Too Far from the Ground, Too Close to the Sky

Huo Yuhao braced the katana's sheath with his Left Hand, pressing his thumb against the sword guard as he slowly pushed the blade several centimeters from its sheath. As he cautiously turned around, he lowered his Right Hand onto the katana's hilt. The bright moonlight gave Huo Yuhao excellent visibility, and a faint current of air brushed past the corner of his eye. The enormous creature hidden in the shadows had nowhere left to hide.

It was a creature that looked like a fine horse. Its pitch-black coat gleamed smoothly, while its long Tail hung neatly down like the finest silk. The rustling continued. As Huo Yuhao slowly approached it, he tightened his grip around the katana's hilt, the sharp blade seeming ready to choose its prey and devour it at any moment.

"Neigh—"

As though it had sensed the Killing Intent about to burst from Huo Yuhao, the black horse let out a long cry and abruptly raised its head from the fresh grass it had been grazing on. Only then did Huo Yuhao realize that this was no black horse at all. A horn like white jade protruded from its head.

A pair of enormous black feathered wings spread open. As those massive wings pushed aside the nearby shrubs, the bright moonlight and dazzling starlight finally fell freely upon the unicorn. Under the reflection of the stars, its black wings and hide lit up with specks of Starlight, beautiful beyond compare and utterly captivating.

"So beautiful."

The instant Huo Yuhao saw the unicorn, its night-sky-like appearance stunned him into a brief daze. Yet immediately afterward, an even stronger excitement appeared in his eyes.

Although he had not known what a Starlight Unicorn looked like before, anyone with half a brain could tell that this unicorn, bathed in starlight and shining brilliantly from head to toe, was most likely the so-called "legendary soul beast"—the Starlight Unicorn.

At this moment, Huo Yuhao had no time to judge its age. Even if this Starlight Unicorn were only ten years old, he would happily absorb its soul ring. Even if it exceeded the four-hundred-year absorption limit, as long as the soul ring was not an especially deep yellow, he would grit his teeth and try to absorb this hard-won Spirit Attribute Soul Beast.

Though he knew that the recommended absorption limit for a First Soul Ring was roughly four hundred and twenty years, Huo Yuhao was confident that his physical condition could exceed that recommended limit by one or two hundred years.

After all, in terms of physical endurance during long-distance pursuits, he had once made a Soul Ancestor and two Soul Elders chasing behind him despair. He had run two hundred li in one breath, forcing the three of them to give up their pursuit. Although his mouth had tasted of blood for three straight days after that run, Huo Yuhao was certain that the three people chasing him had suffered far worse over the next three days. It was not merely the taste of blood in their mouths—every time they spoke, bloody foam would spurt out.

The Starlight Unicorn broke into a run, its four hooves pounding forward, leaving Huo Yuhao no choice but to chase after it. Pursuing something rashly in the Star Dou Forest was dangerous, especially at night, but Huo Yuhao could not care about that now. If he did not catch up, the Spirit Attribute Soul Beast that was practically in his mouth would vanish without a trace.

Huo Yuhao lowered his upper body slightly and sprinted with his legs flying, keeping his center of gravity low. Though his momentary daze had allowed the Starlight Unicorn to pull nearly twenty meters ahead, the distance between them steadily shrank as time passed.

How could four legs lose to two?

Fifteen meters, thirteen meters, eleven meters, nine meters!

Huo Yuhao lightly swept his Left Hand across his waist, and several Shuriken forged from Refined Iron appeared in his palm. His mind was intensely focused. The distance between him and the Starlight Unicorn was now less than ten meters. As long as his Shuriken struck one of its lower legs, it would inevitably stumble and crash heavily to the ground!

The roar of the wind filled Huo Yuhao's ears, while the scenery on both sides constantly blurred past. Just as the Shuriken in his hand was about to fly out, Huo Yuhao seemed to see something unimaginable and abruptly stopped. He halted so suddenly that he staggered, nearly becoming the one who fell.

But Huo Yuhao had no mind to care about that now. There was no ground beneath his feet anymore—he was already suspended in midair!

Huo Yuhao stared in disbelief at the Starlight Unicorn, which had also stopped ahead of him. Fear of the unknown flashed through his eyes. There was clearly nothing beneath his feet, yet he could still feel something solid and real.

Huo Yuhao stiffly took several steps forward. With every few steps he took, he felt himself moving farther from the ground. The trees below had already turned into tiny black dots.

Huo Yuhao froze, gripping his katana tightly as he stared fixedly at the Starlight Unicorn ahead. His inexplicable Air Walking had to be the work of this Starry Unicorn, but there was truly nothing he could do now. The other party did not even need to do anything; it only needed to cancel this strange state of Air Walking, and he would fall to his death.

Yet to Huo Yuhao's surprise, the Starlight Unicorn did not do so. Instead, it slowly walked toward him. The clopping of its hooves was crisp, bright, and pleasant to hear.

The Starlight Unicorn slowly lowered its head and rubbed its cheek against Huo Yuhao's. Excitement filled its eyes, as though a child had received a reward from its father. Then something even more unexpected happened: the Starlight Unicorn slowly bent all four legs and knelt beside Huo Yuhao, tilting its head as if waiting for him to climb onto its back.

Huo Yuhao stared at it absentmindedly. At this distance, he could unleash an Iai Strike. It was the most powerful slash he could currently perform, a stroke capable of cutting through gold and shattering jade. But as he looked into the Starlight Unicorn's inexplicably affectionate eyes, Huo Yuhao hesitated.

Huo Yuhao slowly sheathed his katana and cautiously climbed onto the Starlight Unicorn's back. To his surprise, the moment he got on, the Starlight Unicorn excitedly snorted twice, then started forward on its hooves, carrying Huo Yuhao onward with a steady clop-clop.

Forward?

But where was forward?

Huo Yuhao looked beneath his feet and felt himself getting farther and farther from the ground. A desolate feeling rose from the depths of his heart. For a moment, Huo Yuhao did not know whether it was taking him to heaven or hell.