The Glory of the Sun and Moon in the Peerless Tang Sect

Chapter 128 Nightfall and the Ten-Thousand-Year-Old Netherworld Tiger

Wu Ming's martial soul is the Golden Crow, an extremely powerful fire-attribute martial soul.

In terms of quality, it is not much inferior to Ma Xiaotao's Evil Phoenix.

At only twenty-seven years old, he had already reached level seventy in cultivation. Even in the inner courtyard of Shrek Academy, where geniuses abound, he was among the most talented.

She didn't use the Golden Crow True Fire brought by her martial soul; the high temperature attached to her soul power alone caused the dense bushes around her to wither and turn into ashes.

A large, relatively flat open space was revealed.

Zhang Lexuan looked around, and an invisible spiritual force spread outward from her body, causing Xu Zihuang to subconsciously look over.

Mental energy projected outwards.

Given Zhang Lexuan's talent as the senior disciple of the inner courtyard, it is only natural that she could do this.

"Zihuang, your senior sister's spiritual power level is almost catching up with yours. Her future achievements are limitless." Tianmeng Bingcan's clear and refreshing voice suddenly rang out in Xu Zihuang's spiritual sea.

It is likely because Xu Zihuang's mental power underwent a qualitative change, from which it also benefited greatly.

Despite Zhang Lexuan's cultivation being far superior to Xu Zihuang's, under normal circumstances, non-spiritual attribute Soul Masters, without fusing with a head Soul Bone, can only barely project their spiritual power after reaching the Soul Douluo realm.

The spiritual power of the vast majority of titled Douluo can never reach the realm of tangible yet intangible in their lifetime.

In other words, Xu Zihuang's mental strength is now comparable to that of a Title Douluo. This is the unique advantage of a mental attribute Soul Master.

The importance of mental strength is self-evident. The stronger one's mental strength, the greater one's control over soul power, soul skills, and martial soul. It is also crucial for breaking through to higher realms after reaching the Title Douluo level.

Zhang Lexuan's current level of spiritual power is close to the realm of tangible yet intangible, and she is almost certain to cultivate to level 95 or higher.

This was the first time Tianmeng Ice Silkworm had praised someone like this since witnessing Xu Zihuang's talent.

"If I'm not mistaken, your senior sister should have fused with a head soul bone of excellent quality. Zihuang, if you could also fuse with a spirit attribute soul bone, there would be no problem for your spiritual power to officially enter the realm of tangible yet intangible."

"We'll see when the time comes. You can't expect me to fuse with that 30,000-year-old Fear Demon Dragon's head soul bone, can you?" Xu Zihuang replied to Tianmeng Ice Silkworm in his spiritual sea.

Tianmeng Ice Silkworm gave a haughty snort.

"You're the one I've set my sights on, that trashy soul bone isn't good enough for you. Let's set a small goal first, let's get a 100,000-year head soul bone. I see there are many strong people in your Shrek Academy, just that guy who's been following you all along is almost at the limit of human soul masters. With your talent, having them hunt a few 100,000-year soul beasts for you isn't too much to ask, is it?"

At this point, Tianmeng Bingcan started chuckling mischievously again.

Although his words sound arrogant, given Shrek Academy's high regard for Xu Zihuang, it is highly likely that he did.

"Alright, let's get down to business." Xu Zihuang chuckled.

"Tianmeng, what age of spirit ring can my current physical condition withstand?"

"As long as it's not a spirit ring worth more than 30,000 spirit rings, your physical condition should be fine to absorb it. Didn't I say before that I could help you seal part of the spirit ring's energy, and then unseal it once your body can handle it?" Tianmeng Ice Silkworm said smugly, pausing slightly at this point.

"Well, try to find a spirit-attribute soul beast with a cultivation level close to 40,000 years. Although spirit-attribute soul beasts of this level are rare, they are not impossible to find in this Star Dou Great Forest. Besides, there is that human who has been following you all along."

"Then don't fall asleep again later. If you sense a suitable soul beast, remember to remind me."

"Hmph, do you think I'm that kind of person?" Tianmeng Bingcan grumbled.

"..."

While Xu Zihuang and Tianmeng Ice Silkworm were talking, the group had already set up camp on this open space.

They called it setting up camp, but in reality, they just spread out two blankets made of fluffy soul beast fur on the ground, and the group of five sat on them to rest.

