With his keen sense of fire element, Lin Mo quickly followed the trail and caught up with the trail.
Although these people were extremely Swagger and did not erase the traces they left behind, they were not without brains. After committing the crime, they did not linger nearby, but went to a remote mountain forest.
The chosen location was quite secluded, nestled in a depression between two hills, surrounded by dense forests and steep cliffs, accessible only by a narrow path.
For the average person, this place is easy to defend and difficult to attack.
But for Lin Mo and his group, it was clearly insufficient.
Lin Mo hovered in the air, his Scarlet Phoenix Wings fluttering gently, his gaze fixed on the depths of the dense forest.
Dugu Yan stood beside him, her emerald green eyes narrowed slightly, a murderous glint flashing within them.
The gentleness that once filled Ye Lingling's purple eyes had been replaced by a chilling coldness.
Three figures silently darted towards the dense forest, moving at an extremely fast speed.
Before long, Lin Mo arrived with Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, and easily found the leader of the Fallen Soul Master who had led the massacre of the village.
However, when Lin Mo saw the person's appearance clearly through his Spirit Eyes, a distinct look of surprise flashed across his face.
How could it be Ma Hongjun?
At that moment, Ma Hongjun was leaning against a large tree, embracing a disheveled woman.
His face was flushed, his eyes were glazed, and a sinister smile played on his lips. Several wine jars lay scattered at his feet, emitting a strong smell of alcohol.
Lin Mo frowned, his gaze lingering on Ma Hongjun for a moment.
But after the initial surprise came a sense of it all being perfectly natural.
Ma Hongjun's Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul has a major flaw: it requires sexual intercourse to release the evil energy within its body. This evil energy does not disappear as its cultivation level increases; instead, it accumulates more and more.
Furthermore, most methods for treating evil spirits only address the symptoms, not the root cause, even those that release evil spirits through sexual intercourse.
Lin Mo's memory includes Ma Xiaotao, who also possesses the Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul, as the best example.
Even with the help of Ultimate Ice, it still couldn't eliminate the Evil Fire within Ma Xiaotao's body; it could only temporarily suppress Evil Fire.
Ultimately, due to interference from dark forces, her Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul mutated into Black Phoenix.
Without the help of the Cockscomb Phoenix Sunflower, it's only natural that Ma Hongjun would become Fallen Soul Master as the evil energy within him increases.
Ma Hongjun's will was never considered firm.
Neither in terms of willpower nor talent can they compare to Ma Xiaotao, who also possesses the Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul ten thousand years later.
Even Ma Xiaotao couldn't escape the fate of becoming Evil Soul Master, let alone Ma Hongjun, who was far inferior to her.
Lin Mo withdrew his gaze, his expression calm, but a hint of killing intent flashed deep in his eyes.
Ma Hongjun didn't notice the three people in the air. He was embracing a ragged woman and making indistinct laughs.
The woman's clothes were torn to shreds, revealing large patches of bruised and purple skin. Her eyes were vacant, and she looked like a soulless puppet.
Ma Hongjun's hands groped her body haphazardly, muttering something under his breath and occasionally letting out a lewd laugh.
Scattered around were seven or eight other Fallen Soul Master dressed similarly, as well as some ordinary people who aided and abetted the evildoers.
The Fallen Soul Master, dressed in black, tight-fitting outfits with weapons at their waists, were either drinking or tearing apart other women.
The ordinary people, dressed in coarse linen clothes and wearing fawning smiles, served tea and water to these Fallen Soul Master.
They sat around the Courtney, drinking and eating meat, their laughter grating.
Nearby were several women bound by ropes, left to languish, their eyes vacant, their faces streaked with tears, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Some of the women had already stopped crying; they just stared blankly at the sky, their lips moving incessantly, as if they were muttering something.
Some were even completely numb, lying stiffly on the ground, motionless, as if they were dead.
Seeing the change in Lin Mo's expression, Ye Lingling immediately realized something was wrong and asked, "What's wrong? A-Mo, is this Fallen Soul Master's strength too formidable?"
"No," Lin Mo shook his head and said, "I just didn't expect to run into someone I know here... well, I guess you could call them someone I know."
Lin Mo didn't explain further, and simply flicked his finger.
An Blood Flame Arrow shot from Lin Mo's fingertip and plunged straight into the jungle below.
The Blood Flame Arrow was entirely Red, its surface ablaze with blazing white flames, leaving a long trail of fire in the air.
With the eruption of blood and fire, the jungle that had been obscuring the three's view vanished in an instant.
Trees snapped, branches and leaves flew everywhere, revealing the disgusting scene below.
Ma Hongjun was on top of a woman, a lewd smile on his face, heavy breathing, veins bulging on his forehead, looking like a wild boar in heat.
