The blood-red setting sun sank behind the western mountains. The heart-chilling whispers deep within the Xiao family residence in Nuoding City sank silently like stones cast into an icy pool, stirring not the slightest ripple in the small city. But within Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy, certain unseen changes were quietly gathering like hidden currents beneath the water.
A peaceful, uneventful week passed. The calm was almost hard to get used to. Ling Feng remained immersed in his almost punishing cultivation. When he circulated Purple Demon Eye, his vision grew clearer, and his spiritual power seemed to have become a little more condensed. As for the Thunderhorn Zheng's horn, it remained as stubborn as a rock. Aside from faintly sensing a trace of restless lightning Soul Power while holding it during meditation, he had made no progress. Xiao Chenyu and his gang had fallen completely silent, like ducks with their necks snapped. When they occasionally crossed paths, they kept their heads down and took a wide detour, the lingering resentment in their eyes replaced by deep fear. After the dung-splashing incident, "don't provoke Madman Ling" became an unspoken iron rule among all the senior students outside Dorm Seven.
Yet the truly dangerous ones had never been these small fry out in the open. Ling Feng had never let his guard down. He keenly sensed a gaze filled with scrutiny, venomous resentment, and even... killing intent falling upon him, faint and elusive. That gaze was cold and concealed, coming from one corner of the academy's teaching staff. Xiao Yan. Back in the Soul Hunting Forest, Ling Feng had already sensed this teacher's faint hostility. After the arena battle, that hostility had turned into naked hatred. Like a venomous snake lurking in the grass, he patiently awaited a chance to strike a fatal blow. That restraint only made Ling Feng more vigilant.
That day was combat class. The location was a stretch of desolate woodland outside Nuoding City, near the outskirts of the Soul Hunting Forest. Two teachers led the group: one was Teacher Zhou, a kindly faced, middle-aged Soul Grandmaster with solid Soul Power; the other was none other than Xiao Yan, standing silently toward the rear flank of the group with a taut face. The air carried a mixture of raw grass, earth, and the faint scent of beasts. The late-autumn woodland looked bleak, with withered yellow leaves carpeting the ground and crackling crisply underfoot. Sunlight filtered through sparse branches in dappled shafts, yet brought little warmth.
"Today's combat exercise is teamwork against low-level pack Soul Beasts!" Teacher Zhou's booming voice broke the woodland's silence. He swept his gaze over the twenty-odd students before him who had reached the Soul Master realm. "Form your own groups of two or three! Your objective: use the surrounding terrain and work together to eliminate at least three ten-year Steeltooth Gophers, or equivalent pack Soul Beasts, while disturbing as few other Soul Beasts as possible! Remember, safety first! Teacher Xiao and I will stand guard throughout, but we won't intervene directly!"
The moment he finished, the students stirred and began calling their friends over. "Tang San! Xiao Wu! Over here!" Wang Sheng hurriedly called. "Brother Ling! Come on!" Xiao Wu bounced up and down, waving at Ling Feng. Ling Feng nodded and walked over with Tang San to Wang Sheng's little circle. The five naturally formed a group-Ling Feng, Tang San, and Xiao Wu as the three core fighters, with Wang Sheng and another work-study student, Zhang Tiedan, serving as assistants or bait.
The groups were soon formed. Teacher Zhou swept his hand. "Good! Now spread out in your groups! Watch your spacing as you keep guard! Signal immediately if you encounter danger you can't overcome!" He gave Xiao Yan another stern look. "Old Xiao, take the area on the left flank. Watch out for those burrowing Soul Beasts." Xiao Yan nodded expressionlessly and answered in a muffled voice, "Got it." Then he walked alone deeper into his assigned area, his tall figure soon swallowed by the shadows of withered trees.
Ling Feng's group chose an area near a small slope. Several fist-sized holes were faintly visible below it, signs of Steeltooth Gopher activity. "My spiritual power is a little stronger. I'll watch our surroundings and sense the gophers," Tang San arranged quietly, his sharp gaze scanning the ground and bushes around them. Whenever he was on alert, his eyes always gave a steady, dependable impression. "I'll keep watch by the holes! I won't let the gophers escape!" Wang Sheng volunteered and ran east. "I'll go over there! Zhang Tiedan, you take the west!" Xiao Wu pointed south and called to the other work-study student. "Sure!" Zhang Tiedan answered, running west. Ling Feng stood on the slope with his arms folded, his gaze calm. Purple light flowed deep within his eyes, monitoring every stir of wind and grass over a wider area like the most precise radar. He had no intention of joining in. A battle at this level wasn't worth his intervention; it was just right for Tang San and the others to practice their coordination.
