Zhang Lexuan stared at the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion before her in disbelief.
As one of the Three Sovereigns of the Extreme North, this Ice Jade Empress Scorpion obviously couldn’t be real.
Yet the terrifying aura it gave off was unmistakably on the level of a genuine 400,000-year Savage Beast.
The figure was a perfect one-to-one replica, without a single flaw she could detect.
Even the Blood Moon Wolf King had been fooled.
It backed away slightly, its crimson eyes fixed firmly on the Ice Jade Scorpion.
The restless Soul Power within the Wolf King gradually settled.
The oppressive presence of a 400,000-year Savage Beast instinctively made it wary.
While the two sides remained locked in a standoff, Huo Yuhao’s voice sounded once again in Zhang Lexuan’s mind.
“Sister Lexuan, use a Soul Skill to distract it.
This won’t fool it for long.”
Zhang Lexuan abruptly came back to her senses and suppressed her shock.
Moonlight gathered in her hands, and several brilliant Moon Blades shot toward the Wolf King at once before she continued retreating.
Humiliated and enraged, the Blood Moon Wolf King could no longer contain its fury.
It abandoned its standoff with the decoy, let out a roar, and circled around to charge at Zhang Lexuan.
Naturally, Huo Yuhao had no intention of letting it succeed.
He continued using the “Imitation” Soul Skill, controlling the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion to constantly change its movements while infusing it with his own Ice-attribute Soul Power to further confuse the Wolf King’s judgment.
The Wolf King had already been irritated by Zhang Lexuan and her group’s stubborn resistance.
Now, with a Savage Beast of unknown origin blocking its way, the last of its patience disappeared.
A vicious light flared in its eyes as faint blood-red mist rose from its body.
Gathering the full force of its cultivation, it threw itself desperately at the Ice Jade Scorpion.
Its razor-sharp claws passed straight through the Ice Jade Scorpion and slammed into the stone wall beside it, blasting out a deep crater.
The Wolf King turned its head, only to see the Ice Jade Scorpion slowly fading into the air like a mirage.
?
The Blood Moon Wolf King immediately realized it had been tricked.
Its rage surged to new heights, and it let out a piercing howl.
No longer caring about its exhaustion, it began burning its Soul Power and charged madly toward Zhang Lexuan.
As Zhang Lexuan retreated, she finally spotted Huo Yuhao.
Without saying anything or asking how he had produced the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion, she scooped him into her arms and kept running.
“…”
Huo Yuhao tried to get down and run on his own, but after struggling a few times, he realized his feet couldn’t even reach the ground.
He gave up and simply let Zhang Lexuan carry him as they fled.
“Teacher, aren’t you ready yet?”
Within the Spirit Sea Realm, the God of Destruction had already awakened and knew that Huo Yuhao was being chased by a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
He immediately said they could turn around and fight.
As long as Skydream released a little more of the sealed power, he could condense and convert it into enough energy to unleash a single attack.
“Almost.
Little Worm, give me a little more energy.”
“I can’t do it anymore.
I’m going to be completely drained~”
Skydream Ice Worm looked as though every last drop had been squeezed out of her.
If she’d known this would happen, she wouldn’t have sealed away so much of her power in the first place.
Now she had to release it bit by bit.
The Ice Empress couldn’t offer much help at the moment, so she could only urge Skydream on.
“Hurry up, Skydream.
If that wild dog catches them, Xiao Yuhao will die before he even gets the chance to accomplish anything.”
Is that thing really just a wild dog?
Skydream Ice Worm sensed the Blood Moon Wolf King outside charging after them like a mad beast.
She gave the Ice Empress an incredulous look before increasing the rate at which she released her power.
Outside, Zhang Lexuan and Huo Yuhao had already fled deep into the dense forest, hoping the thick trees would slow the Wolf King down.
But against a creature this crazed, their efforts were useless.
As the Wolf King rapidly closed in, Zhang Lexuan was about to throw Huo Yuhao ahead and stay behind to cover his escape.
