With a cold smile on his face, Zheng Changde cast a glance into the depths of the dense forest before drawing a longsword from his waist.

The sword was of the same length and width as a normal treasure sword, gleaming with a cold light so bright that it could reflect one's silhouette.

The only difference was that within the blade, faint red halos seemed to shimmer, and within those halos, a fire snake seemed to be faintly visible.

"It seems some people need to be taught a harsh lesson!" Zheng Changde muttered to himself, stroking the sword with his fingers, a look of fondness in his eyes.

No one noticed that as Zheng Changde's fingers brushed the sword, a faint green light circled his fingertips, continually infusing into the sword. With the infusion of green light, a small, lifelike snake slowly emerged on the sword, slithering around within the narrow space of the sword as if it were alive.

Soon, the gradually injected green light surged, and Zheng Changde gripped the sword hilt tightly with one hand, the green light in his hand flashing constantly, his own aura continuously rising.

"Release, those raging flames!" Zheng Changde shouted as several fire snakes suddenly burst from the sword blade, pausing momentarily in the air before shooting deep into the dense forest.

...

Just as several bandit leaders became puzzled at the sudden bad premonition they felt, a blaze appeared in their vision. The fire took the form of snakes, clearly visible as they roared and twisted menacingly in the air!

"Not good, run!"

A terrifying pressure descended, making everyone feel as if a heavy stone was pressing on their hearts. Cold sweat instantly broke out on their foreheads, their limbs went soft, and all they could do was stare blankly at the fire snakes rushing toward them.

Boom...

Boom...

Boom...

The fire snakes came whooshing down without any pause, crashing toward their targets.

Zhu Bufan and his companions first heard a series of booming explosions, followed by a burst of flames like soaring fireballs, each about ten feet wide. Then flames shot skyward, driven by the howling north wind, spreading the blaze to all sides. In the blink of an eye, the entire Panlong Ridge was engulfed in a sea of fire.

Witnessing all this, even Zheng Changde himself was utterly shocked.

"The Soul Seal Device, indeed formidable, worthy of being a weapon only innate masters can wield. Unfortunately, the energy consumption for me is too great!" Feeling the sudden depletion of seventy percent of his Inner Qi, Zheng Changde couldn't help but think to himself.

"The Soul Seal Device, ah, Zheng Changde actually possesses a Soul Seal Device. This must be reported to the young lady immediately!" Deep within the dense forest, a figure stood leaning against a tree, completely hidden within a fog, making it impossible to discern his appearance, with only two bright eyes peering through.

The flames burned around him, yet as soon as they neared his body, they instantly extinguished, vanished without a trace, posing no threat to him.

The old man glanced once more at Zheng Changde, his body swayed slightly before retreating into the depths of the sea of fire and disappearing.

As he vanished, there was a slight fluctuation in his aura, revealing itself.

"Hmm!" Zheng Changde's expression shifted, casting his gaze into the depths of the dense forest, his expression uncertain.

...

"The Soul Seal Device!"

As the fire snakes appeared, a voice rang simultaneously in Zhu Bufan's heart and mind — one from his own thoughts, and one from Lan Lao.

"Oh, Xiaofeng, you know about the Soul Seal Device too?" Lan Lao asked curiously.

"Of course, I almost died to a Soul Seal Device!" Zhu Bufan's eyes glimmered with a strange light.

Then, Zhu Bufan recounted the incident he encountered on the Endless Ice Field last time.

"Oh, the Bear's Knife! Hmm, it was because you faced a deadly threat that triggered the protective function of the Eye of Mang Sea, slightly restoring its primordial Qi!" Lan Lao said with a smile.

"By the way, Grandpa, I still have the Bear's Knife, but..." At this point, Zhu Bufan paused slightly, "But it's said that there's... a trace of its former owner's will inside!"

Upon hearing this, the astute Lan Lao naturally picked up on the abnormality in Zhu Bufan's tone, "The former owner of the Bear's Knife is?"

"Zhou... Xiaotian..." After a moment of silence, Zhu Bufan still couldn't bring himself to utter the word 'father,' instead mentioning Zhou Xiaotian's name.

"Haha, good, so he left a trace of his will? Hmph, I want to see, after ten years, how far the once postnatal peak Zhou Xiaotian has grown after inheriting the king's energy!" Lan Lao said with a faint smile.

"Right, given that he left a trace of his will in it, wouldn't he be aware of my actions?" Zhu Bufan trembled slightly, quickly asking.

"Haha, don't worry, imprinting a trace of will into a Soul Seal Device is akin to how we previously made the Eye of Mang Sea recognize its owner. However, the Soul Seal governs through the will method of recognition, and it can be snatched and forcibly erased by a stronger power, removing the will imprint within the Soul Seal Device. However, the Eye of Mang Sea, unless severed by the owner, cannot be isolated by others; at most, it can be sealed or completely shattered!" Lan Lao explained with a smile. "Now, while Zhou Xiaotian can sense the location of the Bear's Knife, he cannot perceive who is controlling it. So, Xiaofeng, you can rest assured!"

"That's good, I can finally be at ease!" Zhu Bufan sighed in relief and then added, "But even so, erasing the will imprint in a Soul Seal Device must not be an easy task!" Zhu Bufan frowned.

"For ordinary people, that's indeed the case, but for me, it's not so difficult. Didn't you say Zhou Xiaotian is still in the capital of Li Chu Country? Once we settle in You State, I'll take action and help you refine Zhou Xiaotian's will so you can fully control the Bear's Knife! This way, you'll have at least one extra safeguard!"

Hearing this, Zhu Bufan nodded silently.

The soul transmission of messages was extremely fast; despite this extensive conversation between Zhu Bufan and Lan Lao, it only took the blink of an eye in reality.

Zheng Changde took a deep look at the spot where the black-clothed man had disappeared, snorted coldly through his nose, and with two leaps, returned to the troop.

"Everyone rests for an hour in place, and the Guard Team makes the necessary arrangements!" Zheng Changde loudly ordered.

"Yes..."

An apparently bizarre farce ended abruptly before it even began. For this, Zhu Bufan and the others were left baffled, totally in the dark.

Little did they know, this was the prelude to a storm, a storm, which, although not aimed at Zhu Bufan, also swept him into its midst.

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