A full-throated roar came with powerful Soul Power! The forest behind Snake Granny Chao Tianxiang and Meng Yiran suddenly exploded, and the Soul Power Zhao Wuji had unleashed was thrown into disarray by that formidable presence! What appeared before them was a man with a face full of fury and eight Soul Rings beneath his feet: two yellow, three purple, and three black! This was a Soul Douluo-level expert! And his Martial Soul was none other than the scepter in his hand!
This is bad!
Zhao Wuji's heart lurched. He stared gravely at the old man. With the Dragon Staff as his Martial Soul, appearing here of all places, he was undoubtedly that Soul Douluo, Dragon Duke Meng Shu!
"Zhao Wuji, you've got some nerve!"
The Dragon Duke attacked without hesitation! In a mere instant, Zhao Wuji, a powerful Power Attack System Soul Saint, was sent flying. He landed on the ground in utter disarray, blood spilling from his mouth, utterly powerless to resist.
The worst had happened!
Zhao Wuji's Soul Power was at rank 76, while Meng Shu's was at rank 85. It sounded like a difference of only nine ranks, but their strength was on entirely different levels. A Soul Saint defeating a Soul Douluo above his realm? That only happened in legends.
"Old man!"
Chao Tianxiang's face lit up with joy, but then she noticed her granddaughter's dire condition and attacked in fury! A Soul Emperor-level expert's all-out strike was not something Shangguan Hong could handle in his current state. The soldiers loyally stood before their emperor, and the emperor loyally stood before his summoner. The Sun Disc unleashed its full firepower, the four soldiers underwent a complete transformation, and even Azir received an enormous boost. Yet a Soul Emperor-level expert's Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Skill was far too terrifying. Shangguan Hong's defenses were useless, and he looked little better than Zhao Wuji as he went flying.
Blood sprayed wildly, his chest caved in, and Shangguan Hong was grievously wounded.
Everyone from Shrek paled in alarm. Among them, Ning Rongrong quietly used the protective treasure her father, Ning Fengzhi, had given her to summon the disciples of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. As long as the sect's disciples reached them, however furious the Dragon Duke was, he would have to show them considerable respect. Unfortunately, those disciples needed time to arrive, and Zhao Wuji clearly could not hold out for long.
The balance of attack and defense had reversed!
Tang San stepped in front of Xiao Wu without hesitation, while she cautiously hid behind him. This Dragon Duke was a Soul Douluo-level expert, and a Soul Douluo could discern the Soul Beast presence emanating from Xiao Wu. If he learned that she was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who had taken human form, he would definitely kill her without the slightest hesitation!
Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing shielded Oscar and Ning Rongrong behind them. Oscar was still absorbing his Soul Ring, completely unaware of what was happening outside. Ning Rongrong's face was pale. This was the first life-or-death crisis she had encountered since leaving the sect.
The Dragon Duke's expression had darkened enough to drip water.
He looked at his wife's disheveled state, then at his granddaughter's severed hand. As a Soul Douluo-level expert, when had he ever suffered such humiliation?
The more the Dragon Duke thought about it, the angrier he grew, until he actually laughed in fury! There was no possibility of easing the situation now. Zhao Wuji forced himself to his feet, hauling up Shangguan Hong beside him in passing.
The air reeked of gunpowder and the Dragon Duke's bitterly cold killing intent! Zhao Wuji did not beg for mercy. Having made this choice, he would not regret it. Besides, begging now would be useless-and far too ugly a sight!
"Shangguan, I'll hold those two bastards off in a moment. Take the others and run. Run as far as you can, and absolutely do not look back!"
Zhao Wuji carried his voice into Shangguan Hong's ears with his Soul Power. At this moment, even Shangguan Hong, who had orchestrated everything, was somewhat surprised. Had he abandoned his own hope of escape to give his students a chance to survive instead? Hajiji, you bastard... you're just too damn cool!
Taking a deep breath, Zhao Wuji made up his mind and strode in front of everyone. Longgong had thought Zhao Wuji was going to explain himself and had intended to watch his ugly display of begging for mercy. However...
"Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul Avatar!"
"Run!"
Zhao Wuji activated his Seventh Soul Skill without hesitation, simultaneously roaring at the Shrek group behind him.
"Teacher Zhao!"
Tang San and the others' expressions changed drastically, but Shangguan Hong moved swiftly. Dragging his battered body along, he grabbed Tang San and Xiao Wu by the backs of their necks and swiftly fled into the distance.
"Mubai, what are you waiting for? Go!"
Shangguan Hong's shout snapped Dai Mubai out of his thoughts. Without hesitation, he scooped up Oscar, who was still absorbing his Soul Ring. Perhaps the immediate crisis had made him forget to interrupt Oscar's absorption. He summoned his White Tiger Martial Soul and carried Oscar away in a bridal carry.
There was no need to worry about Zhu Zhuqing. She was the fastest among them. The aloof catgirl slipped an arm around Ning Rongrong's waist and overtook Dai Mubai, the slowest of them, in the blink of an eye.
As they ran, they still could not help looking back, but all that remained for them to see was Zhao Wuji's resolute back.
"Teacher Zhao!"
"Brother Shangguan, let go of me! I can't watch Teacher Zhao go to his death alone!"
"Seven Treasures turn forth, revealing glazed tile! Seven Treasures Have Names, First: Strength, Second: Speed!"
Dai Mubai's roar, Tang San's struggles, and Ning Rongrong's final boosts-all of it heartened Zhao Wuji. He laughed freely. It seemed that, vicious-looking teacher though he was, he had still earned his students' acknowledgment.
So just how was he supposed to hold off a Soul Douluo and a Soul Emperor?
The answer was simple. With his Martial Soul Avatar active, combined with Ning Rongrong's indiscriminate boosts, Zhao Wuji's strength suddenly soared to the Soul Douluo level! Not to mention that the Dragon Duke and Snake Granny before him had never expected Zhao Wuji to attack so suddenly, without even begging for mercy or putting on an act! Seeing Zhao Wuji's fist draw closer and closer, the Dragon Duke let out a low roar in his panic and summoned his Martial Soul, but it was already too late!
Zhao Wuji punched the Dragon Duke in the abdomen. That strength, which had barely reached the Soul Douluo level, made the Dragon Duke's expression change. The veteran Soul Douluo expert flew backward like a cannonball, his body smashing through several ancient trees before he finally managed to stop.
Yet this was only Zhao Wuji's first wave of attacks. Immediately afterward, the Soul Saint ruthlessly turned his sights on the weakest of them, Meng Yiran, without the slightest hesitation!
"Zhao Wuji, don't you dare!"
"What wouldn't I dare do? You already want me and my students dead! Fine, then. With company on the road to the Yellow Springs, this deal is no loss! Take my Great Strength Vajra Palm!"
How could Snake Granny possibly be a match for Zhao Wuji now?
In the distance, the Dragon Duke had just risen to his feet, only to see his wife, Snake Granny, flying toward him in the same posture, at an even greater speed. A third of the bones in her body had been shattered by Zhao Wuji's palm. But that was not the point. The point was...
Before Zhao Wuji, a Soul Saint with his Martial Soul Avatar activated, Meng Yiran, a Quasi-Soul Elder with rank-30 Soul Power, had been flattened into a pancake...