Zhang Lexuan and Ma Xiaotao

Before long, Huo Yuhao had thoroughly searched Chai San and Chai Wu, taking all the money they carried.

Unfortunately, there was not much. Between the two of them, they did not even have one Gold Soul Coin. After all, they could not exactly carry dozens of Gold Soul Coins around while working, could they?

After dragging their corpses into the weeds, Huo Yuhao put another arrow into each of their heads. Only after confirming they were dead beyond doubt did he take the bundle down from the tree and head back the way he had come.

His clothes were stained with blood, so he needed to wash up. While he was at it, he could fulfill the promise he had made to the stream.

But...

What Huo Yuhao did not notice was that, from beginning to end, a gaze had remained fixed on him from a great distance away.

There was some shock in that gaze, but also a trace of wistfulness. In the end, it all became anticipation.

The branches trembled faintly as a figure quietly departed.

Yet at that very moment, Huo Yuhao seemed to sense something. He stopped walking, then resumed his steps several seconds later.

After returning to the stream, Huo Yuhao quickly searched Chai Si for money as well, tossed his corpse into the bushes, and changed out of his bloodstained clothes to wash them.

However, he broke his promise this time. He did not catch any fish from the stream. Once his clothes had dried, he packed them away and prepared to set off.

Opening the map Old Chen had given him, Huo Yuhao studied it.

By this estimate, Duke White Tiger's Mansion was roughly several hundred kilometers away from Shrek City.

Thinking of the Huo Yuhao from the Original Work, who had reached the Star Dou Great Forest in six days while covering one hundred and fifty kilometers a day, made him feel rather strange.

Huo Yuhao put away the map with a complicated expression, slung his pack over his back, and set off on the next leg of his journey.

The sky was vast enough for birds to fly, and the sea broad enough for fish to leap!

Shrek City lay northeast of Duke White Tiger's Mansion. Huo Yuhao followed the Official Road and encountered quite a few merchant caravans along the way, but they all ignored him. Neither side disturbed the other. It was around one in the afternoon when he stopped beside a stream, catching fish to make lunch while resting before continuing onward.

"Stop!"

A hundred meters above the clear stream, several streaks of Soul Power light flew in from afar. Just as they were about to pass over the stream, one of them seemed to sense something and swiftly called for the group to halt.

"Senior Sister, what is it?"

As soon as they stopped, everyone turned toward the woman at the front, whose features were delicate and whose temperament was gentle. The stunning woman on the far left, with a head of fiery red hair, could not help asking first.

The woman addressed as Senior Sister frowned. Looking down, she eventually fixed her gaze upon a towering tree that was far larger than the rest.

"This tree has Soul Power fluctuations. It is gradually evolving into a Soul Beast. Follow me." As she spoke, Soul Power surged through Senior Sister's body. She controlled the Flying Soul Tool behind her and slowly descended to the ground.

Hearing Senior Sister's words, the others' expressions changed. There had never been any record of Soul Beasts appearing in this region. How could a tree suddenly be evolving into one?

Immediately, the group hurriedly followed the gentle woman down to the ground.

"Someone died here not long ago."

The instant they landed, a sharp-eyed young man immediately locked onto a patch of bushes, where a faint scent of blood lingered.

"Zifeng, Luochen, go take a look over there." Senior Sister stared at the tree and gave the order without turning around.

"Yes."

The young man who had spoken and another woman with a cool expression answered, then headed toward the bushes.

Everyone else focused on the massive tree with its tangled roots. Its branches were lush, and its leaves were emerald green, entirely unlike other trees of the same kind during this season.

"There are indeed faint Soul Power fluctuations emanating from this tree. But according to my calculations, it will need at least another half year before it can become a ten-year Soul Beast." The stunning red-haired girl carefully observed the tree and reached her conclusion after several seconds.

"Xiaotao, not bad. You used to hate theoretical knowledge the most, but today you spotted the key point right away." Another woman with an equally gentle temperament chuckled. Her name was Han Ruoruo.

The red-haired girl's expression became slightly awkward. "Sister Ruoruo, I'm an Inner Court Student, after all. If I didn't understand even this much, that old man would beat me up."

"Haha."

At those words, everyone except Senior Sister openly burst into laughter.

Ma Xiaotao rolled her eyes. It was one thing for the senior sisters to laugh, but as for everyone else, laugh while you can. Once they returned to the academy, she would challenge them to a fight one by one, starting with whoever laughed the hardest.

A faint smile rested on Senior Sister's lips as she stepped forward, entering within six meters of the tree. At that very instant, the tree that would soon become a Soul Beast abruptly withdrew its Soul Power Aura, instantly turning into an unremarkable, ordinary tree.

"Interesting." Senior Sister's expression shifted slightly, and curiosity rose in her heart. Unless they belonged to an exceptionally special species, plant-type Soul Beasts at the ten-year level could not possibly possess outward perception. Even ordinary Soul Beasts typically only gained that ability after reaching the hundred-year level.

And this tree was not even a Soul Beast yet.

"Lexuan, is something wrong?" Han Ruoruo had also sensed the Soul Power fluctuations from the tree vanish and could not help stepping forward to ask.

The others stopped laughing as well and became serious.

"Ruoruo, extract this tree. We'll take it back to the academy and let Old Zhuang study it. There is something very wrong with this tree," Senior Sister said solemnly. Her full name was Zhang Lexuan.

Han Ruoruo did not ask why. She simply nodded.

In the next moment, an astonishing sight appeared. Seven Soul Rings rose beneath Han Ruoruo's feet—two yellow, two purple, and three black. She was actually a Soul Saint with the optimal Soul Ring configuration.

Yet she looked incredibly young, no more than twenty-seven or twenty-eight at most. She was truly an outstanding heroine of her generation.

"Smack!"

A crisp crack rang out as a rope glowing with Golden Light appeared in Han Ruoruo's hand. With a thought, the golden rope shot forth as a streak of light and wrapped around the massive tree.

In the next instant, brilliant Golden Light erupted from the rope, directly enveloping the entire tree. Before long, the grassland began to tremble. Numerous cracks split across the ground, exposing all the tree's tangled roots.

"Haoxuan, the interior space of your Storage Belt is just right for this. I'll leave transporting it to you." Zhang Lexuan shifted her gaze toward a very plump young man.

"No problem." The fat young man nodded, stepped forward a few paces, and swept his hands across his waist. In the next instant, Spatial Power flashed forth and directly drew the tree inside.

"Senior Sister, someone really did die here."

Just as the tree was put away, the two who had gone to investigate the bushes returned.

It was the sharp-eyed young man who spoke.

"Cause of death?" Zhang Lexuan turned to look at him.

The young man explained, "His neck was pierced through by some kind of weapon, which caused his death. He died no more than five hours ago. There is no residual Soul Power Aura on him, so he was likely an ordinary person. I suspect it was a revenge killing."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Lexuan's expression did not change. She did not care about one dead person. Countless people died every day on Douluo Continent, and she could not possibly deal with them all. The main issue was that this person had died in a place far too unusual. "Delay the return plan. From this moment onward, split up and search within a five-kilometer radius. See whether there are any other plants evolving. Once you find one, return here immediately to regroup."

"Yes." Everyone responded swiftly and without hesitation, quickly rushing into the forest in different directions.

To outsiders, Heavenly Eye would only seem like a special occurrence caused by the protagonist's Martial Soul mutation.