The depths of the Star Dou Great Forest are fraught with danger, making it impractical to set up a tent for sleeping.

Zhang Lexuan and Wu Ming sat in one seat, while Ye Liu and Chu Qingtian sat in another. They sat facing each other.

Out of respect for their senior sister Zhang Lexuan, neither Ye Liu nor Chu Qingtian dared to look directly at Zhang Lexuan and Wu Ming in front of them.

Feeling extremely uncomfortable, Ye Liu smiled and waved to Xu Zihuang, who was standing in the center of the crowd.

"Junior Brother Yu."

Xu Zihuang stopped communicating with Tianmeng Ice Silkworm and was about to respond when Zhang Lexuan's gentle voice came from behind him.

"Junior Brother Yu, come sit here with me."

Xu Zihuang stiffened slightly, met Zhang Lexuan's gentle and clear eyes, and nodded in response with a smile.

"Yes, Senior Sister."

Ye Liu and Chu Qingtian's gazes towards Xu Zihuang immediately turned strange. Given their carefree personalities, they might have teased any other senior female students from the inner academy, but they wouldn't say such a thing in front of Senior Sister Zhang Lexuan.

It wasn't that Zhang Lexuan was cold-hearted, strict, or had strained relationships with them. Rather, it was because Zhang Lexuan's image in everyone's eyes was too perfect; she was kind and patient with all the disciples in the inner courtyard.

In their hearts, Zhang Lexuan is more like a respected elder.

Although Zhang Lexuan was only a few years older than them.

Zhang Lexuan's intention was simple: to better protect Xu Zihuang.

In this Star Dou Great Forest, anything can happen. Having deep feelings for Shrek Academy, she had long regarded Xu Zihuang as the academy's hope.

It also contains a sense of care and concern for the younger students.

But to Xu Zihuang's surprise, Zhang Lexuan actually stood up slightly and gave up the seat between her and Wu Ming.

Seeing Xu Zihuang looking somewhat dazed, Wu Ming, always forthright and easygoing, teased him.

"What? Are you afraid I'll eat you up? Although you're good-looking and talented, you're too young. You're not my type."

Xu Zihuang's facial muscles twitched slightly, but he remained calm and sat down gracefully.

The blanket wasn't very big to begin with, and although the three people sitting on it wouldn't have any physical contact, Xu Zihuang could still clearly smell the faint fragrance emanating from Zhang Lexuan and Wu Ming.

When Chu Qingtian and Ye Liu heard Wu Ming's bold words, they almost lost their composure.

Chu Qingtian even subtly made a gesture to Xu Zihuang, making a fist with his right hand and extending his index finger and thumb with a slight gap between them.

Xu Zihuang also secretly gave him the middle finger.

Zhang Lexuan looked at everyone and pondered, "Soul beasts are very frequent in this area, but judging from our journey so far, there shouldn't be any powerful soul beasts that have made this place their territory. Tonight, everyone will take turns on duty. Those who are resting can stay put and meditate. I will be on duty for the first half of the night, and you and Qingtian will be on duty for the second half. As for Ye Liu and Junior Brother Yu, you two can rest assured."

Does anyone have any objections?

"Senior Sister, I'm fine." Wu Ming nodded readily.

Chu Qingtian was horrified when he heard he would be on the night watch with Wu Ming. Along the way, Wu Ming had dealt with the vast majority of the spirit beasts that had attacked them. And her methods were exceptionally ruthless; the thought of those spirit beasts' miserable ends sent shivers down his spine.

But now that Zhang Lexuan has spoken and the allocation is reasonable, he can't very well refuse.

After hesitating for a moment, he said in a deep voice, "Senior Sister, I have no problem either."

As for Ye Liu, he was very self-aware. For a Soul Master like him who wasn't good at combat, the greatest help he could give was to avoid causing trouble for everyone.

Lighting fires is absolutely forbidden in the Star Dou Great Forest. Soul beasts are not wild beasts; many of them have a fondness for fire.

In fact, Wu Ming's martial soul ability is not very suitable for night watch, because once she encounters a spirit beast using its martial soul, her golden-red Golden Crow True Fire is too conspicuous in the night, easily attracting powerful spirit beasts.

However, there's a shortage of manpower right now, and she's ultimately the second strongest among them. This is the only way to allocate the resources.

As night deepened, apart from Zhang Lexuan and Xu Zihuang who were on night watch, the rest of the people ate some simple dry food and then entered a meditative state.

