The early morning light was faint, and gentle sunlight pierced the clouds, spilling over the vast forest.
Towering ancient trees stood densely packed, their branches and leaves intertwined to form a green canopy that blotted out the sky. Only a few stray beams slipped through the gaps, swaying across the muddy ground like scattered gold.
This was the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest.
Beneath the trees, two figures, one large and one small, walked side by side.
The man wore a gray robe. He was handsome, with a refined, easygoing air. The child beside him was dressed in black, his expression cold.
They were none other than master and disciple, Si Yuan Ye and Lu Lin.
Si Yuan Ye had brought Lu Lin, who had finished absorbing the Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber, to the Star Dou Great Forest to help his disciple obtain his First Soul Ring.
This era was only a thousand years removed from the events of Absolute Tang Dynasty.
Given the incredibly slow pace of change on the Douluo Continent, the current era was already much like the era of Huo Gua a thousand years later, aside from a few cutting-edge Soul Tools.
At the very least, the Ten Great Beasts were already known to everyone.
That was why the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest was a forbidden zone in the hearts of all soul masters, a place harboring immense terror.
Even the Mixed Zone was not somewhere anyone would dare enter lightly without a powerful soul master to lead them.
Ordinary soul masters dared to venture only into the outer region, where large numbers of decade- and century-old Soul Beasts lived.
"Rustle..."
Just then, an unusual scraping sound suddenly came from the low bushes ahead.
Lu Lin's vision blurred. The next moment, several swift figures darted out and blocked his and Si Yuan Ye's path.
They were three enormous wolves, their bodies covered in coarse gray fur and their eyes bloodred.
Their forepaws were tipped with razor-sharp claws that gleamed coldly. They bared their fangs and snarled, looking ready to tear into anyone who came near.
"Oh, three century-old Flame Devouring Wolves."
Si Yuan Ye merely glanced at them and remarked calmly, as if nothing could stir him.
He didn't seem inclined to act.
"They're at it again!"
Lu Lin sounded a little helpless.
The next moment, the phantom of a massive bear, woven from dark red and pitch-black hues, coalesced around him.
At the same time, an incredibly violent, ferocious aura burst from his body. He seemed to become a humanoid Ferocious Beast.
As Lu Lin released his First Martial Soul, the three Flame Devouring Wolves, which had been baring their fangs, suddenly froze. Then they all dropped to the ground.
It was a fear born from the depths of their bloodline.
"Awwooo—!"
Driven by extreme terror and the overwhelming pressure, they could only submit. They were completely suppressed, unable to muster the slightest desire to attack.
Perhaps it was his imagination, but Lu Lin thought he heard a hint of grievance in their cries.
As a king among Soul Beasts, even a century-old Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear could make ordinary ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts give way.
A thousand-year-old Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear could even kill ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts with ease.
Lu Lin's Martial Soul was a variant of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, a being of the same rank. Naturally, it had the same suppressive effect on mere century-old Flame Devouring Wolves.
The three Flame Devouring Wolves lay limp on the ground.
Lu Lin withdrew his Martial Soul, brushed off his clothes, and followed Si Yuan Ye onward.
From beginning to end, Lu Lin had barely even glanced at the three unlucky wolves.
"Teacher, is the Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest just ahead?"
Si Yuan Ye smiled faintly. "Yes. There should be a Soul Ring suitable for you up ahead."
The Mixed Zone of the Star Dou Great Forest was also known as the core transitional belt.
Unlike the outer region, it was home to large numbers of thousand-year Soul Beasts, and even ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts occasionally appeared there.
Lu Lin's target was a Soul Beast of around three thousand years.
That was right: the maximum age of his First Soul Ring would be an astounding three thousand years.
Normally, soul masters could only consider a thousand-year Soul Ring for their third ring. A ring older than three thousand years was only possible for their fourth.
But for Avatar Unit 1, Ji Ming, this wasn't impossible.
After a month of secret-method tempering that had been worse than death, along with the physical enhancement granted by the top-tier beast Martial Soul, the Dark Demon Dreadclaw Bear, Ji Ming had raised the upper limit of the First Soul Ring he could absorb to around sixteen hundred years.
The effect of Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber was to raise that limit by a thousand years.
Because of the secret method, a considerable amount of natural treasures remained unabsorbed in Lu Lin's body, allowing him to push the Whale Rubber's effect even further.
