At first, the trainees moved with great caution; after all, this was the Phantom Lynx's territory. Imagine how nervous you'd be if you were sneaking into someone else's home to do something.
It wasn't until the motion-sensing soul-guided devices on the outermost perimeter were installed—allowing the trainees to receive basic alarm notifications—that they gradually picked up the pace. Fortunately, everyone managed to complete the series of preparations before it grew completely dark in the forest. Perhaps the Phantom Lynx had indeed remained in its lair the whole time, conserving energy for its nighttime activities, and thus did not cause the trainees any trouble.
Staying inside the sturdy bunker with Oscar and Ning Rongrong, Oschin began operating a sonic soul-guided device to emit a fixed-frequency sound.
That's right—during this battle, the three students whose Soul Skills lacked offensive capabilities would remain inside the safe bunker the entire time.
Ning Rongrong remained there because, given her current strength, it would be difficult for her to fend off the Phantom Lynx's sneak attacks even with a soul-guided device.
As for Oscar, he needed a safe location to operate the soul-guided artillery. The reason he wasn't using his mecha as he would in a normal battle was that Oscar's mecha had an unavoidable limitation. While it has the capability to provide fire coverage, the range of that coverage is limited due to constraints on his total Soul Power.
Under normal circumstances, that level of firepower would be sufficient to prevent opponents of Oscar's caliber from closing in on him. However, this time the opponent is the Phantom Lynx; against such a tenacious Soul Beast, the coverage range of Oscar's mecha artillery is simply too small.
The trainees need artillery attacks with a wider coverage area to ensure they can inflict sufficient damage on the Phantom Lynx that has just entered this position.
Given the Phantom Lynx's highly unique innate ability—it can use various shadows (including those cast by humans and areas without light in the darkness) to move as if teleporting— If Oscar were to use the soul-guided turret out in the open, he might, if unlucky, become a target for the Phantom Lynx; therefore, the secure bunker is the ideal location for deploying the soul-guided turret.
As for Oschin, as the student with the strongest defense, he should be positioned outside. Once the Phantom Lynx is wounded by the barrage of fire, the students outside need to immediately close in and engage it, preventing it from using its innate ability to slip back into the shadows. The formidable defensive capabilities provided by the Flame Armor Shield make Oschin ideally suited to serve as a meat shield, drawing the Phantom Lynx's attacks.
However, while the trainees need Oschin to operate the detection soul-guided device—since the others aren't as familiar with it as he is—they aren't confident they can pinpoint the Phantom Lynx the moment it enters the detection range and provide accurate positioning guidance for Oschin's artillery barrage.
On the other hand, the trainees also rely on Oschin's precise fire support. Once the barrage ends, the trainees will need to engage the Phantom Lynx in close-quarters combat to tie it up and create an opening for Zhu Zhuqing—at which point, Oscar's soul-guided turret will be rendered useless.
And when it comes to the precision of spirit-guided device operation, Oscar truly cannot match Oschin. When facing a slippery, speed-oriented opponent, precision is absolutely crucial.
As the soul-guided devices activated, even without using the soundwave receivers, the trainees could hear the intermittent growls of feline soul beasts. Their next task was to remain absolutely vigilant, conceal themselves, and wait for the challenger's arrival.
Standing inside the fortified bunker, Oschin carefully observed the feedback images from the detection soul-guided devices deployed around the perimeter. The sound waves had been emitted only a short while ago, and Oschin could not detect anything unusual on the soul-guided display screen.
Glancing back at Oscar and Ning Rongrong, who were nervously staring through the observation and firing slits of the bunker, Oschin realized he couldn't let these two get so worked up. If they remained this tense now, by the time the big cat arrived, their nervous excitement would have already begun to subside—which would be extremely detrimental to their combat effectiveness.
Ning Rongrong was one thing—her main role was to buff the team. Unless something exceptionally unlucky happened—like if the Phantom Lynx was about to unleash a powerful attack on someone, and the target was fully prepared to defend— and Ning Rongrong's hand trembles, accidentally applying the buff to the Phantom Lynx, temporarily boosting its attack power by 20 percent—otherwise, the trainees would generally not suffer significant damage.
But Oscar's situation was different. He was supposed to launch an overlapping attack against the Phantom Lynx. If Oscar missed his strike or was too slow due to nerves, it could throw off the entire tactical operation.
After confirming that the Phantom Lynx hadn't closed in yet, Oscar deliberately brought up the topic.
"Come to think of it, our preparations still aren't thorough enough. If the Master were willing to give us a few more days to prepare before setting out, we'd definitely be in a much safer and more relaxed situation right now."
"What do you mean?" Oscar, aware that he wasn't in the best condition, picked up on his younger brother's remark.
