The Glory of the Sun and Moon in the Peerless Tang Sect

The crowd spontaneously stepped forward to surround him and protect him.

Wang Qiu'er looked at Xu Zihuang with a strange expression as he withdrew the soul ring beside him.

As for Dai Luoli, there's not much to say. His focus was entirely on Xu Zihuang's terrifying soul ring ratio, and his gaze was blank.

"I'm lucky to have encountered a suitable soul beast so quickly." Zhang Lexuan smiled slightly, looking at Yu Tianhuang with great emotion.

"I never expected that in just five years, Tianhuang, you would have grown to such an extent. I'm afraid that soon your strength will far surpass mine. I'll leave the command to you from now on."

"Senior Sister, are you trying to increase my workload?" Xu Zihuang shook her head with a wry smile, but did not refuse outright.

Zhang Lexuan smiled without saying a word.

On the other side, Ning Tian also stepped forward with a smile and took Xu Zihuang's arm. At times like this, there's no need to maintain formation; all that's needed is to be vigilant about the surroundings.

Chapter 359 The Thousand-Pound Ant King, the Ten-Thousand-Year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, and the Three Zhongli Brothers

That weasel's cultivation level had indeed reached the ten-thousand-year level, but it was still some distance from the twenty-thousand-year level.

Li Yongyue was, after all, an inner disciple of Shrek Academy, so he encountered no mishaps while absorbing this level of spirit ring. In less than an hour, he completed the absorption of the spirit ring and happily leaped up from the ground.

This top-grade spirit ring, whose attributes perfectly complemented his martial soul, provided a far greater boost and enhancement than he had anticipated. Moreover, the spirit skill it granted him was incredibly powerful. With this sixth spirit skill alone, he was confident he could secure a place for himself within Shrek Academy's inner court.

Li Yongyue walked up to Xu Zihuang and thanked him again with gratitude and sincerity.

"Thank you, Junior Yu."

Xu Zihuang smiled calmly.

"Senior Li, you're too kind. We're all classmates. Besides, we're a team now, so it's only right that we help each other when we're hunting soul beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest."

Li Yongyue's excitement lingered, but she did not express her gratitude with empty words.

The team atmosphere was so harmonious that Zhang Lexuan was happy with it, but at the same time she noticed Wang Qiu'er, who always seemed to be detached from the group.

However, she felt it was just Wang Qiu'er's personality, and that with continued interaction and adjustment, she would eventually be able to integrate.

With this in mind, Zhang Lexuan had Xu Zihuang lead everyone to search for suitable soul beasts again.

With Xu Zihuang's external spiritual power allowing them to sense the surrounding situation in advance, the group didn't experience much pressure.

Xu Zihuang's current mental power can be projected to a terrifying maximum distance of thirty kilometers in diameter. As they travel deeper into the mixed zone, encompassing a vast area, their efficiency in searching for soul beasts naturally increases.

Before long, Xu Zihuang led the group to find a second suitable soul beast.

This is an ant nearly a meter long. Its body is covered with a dark golden carapace, and it has six thick, powerful short legs. Its sharp, ferocious mouthparts are sucking the sap from a thousand-year-old snake dragon orchid.

The Serpent Dragon Orchid has a fatal attraction for low-level soul beasts; it would be impossible for it to grow to such an age in the outer area of ​​the Star Dou Great Forest.

The ant-like spirit beast noticed their presence and slowly raised its head. On its head were six eyes, four large and two small, emitting a ghostly green light.

Everyone immediately recognized the species of this ant-like soul beast as the Thousand-Pound Ant.

Apart from Xu Zihuang, who knew beforehand, everyone present looked surprised.

"Is this a pygmy ant?"

Generally speaking, a Thousand-Pound Ant with ten years of cultivation is about three inches long, and a Thousand-Pound Ant with a hundred years of cultivation will not exceed six inches in length. Only with a thousand years of cultivation is it possible for it to grow to a foot in length.

Thousand-year-old ants are already extremely rare. This is because they lack powerful means of survival, and infighting often occurs within their own colonies.

The giant ant before them had not only changed its hard carapace from its original black to a dark gold, but it was also nearly a meter long. This meant that it had been cultivating for over 20,000 years.

More accurately, this massive ant should be called the King Ant.

The Thousand-Pound Ant King, with a cultivation level of over ten thousand years, is rarely recorded in the history of Soul Masters.

After carefully determining the age of this mighty ant king, Zhang Lexuan asked Wang Qiu'er and Mo Xuan.

"This Thousand-Pound Ant King's cultivation level has just broken through 20,000 years, which is just right for becoming the sixth soul ring. Wang Qiu'er, Mo Xuan, which of you needs it?"

