Zhang Lexuan had not expected it to be the Silver Moon Wolf King. Gritting her teeth, she shouted, "Everyone, prepare for battle!"
At her command, Shrek's soul-hunting team swiftly assumed combat stances and launched a furious counterattack against the Silver Moon Wolves pouncing at them.
They were all elite Shrek students, not ordinary people.
Even if they encountered a hundred-thousand-year soul beast this time, they had the means to protect themselves.
In the blink of an eye, Shrek's soul-hunting team was locked in a bloody battle with the pack of Silver Moon Wolves, dazzling soul skills flashing alongside the soul beasts' innate abilities.
Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo joined forces against the hundred-thousand-year Silver Moon Wolf King.
Unlike last time, they had come prepared. Even facing a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, they were unafraid.
Even if the two Eight-Ring Soul Douluos could not defeat it, they could still protect themselves. They only needed to hold out until Xuan Zi returned.
But they soon discovered that they had underestimated this Silver Moon Wolf King.
It seemed to have come prepared as well. The moment it saw Zhang Lexuan, it entered a bloodthirsty state and launched a frenzied assault on her.
Immediately afterward, the ground suddenly shook. A Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, its entire body dark gold and its claws golden, charged out and instantly swiped at Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo.
Riiip-!
A streak of dark-gold claw light flashed past, wounding Zhang Lexuan even in her Martial Soul Avatar form.
"Lexuan!"
Han Ruoruo, who was unleashing the Shaking Gold Rope, spun around, her expression changing drastically.
Zhang Lexuan flew up again and shouted, "Ruoruo, we still have a sliver of hope if we work together. We absolutely cannot fall here today!"
Han Ruoruo immediately activated her Martial Soul Avatar, and her eighth soul ring lit up.
"Eighth soul skill, Golden Ascension!"
Golden light blazed forth. The golden ropes spread out, instantly binding the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear and the Silver Moon Wolf King and dragging them into the air.
Up above, Zhang Lexuan had already transformed into a silver moon. Incandescent white light shone across dozens of miles, enveloping the two terrifying soul beasts.
Rumble-!
The instant the moonlight and golden light merged, a terrifying explosion erupted. The Silver Moon Wolf King and the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear suffered injuries of varying severity and let out agonized howls.
Yet even after enduring such a terrifying attack, neither soul beast fled. They resolutely continued their deadly battle against Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo.
Gradually, the two women expended more and more soul power, unable to finish off either soul beast.
Zhang Lexuan and Han Ruoruo were on the verge of despair.
They looked back at the elite students battling the Silver Moon Wolves and discovered that they, too, were growing exhausted. Their soul power was being drained at an alarming rate. In less than two hours, the soul beasts would wear them down to their deaths.
Zhang Lexuan sank into despair.
Were they all going to fall here today?
Zhang Lexuan raised her head and shouted, "Xuan Zi!!"
In a cave somewhere in the mixed zone, Xuan Zi was fast asleep, with chicken drumsticks and a wine gourd lying on either side of him. A snot bubble had even formed beneath his nose.
He was enjoying a wonderful dream about feasting on chicken drumsticks.
But just then, Zhang Lexuan's voice suddenly rang out. Xuan Zi shuddered in fright and jolted awake.
Then he sensed the battle raging outside.
"This is bad!"
Xuan Zi immediately grabbed his wine gourd and chicken drumsticks, activated Martial Soul Possession with his Godly Taotie Bull martial soul, and rushed toward the battlefield.
At that moment, his mind went blank.
If Zhang Lexuan and all those students fell here, and Jiang Chen died as well, it would not be as simple as resigning to shirk responsibility when he returned.
His junior martial uncle, Mu En, would probably skin him alive on the spot.
Lexuan, hold on!!
Dozens of kilometers away from the mixed zone, Jiang Chen had escaped the danger zone with the Ice Empress possessing him. He found a relatively secluded cave to hide in and only then breathed a small sigh of relief.
That was close. I nearly died.
That Silver Moon Wolf King was clearly after Zhang Lexuan, not me. That was the only reason I escaped with my life.
Jiang Chen had known that something would go wrong with Xuan Zi leading the team. It was like underlying code-impossible to shake off.
Slacking off and sleeping during soul hunts, nowhere to be found when needed, then resigning when disaster struck-that was Xuan Zi to a tee.
Luckily, Jiang Chen had anticipated it and escaped disaster.
As for the others from Shrek, Jiang Chen believed that fortune watched over them. With two Eight-Ring Soul Douluos present as well, they would not be written out too soon.
Keeping Ling Luochеn out of this soul hunt had been an absolutely brilliant decision.
Otherwise, he would have had to remain on the battlefield and march to his death alongside her.
Just then, the Ice Empress, dressed as Hatsune Miku, appeared before Jiang Chen as a spectral projection. Folding her arms, she said coolly, "I didn't expect you to be so clever. You actually knew to run."
Jiang Chen said, "If I didn't run, was I supposed to stay there and wait to die? I'm the weakest in the entire team. Staying wouldn't accomplish anything. I'd only hold them back."
"In that case, I might as well escape and return once the danger has passed."
Hearing this, the Ice Empress asked, "They treat you so well. If something happened to them, wouldn't you feel bad?"
Jiang Chen sighed. "You have to be alive to feel bad. What's there to feel bad about once you're dead? They'd want nothing more than for me to escape. That way, a few more people could survive."
"Besides, apart from Han Ruoruo and Zhang Lexuan, I don't know any of them well. Dai Yueheng, especially, watches me like a venomous snake. He might even take advantage of the chaos to send me to my grave."
The Ice Empress gave it serious thought and found that Jiang Chen's reasoning made quite a bit of sense.
You had to be alive to have the right to grieve.
Afterward, Jiang Chen headed deeper into the cave, planning to wait until the storm outside had passed before going out to rejoin the team.
However, the farther he went, the more he felt something was wrong with this cave. Why were there traces of ultimate attributes inside?
Such dense power of light and fire.
More importantly, the cave looked as though no soul beast had lived there for years, yet no new soul beast had usurped the nest.
Before long, Jiang Chen reached the deepest part of the cave and discovered that there were actually numerous human soul tools here, along with a large quantity of gold.
The Ice Empress said, "This cave once belonged to a soul beast with an ultimate attribute. Its standing in the Star Dou Great Forest was quite high, and it had a habit of hoarding wealth. It probably had a dragon bloodline. That's why no soul beast has dared usurp its nest, even though it hasn't returned for years."
"You're quite lucky, kid. You actually found the safest place around. Even if the fighting outside turns heaven and earth upside down, ordinary hundred-thousand-year soul beasts won't dare come near this place."
Jiang Chen secretly rejoiced at her words.
What a great place.
I can wait until the commotion outside dies down, then return to the team safely.
But... why do I keep feeling that something is wrong with this cave?
A soul beast in the Star Dou Great Forest with ultimate light, ultimate fire, and a dragon bloodline... apart from a certain esteemed Auspicious Beast, there doesn't seem to be another one, does there?
Oh, no!
Based on its various habits and preferences, Jiang Chen could immediately confirm that this was the Auspicious Beast's cave. There was absolutely no mistake.
By sheer coincidence, he had actually entered the esteemed Auspicious Beast's cave!
Jiang Chen began thinking about leaving.
I shouldn't linger here!
Although the Auspicious Beast had not returned for years, it had marked this place and could come back at any moment.
Before you continue