The official road to Spirit City wound through a stretch of unbroken mountains. The most treacherous section was called Fallen Soul Gorge.
The cliffs on both sides were sheer as blades, and the forests were dense. Only a narrow road passed through the valley floor, making it a necessary route to Spirit City.
The fifteen finalist teams entered the gorge in a mighty procession under the escort of the Imperial Golden Armor Guard.
Carriages, Soul Masters, and guards stretched for nearly half a mile, their banners snapping loudly in the wind.
The Shrek Team walked in the middle of the procession. Tang San rode in the center, his expression calm, but an indescribable pressure faintly weighed on his heart.
The mountain forests on both sides were far too quiet.
There was not even the sound of birdsong.
The Golden Armor Commander at the very front of the procession seemed to sense that something was wrong as well. He raised his hand, signaling the procession to slow down.
But the instant his hand rose, countless rays of Soul Power suddenly lit up in the forests on both sides of the gorge.
"Enemy attack!"
Before the shout could spread, attacks rained down from both sides like a landslide.
Black-clad, masked Soul Masters poured out of the forests. There were at least a hundred of them, their Spirit Ring lights glittering like stars.
Two figures hovered in the air at the head of the attackers, one on each side. The figure on the left was surrounded by an enormous Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum, its golden petals transforming into blades that filled the sky under the urging of Soul Power.
The figure on the right resembled a mass of intangible darkness. His form drifted unpredictably, and even his features could not be seen clearly.