Legend of the Dragon King

"Yuhao, what are we doing here?"

Looking at the lush forest around them, Tang Ya could not help voicing the doubt in her heart.

She was naturally no stranger to Sunset Forest, but none of the three of them needed to obtain a Soul Ring. What were they doing here?

"I'm teaching you how to use your devouring talent to cultivate."

Huo Yuhao explained softly. As his words fell, his pupils glowed with a faint golden light, drawing both Tang Ya and Gu Yue Na into Mental Detection Sharing.

Tang Ya immediately understood what Huo Yuhao meant and nodded without saying anything further.

Soon, with the help of Mental Detection, Huo Yuhao led the two of them to an open area. Calling it an open area was not quite accurate—it looked more like a battlefield where two enormous Soul Beasts had fought.

Large swathes of trees had been snapped in half. Some bore vicious claw marks, while others were covered in scorch marks. For plants, the scene was already tragic enough.

Huo Yuhao turned his head toward Tang Ya and spoke gently.

"What you need to do now is act as a transfer station between them, allowing the Life Force throughout this entire system to flow."

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"If Life Force is completely confined to individual plants in the environment, then the whole environment will become like a stagnant pool. Only by allowing it to circulate in and out will the water not turn foul."

"Qingde is not merely a tree of vitality—it is also the trade wind that connects the flow of all things."

Listening to Huo Yuhao's rather cryptic words, Tang Ya scratched the back of her head and said hesitantly.

"You mean... I should draw Life Force from other plants to save them?"

"Exactly." Huo Yuhao nodded slightly.

"During this process, you can take some of that Life Force as payment."

Following Huo Yuhao's instructions, Tang Ya walked over to a thick, towering tree. She spread open her palm, and a strand of Dark Blue Silver Grass extended continuously until it touched the trunk, drawing out a portion of its Life Force.

She then turned and went to a tree stump that had been broken in half, separating out part of the Life Force she had obtained and injecting it into the stump.

In just a moment, a tiny green shoot poked out from the broken surface, making the once lifeless stump seem as though it had been reborn.

"...I understand!"

"Make Life Force flow and form a healthy cycle!"

Tang Ya's eyes lit up. Having grasped the principle, she became like a porter, tirelessly drawing Life Force from those massive trees. She kept a portion within her body as payment, while injecting all the rest into the plants on the verge of death.

Put simply, the middleman earned a little markup.

Gu Yue Na silently watched the scene. Gradually, it was as if a breeze had swept through the forest. The newly revived shoots swayed gently, while Tang Ya seemed to have been accepted by the surrounding plants, completely blending into the environment. With every step she took, countless plants rose and fell along with her movements.

As time passed second by second, the fallen giant trees, overturned turf, and withered shrubs gradually began to show signs of green. The devastating scene left behind by the Soul Beasts was slowly restored, and the ecosystem that had nearly been destroyed was reorganized as Life Force circulated through it.

The Life Force accumulating within Tang Ya also grew greater and greater in the process. If she completely dealt with this area, the Life Force she gained would be enough for her to absorb for quite a long time.

Seeing her grasp the trick so quickly, a smile could not help appearing on Huo Yuhao's lips. Hearing his chuckle, Gu Yue Na could not help glancing at him.

"I didn't expect you to understand this too."

"I was only thinking of giving it a try. Judging from the results, those plants don't seem to reject it."

Huo Yuhao explained with a light laugh.

Leaving aside whether plants shared the same values as humans, if Tang Ya could save other plants today, she might save them next time. As plants incapable of resisting, they would not refuse such an opportunity.

From the perspective of certain small-scale situations, it might seem possible for the strong to grow stronger and the weak to grow weaker. But once the scope of observation was expanded, one would discover that balance was nature's true principle.

As he spoke, Huo Yuhao suddenly heard the sound of wind behind him. The next second, a pair of arms wrapped around his neck from behind.

"Yuhao—"

Tang Ya excitedly spread open her hand, revealing the Blue Silver Grass in her palm that radiated the aura of life. The Life Force she had accumulated through all her efforts had already been gathered within it.

"This is for you."

"Huh?"

Before Huo Yuhao could react, Tang Ya took the chance to tilt her head and kiss his cheek lightly, her tone earnest.

"You taught me all this, so I think the first person who should receive this Life Force in return has to be you."

"...Thank you."

After standing stunned for a moment, Huo Yuhao reached out and accepted the exceptionally gorgeous Blue Silver Grass. Though its effects could not compare to Gold of Life, keeping it by his side for a long period would still bring immense benefits to his body.

"Mm-hm. I'll make one for Aunt too."

With that, Tang Ya launched another sneak attack on his cheek before resuming her work with a cheerful smile. Watching her brimming with enthusiasm, Huo Yuhao touched the cheek still damp with saliva and tugged lightly at the corner of his mouth.

Gu Yue Na merely watched this scene in silence, a faint flicker passing through her eyes. Seemingly noticing her gaze, Huo Yuhao turned to look at her.

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

Gu Yue Na shook her head, then suddenly seemed to sense something and looked toward a spot deep within the forest.

"There's something over there."

"Hmm?"

Huo Yuhao looked up along Gu Yue Na's line of sight and immediately understood what she meant.

"Are you talking about the Icefire Yin Yang Well?"

Though he was somewhat puzzled as to how Gu Yue Na had discovered it without any investigation, he did not dwell on it and slowly explained everything he knew.

Having visited this place several times in his previous life, he naturally had some plans for it. However, his strength had been too weak, so he had temporarily given up on the idea.

Putting aside whether his Ice Attribute Martial Soul could restrain the outer ring of Poison Barrier, even if he managed to get inside, his current strength might not be enough to persuade the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass to become his soul spirit.

Not to mention the Cold Spring—if you dared to drink it, you dared to die.

The only thing that might be useful was probably the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew. But causing the Body Martial Soul to undergo its second awakening while he was still weak would place an enormous burden on his body. Making the trip for that alone simply was not worth it.

"Not the spring water."

After listening to Huo Yuhao's explanation, Gu Yue Na gently shook her head, her tone becoming unusually complicated.

"That is the Dragon King Remains. The spring water you mentioned was merely formed from a portion of the power leaking from the remains."

"Dragon King?" Huo Yuhao instinctively looked at Gu Yue Na. "Like you?"

"More or less, but I am different from them."

Gu Yue Na's tone was calm. "Although they were stronger than me, if they were still alive, they would need to kneel on one knee before me."