The sounds of crying and the perpetrators' maniacal laughter mingled together, creating a nauseating atmosphere.
Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling were enraged upon witnessing this evil side of human nature.
Although the two women had some understanding of such dark matters, this was the first time they had witnessed it firsthand.
Even when they faced those inhuman Wolf Bandits last time, they hadn't witnessed this disgusting side firsthand.
Dugu Yan clenched her fists, her emerald green eyes burning with rage.
Ye Lingling was furious.
Her right leg bone, which was associated with Soul Skill, was suddenly activated to its maximum, and she instantly teleported to the ground below.
Ye Lingling's Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, which possessed a flight Soul Skill, was activated to its maximum at this moment, making her incredibly fast and leaving a trail of afterimages in the air.
As her Martial Soul was released, the Nine Heart Begonia bloomed in her palm, surrounded by nine Soul Ring, six black and three red.
The nine Soul Ring gleamed in the sunlight, with the three blood-red Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring standing out particularly, emanating a chilling aura.
The pressure from the Titled Douluo level was released without reservation, pressing down on the surroundings in a substantial way.
A healing light instantly bathed everyone around them.
As the pressure of Titled Douluo- level aura descended, all those present, whether they were the abducted women or the abusers, regardless of their cultivation level, were all overwhelmed and pinned to the ground by Ye Lingling in her enraged state.
Ma Hongjun's body stiffened, and he collapsed to the ground, unable to move.
A fat pig's face made intimate contact with the ground, its eyes filled with horror, yet it couldn't utter a sound.
The surrounding degenerates, the more timid ones, were so frightened they wet themselves.
The abducted women were also forced to the ground by the oppressive force, but their faces showed no fear, only numbness.
Although the healing light fell evenly on everyone, the effects were quite the opposite.
The women recovered quickly from their injuries and regained their original physical condition.
The bruises and wounds on his body faded quickly, and his pale complexion gradually regained its rosy hue.
They stared blankly at their hands, now fully restored, their eyes empty and bewildered, not knowing what had happened.
They had been abused for too long and had become numb to external stimuli.
But when the same healing light falls on the perpetrators, it creates a completely different scene.
Growl echoed throughout the room.
They were horrified to discover that they were being mutated into an indescribable, terrifying purple mass of flesh.
The skin is swelling, the bones are twisting, the muscles are growing abnormally, and the whole person is like an inflated Air Balloon, getting bigger and bigger, more and more distorted.
What's most terrifying is that during this process, they remain conscious, but lose control of their bodies.
Growl rose and fell, some people were begging for mercy, some were crying out, and others were cursing.
But when the mass of flesh swelled to its maximum size, it exploded with a loud bang, and then suddenly fell silent, leaving only the soft sobs of the women.
Blood and flesh splattered everywhere, bones flew in all directions, and purple liquid was spilled all over the ground.
But most people just stared blankly, their eyes still empty, as if none of this concerned them.
In the end, only Ma Hongjun, who was deliberately left behind by Ye Lingling, survived.
He lay on the ground, trembling all over, looking around in terror. He couldn't understand why Titled Douluo had suddenly come knocking on his door.
He had been roaming the Heaven Dou Empire committing atrocities for a long time, and had even become somewhat arrogant, after all, he had repelled several waves of official forces sent to exterminate them.
He thought his good days would continue forever, and that no one could do anything to him.
Moreover, his good days were just around the corner. Not long ago, he had received a secret letter from Tang San and the others, inviting him to a gathering in the Star Luo Empire, which was their territory.
But now, a Titled Douluo is standing right in front of him.
Nine Soul Ring, six black and three red—that was a configuration he never dared to dream of.
Ma Hongjun's teeth were chattering, and his body was trembling. He wanted to run, but his legs wouldn't obey him.
His crotch was even wet, and a strong smell of urine emanated from him.
" Lingling, calm down."
Dugu Yan patted Ye Lingling on the shoulder and said softly.
She stepped forward, placed her hand on Ye Lingling's shoulder, and a gentle surge of Soul Power flowed from her palm, soothing her emotions.
Even Lin Mo had never seen Ye Lingling so angry before.
Due to the influence of her inherited Martial Soul, the Nine Heart Begonia, Ye Lingling is usually quite quiet and rarely gets angry.
Not to mention being as furious as he is today.
Ye Lingling took a deep breath, and the anger in her eyes gradually subsided, but her beautiful face still carried a coldness.
She withdrew the Nine Heart Begonia, and the nine Soul Ring disappeared one by one, but her gaze remained fixed on Ma Hongjun.
"If I had known this guy would commit such a heinous crime today, I should have had Grandpa kill him right then and there!"
Dugu Yan said angrily, her emerald green eyes filled with murderous intent.
She stepped forward and kicked Ma Hongjun with disdain. Ma Hongjun was kicked and turned over, revealing his chubby face full of fear.
