Chapter 34: Soul-Sealing Ram

Chapter 34: Soul-Sealing Ram

At 1:30 p.m., in the west of Rain Alley City, under the Witch Crow.

A business van slowly entered the military camp after passing through multiple security checks.

"There are quite a few people here," Lu Ran observed from inside the vehicle, noticing many social trainees, including high school students like themselves.

Thanks to the Great Xia's supportive policies, students completing their assignments did not have to pay any fees.

The military would even assign a soldier to act as an unpaid proctor for the team.

From another perspective, this proctor could also be considered a bodyguard.

"Is that Gao Zhonglin?" Deng Yutang suddenly spoke up from the passenger seat.

Lu Ran glanced over and spotted a slightly overweight teenager wearing glasses.

The usually quiet Tian Tian, for once, spoke up softly, "It's him, the formidable one."

Gao Zhonglin's rise to prominence was quite similar to Lu Ran's, and could be summed up in one phrase—he came out of nowhere!

In his first assessment, Gao Zhonglin ranked third on the individual leaderboard.

During the second assessment, he directly jumped to second in the entire school! It's worth mentioning that in the two years before the Divine Worship, Gao Zhonglin had never made it into the top fifty in the school.

But after the Divine Worship,

All those like Ma Tianchuan, Jiang Ruyi, and Wu Shanshan were left behind!

Three words: Wolf is coming! Well, this little wolf pup is a bit chubby.

But he does seem to fit the word "greedy"?

"Can anyone be more formidable than my brother Lu?" Deng Yutang casually remarked.

Lu Ran nodded in agreement, "Of course not."

In the back seat, Jiang Ruyi extended her slender jade finger and gently poked Lu Ran's head, "Be a little more humble."

Lu Ran shrugged it off, "I'm just being realistic!"

His Greedy Wolf follower had made those high and mighty top students take a step back.

And as a Divine Sheep follower, I made the Greedy Wolf followers take a step back!

What's this about reversing the heavenly trigram?

"You can go back; we'll be inside for a long time," Deng Yutang said to the driver, "Call me after we're done."

"Okay."

As the vehicle came to a stop, everyone quickly got out and retrieved their weapons from the trunk, then headed towards the central building for registration.

In addition to his weapon, Lu Ran had also brought a red cloth, which he tied around his arm.

He was prepared to try the 'Sound Positioning' technique taught by the Great Nightmare.

Lu Ran also wanted to carry his backpack with some food and water.

However, these supplies were not allowed inside the Demon Cavern.

Stone cities and supply points in the wilderness provided water and food, but they required demon crystals as payment.

In a nutshell:

Training is free.

Food, drink, and lodging are not!

Of course, if you dare to camp in the wilderness, eating dog meat and drinking dog blood to survive, the military won't stop you.

Save your money,

But risk your life!

"Instructor Dou!"

"What a coincidence, Instructor Dou is proctoring us again?" After queuing for a long time, as they approached the building entrance, they saw a familiar figure striding towards them.

But Instructor Dou replied, "I'm specifically assigned to Team 98."

Everyone: ". . ."

Instructor Dou scanned the group, "How long do you plan to stay inside the Evil Dog Village this time?"

They looked at each other, and Jiang Ruyi stepped forward, "Instructor Dou, we'll probably stay for a long time.

We need to update our weapons and divine power orbs, and we'll have to slay many demons."

Instructor Dou nodded, "How did your team perform in the fifteen-night city defense task?"

Jiang Ruyi replied, "First place."

Instructor Dou's face showed a rare expression of approval, and he glanced at Lu Ran, "And you, personally?"

Lu Ran smiled sheepishly, "I regressed; I couldn't score that high."

"Hmph," Instructor Dou scoffed, "Do you still aim for a score of 98?"

"One must have dreams!" Lu Ran sighed, "This time I only scored 91.2, a regression."

The cold-faced instructor was visibly taken aback! He confirmed, "91 points for the fifteen-night defense?"

