Chi Wang

Xue Qingwu's footsteps were light, making almost no sound as they landed on the soft soil.

But Xue Yuheng's spiritual sense had been enveloping the entire campsite, and he opened his eyes the moment she lifted the tent flap.

He stepped out of the tent, meeting the icy blue gaze Xue Qingwu had fixed upon him.

The usual coldness and calm were gone from those eyes, replaced by a rare, grave solemnity.

"What is it?" Xue Yuheng asked in a low voice.

"Something is coming from the direction of the core area," Xue Qingwu's voice carried a hint of chill. "A very powerful fire attribute. It's Chi Wang."

Xue Yuheng's expression shifted.

The Three-Headed Red Demon Mastiff, ranked eighth among the ten great fierce beasts, with two hundred and sixty thousand years of cultivation!

Why would it leave the core area and come to the edge of the mixed zone?

"Wake them up." Xue Yuheng made a prompt decision and turned toward the tent shared by Xiao Xiao and Yu Mengdi.

Without asking, he pulled back the tent flap.

In late August, the nights in the Star Dou Forest remained stiflingly hot.

The air inside the tent was stagnant, and the two girls were sleeping restlessly; they had long since shed their outer garments, wearing only their undergarments.

Xiao Xiao was sprawled out, her long black hair scattered across the pillow, her fair arms exposed. Yu Mengdi was sleeping more modestly, curled on her side with her long golden hair draped over one shoulder.

The sudden influx of light startled them both awake.

"Who is it!" Xiao Xiao sat up, rubbing her eyes, her tone laced with morning grumpiness.

When she saw Xue Yuheng standing at the entrance, she froze instantly.

Yu Mengdi also reacted, looking down at her own attire; her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she hurriedly pulled the quilt over herself.

The air in the tent became instantly awkward.

Xue Yuheng, however, acted as if he saw nothing. His face remained devoid of any extra expression, and he said in a flat tone, "Get dressed. Chi Wang is here, and we're in trouble."

With that, he turned and exited the tent, pulling the flap shut behind him.

Xiao Xiao and Yu Mengdi exchanged a glance, seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.

They had wanted to complain about Xue Yuheng barging in without knocking, but seeing his dead-serious demeanor, the words died on their lips.

"Chi Wang..." Yu Mengdi's voice trembled. "Is that the Three-Headed Red Demon Mastiff from the ten great fierce beasts?"

Xiao Xiao nodded while hurriedly putting on her clothes. "Who else could it be? Don't just sit there, hurry up and get dressed, or there won't be anyone to protect you if a fight breaks out."

The two scrambled to dress, and by the time they rushed out of the tent, the earth had already begun to tremble slightly.

At first, it was just a faint vibration, like distant rolling thunder.

But soon, the tremors grew increasingly violent.

The ground beneath their feet heaved like ocean waves, the surrounding trees swayed wildly, leaves rustled loudly, and countless birds took flight in panic, blotting out the sky.

A scorching, overbearing aura rolled in from the south, like a volcanic eruption; wherever it passed, the air was scorched until it distorted.

The originally moist and cool forest became stiflingly hot in an instant, and even breathing felt like inhaling searing heat.

The grass on the ground withered and curled at a visible rate, eventually turning to ash.

"Such a powerful aura..." Yu Mengdi's face turned pale, and she instinctively gripped the short sword at her waist.

She could clearly feel that this aura was far more terrifying than any Spirit Douluo she had ever encountered.

Xue Yuheng looked up toward the depths of the southern forest, his eyes grave.

A massive red figure was charging through the forest at high speed, snapping towering trees like paper and leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.

It was getting closer.

Finally, the figure burst out of the dense forest and appeared before the four of them.

It was a Tibetan Mastiff of immense proportions.

It stood over ten meters tall and was more than twenty meters long, its entire body covered in dark red scales, with raging flames burning between them.

Most striking of all were its three identical heads, each bearing a pair of blood-red eyes that radiated a cruel, bloodthirsty light.

Its six thick legs pounded the earth, each step causing the ground to shake violently and leaving behind footprints that burned with fire.

"Humans?!"

The middle head opened its blood-red maw, letting out a deafening roar. The sound was like a great bell, making the four of them wince in pain.

Chi Wang had originally come out looking for the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

The little one had been getting naughtier lately, always sneaking out of the core area to play, and it had to come out to find it every time.

It hadn't expected to find four humans instead of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

Its three heads turned in unison, scanning the four of them.

When its gaze landed on Xiao Xiao, it paused for a brief moment.

In the next second, a majestic cyan aura erupted from Xiao Xiao's body.

ROAR!

A clear, resonant dragon cry pierced the heavens.

Behind Xiao Xiao, a pair of cyan dragon wings spanning over ten meters suddenly unfurled, covered in fine, dense cyan scales that shimmered with a metallic luster.

A layer of cyan dragon scales rapidly coated her body, a pair of small dragon horns sprouted from her forehead, and her black pupils transformed into vertical cyan slits.

Divine Dragon Transformation!

Terrifying dragon might radiated from Xiao Xiao, pressing down until the surrounding air seemed to solidify.

Yu Mengdi stood to the side, her eyes nearly popping out in shock.

This is a seven-year-old girl?!

This dragon might, this aura—it was far more powerful than any dragon-type martial soul possessor she had ever seen! It was even something that some Soul Emperors and Soul Saints might not be able to match!

However, Chi Wang merely glanced at Xiao Xiao indifferently before shifting its gaze away.

Its three heads and six blood-red eyes were all locked firmly onto Xue Qingwu, who stood beside Xue Yuheng.

