The merchants who were brutally killed by the Death God's Messenger bandit group earlier, along with the bandits killed by Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and others, had at least several hundred corpses now gathered in this canyon.
The bones, flesh, and blood of the dead became weapons after the explosion. The stronger the soul master's strength when alive, the greater the force of the explosion when their body exploded.
Especially the three Soul Kings, killed by Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and Chen Zifeng, whose bodies exploded with such force that it felt like the ground and mountains were shaking. The steep cliffs on either side trembled, and the wild beasts deep in the Mingdou Mountain Range screamed in terror, causing a massive disturbance.
Since Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and Chen Zifeng were at the center of the battle circle, with the most bodies falling around them, they were directly in the heart of the explosion.
Fortunately, Xu Zhihuang had warned them, and using his third soul skill, Time Disruption, he delayed the explosion just enough. This allowed them to use their strongest defensive skills in time.
In this critical moment, the inner academy disciples' excellent adaptability was fully demonstrated. Without hesitation, Dai Yaoheng used his three amplification-type soul skills. Though his strength was no match for Ma Xiaotao's, his White Tiger martial soul itself was an all-rounded weapon for both offense and defense.
As for Ma Xiaotao, she activated her second soul skill, Phoenix Fire Bath, and third soul skill, Phoenix Wings Soar. Both being strong attack-type soul masters, her Evil Fire Phoenix martial soul and Dai Yaoheng's White Tiger martial soul had different focuses, with her excelling in ranged attacks. Her two amplifying soul skills were the only ones she had. However, her soul power reached level 68, making her defense quite comparable to Dai Yaoheng's.
Though Chen Zifeng's cultivation was weaker than Ma Xiaotao and Dai Yaoheng, the Soul King corpses near him were sliced into pieces by his Soul Pursuit Sword, reducing the explosion's power. Among the three, he actually faced the least pressure.
As the three activated their defensive measures, Xu Zhihuang's assistance arrived. A thick, dark red crystal barrier instantly formed around them.
The terrifying explosion shattered the dark red crystal barrier Xu Zhihuang created into countless shards, but at least it delayed the impact slightly.
Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, and Chen Zifeng were blown to one side, spitting blood, clearly suffering internal injuries. However, thanks to their soul skills and the protection of their soul power, they were able to avoid the toxic and corrosive blood from the explosion from staining them.
In contrast, Xixi wasn't so fortunate. Though she wasn't in the center of the explosion, her position wasn't far from Ma Xiaotao and the others, and being an agile attack-type soul master, she lacked defensive abilities.
The only protections she could rely on were her soul power, the lightning shield around her, and the crystal barrier from Xu Zhihuang.
She was thrown by the terrifying shockwave from the explosion and crashed heavily into the mountain wall, her face as pale as gold leaf. Fortunately, the surrounding rubble formed a natural shield, so she only had some toxic blood stain her back.
Had this been an open area, Xixi, with her speed, might have avoided it, but in this narrow canyon, only fifty meters wide, there was no way to escape.
Similarly, Ling Luocheng and Yao Haoxuan, who were farther from the battle's center, weren't in much better shape.
One was a control-type soul master, the other an auxiliary control-type, both of them lacking defensive abilities compared to Xixi.
Fortunately, Xu Zhihuang's crystal barrier and Ling Luocheng's Ice Crystal Armor provided some protection, so their conditions weren't as severe.
However, Yao Haoxuan, who had transformed into his martial soul giant, took the brunt of the explosion due to his size. He had large areas of his body covered in toxic blood and was choking on thick smoke, screaming in agony.
Ling Luocheng endured less explosive force but, with her Ice Element martial soul, her body's physical strength didn't improve much. She fell unconscious but was fortunate enough to not be contaminated with toxic blood, as Yao Haoxuan had shielded her.
Gongyang Mo's martial soul was the Rainbow Dragon, which inherently gave him the ability to fly.
When the corpses exploded, he was already in the air. Thanks to Xu Zhihuang's Time Disruption skill delaying the explosion, he quickly used this opportunity to flap his colorful wings and soar high, managing to avoid most of the damage. As an auxiliary soul master, he suffered the least from the explosion.
On the other side, Wang Yan, Bebe, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou hadn't entered the center of the battle circle. They were protected by Xu Zhihuang's soul skill and only experienced the shockwave from the explosion, which caused a slight jolt to their internal organs.
Xu Sanshi even had enough energy left to activate his second soul skill, Dark Shield Formation, to shield everyone from the splattering toxic blood.
