Watching the two of them clean up the battlefield side by side with wordless eye contact, Xiao Yi's thoughts of testing them grew wildly like vines.
Six hundred years, nine hundred years... Just where was their limit?
The highest-level Soul Beast they had killed so far was a Blazing Tiger close to nine hundred years old!
If they faced a Thousand-Year Soul Beast, could they still remain so composed?
Xiao Yi wanted to see their limits!
A flicker of interest flashed in Xiao Yi's eyes as his steps quietly turned deeper into the dense forest.
He curled the corner of his lips, revealing a meaningful, mischievous smile.
He pulled out a small pinch of dark red powder from his chest—this was the "Beast Frenzy Powder" that could enrage carnivorous Soul Beasts.
With a light flick of his finger, the powder drifted with the wind into a mountain crevice. Xiao Yi turned and disappeared into the shadows of the trees, leaving only a pair of eyes fixed intently on the crevice's exit.
Meanwhile, Su Yu and Hu Liena had just finished their struggle with a seven-hundred-year-old Gale Wolf.
The Gale Wolf was extremely fast, and the two had expended considerable effort to subdue it, fine beads of sweat glistening on their foreheads.
Just as they were about to catch their breath, Su Yu's expression suddenly sharpened. He grabbed Hu Liena's wrist and swiftly pulled her aside!
"Brother Su Yu!"
Hu Liena exclaimed in surprise, her body not yet reacting as she was dragged several meters away.
Almost the instant they moved, a black shadow slammed down with a "thud" right where they had been standing.
The impact left a shallow crater in the ground, sending dirt flying.
The black shadow, having missed its strike, slowly lifted its head—it was a Slanted-Eye Tiger, its body a full size larger than an ordinary tiger.
Its entire form was a dark gold, covered in black stripes, with a pair of eyes as large as bronze bells fixed intently on the two.
Most eerie was the vertical eye on its forehead, tightly shut, surrounded by faint purple Soul Power fluctuations.
"Slanted-Eye Tiger!"
Hu Liena gasped softly as she recognized the Soul Beast.
This type of Soul Beast was most famous for the vertical eye on its forehead. Though not a rare species, it was notorious for its ferocity.
Especially Slanted-Eye Tigers over a thousand years old—their vertical eyes could release highly destructive beams, making them particularly troublesome among Soul Beasts of the same tier.
"Roar—!"
The Slanted-Eye Tiger let out an ear-splitting roar at the two, the sound waves carrying an invisible pressure that rustled the surrounding leaves.
Its limbs slightly bent, muscles tensed, clearly ready to attack at any moment, its dark golden fur gleaming dangerously in the faint forest light.
Su Yu shielded Hu Liena behind him, his gaze sharp as a blade, quietly circulating his Soul Power:
"Judging by its size and Soul Power fluctuations, it's at least a thousand years old."
"Nana, be careful of the eye on its forehead—that's the most dangerous part."
Hu Liena nodded, tightening her grip on the short blade at her waist. A faint purple light flickered in her eyes as she entered a state of alert.
Roar—
The Slanted-Eye Tiger's furious roar sent fallen leaves swirling through the forest. Its massive body shot forward like an arrow from a bow, pouncing fiercely at Su Yu and Hu Liena.
Its dark golden fur traced a sharp arc through the air, claws slicing with a tearing sound as they aimed straight for the duo's faces.
"Wood Style: Palisade Technique!"
Su Yu's eyes narrowed, his Soul Power erupting along his arms as a greenish light flashed.
Several thick Wooden Vines instantly twisted and intertwined, forming a heavy shield covered in fierce demon-face patterns in the blink of an eye.
"Thud!"
The Slanted-Eye Tiger's sharp claws slammed heavily onto the wooden shield, producing a dull, thunderous crash.
The shield trembled violently, its demonic face patterns twisting and writhing as if alive, stubbornly withstanding the powerful blow.
Su Yu felt a tremendous force surge through his arms, the ground beneath his feet sinking half an inch from the impact.
"Nana, now!"
Seizing the moment when the tiger's momentum had waned, Su Yu roared.
Hu Liena swiftly emerged from behind Su Yu, her timing impeccable.
"First Soul Skill•Fox Spirit Charm!"
Purple light flared abruptly in her eyes, like two flickering ghostly flames.
The Slanted-Eye Tiger's pouncing movement noticeably faltered; a brief daze flashed through its bell-sized eyes, and its ferocity diminished slightly.
Now!
Hu Liena flicked her wrist, her short blade slicing through the air with a sharp whistle, aimed directly at the tightly shut vertical eye on the tiger's forehead!
This was its most unique feature, and what everyone instinctively considered its weak point.
"Clang!"
A crisp sound rang out—not the dull thud of a blade piercing flesh, but rather the clang of metal on metal.
The short blade struck precisely at the eyelid covering the vertical eye, only to be repelled by an invisible force.
It clattered to the ground, the blade edge slightly curled.
"What?"
Hu Liena's heart jolted, shocked by the astonishing defense of the vertical eye.
The Slanted-Eye Tiger was fully awakened by the strike, its daze vanishing instantly, replaced by even more frenzied rage.
It shook its head violently, the tightly shut vertical eye on its forehead suddenly cracking open a slit, revealing a murky yellow pupil within as a scorching surge of Soul Power began to gather!
"Watch out for its vertical eye attack!"
Su Yu's expression shifted slightly as he yanked Hu Liena behind him, simultaneously channeling his Soul Power.
The demonic face patterns on the wooden vine shield glowed once more, its thickness increasing by several folds.
The Slanted-Eye Tiger's vertical eye fully opened, and a yellow beam shot out like a laser, carrying an aura of destruction straight toward the two!
Su Yu's arm muscles tensed, bracing the demon-faced wooden shield firmly as he withstood the purple beam fired from the tiger's vertical eye.
The beam struck the shield with a sizzling burn, the demonic face patterns on the wooden surface contorting and deforming under the impact.
Wood chips scattered like rain, the originally thick shield visibly charring and crumbling at a rapid pace.
"Hah—"
Su Yu gritted his teeth, veins bulging at his temples, pouring Soul Power like a tidal wave into the wooden shield.
Fresh wooden vines sprouted wildly from the shattered areas, twisting and entangling to instantly fill the gaps, reforging the faltering shield.
Seeing its attack blocked, the Slanted-Eye Tiger was somewhat taken aback.
"Wood Style: Thorns Kill Technique!"
Su Yu slammed his palms onto the ground, and several thick wooden vines burst forth from the earth with a sharp whistle.
They twisted like serpents, coiling toward the Slanted-Eye Tiger, their surfaces covered in sharp thorns glinting coldly in the sunlight.
The Slanted-Eye Tiger clearly hadn't anticipated Su Yu's counterattack to be so swift. It leaped backward to evade the two vines attacking head-on.
But it was struck on the flank by a vine sweeping in from the side, letting out a pained growl as the ferocity in its eyes intensified.
The Slanted-Eye Tiger licked the whiskers at the corner of its mouth, its body nimbly weaving through the dense gaps in the vines, its speed now several times faster than before.
Su Yu frowned deeply, his hands continuously forming seals as he muttered under his breath:
"Bind!"
The ground trembled once more as more Wooden Vines surged from all directions, weaving into an impenetrable net that sealed off the Slanted-Eye Tiger's retreat layer by layer.
Watching the Wooden Vine net closing in on it, the Slanted-Eye Tiger opened its vertical eye, and purple Soul Power burned a gap through the net.