Although the Thousand-Pound Ant isn't a particularly powerful soul beast, its ability to cultivate to such a level indicates it possesses extraordinary qualities. Furthermore, the Thousand-Pound Ant's greatest strength lies in its power, making it a perfect match for Wang Qiu'er's martial soul in terms of attributes.

However, this Thousand-Pound Ant King is also suitable for Mo Xuan. Mo Xuan's martial soul is a halo, and if he absorbs the soul ring of this Thousand-Pound Ant King, he will most likely gain a soul skill that amplifies power in a wide area.

Mo Xuan, who disliked competition by nature, subconsciously looked at Wang Qiu'er.

Wang Qiu'er didn't even glance at Mo Xuan, her pretty face full of arrogance, and said indifferently, "This Thousand-Pound Ant King does not meet my expectations."

"Senior Sister, then I'll take it." Now Mo Xuan had nothing to hesitate about and replied excitedly.

Zhang Lexuan's eyes held a smile. In her view, Wang Qiu'er seemed to be a girl with a cold exterior but a warm heart. Sometimes, you shouldn't pay too much attention to what a person says, but rather look at what they do.

Wang Qiu'er appeared to be expressing disdain for the Soul Ring of the Thousand-Pound Ant King, but undeniably, her words averted potential conflict.

"In that case, Tianhuang, Ningtian, and Wang Qiu'er, the three of you will be responsible for capturing this Thousand-Pound Ant King alive. Wang Qiu'er will face the enemy head-on, while Tianhuang and Ningtian will provide support and assistance from the side."

Following Zhang Lexuan's instructions, Xu Zihuang and Ning Tian remained calm. Xu Zihuang, needless to say, and Ning Tian, ​​being an equally intelligent girl, instantly understood Zhang Lexuan's intentions.

Zhang Lexuan noticed the disconnect between Wang Qiu'er and the team. Yu Tianhuang and Ning Tian, ​​as the control-type and support-type Soul Masters respectively, would find it easier to work with Wang Qiu'er initially, which would also help her gradually integrate into the team.

Wang Qiu'er was taken aback at first, but didn't say anything. She released her martial spirit, tapped her toes, and appeared in front of the Thousand-Pound Ant King in the next instant. The ground beneath her feet was now cracked in layers.

A resounding dragon roar rang out, and five spirit rings—two yellow, two purple, and one black—rose simultaneously from beneath her feet.

Her first spirit ring shone brightly, and a thick layer of gold instantly covered every corner of her body.

First Soul Skill: Golden Dragon Lion Body.

The third spirit ring lit up immediately afterward, and a punch was unleashed. Golden Dragon Lion Fist

The instant her fist struck, it transformed into a brilliant gold, coalescing into a golden dragon head. The dragon head was so solid it was almost tangible, appearing as if it were truly sculpted from gold. The originally resounding dragon roar deepened, causing the surrounding trees to tremble.

When this mighty ant king sensed the presence of Xu Zihuang and the others, it did not flee immediately, but instead weighed the pros and cons.

After all, this thousand-year-old snake dragon orchid is of great benefit to it.

Since it broke through to the ten-thousand-year realm, it mutated and gained several exceptionally powerful defensive soul skills. Soul beasts of the same cultivation level simply cannot break through its defenses.

That's why it dared to swagger into the depths of the mixed zone.

Moreover, it didn't care about the humans in front of it. So it instinctively believed that no one could pose a threat to it.

Ant-like spirit beasts lack intelligence and the ability to sense danger. A mere moment's hesitation and indecision sealed its fate.

Just as Wang Qiu'er unleashed this punch, the Thousand-Pound Ant King trembled violently and unhesitatingly used its strongest defensive soul skill.

An incredibly rich halo emanated from the dark golden carapace, then expanded upwards, forming a dark golden arc-shaped barrier.

But at this moment, Ning Tian, ​​having realized what was happening, also released the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul to amplify Wang Qiu'er's power.

“Nine treasures turn out to produce crystal, one of which is power.”

Ning Tian held up her right hand in front of her, and the dazzling Nine Treasures Glazed Pagoda floated above it. With a soft shout, a nine-colored ray of light drifted out from the Nine Treasures Glazed Pagoda and landed on Wang Qiu'er.

Wang Qiu'er's body hovered in the air, her delicate frame shifting and turning, her right fist striking with powerful, sweeping movements, possessing a remarkable beauty. A violent beauty.

Amplified by the Ning Tian Nine Treasures Glazed Pagoda, the intense golden light covering her body became even more dazzling.