Xu Zhihuang's chest rose and fell rapidly. His soul skills were indeed powerful, but they came at a significant cost. In particular, his third soul skill, Time Disruption, had delayed the explosion of a Soul Sage-level attack, quickly draining his soul power.
"Senior Jiang, Wang Dong, take cover!" Xu Zhihuang shouted loudly before quickly grabbing Ning Tian and pulling her behind a large rock for cover.
Jiang Nannan and Wang Dong, both of whom were far from the battle circle, quickly reacted. They only needed to protect themselves from the toxic blood, which their strength could handle.
Blood splattered across the surrounding rocks with a sizzling sound, filling the air with a strong, overwhelming stench of blood, and a wet sensation. A blood-like layer covered the area, stretching several hundred meters wide.
"Hahaha… How is the power of my corpse explosion? No matter how strong you are, you'll die here. With my chain corpse explosion, even if you don't die, you'll be poisoned to death. Since you dared to challenge me, I'll turn you all into corpse slaves!"
The Death God's Messenger's arrogant voice echoed throughout the canyon.
His corpse explosions indiscriminately hurt friend and foe alike. None of his subordinates, who were not at the level of Ma Xiaotao and the others, survived the terrifying explosion.
But he didn't care at all. As long as he was alive, it wouldn't be difficult to raise a new Death God's Messenger bandit group.
However, in the next moment, the Death God's Messenger's manic laughter suddenly stopped.
"Bastard!" An old, furious roar erupted. At this roar, the Death God's Messenger felt as though even his consciousness was blurred.
The messy figure appeared with that roar—it was Elder Xuan.
He had been secretly following them. With his cultivation, he could clearly sense that the highest-ranked soul master in the Death God's Messenger bandit group was only a five-ring Soul King. This wouldn't have been a problem for the elite disciples in the inner academy.
But there was an unexpected turn. Elder Xuan had never imagined that a Soul King would be able to unleash a corpse explosion with power comparable to a Soul Sage-level attack.
Elder Xuan's mood was understandably foul. It couldn't be described as mere grief. With him personally overseeing the situation, such a major injury still occurred.
Had it not been for Xu Zhihuang's quick reaction and his soul skill protection, the consequences would have been even worse.
"Who is it?!" the Death God's Messenger screamed in fear, five soul rings—three yellow and two purple—shining on his body.
But against the power of Elder Xuan, everything was in vain.
Elder Xuan reached out his hand, and under the terrifying pressure, the Death God's Messenger didn't even have time to resist before his body exploded into a blood mist.
This time, Elder Xuan was truly enraged. He casually destroyed the Death God's Messenger, and with a wave of his hand, a dense yellow light filled the canyon, evaporating all the toxic blood that was corroding the rocks and infecting the inner academy disciples' bodies.
Elder Xuan, his hair messy, inspected everyone's condition. The only comfort he found was that, thanks to Xu Zhihuang's vigilance, the worst had been avoided.
Yao Haoxuan, Ling Luocheng, and Xixi, who were most seriously injured, had no risk to their lives. Though Ma Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo were heavily injured, they remained conscious.
The inner academy disciples gathered together, and Wang Yan brought Bebe, Xu Sanshi, and He Caitou over.
"Elder Xuan, how is everyone?" Wang Yan asked solemnly.
Elder Xuan slapped his forehead in frustration, his red eyes showing from his messy hair, filled with self-blame.
"Ling Luocheng and Xixi have suffered serious internal injuries. But the worst is Yao Haoxuan—his body has been contaminated with toxic blood. All three need immediate treatment."
Wang Yan then looked at Ma Xiaotao and the others with concern.
"Xiaotao, Dai Yaoheng, Chen Zifeng, Gongyang Mo, how are you?"
"I'm fine, just some lung damage from the shock. But it will take at least half a month to recover enough to use my martial soul," Ma Xiaotao said, her face grim.
This meant she wouldn't be able to participate in the upcoming All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle for at least the first half-month. With three main team members injured, it was uncertain whether Shrek Academy could hold on until the others recovered.
"My condition is similar to Xiaotao's," Dai Yaoheng said, explaining his situation. His fists were clenched, and his mood was as grim as Ma Xiaotao's. He had long been looking forward to the upcoming All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle in Star Luo City.
Chen Zifeng wasn't as emotionally affected as the other two, but he still seemed shaken.
"My condition is probably a bit better than Xiaotao and Dai Yaoheng's."
Looking back, he couldn't help but feel a shiver of fear.
If it hadn't been for Xu Zhihuang's soul skill support, his Soul Pursuit Sword's limited defense wouldn't have been enough, and he would have paid a heavy price.
