From Five Animal Exercises to being hailed as a saint and ancestor

After separating from the main group, Yao Mengkang and Xuan Yuanpo noticeably increased their speed.

They chose a relatively secluded path, but according to the map, it might be a trail where older medicinal herbs might grow.

Within the Abyss of Silent Souls, gray mist swirls, and deathly silence is the eternal theme.

The black soil beneath my feet was soft and damp, making a slight "plop" sound when I stepped on it, as if I were stepping on countless decaying corpses.

The twisted, gnarled trees all around were like lurking ghosts.

After traveling only a few miles, the two discovered several plants emitting a faint, eerie glow under a shady rock wall.

One type has petals that resemble a translucent, wailing human face, hence the name "Silent Soul Flower".

One type has long, narrow leaves with veins resembling dancing blue soul flames; it is the Soul-Giving Grass.

There was another plant growing in the damp crevices of rocks, its entire body a dark purple, emitting an aura that could calm the mind yet also had a strange attraction; this was the Soul Calamus.

"Their age is not low, at least fifty years or more."

Xuan Yuanpo's eyes were sharp as he made his judgment.

The two carefully collected the medicinal herbs and sealed them in a specially made storage bag.

Continuing onward, Xuan Yuanpo couldn't help but glance at Yao Mengkang beside him.

He himself was a vast spiritual sea, his soul tempered and refined by sword intent, making him incomparably resilient.

But even in this Abyss of Souls, he could still clearly feel that eerie aura that was penetrating everywhere, constantly eroding his protective spiritual light and the barrier of his soul.

Like a cold, venomous snake, it tried to burrow into his mind and stir up his inner demons.

He had to constantly circulate his inner energy to resist the erosion, keeping his mind in a state of constant tension.

However, Yao Mengkang, on the other hand, looked completely calm and composed.

He walked with ease, his gaze calmly sweeping over his surroundings.

As if walking in his own backyard, the pervasive gray fog and eerie corrosive power seemed to have no effect on him.

"Senior Brother Yao is indeed unfathomable."

Xuan Yuanpo felt a chill run down his spine, and his evaluation of Yao Mengkang's strength rose even higher.

He naturally didn't know that Yao Mengkang's current condition wasn't entirely due to his own resilience.

In Yao Mengkang's perception, the eerie energy around him, known as the "Breath of the Silent Soul," was indeed constantly trying to penetrate his body and erode his soul.

The aura was cold and deathly, carrying a sense of chaos and depravity.

Ordinary cultivators must rely on their own will and spiritual power to resist.

But just as these ghostly breaths invaded his body...

Deep within the Tanzhong acupoint, the gray stone bead that had been quietly suspended in the center of the chaotic chakra began to rotate extremely slowly and steadily, like a giant beast awakening from its slumber.

An invisible suction force emanated from the stone bead, forcibly pulling and devouring the ghostly breaths that had invaded the body before they could truly wreak havoc.

Like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, they all disappeared into that seemingly inconspicuous stone bead.

Therefore, the actual amount of residual soul energy within Yao Mengkang's body remained at an extremely low level, almost negligible.

The suppression of rules and the erosion of his spirit that he endured were naturally far less than those of Xuan Yuanpo, and even less than those of everyone else.

What stirred Yao Mengkang's heart even more was that, as the stone bead absorbed the breath of the silent soul, a familiar, vague fluctuation naturally surfaced in his mind:

【The Breath of the Silent Soul is an energy manifested from the intertwined resentment of lingering souls and shattered laws of an ancient battlefield】

[It can directly affect the soul of living beings and will be attracted by powerful, active soul essences.]

Like a festering sore, it continuously erodes and assimilates until the target's will collapses, or until a fragile balance is achieved between the target's own will and the force of erosion.

Those with weak will and frail spirit will have their souls completely eroded, turning into nourishment in the abyss, or becoming new 'soul shadows'.

Yao Mengkang suddenly realized.

This is the Soul-Silent Breath that makes countless cultivators tremble at the mere mention of it.

