After entering the Mingdou Mountains, the group fanned out, combing the area based on the clues provided by the local legion. But night fell, and still—they found nothing.
With no better option, they made camp deep within a dense forest.
Until...
"Pa! Pa! Pa!"
Everyone turned at the sharp slapping sound.
Chen Junting stood in front of a massive tree, striking its trunk with the flat of his hand.
"Brother Junting, what are you doing?" Ning Tian called out.
Chen Junting squinted at the tree's bark, his expression serious. "Xiaotian, come take a look. I think this might be a Wen Lan tree. Looks very close."
Wang Yan immediately perked up. He strode over and examined the tree carefully. "Yes—it's Wen Lan. And this…" He pointed to a vertical split in the trunk. "The tree's heart is missing."
"Let's be sure," Junting said.
He raised his hand, formed a sword with his fingers, and dragged it gently along the crack.
Slice—
A burst of sword qi split the already-damaged tree in half.
Inside? Hollow.
"Just as I thought," Wang Yan said, eyes glinting. "The Wen Lan tree's core has been removed."
Ma Xiaotao approached, frowning. "Okay, but... what does that mean?"
Before Wang Yan could answer, Ning Tian chimed in. "Wen Lan tree hearts are rare and cold-natured. They're used medicinally—especially beneficial for soul masters cultivating cold-type martial spirits."
She smiled sheepishly as everyone looked at her in surprise. "My mother studies plants."
Then Chen Junting added calmly, "Evil soul masters use cold attributes."
Understanding clicked into place.
Wang Yan nodded. "Yuhao, come with me. We need your detection ability."
As Huo Yuhao activated his spiritual detection, Xu Sanshi sidled up to Junting and Ning Tian with a grin.
"You two really are in sync, huh?" he said, flashing a thumbs-up. "Not that far off from me and Nannan!"
Junting and Ning Tian exchanged a look.
Hard for Senior Sister Nannan, they both thought.
Fortunately, Beibei stepped in to roast Xu Sanshi and change the subject.
—
Moments later, Huo Yuhao's detection bore fruit.
The group followed his trail—broken branches, blood on thorns, discarded cloth scraps. All signs pointed in one direction.
Eventually, they reached a hillside.
Everyone changed into their Shrek Supervisory Group uniforms. The seven inner courtyard students took the lead and pushed through thick vines covering a cave entrance.
The six guards standing watch barely had time to react.
Snap!
Ma Xiaotao took them all out in seconds. Judging by the lack of soul power, they were ordinary bandits.
"We'll go first," she said.
With that, the inner courtyard team vanished into the cave.
Chen Junting had just stepped forward to speak—but they were already gone.
He sighed.
Hopefully those invincible shields I gave them hold up... at least protect Chen Zifeng and the others.
He turned.
"Xiaofeng, come here."
Wu Feng's red dragon spirit glowed, flames flickering around her hands.
"What's up, swordsman?"
"Burn the bodies."
Wu Feng blinked. "Seriously?"
You asked me to melt metal last time, and now I'm the cleanup crew?
But when someone shouted, "Sister Feng, listen to Brother Junting!" she clenched her jaw and got to work.
Halfway through, Chen Junting said quietly, "This is important. No jokes."
Her irritation vanished. She burned the six corpses until only ash remained.
Wang Yan approached, brows knit. "Junting, why?"
"We encountered an evil soul master over the break," Junting said. "His power came from manipulating corpses. My master warned me—whenever you deal with evil soul masters, destroy anything they could exploit."
"Even ordinary bodies?"
"Better safe than sorry."
Wang Yan couldn't argue with that.
—
Suddenly—BOOM!
A distant explosion echoed from inside the cave.
Followed by shouting. Screams. Blasts of soul power.
"Everyone, move in!" Wang Yan ordered. "Yuhao, full detection!"
Huo Yuhao activated his first soul skill. The cave's interior appeared in their minds like a mental map.
They advanced.
And then—they saw it.
Bodies. So many bodies.
Dozens of human skins stretched across the walls. Infant corpses spiked on stalagmites. Bones piled like garbage.
Their rage drowned out any fear.
Chen Junting's voice was low. "Xiaofeng. Burn it all. Let them rest."
Wu Feng nodded, and a wall of fire consumed the horrors.
They pushed deeper.
The further they went, the worse it got. More corpses. More bones. More blood.
And still, the fighting roared ahead—soul energy exploding through the tunnels.
No one shed a tear for the dead bandits.
Not after seeing what they'd done.
When the reserve team finally caught up with the inner courtyard squad, the cave behind them was an inferno—flames roaring against stone, unwilling to die out.
Wang Yan didn't hesitate.
"Everyone forward. Wipe them out. Leave nothing behind."
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(End of Chapter)
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