Gongyang Mo, normally quiet, spoke in an unusually serious tone.
"When the corpse explosion happened, I managed to fly up and avoid most of the shockwave. I only suffered some internal injuries. With medicine, I should be ready to fight again in about ten days."
Though Wang Yan was simply asking about their injuries, everyone was already thinking about the upcoming All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle and its uncertain prospects.
Elder Xuan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, the self-blame had been replaced with determination.
"Wang Yan, the difficult task of leading everyone to Star Luo City for the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle falls to you. Take Xiaotao and the others to Star Moon City and stabilize their injuries, then head straight to Star Luo City. I'll take Ling Luocheng, Yao Haoxuan, and Xixi back to the academy for treatment. We need to act quickly and split up."
After speaking, Elder Xuan summoned the level 8 flying soul-guided device he had used earlier, wrapping the three in soul power and flying at full speed back to Shrek Academy.
Though this accident had caused varying degrees of injury to the inner academy disciples, fortunately, no one's life was in danger.
There was still a chance for recovery.
Wang Yan watched Elder Xuan disappear into the distance, then sighed lightly and said,
"Everyone, let's head back to Star Moon City first."
He knew Elder Xuan was full of self-blame, but such an accident couldn't entirely be blamed on him. Who could have expected that a Soul King's corpse explosion would have the power of a Soul Sage-level attack?
As their team leader, Wang Yan also carried a responsibility he couldn't escape.
Fortunately, the reserve team members were mostly fine. If not, he would have felt guilty for the rest of his life.
Jiang Nannan and Wang Dong walked out from behind the rock where they had taken cover, feeling even more ashamed as they looked at the others, who were growing more and more pale.
"Teacher Wang."
They had done nothing to help.
"You don't need to feel guilty. The responsibility lies with me. I failed to command everyone well," Wang Yan said with a wry smile as he walked to another large rock.
Xu Zhihuang was leaning against the rock, tightly holding Ning Tian in his arms. His deep purple eyes showed signs of fatigue.
Ning Tian, her pale chin resting on his chest, gazed at him with misty blue eyes.
In reality, Xu Zhihuang had been hiding behind the rock with Ning Tian, and it had only been a brief moment from when Elder Xuan arrived to eliminate the Death God's Messenger.
Ning Tian hadn't yet recovered from the earlier crisis and the emotions she felt from Xu Zhihuang.
But Xu Zhihuang's fatigue was intentionally feigned. With his physical resilience, even if his soul power was drained, he would still be able to stand.
However, it was entirely reasonable to act this way—it would be inappropriate not to show some gratitude for his efforts.
Seeing Wang Yan and the others, Ning Tian seemed to snap out of her daze and quickly stood up, embarrassed.
Though she had already acknowledged Xu Zhihuang in her heart, she still felt a bit awkward with the public display of affection.
"Teacher Wang," Xu Zhihuang called out, pretending to get up.
But Wang Yan stopped him.
"Sit down and rest, Tianhuang. Once everyone has recovered, we'll leave the Mingdou Mountain Range."
Dai Yaoheng, Chen Zifeng, and Gongyang Mo all looked at Xu Zhihuang with grateful expressions, especially seeing how difficult it was for him to even stand up. Apart from gratitude, they also felt a sense of shame.
Despite being main team members and senior disciples of the inner academy, they had had to rely on an outer academy disciple for help.
Ma Xiaotao slapped her chest confidently.
"Anyway, I've owed you plenty of favors. I won't say much more. If you need my help in the future, anything I can do, I'll get it done."
"Senior Xiaotao, and all the seniors, there's no need to be polite. Didn't Elder Xuan say that once we joined the Shrek Inspection Team, we're comrades? Supporting each other is just natural," Xu Zhihuang said with a warm smile.
"Exactly," Wang Yan nodded in appreciation, signaling everyone.
"Alright, everyone, sit down and meditate to recover your soul power. Time is tight, and we need to head to Star Luo City for the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle."
He Caitou couldn't help but ask, "Teacher Wang, the inner academy seniors are injured, so are you planning to have us, the reserve team, represent the academy?"
Wang Yan chuckled bitterly, "It seems that way. But the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle will last for a month. As long as we can hold on at the start, we can last until reinforcements from the academy arrive and Xiaotao and the others recover. From Star Luo City to Shrek Academy, it's only a three-to-five-day journey. So, we only need to hold on for a few days."
Wang Yan's words reassured everyone.
The day of the All-Continent Senior Soul Master Academy Soul Battle was getting closer.
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