Cai Mei'er's gaze turned toward the Core Zone, her eyes reflecting a play of light and shadow.
As Super Douluo, she knew better than anyone what that area meant; it was a true forbidden zone that even she dared not easily set foot in.
But when her gaze returned to Wang Dong, that hesitation transformed into another kind of heavy consideration.
Wang Dong is one of the most dazzling geniuses in the academy in recent years.
He was already Soul Emperor during the Mingdu Tournament.
What's even more astonishing is that after the competition, his cultivation speed not only did not slow down, but instead surged like a torrent breaking through a dam, with his Soul Power soaring even more rapidly than when he was at a lower realm.
In just a few years, his Soul Power has reached the threshold of level 80.
He came here to obtain his Eighth Soul Ring. Shrek Academy now attaches great importance to Wang Dong, so his Eighth Soul Ring naturally needs to be perfected.
After pondering for a long time, Cai Mei'er finally looked at Wang Dong and asked, "Are you sure there are suitable Soul Beast in that direction?"
Wang Dong's expression was solemn; he had never experienced such a stirring and calling from the depths of his Sea of Consciousness.
He closed his eyes again, focusing intently on the faint, elusive pull, then opened them, his tone tinged with urgency.
"I can't be sure what it is, but I have a strong feeling... I'll regret it if I miss it."
Cai Mei'er's eyes narrowed. Soul Master's intuition, especially that of a genius Soul Master, is often closely related to fate.
She looked once more at the deep forest, and after a moment, she made her decision.
"Okay, let's search in that direction."
She glanced at everyone and emphasized again, "However, only search the outer perimeter. Under no circumstances should you step into the Core Circle. If there is any abnormality or if you receive my order, evacuate immediately."
"Yes!" the crowd responded resolutely.
The team adjusted their direction and cautiously moved forward in the direction Wang Dong had just been looking.
The Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest is fraught with danger, and traces of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast are not uncommon.
Everyone held their breath and cautiously advanced in the direction indicated by Wang Dong.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast have developed intelligence, no less than that of adult humans. They keenly sensed the subtle yet powerful aura of a Super Douluo emanating from Cai Mei'er.
Therefore, even if some Soul Beast discovered their group, most of Soul Beast chose to lie low and observe without being directly provoked.
In this delicate atmosphere, the team continued to advance deeper into the Core Zone.
Time passed quietly, and about an hour later, the surrounding trees became even more ancient and vigorous, and the Soul Power permeating the air became more primal and dense. They were now infinitely close to the Core Zone.
Cai Mei'er's brows furrowed deeper and deeper, but Wang Dong ahead showed no sign of stopping.
As the team leader, her rationality told her that she could not go any further. Her fingers tightened slightly, and she was ready to give the order to retreat.
However, in that very instant...
A sudden change has occurred!
Everyone's gaze suddenly focused on what was directly ahead, as an undisguised and powerful aura tore through the silence of the forest and rapidly approached their location.
In this sensitive area on the edge of the Core Zone, any movement is enough to set off their already tense nerves.
The team instantly entered battle mode, their Soul Power surging silently, and their formation contracting in an orderly fashion.
"Alert!"
Cai Mei'er gave a low shout, her gaze locking onto the direction from which the aura was coming.
"Whoosh... Boom! Boom!"
The sound of vegetation being roughly trampled and the heavy, drum-like sound of running rapidly approached from afar, and the earth trembled clearly.
Immediately afterwards, the forest was shoved aside by a brute force, and a colossal beast burst into everyone's sight!
Its body is like a small mountain covered with rocks, incredibly robust, with limbs that appear short and thick relative to its size, yet it runs at a surprisingly fast pace.
Most striking is the single horn on its enormous head, gleaming with a lustrous sheen, proudly protruding from its forehead, radiating a pure yet intense aura of light.
"It's Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast!"
Jiang Nannan, a member of the group, recognized the Soul Beast at a glance and blurted out, "Judging from the luster of its horn and its size, its cultivation is at least over 30,000 years old! It is indeed a rare light-attribute Soul Beast, but..."
She glanced quickly at Wang Dong and said, "Its abilities and attributes are more defensive, which doesn't match Wang Dong's Martial Soul characteristics, so it's not a suitable choice!"
Cai Mei'er stared at the charging Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast, keenly catching the unusual emotion in its huge eyes.
It wasn't a murderous glint that seemed ready to devour anyone, nor the rage of a territory being invaded, but rather a near-panic terror and a frantic urgency to escape some kind of threat.
Something's not right!
She let out a low shout, and the powerful Divine Power belonging to Super Douluo poured out like invisible mercury, bypassing the charging giant beast and heading straight into the depths of the dense forest behind it.
Sure enough, there, two powerful auras were rapidly approaching, following closely behind.
"It's running for its life! Something's chasing it, everyone be careful!"
Cai Mei'er spoke rapidly, her voice calm as she offered her reminder.
Almost as soon as she finished speaking, the enormous, Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast rushed forward.
It showed no intention of attacking the human team whatsoever. In fact, it fled in a desperate manner, its massive body carrying a gale and dust, crushing through the gaps beside the team and continuing its desperate escape into the depths of the Mixed Zone without looking back, leaving behind only a mess of branches and leaves and a still trembling ground.
Before everyone could fully pull their attention away from this unusual "passerby"...
Swish!
A dazzling golden figure, like lightning tearing through the darkness of the forest, suddenly appeared in the direction from which the Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast had fled.
Cai Mei'er and the others were instantly drawn to it.
Not long ago, the Emperor Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, was rampaging through the Star Dou Great Forest as usual, like a child who would never grow up.
The Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast that fled in panic was merely a target she had chosen on Shi Xing; it was just a fun hunting game.
Of course, if she gets caught, then it'll be perfect for a good meal.
However, just as she was about to capture her prey, she encountered a group of Soul Master at the edge of the Core Zone of this forest.
This made her stop chasing the Radiant Armored Rhinoceros Beast and sizing up the humans in front of her.
Her golden hair, as radiant as liquid Yangguang, moved without wind, and her pure golden eyes held an innate arrogance and curiosity.
Of the five people opposite her, she recognized two of them before, and both of them were extremely powerful, emanating an aura that made her feel threatened!
However, this sense of threat did not arouse the slightest panic in the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.
On the contrary, a gleam of interest flashed in its bright eyes, as if it had discovered something more interesting than the fleeing rhinoceros-armored beast.
It tilted its head slightly, scrutinizing these humans who dared to approach the edge of the forbidden area, and the forest seemed to fall into an eerie silence at this moment.
At this moment, meeting Core Circle Star Dou Great Forest, were naturally Shrek Academy's group Emperor Auspicious Beast!