Chapter 65: Xuanzi's Carelessness, Supreme Elder of the Evil Soul Masters!

There was something in the air.

Blazing flames erupted from Ma Xiaotao's body, crackling as they incinerated some unseen substance, sending up wisps of gray smoke that stubbornly clung to the outermost layer of the fire.

"This stuff is toxic. Even my evil flames can't burn it away. Be careful not to inhale it," Ma Xiaotao warned.

"You noticed quickly," Mu En affirmed. "It's a spreading toxic barrier. Even ten-thousand-year soul beasts dare not enter its center. The poison disrupts perception and causes you to lose your bearings; if you can't walk out, you simply die inside. That's why, over the years, Shrek has rarely sent people in to search."

If not for the guidance of that demigod crown, he wouldn't have been willing to grind away within this toxic barrier, searching inch by inch.

"Little Yuhao, Wang Dong, think about how to break through this," Xuan Zi tested them.

Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao exchanged glances and flew straight up into the sky.

Ma Xiaotao was a beat slower, but she immediately understood and flapped her wings to follow.

At around three hundred meters, their vision cleared, and the light returned to normal.

Continuing upward to an altitude of a kilometer, looking down, they saw a gradient-colored, dazzlingly brilliant seven-colored hemisphere inverted over the Sunset Forest.

Both Xuan Zi and Mu En, who had followed them up, were smiling.

Who doesn't like children with quick wits?

"Wait here for a moment," Mu En said solemnly. "This toxic barrier is constantly shifting, and that place isn't right in the center. It will take some effort to find it. Wait for my signal before coming down."

"Understood!" chanted all three.

Mu En transformed into a swimming dragon and dived straight into the toxic barrier. The ultimate light purified the toxins, clearing out a massive passage.

Yet within just a few blinks, the surrounding toxic barrier filled the path back in.

It was like a hell that devoured people without spitting out their bones, sending a chill down one's spine.

"I never would have expected that place to be here," Xuan Zi remarked with emotion.

"Even I wouldn't dare venture deep into this place for long. If not for the guidance of little Yuhao's Brother Lan, I'm afraid we wouldn't have discovered this even in another ten thousand years."

"However, as far as I know, although that place possesses immortal herbs said to possess the creation-defying power of heaven and earth, there are no soul beasts there, right?"

"Little Yuhao, how are you going to obtain your second soul ring?"

Huo Yuhao shook his head blankly.

Brother Lan hadn't mentioned this, so he hadn't asked.

Could Brother Lan possibly wish him harm?

Xuan Zi pondered and didn't press further.

Since that demigod crown had spoken, there were bound to be backup plans.

He would find out soon enough.

Suspended in the thousand-meter-high sky for ten-odd minutes, a beam of light finally shot into the heavens, about three kilometers away.

"Let's go!" Xuan Zi called out, taking the lead to clear the path.

The pace was a bit too fast, causing Ma Xiaotao and the other two to lag behind.

Huo Yuhao used his spiritual telekinesis to bind himself to Wang Dong's waist and Ma Xiaotao's arm, then charged into the toxic barrier alongside them.

Visibility plummeted to just a few meters, and the bright pillar of light from a moment ago vanished instantly.

Apart from gravity, there were no reference points whatsoever.

If Huo Yuhao hadn't used his spiritual telekinesis to secure everyone beforehand, the three of them would have accidentally been separated.

As for Xuan Zi, who was spearheading the charge, he was already nowhere to be seen.

"That old ox really doesn't know how to look after people," Zhuge Lan complained. "No wonder whenever he leads a team, all sorts of accidents happen."

Huo Yuhao didn't press for details.

Protecting himself and Wang Dong with spiritual telekinesis, he could clearly hear a sizzling corrosive sound, and his spiritual power was depleting at a rapid rate.

Left with no choice, he donned the emerald crown and activated his soul bone skill: Spiritual Storage.

Ma Xiaotao's body was also engulfed in towering flames, burning away the poisonous gas and scattering thick, heavy flying ash.

