Although the Soul Guard possess only bodies comparable to true gods, their power remains overwhelming—in the realm below godhood, they are virtually invincible. Even with all the Ji Clan's resources, after so many years, they've managed to create only twelve Soul Guard.
To ensure that Ian Song could be captured alive, Fifth Master Ji planned to mobilize four Soul Guard.
The Soul Guard are one of the Ji Clan’s trump cards. Over the years, the most they've ever deployed at once was three. Mobilizing four this time shows just how seriously they’re taking Ian Song.
After the meeting ended, Fifth Master Ji hurried to a pocket-world hidden deep within the Ji Clan estate.
Aside from their souls, the Soul Guard are no longer human in any way. They don’t need to eat or drink, so they normally sleep until activated.
The whole pocket-world felt desolate—the sky was gray, and there wasn’t a single trace of green on the ground.
At the center of this pocket-world stood twelve massive bronze coffins. These coffins were special artifacts—while lying inside, the soul would remain suspended.
After all, even souls can decay. With these bronze coffins, a Soul Guard can survive for at least a hundred thousand years.
Gazing at the twelve bronze coffins, a burning light flashed in Fifth Master Ji’s eyes. Then, four command tokens engraved with complex soul runes appeared in his hand.
With a flick of his wrist, the four tokens shot out and sank into the hollows atop the coffins. A moment later, accompanied by a deep grinding sound, the coffin lids slowly began to open.
With a single step, Fifth Master Ji rose into midair, weaving a series of complex hand seals to awaken the four Soul Guard inside the coffins.
“Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!”
As the awakening seals activated, deep, guttural roars echoed from within the coffins, like ancient beasts raging in the wild. Fifth Master Ji’s face grew tense and wary.
A moment later, four gigantic figures rose from the coffins, each standing three meters tall.
Each had a pair of blood-red eyes, radiating endless malice. Though their souls were human, they could no longer be called people, nor enjoy any human rights.
Over the ages, each Soul Guard had built up endless resentment in their hearts, and naturally, their thirst for blood had grown just as deep.
“Roar! Roar!”
Suddenly, two Soul Guard lunged straight at Fifth Master Ji, their eyes gleaming with murderous intent, desperate to tear him to shreds.
Fortunately, Fifth Master Ji was prepared. He quickly recited a profound control mantra.
Instantly, the two charging Soul Guard froze in place, their faces twisted in pain.
This mantra was specifically designed to control the Soul Guard.
A flash of unwillingness flickered in the eyes of the two Soul Guard who had tried to attack Fifth Master Ji, but in the end, they bowed their heads before him. The other two weren’t as impulsive, but their gazes toward Fifth Master Ji were still hostile.
The Ji Clan turned them into these monstrous, neither-human-nor-ghost beings. Though they gained great power, they felt no gratitude toward the Ji Clan—only hatred.
They couldn’t enjoy anything humans did—no family, no descendants, no future. They were just tools, tools with thoughts of their own.
Seeing the Soul Guard quiet down under the control mantra, Fifth Master Ji secretly sighed in relief. Everyone envied his power over the Soul Guard, but no one knew that every awakening was incredibly dangerous—a single slip, and he might be devoured by them.
Next, Fifth Master Ji spoke: "Soon, you’ll come with me to capture a man named Evan Chu. You must restrain yourselves—don’t kill him!"
A trace of dissatisfaction flashed in the eyes of the four Soul Guard, but they nodded in agreement.
Turned into these monstrous, neither-human-nor-ghost beings, all they wanted was slaughter. Only through frenzied killing could they vent their anger and malice.
“Don’t worry. Once we catch Evan Chu, I’ll give you three days to vent!” Fifth Master Ji added.
At these words, smiles finally appeared on the faces of the four Soul Guard.
So-called "venting" meant slaughter. Three days of venting could let them kill at least hundreds of thousands.
Let’s go!
With that, Fifth Master Ji led the four Soul Guard and flew out of the pocket-world.
The night was as dark as ink, but inside Ian Song’s room, spring was in full bloom.
Because Lynne Ward was too exhausted from last night’s “battle,” Lena Wei had to come help tonight. Twin phoenixes playing with the dragon?
No.
Even with the two women working together, they still couldn’t withstand Ian Song’s ferocious stamina and were beaten into utter defeat.
