Although the defensive capabilities of these ten-year Iron Arm Apes were average, the six-barrel mini soul guidance cannon used by He Caitou wasn't particularly powerful either, ranking only in the mid-to-lower tier among level-four ranged attack soul guidance devices. Moreover, the earlier outburst had consumed barely any of his soul power.
This once again demonstrated the significant role soul guidance devices played in this era as a product of technological advancement.
Soul guidance devices enabled auxiliary-type soul masters, who previously had no offensive capabilities, to easily possess combat strength comparable to, or even surpassing, battle soul masters of the same level.
Xu Zihuang indifferently stepped over the headless corpse of the hundred-year Iron Arm Ape, with He Caitou closely following. A single hundred-year soul beast and over twenty ten-year soul beasts naturally couldn't halt their progress.
When they reached about ten kilometers into the peripheral zone of the Star Dou Great Forest, the sky had completely darkened. The surroundings were filled with towering, sturdy trees, their branches lush with foliage. Only through the gaps in the leaves could they catch glimpses of starlight.
The interior of the Star Dou Great Forest was shrouded in darkness, with beast roars echoing intermittently. Occasionally, eerie glimmers could be seen—those were the glowing eyes of soul beasts active at night.
Xu Zihuang and He Caitou settled on a high ground, remaining vigilant of their surroundings.
Xu Zihuang refrained from using his Golden Eyes martial soul, as the golden glow of his eyes would be too conspicuous in the night. Moreover, with his ability to project his mental power outward, using mental detection was clearly a better choice for monitoring their environment.
The soul beasts living in the northwest direction of the Star Dou Great Forest were indeed stronger and of higher quality compared to other areas. Along their journey, the two had encountered over a dozen soul beasts. Fortunately, most weren't aggressive, and only five had actively attacked them.
These five soul beasts all had cultivations exceeding five hundred years, with two being thousand-year soul beasts.
Naturally, they were easily dealt with. The two barely consumed any soul power, though the prolonged state of heightened mental alertness inevitably caused some fatigue.
As a mental-attribute soul master, Xu Zihuang was fine, but He Caitou's eyes betrayed a trace of unconcealed weariness.
Noticing this, Xu Zihuang stood up and said to He Caitou, "Senior Brother He, you meditate first. I'll take watch for the first half of the night. We'll switch for the second half."
"Alright." He Caitou, didn't say much and promptly entered a meditative cultivation state.
Soul masters could substitute rest with cultivation meditation.
He Caitou's meditation wasn't for recovering soul power but for maintaining his condition. In the Star Dou Great Forest, even a moment's lapse could be fatal.
While using his mental power to keep watch over their surroundings, Xu Zihuang also took the opportunity to calm his mind and consider his plans.
Currently, he was receiving significant attention at Shrek Academy. With his talent and the personal guidance of Mu Lao, a Limit Douluo, he would enter a period of rapid growth over the next five to ten years.
But that was far from enough. At least when the Sun Moon Empire launched its war in the future, he wouldn't yet have the power to influence the situation.
What should he do once the war began?
He had two main directions. First, he would let Shrek Academy and the high-end forces of the original three Douluo Empires clash with those of the Sun Moon Empire, ideally maintaining a balance where both sides' foundations were depleted as much as possible in the war. This would best serve his interests. He couldn't allow Xu Tianran to unify the continent so easily.
If necessary, he would unhesitatingly assist the three original Douluo Empires in resisting the Sun Moon Empire's invasion. There were no eternal enemies, only eternal interests.
The second direction was how to rapidly improve his strength and develop his own forces during this period.
Though his goals were clear, implementing them was no easy task.
The night in the Star Dou Great Forest was filled with even more unknowns, but compared to the daytime, Xu Zihuang and He Caitou were fortunate not to face any further active attacks from soul beasts. There were only two instances where soul beasts approached, but they were relatively weak and fled in panic upon sensing the duo's auras.
After a night of rest, both had recovered to their optimal states.
Xu Zihuang and He Caitou exchanged a glance and, with unspoken coordination, continued deeper into the mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest.
The soul beasts in the mixed zone were predominantly thousand-year soul beasts, and most lived in groups. This meant they had strong territorial instincts.
Xu Zihuang and He Caitou had to slow their pace, as entering the mixed zone meant they could easily trespass into a soul beast group's territory. If they encountered an aggressive group, a fierce battle would be inevitable.
This was precisely why Xian Liner and Qian Duoduo had decided to have them survive in the mixed zone of the Star Dou Great Forest for half a month. In the peripheral zone, conflicts with soul beasts could often be avoided, but in the mixed zone, avoidance was frequently impossible.
Such was the case now.
"Junior Brother Yu, it's One-Horned Demon Rhinos," He Caitou warned with a grave expression.
Not long after entering the mixed zone, their luck ran out as they entered the territory of a soul beast group.
Xu Zihuang calmly observed the five massive soul beasts appearing a hundred meters ahead of them.
One-Horned Demon Rhinos were powerful soul beasts covered in thick, sturdy armor. In open terrain, their charging force was among the strongest of soul beasts at the same cultivation level. Their robust armor also granted them formidable defensive capabilities.
The five one-horned demon Rhinos before them were over four meters long and weighed at least three thousand jin. The single horn on their heads shimmered with a faint blue glow, indicating they had at least three thousand years of cultivation. The leader, even larger, was undoubtedly over five thousand years old.
Their eyes had turned blood-red, and a faint blue halo shot from their horns, locking onto Xu Zihuang and He Caitou. Their pace quickened, rapidly accelerating to a terrifying speed. Several sturdy tree trunks snapped in half under their charge.
"The Locking Light of the One-Horned Demon Rhino—once locked onto a target, they charge until either they or the target dies," Xu Zihuang said with a steady gaze, recognizing the soul skill the five rhinos were using.
Unless they were top-tier soul beasts with exceptionally noble bloodlines, most soul beasts had some weaknesses. The One-Horned Demon Rhino's strengths were its outstanding defense and attack power, but its weakness was the lack of ranged attack soul skills.
However, with the Locking Light, they could perfectly leverage their advantages.
The five one-horned demon Rhinos closed in at an astonishing speed, covering the hundred-meter distance in mere moments.
"Senior Brother He, leave this to me."
The One-Horned Demon Rhinos' formidable defense countered soul engineers. While He Caitou might be able to deal significant damage, it would come at a considerable cost to his soul power.
In the meantime, Xu Zihuang took action.
Three purple and one black soul ring emerged from beneath his feet, and the second purple soul ring glowed brightly. Under strange, dark red ripples, solid crystal spears formed in the space before him.
In the next instant, five crystal spears, each nearly two meters long, shot out with a terrifying sonic boom, piercing precisely into the eyes of the five One-Horned Demon Rhinos.
With mournful cries, the massive bodies of the five rhinos collapsed, kicking up clouds of dust.
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