Ten Thousand Souls Forest Appears, the First Signs of Danger

Disciples from the Nether Firmament Underworld Sect, the Thunder Prison Mystic Gate, and the Divine Flame Radiant Realm were already on high alert.

Ming Ye and Ming Kong led their group to set up the "Soul Step Formless Formation," while Yao Wanqing, holding Nether Feather Fan, gently guided the soul winds, wisps of gray- purple qi leading everyone to avoid the "Soul Absorption Crevice" on the outer edge of the forest.

"The area is three hundred miles in from here, a place of ghostly winds; you must not break through the formation and force your way in."

As the group entered the forest, an inexplicable chill gradually crept into their minds.

The shadows of the trees were like a prison, the mist of souls in the forest was like a net, and every breath of air was mixed with the wails of old souls and the ripples of the formation—this was the remnant of the Ten Thousand Souls Formation.

Qin Yu immediately noticed that these array patterns were already broken, but deep within their soul cores lay ancient patterns similar to those of the Nether Firmament Underworld Sect.

"These soul arrays... Could it be that the Nether Firmament Underworld Sect set up a main Soul Master array here a thousand years ago?"

Ming Ye nodded slowly, but said nothing, only his gaze was solemn. "Be careful ahead... This place is far more complicated than we imagined."

Qian Ruishan's expression suddenly changed, her steps halted, and an extremely cold divine thought emanated from between her brows, accompanied by the barely audible murmur of an ancient female soul.

"... I once stood here, slaying souls and suppressing the realm... Why have I returned...?"

Deep within her eyes, a pale flame emerged, seemingly the reappearance of the will of her "Second Soul" from her past life.

Qin Yu frowned. The Azure Ring didn't move, but it trembled slightly. He stood quietly in front of Qian Ruishan without saying a word, simply using his body to shield her aura.

But unnoticed by anyone, a crimson moon pattern quietly emerged from the jade pendant on Qian Ruishan's hand, seemingly echoing a certain spot in the forest—

Just as the group was passing through the edge of the Ten Thousand Souls Remnant Array, a low roar suddenly came from the forest.

"Boom--"

An ancient soul tree was suddenly shattered, and a three-headed soul ape burst out from the soul mist. Its entire body was wrapped in black iron like rock, and its three heads were burning with blue flames, black lightning, and green flames respectively!

"The Silent Soul Ape King! It devoured the Nine Soul Master three hundred years ago!" Ming Kong exclaimed in shock.

This ape king's stomping caused the ground to crack, and his soul power permeated the three realms, actually taking half a step into the realm of Order Creation!

But behind it followed more than ten soul beasts, all of whom were at or above the Realm Consciousness Realm, forming a beast tide with an aura as powerful as a collapsing mountain!

Qin Yu remained calm as he extended one hand, a black-gold soul light flashing as his Ring Spear was drawn.

"Leave it to me."

The forest was shrouded in deep mist, and a chilling aura hung over it.

The instant the thousand-year-old Soul Tree was torn apart, the entire Silent Sorrow Ancient Soul Forest seemed to be filled with a low growl of some kind of wild awakening—more than ten strange beasts arrived one after another, their roars like the angry tolling of a soul bell, tearing the sky apart!

They were like wandering spirits from the underworld, with three eyes, nine claws, six wings, and serpentine bodies, looking sinister and ferocious, densely packed together, swarming in from all directions.

At the forefront, the three-headed giant ape shattered the Soul Rend stone ground with its roar, causing the heavens and earth to tremble. It was the [Silent Soul Ape King], an ancient soul beast species with a soul age of over ten thousand years. Its Fate Soul seed, the "Extinction Wheel Soul Crystal," once caused a catastrophe in the Soul Master Realm!

"Retreat! Its aura is too strong, it's nearing the Threshold Order Creation!" Ming Kong roared.

"This kind of soul beast is not something you can handle!" Several elders from the Divine Flame Radiant Realm were also surprised and uncertain.

"Roar--!!"

The Ape King roared again, its fury like thunder. It was an ancient soul beast, seven zhang tall, its body covered in black copper scales, its soul breath churning like a surging tide. Its eyes were bloodshot and chaotic, and what it spewed from its mouth was not fire, but a thick soul poison, corroding the ground into abyss-like pits.

"The Silent Soul Ape King... has already half-stepped into the peak of the Severed Phenomena Realm." A hint of surprise appeared in Ming Tong's eyes. Even she dared not easily claim victory.

