"That is!"
Ma Hongjun puffed out his chest, then turned toward Dai Mubai and gave him a smug wink.
"Dai Mubai, I have a Soul Ring now too!
"I won't be getting casually slapped away by you anymore!"
Dai Mubai crossed his arms and let out a scornful laugh, saying nothing.
However, there was less contempt in his attitude than before, and more acknowledgment.
Flender watched everything from the side, stroking his goatee as he nodded slightly.
But he soon looked toward the depths of the forest again, and the unease in his eyes never fully faded.
He clapped his hands to call everyone over.
"Alright, we've got the Soul Rings. Let's withdraw."
The group turned around and began retracing the route they had taken here.
The light in the forest gradually dimmed.
Though it was not yet evening, the dense canopy had already blocked out most of the sunlight.
Everyone quickened their pace.
Shen Yuji still walked half a step beside Lu Mingfei.
Zhao Wuji strode at the front of the group, clearing the way.
Flender brought up the rear, occasionally glancing back into the darkness between the trees.
The shadows in the forest slowly shifted outward, and the first thing they heard was a thunderous, muffled breath.
Then the ground began to tremble.
This trembling differed from the earlier earth-shaking upheaval.
It was a heavy, oppressive sensation, each step pressing down upon the ground.
With every step, pebbles and dead branches at their feet bounced into the air.
Zhao Wuji abruptly stopped.
His thick arm swept across in front of everyone, and his brownish-yellow pupils suddenly contracted.
A massive black shadow burst from the depths of the forest, smashing through several trees as thick as water barrels.
Its enormous body was completely exposed beneath the sparse daylight.