Zhang Lexuan glanced at Xu Zihuang, who wasn't cultivating beside her, and smiled slightly.

"Junior Brother Yu, are you getting a little anxious because you haven't encountered a suitable soul beast yet?"

"Senior Sister, if you don't mind, you can just call me Tianhuang." Xu Zihuang smiled and shook his head.

"Hunting soul beasts is largely a matter of luck. Senior Sister, I'm not in a hurry. Actually, my martial soul is quite special; even at night, I can clearly detect movements from afar. I also want to contribute to everyone's efforts."

A hint of admiration flickered in Zhang Lexuan's beautiful eyes.

"Tianhuang, you've done very well so far. Of course, I won't discourage you, but you have to promise me that you'll meditate well in the second half of the night to get enough rest. You can't be careless in this Star Dou Great Forest."

"I understand, Senior Sister."

The Starry Forest was very quiet at night. Through the towering trees that blocked out the sky, one could vaguely see some starlight pouring down.

The forest wasn't pitch black; moonlight filtered through the swaying shadows of the trees, and with the addition of small, bioluminescent insects, visibility was extremely high.

A ray of starlight fell upon Zhang Lexuan's delicate face, and in a daze, some blurred images involuntarily flashed through her mind.

It was a quiet night like this when her whole family was wiped out. Her mother lay by the bed, and before she died, she used her body to block the bed and covered her mouth with her hand.

The cool starlight streamed into the room from the window sill. Her other memories were somewhat hazy, but the serene, relieved look on her mother's face before her death remained vivid in her mind.

Xu Zihuang glanced at Zhang Lexuan out of the corner of his eye, and he felt a deep empathy for her lonely and desolate gaze.

His experience is somewhat similar to that of his senior sister Zhang Lexuan; both of them lead very tiring lives.

However, Zhang Lexuan had Mu En to help her take revenge, and afterwards she devoted everything to Shrek Academy to numb herself.

But he could only rely on himself. His belief in avenging Xu Tianran, seizing the throne, and unifying the continent never wavered.

Perhaps one day they will be on opposite sides.

Just then, a faint green light flashed from the distant forest, and an extremely dangerous feeling suddenly enveloped Xu Zihuang's heart.

"Zihuang, be careful! A soul beast is approaching, with a cultivation level of at least ten thousand years. This soul beast is extraordinary!"

As soon as Tianmeng Ice Silkworm's voice rang out, Xu Zihuang and Zhang Lexuan got up and became alert to their surroundings.

Although Zhang Lexuan was surprised by Xu Zihuang's keen perception, now was clearly not the time to dwell on that.

She quickly whispered, "Ming'er, Qingtian, Yeliu. A soul beast is coming. Prepare for battle."

Everyone was a well-mannered student from the Inner Academy, and they immediately realized what was happening, quickly standing up and gathering around Zhang Lexuan and Xu Zihuang.

Wu Ming moved to the other side of Xu Zihuang, her palm surging with golden-red soul power, bringing waves of scorching heat. She asked Zhang Lexuan, "Senior Sister, what kind of soul beast is it?"

This wasn't her first time entering the Star Dou Great Forest with Zhang Lexuan, and they had encountered quite a few powerful ten-thousand-year-old soul beasts. But she had never seen her senior sister so nervous before.

Zhang Lexuan gently waved her hand to signal everyone to maintain their formation, while responding.

"This feeling suggests that it is a top-tier soul beast at the first level, with at least ten thousand years of cultivation."

"A first-level soul beast?" Not only Wu Ming, but Chu Qingtian and Ye Liu also looked solemn, each releasing their own martial souls.

The so-called soul beast tiers don't actually have very detailed distinctions. They're simply an evaluation of a soul beast's talent. To put it simply, a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear definitely belongs to the first tier, and is one of the top-tier existences within it.

A first-tier ten-thousand-year-old soul beast is definitely a threat to a Soul Douluo-level expert. The top-tier ten-thousand-year-old Dark Gold Terror Claw Bear can even rival ordinary Title Douluos and hundred-thousand-year-old soul beasts.

How could this not alarm everyone? For them, one wrong move could mean total annihilation.

Of course, with Zhang Lexuan and Elder Xuan secretly following the group, such an outcome wouldn't have happened.

Thinking of this, Wu Ming and the other two finally calmed down.