The group spread out in an orderly fashion. Tang San crouched not far from a burrow entrance, flipped his wrist, and caught several inconspicuous willow-leaf throwing knives between his fingertips. Xiao Wu hopped about more than ten meters away, seemingly casual, but in fact every joint in her body was slightly bent, her Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul poised to act. The woodland seemed to quiet down, leaving only the rustle of the breeze brushing fallen leaves. Time crept by. Suddenly, Tang San's ears twitched and his gaze sharpened. "They're coming!"
Before his words had faded-squeak, squeak, squeak! Shrill, piercing cries burst from the burrows! More than a dozen gray-brown figures resembling oversized rats poured madly out of several holes! They were several times larger than ordinary rats, with crimson eyes and mouths full of serrated incisors-steel teeth-gleaming coldly. Astonishingly fast, they lunged through a foul-smelling gust toward Wang Sheng and Zhang Tiedan, who were closest to the entrances!
"Ah!" Wang Sheng and Zhang Tiedan jumped in fright and hastily retreated. "Attack!" Tang San barked, flicking his wrist! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Three cold gleams shot out like lightning, striking the vital points of the three leading Steeltooth Gophers with perfect accuracy! The three barely managed half a cry before collapsing. Xiao Wu moved at the same time! She sharply twisted her waist as though she had no bones, and her First Soul Ring lit up instantly! Yellow light flashed! Charm! Activate! The eyes of three gophers pouncing toward Zhang Tiedan instantly turned blank and dazed, their forward momentum abruptly stopping. Xiao Wu seized the opening and darted in, pushing the extraordinary flexibility and speed granted by her Soft Bone Rabbit Martial Soul to their limits. Her long legs were like powerful steel whips! Waist Bow! Instant activation! Bang! Bang! Bang! Three precise snapping kicks whistled through the air and struck the dazed gophers squarely in the head! Bones cracked. The three flew away without so much as a grunt, twitched twice, and lay still. Clean and decisive!
"Beautifully done!" Wang Sheng couldn't help praising them. He and Zhang Tiedan steadied their formation as well, trying to intercept the other gophers.
But just then, a sudden change erupted! An exceedingly savage, blood-reeking, murderous presence burst out without warning from behind them to the left-precisely the shadow-shrouded "left-flank area" Xiao Yan was responsible for guarding-like a volcano exploding! Awoooo!!! A piercing, furious wolf howl, laced with utter frenzy, tore apart the woodland's brief peace!
Not one! A whole pack! Dense pounding footfalls rolled closer like thunder, carrying the terrifying force of something that would trample the ground to pieces! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Countless gray-black figures surged like a tide, crashing through the bushes and dead branches in that area. With a nauseating, rank stench and crimson eyes full of greed and bloodlust, they charged madly out! There were twenty or thirty of them! Each was over two meters long, covered in short black fur like steel needles, saliva dripping from sharp fangs, all four paws digging into the ground and throwing dust into the air! Soul Beasts! Ten-year pack Soul Beasts-Gale Demon Wolves! Individually, they were only ten-year beasts, but with these numbers! With such frenzied speed! They fought without fear of death! Wherever they passed, weaker Soul Beasts would be torn to pieces in an instant! Never mind student Soul Masters with no practical combat experience-even an ordinary Soul Grandmaster surrounded alone by this many Gale Demon Wolves would have little hope of surviving!
Teacher Zhou's face instantly turned deathly pale! His roar rang through the woods. "Everyone, fall back! Signal! Fire the distress flare, now!"
Too late! Those frenzied Gale Demon Wolves had an utterly clear target! As though driven and guided by an invisible hand, the instant they burst out of cover, their leader-a larger, powerfully built demon wolf with a tuft of white fur between its brows-fixed its blood-red eyes directly on the slope! Right where Ling Feng's group stood! The torrent of charging wolves barely hesitated or split, surging brazenly toward the slope with a mad momentum that threatened to destroy everything! From their charge, it seemed those few students were the pack's only target! Their marked prey!
"Bastards!" Only now did Xiao Yan's figure rush out of the dense woods behind them in a "panic." As he ran toward safety, he shouted "anxiously" toward the wolves and waved his arms, trying to "draw them away," yet his chosen position and the direction of his shouts aligned the wolves' charge even more precisely with the slope! It all looked chaotic and happened in the flash of lightning striking flint! But to Ling Feng's eyes, swirling with purple light-the momentary pause before Xiao Yan emerged from the woods, the deliberate deviation he created with his running route, even the trace of deliberately guiding Soul Power fluctuations in his shouts... all were perfectly clear! Killing with a borrowed knife! What a vicious scheme! He wanted the wolves to tear them to pieces!
"Form up!" Ling Feng's icy voice exploded like thunder, instantly jolting his companions out of their paralysis before the wolves' murderous ferocity! His gaze locked firmly onto the wolf king with white fur between its brows! Purple light flared and receded! At that same moment, the torrent of wolves was already upon them! The nearest wolves' sharp fangs could almost touch Wang Sheng's terrified face! Foul-smelling saliva had already splashed onto his clothes! Death's scythe hung high!