His face was covered in mud and blood, and his nose and eyes were streaked with snot and tears, making him look extremely disheveled.
" Lin Mo, how could it be you?"
In his corrupted state, Ma Hongjun finally recognized the identities of the three people in front of him. His eyes widened, his pupils contracted, and his face was full of disbelief.
He roared madly, his hoarse voice seeming to be squeezed out of his throat. "Impossible... How could you possibly be Titled Douluo?!"
Two yellow, two purple, and two black Soul Ring appeared beneath Ma Hongjun's feet.
The next moment, as the Fifth Soul Ring lit up, a pillar of fire emanating black energy suddenly rose from beneath Lin Mo and the other two.
The flames were as black as ink, emitting a putrid stench.
Ma Hongjun was trying his best to unleash his Soul Skill. He still had a chance; as long as he could buy time, he could find a way to escape.
But Lin Mo only frowned.
"Noisy."
He then snapped his fingers.
A crisp sound echoed in the air, and Ma Hongjun's Fifth Soul Skill, which he hadn't even released yet, was directly canceled.
The black flames turned into tiny Fire Star, drifting in the air before quickly extinguishing, as if they had never existed.
Ma Hongjun's body stiffened, his Soul Power suddenly froze, and he became completely immobile.
Lin Mo flicked his finger, and a wisp of blood energy suddenly flew out from between his Lin Mo.
The bloodstains were as small as needles, moving incredibly fast, leaving a faint trail of blood in the air.
Before Ma Hongjun could even react, the bloodstain had already seeped into the space between his eyebrows.
The moment the blood entered his body, Ma Hongjun's body stiffened abruptly, and his terrified eyes suddenly went blank.
Ma Hongjun fell straight backward, crashing to the ground with a dull thud.
Blood seeped from between his eyebrows, flowing down his nose and quickly staining his face red.
Lin Mo took his life without any hesitation.
Seeing this, Dugu Yan looked at Lin Mo with slight surprise.
"I thought you'd torture him first before taking his life..."
She paused, her gaze falling on Ma Hongjun's corpse, a flash of disgust in her eyes.
"Whoever witnessed what he did, it's hard to associate him with humanity anymore, isn't it?"
Lin Mo remained completely calm. "There's no need. Kill those who deserve it, but there's no need for torture."
To Lin Mo, the surrounding scenery was nothing short of hell; compared to what he had seen in the Slaughter City, it was nothing.
To put it bluntly, if you threw Ma Hongjun and his ilk directly into the Slaughter City and sent them to live with the truly depraved, it would be questionable whether they could even survive a week there.
Although his experience in the Slaughter City left Lin Mo with a lot of blood on his hands, he had always been a simple killer and had never developed a habit of torture.
He always adhered to the principle of killing without abusing life.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to leave the Slaughter City so easily.
Lin Mo withdrew his gaze and flicked his finger.
A wisp of cold air spread from his fingertips, directly sealing Ma Hongjun's corpse in ice.
The ice quickly covered his entire body, freezing him into an ice sculpture.
Through the ice, you could still see Ma Hongjun's terrified face and the tiny blood hole between his eyebrows.
Lin Mo quickly gathered it up and put it into his Storage Soul Tool.
Since condensing his second Soul Power Soul Core, Lin Mo has Frisk that in addition to the fire and wind possessed by the Charizard, he can now draw upon many other elements.
He can easily summon not only soil, water, ice, light, and darkness, but even rare elements like space.
However, compared to Soul Master with corresponding attributes, Lin Mo's ability to utilize these elements is quite limited.
The way he's Ice Seal the corpse is already close to the limit of what he can do; it's far inferior to that of a true Ice-type Soul Master.
If it were Shui Bing'er with the Ice Phoenix Martial Soul and her current strength, Ice Seal Norman would be an easy task for her if she were to unleash the full power of her Martial Soul.
What should be done about these people?
Ye Lingling took a deep breath and withdrew her Martial Soul.
Her gaze swept over the numb-eyed women around her, a flicker of pity crossing her eyes.
"Although I rescued them in time, even if I healed their physical injuries, their emotional trauma will not heal so easily."
"They have endured too much torment; some have even shut down their minds and are now no different from walking corpses."
At this point, Ye Lingling's tone turned Rage again. These Fallen Soul Master truly deserve to die!
The women who had been abducted by Ma Hongjun and his men remained kneeling on the ground, their eyes vacant.
" A-Mo, could you try sealing away their memories of this period? If they lose these unbearable memories, it should be easier for them to recover."
Dugu Yan's gaze shifted to Lin Mo, and she tentatively asked.
Lin Mo shook his head. " Sister Yanyan, you're overestimating me."
He sighed, his tone helpless.