"boom--"

The right fist, transformed into a golden dragon head, pierced through the Thousand-Pound Barrier erected by the Thousand-Pound Ant King as easily as crushing thin ice. It then plunged straight in, slamming heavily into the dark golden carapace on the Thousand-Pound Ant King's back.

The earth seemed to tremble.

Fine cracks quietly appeared on the carapace of the mighty ant king.

Wang Qiu'er blasted a crater more than half a meter deep and over three meters in diameter. The Thousand-Jin Ant King, with a cultivation level of twenty thousand years, was located in the center of this crater.

Its carapace shattered, blood gushed out, and it was completely incapacitated. Only its six thick, powerful short legs trembled from time to time.

Wang Qiu'er turned to look at everyone, her gaze lingering briefly on Ning Tian. Even someone as proud as her had to admit the formidable power of Ning Tian's Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Martial Soul's support abilities.

The 60% power boost increased her overall strength by at least 30%. Without the amplification from the Ning Tian Nine Treasures Glazed Pagoda, she could still crush the Thousand-Jin Ant King, but she could never have done it as easily as before.

Ning Tian smiled and nodded to Wang Qiu'er in a friendly manner.

Li Yongyue, Mo Xuan, and Dai Luoli were somewhat afraid to look Wang Qiu'er in the eye.

This fighting style is just too violent.

It wasn't until Zhang Lexuan reminded them that the three of them came to their senses.

"Mo Xuan, hurry up and absorb the soul ring of this Thousand-Pound Ant King."

"Yes, Senior Sister." Mo Xuan quickly replied, and as he brushed past Wang Qiu'er, a bead of cold sweat appeared on his forehead, and he secretly complained to himself.

This girl is undeniably beautiful and incredibly capable, but I doubt anyone could handle her.

Mo Xuan struggled for quite some time before finally piercing the relatively soft neck of the Thousand-Pound Ant King with his dagger. A jet-black spirit ring slowly floated out from its corpse. Compared to the spirit ring of the previous ten-thousand-year-old Sickle Weasel, this spirit ring felt much thicker and more viscous. This was likely due to the Thousand-Pound Ant King's strength.

The energy properties contained within a spirit ring are related to the type of spirit beast. For example, absorbing the spirit ring of the Thousand-Pound Ant King can greatly enhance a spirit master's strength and physical attributes. Li Yongyue's absorption of the spirit ring of the ten-thousand-year-old sickle weasel resulted in a significant increase in his speed.

Like the two pure spirit-type Evil Eye Tyrant soul rings that Xu Zihuang once absorbed, they contained immense spiritual power.

This is also one of the reasons why Soul Masters choose to hunt Soul Beasts whose attributes match their own Martial Soul and absorb their Soul Rings.

As a support-type Soul Master, and having absorbed a Soul Ring of 20,000 years of cultivation, Mo Xuan did not have it as easy as Li Yongyue.

He remained in a stalemate for over an hour, barely managing to suppress the resentment within the soul ring. Although his aura had stabilized, it would still take at least several more hours to complete the fusion.

And now it's getting dark.

Zhang Lexuan looked at the thousand-year-old Serpent Dragon Orchid that had been mostly devoured by the Thousand-Pound Ant King, then looked up at the sky through the gaps in the branches and leaves, and said in a deep voice, "We are currently located deep in the mixed zone, near the core zone. Nighttime is not a good time to move around, and Mo Xuan will also need some time to absorb the soul ring, so let's rest here for today."

As she spoke, she observed her surroundings.

Excluding Dai Luoli, everyone present had the experience of spending the night inside the Star Dou Great Forest.

Li Yongyue volunteered, "Senior Sister, I'll go clear the bushes nearby to keep the view clear."

Zhang Lexuan nodded. Their location was on relatively high ground, making it a suitable campsite.

Li Yongyue wielded a crescent-shaped blade with graceful curves, sweeping it horizontally to release several blade beams, quickly clearing away the bushes in the area.

Under the cover of night and with tall, lush trees providing shade, the interior of the Starry Sky Forest was somewhat dimly lit.

The group sat down around Mo Xuan, who had fused with his soul ring, and ate dried meat and various dry rations to recover their strength.

Ning Tian rested his head on Xu Zihuang's shoulder. Xu Zihuang gently stroked Ning Tian's hair while talking to Zhang Lexuan.

"Senior Sister, after thinking about it, let's take turns keeping watch tonight."

"That's fine too." Zhang Lexuan was well aware of Yu Tianhuang's considerations.

Leaving aside the fact that Mo Xuan needs to absorb a soul ring, Li Yongyue and Ning Tian's martial soul abilities are not suitable for guarding, and Dai Luoli's cultivation is relatively weak.