For these mysterious stone beads, they are actually a kind of "food"!

Yao Mengkang's heart stirred: First it was the breath of chaos, and now it is the breath of the silent soul. The level of energy absorbed by the stone bead seems to be very high.

"Be careful!"

Just then, Xuanyuan Po suddenly let out a low shout.

The Frostmark Sword was drawn half an inch from its sheath in an instant, its icy sword energy surging. His sharp gaze fell upon a patch of gray mist that was churning violently to his left.

Yao Mengkang also composed himself and focused his gaze.

Meanwhile, in another area of ​​Silent Soul Abyss.

The elite team from the inner court, led by Su Xiaoman and Shi Potian, is facing its first crisis since entering the Silent Soul Abyss.

"roar!"

A roar that did not travel through the air, but resounded directly through the soul!

The gray fog ahead suddenly exploded, and several translucent, distorted black shadows, seemingly pieced together from countless painful faces, pounced forward like ghosts!

They have no physical bodies, passing through rocks and trees as if they were nothing, radiating a chilling and insane aura that sends shivers down your spine!

"It's a soul beast! Be careful, physical attacks are barely effective!"

Shi Potian roared and threw a punch, unleashing a torrent of earth-yellow spiritual energy that crashed down like a mountain.

However, the force of the punch pierced through the soul beast's body, only causing its form to sway slightly and dim a little, without causing fatal damage.

Su Xiaoman let out a delicate shout, and her body erupted with intense spiritual light. The boundless spiritual power of her boundless spiritual sea transformed into beams of dazzling light that swept across the area.

The damage to soul beasts is significantly greater, but there are quite a few soul beasts.

Moreover, after being scattered, the surrounding aura of the silent souls surged, allowing them to slowly recover!

Other inner court disciples also used various methods, with sword energy, flames, and frost whistling through the air, but most of them were ineffective.

These soul beasts seem to be immune to most physical and elemental attacks; only attacks containing powerful mental shocks or intentional attacks can cause them effective damage.

The inner disciples were temporarily suppressed by this group of strange soul beasts, and their formation became somewhat chaotic. They could only barely hold on by relying on their profound cultivation and tacit cooperation, and the situation remained deadlocked.

In the area relatively close to the periphery, the team of ten outer disciples led by Zhou Tiancan, Mu Qingqing, and others also encountered a similar attack.

However, the soul beasts they encountered were smaller, and there was only one of them. Their aura was far less terrifying than that of the inner court disciples.

Even so, it is still an extremely terrifying threat to these disciples who are at the Qi Opening Realm!

"This thing is indestructible!"

Wang Le yelled and brandished a long sword that was burning with flames. The blade sliced ​​through the soul beast, but it was as if he had hit the air, only creating a ripple.

Zhou Tiancan roared, unleashing the full power of his Savage Elephant Mountain-Crushing Fist. The fierce and unparalleled fist intent could smash deep pits into the ground, but it had negligible damage to the soul beasts.

Green light flickered at Mu Qingqing's fingertips, and vibrant vines coiled around her, passing directly through the transparent body of the soul beast.

Xu Zijian's sword, Shi Hao's earthen wall, and Huo Ling'er's flames.

Their attacks were much less effective when they landed on the soul beasts.

"Use attacks imbued with meaning or psychological attacks."

Mu Qingqing keenly observed that while the physical attacks of the group had negligible effect, Xu Zijian's sword intent and Li Han's assassination, imbued with artistic conception, were quite lethal.

However, this soul beast was extremely cunning and fast, appearing and disappearing unpredictably in the gray mist, constantly launching mental attacks to disturb everyone's minds.

Zhou Tiancan and his group were forced to retreat in defeat, and could only rely on Mu Qingqing's assistance and their close cooperation to struggle against the enemy, facing numerous dangers.

At this moment, the fangs of the Silent Soul Abyss finally slowly revealed themselves to these young people who had intruded.

Whether they are powerful elites from the inner academy or geniuses from the outer academy with solid foundations.

They all felt unprecedented pressure in the face of these bizarre rules and creatures.