The branches overhead intertwined, and the dense trees blocked most of the light, casting only a faint, starlight-like glow to illuminate the path ahead.
Fortunately, Ma Xiaotao and Yan Shaozhe's Phoenix Flame illuminated the surrounding area.
After walking for about half a minute, Zhou Yi immediately noticed the half-meter-high black stone pillar in the dense forest.
The stone pillar looked quite unique. It was a hexagonal prism tilted at a 45-degree angle towards them, while the top surface was still facing upwards, allowing them to see the groove on the pillar for inserting cards.
Its column is uneven, with holes of various sizes, but the surface of the stone column is perfectly smooth. When the Phoenix Flame streak across and illuminate it, the light of the flames is even reflected on it.
Zhou Yi touched it; it was smooth and cool to the touch, and her mind, which had been hazy in the dim light, cleared up considerably in an instant.
While inwardly sighing with admiration, Zhou Yi turned to Yan Shaozhe and said, " Dean Yan, I'll begin then."
Yan Shaozhe nodded solemnly, his Soul Power surging within him, alert to his surroundings.
Zhou Yi reached out and took out the black card Qing Ya had given her, aligned it with the groove, and inserted it without hesitation.
As the card was inserted, the bottom of the black cylinder immediately lit up with a purple light, and the originally uneven holes were lit up one by one from bottom to top.
Immediately afterwards, countless spiderweb-like cracks spread from the base of the pillar, the ground trembled incessantly, the surrounding trees rustled, and countless leaves fell in an instant.
Zhou Yi waved her hand and stepped back, shouting, "Everyone, retreat immediately!"
Rumble!
Countless pebbles mixed with trees continued to fly out.
Ma Xiaotao and the others immediately retreated several meters. In the blink of an eye, the ground within a five-meter radius of the black pillar cracked open, and a huge metal platform slowly rose up.
Immediately afterwards, the very center of the black stone pillar split open and moved to both sides, and a huge cage slowly rose from beneath the metal platform.
Before everyone's eyes, the 99,999-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear appeared.
The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, unleashed its unique aura without restraint. That terrifying, bloody, and primal aura rushed straight into everyone's minds without any concealment.
Yan Shaozhe looked at the terrifying aura that was constantly leaking out and gave a wry smile. Just as Xuan Zi had said, the moment the treasure was taken out, it was too late to hide the aura.
With a wave of his hand, golden energy immediately enveloped the area where the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear was located, thus concealing its boundless aura.
Yan Shaozhe stroked his chin, also somewhat curious about what methods the Mitsugoshi Company had used to quietly store the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear and other treasures here.
The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear lay there quietly, just as Xu Jiujiu had said. It had lost all its spirit; it was truly just a body that had long since lost its soul.
However, this is also what people need most, since a soulless Soul Beast is the easiest to control.
Looking at the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear not far above, Xiao Xiao couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow. It was truly pitiful to have only a body but no soul.
Suddenly, she looked into the lifeless eyes of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, and saw her own face reflected in them. Unconsciously, Xiao Xiao sensed the resentment and sorrow in its heart, which tugged at her tender heart.
Xiao Xiao tugged at Huo Yuhao's sleeve, her beautiful eyes slightly red, and whispered, " Yuhao, it's so pitiful. It lives without a soul. What's the difference between it and a puppet?"
Huo Yuhao was taken aback by Xiao Xiao's sudden words; he had never imagined that Xiao Xiao would have such thoughts one day.
Huo Yuhao then looked at Xiao Xiao with a solemn expression and said earnestly, "That's right, Xiao Xiao, no one wants to live like a puppet, not even a wild beast."
"Perhaps death will be its release, and we, who possess our own souls, must also protect our freedom."
Xiao Xiao nodded subconsciously upon hearing this, and Wang Dong'er also agreed with what Huo Yuhao said. However, for some reason, when Huo Yuhao finished speaking, she felt a faint sense of rejection deep in her mind.
Wang Dong'er slapped her forehead hard and shook her head, but the feeling still hadn't disappeared. However, when Huo Yuhao reached out and grabbed her soft little hand...
That feeling vanished immediately.
At the same time, the platform stopped operating, and a one-meter-wide metal table appeared in front of the Terrorclaw Bear cage.
After observing for a while and confirming that there was no danger, Yan Shaozhe nodded to Zhou Yi.
Zhou Yi then stepped forward, her high heels making a crisp sound on the metal platform, and the Shrek team members followed in Zhou Yi footsteps.
Zhou Yi glanced at the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear in the cage, and after confirming that it was unharmed, she turned her attention to the table.
There are three things on the table.
Zhou Yi immediately recognized that these were two storage-type Soul Tool Ring and a storage bag that could store living beings.
It's obvious that these two Soul Tool Ring contain the items Shrek won at auction, as well as the item that came with the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear: the Level 9 Soul Tool — the Godsealing Altar.
Zhou Yi lightly touched the two Soul Guidance Ring with her fingers, and with a gentle flick of her fingers, the two rings immediately flew into the air. Then, with a quick upward grab of her right hand, she caught the two rings in her hand.
She immediately checked the contents of the box, and only after confirming that everything was in order did she put it away.
As Zhou Yi picked up the storage bag used to hold the live animals, Gongyang Mo and the others were staring intently at the cage containing the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.
Gongyang Mo kept muttering to himself, "Hey, is this Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear that's nearly 100,000 years old? My god, those muscles... I feel like one slap could kill two of me..."
Dai Yueheng couldn't help but comment, "This bear's fur is really sturdy; it would probably look quite good if made into leather armor."
Ma Xiaotiao then said to Zhou Yi, who was walking over, " Teacher Zhou, hurry up and pack it up, we need to leave here as soon as possible."
Zhou Yi nodded and looked around. Yan Shaozhe was still on high alert. She then told everyone to disperse and reached out to activate the living organism storage bag.
In less than half a second, the enormous Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear and the cage that held it vanished from the spot.
The platform sensed the disappearance of the item and trembled again. Once everyone had left the platform, the metal platform immediately retracted.
The black stone pillar stood there again, but the card on it had disappeared. It seems this was also a protective measure of the Mitsugoshi Company.
Yan Shaozhe smiled slightly and said to them, "Alright, kids, it's time for us to go back to the academy."
Whoosh!
A strange gust of wind suddenly swept through the dense forest, instantly flattening the once-thick trees, and the intense sunlight made it difficult for everyone to open their eyes.
Just then, a hoarse voice came from the sky.
"Want to leave? Leave your things behind..."