The campfire gradually burned out, leaving only a pile of dark-red embers radiating a faint heat. The lingering aroma of roasted meat drifted through the woods.
Everyone had eaten until their bellies bulged and sprawled on the grass in twos and threes, with no one in a hurry to get up.
After a string of intense battles and a hearty meal of ant-leg meat brimming with soul power, their taut nerves finally relaxed.
The evening breeze threaded through the branches, bringing a touch of coolness and dispersing the battlefield's lingering scent of blood. It felt so pleasant that their bodies went limp.
The mood within the team was especially relaxed. No one deliberately cultivated, and no one brought up their plans for the training ahead. They simply leaned against tree trunks or sat on the grass, clearing their minds and resting.
In the midst of this languid lull, a slender black figure suddenly rose from the group.
It was Zhu Zhuqing.
Her black clothes made her figure look all the more sleek. She lifted her pitch-black eyes slightly and looked toward a thick, towering ancient tree in the distance.
The tree had a sturdy trunk and lush branches, one of the old woodland trees found everywhere in Star Dou Forest. It had been rooted in the earth for decades, and even an ordinary soul master's full-strength strike might not sever it completely.
"I'll show everyone my new third soul skill."
Zhu Zhuqing's voice was cool and soft, with a hint of girlish gentleness. She spoke unhurriedly, yet with unmistakable decisiveness.
The instant she finished speaking, soul power surged around her. Pitch-black netherworld soul power wreathed her entire body, its surface glowing faintly purple-black, cold and concentrated.
There was no flashy opening stance, no unnecessary motion to gather power.
Purple-black soul