Di Tian and the Snow Empress

Ye Wen entered the Great Star Dou Forest alone without lingering in the outer regions, because the strongest Soul Beasts there were merely ordinary three- or four-thousand-year ones.

Now that Ye Wen possessed the terrifying strength of eleven thousand jin, he had no interest in such Soul Beasts. To find a Soul Beast nearing ten thousand years of cultivation, he had to enter the Great Star Dou Forest's Mixed Zone. That was Ye Wen's target.

However, if any seasoned Soul Masters heard that a lone Ye Wen intended to do this, they would only laugh at his overestimation of himself.

After all, the Mixed Zone was a dangerous place that even required the protection of a Soul Saint-level expert for one to barely dare explore it.

The Soul Beasts of the Mixed Zone could be described as ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts being everywhere, while thousand-year Soul Beasts roamed the ground. Ordinary groups of Soul Masters would face near-certain death upon entering.

Fortunately, Between Mimicry, which was practically a cheat, gave Ye Wen ample confidence that he could find the Soul Beast he wanted there.

Unless he was unlucky enough to encounter a top-tier Spiritual Attribute Soul Beast, ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts that had only just gained some intelligence would have no way of detecting Ye Wen's traces.

After all, Nab Cloth, this martial soul, had been personally acknowledged by the World Consciousness as a god-tier martial soul. If it could be discovered so casually, that would be far too embarrassing.

At this moment, in the core region of the Great Star Dou Forest.

Lake of Life · True.

A pair of golden eyes opened within the pitch-black space beneath the lake. They were cold, golden vertical pupils.

"The aura of an outsider ferocious beast. Such pure, icy Soul Power... Has one of the Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Extreme North come? Hmm. Within this icy Soul Power, there is faintly a trace of gentleness. This feeling... Ultimate Ice. Is it the Snow Empress? No matter who it is, I cannot allow her to disturb my lord's slumber at such a critical time. I'll make a trip myself and see what she wants." Di Tian muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, Ye Wen was still carefully searching for the Soul Beast he wanted. His target this time was a Soul Beast with a Shadow Shuttle-type Soul Skill, which would further strengthen his ability to preserve his life. He had no idea that the true king of the Great Star Dou Forest had already left his nest.

"Snow Empress, why have you come here?"

A middle-aged man with golden eyes, a resolute square face, and a black fitted robe suddenly appeared before the Snow Empress.

The Snow Empress merely gave Di Tian a calm glance. Though she could not defeat Di Tian, Di Tian could not easily take her life either.

"I came here with no ill intent. The Child of the World needs to grow, and I am here merely to protect his path," the Snow Empress said coolly.

"The Child of the World?!" Di Tian muttered, frowning slightly as he looked in Ye Wen's direction.

"The Child of the World you speak of is that human? Though his concealment ability is strong, I see no favor from heaven upon him. Could you be mistaken about something?"

"The World Consciousness manifested before me solely to grant him a revelation. Moreover, my subconscious has constantly told me to protect his growth. So, Di Tian, do not meddle in this. Though he is human, a hundred-thousand-year transformed Soul Beast accompanies him. He bears no hostility toward our Soul Beast race, and he has also remained restrained when hunting Soul Beasts. The future of the world rests upon him. I will not allow you to have any designs on him."

As the Snow Empress spoke, frigid Soul Power gradually began to rise from her body, and waves of white frost enveloped the area.

Seeing this, Di Tian frowned slightly. Although this Soul Power could not affect him, he still had to seriously consider the Snow Empress's words.

Yet, as a remnant of the Dragon God Era, he dismissed the so-called Child of the World with contempt. Still, in order not to disturb his lord's slumber, he slowly said, "Rest assured. Attacking the weak would disgrace the name of my Golden Eyed Black Dragon King. As for this Child of the World you mentioned, simply protect him yourself. Remember, do not enter the core region, much less attempt to enter the Lake of Life. Otherwise, even if it is you, I will strike without mercy."

As he spoke, Di Tian unleashed a surge of killing intent. The two immense currents of Soul Power collided once more, throwing the surrounding Soul Beasts into turmoil. Then, Di Tian vanished in a flash.

At this moment, Ye Wen still had no idea that the emperors of the two great Soul Beast gathering grounds had clashed not far from him. Instead, he was startled by the suddenly rampaging horde of Soul Beasts and hurriedly climbed a tree, assuming a guarded stance.

Watching the herd of Soul Beasts surge past below, Ye Wen clicked his tongue inwardly.

"As expected of the largest Soul Beast gathering ground on Douluo Continent. These Soul Beasts are all quite exceptional!"

Suddenly, Ye Wen's gaze sharpened as he looked at a pitch-black leopard-like Soul Beast charging toward him from afar.

"A nine-thousand-year Shadow Leopard. I can't see its exact age clearly, but it's worth making a move. It came to me without any effort at all."

Ye Wen immediately drew his Hand Crossbow, narrowed his eyes, and fired an arrow.

However, it was ultimately a Soul Beast extremely close to ten thousand years of cultivation. The Shadow Leopard seemed to sense something and hurriedly transformed into a shadow, burrowing into the darkness beneath it and evading the sudden Instant Kill arrow.

"As expected of a Soul Beast possessing the Soul Skill I want. You could still evade my Instant Kill arrow under those circumstances. But since I've set my sights on you, don't even think about running. Experience the terror of the Shadowless Assassin, you poor little leopard."

Ye Wen silently followed after it.

Having broken away from the rampaging herd, the Shadow Leopard still watched its surroundings warily. Though it did not know where that arrow had come from, it clearly knew it was a human weapon. In other words, a Soul Master had targeted it.

"Roar—" The Shadow Leopard let out a warning growl, its fur bristling as though it intended to use this to startle its enemy.

But unfortunately, Ye Wen had long seen through such simple beastly tricks and silently arrived beside the Shadow Leopard.

"Sorry. And goodbye forever," Ye Wen thought, then pulled the trigger.

It could only be said that the camouflage effect of Between Mimicry was simply too powerful. Without top-tier battle instincts or a special talent, there was no way to discover Ye Wen, the sneaky bastard concealed within Between Mimicry.

Until its final moment of death, the Shadow Leopard's eyes were filled with confusion. It could not understand how it had been struck.

Finally, as it watched Ye Wen reveal himself, it seemed to want to curse him.

You sneaky bastard! If you've got the guts, fight me head-on!

But Ye Wen clearly could not grasp that kind of emotion. He was only a scholar. Rationality—using the simplest method to accomplish his goals—was his defining trait. A warrior's honor had nothing to do with him.

Looking at the purple Soul Ring gradually gathering with streaks of black within it, Ye Wen found it astonishing no matter how many times he saw it. This world really was twisted enough. Other fantasy worlds might at most have inner cores or magic crystals, but this world directly extracted the cultivation of Soul Beasts and let Soul Masters absorb it. No matter how he looked at it, it was abnormal.

"Nine thousand nine hundred years. It was just a tiny step away from becoming a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast. I really hunted it at exactly the right time."