In the shadows, Wang Dong's pupils contracted slightly. He carefully studied the faces and methods of the three Evil Soul Masters. The ability to refine Beast Puppets was hardly common.
And they were three brothers working together. He swiftly searched his memories of the original novel.
Zhongli Tian, Zhongli Di, Zhongli Ren-weren't these the three infamous Evil Soul Master brothers from the original novel?
In the original novel, all three had become Soul Douluo-level Evil Soul Masters later on. Together, they could even contend with a Titled Douluo and had caused the protagonists no end of trouble.
He had never expected them to appear here already, much less to have begun refining Beast Puppets.
Watching the Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast struggle in agony, Wang Dong felt a powerful wave of revulsion rise within him.
After all, he was a well-educated transmigrator. Although he had been in this world for some time, the modern moral values ingrained in his bones were not so easily discarded.
He could understand Soul Masters killing Soul Beasts to obtain Soul Rings. That was the rule of this world: nature selected the strongest, and only the fit survived. But killing was one thing; torturing a living creature was another!
These Evil Soul Masters were deliberately tormenting Soul Beasts, subjecting them to the utmost agony to extract more resentment and power. He simply could not stomach such behavior.
The problem was that he was still too weak. He was only a Level 30 Soul Elder. Although consuming the immortal herbs had raised his actual combat strength far beyond others at his level, he still had no confidence against three Evil Soul Masters.
Of the three, Zhongli Tian and Zhongli Di clearly possessed Soul Saint-level strength, while Zhongli Ren was at least a Soul Emperor. Wouldn't a Level 30 Soul Elder like him simply be throwing his life away by attacking?
Just as he hesitated, weighing whether to intervene, a sudden rustling came from behind him. Wang Dong whipped around and saw a Soul Beast poking its head out of the bushes, watching him warily.
The Soul Beast was not particularly large. Its entire body was grayish-brown, and it had bloodred eyes. It resembled a rabbit, but was considerably larger than an ordinary one, with thick, powerful limbs and faint fluctuations of Soul Power emanating from its body.
It was a Thousand-Year Soul Beast, and... its aura bore some resemblance to that of the Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast being tortured. They seemed to be mother and child.
Wang Dong's heart lurched. Before he could react, the Thousand-Year Soul Beast let out a low growl filled with anxiety and rage.
It had clearly sensed the distant Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's suffering and wanted to rush over to save it.
That growl immediately drew the three brothers' attention. All three turned toward Wang Dong's hiding place at once, playful smiles appearing on their faces.
Shit... this is bad. I've been spotted.
"To think there's still a little bug that slipped through the net." Zhongli Tian narrowed his eyes, his gaze settling on Wang Dong as a cruel smile curled his lips.
"Hmm? There's a human Soul Master too... tsk, tsk, what an unexpected bonus."
Zhongli Di chuckled as well. "Big brother, this brat looks young, and his Soul Power fluctuations aren't strong either. He's probably a Soul Elder-level rookie. Perfect. We need a Human Puppet to practice on. Let's put him under the knife."
Zhongli Ren stepped forward even more arrogantly and thumped his chest. "Big brother, second brother, leave this brat to me. I've been stuck at the Soul Emperor level for ages, and my hands are itching. Let me stretch my muscles."
Zhongli Tian nodded. "Fine, go ahead. Don't kill him. Leave him breathing-I still want to refine him into a Human Puppet."
Zhongli Ren gave a savage grin, then lunged toward Wang Dong. He moved at tremendous speed, his erupting Soul Power whipping up a fierce gust.
Before Wang Dong could react, the thousand-year Violent Rabbit charged out first. With an enraged roar, it kicked hard against the ground and became a grayish-brown blur, hurtling toward Zhongli Ren.
Zhongli Ren sneered. "A thousand-year beast dares act wild in front of me?"
With a casual wave of his hand, he sent a ribbon of black Soul Power blasting toward the Violent Rabbit.
Although the Violent Rabbit was sizable, it still struggled against a Soul Emperor-level attack.
The black ribbon slammed into it, sending it flying backward with a pained howl. Yet it quickly scrambled back up, its bloodred eyes brimming with madness and fury, and charged at Zhongli Ren again.
Watching this, Wang Dong could no longer suppress the hot blood surging within him. Things had come to this; he could only step in and gamble on a fight.
He drew a deep breath and burst from the shadows. As his Soul Power erupted, two Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet, one yellow and one purple, strikingly conspicuous in the sunlight.
Zhongli Ren glanced at the Soul Rings beneath Wang Dong's feet and gave a contemptuous snort.
"Two rings? Even a Soul Grandmaster dares come throw his life away? You really don't know how the word 'death' is written."
Wang Dong ignored his mockery and lunged straight at him. His speed was extraordinary, more than a mere notch above that of an ordinary Soul Elder.
Zhongli Ren had initially thought nothing of Wang Dong, but the sight of his charging speed made his heart jolt. That speed-something's wrong!
How could a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster possibly be this fast?
Before he could think further, Wang Dong was already in front of him, driving a fist forward. The punch whistled through the air with astonishing force.
Zhongli Ren instinctively raised his arm to block, but the instant he met that punch, his expression changed.
Terrifying strength surged from Wang Dong's fist, blasting him backward. He slid more than a dozen meters across the ground before regaining his balance.
Once he steadied himself, Zhongli Ren stared at Wang Dong with an ashen face, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief. Was this brat really just a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster?
The strength behind that punch surpassed even his own as a Soul Emperor! Little did he know that after Wang Dong consumed the singular velvet sky chrysanthemum and cockscomb phoenix sunflower, his Soul Power had remained stuck at Level 30 only because he lacked a Soul Ring.
His actual Soul Power reserves had already reached around level 40, while his physical strength surpassed that of an ordinary Soul Emperor. All he lacked was a single Soul Ring.
Zhongli Tian and Zhongli Di had also witnessed the exchange. Their smiles slowly faded, replaced by a trace of solemnity.
Zhongli Tian narrowed his eyes, fixing his gaze on Wang Dong as he said gravely,
"There's... something strange about this brat. Little brother, don't get careless."
Zhongli Ren gritted his teeth, a vicious look crossing his face. "Big brother, I know. There's something uncanny about this brat, but I don't believe he can whip up any real waves!"
As he spoke, his Soul Power erupted once more. Black light wreathed his body, and his aura grew several degrees stronger than before. He charged at Wang Dong, this time using his full strength.
Watching Zhongli Ren charge toward him, Wang Dong instead grew calm. He clenched his fists, the golden dragon king bloodline boiling within him as an overbearing power surged throughout his body.
He met the charge and threw a punch, colliding with Zhongli Ren's attack. Boom! A thunderous crash rang out, shock waves sweeping in every direction and flattening the surrounding vegetation.
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