Ming Kong, Ming Ye, and the others tensed up, their divine senses instinctively activating protective mechanisms. Ming Kong whispered, "I'm afraid even if we all work together, we can only buy it a little time. Besides, there are other strange beasts following behind it."

But amidst this oppressive atmosphere, a quiet voice gently rang out.

"Step back."

It's Qin Yu.

His tone was calm, yet it carried an undeniable air of authority. As soon as he finished speaking, he grasped the Black Bone Long Spear in his right hand, its blue-gray hues and patterns as sharp as etched lightning.

Ring Spear – Sever Causality, Return to Silence!

In an instant, the world changed color!

In the void, a black rift suddenly cleaved down, its spearhead like an ancient Soul-Severing Spear, annihilating cause and effect with a single strike!

The massive body of the Silent Soul Ape King suddenly froze, its red pupils seemingly torn apart. The remnants of souls and obsessions accumulated in its mind over thousands of years were completely erased the moment the spear fell!

"Pfft!"

A blue light pierced through its brow—the location of the core of its soul.

"Roar--!!!"

A bloodcurdling scream, filled with resentment and terror, rang out. The body of the Silent Soul Ape King began to crack, and its soul energy dissipated like a burst dam.

The next instant, its massive form collapsed with a deafening roar, like a mountain avalanche, stirring up a cloud of dust and spirits. The strange beasts following behind, seeing the Silent Soul Ape King die so suddenly, scattered in terror and fled into the Soul Forest.

--The Silent Soul Ape King is dead!

All around was deathly silent.

Everyone stared blankly at the corpses on the ground, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Elder Ming Tong remained silent for a full ten breaths before slowly speaking, "This attack... is neither the power of the Image Severing, nor the ordinary method of the True Soul... is... a battle technique of the spear?"

She looked at Qin Yu, who had already sheathed the Ring Spear, his expression still calm. Only the lingering ghostly light beneath his feet remained, a trace of the annihilation that had left its mark.

"Is this your true power?" Ming Ye murmured, a complex emotion in his eyes.

He had never seen such a pure "Spear of Cause"—a being that not only slays life, but also slays destiny.

But Ming Kong suddenly whispered, "I finally understand why the sect leader chose him as a candidate for the Soul Successor."

The disciples were in turmoil.

No one has ever been able to kill the Silent Soul Ape King with a single blow, and they have never even exchanged a second blow.

Only Qin Yu, as if preordained by fate, effortlessly completed this "impossible" battle.

Let's keep going.

Qin Yu turned around calmly.

But when he turned his back to the corpse, no one saw that at that instant, a very subtle cyan-gold ring silently flickered in the void—as if the meaning of the Azure Ring resonated in the darkness.

But no one could sense this light.

Even Ming Tong only frowned, assuming it was due to the fluctuation of the formation.

Qin Yu murmured, "Not enough..."

The sound was almost inaudible, yet it rippled gently across an ancient inscription within his body.

--And all of this is just the beginning in the Soul Forest...

After the battle ended, everyone cleaned up the battlefield. The Soul Crystal of the Silent Soul Ape King was sealed by the disciples of Youqiong, but Qian Ruishan remained motionless in front of the Remnant Soul Tree in the distance.

She felt a strange calling, the voice of her Second Soul... a true yearning!

"What's wrong?..." Qin Yu walked over and put his hand on her shoulder.

Qian Ruishan whispered, "My Second Soul... she's deep in the forest... waiting for me."

The ring made a soft hum, but no one noticed.

The wind grew colder, and the forest grew deeper.

As the group continued forward, something unusual happened deep within the Soul Forest ahead.

A wisp of mist rose quietly from the forest path. The mist was not milky white, but had a bronze-gray sheen, like the remnants of time's decay, entwined between branches and soil, as if the whole world had suddenly been shrouded in an ancient gray veil.

"This fog... something's not right."

Ming Tong's expression changed drastically, and she abruptly stopped.

She looked up and saw a swirling mist ahead. Among the ancient, gloomy trees, hidden array patterns seemed to be reviving, and a deep "humming" sound seemed to resonate from the depths of their souls, causing everyone's Soul Sea to tremble.

"This is no ordinary illusionary mist... this is Soul-Sealing Transfer Formation left over from the Upper Era!"

"Oh no!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the soul soil beneath his feet suddenly lit up with streaks of gray-white array marks, like spider webs bursting open and spreading out in an instant.

The next instant--

The world is distorted!

