The Beginning of Cheating

The stream ran clear, its bed strewn with jagged rocks.

Huo Yuhao wasn't in a hurry. He unfolded the map Dai Li had given him, which marked the location of the Star Dou Great Forest with a red X.

"At this pace, I should reach it before nightfall." Huo Yuhao rolled up the map and put it in his pack.

The White Tiger Dagger was Huo Yun'er's keepsake, a gift from Dai Hao. Before she died, Huo Yun'er had given it to Huo Yuhao.

He hated carrying the White Tiger Dagger, but for Huo Yuhao, who had nothing to his name, there was no other choice.

Huo Yuhao took off his shoes and stepped barefoot into the cold stream. At the same time, a faint glow lit his eyes, and a gray light swept across them.

His pupils turned a lifeless gray. The sound of a ticking clock rang in his ears, and a miraculous scene unfolded.

The gently flowing water slowed. The fish swishing their tails in the stream moved more and more sluggishly. If the world normally ran at one-times speed, then within thirty meters of Huo Yuhao, everything that moved—and everything else—seemed to play at "0.5 times speed."

Huo Yuhao reached into the water and pulled out fish, one after another.

Before transmigrating, Huo Yuhao had never cooked. Faced with the original owner's special skill of grilling fish, he was at a loss.

Looking at the fish flopping about, Huo Yuhao found himself facing a challenge for the first time in his life.

"Let's see. First, remove the scales, then gut it, take out the gills, remove the innards, and wash it clean. That should be the process."

Huo Yuhao caught five bluefish, each about twenty to thirty centimeters long. With the sharp White Tiger Dagger, he had them scaled in no time, and he even managed to chop firewood at the same time.

Soon, smoke curled into the air. Five cleaned fish were skewered around the fire, and Huo Yuhao clumsily turned them over, coughing whenever the smoke got to him.

"I knew it! If there's smoke, there must be people nearby!"

Huo Yuhao turned in surprise. A man and a woman emerged from the trees and bushes. The man was tall and gentle-looking, while the woman had a slender figure and looked about fifteen or sixteen. Her long ponytail gave her a youthful, lively air.

As soon as Huo Yuhao saw them, he realized who they were.

Bei Bei and Tang Ya, the guides who would lead Huo Yuhao to Shrek Academy.

"Little brother, are you selling those grilled fish? They don't look too appetizing, but I'm sure they taste pretty good." Tang Ya blinked her bright eyes and stared eagerly at Huo Yuhao.

Neither in his previous life nor this one had Huo Yuhao ever been in a relationship. He blushed a little.

"So the little brother knows how to blush. How interesting." Tang Ya covered her mouth and giggled.

"Um... There's plenty of fish. I'll share them with you." Huo Yuhao looked at the slightly charred fish and decided Tang Ya would be the first to try one.

Tang Ya's eyes lit up. Her right hand moved like a blur, stirring up a gust of wind as she snatched one of the blackened grilled fish into her hand.

Huo Yuhao's Martial Soul wasn't Spirit Eyes, but Time Eye, which had the Time Attribute. As soon as his consciousness had awakened, his Soul Power had shot straight to level ten.

For Huo Yuhao, who had been a fool since childhood, that nine-level surge in Soul Power wasn't just something he'd kept hidden from the system. The Duchess would have been furious if she learned he had Innate Full Soul Power.

A gray film covered Huo Yuhao's eyes. From his perspective, Tang Ya's hands slowed, each movement appearing frame by frame. A strange force of suction sprang up, drawing a grilled fish from beside the fire into his hand.

Using Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon to grab a grilled fish?

A hint of amusement flickered in Bei Bei's eyes. Given Tang Ya's carefree nature, it was just the sort of thing she'd do.

"Xiao Ya, our young friend hasn't even eaten yet. Why are you helping yourself first?" Bei Bei walked over to greet Huo Yuhao, then looked at Tang Ya with a hint of helplessness.

"Don't be so disrespectful! What should you be calling me?" Tang Ya gripped the stick holding the grilled fish and waved it around in front of Bei Bei.

"All right, all right. Teacher Xiao Ya." Bei Bei raised both hands and kept dodging.

"That's more like it." Tang Ya smiled with satisfaction. She parted her red lips, and the moment her teeth touched the fish and bit down—

Tang Ya's cheerful expression turned complicated. Seeing her reaction, Bei Bei tore off a small piece of fish, put it in his mouth, and chewed for a moment.

"Young brother, did you forget the salt?" Bei Bei forced it down. The fish was a little burnt too, but he didn't mention that.

Huo Yuhao said, "This is my first time away from home, and my first time grilling fish. If anything's lacking, please bear with me."

"I'm Bei Bei, and she's Tang Ya. We're traveling too, just like you. I haven't asked your name yet, young brother." Bei Bei asked warmly.

"My name's Huo Yuhao." Huo Yuhao tried a bite of his own fish, and his whole face immediately tightened.

This Huo Yuhao couldn't grill fish.

Huo Yuhao had already eaten before he started grilling. He'd cooked the fish partly to test his skills and partly to see if he could attract Bei Bei and Tang Ya.

