In a mountain range near the Heaven-Stepping Sect, Lin Hao proceeded alone, moving with caution.

After witnessing Yunxi’s beast-taming techniques in the Mo Yun Kingdom, Lin Hao had been filled with anticipation for the mysterious Array Pattern Skill. He had always wanted to practice it, but unfortunately, never had the opportunity.

When facing a powerful foe, the Carefree Divine Monarch—a master unskilled in martial arts—would remain calm and collected. He would casually scatter a few paper pellets, each the size of his pinky finger, and countless Devil Beasts would surge forth.

The Devil Beasts became soldiers at his command, their numbers blotting out the sun and sky!

An army from scattered beans!

This was the miraculous Array Pattern Skill!

If Lin Hao had been able to create soldiers with the Array Pattern Skill earlier, he wouldn’t have been stopped at Flame Heaven City back in the Mo Yun Kingdom.

In truth, the knowledge of the Array Pattern Skill had surfaced in his mind when his cultivation reached the Elemental Realm, but the time hadn’t been right to use it.

The reason was simple: the Array Pattern Skill required the user to have immense Spiritual Power.

Back then, while his cultivation was adequate, his Spiritual Power was nowhere near strong enough.

Moreover, his cultivation level itself was a major limitation.

The Carefree Divine Monarch was unskilled in martial arts; the Devil Beasts he used to create soldiers were all captured for him by peerless Martial Artists seeking his favor.

Those Martial Artists were all exceptionally powerful, and the Devil Beasts they captured were Tier Three at the very least.

By the late stage of the Elemental Realm, Lin Hao could just barely use the Array Pattern Skill, but with his cultivation, he could only capture Tier Three Early Stage Devil Beasts at most.

Not only were such Devil Beasts not very powerful in combat, but using the Array Pattern Skill also risked exposing himself. Therefore, Lin Hao had chosen to forgo it.

Of course, Lin Hao’s current cultivation wasn’t high either. However, his Spiritual Power had grown much more formidable. He could now use the Array Pattern Skill dozens of times, whereas before he could only manage it once. While this was still a far cry from the Carefree Divine Monarch at his peak, for Lin Hao, it was enough.

This meant Lin Hao could create dozens of soldiers with the Array Pattern Skill, and each soldier would have the combat power of a Soul Gathering Realm expert!

An army of dozens of these soldiers would be equivalent to dozens of Soul Gathering Realm Martial Artists attacking at once—a force that could not be ignored!

Of course, this was a bit optimistic, as it all depended on having dozens of Devil Beasts to begin with.

And dozens of Tier Three Devil Beasts were not so easy to catch.

Indeed, Lin Hao had been in this mountain range for a long time now, yet he hadn’t caught a single Devil Beast.

Finally, after advancing cautiously for another hundred meters or so, Lin Hao spotted his prey.

The instant he spotted his prey, it spotted him too.

It was a Tier Three Devil Beast—a Frenzied Demon Bear.

True to its name, the Demon Bear’s fur was pitch-black, and its eyes roiled with a demonic energy.

Upon seeing Lin Hao, it roared and charged.

On its rampage, it destroyed everything in its path.

Massive trees that would take several people to encircle with their arms were snapped in two. The edges of huge boulders shattered under its savage charge.

RUMBLE!

The ground trembled and the distant trees rustled violently. The commotion caused by the Frenzied Demon Bear was staggering.

Lin Hao, in contrast, stood motionless as a statue, his eyes narrowed.

ROAR!

The Frenzied Demon Bear charged right up to Lin Hao, roaring as it lunged. A putrid stench erupted from its gaping maw.

Only then did Lin Hao move.

SWOOSH!

Lin Hao’s Body Technique was incredibly fast; he became a blur as he dodged aside.

BOOM!

The force of the Demon Bear’s pounce was astounding. A massive crater, dozens of meters wide, instantly appeared where Lin Hao had just been standing. The surrounding Ancient Trees toppled over, and dust danced wildly in the air.

