71: Rescuing the Beauty at the Right Moment

"A hundred-year Spirit Beast?" Leng Yaozhu's tone was somewhat surprised, but she didn't think too much about it. With Shen Guyan's talent for twin spirits, it was indeed possible for him to kill some ordinary hundred-year Spirit Beasts.

She could never have imagined that what Shen Guyan had killed was actually a hundred-year Man Faced Demon Spider!

"You asked me earlier; this ability to transmit my voice to you should be related to the uniqueness of my Second Martial Soul," Shen Guyan said after a moment's thought.

"There's actually such a thing?" Leng Yaozhu's expression was peculiar. Before this, she had never heard of anyone's Spirit possessing such an ability.

Didn't this mean that this Little fellow could communicate with her at any time? And it was even one-way.

"Since that's the case... let me make this clear first: don't come bothering me for no reason." Leng Yaozhu was somewhat speechless. Although she was very resistant to this in her heart, she was also helpless.

Unless she stepped in and killed the kid.

"Hehe, do I look like that kind of person?" Shen Guyan just chuckled.

"You don't look like it, you are!" Hearing his laughter, Leng Yaozhu rolled her eyes and gave a rare scolding pout.

"What do you plan to do next?"

"Tell me, if I keep going deeper, can I walk directly into the range of the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform?" Shen Guyan asked in a low voice.

"The Spirit Ascension Platforms are actually connected to each other. As long as your cultivation hasn't reached the Fourth Ring and you have the strength to continue deeper, it is possible to enter the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform," Leng Yaozhu said, seeing through his thoughts immediately with a cold laugh.

"However, to cross this barrier, you will inevitably encounter powerful Spirit Beasts. Only by defeating them is it possible to truly go deep. For us, that might be quite difficult, and for ordinary Spirit Masters, it's even harder. Therefore, very few people can go from the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform all the way into the Intermediate one."

"Importantly, once you enter the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform, you will face a large number of thousand-year Spirit Beasts. You'd better think carefully."

Leng Yaozhu's words were like a bucket of cold water poured over Shen Guyan's head.

Thousand-year Spirit Beasts, like ten-year and hundred-year ones, have huge gaps in strength between them. For example, a Spirit Beast with a thousand years of cultivation is a thousand-year Spirit Beast, but one with nine thousand nine hundred years is also a thousand-year Spirit Beast.

The gap between the two is by no means comparable to the gap within the hundred-year range. Before reaching the Fourth Ring or without a Spirit Emperor leading the team, going to the Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platform with Shen Guyan's current overall strength would be suicidal.

However, as long as they weren't in packs, Shen Guyan could handle the Spirit Beasts in the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform with ease. Without supplies, he was unwilling to waste too much physical and Soul Power in the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform, where low-level Spirit Beasts were common.

"Hmm... In the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform, is there any Spirit Beast that, once killed, can guarantee my Emerald Demon Bird Spirit will evolve into a thousand-year spirit soul?" Shen Guyan wasn't the type to aim too high; if something was impossible, he wouldn't force it.

"Of course there... is." Leng Yaozhu smiled and gave him a clear answer...

Somewhere in the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform, three young girls who had just experienced a major battle were racing through the bushes.

"Do you want to take a break?" Wang Dongqi asked Zhou Hanyou.

Zhou Hanyou shook her head. "I'm fine, let's go."

Without the Man Faced Demon Spider's silk to hold them back, stopping in the Spirit Ascension Platform during the rampage period wouldn't end well.

"A Spirit Beast is coming," Zhou Tianer, who was in charge of scouting, said urgently. "A large group, pack-dwelling Spirit Beasts. At least thirty of them, they look like Flame Demon Lions."

Hearing her words, the other two couldn't help but turn pale with shock.

Lion-type Spirit Beasts are undoubtedly among the most powerful pack-dwelling Spirit Beasts on land. Generally, the stronger an individual Spirit Beast is, the more independent it wants to be to obtain more resources, but lion-type Spirit Beasts are an exception.

A pride centered around a male lion and a group of lionesses is definitely the overlord of places like ancient forests and grasslands. Even Spirit Beasts with individual strength much greater than a male lion are unwilling to provoke them easily because their collective combat strength is simply too high.

"Run!" Wang Dongqi shouted without hesitation and turned to flee.

Zhou Hanyou waved her hands, and a blue light acted under their feet. The assistance of the ice element allowed them to slide across the flat ground like skiers, significantly increasing their speed.

Zhou Hanyou's ice element was very practical; it could attack, defend, and control, making her almost an all-rounder in the three-person team. As she was about to be promoted to a Spirit Ancestor, her overall strength would be greatly enhanced.

