest.

The next moment, points of light lit up on the mechs. The Soul Guide shells were fired.

"Humph!"

But at that very moment, a cold snort rang out. A streak of azure sword light rapidly spread in all directions, and the incoming Soul Guide shells abruptly came to a halt while they were still some distance from the train.

The light on the Soul Guide shells began to dim, and in the end, they went out like duds.

At the same time, they clearly saw where the attackers were. They were an assassination squad formed from mechs.

There were as many as thirty attacking mechs. The three leading mechs were black!

However, the leading black-grade mech differed from ordinary black mechs. A pair of bone wings hung from its back. When the wings spread, its speed was astonishing.

Almost at the same time the Soul Guide shells were launched, it had already appeared above the Soul Guide Train.

But when it saw golden light radiating from the Soul Guide Train, and the Soul Guide shells going dead as if they had misfired—

The black mech froze. It had already prepared to attack, but upon seeing the red Soul Ring around the elder, the light from its bone wings flared brightly. With a powerful beat, it tried to rapidly flee from the Soul Guide Train.

"Though I already knew this trip would not be peaceful, sending only three black-grade mechs to deal with this old man is truly looking down on me."

Elder Ye's icy voice came from the Soul Guide Train. Though he had anticipated that their whereabouts might be exposed and that they could encounter an attack, he had not expected the enemy to act so quickly.

They had only just left the boundaries of the Skysea Alliance when they were attacked. Moreover, for the enemy to gather so many mechs within the Federation's heartland, they must have been preparing for quite some time.

For them to come so precisely to launch this attack, these attackers had clearly been plotting it for a long time.

Unfortunately, their intelligence seemed somewhat lacking. They had not even figured out that a Super Douluo was accompanying him, yet they dared send this group here to die.

"Three black-grade mechs. For impoverished evil Soul Masters like you to assemble such a lineup, it must have taken quite some effort."

Golden light emerged around Elder Ye, and his four-word battle armor—Azure Wind God—appeared. This was no longer a city, so he had no need to worry about harming innocents.

"Perfect. Let this old man test this newly upgraded four-word battle armor!"

With a sweep of the azure blade in his hand, his fifth black Soul Ring shone brilliantly. Sword edges surged around him like a sudden gale and a torrential downpour, sweeping toward the enemies before him.

Fifth Soul Skill—Azure Wind Turns to Rain!

In an instant, sword qi shot in every direction, violent and rampant. The Soul Guide barriers raised by the enemy mechs were pierced as easily as paper, exposing the operators within.

When the raging wind subsided, severed limbs and wreckage littered the ground. Only the leader remained alive, having survived with a level-nine Soul Guide defensive barrier, though he had only a single breath left.

"Forging Masters Association... Wind God Sword... Ye... Qing... Ming!"

"Oh? You still have a breath left? But that is all."

As the words fell, a streak of sword light flashed past. The wind and rain settled, leaving a blue-haired elder standing amid a heap of mech wreckage.