"Eh? No need for that! With the Traveler here, we're perfectly safe!"
Paimon clenched her tiny fists confidently.
Clearly, she had absolute trust in Aether's strength.
Instructor Wang paused for a moment, her gaze subtly shifting toward Aether.
She had already observed the three of them when they first met. Among the trio, aside from the little girl, neither the peculiar flying girl nor the young man showed any trace of soul power.
There were only two possibilities in this situation.
One: the two of them truly had no soul power—commoners who, even after awakening their martial spirits, lacked the innate soul power to cultivate.
Two: their soul power levels were vastly superior to her own, and they were intentionally suppressing their aura, making it impossible for her to detect.
But in her heart, she was convinced it was the former. After all, neither of them looked like experienced soul masters.
And yet, this strange little girl was insisting that with the boy around, they'd be completely safe. She sounded utterly certain.
Could it be… that this boy was actually a hidden master?
Why did they feel so oddly familiar…
"You should really listen to my teacher. It's better than wandering around the forest and getting yourselves killed," Shui Bing'er advised with a sigh.
Even she had to admit that the girl named Keke possessed such astonishing talent that it left her in awe.
She knew that her teacher's persistence in trying to keep them here was mostly because of Keke.
But in her eyes, even a genius needed to grow into their potential before they could be called exceptional.
She took pride in her own strength, so rather than envy someone else's talent, she chose to support her teacher and help keep the gifted girl around.
As for the boy and the flying creature, she paid them little attention.
The boy was a bit handsome, sure—but she admired those stronger than herself. And aside from his unusual aura, he didn't seem all that impressive.
It was the floating creature that piqued her curiosity a little.
"It's fine. Thank you for your concern—we'll be on our way," Aether said with a nod, still expressing his gratitude.
Whatever their motives, it was true they didn't want the three of them to be in danger.
RUMBLE—!
Just as the trio was about to depart, the ground began to shake violently. Everyone froze in place, eyes turning toward the source of the sound.
What they saw made their hearts drop.
Thick smoke rolled across the distant forest. Trees were falling in droves.
The beast tide had returned!
"Not good! Quickly—protect Yue'er! You three, over here now!" Instructor Wang shouted as she rushed toward the spot where Shui Yue'er was absorbing her spirit ring, not forgetting to call out to Aether's group.
She had sensed several high-tier soul beasts among this wave.
If the tide was targeting them, there would be no chance of saving others like before—they themselves would be in dire peril.
"Traveler, I think those animals we scared off earlier have come back~" Paimon whispered into Aether's ear.
"Yeah. At least now we know which soul beasts to look for—this might be the perfect opportunity to find one. Saves us from wandering around," Aether nodded.
"Right! That does make things easier!" Paimon agreed cheerfully.
"You three! Hurry, the beast tide's almost here!". Instructor Wang's shout cut through their conversation.
If they tried to flee now, they'd never outrun the beasts.
It was better to stick together. Even if she couldn't protect everyone, they had to try. It was the only option.
Shui Yue'er's absorption of her third spirit ring would take five to six hours at best, or up to a whole day. They couldn't abandon her.
"Alright, let's go join them," Aether said, grabbing Keke's hand. Paimon floated onto his shoulder as they headed over to Shui Bing'er's group.
To Aether, the beast tide posed no real danger. But since the others were acting out of goodwill, there was no need to reject them.
And if he could find a suitable soul beast while helping them fend off the tide, it would be a fitting return for their earlier advice.
"Bing'er, stay behind. Instructor Xu and I will hold the front and intercept the beasts.
If any manage to slip past us, you stop them—don't let them interrupt Yue'er's absorption!" Instructor Wang ordered.
The rumbling of the approaching beast tide grew louder, clearly headed their way.
She and Instructor Xu stepped forward without hesitation.
ROAR—!
A series of wild, ferocious roars rang out from the tide, darkening Instructor Wang's expression.
"Sister Wang, I think… there are several ten-thousand-year soul beasts in there…" Instructor Xu said, voice trembling.
They hadn't even fully recovered their soul power, and now a stronger wave of beasts was charging in.
"Mm…"
Instructor Wang responded faintly. The faint hope she'd clung to vanished.
Those howls… they belonged to soul beasts of seventy or eighty thousand years.
If she were alone, she might not be able to win—but escaping wouldn't be too difficult.
But now, with Yue'er mid-absorption, fleeing was out of the question.
Interrupting the process would cause irreversible harm—crippling injury, or worse, death.
Damn it! How did we end up in this desperate situation again?! I should've sent Bing'er back to the academy for reinforcements!
Even if we all failed to hold the line, at least she would have been safe…
She turned to look behind her.
Now it wasn't just her group in danger—even that boy and his companions would likely…
ROAR—!
The beast tide was nearly upon them. From the clouds of dust, a few particularly vicious-looking soul beasts charged in the lead.
One of them—a lion with a fiery mane—let out a mighty roar that actually slowed the entire beast tide behind it.
"…"
The strange behavior stunned Instructor Wang, who had already resolved herself to death.
ROAR—!
As the lion let out a low growl, the tide slowed further, until the front ranks stopped just before reaching the group.
Its sharp gaze scanned the humans as it began pacing in front of them.
Then, three enormous beasts emerged from the crowd. Their soul power might not have been as intense as the flaming lion's, but even one of them would be a formidable opponent in a one-on-one fight.
Now there were several of them—at once. For Instructor Wang and her group, it meant certain death.
"Is this… fate?"
Regret flooded her chest. She cursed herself bitterly.
To encounter a beast tide on the forest outskirts was rare enough. They'd already survived one by sheer luck.
Yet instead of calling for backup when the first wave retreated, she had allowed everyone to fall into this deathtrap.
Now, not only was her group doomed, but even that boy and his companions are doomed as well.
_
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