"ROAR!!!"
Wreathed in electric arcs from the previous blow, the Titan Giant Ape bellowed in rage, unleashing a terrifying vortex of black qi!
In an instant, even the lightning crackling around it was dissipated.
"Roar! Damn human!"
For the first time, the Titan Giant Ape spoke—its golden eyes rimmed in bloody red, murderous intent thick in its gaze.
With a stomp of its massive feet, the ape launched itself explosively toward the enormous Thousand-Hand Guanyin.
The goddess statue responded in kind, a thousand arms flaring to life, hammering at the incoming beast.
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Fist after giant fist rained onto the Titan Giant Ape, yet none could pierce its defense. With a casual swing, the ape shattered scores of arms at once, but more instantly regrew, the endless punching pressing it down.
This spectacle—two colossal entities locked in primal combat—was awe-inspiring, "like gods clashing," Tang San and the others thought, rendered speechless by the enormity of it.
"Why are you just standing there? I told you I'm buying you time to escape!" Yun Chuan snapped, seeing his students gawking instead of running.
"If you stick around, I can't fight at full strength. You're just holding me back—hurry and run!"
Spurred by Yun Chuan's words, the group finally started to retreat, but not without worry.
"Teacher Tang, can you really handle this alone?"
"If not, what's the use of you staying? You'll only distract me, or end up as ape food."
However harsh, they realized he spoke the truth—against such a monster, their only hope was to flee.
But this retreat triggered an unforeseen disaster.
The Titan Giant Ape, always aware of Xiao Wu's presence, saw her—the old friend it wanted to see most—slipping away with the group. Its patience snapped.
ROAR!!!
The giant ape blew away all incoming fists with a wave of black qi, then opened its maw and channeled all its soul power into its throat—
BOOM!!
A devastating energy beam burst forth!
All the goddess statue's arms dissolved before its might, striking squarely at the statue's chest.
In a burst of scorching radiance, the hundred-meter-high statue began to collapse—reduced to fragments in the beam's wake.
This move, known as Titan Sky Shatter, condensed all the ape's brute force into a terminal strike—a killing blow proportional to its rage and strength.
Against this, Yun Chuan's goddess statue—always just a flashy trick for show—could not hope to endure. It was utterly obliterated.
Yun Chuan could have summoned another, but he recognized his output was already capped—no matter how hard he tried, he could not break through the Titan Giant Ape's defenses. Unless he truly transcended the soul master system—broke into the divine realm—he could only dream of defeating such a creature.
Only after reaching level 100 and becoming a god can these shackles be broken, Yun Chuan mused, having already decided he'd leave to pursue physical strengthening after this adventure.
"Teacher Tang's goddess statue got destroyed…"
Tang San and the others, gearing up to flee, froze in shock as the ape's attack shattered Yun Chuan's last line of defense.
"Don't worry, I've got one last move," Yun Chuan said, unfazed. He was fully prepared: if this didn't work, he'd run for it.
"One last move?"
The group exchanged looks—not quite believing, but hoping anyway.
"Run—quick!" Yun Chuan warned, rolling his shoulders in preparation.
"The range is massive—if you don't move, blame yourself for any injuries!"
He didn't wait for their response.
With a bounce, Yun Chuan leapt from tree to tree, soaring upward until he reached the very canopy—then, with another giant jump, rose even higher!
For a brief moment, the Titan Giant Ape ignored Yun Chuan, its fury abating now that the statue was gone, and refocused on its original goal—Xiao Wu.
It strode toward Tang San and the others, who—terrified—raced away at full speed. But humans are no match for a ten-thousand-year soul beast in the forest; they were quickly caught.
The ape swung its mighty hand toward Tang San—but in reality, toward Xiao Wu beside him.
At that critical instant—
From high overhead, a voice boomed with soul power:
"Hey! Big ape!"
The Titan Giant Ape ignored the distraction, continuing its attack—but suddenly, a chilling danger rippled through its body.
"…Have you ever faced a hammer strike from the heavens?!"
As the words ended—
The night sky became dazzling daylight.
Titan Giant Ape looked up—and saw a "sun" falling toward it.
The wind roared, heat seared;
The sky lit up, as if a meteor was crashing from above!
From afar, the sky above Star Dou Forest was ablaze—a whole hemisphere was illuminated.
Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Ning Rongrong, Ma Hongjun, Oscar—every one of the Shrek Seven was dumbfounded, eyes locked on the falling "sun."
Until—
A BOOM beyond description.
The sound and shock walled everything else out; their bodies instinctively blacked out as a defense mechanism.
Even in the distance, Tang Hao felt his eardrums buzz, his brain blank out, and knew that in this moment, even he could be seriously injured or killed if caught off-guard.
A huge swath of the Star Dou Forest shook violently.
Even super-soul beasts like the Sky Azure Bull Python and the hidden Emperor Tian sensed the impact, staring in awe at the source.
—
At the heart of this "sun's" impact—
A crater hundreds of meters wide carved the ground.
In its center, a hammer flickered with lightning and flame effects—clearly a soul master's weapon.
Seven inky-black soul rings circled the hammer, marking it as Yun Chuan's martial soul.
Yun Chuan floated down from above.
At the crater's edge, the battered, charred Titan Giant Ape still hunched protectively over Tang San and the others, absorbing the fallout with its own body—a testament to its loyalty to Xiao Wu.
"The hammer truly is the ultimate weapon…" Yun Chuan muttered, marveling at the devastation. Only the hammer's pure might—not its auxiliary "elemental" attributes—could achieve such impact.
How strong would one have to be to truly wield such a hammer to its fullest?
He sighed, waving his hand.
In the center, the lightning-flame hammer faded from view.
Stepping over to the dying Titan Giant Ape, Yun Chuan shook his head in admiration.
"If only my body could take an eighth soul ring—I'd break through right now and absorb its soul ring on the spot."
But his current body couldn't handle the strain—trying it would mean certain death.
"Well… soul bone will have to do," he decided.
No way was he letting a ten-thousand-year soul bone slip away—no matter what friendship or ties the beast had to Tang San and Xiao Wu.
(End of Chapter)