As a result, his body could withstand a Soul Ring nearing twenty-nine hundred years.
Origin Douluo Si Yuan Ye had confirmed this several times. There was no mistake.
I wonder if we'll run into a suitable Soul Beast.
The Soul Beast Lu Lin had in mind was a subspecies of the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear—the Dark Gold Bear.
As for a true Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, he could forget about it. It wasn't that he didn't want one, but they were an absolutely rare species. There were probably only a few in the entire Star Dou Great Forest.
And one of them would have to be exactly the right age, too.
Even Lu Lin wouldn't dare dream that big.
After all, he wasn't a true child of destiny like Huo Yuhao.
Once they entered the Mixed Zone proper, the number of Soul Beasts appearing before the master and disciple increased noticeably.
Thousand-year Nether Wolves, Mountain Shaking Bears, Mandala Snakes, and all manner of other Soul Beasts appeared one after another, opening Lu Lin's eyes.
It was plain to see how dangerous the Star Dou Great Forest was.
The Soul Beasts living in the Mixed Zone were all at least a thousand years old. At that age, they had already gained some intelligence. Unlike those three unlucky wolves, these Soul Beasts sensed how terrifying the human beside the little boy in black was and wouldn't come anywhere near the pair.
The more intelligent a Soul Beast was, the more wary it became.
With Si Yuan Ye as his guide, Lu Lin might as well have been strolling through the backyard of his own Body Sect.
Of course, some still didn't know any better. A few thousand-year Soul Beasts occasionally came snarling toward Lu Lin to attack him, only to be casually slapped away by Si Yuan Ye or scared into cowering on the ground by his terrifying mental pressure.
Si Yuan Ye didn't even reveal a single Soul Ring. He handled it all as easily as drinking water.
What surprised Lu Lin, though, was that Si Yuan Ye only knocked away or injured the Soul Beasts that tried to attack them. He never killed them.
This gave Lu Lin something to think about, but he didn't ask.
The two continued deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest. Suddenly, Si Yuan Ye stopped, a faint smile appearing on his face. "You're really quite lucky."
"Teacher, did you spot a Dark Gold Bear?"
Lu Lin blurted out the question.
But he hadn't heard a Dark Gold Bear roar. Just how far ahead could Si Yuan Ye see?
Si Yuan Ye didn't answer. He simply continued leading Lu Lin onward at an unhurried pace.
A little over ten minutes later,
the two entered a patch of dense woodland with low trees.
"Ah!"
Just then, Lu Lin heard a scream. He looked over and saw a nondescript-looking man in his thirties fleeing for his life.
His clothes were torn and stained with blood. He couldn't have looked more wretched.
The ferocious Soul Beast hot on his heels was the very Dark Gold Bear Lu Lin had been searching for.
"Help me... Help me!"
When the man saw Lu Lin and Si Yuan Ye, his eyes lit up as if he'd spotted a lifeline. He hurried toward them.
Lu Lin frowned.
He could tell that the man was, at most, a Soul Elder. The Dark Gold Bear was clearly toying with him, like a cat with a mouse. Otherwise, the man would have been dead already. He wouldn't have lasted long enough for Lu Lin and Si Yuan Ye to arrive.
"Help me..."
The man kept repeating the words as he ran, rapidly closing in on the master and disciple.
But neither of them moved, acting as though they hadn't seen him.
The man didn't seem to mind. When he was only a few dozen meters away, he abruptly veered off course and headed straight for Lu Lin. At the same time, he summoned a wolf-type beast Martial Soul, and three Soul Rings—one white and two yellow—appeared around him. His fingers curled like hooks as he tried to ambush Lu Lin.
The man was clearly no fool. He meant to toss Lu Lin into the Dark Gold Bear's jaws and buy himself a chance to escape.
It was a decent plan, but reality was merciless.
Before he could even reach Lu Lin, Si Yuan Ye sprang into action. With thunderous force, he kicked the fool flying.
"Pathetic clown."
Si Yuan Ye snorted, his face dark with anger.
The result of taking a solid kick from the sect master of the Body Sect needed no explanation.
If the man somehow survived, Lu Lin might even consider bowing to him.
The Dark Gold Bear stared at the scene in utter shock.
Wait, where had its enormous prey gone?
Something was wrong.
Unfortunately, by the time it realized this, it was already too late.
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