Everyone felt a sharp pain in their sea of consciousness, their souls struck as if by a heavy hammer. Before they could even react, they were engulfed by the thick fog. Ming Tong roared, "Gather your souls and protect your consciousness! Everyone, form the defensive array!"

But those words rang out for only a moment before disappearing without a trace.

In the mist, all sound is silenced, all inspiration is extinguished.

The moment the formation was activated, everyone seemed to be stripped of their place of existence and forcibly thrown into a segment of a "preordained fate".

The next moment, the five Rending Domain of the Silent Sorrow Ancient Soul Forest began to stir.

As the mist dissipated, Qin Yu stood quietly in a deep gray valley.

The valley floor is filled with jagged black rocks, and the soul energy is so dense that it is almost impossible to dissolve. On the cliff face, countless "Bone Soul Vine" are densely packed together—soul plants unique to the Upper Origin Era that can absorb the souls of living people and use them for parasitism.

"... This is an ancient soul valley," Qin Yu murmured.

He scanned his surroundings, his senses suppressed by ninety percent, and his soul wheel somewhat obscure. But Azure Ring remained silent, with only a faint, almost imperceptible trace of soul energy circulating steadily without causing any disturbance.

Just as he was on guard, a hissing, wriggling sound suddenly came from the cliff face. Then, Soul Erosion Crawler Beast with eight eyes, three heads, and its body covered with branding marks slowly crawled out and stared at him coldly.

Qin Yu remained unmoved.

He raised his eyes, clenched his fist, and a faint blue afterimage appeared in his palm.

You're not the first.

'I advise you to behave yourself, or I will Annihilation even your regret of being born into this world.'

As for Qian Ruishan, she was teleported to a floating island called "Soul Mist Convergence Sea".

The ground beneath her feet was paved with amethyst, and the sea surface churned with mesmerizing light waves. Ghostly figures danced in the mist, as if beckoning her to fall into an illusion.

But the soul mark between her brows was trembling.

Signs of the awakening of the Second Soul have reappeared!

Her expression hardened, and she immediately sat cross-legged to calm her soul and stabilize her spirit. But just then, a "low murmur of an ancient soul" emerged from the depths of the sea, and a Soul Jiao carrying a broken tablet on its back surfaced and pounced straight at her!

Qian Ruishan gritted her teeth, let out a soft shout, and her Soul Seal appeared, forming a silver-white soul barrier that protected her.

She remained calm and smiled serenely, "No matter where I am, I will return alive. He is still waiting for me."

Zhou Yu was teleported to a sealed Soul Well ruin. The entire space was filled with lightning patterns, and every step he took was accompanied by thunderous roars.

The pressure here was almost pushing him to his Limit, but he remained calm. Streaks of "Silent Lightning" rose from the soles of his feet, quietly resonating with the "Nine Abyss Silent Lightning Canon" within his body.

"Lei Jing? It's actually tailor-made for me."

He sat cross-legged, strands of lightning like silver snakes winding around him, his whole body shimmering with a ghostly blue light, as he began to activate his own cultivation technique, attempting to break through his Limit.

Yao Wanqing was trapped among a cluster of steles.

The tombstones bore no words, only the lingering, resentful spirits of departed souls, like ancient vengeful ghosts, ceaselessly chanting. "Give me back my life... give me back my soul..."

At this moment, her Heavenly Soul Reverse Pattern activated on its own, and her soul bloomed like an ice lotus, suppressing the souls of all directions.

She did not panic.

"As long as I can get back alive... even if it's hell, I can get out."

She never gave in to any adversity.

Ming Ye, Ming Kong, Falling into the Soul Bone Ancient Rift Platform and the Gloomy Nether Stone Wasteland

The two brothers were also separated.

Within the rift platform where Ming Kong resided, soul nails and binding chains filled the space, creating an extremely oppressive atmosphere; Ming Ye, on the other hand, was trapped in the Gloomy Nether Stone Wasteland, stripped of light, his soul sense completely blurred.

The two lost all sense of each other.

Several Ancient Clan elders who were observing from the edge of the Soul Forest suddenly noticed the fluctuations in the mist, and their expressions changed drastically.

"This is... the ancient Soul Realm 'Chaotic Realm Soul Seal'?!"

"This is troublesome... This isn't a treasure hunt, it's a real life-or-death struggle."

Deep within the Soul Forest, the heart of a long-broken ancient array rippled gently. A drop of eerie blue blood floated silently at the array's core, like a fragment of something "transcendent from the soul's source," awaiting its true master to awaken it...