FE—Chapter 147: Xuan Zi Is Chasing the Five-Ring Soul King
"The one who can make Xuan Zi chase so fiercely must be a formidable opponent!"
Jing Hongchen observed the shadow of the Taotie Divine Bull below with great interest, activated the flying soul guidance device on his back, and led everyone to descend quickly from the Mingdu Mountains on the border of the Sun Moon Empire.
Xuan Zi? Mingdu Mountains? Explosion?
Huo Yuhao was momentarily stunned and then thought for a few seconds. Suddenly, a realization dawned on him: 'Could it be that Xuanzi, the Taotie Douluo, is chasing the Death God Envoy…'
According to the timeline, the first Soul Master Competition was about to begin. This timing coincided precisely with when the strongest undercover Douluo was escorting the disciples of the Shrek regular and reserve teams—on the road to eliminate the Death Hand Bandit Group.
With doubt and curiosity in her eyes, Di Rachel raised her hand, pinched Huo Yuhao's shoulder, and transmitted her soul power: "Yuhao, I think I've seen this scene in the light ball."
"Did the Death God Envoy get away this time?"
Her eyes sparkled with the carefree glint of someone observing a spectacle. "This level-98 Super Douluo... is interesting. He can't even catch a five-ring Soul King."
Huo Yuhao blinked and nodded slowly: "I guess he did get away."
This area is within the jurisdiction of the Sun Moon Empire. In the original story, the Death God Envoy never ran here. After leaving the tunnel, he simply summoned twelve corpse slaves to cover his retreat and was eventually killed by Huo Yuhao, possessed by Electrolux.
Huo Yuhao activated his spirit eye martial soul, and a faint golden halo shimmered in his eyes. Using spiritual detection and sharing, he looked downward.
Xuan Zi was still chasing.
This indicated that the Death God Envoy's escape had gone very smoothly.
Di Rachel sighed softly, a look of concern on her face: "Hey, Yuhao, Wang Dong'er should also participate in the Soul Master Competition. I'm worried about her injury..."
Huo Yuhao pondered silently. Without Huo Yuhao's and Wang Dong's "Haodong Power" and "Golden Road"—their bond abilities—he wasn't sure if Wang Dong'er would make it into the reserve team.
It's possible she isn't even in the team led by Xuan Zi.
He smiled and transmitted his voice: "If Wang Dong'er participates and is led by Xuan Zi, she probably won't be seriously injured. Otherwise, Niu Tian and Tai Tan from the Clear Sky Sect will sense her danger and come over immediately to level this mountain."
Di Rachel nodded with a smile. "That's right. Just like she wears Di Tian's reverse scales and merges a wisp of her soul with the big silver dragon."
If she were in danger, a black or silver dragon claw would always appear in the sky.
In front of a collapsed cave tunnel in the Mingdou Mountains below,
Jing Hongchen led everyone to descend slowly, observing Xuan Zi driving the Taotie Divine Bull martial soul, pushing aside the boulders in the tunnel and crushing them into powder.
Several level-nine trigger-type defensive soul guidance devices on his body were activated. He stretched out his hand, released his soul power, and slightly intercepted Xuan Zi, greeting him with a smile:
"Hey, isn't this Xuan Zi from Shrek Academy? Long time no see. How have you been lately?"
Jing Hongchen was very polite, speaking with a smile: "You chased us into our Sun Moon Empire's territory so urgently. Did you find any good treasures?"
Xuan Zi's eyes remained furious as he continued to use his terrifying speed—belonging to Taotie Douluo—to rush toward the Death God Envoy flying ahead through the forest across the mountains.
As a level-94 Super Douluo and a level-9 soul guidance device user, Jing Hongchen might not be particularly afraid of Xuan Zi, but Xuan Zi was very confident that Jing Hongchen would never dare to confront him head-on.
Xuan Zi's terrifying momentum did not weaken. He stared in the direction of the Death God Envoy and snorted angrily:
"Master Hongchen, get out of my way! I swear I will wipe out that evil soul master here today!"
Jing Hongchen looked slightly confused. What kind of evil soul master could make Xuan Zi so angry? Could it be an evil soul master at the Titled Douluo level?
He narrowed his eyes slightly, guessing in his mind: 'Has the Holy Spirit Cult's head sent a senior figure to act?'
Jing Hongchen took out an eighth-level soul guidance device specially designed to shield pressure—the Silver Moon Barrier, crafted by Silver Moon Douluo Kong Deming. Once activated, ripples of moonlight dispersed the pressure emanating from Xuan Zi.
His tone grew serious: "Xuan Zi, this is the territory of the Sun Moon Empire. Whatever is happening, our military will handle it."
