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Before Tang San completed the nine trials of the Sea God, there was a great evil presence in the sea—the Deep Sea Demon Whale King.
The strength of the Deep Sea Demon Whale King surpassed that of any spirit beast or soul master on the ocean. To seek protection, these spirit beasts and soul masters naturally gravitated toward the Sea God Island, thereby providing the Sea God with a continuous source of faith.
However, after Tang San inherited the Sea God's position, he killed the Deep Sea Demon Whale King, eliminating the greatest threat in the ocean. Over time, the sea soul masters and spirit beasts gradually began to lose their faith in the Sea God.
With the decline in faith, Tang San's power would gradually wane—an outcome he did not want to see!
Thus, his gaze naturally turned to the land.
In the past, the soul masters of the land worshipped the Spirit Hall (the Angel God). After the fall of the Spirit Hall, a void in faith emerged, which Tang San naturally sought to fill.
But after the destruction of the Spirit Hall, the continent had already moved toward stability.
People only turn to faith when facing calamity. In times of peace and prosperity, where would faith come from?
Thus, the evil soul masters came into Tang San's sights.
At first, he ignored their actions, allowing them to develop freely. However, if righteous individuals formed alliances to exterminate the evil soul masters, he would intervene to ensure that the "fire" of the evil soul masters wouldn't be extinguished.
When the two continents collided, the evil soul masters of the Sun Moon Continent began invading the Douluo Continent, making Tang San's plan all the more effective.
It should be noted that the evil soul masters of the Sun Moon Continent had a much longer heritage compared to those on the Douluo Continent, even forming a unique system of their own.
Such forces were incredibly easy to manipulate.
The further expansion of the evil soul masters' influence would inevitably cause widespread panic among the people of the continent.
In moments of despair, the common people would naturally recall the god who descended long ago to eliminate the source of evil—the Sea God, Tang San!
In this way, the faith in the Sea God experienced explosive growth, and Tang San's power grew at an unprecedented rate.
While solidifying his position in the God Realm, Tang San also sought more power. In the distant future, he would even transform the Douluo Continent into the backyard of the Tang family.
To him, the residents of the Douluo Continent were nothing more than livestock, beings to be harvested at will.
---
Returning to the present.
Ning Tianchen lifted the carriage curtain just as Zhang Heng brought the carriage to a stop.
Cang Jinghong said gravely, "Before our presence is discovered, let's quickly detour around. Evil soul masters rarely act alone—they must have meticulously planned and scouted before attacking this village."
"And the number of evil soul masters will definitely not be small."
"No, we must kill the evil soul masters!" Ning Rongrong declared firmly, her eyes flashing with killing intent.
Light and darkness were always in opposition. As the inheritor of the God of Light, it was her duty to deal with the evil soul masters.
Ning Tianchen laughed loudly and agreed, "Rongrong is right. When the fight begins, Xiao Ao and Fatty, you two stay by Rongrong's side. Everyone else, follow me."
Wang Heng didn't hesitate. A long halberd appeared in his hand, and five soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black—emerged beneath his feet.
Cang Jinghong watched the group charge forward, his heart conflicted.
If Ning Tianchen and the others couldn't handle the evil soul masters, staying behind might save his life. But if the evil soul masters weren't a match for Ning Tianchen's group, retreating would leave a poor impression in their eyes.
What should he do?
Seeing his hesitation, Ning Rongrong couldn't help but remind him, "Our willingness to confront the evil soul masters proves that we have the strength to defeat them. Master Cang, don't make the wrong choice."
As she spoke, the Nine-Treasure Glazed Pagoda martial soul illuminated the entire night sky.
"Nine treasures command, speed boost!"
With the speed enhancement, Ning Tianchen and the others moved at an incredible pace, quickly rushing into Hedu Village.
"Auxiliary system soul master at the level of a Soul Sage!" Cang Jinghong was shocked.
He understood how difficult it was for auxiliary system soul masters to cultivate.
For Ning Rongrong to reach the level of a Soul Sage at such a young age, the people around her must be equally formidable.
When Feng Xiaotian and the others revealed their soul rings, his eyes widened in disbelief.
"How did they achieve this?"
---
Hedu Village was now a scene of hell on earth.
All the houses in the village had collapsed; wooden and thatched structures burned fiercely in the flames, and the entire village would soon be consumed by fire.
Amidst the flames, faint cries for help could be heard.
