"Damn, the drone was shot down."


    The Inner City Pioneer who was controlling the drone watched the suddenly distorted screen and couldn’t help but feel speechless.


    That monkey must have noticed the approach, and as a result, the scattered fragments managed to take down his own drone as well, wasn’t this a mess!


    "Another debt to be added to his account, but we can’t see the specifics now."


    "If he can get close to that monkey, there should be a chance. Titans are strong, but they have clear weaknesses."


    Several Pioneers debated back and forth.


    They were the elite explorers who had dared to venture thousands of miles to come here, among whom four were present from the merely over a hundred who had managed to get the intermediate partnership certification in the new Development Zone!


    Each one of them was an absolute expert on their own.


    Knowing that a Titan’s weakness lay in the back of the neck, they were all confident they could face a Pure Titan one-on-one.


    Be it various shooting weapons or close-combat attacks, as long as they could hit the vital spots, they could solve the problem.


    They were somewhat wary of the Aberrants, but they were also confident they could handle them in a duel.


    Therefore, they believed that the Beast Titan was certainly doomed once someone got close to him; they just didn’t know if it would unleash some new Skill, and the Yuan Force items from ordinary Titans had already been enthusiastically taken back for appraisal, only to turn out to be pure junk...


    ...


    Tao Yu observed the Beast Titan and the Cart Titan before him. This ape alone was even bigger than Eren’s Titan.


    But such a sluggish reaction had no challenge for Tao Yu, especially considering that smoke was already starting to waft from its body.


    Its stamina was also clearly not lasting much longer.


    At this moment, the relatively smaller long-faced Titan rushed towards him.


    "What an ugly creature, but it’s fast, very dexterous, much like Ymir’s little dwarf Titan."


    Tao Yu quickly analyzed.


    In fact, for the Martial Artists, this Titan was even more troublesome than Ymir’s Jaws Titan.


    The strength of high-stature Titans was already exceptional. Looking into their eyes, it overflowed; such beings, who traded off some of their power for dexterity, were complete killing machines for normal people.


    To avoid having delicate equipment on his back damaged during the combat, Tao Yu had casually tossed it aside into a muddy field on the way and suddenly accelerated once more!


    "You can’t control Titans anyway, so if you’re in the way, just die!"


    Approaching quickly and seeing the long-faced Titan swing its paw at him, Tao Yu wrapped himself entirely in a protective aura, vaguely turning into a dragon shadow, accompanied by a high-pitched Dragon’s Chant, he charged right through!


    Bang~


    Tao Yu burst straight into the Cart Titan’s mouth and out through the back of its neck, creating a cloud of blood mist!


    Before the controller could even see what was happening, Tao Yu’s right hand, with the Nine Yin True Scripture’s claw, had already extracted the spine.


    Feeling Yuan Force gathering above him.


    This sight in Zeke’s eyes was utterly infuriating.


    Tao Yu picked Zeke up and then let Zeke himself speak, a trace of despair in his voice,


    "It’s useless, even though I am a member of the royal Eldian family, I can only control the Titans that are born from me. Only the Founding Titan, combined with the royal bloodline, can truly control the Titans..."


    As things stood, Zeke wasn’t aware that Eren already possessed the powers of two different Titans. He had been stationed on Paradis Island to provide aid after the great earthshaking changes, but who could have guessed that the original island was now linked to a vast continent?


    The Eldians within those walls had already suffered heavy losses.


    With guidance as if from fate, he had headed south all the way and ultimately arrived here...


    "Forget it, take him back first."


    Tao Yu himself didn’t know how to activate such powers, but bringing Zeke back was undoubtedly the right move for now.


    Looking at the remaining Titans on the battlefield and the grassland soldiers who were fighting fiercely against the Titans, Tao Yu expressed approval. Zhao Min had done really well; it felt like she had trained them even better.


    With the Beast Titan, the troublemaker, out of the equation, and traps set outside for the Titans, not to mention increasingly experienced soldiers, this batch of Titans was temporarily under control.


    After all, most of the Titans only had the instinct to pursue humans, and with limited numbers having crossed the Yellow River in the first place, the ones that had made it to the outskirts of Xiangyang City could be dealt with.


    The group took Zeke and headed straight back to Xiangyang...


    "Young Master Tao."


    "Sect Hierarch!"


    "Truly, Immortal Tao is among the divine."


    "Uncle Tao."


    "Tao..."


    Along the way, those who knew Tao Yu greeted him one after another. The sight of Tao Yu flying through the sky earlier had been witnessed by many.


    Originally, Tao Yu had already won the full admiration of the experts from the six major sects with just a few miraculous shows, and now this last display had truly pushed his esteem to its peak.


    Zhao Min and Cheng Lixue both came over and stood by Tao Yu’s side.


    While Cheng Lixue still posed as a heroine and maintained a seemingly indifferent demeanor, Zhao Min was far more direct, hugging Tao Yu’s arm and seeking praise.


    "So? Did I do well or what?" she asked with her sweet and delicate voice.


    Hearing Zhao Min’s voice, Tao Yu nodded and acknowledged,


    "Indeed, very well done, better than I expected."


    On the road back, Tao Yu had already observed the various guns carried by the martial artists, and on his return, seeing his master Huang Rong with a Barrett, he laughed and said,


    "Master, your weapon is definitely the most eye-catching."


    "Haha, I think so too. Unfortunately, there are only a few of these divine sniper rifles to be found. Next time, we should get more — they pack a powerful punch and have a long range, good for both far and near," said Huang Rong, obviously very content with his weapon. He could easily handle the recoil and had no problem shooting up close.


    And as for his disciple, Huang Rong felt quite sentimental.


    When Tao Yu had first mastered the Nine Yin True Scripture, he had already surpassed Guo Jing, and Huang Rong thought Guo Jing might catch up a bit by killing Titans. But seeing those flatterers from the six major sects groveling, calling him ’Immortal Tao’ so nauseatingly, he knew his disciple must have achieved another significant advance...


    But just then, a smiling voice came from the side,


    "Friend, you seem a bit unfamiliar. I wonder which family you belong to. Did you say something bad about us? I feel like you have some misunderstandings about us..."