What Jing Hongchen was worried about was whether the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters was trying to do something behind Sun Moon Empire's back—something they might have been discovered about by Xuan Zi.
Seeing Jing Hongchen's increasingly serious expression, Xuan Zi realized it would be difficult to continue deeper into Sun Moon Empire's territory with the others present. Since he was with students, he couldn't completely lose his temper, so he suppressed his anger.
The momentum of the Taotie Divine Bull gradually subsided. Xuan Zi suddenly waved his sleeve and said angrily:
"Master Hongchen, this matter has nothing to do with you."
"Make way. I caught that damn evil soul master and will give you three thousand-year soul bones as a reward. I owe you a favor."
Elder Ma beside him sneered. Three thousand-year soul bones were just for beggars. The issue of national sovereignty was not negotiable—no matter how many soul bones he gave, it wouldn't change anything. Even if he offered a hundred or eighty soul bones, the negotiation would be impossible.
What Jing Hongchen was more concerned about was whether the Holy Spirit Cult was scheming behind the scenes. He shook his head slowly and said, "Xuan Zi, can you see clearly what kind of martial soul the Titled Douluo evil soul master you're chasing has?"
As long as he knew the martial soul, Jing Hongchen could roughly determine which faction the Holy Spirit Cult's headquarters belonged to.
In his impression, Zhang Peng, the Tiger Scorpion Douluo of the Holy Spirit Cult, often secretly schemed on the mainland. Zhang Peng, a Super Douluo, was quite formidable, so dealing with him was no small matter.
This scene of Xuan Zi chasing an opponent matched the scenario in which Zhang Peng was involved.
However, Jing Hongchen sensed that aside from him, Xuan Zi, and Ye Yulin—who was secretly protecting the disciples—there was no other Titled Douluo's aura in this mountain range.
There were a few auras of about five rings, but that was normal in the vast Mingdu Mountains, which often harbored smuggling caravans or bandit groups. It was not worth Jing Hongchen's attention.
But the strength of the evil soul master who could make Xuan Zi chase him so fiercely shouldn't be underestimated.
Jing Hongchen saw Xuan Zi's dust-covered face and messy hair, and smirked: "How can someone be so undignified?"
"Xuan Zi, if you have seen the martial soul of the Titled Douluo Evil Soul Master, tell me, and this hall master will send someone to deal with it."
Titled Douluo Evil Soul Master?
Xuan Zi's face twitched. Under his protection, three talented disciples were killed by the Five-Ring Soul King Evil Soul Master. This kind of humiliating thing must not be told to anyone.
But his act of wanting to wipe out the Death God Envoy can be regarded as acting in the name of justice.
Xuan Zi's face was still a little ferocious, and he pondered: "I was entrusted by the Star Luo military. I heard that there is a bandit group that is causing trouble in the area. The crimes are serious and the people nearby are suffering."
"I came here to wipe them out, but I didn't expect a fish to slip through the net and escape by chance... I was about to catch up and wipe him out completely, but then you came to stop me. Could it be that you wanted to protect the evil soul master?"
Jing Hongchen raised his eyebrows. Xuan Zi said so much, but he didn't get to the point. There was no useful information. Moreover, if it was an ordinary bandit group, how could it make Xuan Zi so angry?
This bandit group must have a shocking background, and even Xuan Zi couldn't completely eradicate it for a while.
Jing Hongchen laughed and said, "Xuan Zi, can't I see that you are chasing someone? What this Hall Master wants to know is, who are you chasing?"
He followed the direction Xuan Zi had just chased and sensed it. There was only one five-ring soul king aura on this track.
"Haha, this Title Douluo evil soul master's concealment ability is quite good. Even this hall master couldn't sense it for a while."
Jing Hongchen was a level nine soul engineer, and his spiritual power was far superior to that of the Title Douluo of the same level. It was rare for a Title Douluo-level evil soul master to hide so perfectly under his nose.
He was more and more certain that the other party was a high-level person sent by the Holy Spirit Church.
Xuan Zi saw Jing Hongchen sighing that the other party was "hiding perfectly", and his mouth twitched. He said in a deep voice: "It's not a Title Douluo, but I was careless for a moment and let him escape and live a little longer."
"If it weren't for the fact that the Hall Master Hongchen intervened, I would have caught him and completely wiped him out with a wave of my hand."
Jing Hongchen was stunned: "It's not a Title Douluo?"
He smiled, as if he had heard a joke, and pointed to the aura he sensed in front of him with his eyes, "Who is that? It can't be that five-ring soul king, right?"
Xuan Zi was strangely silent.
Jing Hongchen thought about it for a moment, his expression changed slightly, 'my goodness, could this Xuan Zi be telling a joke?'
