"Brother Tian Meng, as we planned, I'll temporarily entrust my body to you," Jun Tianlin transmitted his voice into the sea of spirit.
Tian Meng released his spiritual power, responding warmly, "No problem, Xiaotian. Leave it to me."
Swapping places with Jun Tianlin's soul, Tian Meng used Jun Tianlin's body to emit continuous waves of spiritual fluctuations.
This unique aura instantly stirred the vigilance of every beast in the Star Dou Great Forest.
Especially the nearby Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. It was in the middle of eating when it sensed the aura and swallowed a massive chunk of gold whole without even chewing. "This feeling… is it the Golden Pattern Ice Silkworm? Could it still be alive?"
When Tian Meng had been taken by Jun Tianlin, the bear had been furious for a long time but hadn't dared to search widely—doing so would expose the fact that Tian Meng had always been in its territory. If it provoked the Emperor, it wouldn't end well.
Meanwhile, the Red King, Yao Ling, Zi Ji, and other powerful beasts also sensed the aura and immediately charged toward its source. This cultivation treasure had appeared again—there was no way they'd let it go.
The most shocked among them was Di Tian. Others might not know, but he'd always believed Tian Meng was dead. "How is this possible? Did it actually survive a million-year divine tribulation?"
"The master is still in seclusion, recovering from injuries. If we can capture this ice silkworm and harness its divine power, perhaps the master's recovery can be accelerated."
In his mind, even if Tian Meng had truly ascended to godhood, it couldn't pose a threat to him. At most, its spiritual power was formidable, but it had no offensive capability, and its physical power was negligible. As long as he fortified his mental defenses, Tian Meng would be like a fish on the chopping block.
With this thought, he wasted no time and soared toward Jun Tianlin.
At that moment, Jun Tianlin swapped souls with Tian Meng again.
"Xiaotian, our plan worked. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear is closing in. And just like you expected—even Di Tian and the others are coming," Tian Meng informed him.
Jun Tianlin's eyes were resolute. "Good. Time is tight. We have only one chance. We must succeed—there's no room for failure!"
"Teleport!"
He vanished, reappearing at the entrance of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's cave. The Earth Behemoth was still there.
After all, it wasn't qualified to compete for Tian Meng, who hadn't yet reached 100,000 years of cultivation. Even the Titan Giant Ape and Sky Blue Bull Python, ancient species over 100,000 years old, lacked that qualification. The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear treasured this little brother and wouldn't risk leaving it behind amid the chaos of the beast horde.
"Xiaotian, we must act fast. Once the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear realizes what's happening, it'll rush back. Even though it's not a speed-type beast, it can cover several kilometers in less than 20 seconds at full sprint," Tian Meng reminded.
"I know." Jun Tianlin didn't hesitate. "First soul skill: Frostbite Edge!"
A deep roar echoed from the cave as the Earth Behemoth charged out, its body shimmering with faint ice crystals. After all, this was the Ultimate Ice—how could it be so easily resisted?
"Hey, big guy, remember me?" Jun Tianlin infused his voice with a trace of Tian Meng's aura, mimicking his tone. "I've been waiting for this day to take revenge on you."
Meanwhile, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear arrived at Jun Tianlin's previous location—only to find nothing. Then, it detected Tian Meng's aura near its cave entrance.
It roared furiously, realizing too late that this was a diversion. Enraged, it thundered back toward the cave at astonishing speed for its massive frame.
Jun Tianlin felt the earth tremble beneath him. "No time left."
"Extinction of the Three Realms!"
He unleashed the Seven Killing Sword's final move, channeling all sword energy and killing intent into the blade's tip, striking at the last possible moment.
The sheer destructive power made the Earth Behemoth feel genuine danger.
But it wasn't just any creature—it had nearly 100,000 years of cultivation. Its massive claws, covered in hardened blood, swung toward Jun Tianlin's Demon Sword.
As expected from a Behemoth's descendant, its strength dwarfed even Tang San's martial soul avatar. Few Emperor-level experts could match such raw power. Jun Tianlin was instantly overpowered.
Yet the Demon Sword's resilience kept him from immediate defeat. The Extinction of the Three Realms successfully neutralized much of the Behemoth's strength.
As the beast followed up with another powerful strike, light flared from Jun Tianlin's forehead. A barrier formed—the million-year soul bone's Mental Interference Field.
This technique distorted the opponent's perception, causing the Earth Behemoth to miss. Instead of grabbing Jun Tianlin, it caught a talisman he'd thrown.
This was the Douzhuan Xingyi Talisman—a talisman whose weakness was that it only reversed input soul power. To teleport the Earth Behemoth, the beast had to channel soul power into the talisman.
But its immense strength could have shattered the talisman's barrier. That's why Jun Tianlin had to weaken its output with the Extinction of the Three Realms first.
As the last of the Behemoth's power flowed into the talisman, a space rift opened—and the Earth Behemoth vanished.
Jun Tianlin pulled out another pre-prepared talisman and disappeared as well.
At that moment, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear returned to the cave entrance—just in time to see Jun Tianlin and the Earth Behemoth vanish. Unable to sense their presence, it realized they'd been teleported far away.
The furious roar of the Bear King echoed through the Star Dou Great Forest. Countless weaker spirit beasts were scared to death on the spot. Even the Titan Giant Ape and Sky Blue Bull Python trembled in fear—after all, their cultivation was only 100,000 years, far beneath the 400,000-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear.
Sunset Forest, Gale Valley
Amid a spatial distortion, two figures materialized.
The Earth Behemoth glanced around curiously—this was clearly no longer the Star Dou Great Forest. It had been teleported elsewhere.
"Silly big guy, stop gawking." Jun Tianlin smiled coldly. "This is Gale Valley, Sunset Forest. It's our battlefield—your final resting place."
"You're a few years shy of 100,000 years, right? Allow me to bridge that gap for you."
"Fifth soul skill: Phantom Water Thunder!"
Jun Tianlin's Phantom Water Thunder worked differently on soul beasts than on humans. Against soul masters, the stronger the opponent, the lower the boost. But for spirit beasts, the increase was fixed.
In an instant, the Earth Behemoth's bottleneck shattered—it crossed the final threshold.
A newly born 100,000-year-old Behemoth roared into existence.
Jun Tianlin knew he couldn't defeat it in a direct clash. With the Behemoth's terrifying defense, even his Devil Flame Flash Sky Slash wouldn't work upfront. It had to be weakened first.
And for that, Jun Tianlin had already devised a cunning, shameless strategy.