Just as Ian Song was charging ahead, he suddenly shivered all over, inwardly cursing. Without hesitation, he swept Lena Wei and Lynne Ward into the Divine Temple, then, not even bothering to put on clothes, teleported straight to Chloe Snow’s room.
Although it was already late at night, Chloe hadn’t gone to sleep yet and was playing poker at the table with Yanna Zhou. Ian Song’s deck had so many variations that the women could pass their time in all sorts of ways.
“Ah! Pervert!”
Ian Song said gravely.
Just then, two sky-shrouding giant palms attacked from front and back. The terrifying aura made Leo Liu’s face turn deathly pale.
Go!
Ian Song kicked Leo Liu out of harm’s way, then threw out two punches, one for each palm.
Boom! Boom!
Fists and palms collided, and instantly, the void exploded into a black hole. Shockwaves radiated out, destroying rows of buildings below.
Somewhere in the void outside the manor.
Fifth Master Ji watched this scene, his eyes narrowing slightly. He thought to himself, This Evan Chu really is extraordinary—he can actually go head-to-head with two Soul Guard. Looks like he’s hiding an incredible secret!
Die!
Just then, two unmatched blades of light slashed down, illuminating the entire sky. But the dense aura of death within those blades was enough to make every living being within a hundred li tremble in soul-deep fear.
The Soul Guard’s attack had truly begun. The Ji Clan’s secret war against Ian Song was no longer just scheming—it had escalated into outright extermination, even at the cost of mass casualties.
Ian Song hovered above the devastated estate, his robe billowing in the night wind.
He projected his voice, booming across the city: "All your schemes crumble before absolute strength. If the Ji Clan dares plot against me or my companions again, weigh the cost carefully!"
His words shocked the entire capital. News spread instantly: Evan Chu, a youth from the outer regions, destroyed the Imperial Dragon Arena, killed Yann Ji in one blow, and openly threatened the Ji Clan.
The city’s arrogant nobles and geniuses, who once mocked him as a hanger-on of the Dragonfolk Third Prince, abruptly went silent or pretended to hide away.
That night, Ji patriarch Jasper Ji returned to a tense Ji estate and learned that Yann Ji was dead.
He convened an elders’ council and reviewed a jade-slip dossier summarizing Evan Chu’s meteoric rise—from a minor junior to someone whose strength now surpassed ninth-tier War Generals in less than a year.
The elders judged this speed impossible for any normal cultivator and suspected Evan Chu was either a reincarnated divinity or had refined a fallen god’s Godhead Crystal.
Some elders proposed capturing Evan Chu alive, torturing out his secrets, and refining him into a living puppet.
Seeing the strategic benefit, Jasper Ji agreed and authorized deployment of the Ji Clan’s most terrifying hidden trump card: the Soul Guard.
These twelve entities were human souls transplanted into specially refined bodies as tough as, or tougher than, a true god’s physique.
Stored in bronze coffins within a desolate private pocket-world at the back of the Ji estate, they slept in suspended animation and could live at least a hundred thousand years.
Legally not ‘people,’ they had no rights, families, or futures; they existed as conscious weapons driven by mounting resentment and bloodlust.
Only a few Ji elites could awaken and control them, among them Fifth Master Ji.
Others envied his authority over this trump card, but he knew that every awakening was deadly: if his control mantra slipped, the Soul Guard might turn on him.
To capture Evan Chu alive, Jasper Ji ordered him to do the unprecedented—wake four Soul Guard at once, more than the clan had ever fielded simultaneously.
Fifth Master Ji entered the Ji Clan’s inner pocket-world, approached the ring of twelve massive bronze coffins, and inserted four engraved command tokens.
As the coffin lids ground open, he hovered in mid-air, weaving complex seals and reciting a secret soul-mantra.
Four towering figures, three meters tall with blood-red eyes and overwhelming murderous aura, stirred awake. Although they retained human souls, their bodies were wholly artificial; over time, denied all human rights, relationships, or hopes, they had built up immense hatred and a frenzied lust to kill.
Two Soul Guard instantly lunged to tear Fifth Master Ji apart, but he quickly invoked the control chant. Agony twisted their faces and forced them to halt, then reluctantly bow. The other two also glared at him with deep hostility. Fifth Master Ji breathed inward relief; this scene proved again how dangerous each awakening was.