Ning Tianchen didn't dare to be careless and quickly gave orders. "I'll survey the village from above. Xiaotian, you go and rescue the villagers first."
Zhang Heng was the first to rush toward the sounds, followed closely by Feng Xiaotian and the others.
So far, they were unsure whether there were evil soul masters in the village, so they had to proceed cautiously.
Hovering above the village, Ning Tianchen relied on his vision and spiritual power to search for the evil soul masters while also looking for survivors.
Suddenly, he felt a chilling presence behind him.
Without time to think, he swiftly sidestepped, narrowly avoiding an arrow that whizzed past his ear.
Turning around, he noticed over a dozen figures outside the village, emanating an evil aura.
These people were likely the evil soul masters who had attacked the village.
"Hehehe, I didn't expect someone to meddle in our affairs. Brothers and sisters, it seems our strength is about to improve!"
The difference in soul power gained from consuming ordinary people versus soul masters was immense.
With soul masters delivering themselves to their doorstep, how could they resist?
Ning Tianchen assessed the battlefield situation.
Feng Xiaotian and the others were rescuing the injured villagers, and no other evil soul masters were found in the village.
Aside from the dozen or so people in front of him, there were no other presences within several kilometers of the village.
Ning Tianchen deliberately held back his strength, engaging the leader in battle until they reached a stalemate.
The leader of the evil soul masters possessed the strength of a low-level Soul Sage, while the rest ranged from Soul Ancestors to Soul Emperors.
Theoretically, as long as evil soul masters had enough targets to consume, they could break through multiple levels in a very short time.
The cultivation gained through consumption was unaffected by talent and was effortless.
This was why once an evil soul master tried consuming others' cultivation, they could never return to their former ways.
Seeing that his opponent was strong, the leader of the evil soul masters laughed loudly. "Boy, your strength is impressive. I'll give you a chance—join us, and I'll make you my second-in-command. Together, we'll pursue higher realms."
Ning Tianchen's eyes narrowed, and he sneered, "Evil soul masters deserve death, one and all!"
The leader of the evil soul masters, named William, burst into laughter. "How laughable! Even if your strength matches mine, so what? I'm not alone."
As he spoke, the remaining evil soul masters surrounded Ning Tianchen.
Among them, a Soul King-level bow-wielding auxiliary soul master lurked in the distance, ready to shoot arrows at any moment.
Through his spiritual perception, Ning Tianchen sensed Feng Xiaotian and the others quietly approaching. A faint smile appeared on his lips. "It seems you still don't realize that your end is near."
William laughed instead of getting angry. "Even at death's door, you're still spouting nonsense. By consuming you, my cultivation will increase by at least three levels. I should thank you for paving the way for my pursuit of greater power."
"Attack!" Ning Tianchen shouted.
Feng Xiaotian and Zhu Zhqing emerged from the shadows. In an instant, Feng Xiaotian took down three lower-level evil soul masters, while Zhu Zhqing used a high-level soul skill to instantly kill the bow-wielding soul master.
The others charged in from the flanks, surrounding the evil soul masters.
Beneath Ning Tianchen's feet, eight soul rings—black, black, black, black, red, red, red, red—emerged, exerting immense pressure that pinned the evil soul masters in place.
"A hundred-thousand-year soul ring." William laughed bitterly, enduring the oppressive force on his body and cursing, "Ambushed by my own kind—I admit defeat. But you won't get my soul power, nor will you use it to enhance your soul rings."
Among the evil soul masters, there was no known method to enhance soul ring years.
His words were merely speculation.
The Killing God Domain centered on Ning Tianchen enveloped them, ensuring no one could escape.
Zhang Heng wielded his spear-like martial soul, striking with dragon-like ferocity and slaying a Soul King-level evil soul master.
The overwhelming disparity in strength made this battle a one-sided "slaughter."
William's words made Zhang Heng suspicious of Ning Tianchen and the others' identities. However, after carefully sensing them, he detected no trace of evil soul master energy from their group, which completely dispelled his doubts.
As for their soul ring configurations, that was their own opportunity—he had no reason to inquire about it.
After clearing the battlefield, Cang Jinghong finally arrived late.
Ning Tianchen glanced at him and instructed, "Search the village thoroughly to find all survivors, and send someone to notify the nearest city lord's residence."
Cang Jinghong volunteered, "I'm relatively familiar with this area. I'll contact the city lord here and have him send people to protect the refugees."
Ning Tianchen didn't object.
---
The search for survivors continued until early the next morning.