Suddenly, a terrifying aura of destruction erupted from Huo Yuhao’s body, and Zhang Lexuan was instantly moved behind him.
At that moment, Huo Yuhao stood atop a tree branch, his left “Eye of Annihilation” glowing bright purple as he looked down at the Blood Moon Wolf King as though it were nothing more than an ant.
The overwhelming aura instantly restored the Wolf King’s reason and made it stop in its tracks.
But that same reason also told it that this might be another illusion, just like the one before.
So the moment it saw an opening, it lunged at Huo Yuhao with its enormous razor-sharp claws.
“Hah.
Trash like you dares to challenge a god?
Destruction Divine Thunder!”
Seeing the creature act so boldly, the God of Destruction naturally had no intention of indulging it.
There was no need to activate a Soul Skill.
A strand of pure Origin of Destruction erupted from Huo Yuhao’s palm and blasted straight toward the Blood Moon Wolf King.
Terrifying lightning struck the Wolf King head-on.
With a single blow, its entire body went rigid.
Large patches of fur instantly charred and split apart as blood poured from the wounds.
Worse still, the injuries showed no sign of healing.
The Blood Moon Wolf King crashed heavily to the ground, barely able to breathe.
“Tch.
How does it still have a breath left?”
The God of Destruction grumbled, then immediately returned control of the body to Huo Yuhao.
The moment Huo Yuhao regained control, his entire body ached and his head spun.
He pitched forward without warning.
Still stunned by what she had just witnessed, Zhang Lexuan instinctively rushed forward and caught Huo Yuhao in her arms once again.
“Quick, Sister Lexuan.
Finish it off.”
Zhang Lexuan nodded firmly.
Overwhelming grief and fury surged into her eyes.
The gruesome deaths of her junior brothers and sisters, the blood-soaked earth, and the despair she had felt earlier all came crashing back into her mind.
She gently steadied Huo Yuhao in her arms and let him lean against her shoulder.
Then, gathering the last trace of her Soul Power into a Moon Blade, she struck in an instant and severed the Wolf King’s head from its body.
As the Hundred-Thousand-Year Blood Moon Wolf King died by her hand, a blood-red Soul Ring rose from its corpse.
Zhang Lexuan felt little satisfaction.
All that remained in her heart was a bleak sense of sorrow.
Then the tension that had kept her going abruptly vanished, and her exhausted body could no longer endure.
She slowly turned around, leaned her back against a tree trunk, and wrapped her arms tightly around the equally weakened Huo Yuhao before losing consciousness completely.
Huo Yuhao was held securely in Zhang Lexuan’s arms, his cheek pressed against the soft, warm fabric over her chest.
Her distinct feminine fragrance, mixed with the smell of blood in the air, filled his senses.
Held firmly against her, the softness and lingering fragrance cleared his muddled mind slightly.
Huo Yuhao’s ears grew hot, and a flustered warmth rose within him.
He wanted to struggle free, but he didn’t have the slightest bit of strength.
The more unable he was to move, the more clearly he noticed the fragrance and the softness surrounding him.
In the end, Huo Yuhao could only stiffen obediently and remain curled up in Zhang Lexuan’s arms.
…
Meanwhile, Elder Xuan was still rushing toward them.
“Elder Xuan, Eldest Senior Sister led the Wolf King away along this route!”
Elder Xuan didn’t even have time to tend to the students lying on the ground.
He immediately unleashed his Martial Soul and followed the trail at full speed.
He truly hadn’t expected a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast to appear in this area.
These twelve were the academy’s Golden Generation, and Zhang Lexuan in particular was an extraordinary genius who appeared only once every three thousand years.
He had assumed obtaining a Soul Ring would be effortless for them.
That was why he hadn’t worried much and had wandered a little farther away.
As it happened, he’d even caught a delicious chicken-type Soul Beast along the way, one that was already nearly extinct.
How was he supposed to resist that?
A bite of roasted chicken leg followed by a sip of wine.
He had been thoroughly enjoying himself.