章 184: Chapter 182.

"It's night time, and the area covered by this poisonous mist is very extensive. It won't be easy to locate the Pink Queen quickly. Moreover, encountering other soul beasts could complicate matters further," Tang San suggested. "Teacher Liu, let's wait until dawn. The Pink Queen merely wants to shield the Giant Earth King's escape and won't actively attack us."

Night time actions were fraught with danger. With limited visibility and uncertain soul abilities, getting entangled in a fight could spell trouble. Plus, everyone was exhausted from the day's journey.

"No, I can't allow this beast to escape like this. Waiting until daylight won't guarantee if we could find it at all or not!" Liu Erlong retorted furiously.

Dai Mubai watched her with a sense of horror. They didn't know what had transpired, but seeing Liu Erlong in such a rage unsettled him.

"Xiao San has a point! Erlong, don't act recklessly!" Grandmaster cautioned in a deep voice. "Even if it's not dangerous for the three of us, what about the other seven?"

"I'll go alone," Liu Erlong declared, casting a glance at Oscar.

Oscar, unsure of what to do, hesitated over whether to prepare small sausages for Liu Erlong.

"Erlong, what Xiaogang said makes sense..." Flender coughed a few times before continuing. "The sausages won't last for long. If you chase after them alone, prolonged exposure to the mist could be very uncomfortable and toxic. And encountering other soul beasts would be extremely dangerous."

"If we're attacked by other ten-thousand-year soul beasts, the situation could escalate," Flender added, noting the cunning nature of the soul beasts who acted in group rather than alone.

Liu Erlong remained silent.

Suddenly, at that moment, the pink poisonous mist dispersed rapidly before their eyes, startling everyone.

Immediately afterward, a figure emerged from the distance, walking slowly towards them.

Dressed in a white robe and a black mask, the figure had a well-proportioned physique. What caught everyone's attention, however, were the two massive soul beasts he carried in his hands, a stark contrast to his own size.

As he approached from the shadows, the two soul beasts became clearer to everyone. One was the Giant Earth King, that Liu Erlong left moments ago. The other was an entirely pink soul beast resembling scorpion, with a crystal with six eyes on its head—the Pink Queen responsible for the dissipating poisonous mist.

Despite their battered state, the two soul beasts were still alive, barely clinging to life.

Stopping about ten meters away, the mysterious figure abruptly dropped the soul beasts to the ground with a thud.

"You needn't pursue them any longer. I've defeated these two soul beasts for you." The figure's voice was cold, his sneer evident behind the mask. "Now, I offer you a chance. If any of you can touch the hem of my garment before falling, I will relinquish these two soul beasts to you for your soul ring absorption."

His words left everyone in shock.

Had these soul beasts been captured by him unnoticed?

"It's the Soul Emperor!" Tang San's declaration snapped the others back to reality.

Upon regaining their composure, the seven individuals grew nervous, with Ma Hongjun being the most jittery.

"Was he nearby the whole time, listening to our conversation?" Ma Hongjun stared intently at the figure before them.

He vividly recalled his earlier words, never expecting the other party to materialize before them.

Two encounters had already transpired, with each time the other party laying a trap for them. None of the seven had been able to handle it.

Yet now, here he stood, holding two soul beasts they truly needed.

"Flender, didn't you sense him earlier?" Zhao Wuji whispered. "I didn't sense a thing!"

The realization was chilling, he was a Soul Saint of over level seventy!

Even Flender, with his four-eyed owl eagle martial soul renowned for its heightened perception, had failed to detect him approaching.

"No." Flender shook his head, his gaze shifting to Liu Erlong.

"Don't look at me, I also didn't sense anything either," Liu Erlong remarked casually.

Her words sent surprise through Zhao Wuji and Flender. If even she, the strongest among them, hadn't noticed, then...

"Xiaogang... is he really Xiaofeng?" Flender pushed up his glasses, his voice tinged with uncertainty.

No matter how formidable Xiaofeng may be, he shouldn't be able to approach us without us sensing him, right? Hearing Ma Hongjun and the others earlier conversation indicates he must have been nearby.

"It's likely him. Otherwise, he wouldn't need to capture these two soul beasts. He might possess some kind of soul ability to hide his aura and soul power fluctuation." Grandmaster conjectured, shaking his head.

"What kind of soul ability it is, I can't say. Some are potent enough to elude detection even by someone as skilled as you."

Certain soul abilities could render even a Soul Saint completely unaware of their surroundings, a testament to their strength.

"So, what do we do now? Do we just observe?" Zhao Wuji scratched his head.

"For now, yes." Liu Erlong replied, stepping aside while still emanating a chilly aura. "It's a good opportunity to gauge their strength."

Seeing this, Flender also took a seat, his eyes narrowed.

"If even touching the hem of his garment results in their defeat, then it's definitely Xiao Feng." he remarked with a hint of indignation.

The seven individuals glared at the mysterious Soul Emperor in the white robe and black mask, a simmering anger rising within them.

"Let's give it a try then!" Tang San declared, taking a deep breath. "If it comes down to a direct confrontation, we might still stand a chance of winning."