"This time, we're helping Zhu Qing hunt for soul rings, so speed-type soul beasts like the Phantom Lynx are opponents we're bound to encounter. Give me two more days, and I'll be able to craft enough of those trigger-activated hunting nets.
If we can use the hunting nets to encircle this area, once your fire coverage is complete, that big cat should be suspended in mid-air by the nets, fully exposed to the illumination of the soul-guided devices with no blind spots.
We can completely neutralize that Phantom Lynx's most powerful weapon without having to risk close combat with it at all."
"Uh, that's really your style, isn't it?" Oscar, who knew his younger brother well, felt the corner of his mouth twitch slightly. Recalling the pained expression on Oschin's face every time he was forced into close combat while shouldering his Flame Armor Shield, as well as his tendency during battles to rely on his range advantage and forcefully pin his opponents in positions where they couldn't attack him, Oscar was certain that if Oschin were given enough time, the Phantom Lynx's fate would be no different from what Oschin had just described.
Perhaps it was the comical nature of the scene Oschin had described, but when the brothers' conversation ended, they both noticed that Ning Rongrong—who had maintained a stern expression ever since being placed under tight security within the fortress—finally showed a slight softening.
It's no fun to try your hardest yet still end up being the team's weak link, but both Oscar and Oschin firmly believed this situation would soon be a thing of the past. As soon as Ning Rongrong's soul power level broke through Level 30, she would be able to fully operate the entire mecha suit.
Although her limited soul power meant she likely couldn't unleash the full potential of the mecha when using the Seven-Treasure Glass Pagoda to support her teammates—as the Food-type specialists Oscar and Oschin could—the mecha's presence ensured that Ning Rongrong would no longer be vulnerable.
Knowing that the situation for her comrades inside the fortress had begun to improve, Oschin devoted all his attention to the soul-guided display screen before him. The sonic waves had been emanating for some time now, and the Phantom Lynx could appear at any moment.
"Tick, tick." Time slipped by silently. More than eighty meters away from the all-metal bunker, a patch of tree shade cast upon the ground by the increasingly slanting sunlight quietly grew deeper.
If anyone were watching that shadow, they might sense the faint, chilling aura emanating from it. Clearly, this shadow was no longer merely a shadow; hidden within it was a ferocious soul beast brimming with malice toward the nearby metal fortress. Although this malice stemmed largely from the fact that the metal fortress had invaded the soul beast's territory and sent a defiant signal to its master.
However, the soul beast lurking in the shadows likely hadn't anticipated that the moment it entered this area using its innate ability, it had already crossed a certain red line. Within that metal fortress, which appeared unusually quiet, countless menacing gun barrels had already locked onto this area.
.....
You can now download the complete English PDF version of the novel you're currently reading through my Patreon shop. In addition, you'll find hundreds of other novels, fanfics, and collections available there.
Some recently uploaded titles include:
• Douluo: Twin Lustful Souls (18+)
• Douluo: My Sharingan Martial Soul is Lustful (18+)
• Douluo: Peerless Bull (18+)
• Douluo: The Peerless Tang Sect's Beauty Hunter (18+)
• Douluo: The Legend of Tang San (18+)
• Douluo: Lust Evolution (18+)
• Douluo: Journey of Collecting S*x Sl@ves (18+)
• Douluo: Glazed Sacrifice to Revive the Sect (18+)
• Douluo: Gag Creation Lottery System
• Douluo: But My Martial Spirit Is the Sharingan
• Douluo: Becoming a God Starting from Dreams
• Douluo: Awakening the Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear Martial Soul at the Start
• Douluo: Auctions the Eight Spider Lances, and Bibi Dong Is Addicted (18+)
• Douluo: Writing a Diary, Turns Out I'm the Overpowered One!
• Douluo: Strongest Son-in-law
• Douluo: Many Children, Many Blessings, Subdue Bibi Dong at the Beginning (18+)
• Douluo: Sharingan, I Really Didn't Force Xiao Wu!
• Douluo II: Reborn as Di Tian, Many Children, Many Blessings (18+)
• Douluo II: You Evil Soul Master, What's with the Charity King?
• Douluo II: Lying Low in Shrek and Quietly Leveling Up (18+)
• Douluo Dragon King: Natural God King (18+)
• Douluo: Yin-Yang Judgment
• Douluo: Opening Sign to the Flame Princess
• Douluo: Becoming Invincible After Being Forced to Marry a Goddess (18+)
And many more.
There are now over 310+ novels available on Patreon, with new titles being added regularly.
Thank you again for your patience, support, and encouragement. I truly appreciate every reader who chooses to spend their time reading my translations.
Patreon.com/UIGOD_Official
(End of Chapter)