Sky Dream Ice Silkworm

Night was like indelible ink, dyeing every corner of the Star Dou Great Forest pitch-black. The wind through the woods carried a biting chill, sweeping up fallen leaves with a rustling sound, as though providing accompaniment for the conflict about to erupt.

Fury burned in Bei Bei's eyes. The image of Tang Ya wounded kept flashing through his mind, and his intent to kill Lu Jing completely overwhelmed his reason.

The phantom of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon behind him grew increasingly solid. Blue lightning slithered around his body like living snakes, crackling loudly, each flash making the air tremble.

"Die!"

With an angry roar, Bei Bei shot toward Lu Jing like lightning. His fist carried immense force, blue lightning gathering over it into a ferocious dragon head that lunged straight for Lu Jing's face with the power to destroy everything.

At that moment, he did not care whether Lu Jing was a Spirit Master of Evil or whether he was just a child. He only knew that this boy had hurt Tang Ya and had to pay the price!

Lu Jing's heart pounded wildly. His pupils contracted sharply as he watched the lightning filled with destructive force. He could tell that Bei Bei's attack was stronger than any before; he had clearly been truly enraged.

He took a deep breath and poured all his remaining Soul Power into the World-Annihilating Black Lotus. The black lotus platform instantly swelled, black mist churning like boiling ink as it met the lightning dragon head with an aura that corroded everything.

He had not been very proficient to begin with, and he had not acquired a soul ring yet. On top of that, he had spent a great deal of Soul Power while fleeing, so he could only defend instinctively.

"Boom—!"

A deafening blast exploded through the forest as blue lightning collided violently with black mist, creating a savage shockwave of energy that spread in all directions.

The surrounding trees were struck by the shockwave. Their branches and leaves instantly turned to dust, while their trunks shook violently as though they might snap at any moment.

Lu Jing felt an enormous force crash into him and staggered backward again and again. After steadying himself, he looked at the considerably dimmer black mist surrounding the World-Annihilating Black Lotus and groaned inwardly—his Soul Power was nearly exhausted.

Fortunately, his awakened martial soul was the World-Annihilating Black Lotus. Had it been anything else, he would have died long ago. After all, during the pursuit, Tang Ya had constantly launched sneak attacks with hidden weapons and Blue Silver Grass.

Bei Bei was also forced back several steps. Much of the lightning around his fist had dispersed, and a flicker of surprise passed through his eyes as he looked at Lu Jing.

He had not expected this child to withstand his attack even with his Soul Power nearly depleted. But that surprise was quickly replaced by anger. He knew that defeating Lu Jing quickly on his own would probably not be easy.

Bei Bei turned to Wang Dong'er, his tone urgent and questioning. "Wang Dong! Are you really not going to help? Look at his martial soul, look at his attack just now. He's a Spirit Master of Evil! If we let him go today, who knows how many people will suffer in the future. Can you bear the consequences?"

Wang Dong'er stood where she was, pale blue wings of light hanging at her sides as she watched Lu Jing and Bei Bei with a complicated gaze. Her heart was full of conflict. Bei Bei had a point; she knew all too well how dangerous Spirit Masters of Evil were. But Lu Jing's question earlier was like a thorn lodged in her heart. The words "double standard" were impossible for her to ignore.

She looked at Lu Jing's youthful face, filled with stubbornness, then at Tang Ya, who lay on the ground coughing continuously. In the end, she still did not move.

Just then, an incomparably vast force of extreme cold surged from deep within the forest without warning. The chill was so powerful that it seemed capable of freezing time and space. In an instant, Lu Jing, Bei Bei, Wang Dong'er, and Tang Ya, lying on the ground, all felt their bodies stiffen. A thick layer of ice then spread upward from beneath their feet, completely encasing them and turning them into four lifelike ice sculptures. They could not move, not even blink.

"Oh? It's rather lively here."

A curious voice came from deep in the forest. Then, a gigantic figure slowly emerged. It was an ice silkworm over ten meters long, its entire body covered in translucent ice armor that radiated a piercing chill. Its two round eyes resembled enormous sapphires as it curiously examined the four people frozen into ice sculptures.

Wang Dong'er and Bei Bei were both utterly bewildered. They had never seen such an enormous ice silkworm, much less knew why it had suddenly appeared here. But Lu Jing's heart was overwhelmed with shock—Sky Dream Ice Silkworm! It was actually this million-year soul beast!

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm slowly circled the four ice sculptures once, its round eyes passing over them one by one. When it saw Wang Dong'er, a flicker of curiosity crossed its eyes. It could clearly sense a faint divinity emanating from her, an exceptionally pure and noble aura.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm shook its head and suddenly spoke, its voice carrying a hint of pride and boasting. "Little girl, your aptitude is pretty good. Brother Sky Dream will grant you a tremendous fortune. What do you say?"

Before Wang Dong'er could react, the chill around its body surged sharply. An even more immense force of extreme cold descended upon Wang Dong'er, clearly preparing to sacrifice itself.

However, just as that extreme cold was about to touch Wang Dong'er's Sea of Consciousness, an invisible barrier suddenly emerged from the depths of her Sea of Consciousness.

The barrier radiated a gentle yet incomparably powerful force, blocking Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's extreme cold. Immediately afterward, an even stronger rebounding force struck back. It was as though Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had been viciously slapped by an invisible giant hand. With a bang, it flew backward, crashed to the ground, and slid a long distance away.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm climbed dizzily to its feet, shook its head, and stared at Wang Dong'er with round, wide eyes full of shock and confusion. It muttered to itself, "Th-this... what is going on? How could there be such a powerful force? Could this little girl be the reincarnation of some great figure, or does she have some treasure protecting her?"

It could not figure it out, but it also knew that Wang Dong'er was not an option. It looked up at the sky, anxiety flashing in its eyes—it did not have much time left. If Di Tian and the others caught up with it, it would be completely finished.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's gaze swept across the other three ice sculptures before finally settling on Lu Jing. It could sense that although Lu Jing's martial soul was sinister, its potential seemed quite good, and he did not possess that power which made it wary.

"Fine, one replacement is as good as another. Better than being caught by Di Tian and the others," Sky Dream Ice Silkworm muttered. It hesitated no longer and charged toward Lu Jing.

The chill around its body erupted again. This time, there was no obstacle. The force of extreme cold instantly enveloped Lu Jing.

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm looked at Lu Jing's frozen face and grinned, revealing two rows of tiny teeth. "Little fellow, consider yourself lucky. You get to receive Brother Sky Dream's sacrifice. You'd better work hard from now on!"

With that, its body began to glow. It transformed into a brilliant blue beam and drilled toward Lu Jing's forehead. It needed to complete the sacrifice as quickly as possible and enter Lu Jing's Sea of Consciousness. Only then could it evade Di Tian's pursuit.

Although Lu Jing's body was frozen, his consciousness remained clear. He could feel an enormous force pouring into his body, while a somewhat noisy voice rang out in his mind. "Don't be nervous, little fellow. I'm Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. You can call me Brother Sky Dream. From now on, I'll be your partner..."

Lu Jing's heart was filled with mixed emotions. He had never expected to receive Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's sacrifice in such a way. This sudden turn of events instantly transformed his previously hopeless situation.

Meanwhile, Bei Bei and Wang Dong'er, frozen in ice, could only watch helplessly as everything unfolded.

Bei Bei's eyes were filled with fury and unwillingness, while Wang Dong'er's held shock and confusion. Neither of them knew what kind of impact this sudden sacrifice would have on Lu Jing and on the entire Douluo Continent.