Watching the dark red energy ball whistling towards them, intermingled with a nauseating, bloody stench, everyone in the car couldn't help but be startled.
"You don't even say a word when we meet, and you go straight for a killing move?"
Xie Xie sat in the back row, a flash of coldness crossing his eyes.
"This guy doesn't look like a good person at all!"
Facing this sudden attack, Tang Wulin, who was sitting in the driver's seat, didn't react with fear of danger. Instead, his first thought was a silent cry of alarm!
"Oh no! The car!"
One had to know that this silver-white high-altitude Spirit tool car was property provided by the academy for their free use, and Teacher Shen Yi had given them strict instructions before they set off.
If this car sustained any damage during landing—even if it was just a scratch on the paint or a dent in the metal—they would have to pay the full price in precious Contribution Points upon their return!
For Tang Wulin, who valued Contribution Points more than his own life, that was hard-earned money he had obtained through his painstaking forging. He absolutely could not accept losing even a single contribution point for no reason!
"You want to destroy my car? Dream on!"
With the Spirit tool car still over ten meters from the ground and the dark red energy ball on the verge of smashing into the hood, the situation was critical.
Tang Wulin made a prompt decision. Without any hesitation, he violently pushed open the car door beside him.
A gale instantly poured into the cabin. Tang Wulin leaned more than half his body out of the car and violently swung his right hand forward.
"Blue Silver Emperor, emerge!"
Accompanied by Tang Wulin's low shout, countless incredibly thick, crystal-clear blue-gold vines, their surfaces etched with mysterious golden patterns, surged out from his palm like a fountain!
These Blue Silver Emperor vines rapidly intertwined and tangled in mid-air, weaving into a thick and resilient blue-gold shield directly in front of the Spirit tool car in the blink of an eye.
Boom—!
The next second, the dark red evil energy slammed violently into the Blue Silver Emperor shield, erupting with a deafening, thunderous roar!
The shockwave from the explosion swept outwards, kicking up a dark red cloud of dust that felt like a bloody storm.
However, when the dust settled.
The black-robed figure standing in the wilderness below, upon seeing the scene in the air through the gap in his hood, froze in place, his eyes filled with disbelief.
The vine shield in mid-air slowly dispersed. The surfaces of those blue-gold vines didn't even show a single trace of scorching or corrosion; they remained as crystal-clear and resilient as before, completely unscathed!
"This… how is this possible?!"
The black-robed figure exclaimed in shock.
"My Blood Fiend Yin Thunder actually couldn't even break the defense of a mere trash Spirit like Blue Silver Grass?!"
In his understanding, Blue Silver Grass was a common plant found everywhere that would instantly wither and rot upon contact with his blood energy.
He failed to recognize that the vines before him, which radiated a noble aura, were not ordinary Blue Silver Grass at all, but the Blue Silver Emperor!
Bang!
While the black-robed figure was still in shock, the thrusters at the bottom of the Spirit tool car completed their final buffering, and the four wheels landed steadily on the wilderness ground.
The car doors opened in unison.
Tang Wulin, Huo Yuhao, Xie Xie, Wei Xiaofeng, and Ling Luochen jumped out of the car with agile movements.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, Tang Wulin didn't even bother to turn around to look at the black-robed figure who had attacked them.
He hurriedly turned around and carefully ran his hands over the front of the Spirit tool car. After confirming it was fine, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
With a "swish," a beam of light flashed.
Tang Wulin hurriedly stowed the intact Spirit tool car away into his Storage Soul Tool, fearing that it might get bumped or scratched once the fight started.
"Phew… that's a relief, the Contribution Points are safe."
Tang Wulin patted his chest.
On the other side, when the black-robed figure saw that all five people had stepped out of the car unscathed and were faintly forming a surrounding formation, his heart sank. Without hesitation, he turned to flee.
He wasn't stupid. When the five of them had been trapped in the cramped carriage and suspended in mid-air with no leverage, that had been the best opportunity to strike.
But his fatal strike hadn't succeeded; instead, it had been blocked.
Now that the five of them had landed safely, it was clear from the way they had blocked his attack and the Spirit Power fluctuations emanating from them that these teenagers were definitely not ordinary characters.
Fighting one against five was absolutely disadvantageous for him. The best of the thirty-six stratagems was to flee!
A thick, blood-colored mist suddenly erupted from beneath the black-robed figure's feet, and his form began to transform into a bloody shadow, preparing to escape into the dense forest behind him.
"You sneak-attacked us and you still want to escape?"
