Sunset Forest

A few days later, Shi Yueyi left Ice City with Qian Renxue, the Crown Prince in disguise.

Over those days, she had barely left her room, spending all her time recuperating.

The Crown Prince, on the other hand, frequently went out to reassure the city's residents, telling them to stay calm—the imperial family would certainly find a way to uncover the culprit.

Over the past few days, Shi Yueyi had also come to her senses and understood whom she would need to seek revenge against in the future.

It was the father of the future God King Tang.

Because Spirit Hall had driven his wife to death, he spent this period going around smashing remote Spirit Hall branches.

If Tang Hao had only targeted Spirit Hall during his revenge, there would have been nothing much to say. Marrying a Soul Beast as his wife was his own business, and it was only natural for Spirit Hall to set its sights on a Soul Beast wife.

But during his revenge, he had gone a little insane, swinging that massive hammer around without caring whether there were ordinary people nearby or inside Spirit Hall.

That was truly throwing himself into a pit of fire.

Come to think of it, Shi Yueyi felt that Spirit Hall's former Supreme Pontiff had been rather foolish too. Why did he have to personally make a move to kill a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?

You needed a plan when doing things.

For example, why not spread the news and let other factions get involved? Then see whether Seven Treasure and Blue Lightning could sit still.

Then Spirit Hall could fish in troubled waters before taking them down with thunderous force. They could weaken the Upper Three Sects, who did not get along well with them, seize the soul bone, and maybe Tang San would not even be born smoothly. Everyone in Spirit Hall would have a bright future.

"What are you thinking about?"

Qian Renxue and Shi Yueyi sat together in a carriage. Seeing the little girl staring blankly into space, the Crown Prince asked curiously.

"Mm, nothing important." Shi Yueyi came back to herself and smiled. "I was wondering what kind of place Heaven Dou City is."

Qian Renxue lifted the carriage curtain, and sunlight fell across her profile. Though she was currently "borrowing" Xue Qinghe's identity, the sunlight still seemed to naturally cast a faint halo over her face. From the side, she was a soothing sight to behold.

It was hard to imagine just how breathtaking Qian Renxue would be if she were showing her true face at this moment.

This was clearly only a relatively luxurious carriage, yet because Qian Renxue was sitting inside it, it had become like a miniature palace.

Resting her cheek on one hand, Shi Yueyi sat quietly within the carriage with a faint smile on her face.

"After traveling for several days, we are already near Heaven Dou City. I intend to hunt a First Soul Ring for you in the outskirts of Heaven Dou City, just as I said before."

Qian Renxue lowered the curtain and sat back down.

"Sunset Forest?" Shi Yueyi thought for a moment, then asked.

"That's right. It can be considered a Soul Beast forest suitable for hunting souls within the Heaven Dou Empire. The Heaven Dou Imperial Family once considered enclosing it for their own use, but they have never succeeded, even after all these years." Qian Renxue nodded and introduced the forest.

"Later, it seemed that this forest gained an owner—the Heaven Dou Imperial Family's guest elder, Poison Douluo." Qian Renxue still wore that warm smile.

"Mm, I have heard of this place too."

Shi Yueyi had also gone to the Heaven Dou Empire to carry out missions ten thousand years later, and had even infiltrated Heaven Dou City of that era, so she naturally knew about this forest.

She remembered that after entering Sunset Forest, she had been able to distinctly sense an enormous "formation" enveloping its interior.

When she investigated it, she discovered it was a Poison Array formed from an extremely poisonous plant called the Jade Phosphorous Seven Absolutes Flower. Even a Titled Douluo would find it difficult to enter, unless they possessed a certain degree of poison immunity, such as those with extreme attributes.

Come to think of it, this Young Master Qian Renxue before her should possess an extreme attribute, right?

The Angel Martial Soul was a truly god-grade Martial Soul passed down through inheritance, while the Three Kings of the Far North, who possessed Ultimate Ice, were said to carry the bloodline of the Ice God.

Shi Yueyi closed her eyes.

Haha, why was she thinking about something like, What if Qian Renxue still existed ten thousand years later?

It was meaningless.

Seeing Shi Yueyi close her eyes as if she were meditating, Qian Renxue did not disturb her, assuming that she was contemplating her choice of Soul Ring.

That evening, their carriage entered the forest. The coachman respectfully lifted the carriage curtain and invited the two of them to disembark.

Shi Yueyi and Qian Renxue walked into the forest. Shi Yueyi asked curiously, "Brother Xue, what is your cultivation level this year?"

Qian Renxue answered casually, "Soul King. Nothing worth mentioning."

This was Xue Qinghe's publicly known cultivation level, not Qian Renxue's own.

Qian Renxue was now about to become a Soul Sage.

The reason she kept Xue Qinghe's identity at Soul King level was because she did not want to attract too much attention. Xue Qinghe was only in his twenties. If his level were too high, the outside world would not have called Qin Ming the second-youngest Soul Emperor in the world a few years later.

"That's amazing." Shi Yueyi said with a beaming smile.

"Cough—" Qian Renxue coughed, a little embarrassed. "It isn't that amazing."

At that moment, a figure appeared beside them. It was none other than Stingray Douluo.

However, the instant he appeared, Shi Yueyi's beaming expression immediately changed, as if alarm bells had started blaring in her head. She grabbed Qian Renxue and, despite not having a single Soul Ring at the moment, instinctively shielded her behind herself.

Her right hand instantly seized several vines winding around the bushes nearby.

Qian Renxue froze.

Stingray Douluo froze as well.

Stingray Douluo laughed speechlessly. "Your Highness, this little follower of yours is quite impressive."

Shi Yueyi frowned, looked at Stingray Douluo, then at Qian Renxue. "Brother Xue, you know this senior?"

Qian Renxue smiled and patted her shoulder. "Mm, thank you. This senior is one of my guards. He was the one who left the medicinal soup for you earlier."

Hearing this, Shi Yueyi's mouth twitched. She gave the man before her a suspicious look, hesitated for a moment, and finally let go.

Fine, fine, so this was how they wanted to play it.

Trying to scare someone to death without consequences, huh? Fine, fine.

"So it was you." She suppressed the urge to lose her mind. That bowl of medicinal soup had been far too bitter, bitter enough to make her want to retch.

Although... well, it truly had been effective. After drinking it, her entire body had felt much better.

"It was a small matter, not worth mentioning." Stingray Douluo waved his hand casually. "I am one of His Highness's hidden guards. She has never revealed my existence before outsiders."

"I know nothing. I merely think that when I came to hunt a soul, an unnamed senior helped me." Shi Yueyi said expressionlessly. "May I think of it that way?"

Qian Renxue smiled and squeezed the slender left hand currently clutching her right arm.

She was starting to believe what Shi Yueyi had said. Those really were hands that possessed the skill to kill.

"Alright, saying that makes us sound like strangers. Uncle Cixue is not only my guard, but also... an elder, I suppose."

"It is simply because of certain reasons that he cannot show himself freely. I did not mention him before because I was worried that walls might have ears." Qian Renxue explained. "There is no one else in this forest, so naturally it is safe."

"Didn't you say the owner of this forest was Poison Douluo?" Shi Yueyi thought for a moment and asked.

"That old fellow." Stingray Douluo said disdainfully. "He is in Heaven Dou City looking after his granddaughter right now. He will not be back anytime soon."

Only after hearing this did Shi Yueyi let go of Qian Renxue.