Lu Ran shook his head, "Not 91 points, but 91.2 points."

In just two sentences, you deducted 0.2 points from me. Can I take it or not?

Instructor Dou: ". . ."

Jiang Ruyi spoke up at the right moment, "Instructor Dou, Lu Ran performed very well.

On this fifteen-night, he was still first.

Including the total ranking of the five county-level cities under Yunshan City."

Upon hearing this, Instructor Dou's expression became quite interesting.

Interestingly,

When the four of them were in the van, Jiang Ruyi had advised Lu Ran to be more humble.

However, when facing external doubts,

Not only did Jiang Ruyi speak up in defense, but she seemed a little prouder than Lu Ran himself?

After a few seconds, Instructor Dou turned and walked away, "Follow me!"

The group dared not delay and immediately quickened their pace to keep up with the instructor.

Lu Ran sneaked a glance at Jiang Ruyi and whispered, "Be a little more humble."

Jiang Ruyi: ". . ."

Unlike the previous assessment,

This time, Instructor Dou led the group into the Demon Cavern and headed straight for the South Gate.

He once again transformed into a crow, leaving the stage to the young trainees.

"South Gate," Lu Ran clenched the Radiance Blade, gazing at the torch-lit path.

Jiang Ruyi: "There seem to be fewer trainees on this side?"

"Isn't that what we want?" Deng Yutang weighed the red-tasseled gun in his hand, full of enthusiasm.

Now, everyone had experienced a fifteen-night, and most of them were confident.

Even Tian Tian seemed less worried.

Suddenly, the sound of a dog hunting from the right front could be heard.

Deng Yutang reacted swiftly, gripping the Heavenstar Gun and striding forward.

It was evident that this direction indeed had fewer human trainees.

Just as they were still within the city gate's vicinity, a demon appeared.

"Mist Realm, around 2-3rd Rank?" Deng Yutang shouted gravely.

From behind, Lu Ran's voice reached them, "Let's see the power of Jiang's new Divine Technique."

"Alright," Deng Yutang paused briefly, still maintaining his position at the forefront of the team.

Jiang Ruyi had no objections. Her naturally lowered palm had her fingertips gently sketching something.

"Woof!" The Fang Dog's speed was astonishing.

Jiang Ruyi's Divine Technique was ready, poised to strike, but she didn't act immediately.

The team had gained considerable experience in slaughtering Fang Dogs.

The Fang Dog clan was swift, and their reactions were exceptional. To ensure a fatal blow, they needed to find the right opportunity rather than blindly attacking.

Deng Yutang tensed his body, slightly bending his legs, and tightened his grip on the Heavenstar Gun.

"Woof!!!"

The Fang Dog approached, judging the distance to be sufficient, and leaped forward.

Its large, blood-stained mouth, with sharp fangs, lunged directly towards Deng Yutang.

"Yutang, retreat!" Jiang Ruyi flicked her finger forward.

Deng Yutang decisively jumped backward, and at the same moment, a slender fire snake brushed past him.

As the flame rune flew, a translucent white jade slab appeared, carrying the fire snake, and rushed towards the Fang Dog.

Divine Technique - Explosive Flame Rune!

"Woof!!!"

The Fang Dog widened its eyes, its leaping body writhing frantically, but there was nowhere to gain leverage.

A small dog, daring to jump?

Daring to jump means daring to kill!

"Boom!"

Despite the Fang Dog's struggles, the Explosive Flame Rune missed its head, but it hit the dog's body with a solid thud.

In an instant,

Flames erupted, and the air surged! Chunks of flesh flew in all directions, and blood splattered everywhere.

"Wooooo~"

The Fang Dog was blasted back, its howls echoing across the wilderness, sounding extremely pitiful.

"Die!" Deng Yutang stomped and leaped forward.

He was a professional at finishing off enemies! Although Deng Yutang's ambitions lay elsewhere.