By now, Lin Hao had already come to a stop several dozen meters behind the Demon Bear.

Having stopped, Lin Hao wasn’t idle. A sheet of yellow paper appeared in his hand.

He casually flicked the paper, and it hovered in midair. The next moment, Lin Hao pricked the tip of his right middle finger.

The instant a bead of blood appeared, his fingertip touched the hovering paper.

Then, with a flurry of movements from his fingertip, a strange, blood-red pattern materialized on the paper.

With one hand behind his back, his other hand moved with the fluid grace of dragons and phoenixes, drawing at incredible speed.

ROAR!

Another roar echoed out. The surrounding dead leaves and withered grass were whipped into the air, only to be blasted into dust by the force of the sound.

The Demon Bear had spotted Lin Hao and lunged at him once more.

Lin Hao was completely focused, paying no mind to the approaching Demon Bear.

The Demon Bear was incredibly fast, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

Just as the Demon Bear swiped with its massive paw, Lin Hao’s fingertip paused in its work, and then he flicked the paper forward with a casual wave.

The thin sheet of yellow paper collided with the Demon Bear’s enormous paw.

Then, something bizarre happened.

The Demon Bear let out a mournful howl and collapsed with a thud. Meanwhile, the thin yellow paper began to shrink at a visible rate.

In moments, the paper vanished. Lin Hao beckoned with his hand, and when he opened his palm, a single soybean lay in its center.

*Whimper...*

A whimper escaped the fallen Demon Bear.

Seeing Lin Hao approach, the Demon Bear’s body began to tremble uncontrollably.

If anyone else had been there, they would have realized this was no longer a Frenzied Demon Bear, for the Beast Soul within its body was gone.

Just as Martial Artists have a Divine Soul, Devil Beasts possess a Beast Soul.

The Divine Soul is a Martial Artist’s second life; as long as the Divine Soul remains, one can even reconstruct their body. It is much the same for a Devil Beast. In fact, in a certain sense, the Beast Soul is even more important. This is because to possess a Devil Beast’s Beast Soul is to possess the Devil Beast itself.

As someone with a Beast Taming Royal Body, Yunxi controlled the Beast Souls of Devil Beasts. The small blood leopard that appeared on the Cangyun Battlefield was one such Beast Soul.

When a Martial Artist loses their Divine Soul, their cultivation realm plummets, and they risk becoming witless or even dying. The same is true for a Devil Beast that loses its Beast Soul. Having lost its soul, the Demon Bear was now just an ordinary animal. Before a Martial Artist like Lin Hao, it would naturally feel instinctive fear.

Lin Hao closed his fist around the "soybean" and placed his other hand on the Demon Bear’s head.

The Demon Bear, which just moments ago had arrogantly tried to hunt him, was now too terrified to move.

But Lin Hao had no intention of killing it. Instead, he infused a stream of True Essence into its body.

"Seeing as you’ve helped me obtain my first soldier, I’ll let you go." Lin Hao pulled his hand back and let the Demon Bear leave.

A Demon Bear without its Beast Soul was just an ordinary animal. If Lin Hao hadn’t infused it with True Essence, it would have become prey for other Devil Beasts the moment he left.

Having done this, Lin Hao paid the Demon Bear no more mind and continued on his way.

With his first soldier acquired, Lin Hao naturally wanted to expand upon his success.

Lin Hao had already ventured deep into the mountains and was now surrounded by primeval jungle.

There weren’t many Martial Artists in the Heaven-Stepping Sect who had reached the Soul Gathering Realm, so almost no one had ever set foot in the area where he now stood.

Thus, Lin Hao became even more cautious.

Tier Three Devil Beasts possessed intelligence, so Lin Hao didn’t dare let his guard down in the slightest.

However, after advancing another few hundred meters, Lin Hao still hadn’t found any sign of other Devil Beasts.

Just as Lin Hao was wondering why, a beast’s roar suddenly rang out...