During this time, Ning Tianchen and the others practically turned the entire village upside down to ensure nothing was overlooked before they stopped.
There were six survivors in total: a child with severe burns covering most of his body, an infant not long born, and four elderly villagers.
When the evil soul masters invaded, all the young and strong villagers fought desperately against them. These elders had hidden in their home cellars and narrowly escaped death.
However, if Ning Tianchen and the others hadn't cleared away the burning rubble above the cellar, they would have eventually been burned alive.
By mid-morning, Cang Jinghong arrived at Hedu Village with a squad of soldiers.
The nearest city to Hedu Village was Wangjiang City, a small-to-medium-sized city within the Crescent Moon Empire.
Upon hearing about the refugees outside the city, the city lord of Wangjiang felt a headache coming on.
Wangjiang City's annual tax revenue was meager, with most of it going to the empire. The remaining funds barely covered the daily expenses of the city lord's residence and the army, with a significant portion also set aside as tribute for the provincial governor and other noble officials. Where would they find extra money to care for refugees?
Under pressure from Cang Jinghong's strength and the prestige of the Cang family, the city lord sent a squad of elite soldiers.
If there had been too many refugees, he wouldn't have allowed them into the city but instead relocated them to nearby villages.
As long as the refugees were settled, Cang Jinghong and the Cang family wouldn't cause trouble for him.
Fortunately, there were only six survivors from Hedu Village, four of whom were elderly. The cost of relocating them to Wangjiang City was within the city lord's means.
After completing the handover, the squad leader inquired about the situation with the evil soul masters before leading his troops back to Wangjiang City.
Watching their departing figures, Chen Huayu frowned. "I can't help but feel they won't put much effort into resettling the refugees."
On the Sun Moon Continent, incidents of villages being wiped out by evil soul masters were not uncommon.
For a city lord, such occurrences were almost routine.
A city's resources were limited, and let's not forget that the city lord skimmed off some for himself. Under constant attacks, where would they find the money to assist refugees outside the city walls?
Ning Tianchen sighed deeply. "Survival of the fittest is the main theme of this world. We've done all we can. The rest is none of our concern."
The rampant evil soul masters couldn't be eradicated by their efforts alone.
The ruling class of this continent paid little attention to these issues, leaving the common people to suffer in dire conditions.
---
After a brief rest at the ruins of the village, Ning Tianchen and the group resumed their journey.
They took a ferry across the river near Wangjiang City and traveled for two more days before their carriage entered a small town.
Knowing that Ning Tianchen and the others were unfamiliar with the situation around the Evil Demon Forest, Cang Jinghong introduced the town as they entered: "This town is located on the outskirts of the Evil Demon Forest. Once we pass through it, we'll reach the entrance to the forest."
"The purpose of this town is..."
Before he could finish, Ning Tianchen and the others waved their hands, interrupting him.
How could they not know the purpose of a spirit beast town?
After some thought, Cang Jinghong reminded them, "We need to find a guide in this town."
Ning Tianchen asked, "Are there no hunter teams here?"
The towns around the Evil Demon Forest were vastly different from those near spirit beast forests on the Douluo Continent.
On the Douluo Continent, hiring a hunter team to hunt souls automatically included guiding services as part of the package.
Here, however, things were different.
The hunter teams in the Evil Demon Town were purely mercenaries who only assisted in hunting souls. They didn't provide guidance—that task fell to others.
Ning Tianchen guessed that the interior of the Evil Demon Forest was extremely dangerous, with a complex and labyrinthine environment that made it easy to get lost.
The hunters risked their lives for money and wouldn't wander around aimlessly in the forest without purpose.
Through Cang Jinghong's explanation, they understood that hiring a guide would cost as much as—or even more than—hiring a hunter team.
Of course, the abilities of hunter teams were limited. The spirit beasts needed for sixth and seventh soul rings were beyond their capabilities.
Everyone's gaze turned to Ning Tianchen.
Helping Zhang Heng and Cang Jinghong hunt for soul rings was a minor favor for them. Their primary objective was still to venture deep into the forest and locate Butterfly Valley.
Ning Tianchen looked at Cang Jinghong. "If the two of you need soul rings, just find a suitable guide."
Cang Jinghong quickly assured them, "Rest assured, this expense should naturally fall on us."
A guide who knew the location of thirty-thousand-year spirit beasts would certainly charge a high price.
But the Cang family was the most prominent family in Coastal City—they could afford it.
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