The Soul Emperor's special training, as Grandmaster had described, could strike at any moment. However, the previous encounters had been traps, especially the last one, which had been exceptionally cunning, resulting in the entire group being swiftly incapacitated.

If it boiled down to a direct confrontation, the seven of them had a strong likelihood of emerging victorious. Furthermore, the other party's demands seemed rather minimal for their victory.

Even those at the Soul Douluo level of strength wouldn't dare to assert that they wouldn't be able to even touch the hem of their clothes. Moreover, with two soul beasts at stake, victory was within their grasp.

"Are you ready?" the mysterious man's cold voice betrayed no emotion.

"The opponent is a sensitive attack system soul emperor! Expect high speed, be cautious!" Tang San warned.

The Blue Silver Grass in Tang San's hands surged, enveloping the waists of the other six with countless tentacle vines. "On my mark!"

As Tang San's command resounded, all seven sprang into action.

"Bind!" Tang San's soul ability was the first to activate, aiming to gauge the strength of the soul emperor.

Dai Mubai transformed into his White Tiger form, his body expanding as he charged towards the mysterious figure, while Xiao Wu leapt into the air, using Tang San's hands to launch herself.

With a flash of purple light, Zhu Zhuqing, the fastest among them, closed in on the mysterious figure.

With her martial soul evolving into a Moon Elf, Zhu Zhuqing's speed was on par with that of a forty-level agile attack soul master. Her purple-golden claws traced an icy arc in the dark night sky as she lunged towards the mysterious figure.

However, the mysterious man didn't evade it. Zhu Zhuqing's claws landed squarely on his mask, leaving her momentarily stunned. Could it be that simple?

Yet, as her claws made contact with the mask, a chill ran down Zhu Zhuqing's spine, as a sense of danger gripped her heart.

The mutated Moon Elf harbored an incredibly unique trait, at night, her strength surged by additional 50%. It meant that during nighttime, she was the strongest among the seven.

Even without Tang San resorting to hidden weapons or Eight Spider Lances, he wouldn't stand a chance against her.

"Be careful! That's just an afterimage!" Tang San's warning came suddenly.

Unfortunately, the speed of sound propagation seemed slower than the opponent's movement. By the time Zhu Zhuqing's claws made contact with the mask, the mysterious figure had already moved, leaving behind only an afterimage.

Behind her, a palm strike sent Zhu Zhuqing hurtling towards the two soul beasts. Even Tang San's Blue Silver Grass, ensnared around her waist, couldn't react in time.

"Too fast." Tang San murmured. "This is beyond our reaction speed. Even in the darkness, Zhu Zhuqing's speed and reactions were already very impressive. Yet, with that palm strike just now, she barely had time to turn her gaze back before being struck."

"Watch out for his speed!" Tang San's Purple Demon Eye, at its third level, scanned the surroundings again, attempting to discern the opponent's figure. However, even the heightened perception afforded by the Purple Demon Eye couldn't quite track the afterimage left by the opponent.

At that moment, Ning Rongrong's Nine Treasure Star Cloud Tower began to glow softly, casting several beams of light onto the three of them.

Just as Zhu Zhuqing was knocked into the air before Ning Rongrong's spell could take effect, her increase landed on several others.

The group boost from the Nine Treasure Star Cloud Pagoda was formidable. With each soul ability receiving a 10% increase from the 30th to the 40th level, and an additional 20% boost post-mutation, each soul ability now reached a staggering 70% attribute boost. As they progressed, the boosts would continue to became increasingly exaggerated.

Several beams of brilliant lights descended upon everyone, including Zhu Zhuqing, who was still airborne. In an instant, their strengths surged.

"Bind!" Tang San commanded, feeling his Purple Demon Eye become clearer and brighter with the newfound enhancement. Now, he could barely discern the opponent's figure.

"Mubai, watch your back!"

The warning had just been issued.

Unfortunately, despite Tang San's timely reminder, there was still a slight delay.

"White Tiger Shield!"

In the split second after Tang San's command, Dai Mubai, with their long-standing tacit understanding, activated his soul ability. A faint light enveloped his body in a protective mask.

Boom!

However, the light cover shattered almost immediately under the force of the impact, sending Dai Mubai hurtling through the air, crashing towards Tang San in the distance.

Reacting swiftly, Tang San employed his Blue Silver Grass, extending the roots like a tree to catch Dai Mubai.

"Xiao Wu, watch out!"

As he secured Dai Mubai, Tang San's voice rang out, alerting Xiao Wu to the danger.

Xiao Wu, suspended mid-air, contorted her body into a U-shape to evade a powerful kick hurtling towards her from the roaring wind.

The kick narrowly missed her abdomen, grazing past it with menacing force. However, before Xiao Wu could even register her relief, she watched in horror as the opponent's leg twisted mid-air, delivering another blow directly to her lower abdomen.

Boom!

Xiao Wu was sent flying once again, but thankfully, due to the sudden change in the trajectory of the opponent's kick, the force of impact was significantly reduced. Moreover, the Blue Silver Grass wrapped around her waist absorbed most of the impact, allowing Xiao Wu to teleport and only bear a fraction of the force, ultimately landing on the ground with minimal damage.

...….

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