"Brother Bei Bei, Miss Tang Ya, it was nice meeting you." Huo Yuhao slung his pack over his shoulders and got up to leave.

"Brother Huo, the Star Dou Great Forest is very close. It could be dangerous here, and you're alone..."

Huo Yuhao smiled and shook his head. The Star Dou Great Forest was exactly where he was headed. After waving goodbye, he set off with a determined look, the White Tiger Dagger tucked into his waist.

Watching Huo Yuhao walk away, Tang Ya furrowed her brows. "Do you think he's heading to the Star Dou Great Forest?"

Bei Bei shook his head. "I can sense that he has Soul Power, but it's extremely weak. He's traveling alone, and he's heading toward the Star Dou Great Forest. He must be going to hunt a Soul Beast."

"He has Soul Power, and he's a boy who's run away from home. Someone like that would be perfect for the Tang Sect."

Seeing how eager Tang Ya looked, Bei Bei couldn't help laughing. "How do you know he ran away from home?"

"A woman's intuition." Tang Ya smiled smugly.

"Fifty meters ahead: Star Dou Great Forest territory. Soul Beasts have been spotted. Proceed with caution."

Huo Yuhao held the White Tiger Dagger and slowly drew it from its sheath. A flash of cold light ran along the blade. He was excited, but nervous too.

It was the seventh day since Huo Yuhao had transmigrated to the Douluo Continent, and his first time setting foot in the Star Dou Great Forest. His figure gradually disappeared into the forest, filled with Soul Beasts.

The woods were deep and silent, with towering trees everywhere. Huo Yuhao channeled Soul Power into his eyes, and a flash of gray appeared in the center of his pupils. Everything around him seemed to slow, and Time Flow became sluggish.

Just then, a shadow flashed past on his left.

Huo Yuhao's Martial Soul, Time Eye, had both the Time and Mental attributes. After a long journey of testing and practice, he had learned that the stronger his Mental Power, the slower time flowed within thirty meters of him.

Gradually, the figure drew closer.

It was a baboon nearly a meter tall, covered in yellowish-brown fur. Its arms were unnaturally long, and its sharp nails glinted blackly. With its fangs bared, it looked vicious.

God Slayer Wind Baboon!

Huo Yuhao's breathing grew ragged, and his heart beat faster. His palms were slick with sweat, making the handle of the White Tiger Dagger slippery in his grip.

"Ten Year Wind Baboon. So you're the Wind Baboon!" Huo Yuhao suddenly burst out laughing. The Wind Baboon, poised to attack, was completely baffled. It had no idea what the human in front of it found so funny.

Without warning, Huo Yuhao charged straight at it. As he neared the Wind Baboon, he channeled Soul Power furiously into the space between his eyes.

Time Flow within thirty meters slowed at once. The Wind Baboon felt an invisible pressure suddenly bear down on it.

Speed was the Wind Baboon's greatest strength, but inside Huo Yuhao's Time Slow, everything that moved could only reach half its usual speed.

The White Tiger Dagger flashed coldly and slashed a deep, bone-revealing gash across the Wind Baboon's back. The beast shrieked in pain and leaped about wildly.

Enraged, the Wind Baboon bared its fangs and opened its mouth. A ball of white light shot out.

Huo Yuhao's expression was cold. Just as the light reached him, he swung the White Tiger Dagger and sucked it inside. Then he hurled the blade viciously in the direction the Wind Baboon had charged from.

At the same time, Huo Yuhao closed in. Once the Wind Baboon entered the "domain" of his Time Slow, the White Tiger Dagger plunged straight into its chest. A burst of white light followed, and the Wind Baboon's body exploded, sending chunks of flesh flying.

Huo Yuhao picked up the snow-white White Tiger Dagger. Looking at the scraps of flesh on the ground and the white Ten Year Soul Ring that had just condensed before him, he smiled faintly. "Wind Baboon eliminated. Next, all that's left is to... wait."

Soon, an unfamiliar voice suddenly rang out in Huo Yuhao's mind.

"Ah! Look what I found!"

"A Soul Master with both Time and Mental attributes. Too bad your big brother can't cry, or I'd be in tears right now."

Huo Yuhao heard the unfamiliar voice and smiled knowingly.

Without warning, the ground split open. A white, chubby thing burrowed out, releasing a chill that made the temperature around them plunge.

Huo Yuhao tugged his clothes tighter and looked at the silkworm before him. It was a full seven meters long, its body the color of white jade and almost translucent. Most striking of all, it had ten golden rings encircling its body from head to tail.

"Don't be afraid, young man. I won't hurt you."

"Who are you? Are you the one talking to me?" Huo Yuhao asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Since you've asked so sincerely, you'd better listen up! I am the Incarnation of Justice and Wisdom, the first King of Soul Beasts on the Douluo Continent to break through the million-year mark—the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm!" The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm raised its little head and looked down at Huo Yuhao proudly.

Huo Yuhao met the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's gaze. For a moment, the area around them fell silent.

"Come on, young man, at least act surprised!" the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm complained.

"Ah! You're a Million Year Soul Beast! Wh-what are you going to do?"

Huo Yuhao's reaction satisfied the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. Without another word, it turned into a ball of white light and charged at him.