The terrifying energy fluctuations surged higher and higher. Realizing something was wrong, the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard instinctively stopped in its tracks, giving Zhang Lexuan the opportunity to create some distance.
Sensing the energy behind her as well, she quickly caught up to Huo Yuhao, scooping him into her arms without losing any speed as they dashed forward.
Huo Yuhao, who had been focused solely on escaping, suddenly felt a soft sensation pressing against his back. A feeling of being crushed by a heavy vehicle surged through him.
In the next moment, the scenery on both sides blurred as Zhang Lexuan's help propelled him forward at several times his original speed.
A second later, a massive explosion erupted behind them. The Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard let out an ear-piercing roar that felt like it could shatter their eardrums. Already mentally exhausted, Huo Yuhao's vision darkened, and he couldn't even maintain his spiritual detection.
Thankfully, Zhang Lexuan had managed to carry him far enough away, sparing them from injury.
After the explosion, the battle was nearing its end, and his spiritual detection was no longer needed.
Turning around, Zhang Lexuan saw the miserable state of the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard.
Its abdomen had been completely torn open by the explosion, with its internal organs spilling out. Despite such severe injuries, the beast wasn't dead yet. It lay on the ground, howling in pain, a testament to its terrifying vitality.
Of course, part of the reason it survived was that the soul tool bombs Huo Yuhao had crafted were only low-level, made from second and third-tier soul devices. Their power wasn't strong. If anything, Zhang Lexuan's sixth soul skill was probably more potent. If the explosion hadn't hit the wound directly, it was questionable whether it could have penetrated the lizard's scales at all.
Although it wasn't dead, judging by its desperate but futile struggles to rise, it was clear the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard no longer had any strength to resist.
Zhang Lexuan, who clearly hated this creature for nearly wiping out their team, activated her sixth soul ring again. A terrifying beam of light pierced through the lizard's skull, finally ending its life.
As the blood-colored soul ring slowly rose from the corpse, Huo Yuhao felt a jolt of recognition. He remembered hearing Elder Xuan mention this in his past life.
"Twelve inner courtyard students were separated from their teacher and encountered a hundred-thousand-year soul beast. Only four survived."
Although he had seen twelve people the night before, he hadn't made the connection. Who could have imagined that a story he'd heard in passing would end up involving him? Remembering Zhang Lexuan's hundred-thousand-year eighth soul ring, he was about to say something, but then realized he was still tightly held in her arms.
Even though he'd grown stronger over the past two years, Huo Yuhao's body was still that of a child. At this moment, he was like a plush toy, held by the tall Zhang Lexuan, his feet not even touching the ground.
A strange sense of embarrassment washed over him. His mouth twitched slightly, but he didn't dare struggle.
How humiliating!
Whether it was due to his frustration or Zhang Lexuan having reached her limit of speed, Huo Yuhao could feel two large "headlights" behind his head bouncing up and down. A faint fragrance wafted into his nose.
Finally, after a brief but futile struggle, Huo Yuhao gave up.
He felt like a little mouse caught in the coils of a python—no matter how much he struggled, it was useless.
"Um... Sister Lexuan, could you let go of me now?"
"Huh? Oh... right..." Zhang Lexuan blinked in surprise before realizing she had been gripping Huo Yuhao tightly. She quickly let him go, her voice turning serious.
"Yuhao, I really have to thank you this time."
If it weren't for Huo Yuhao's help, they would have lost at least one more inner courtyard student. And that would still have been relying on her final sixth soul skill. If it missed, they would all have been dead, including her.
"It's no big deal. I did my best—"
Before Huo Yuhao could finish, the remaining five inner courtyard disciples arrived. Upon seeing the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard's corpse, their eyes widened in shock.
"Senior Sister Zhang, how did you manage that?"
Zhang Lexuan was about to answer when she saw Huo Yuhao subtly shake his head at her. Catching his hint, she decided not to mention his third eye or purple soul ring.
From an outsider's perspective, it all seemed like sheer luck—a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse. The other team members were filled with relief, though Zhang Lexuan had an inkling of where that "luck" had come from.
Recalling Huo Yuhao's golden vertical eye, she involuntarily shivered.
Was that his martial soul? How did it have such a unique ability?
With the danger now passed, one of the inner courtyard disciples glanced at the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard's corpse. His throat bobbed, and his voice trembled with excitement.
"Since the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard is dead, Senior Sister Zhang, hurry and absorb the soul ring!"
Hearing this, the others turned to look at the blood-colored soul ring above the corpse, their breathing quickening.
This was a hundred-thousand-year soul ring!
And not just that, a hundred-thousand-year soul beast always produced a soul bone. While the process of obtaining it was brutal, the immense rewards compensated for that.
Standing aside, Huo Yuhao remained silent. As the inner courtyard disciples fixated on the soul ring, the progress of unlocking the Greed Origin in his spiritual space surged.
These inner courtyard disciples were all Soul Emperors, and their greed provided considerable energy. Coupled with the contribution from the eighth-ranked soul engineer of the Heavenly Soul Empire, the dark gold Greed Origin would soon be fully unlocked.
It was impossible not to be tempted by a hundred-thousand-year soul ring. Although he could sense their greed, the Jealousy Origin in his spiritual space showed no signs of increasing.
This surprised Huo Yuhao.
The fact that this happened meant that while these inner courtyard disciples desired the soul ring, they didn't begrudge Zhang Lexuan from obtaining it.
Based on how they addressed her earlier, it was clear that Zhang Lexuan wasn't yet the top disciple in the inner courtyard, but her reputation and relationships were stellar.
"Absorbing a hundred-thousand-year soul ring for your eighth ring—isn't that risky?"
One of the other disciples voiced concern. By now, they all knew that Zhang Lexuan was the only one who could absorb the soul ring. The others weren't even at the level to obtain one, and even if they were, they wouldn't dare try.
"A hundred-thousand-year soul bone enhances the body greatly. She could absorb the soul bone first and then attempt the soul ring."
As the others discussed the matter, Zhang Lexuan remained silent, instinctively looking at Huo Yuhao. Everyone had contributed to this battle, so it wouldn't be fair for her to claim everything for herself. She could compensate the others once they returned to the academy, but Huo Yuhao was different. She didn't have enough to repay him at the moment.
Noticing Zhang Lexuan's gaze, Huo Yuhao smiled.
"Sister Lexuan, you did the most work, so the soul ring and soul bone are yours. If possible, could I have the Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard's corpse?"
The attributes of the lizard didn't suit him anyway, and as someone with only one ring who had just passed the thousand-year threshold, he wasn't about to risk his life absorbing a hundred-thousand-year soul ring.
But the corpse was a different matter. The Blood-corroded Dragon Lizard was a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, and its flesh contained a massive amount of energy. It would serve him well, and with the help of his Gluttony Origin, he could speed up his cultivation significantly.
With a ten-meter-long body, it would be more than enough as a snack for years to come.
(End of Chapter)