Dark Demon Evil God Tiger! Three-Eyed Golden Lion!

Long Xiaoyao withdrew his hand, which had already returned to normal, and casually brushed off nonexistent dust. It was as if he had not just swatted a Wind Tiger with forty thousand years of cultivation to death, but merely crushed a fly. He looked utterly relaxed.

"Why aren't you coming over to check on your father?"

Long Xiaoyao's words were like thunder, jolting Zhang Yue Bai awake from his shock. After handing Zhang Le Xuan over to Xu Tianchen beside him, he rushed toward Zhang Huan, who had collapsed nearby.

"Thank you, Senior, for saving my life!"

Zhang Huan forced himself to stand and offer a salute. Yet his injuries were too severe; his body swayed, and he was about to fall before Zhang Yue Bai caught him in time.

As a veteran Soul Douluo of the Heavenly Soul Empire, Zhang Huan considered himself well-informed. Yet strength and bearing like Long Xiaoyao's were not something an ordinary Title Douluo could possess. Even a Super Douluo might not be capable of such a feat.

"Father, your injuries!"

Although Zhang Huan was covered in wounds, the most severe was undoubtedly his empty left arm. The wound had received basic treatment, but it still looked horrifying.

It had been caused by a savage beast's bite. A sinister aura lingered in the wound, constantly corroding the flesh and blood there while eroding his vitality.

"Please, Senior, lend us your aid. No matter the price, the Zhang Family will not refuse."

Seeing that he could not handle the matter himself, Zhang Yue Bai decisively turned to Long Xiaoyao, bowed deeply once more, and begged him to act.

Long Xiaoyao waved a hand. "Fine, I'll see this through to the end. If it weren't for the fact that we are both from the Heavenly Soul Empire, this old man wouldn't have intervened so many times."

With that, Long Xiaoyao stepped forward and crouched beside Zhang Huan. He raised his right hand. This time, no terrifying pressure accompanied it; instead, he compressed his dark soul power to its utmost limit.

"Bear with it," Long Xiaoyao said softly.

The moment he spoke, his finger touched Zhang Huan's severed arm. The dark-attributed soul power directly severed the sinister aura entrenched in the wound.

After only a few breaths, Long Xiaoyao withdrew his hand and said to the Zhang father and son,

"It's done. The evil aura has been removed. The arm cannot regrow, but if his vitality is replenished, he may still have a chance to advance in cultivation in this lifetime."

"Thank you, Senior, for this grace of rebirth. This junior has nothing worthy to repay you with, save for this right-arm Soul Bone from a thirty-thousand-year Blazing Sunflower. Please do not disdain it."

Zhang Huan took out a relatively intact right-arm bone from his soul tool and offered it to Long Xiaoyao.

Long Xiaoyao nodded and expressionlessly stored the Soul Bone in his soul tool. At his level, even a hundred-thousand-year Soul Bone might not be useful to him, much less a mere thirty-thousand-year Soul Bone.

Seeing that they had finished, Xu Tianchen walked over from the side with Zhang Le Xuan on his back.

"Thank you, young friend."

Zhang Yue Bai took the unconscious Zhang Le Xuan from him and thanked Xu Tianchen.

"What's wrong with this little girl?" Long Xiaoyao asked.

"Sigh, it started from the beginning. This is my daughter, Zhang Le Xuan. She's only nine years old, yet she has already broken through to Rank 20. We came here to hunt her second Spirit Ring. We found a suitable soul beast in the outer region, but just as Le Xuan was about to finish absorbing the Spirit Ring, a Dark Demon Evil God Tiger of roughly twenty thousand years suddenly appeared for some reason. It ambushed us, heavily injured my father, and interrupted Le Xuan's absorption of the Spirit Ring."

"Then why did you flee to the border between the outer and mixed regions? Shouldn't you have run outward?" Xu Tianchen voiced his confusion.

"We originally intended to run outward, but after only a few steps, we encountered Scarlet King and a strange golden four-legged beast. We could only flee in another direction. Fortunately, Scarlet King fought the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger. Otherwise, we would probably have died long ago."

Even now, lingering fear colored Zhang Yue Bai's voice.

A twenty-thousand-year Dark Demon Evil God Tiger!

Xu Tianchen was somewhat excited upon hearing that. It seemed his fourth Spirit Ring had been settled. He only hoped the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger would be smart enough not to get killed by Star Dou's group of ferocious beasts.

As for that strange golden four-legged beast, it was probably the imperial auspicious beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion!

"Let me take a look at this girl," Long Xiaoyao said, his gaze settling on Zhang Le Xuan.

"Then thank you, Senior." Zhang Yue Bai hurriedly handed Zhang Le Xuan to Long Xiaoyao. After taking her, Long Xiaoyao placed his right hand on her forehead and probed her with his spiritual power.

Looking at Zhang Le Xuan's pale little face, Xu Tianchen thought, So this was Shrek Academy's future eldest senior sister. She was still so tiny, and she looked rather adorable!

That also explained why she attracted him. Zhang Le Xuan's martial soul was the moon, which resonated with his Sun Martial Soul. But its level could not compare to his twin ultimate Sun Martial Soul, and her soul power was lower than his, so her martial soul also seemed to feel a slight sense of rejection.

As for why her family possessed a moon martial soul, he would have to go back and investigate it properly.

Xu Tianchen remembered that Zhang Le Xuan's family would be exterminated when she was eleven or twelve. Mu En would then bring her back to Shrek Academy, raising her as an heir and Bei Bei's child bride.

"It's nothing serious. Her spiritual power is just a little unstable. Her unconsciousness is also her body's self-protection mechanism. Let her rest a while longer, and she'll be fine."

Long Xiaoyao's words after examining her interrupted Xu Tianchen's wandering thoughts.

"Thank you again, Senior. May I ask for your title?" Zhang Yue Bai asked gratefully.

"No need. This old man only saved you because you are people of the Heavenly Soul Empire."

Long Xiaoyao shook his head and did not reveal his identity. He knew that if the Sun Moon Empire attacked the Heavenly Soul Empire in the future, he might use his soul skills against his own homeland. There was no need to tell them.

"Let's go. I'll take you out first."

"Senior's kindness will remain etched in this junior's heart for the rest of my life!"

With that, Zhang Yue Bai carried Zhang Le Xuan on his back, supported Zhang Huan, and followed Long Xiaoyao toward the outer region.

Not long after Xu Tianchen and the others left, space at the edge of the forest twisted slightly, and a figure appeared out of thin air.

It was an incomparably majestic soul beast, around three meters long and two meters tall at the shoulder. Its four claws resembled dragons', and its body was sleek and elegant. It possessed both the might of a lion king and the nimbleness of a Suanni.

Its fur was as golden as sunlight, radiating a warm yet noble glow beneath the sun.

Most peculiar was the third eye on its forehead. Though closed, it emanated a profound aura of wondrous destiny and blessings for all living things.

Strange golden flames burned beneath its four feet, yet they did not scorch the flowers and grass around it. Instead, they filled them with vitality.

This was precisely the imperial auspicious beast of the Star Dou Forest, the beloved mascot of Star Dou's group of ferocious beasts—the Three-Eyed Golden Lion!

Immediately afterward, a massive figure followed the Three-Eyed Golden Lion and crashed down behind it, blocking the way before it!