Assuming the Name Chen Yuan, Setting Out for Star Luo

Night was the best cover. Yu Yuanchen—or rather, Chen Yuan, as he was now called—moved like a shadow blending into the darkness, silently leaving Dragon City behind. He chose no means of transportation, relying solely on his formidable physique and exquisite control over Soul Power to race through the wilderness and mountains and forests. He was no slower than a galloping horse, yet better able to avoid the eyes and ears along the official roads.

His first destination was the Star Luo Empire.

The southeastern region of the Heaven Dou Empire had been territory cultivated by the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and the Black Flame Demonic Dragon Clan for many years, their informants spread everywhere. No matter how careful he was, the longer he remained, the greater the risk of exposure would become. The Star Luo Empire, however, had always been rivals with Heaven Dou, and the Long Family's influence there was weak. It was the ideal place to hide and train.

He did not head straight for the heart of the Star Luo Empire. Instead, he planned a roundabout route along the Buffer Zone between the two nations. At times, he slipped into Heaven Dou territory to gather information; at others, he entered Star Luo territory to familiarize himself with the environment. He acted like a genuine wandering Soul Master, drawing no suspicion.

He changed out of the blue fitted outfit that symbolized his clan and put on a plain gray cloth robe, covered by a half-worn cloak. Its wide hood concealed most of his face. He stabilized his Soul Power Fluctuation at around level fifty-one. It displayed the strength of a Soul King, enough to deter most petty troublemakers, without being overly conspicuous. As for the commotion his Soul Ring colors might cause, he simply decided that unless it was a life-or-death situation, he would not casually release his Martial Soul. To outsiders, his disguised Martial Soul was the Thunder Armor Dragon Lizard, a Sub-Dragon Species Soul Beast with decent Lightning Attribute and defensive power. It could explain his strong physique and the occasional Lightning Attribute Soul Power Fluctuation he revealed, while being far less eye-catching than the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.

"Chen Yuan..." he murmured the temporary name, his gaze calm and still. From this day onward, the continent had one fewer dazzling genius of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Yu Yuanchen, and one more obscure wandering Soul Master, Chen Yuan.

The journey was not always peaceful. The continent was vast, with Soul Masters and ordinary people mixed together. There was light, and there were shadows.

One day, he passed through a small border town in the Heaven Dou Empire called Gray Stone Town. The town was modestly prosperous due to its production of a hard gray stone, but that had also drawn the covetous attention of many factions. Chen Yuan had intended to rest briefly in town and replenish his dried provisions and water, but by chance, he witnessed a scene that made him frown slightly.

In the small square at the town center, a young Soul Master dressed in a luxurious silk robe and wearing an arrogant expression was haughtily berating a pair of commoners who appeared to be father and daughter, accompanied by several guards. The girl was around fifteen or sixteen, with delicate features, but her face was now pale with fright as she tightly clutched her father's arm. The old man stooped over, repeatedly bowing and apologizing. Several shattered pieces of gray stone lay scattered at his feet.

"You old fool! Where are your eyes? Didn't you see this young master coming? You smashed the Jade Bottle I just bought. What do you think should be done?" The young Soul Master's voice was shrill. The Soul Power Fluctuation faintly emanating from him was around level thirty, and one of his guards was even a Soul Ancestor.

"Please forgive me, Lord Soul Master. This old man truly did not do it on purpose... It was... it was because you suddenly turned around..." the old man defended himself in a trembling voice.

"You still dare talk back?!" The young Soul Master's eyes turned fierce as he raised his hand to slap him. Soul Power flickered around his palm. If that blow landed solidly, an ordinary person would likely lose half his life.

Quite a few townspeople had gathered around, yet no one dared step forward to intervene. Their eyes held only fear and numbness. Clearly, this was not the first time such a thing had happened.

Chen Yuan's eyes beneath his hood grew slightly cold. He was not a pure idealist and understood well the law of the jungle in this world. But when he saw a Soul Master abusing his status to freely bully commoners who had no power to resist, the youthful sense of righteousness within him, not yet completely worn away, was still stirred.

He did not reveal himself immediately. Instead, he moved like a ghost around to a quiet alley behind the young Soul Master. Just as the Soul Master's slap was about to fall, a faint purple spark of lightning, so subtle it was nearly imperceptible, shot from the shadows at the alley entrance like a venomous snake and accurately pierced the back of the young Soul Master's neck.

The young Soul Master's body suddenly stiffened. His raised hand froze in midair, and the viciousness in his eyes was instantly replaced by confusion and an indescribable numbness. Then his body went limp, and he collapsed directly onto the ground, foaming at the mouth and unconscious.

"Young Master!"

"What happened?!"

The guards were Greatly Alarmed and hurried forward to support and examine him, but they found no external injuries. They could only sense that their young master's Soul Power was in disarray, as if he had suffered a powerful mental impact and lightning-induced paralysis. They looked around in terror, but all they saw were the watching commoners and the empty street. They could not find whoever had attacked.

"Th-there's... an expert!" The Soul Ancestor guard's face turned pale. Realizing they had provoked someone they could not afford to offend, he did not dare linger any longer. He hurriedly carried the unconscious young Soul Master on his back and fled the town in panic with the other guards, not even bothering to collect the shattered pieces of the "Jade Bottle" on the ground.

The townspeople in the square looked at one another, unsure of what had happened, but they ultimately breathed a sigh of relief when their oppressor left. The father and daughter, in particular, felt as if they had narrowly escaped death. They embraced and wept, repeatedly kowtowing toward empty space as they thanked their unknown benefactor.