Seeing the black-robed figure's movements, Tang Wulin and the others naturally wouldn't allow it.
The Light Dragon Dagger in Xie Xie's hand had already slid into his palm, and he was preparing to use his speed advantage to chase him down and intercept him.
However, before Xie Xie could rush out.
Huo Yuhao, who was standing to the side, let his gaze grow slightly cold.
"Stay here."
A golden light suddenly flashed within Huo Yuhao's clear eyes!
An invisible and immense wave of Mental Force instantly emanated from Huo Yuhao, locking onto the fleeing black-robed figure.
Mental Shock!
That invisible blade of Mental Force stabbed directly into his Sea of Consciousness!
"Ah—!"
A shrill scream rang out from ahead.
The black-robed figure, who had not yet managed to escape twenty meters, suddenly stiffened and clutched his head tightly with both hands.
Subsequently, dark red blood began to flow from his seven orifices simultaneously, and his eyes rolled back. Before he could even struggle, his entire body went limp like a puppet that had lost its control. With a "thud," he fell face-first into the soil of the wilderness, fainting on the spot.
Watching this scene.
Xie Xie, who had been preparing for a big fight, stopped in his tracks. He stood there holding his dagger, maintaining his charging posture, completely stunned.
"No way? He's so weak… and he actually dared to attack us?"
Xie Xie walked over to the black-robed figure and poked the body with his toe. After confirming that the figure had indeed completely passed out, he looked speechless.
"Seeing how this guy went straight for the kill without a word and had such a strong stench of blood on him, I thought we had encountered some hidden expert as soon as we arrived. I didn't expect him to be unable to even withstand a single Mental Shock from Yuhao before rolling his eyes and fainting."
In truth, it wasn't really that this black-robed figure was too weak.
As someone who dared to kill and rob in the wilderness, this person's Spirit Power fluctuations were actually not low.
It was just that he hadn't checked his fortune today and had happened to provoke them.
"Stop being glib and come see what this guy's background is."
Tang Wulin set aside his joking expression and led the others forward. The five of them formed a circle, surrounding the unconscious black-robed figure.
Tang Wulin squatted down and yanked the hood off the figure's head.
What came into view was a pale, sinister face with a cyan tint.
Most shockingly, Tang Wulin grabbed the figure's hands to inspect them. He saw that the fingernails on all ten fingers were a strange, dark red, and between the fingers, there was still fresh, undried blood.
Coupled with the lingering, cold, evil aura that permeated the air, it was clear that this person was definitely not a good person.
"Judging by the freshness of the blood, he must have just killed someone before attacking us, and used cruel means to absorb their blood energy."
Ling Luochen frowned slightly and analyzed calmly.
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao's eyes also grew cold.
During their theoretical classes at the academy, Teacher Shen Yi and Teacher Wu Changkong had specifically lectured them on the definition of an Evil Soul Master.
The teachers had explicitly told them that in this World, Spirits were strange and varied. Possessing a Spirit with evil or dark attributes did not necessarily mean that a person was an Evil Soul Master.
There was only one standard to truly judge whether a person was an Evil Soul Master, and that was to look at their actions!
If a Spirit Master murdered innocent civilians or other Spirit Masters to rapidly increase their own strength, using their blood, Soul, or resentment to assist in their Cultivation, then such conduct—treating human life as worthless—was that of a thorough Evil Soul Master!
And the black-robed figure lying on the ground before them.
Not only had he attacked them for no reason, but his hands were also stained with fresh blood of unknown origin, and the chaotic blood energy on his body, acquired through plunder, was not even concealed.
Clearly, the person before them completely fit the criteria of an Evil Soul Master as described by their teachers in class!
"What does everyone think?"
Tang Wulin stood up and scanned the four teammates around him.
Ling Luochen's expression was icy, and she calmly spat out one word.
"Kill."
Huo Yuhao nodded.
"Leaving someone like this alive will only cause more innocent people to suffer. Since we've encountered him, we can't ignore it."
Xie Xie snorted coldly and twirled his Light Dragon Dagger, performing a flourish.
"Then let's send him on his way. Consider it the first blood we've drawn during our training in the Lower Realm."
Wei Xiaofeng also took a deep breath, signaling his agreement.
Tang Wulin nodded and raised his right hand. A sharp Blue Silver Emperor vine instantly stabbed out like a spear, cleanly piercing the black-robed figure's heart and thoroughly ending the evil life of this Evil Soul Master.
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A/N:
I hope all of you are enjoying this story so far. I would appreciate some Power Stones if you can spare any. Leave a review if you like the story. Thank you.