Chapter 32: Encountering the Three Zhongli Brothers of Evil Soul Masters
Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, Wang Dong had already stayed at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well for two days, since absorbing immortal herbs required time after time.
Early that morning, Niu Tian and Tai Tan stood at the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, watching the rising morning sun in the distance with a hint of solemnity on their faces.
"Dong'er, it's almost time," Niu Tian said. "We have to reserve time to return to the Clear Sky Sect. At the very latest, tomorrow morning, we must set off back."
Tai Tan also nodded. "The rules of the Divine Realm cannot be broken. We must return within seven days, otherwise the consequences will be very serious."
The Divine Realm was powerful, but it also had many rules, and they were not someone like Tang San who could break the rules at will.
Wang Dong nodded, without much reluctance on his face. "Big Dad, Second Dad, you can return safely. With my current strength, it's enough for me to hunt my third soul ring by myself."
Niu Tian and Tai Tan looked at each other, both seeing a trace of relief in each other's eyes.
They knew that Wang Dong was no longer that child who needed them to protect him under their wings at all times; he had already grown up and had the ability to stand on his own.
After all, he was the son of the Divine King!
"Good," Niu Tian patted Wang Dong's shoulder. "Then be careful yourself. If you encounter any trouble, remember to contact us."
Tai Tan also urged, "When hunting soul beasts, act according to your ability. Don't push yourself, safety first."
Wang Dong grinned. "Got it, Big Dad and Second Dad, you can rest assured."
The three spoke a few more words, and Niu Tian and Tai Tan transformed into two streaks of light, speeding away in the direction of the Clear Sky Sect. Wang Dong stood at the edge of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, watching their figures disappear from his line of sight, and let out a long breath.
He did not rush to leave, but first took stock of his harvests. The Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower had already been absorbed, with significant effects.
The Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew and Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass were prepared for Huo Yuhao, and he carefully put them away. He also took along some other immortal herbs together; the harvest of this trip was even more bountiful than he had anticipated.
After taking stock of his harvest, Wang Dong did not choose to hunt his third soul ring in the Sunset Forest. His target was a ten-thousand-year soul ring.
He had eaten a lot of whale rubber, and his physique far surpassed ordinary people, coupled with the blessing of the Golden Dragon King Bloodline, absorbing a ten-thousand-year soul ring should not be much of a problem.
Moreover, the quality of soul beasts in the Sunset Forest was still too weak and not as abundant as the Star Dou Great Forest. Furthermore, when he returned to the academy, he would happen to pass by the Star Dou Great Forest, so hunting for a soul ring along the way would achieve two things at once.
Wang Dong did not hesitate and set off directly, hurrying in the direction of the Star Dou Great Forest.
A few days later, he arrived at the edge of the Star Dou Great Forest. Looking at the boundless primeval forest before his eyes, Wang Dong silently sighed in his heart.
As expected of the number one gathering place for soul beasts, just that head-on wave of wild aura made people feel shocked. Towering trees blotted out the sky and sun, the roars of soul beasts came from the branches from time to time, and an ancient and wild aura permeated the air.
Wang Dong did not stop, venturing straight deep into the Star Dou Great Forest. He wanted to find a suitable ten-thousand-year soul beast to serve as his third soul ring.
However, after he truly began searching, he discovered that matters were not as easy as he had imagined. Although the Star Dou Great Forest had numerous soul beasts, wanting to find a suitable one was not simple.
He encountered quite a few good thousand-year soul beasts, but they still fell far short of his requirements.
Or they were ten-thousand-year soul beasts, but they leaned toward the defense type, which also did not match his requirements.
He even caught a distant glimpse of the figure of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
That soul beast's aura was extremely terrifying, making his heart palpitate with lingering fear. He felt that that soul beast was very suitable for his martial soul, but the problem was that he simply could not beat it.
A hundred-thousand-year soul beast-that was equivalent to an existence at the Titled Douluo level, and a Level 30 Soul Elder like him would just be delivering food if he went up. He could only scurry away in dismay.
After two days, Wang Dong felt somewhat discouraged. He sat under a large tree, gnawing on dry rations, and calculated in his heart:
Could it be that he had to lower his standards? Find an ordinary ten-thousand-year soul beast to make do with? However, his target was a ten-thousand-year soul ring after all. If he casually found a soul beast to make do, it would be too unfair to this talent of his.
Just as he was hesitating, a burst of soul beast wails suddenly came from not far away. That sound was extremely shrill, carrying an indescribable pain and despair.
Wang Dong frowned, initially thinking it was mutual slaughter between soul beasts, which was very common in the Star Dou Great Forest. But after he crept closer, he discovered that things were not as he had imagined.
Three people were surrounding a soul beast, cruelly torturing it.
That soul beast was a ten-thousand-year soul beast with a pair of rabbit ears and a massive physique, but at this moment it was covered in injuries, bound by strands of black chains, unable to move.
Among the three people, the leader was a thin-faced middle-aged man with a gloomy expression, holding a black staff in his hand.
He was using that staff to continuously extract the soul beast's vitality, making that soul beast cry out in painful wails.
The other two people stood to the side with cold smiles on their faces, watching the struggling, painful appearance of that soul beast as if they were looking at an interesting toy.
Wang Dong's pupils contracted slightly. Evil Soul Masters? He had heard of the existence of such people.
Evil Soul Masters hunted soul beasts and soul masters with cruel methods, extracting their power for their own use. Such people were entities that everyone wanted to beat up wherever they went in the entire soul master world.
He hid in the dark and carefully listened to the conversation of those three people.
"Boss, this ten-thousand-year soul beast has pretty good aptitude, and should be able to refine a top-tier beast puppet," said one short and fat man.
The middle-aged man who was the leader, namely Zhongli Tian, nodded.
"Mm, our luck is pretty good. We've caught several ten-thousand-year soul beasts these past few days, enough for us to refine a batch of beast puppets. Once we break through to the Soul Douluo level, we won't need to be afraid of those so-called righteous soul masters anymore."
Zhongli Di chuckled. "Boss is right. Once we finish refining this batch of beast puppets and our strength surges, let's see who still dares to provoke us."
Zhongli Ren also chimed in, "That's right. Those soul masters who boast of being righteous are all putting on pious fronts, but actually they're even worse than us. At least we dare to act and own up to it, unlike them, who are extremely hypocritical."
Zhongli Tian snorted coldly. "Stop talking nonsense and continue refining. Make this soul beast suffer even more; the deeper the pain, the stronger the beast puppet refined from it will be."
As he spoke, the black staff in his hand waved once more, and a black radiance surged into the soul beast's body. That soul beast emitted a shrill wail, its body trembling violently as if enduring extreme agony.
Wang Dong hid in the dark, watching this scene, his brow furrowed tightly. He originally did not want to poke his nose into other people's business, but looking at the struggling, painful appearance of that soul beast, a sense of discomfort still welled up in his heart.
Moreover, the methods of these three Evil Soul Masters made him feel disgusted.
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