"Although my Martial Soul possesses Mental Attribute, I cannot perform such precise operations involving the soul for the time being."
"Even if I were to actually take action, I'm afraid that before I could successfully seal their memories, they would already be mentally impaired due to the damage to their Sea of Consciousness."
"It's a loss!"
Lin Mo is not yet capable of performing such sophisticated operations as modifying memories.
He himself is not an expert in the study of the soul.
Manipulating souls and altering memories is something an expert in the field of souls like Electrolux would be more suited to do.
He decided against it. Although his Body Martial Soul possessed Mental Attribute, spiritual power only played a supporting role for him.
His usual fighting style leans towards blood energy.
At this point, Lin Mo glanced sympathetically at the women around him.
"Given the current situation, whether they can recover depends on time."
Time is a great healer...
Even if these people recover, it will likely take them a very, very long time to slowly emerge from this shadow.
Upon hearing Lin Mo's words, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling nodded in agreement.
Both women fell silent, their gazes sweeping over the other women, their eyes filled with pity.
But they also knew that Lin Mo was telling the truth.
Some things cannot be solved simply by force.
After this matter was over, Lin Mo asked Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling to stay behind.
He himself rushed to the nearest city at an extremely fast pace.
Before long, he arrived at a small town.
The city wall was not high, and it was dusty and gray. Several guards stood at the city gate, some Yawn and some chatting.
The guards at the city gate saw a streak of light descend from the sky and retreated in fright; some even drew their knives.
After landing, Lin Mo immediately presented his identity token One-Character Prince Equal to the Emperor.
The captain of the guard took the token, and after seeing the words on it, his expression changed drastically. He immediately knelt down to pay his respects, and the guards behind him followed suit.
Without wasting words, Lin Mo directly summoned an official team and led them back to the mountain forest.
The group consisted of about thirty people, both men and women. The leader was a middle-aged woman with a cultivation level of Soul Ancestor. She was dressed in official robes and had a token hanging from her waist.
The group was well-trained and quickly took the women away, settling them in the city to recuperate.
Whether they can emerge from this terrifying shadow and return to a normal life depends on their own fate.
After all, Lin Mo and the others had done everything they could.
After this less-than-pleasant little incident, Lin Mo and his companions finally embarked on their journey back to Heaven Dou City.
The Charizard flew slowly through the air, its Dual Wingbeat spread, and the flames at the end of its tail danced in the wind.
Dugu Yan leaned against Lin Mo's back, her arms wrapped around his waist, her face pressed between his shoulder blades.
Ye Lingling sat in Lin Mo's arms, her purple eyes gazing at the distant horizon, her expression calm.
The view below transformed into a landscape of rolling mountains and vast plains, with occasional glimpses of villages and towns, their chimneys emitting wisps of smoke, creating a peaceful scene.
This was in stark contrast to the hellish scene we had just witnessed.
Before long, the three of them had successfully returned to Heaven Dou City.
The walls of Heaven Dou City remain tall and majestic, and the city gates are bustling with people.
Lin Mo did not land at the city gate, but flew directly to the airspace above the Dugu Manor.
The Charizard folded its Dual Wingbeat and slowly descended.
The three of them leaped off the dragon's back. Lin Mo, with a slight thought, recalled the Charizard back into his body.
They bypassed the building in front and returned to the backyard of the Dugu Manor.
But when the three of them entered the backyard, they witnessed an extremely comical scene.
Under the old locust tree in the courtyard, Feng Xiaotian was hanging from the tree.
His hands were bound with rope, suspending him in mid-air, swaying precariously.
His grandfather, Feng Cang, stood under the tree, holding a green vine in his hand, whipping it repeatedly.
Feng Xiaotian was being beaten and screaming wildly; his Growl sounded extremely shrill.
"Ouch! Grandpa, please stop hitting me! I know I was wrong!"
"Wrong? What did you do wrong?"
"I... I shouldn't have..."
"Shouldn't what?"
"I shouldn't have... Ouch!"
Feng Cang lashed out with the vine again, making Xiaotian tremble.
Lin Mo was completely stunned when he saw this.
After a moment of stunned silence, he finally turned his gaze to Huo Wu and the others who were watching the Huo Wu from the other side.
Huo Wu leaned against a pillar in the pavilion, a gloating smile on her lips.
Shui Bing'er sat on a stone bench, holding a cup of tea in her hands, her expression serene, with an air of someone who loved watching the drama unfold.
Shui Yue'er squatted by the pavilion, her chin resting on her hands, her eyes sparkling as she watched Feng Xiaotian being beaten, muttering something under her breath.
Zhu Zhuqing stood in the corner of the pavilion, a hint of a smile flashing in her clear, cool eyes.
Seeing this, Lin Mo couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with Feng Xiaotian? What did he do to offend his grandfather?"