Chen Yuan had already quietly left Gray Stone Town, as though he had never appeared. To him, this was merely a small episode during his journey. As for whether that young Soul Master would retaliate against the father and daughter, heh, after suffering this ordeal, as long as they were not fools, they would flee far away even if it meant leaving their homeland. Even if they did not flee, it had nothing to do with him. He was not their nanny. Saving their lives had already been more than merciful enough; he could not possibly consider everything for them. He had no intention of making a name for himself, nor did he wish to become entangled in unnecessary trouble. Handling things in secret allowed him to punish evil while protecting himself, making it the best choice. As for that young Soul Master, he had shown restraint. He had merely used a thread of extremely condensed lightning Soul Power to strike his mind, knocking him unconscious and leaving behind a few aftereffects—for example, he would occasionally become mentally unsettled while cultivating over the next few months. It was a small punishment and a stern warning.

Similar incidents occurred several more times during the journey that followed. Whenever he encountered noble Soul Masters trampling farmland on horseback, bully Soul Masters forcibly collecting protection fees and oppressing merchants, or similar situations, if it was within his capabilities and would not expose him, he chose to act in secret. Sometimes, he silently used pebbles to break a horse's leg. Sometimes, he used Electric Field Perception to create confusion and help someone escape. Other times, as in Gray Stone Town, he used exquisite Soul Power Control to temporarily rob evildoers of their ability to move.

He always adhered to the principle of "hiding among the crowd." Like a calm observer, he only tugged at the threads of fate from the shadows, never placing himself beneath the spotlight.

However, his stance was entirely different when it came to conflicts between Soul Masters, whether they were sectarian vendettas, disputes over interests, or mere clashes of pride.

Once, while passing through a stretch of mountains and forests, he happened upon two groups of Soul Masters fighting fiercely over a spirit herb they had discovered. Each side had five or six people, ranging in strength from Soul Elders to Soul Ancestors. The battle was intense, Soul Skills flashing everywhere and trees snapping apart.

Chen Yuan merely glanced at them from afar before detouring without hesitation, with no intention of getting involved. He even deliberately concealed his aura to avoid being noticed by either side.

Another time, in a tavern in a small border city, two groups of mercenaries escalated a verbal dispute into a fight. The tavern immediately descended into chaos, tables and chairs flying about as low-level Soul Skills shot wildly through the room. The other diners either fled in panic or cowered trembling in corners.

Chen Yuan had originally been quietly eating by a window. When the fighting spread to his side, he did not intervene to stop either party. Instead, he moved like a fish through water, making several clever evasions among the chaotic crowd. He was "naturally" "pushed" by the surging mass of people toward the tavern entrance, then took a single step outside and left the place of trouble. The entire process was smooth and effortless, as though he were merely an ordinary passerby with good luck and quick reflexes. Neither side of the conflict noticed him at all.

He carried the philosophy of "silently placing everyone before himself, hiding among the crowd" to the extreme. Grudges between Soul Masters were difficult to judge. Rashly intervening could easily bring disaster upon himself and expose his tracks. His foremost task was to train safely and improve himself, not to serve as an arbiter of justice.

Thus, he traveled westward, crossing the vast border provinces of the Heaven Dou Empire. More than a month later, he finally officially set foot on Star Luo Empire territory.

The Star Luo Empire's character was entirely different from Heaven Dou's. The people here seemed more fierce and martial, while the cities were built in a rougher, grander style. The Empire's Royal Family, the Dai Family, and the Zhu Family ruled together through marriage. Its power structure was stable, and its control over the country seemed stronger than that of the Heaven Dou Empire.

After entering the Star Luo Empire, Chen Yuan clearly sensed a different atmosphere. The threat of the Long Family was almost nonexistent here, allowing him to relax considerably. He began paying closer attention to the Local Customs and Traditions and distribution of factions within the Star Luo Empire. He also tried to interact with local Soul Masters, gathering information and learning about this unfamiliar land.

He continued to keep a low profile. In taverns and exchanges frequented by Soul Masters, he often chose a corner, ordered simple food and drink, and quietly listened to the conversations around him, collecting useful information—about the major sects of Star Luo, Dangerous Places and Secret Realms, and recent notable events.

He heard that several remarkable Geniuses had emerged among the Star Luo Empire's younger Royal Family generation. He heard that Fasno Province, bordering Star Luo, had recently become somewhat unsettled, with rumors of Evil Soul Masters appearing there. He also heard that strange phenomena had recently appeared in the Thunder Desert west of the Star Luo Empire, drawing many Lightning Attribute Soul Masters to investigate...

He quietly committed all this information to memory as a reference for planning his next move.

That day, he arrived at a medium-sized city in the northeastern part of the Star Luo Empire—Gengxin City. The city was famous for its mineral resources and forging industry. There were many Soul Masters within it, and the major merchant associations and sects had all established strongholds there, making information readily available.

Chen Yuan paid the entry fee and followed the crowd into this hard city dominated by black and gray tones. He planned to stay for several days, both to purchase supplies and to see whether he could learn more detailed information about places suitable for his training.

He did not know that in this seemingly ordinary city, an unexpected storm was quietly approaching him. A Hidden Dragon could conceal himself among the common people, but the paths of fate often crossed when least expected. His journey through Star Luo was destined not to remain peaceful forever.