However, the current strength composition of the four-person team compelled him to rely on Jiang Ruyi and Lu Ran as the absolute core.

Until Deng Yutang ended the Fang Dog's life, Jiang Ruyi turned to Lu Ran, slightly raising her eyebrows, "Satisfied?"

"Yes, yes!" Lu Ran nodded repeatedly, full of admiration.

As expected of a noble Mage Lady!

With just the third rank of the Mist Realm, she already possessed such formidable output.

And the Jade Talisman Sect followers were known as "Late-Game" players, which was enough to imagine how terrifying Jiang Ruyi's future would be!

Lu Ran seized the moment, "If we want to upgrade our equipment, we need to slaughter a thousand Mist Realm Fang Dogs.

And that's just to upgrade the Stream-grade Divine Energy Orb.

We also have school-rewarded weapons, which will require another thousand Mist Realm Fang Dogs. I wonder when we'll finish killing that many."

Jiang Ruyi contemplated, "Are you thinking of challenging the Stream Realm Fang Dog?"

The ratio of Stream Realm Demon Crystals to Mist Realm Demon Crystals was 1:10.

Two thousand Mist Realm Fang Dogs could be exchanged for two hundred Stream Realm Fang Dogs.

Lu Ran nodded, "The Stream Realm Fang Dog's speed is fast, but its reactions are not bad. To ensure a fatal blow, we need to find the right opportunity rather than blindly attacking.

To kill it, we need to find the right opportunity, not just blindly attack."

Jiang Ruyi thought for a moment and chose to play it safe, "No rush. Let's first slaughter demons nearby.

Once Yutang and Tian Tian reach the third rank of the Mist Realm, we'll head to the next Stone City."

Upon hearing Jiang Ruyi's decision, Tian Tian immediately agreed, "I'm about to advance, and I've memorized the matching Divine Technique for the next stage.

After advancing, I can summon the Lotus Bud on the ground to imprison demons."

Lu Ran and the others had witnessed the 'Earth Lotus Birth' technique. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Team Leader Zhang Feng had used this method to trap demons.

With this technique, the team would be like tigers with added wings!

When facing the attack of two Fang Dogs, Tian Tian could force one of them offline!

"I'm almost there too!" Deng Yutang didn't wait for anyone to ask and eagerly answered, adding, "Believe me, I'm even more eager than you."

Indeed, that was the truth!

Upon reaching the third rank of the Mist Realm, Red Handkerchief Believers could learn an incredibly powerful Divine Technique - the Red Cloth Soul!

Once Deng Yutang mastered this technique, he could escape his current predicament.

On a smaller scale, the Divine Technique - Red Cloth Soul was Deng Yutang's way of overcoming stronger opponents.

On a larger scale, the Red Cloth Soul was the Red Handkerchief Believers' secret weapon for rising above their station!

This technique allowed Red Handkerchief Believers to enter a frenzy, temporarily boosting all their physical attributes! The increase in stats was quite impressive!

This was why Jiang Ruyi insisted on waiting for Deng Yutang's advancement before challenging the Stream Realm Fang Dog.

Among believers, who didn't know the power of the "Red Cloth Soul"?

"Alright, I believe you," Lu Ran said with a smile, "Then let's advance."

Before he finished speaking, Lu Ran's body stiffened.

He felt something intangible quietly merging with his body.

"Lu Ran?" Jiang Ruyi, being perceptive, noticed Lu Ran's strangeness, "What's wrong?"

Lu Ran's eyes became slightly vacant, and a bizarre scene appeared in his mind.

It was a world shrouded in mist, where demon statues stood amidst the layers of fog.

The soul of the recently slaughtered Fang Dog drifted into the "Demon Sculpture Garden" and was sucked into a massive Fang Dog statue.

Haha, Divine Sheep!

Since the last time we met, you've stopped pretending?

Calm down,

I'm coming to seal your soul!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end