"This won't do, we've lost our bearings!" Ma Xiaotao shouted. "Let's go back up and re-orient ourselves!"

"Okay!"

Fortunately, gravity was still present, and fortunately, all three of them could fly.

Otherwise, they would have been completely lost within this toxic barrier and exhausted to death amidst endless terror.

Returning once more to the embrace of the sun, they found the pillar of light soaring into the sky just a hundred meters away.

So close?

"This Elder Xuan is something else, he never learns his lesson," Ma Xiaotao muttered.

You simply couldn't talk about him without him showing up; the next moment, Xuan Zi also burst out from the toxic barrier.

Seeing the figures of the three, his expression softened considerably.

"Didn't I tell you to keep up? How did you fall behind?"

Huo Yuhao, Wang Dong, and Ma Xiaotao: "......"

What a magnificent piece of reverse blaming!

"Just how fast were you flying, have you no self-awareness?" Ma Xiaotao spoke her mind boldly. "If little Yuhao hadn't been observant, Wang Dong might be buried down there right now!"

Ma Xiaotao's rank was high enough and her evil flames were strong enough to burn away the poisonous gas.

Huo Yuhao's spiritual telekinesis possessed extremely high density, allowing him to isolate the toxic gas.

What did Wang Dong have?

The meager passive purification of the Bright Goddess Butterfly would have exhausted his soul power in mere minutes.

Realization dawning belatedly, Xuan Zi wore a look of remorse on his face.

"Old man... it was this old man's oversight..."

He waved his hand to cast a soul power barrier, protecting Huo Yuhao and the other three while keeping them firmly confined within his immediate vicinity.

"I'll lead you the rest of the way."

He continued his descent along the beam of light.

Visibility slowly increased, expanding to a hundred meters.

An astonishing expanse of emerald green leaped into view. Looking closer, clusters of emerald-green plants grew together, wisps of pale emerald vapor steaming upward before gradually diffusing outward to merge into the seven-colored toxic barrier.

"Sizzling—"

The soul power barrier cast by Xuan Zi was actually "boiling"!

Could the poison here corrode even ninety-eighth-rank soul power?

Simply terrifying!

"So many Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flowers? And some have even evolved into Jade Phosphorus Nine-Absolute Flowers?" Xuan Zi said in astonishment. "Outside, plant-type soul masters would pay a thousand gold for a single stalk, and here they are in endless patches? Just moving these out could establish a top-tier plant academy!"

"Don't touch that patch of Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flowers, they will counterattack," Mu En's voice arrived. "Just brute-force your way around them from above."

The four of them followed suit, plunging into the even denser toxic clouds above.

The corrosive sizzling sound was endless, but for Xuan Zi, it wasn't much of a problem.

They rendezvoused safely with Mu En.

Xuan Zi glanced back at the Jade Phosphorus Seven-Absolute Flowers, clearly still harboring some ideas.

"Stop looking," Mu En said leisurely. "Those were obviously deliberately planted by predecessors to mask this treasured land, and they will serve as the barrier we need in the future."

Xuan Zi smacked his lips.

"Then can I pluck one when we leave, just to taste it?"

"I heard this stuff has an exquisite texture. If we find one with a lower age rating, we should be able to handle it."

The others: "......"

True to his Gluttony martial soul, he was gluttonous enough.

Ma Xiaotao covered her face.

The next time she went out with Elder Xuan, she would have to be vigilant; who knew if he'd go looking for food and forget all about her.

Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong also wore subtle expressions.

"That's why I look down on this fellow. The only way he cultivated to rank 98 was probably by sacrificing his teammates," Zhuge Lan complained.

"Sacrificing teammates?" Huo Yuhao asked curiously.

"You can think of it as the modus operandi of evil soul masters."

"No way, Shrek has the Inspection Corps specifically to hunt down evil soul masters," Huo Yuhao retorted.

"Hah," Zhuge Lan sneered. "Little Yuhao, you're still too young... We've arrived. We'll talk about these things later; let's secure the fortuitous encounter here first."