"Evil Tiger Sharks?"
Xue E repeated the name in a low voice. Rather than fear, a trace of excitement appeared on his face as he turned to Bai Chen.
"Young Master, they might actually be perfect for your soul ring."
Xu Xiaoyan asked curiously,
"Uncle Xue, what kind of sea soul beast is an Evil Tiger Shark?"
Xue E smiled and patiently explained.
"Evil Tiger Sharks are said to be a hybrid species born from the Evil Orca and the Great White Demon Shark. Those two races are mortal enemies, yet for some unknown reason humans discovered this new species about three thousand years ago."
"They possess the strengths of both species. Even among all sea soul beasts, they belong to the top tier in terms of power."
"However, despite their strong bloodline talent, they actually live very poorly in the ocean."
Xu Xiaoyu asked curiously,
"Why is that?"
"There are two main reasons."
Xue E continued calmly.
"The first reason is that both of their parent races—Evil Orcas and Great White Demon Sharks—refuse to acknowledge them."
"For those two species, which are sworn enemies, the existence of the Evil Tiger Shark is a disgrace. It represents a stain on their bloodline."
"So whenever either race discovers traces of an Evil Tiger Shark pack, they will immediately launch an attack and wipe them out completely."
"As for the second reason… it has to do with their innate ability."
At this point, Xue E paused and looked meaningfully at Bai Chen.
"The primary attribute of the Evil Tiger Shark race is evil. They can accelerate their cultivation by devouring other sea soul beasts."
"Because of this, almost every sea soul beast in the ocean hates them."
"I see…" Xu Xiaoyu nodded in realization.
"No wonder that Soul Saint said their leader had fifty thousand years of cultivation. I was wondering how a species that has only existed for about three thousand years could produce so many ten-thousand-year soul beasts."
Xue E nodded lightly.
"Exactly. And because they're hated by nearly all sea soul beasts, they don't have fixed territories. Their movements are extremely unpredictable."
"I didn't expect us to run into them this time."
Hearing this explanation, Bai Chen looked toward the Evil Tiger Sharks currently fighting the soul masters.
His expression became slightly strange.
If a species that had existed for only three thousand years could produce fifty-thousand-year individuals, it clearly showed how terrifying the devouring cultivation method was.
Thinking of the Dark Blood Demon and the Underworld Emperor from the Holy Spirit Cult, who both became Title Douluo before the age of twenty, Bai Chen could suddenly understand why they were so obsessed with cultivating through slaughter.
But the more he understood it—
the more he refused to imitate it.
Bai Chen knew himself very well.
He wasn't someone with extremely strong self-control.
If he tasted the sweetness of rapid cultivation through killing, he couldn't guarantee he wouldn't become an evil soul master.
The best way to avoid becoming a gambler is never to gamble in the first place.
Likewise, the best way to avoid becoming an evil soul master is never to cultivate through killing.
That said—
if everything Xue E said was true, then Evil Tiger Sharks were indeed perfect soul ring candidates for Bai Chen's Dark Demon Evil Tiger martial soul.
Bai Chen and Xue E exchanged a glance.
Both instantly understood what the other was thinking.
Xue E turned to Bai Chen and the others.
"You three wait here for a moment. I'll go speak with the person in charge of this operation."
With that, he hurried toward the bow of the ship to negotiate with the powerful soul masters currently fighting the Evil Tiger Shark pack.
A short while later, he ran back.
"Young Master, they agreed. Prepare yourself to absorb the soul ring at any time."
Xu Xiaoyan asked curiously,
"Why are you telling Brother Bai Chen to prepare for absorption already? Don't we have to kill a soul beast first?"
A soul master could only absorb the soul ring of a beast they personally killed. That rule had already been demonstrated clearly in the previous hunting zones.
Skipping directly to the absorption step sounded strange.
Hearing her question, Bai Chen and Xue E looked at each other and burst out laughing.
Bai Chen said to Xu Xiaoyan,
"Xiaoyan… I suggest you cover your ears. Na'er, you too."
"Huh?"
The two little girls tilted their heads in confusion.
Before Xu Xiaoyan could ask another question—
"BOOM—!"
A deafening explosion suddenly shook the air.
Everyone looked toward the direction of the blast.
A ten-thousand-year Evil Tiger Shark, its body charred black, floated lifelessly on the surface.
A black soul ring slowly rose above its corpse.
But that was only the beginning.
Explosion after explosion erupted.
A storm of artillery fire rained down on the sea soul beasts, instantly reversing the previously tense situation.
Of course.
For an operation that carried the risk of death, how could the Federation possibly not equip the ship with soul cannon shells?
The reason humanity had managed to suppress soul beasts so thoroughly was precisely because of the rise of soul tool technology.
Earlier, when hunting weaker soul beasts, these weapons weren't used simply because there was no need.
If something could be solved through manpower, there was no reason to waste ammunition.
But now things were different.
The Evil Tiger Sharks had clearly become a real threat.
Which meant it was time for humanity's high-tech weapons to enter the battlefield.
Fire and explosions erupted across the ocean.
Soul rings rose one after another.
The Evil Tiger Shark pack, which had previously held the advantage, quickly collapsed under the barrage.
Eventually, the leading Evil Tiger Shark seemed to issue a command.
The remaining sharks dove back into the sea and retreated into the depths.
Seeing them withdraw, the white-robed Soul Saint quickly ordered the artillery fire to stop.
There was no need to chase a fleeing enemy.
Even if they could win a full battle, casualties would be inevitable—something the security personnel were obligated to avoid.
Among the clients on this voyage, only three people needed Evil Tiger Shark soul rings.
The corpses already floating on the sea were more than enough.
Under the Soul Saint's orders, the Soul Emperors descended from the ship and began retrieving the Evil Tiger Shark bodies and their soul rings.
As one of the top-tier sea soul beasts, the corpses of Evil Tiger Sharks were also valuable materials.
Selling them on land would easily offset the cost of the artillery shells used in battle.
Soon, the soul ring Bai Chen requested was brought before him by Xue E.
As Bai Chen accepted the soul tool that stored the soul ring, Xue E couldn't help asking:
"Young Master… why did you purchase two soul rings?"
Only Bai Chen and Xu Xiaoyan needed soul rings this time.
And Xu Xiaoyan didn't need an Evil Tiger Shark ring.
Buying two seemed like pure waste.
Even though the Bai family was wealthy, such wasteful behavior wasn't ideal.
Bai Chen looked down at the soul tool in his hand.
His heartbeat began to accelerate.
"Uncle Xue… just watch."
"You'll understand very soon."
One of his long-held theories was about to be tested.