Wang Dongqi took the lead to scout ahead, while Zhou Tianer continued to control her spirit soul, the Wood Spirit, to scout behind them. The Wood Spirit's ability to share vision through plants was very convenient.

Not far behind them, a roar sounded, and red shadows galloped at high speed, chasing after them.

spiritual energy isn't just for human spirit souls to absorb; these Spirit Beasts can also do so. What attracted the Spirit Beasts to the three girls was the dense spiritual energy remaining on them after their major battle. As one of the strongest pack-dwelling Spirit Beasts, it was easy for the Flame Demon Lions to sense the spiritual energy fluctuations on them.

Run, run for as long as they could; with every passing second, the spiritual energy on them would be absorbed a bit more.

Facing a pride of Flame Demon Lions, they wouldn't have any chance. Unless all three of them reached Three Rings and used their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, they might have a chance to resist.

Because when they had entered the Spirit Ascension Platform before, they had encountered a pride of Flame Demon Lions once, and the situation then was still fresh in everyone's memory.

Amidst the overwhelming fiery light, all resistance before them was instantly swallowed. That intense burning sensation stayed with them for a full day after they left the Spirit Ascension Platform.

The Flame Demon Lion pride was definitely the most Heaven-Defying existence in this Primary Ascension Spirit Platform. Although the Man Faced Demon Spider's individual strength was high, it wouldn't dare face such a wild pride of lions head-on and could only dodge.

The male lion of the Flame Demon Lion pride was a thousand-year Spirit Beast, and the remaining lionesses were all Spirit Beasts with over a hundred years of cultivation, some even being thousand-year ones. This was because they had very few natural enemies in this forest; whether individual or in groups, any Spirit Master below the Fourth Ring who wanted to fight them found it almost impossible.

Therefore, upon hearing their name, Wang Dongqi had ordered an immediate retreat without hesitation.

Now, it was a race against time.

However, the roar of the Flame Demon Lions also had an advantage: it served as a deterrent to other Spirit Beasts. Hearing their voices, not only were Spirit Masters afraid, but Spirit Beasts were also terrified!

No matter what type of lion-type Spirit Beast it was, one thing was the same: they were carnivorous. They didn't just eat humans; other Spirit Beasts were also their nourishment.

So, Wang Dongqi and the others kept running wildly. They didn't encounter any obstacles ahead; if a Spirit Beast appeared, it would immediately hide far away upon hearing the Flame Demon Lion's roar or sensing their Aura.

However, the Flame Demon Lions were, after all, creatures of the great forest, and their speed far exceeded that of the three girls. In this situation, unless a miracle happened, whatever they did would be meaningless.

On a cliff several miles ahead of the three girls, Shen Guyan was focusing his Mental Energy into his eyes, watching everything from afar.

Why is it them? And a pride of Flame Demon Lions too?

Just then, suddenly, a flash of dark gold light appeared ahead of the three girls.

Wang Dongqi, who was running forward, didn't even have time to make a sound before her body was sliced into several pieces in mid-air and fell into the thicket.

A flash of light, and the corpse disappeared.

A scalp-tingling sensation hit instantly. Zhou Hanyou didn't even have time to think; she reflexively summoned an ice pillar beneath her, forcibly changing her forward momentum into an upward launch.

Another flash of dark gold. A piercing screech came from the spot where Wang Dongqi had been, and three torn-apart Flame Demon Lions vaguely vanished into thin air.

It was a giant bear with dark gold fur all over its body, standing over three meters tall. Its arms were exceptionally thick, and its shoulders were as broad and sturdy as a city wall. At the ends of its two thick arms were peerlessly sharp dark gold claws, the length of which alone was over a meter.

"Dongqi!" Zhou Hanyou was extremely anxious. She knew very well that Wang Dongqi, whose body had been sliced into pieces, would suffer a fatal impact.

The damage sustained in the Spirit Ascension Platform would translate into immense pain, causing a significant impact on a Spirit Master's Spirit. Although they hadn't experienced anything like it, they had heard of the trauma left behind after other students were brutally killed.

Most students from the Intermediate Division would probably recognize the Spirit Beast before them; this fellow was simply too famous in the World of Spirit Beasts.

It was the one hailed as one of the strongest in the World of Spirit Beasts: the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear.

It is said that among the powerful Vicious Beasts of ancient legends, the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear was one of them. An adult Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear has no natural enemies; even a true Dragon might not come out on top against them.

The Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear is a solitary Spirit Beast. Its prowess in both offense and defense makes it one of the most Peak existences in the entire Spirit Beast World.

If the Flame Demon Lion pride was a top-tier existence in this Primary Ascension Spirit Platform, then in front of this Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, they could only beg for mercy.

Throughout the history of Spirit Beasts, the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear has always stood at the highest level!

The Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear before them looked to be about three meters tall; logically, it must be at least a hundred-year existence.

Among hundred-year Spirit Beasts, if a Spirit Beast killer like the Man Faced Demon Spider could fight a thousand-year Spirit Beast, then a hundred-year Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear would make even some low-level ten-thousand-year Spirit Beasts turn and run!

This was what made it so terrifying.

Even Shen Guyan never expected to encounter such a legendary Vicious Beast in the Primary Ascension Spirit Platform. Shouldn't such an existence appear in a higher-level Spirit Ascension Platform?

Zhou Hanyou waved her hand, launching several ice spikes at the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, while she called out to her sister, Zhou Tianer, to turn and run.

*Clang!* With a crisp sound, the fired ice spikes were instantly torn to powder by the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear's claws. And the spiritual energy glow from Wang Dongqi that had just fallen onto it was absorbed completely by its dark gold fur in a short time.

What terrifying claws!

At this moment, a strange thought suddenly occurred to Shen Guyan above: was his canglang sword stronger, or were its dark gold claws sharper?

The gloomy Aura behind them made it seem as if the light in the entire great forest had dimmed. Wherever the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear passed, even the chirping of insects and birds in this primeval forest went silent.

"Roar..." Ahead, the Flame Demon Lion pride, wreathed in flames, was charging toward the Zhou Sisters.

At this point, they were forced to the point where they had to teleport away.

The leading Flame Demon Lion was that male lion. Over four meters long, it had a ring of fiery red mane around its head. Like a flickering flame, its entire body burned with a piercing orange-red glow, its Aura imposing. That powerful presence and angry roar were like a declaration of its sovereignty, telling all surrounding creatures that it was the Dominator of this great forest.

It saw the Zhou Sisters at a glance, especially with the dense spiritual energy glow fluctuating on them.

The Flame Demon Lion roared, and the lionesses around it scattered to surround them while it pounced on the two girls head-on. It would, of course, enjoy such a choice piece of meat personally. It could even feel that absorbing the dense spiritual energy from the Zhou Sisters would make its strength leap forward!

Just then, a dark gold light flashed across the air again, and the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear appeared out of nowhere.

Its speed was completely disproportionate to its massive body; it didn't even make any sound while running.

The thousand-year Flame Demon Lion, which had been running wildly with an imposing Aura, seemed to hit a switch the moment it saw the bear. Its four limbs exerted force simultaneously, performing a sudden braking maneuver.

Immediately after, the flames on its body were extinguished, and even the bristling mane on its head instantly became smooth and slumped down. With its tail tucked between its hind legs, it didn't run away immediately but instead prostrated itself on the ground, making "whining" sounds.

Yes, in front of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, the thousand-year Flame Demon Lion and its harem were now like little dogs. All the flames on their bodies were extinguished, and they all prostrated themselves on the ground, making the same whining sounds of begging for mercy.

The Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear didn't even spare them a glance; its cold gaze fell directly on the Zhou Sisters.

Then, it raised its right claw. Dark gold light suddenly flared,

"Evacuate!" Zhou Hanyou's heart tightened, and she immediately shouted to her sister, Zhou Tianer. A mysterious sense of crisis prompted her to pull out the emergency signal device from her waist.

But at the very moment the sisters were about to press the button, their waists tightened for no reason, and they were pulled upward by a force.

A massive dark gold shadow slashed through everything where the two had been standing.

Yes, everything!

Without any roar or explosion, the trees, bushes, and even the ground were completely shredded by that terrifying dark gold shadow.

Dark Gold Dreadclaw—this was the true Dark Gold Dreadclaw! A terrifying attack method capable of tearing open a Dragon's body.

Zhou Hanyou and Zhou Tianer then realized they had fallen into a warm embrace at some point, with an indiscernible thread wrapped around their waists.

"Hello there," Shen Guyan chuckled.

"How is it you?" The Zhou Sisters' jaws dropped. They never expected that at such a critical moment, he would be the one to appear and save them.

But before they could ask more, two dull thuds landed on the back of their necks simultaneously.

The Zhou Sisters' vision went black, and they fainted on the spot.

"The spiritual energy on you is still very dense; it would be a real waste to leave before absorbing it all." Shen Guyan smiled, then turned his gaze downward.