The Soul Beasts' Plans, Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird

"Teacher... I understood, but whenever I saw people from Shrek, I became furious. Shrek had destroyed everything I had, and they had even killed my benefactor.

If the people of Shrek had not killed my benefactor, my hatred would not have run so deep. But that uncle had treated me so well. He was the one who helped me awaken my Martial Soul.

Yet that uncle... was killed by people from Shrek! Just because he was from the Sun Moon Empire, just because he wanted to take me to the Sun Moon Empire, they killed him, then treated me like their slave.

No matter what, I could not forgive Shrek. My hatred could not be extinguished. I could keep the flames of my anger away from ordinary people and avoid implicating Shrek's civilians, but I could not forgive those from Shrek who had hurt me. They all had to pay the price."

Xiao Changge was someone who valued feelings deeply. Whoever treated him well, he treated well in return. Just like Electrolux and the restaurant owner—those people had all been good to him, so he returned the kindness he had received and repaid their goodwill. The same was true of Electrolux. Electrolux treated him well, so he treated Electrolux well. He was like a mirror: whoever was good to him, he was good to them.

Shrek was different. Shrek had treated him badly. They had killed his benefactor, crippled him, and made Ma Xiaotao absorb the power of his Martial Soul and Soul Power to suppress her own Evil Fire. Then, once he no longer had any value, they had simply driven him out, tossed him a hundred Gold Soul Coins, and told him to leave.

This was naked hatred. He had to take revenge. He had to use every member of Shrek's upper ranks as sacrifices to wash away his hatred, make everyone in Shrek regret ever being born—only then could this hatred be appeased.

The only rationality Xiao Changge could still maintain was refusing to implicate ordinary people. Letting the innocent leave Shrek was the only thing he could do. Whoever tried to stop him would die.

"Changge, if anger devours your reason, you will never become a true powerhouse.

"Now go hunt the Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird. We will soon reach that Soul Beast's territory. You must prepare yourself. At the same time, I need you to understand that maintaining your reason amid anger and battle is what truly matters."

"Yes." Xiao Changge understood that Electrolux meant well, but his hatred ran too deep. It was difficult to quell his fury.

As Xiao Changge walked onward, he failed to notice that someone nearby had been watching him from the shadows.

"A mysterious expert in soul form, and a supreme genius capable of absorbing his first Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring at the first stage... With such talent among humanity, the future of Soul Beasts is truly worrying.

"But Shrek Academy harmed this youth. When he was young, he had no money to awaken his Martial Soul, and the person who helped him awaken it was from the Sun Moon Empire. In the end, Shrek's people killed that man. I am very curious—how will he make his sacrifice in the future? A few Soul Beasts do not matter. We can send him to destroy Shrek Academy when the time comes. After all, we have no grudge against him, while he has a grudge against Shrek Academy."

"Di Tian, if this youth becomes a top-tier powerhouse, he will be trouble for us. But if his opponent is Shrek Academy, then of course we should help him grow stronger.

"The best outcome would be for Shrek Academy and this fellow to fight until both sides are badly damaged. Then we can reap the benefits, using the corpses of Shrek's powerful Soul Masters to feed Soul Beasts and cultivate a large force of elite Soul Beasts."

"I think that is an excellent idea. Shrek Academy possesses a miracle left behind by a god, so dealing with them will be troublesome.

"Therefore, if we want to deal with Shrek Academy, it will be a difficult matter. We must make proper preparations.

"Now that someone stubborn enough is willing to go against Shrek Academy, that is ideal.

"And his hatred runs deep. It will certainly become a fight to the death. That makes him even more worth using."

"Then let us see whether this youth has any value for us to use."

Xiao Changge soon arrived at the part of the Star Dou Great Forest inhabited by fire-attributed Soul Beasts.

Before long, a massive Soul Beast appeared. The Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird had appeared.

(If I defeat this Soul Beast, I can obtain Beast Flame—Purple Flame. Then the Mantra of Burning can evolve as well.)

Xiao Changge then approached with the Heavy Profound Ruler in hand.

"By the looks of it, this Soul Beast is at least forty thousand years old. I need to be careful."

"Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!" The Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird sensed Xiao Changge's hostility. It was obviously an enemy, so there was no need for questions. It immediately began fighting.

The Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird immediately launched an attack. As a Soul Beast with both flight and fire attributes, it was not only extremely suitable for Soul Masters with Phoenix Martial Souls, but also for fire-attributed Soul Masters seeking to strengthen the power of their flames.

Xiao Changge chose to fight with everything he had.

"Explosive Step." Xiao Changge dodged the flames, then charged forward with the Heavy Profound Ruler.

"Try my ultimate move! Flame Splitting Wave Ruler!"

Xiao Changge immediately unleashed his ultimate move. This was an Earth Tier combat technique. Though it was only a low-level Earth Tier technique, its power was still immense.

"Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!" The Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird was instantly frightened upon seeing the attack and tried to flee, but it was still struck because it had been too close.

"Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!" After being hit, the Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird let out furious roars and began spewing flames everywhere.

"Explosive Step." Xiao Changge evaded the chaotic barrage of fireballs, then followed up with another Eight Extremities Collapse.

"Eight Extremities Collapse." Xiao Changge delivered the final blow.

After taking that attack, the Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird was completely defeated.

The Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird was powerful, having surpassed forty thousand years in age. But it had one weakness: it was far too arrogant. It did not know how strong Xiao Changge was. It only sensed that he was a newly advanced Soul Grandmaster who had yet to obtain a Soul Ring, a mere prospective Soul Grandmaster.

So it had let its guard down, never expecting him to possess cheats from the world of Battle Through the Heavens. Both Earth Tier and Profound Tier combat techniques were more than enough to make it suffer.

Had this Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird been careful and cautious, it would not have been defeated. But it had been far too careless and had even approached him at close range, which was why it was ultimately defeated by Xiao Changge.

"Absorb it quickly now."

"Yes." Xiao Changge then began absorbing the Four-Winged Fire Phosphorus Bird's Soul Ring.

Then came a Soul Shock, caused by the Soul Beast's malice. Electrolux acted to resolve the problem and helped Xiao Changge absorb this Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

[Congratulations, Host. Reward: Beast Flame—Purple Flame (Storage Ring included)]

A sixth-rank Beast Flame and a Storage Ring from the world of Battle Through the Heavens then appeared on Xiao Changge's finger.