He narrowed his eyes: "Xuan Zi, were you chasing that five-ringed soul king just now?"
Xuan Zi's face twitched again. He felt the other party's eyes, full of disbelief, and a shameful flame ignited in his heart.
But he wanted to catch the Death God Envoy, and he couldn't hide who he was.
Using his strong willpower, he suppressed the humiliation and took out his wine gourd, taking a sip of wine. His eyes burned with hatred as he said in a deep voice:
"Yes, it's him."
Jing Hongchen was stunned. He thought it was the Holy Spirit Cult's top leaders, aiming to stir up the entire situation at Shrek. But it turned out to be just like this?
"Xuan Zi, why are you going backward as you grow older? Last time, you chased a soul beast less than 100,000 years old, and that was nothing. Now you're chasing a five-ring Soul King?"
After more than ten months apart, Xuan Zi had become so useless.
Elder Ma couldn't hold back and burst out laughing, slapping his thigh: "Xuan Zi, you're a well-known figure in Shrek. The level-98 Taotie Douluo—your reputation is famous across the continent."
"Honestly, is catching a five-ring Soul King so difficult?"
Elder Ma shook his head slowly, bewildered.
Suddenly, a neat team of soul guidance devices flew over from the horizon, led by a tall middle-aged officer.
"The head of the second soul engineer legion, Guo Nu, reports to the head of Illustrious Virtue Hall."
The garrison of the second soul engineer legion was stationed at the foot of the Mingdu Mountains, confronting the army of the White Tiger Duke across the range.
Guo Nu had just received a message from Jing Hongchen's communication soul guidance device and heard the explosion earlier. He led his team here.
Xuan Zi frowned slightly, displeased: "Master Hongchen, what do you mean?"
Xuan Zi was strong and naturally not afraid of them, but the disciples in the Mingdou Mountains cave had just suffered a corpse explosion and were in a weakened state. They couldn't afford another disturbance.
If it weren't for the safety of the disciples, Xuan Zi could have ignored Jing Hongchen entirely, rushed over, and captured the Death God Envoy himself. Jing Hongchen would have been powerless to stop him.
But everything was for the safety of the disciples.
Jing Hongchen maintained the demeanor of the Illustrious Virtue Hall Master, holding back his laughter: "Xuan Zi, it's beyond my imagination. You chased a five-ring soul king like this. That's quite impressive."
Elder Ma waved to Ma Rulong and chuckled: "Xiao Hongchen, Rulong, go with Captain Guo Nu and catch that five-ring evil soul master."
Xiao Hongchen and Ma Rulong responded, then greeted the students of the regular and reserve teams, urging them to activate their flying soul guidance devices and head toward the five-ring Soul King.
Xuan Zi's eyes narrowed slightly: "Hall Master Hongchen, should this evil soul master be handed over to me after being captured?"
Jing Hongchen shook his head slowly. He didn't care about an ordinary five-ring evil soul master.
But there was something fishy—a reason why Xuan Zi was chasing him so desperately.
He smiled politely and said, "Since he's in our Sun Moon Empire's territory, he'll be handed over to the Sun Moon military after arrest."
"You!" Xuan Zi was furious again.
Jing Hongchen waved his hand: "But Xuan Zi, you've chased him so far. We won't let you chase him in vain. We'll give you an explanation. After interrogation, we'll hand over his conviction to you within a month."
Xuan Zi almost couldn't contain his anger, but for the safety of the disciples, he endured and insisted on seeing the body of the Death God Envoy.
Jing Hongchen nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, outside the corridor cave on the other side, the Death God Envoy was still fleeing for his life.
Huo Yuhao, Xiao Hongchen, Ma Rulong, and others followed Captain Guo Nu and soon caught up with him.
The Death God Envoy looked back, his face changing drastically. He sensed something was wrong—why did these people seem to be chasing him faster than Xuan Zi? Was it an illusion?
He couldn't help but think: "Xuan Zi must be covering his escape."
At that moment, a faint gray light flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes, and Electrolux's old voice echoed in his mind: "A very familiar breath. Though a little disgusting."
Huo Yuhao smiled and responded silently: "Teacher Electrolux."
"Well..." Electrolux's calm voice replied: "Yuhao, this evil soul master is essentially just a small corpse wizard. He's not your opponent."
"But his ability is a form of the most inferior undead magic. You can sense it through fighting him, which will help you master my undead magic later."
Huo Yuhao nodded happily: "I understand, Teacher Electrolux."
The Death God Envoy's face froze when he saw their school uniforms.
What's been going on these past two days? The students of Shrek Academy just delivered their performance, and now the students of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy are also rushing to perform.
No—these people didn't look like they were here just to show off...
(End of this chapter)