This white-haired little girl...

She gave it an inexplicably familiar feeling.

That feeling was faint, yet incredibly profound, as if it were carved deep into the depths of its soul.

It could not recall where it had seen her, but the apprehension stemming from the depths of its bloodline could not be deceived.

In its premonition, this white-haired girl was a humanoid soul beast.

Why would it have such a feeling?

"Who are you?" the middle head of Chi Wang spoke, its voice low and hoarse, filled with heavy suspicion.

Xue Qingwu looked at it expressionlessly, her ice-blue eyes devoid of even a ripple: "Who I am is none of your concern."

"None of my concern?" Chi Wang sneered, its three heads roaring in unison, "Humans, this is the Star Dou Forest, not a place you should be.

Especially geniuses like you; you have no business appearing here."

It had lived for tens of thousands of years and had seen far too many human geniuses.

These humans were gifted and grew at an astonishing speed; once given enough time, they would sooner or later become a nightmare for soul beasts.

The four humans before it were all young, yet each of their auras was exceptionally bizarre. The white-haired girl, in particular, gave it the most dangerous feeling of all.

They must not be allowed to leave!

A flash of killing intent crossed Chi Wang's eyes.

"Since you have run into me, you shall all stay here."

The moment the words fell, Chi Wang took a fierce step forward.

Terrifying fire-attribute soul power erupted instantly, and the ground around it melted, turning into scorching magma.

Its three heads opened their mouths simultaneously, and three pillars of searing flame shot toward the four of them.

Wherever the flame pillars passed, even the space itself seemed to distort.

Xue Qingwu's eyes turned cold.

A heaven-shaking chill finally erupted from her body.

This chill was completely different from the Ultimate Ice of Xue Yuheng; it was purer, more domineering, and carried an aura of absolute sovereignty.

God-level martial soul, Godly Ice.

Xue Qingwu's figure began to change.

She slowly grew taller, and her white hair lengthened, cascading down to her ankles.

Her clothes transformed into a long, snow-white dress, the hem adorned with crystalline ice flowers.

Her skin became nearly translucent, pale as snow, and she was surrounded by a pale blue ice mist, her ice-blue eyes resembling the purest sapphires.

Awakened divine skill, Descent of the Snow Maiden.

At the same time, the soul rings on Xiao Xiao's body lit up.

No longer suppressed by the Power of Creation, they were no longer the ordinary yellow century-level soul rings from before, but two emerald-green cyan soul rings rotating slowly beneath her feet.

That was the color belonging to the Wind Dragon King!

The first cyan soul ring suddenly flared.

First soul skill, Dragon King True Body!

Xiao Xiao let out a long howl toward the sky, the dragon cry shaking the mountains and forests.

Her body grew at a speed visible to the naked eye, transforming in an instant into a cyan giant dragon over dozens of meters long.

The dragon scales shimmered with a cold luster under the moonlight, her massive wings blotting out the sky, and the terrifying dragon might pressed down upon Chi Wang like a physical force.

Immediately following, the second cyan soul ring lit up as well.

Second soul skill, Thirty-Three Heavens Storm!

The signature technique of the Wind Dragon King!

Countless cyan wind blades converged in the sky, forming a massive, swirling vortex of wind. The storm vortex spun, emitting a piercing whistle as the surrounding trees and rocks were all sucked in, instantly ground into powder.

Beneath Xue Qingwu's feet, the true appearance of her spirit rings was finally revealed.

Two red spirit rings.

Two hundred and fifty thousand years! Three hundred thousand years!

The two terrifying spirit rings rotated slowly beneath her, radiating an aura that made one's heart tremble.

Yu Mengdi stood where she was, completely stunned.

She stared blankly at the scene before her, her mind a complete blank.

Xiao Xiao, a seven-year-old Great Spirit Master? That was a seven-year-old dragon!

And Xue Qingwu... were those really two red spirit rings?

Had the world gone mad?

Although Yu Mengdi's martial spirit was already at the quasi-god level and her first two spirit rings had been upgraded to the thousand-year level, compared to Xue Qingwu's hundred-thousand-year spirit rings, the gap was simply too vast.

Xue Yuheng also moved at this moment.

The pale yellow hundred-year spirit ring on his body lit up slowly, still maintaining its ordinary appearance.

Only the three people other than Yu Mengdi knew that hidden beneath this spirit ring was the terrifying power of a four-hundred-thousand-year Ice Jade Empress Scorpion.

He did not launch an attack, but instead transformed into a pale blue stream of light, instantly merging into Xue Qingwu's body.

This was the unique combat style of his Wordless Heavenly Book martial spirit: fusion support.

In the Snow Maiden state, Xue Yuheng provided a two-hundred-percent increase to all attributes.

After Xue Yuheng's Power of Creation was infused, the buffs stacked, resulting in a total increase of four hundred percent!

Xue Qingwu's aura surged once again.

She slowly raised her right hand, a cluster of pale blue ice mist condensing in her palm.

Within the ice mist, it seemed as if an entire frozen world was contained.

Pride of the Two Emperors of Ice and Snow!

This was the ultimate strike she unleashed by resonating with the origin of the Ice Jade Empress Scorpion and combining it with Xue Yuheng's Power of Creation.

The pale blue ice mist flew out slowly; it was not fast, yet it carried an irresistible momentum.

Wherever it passed, time seemed to freeze, and even the pillar of fire spewed by Chi Wang instantly solidified into an ice pillar.

Chi Wang's three heads widened their eyes simultaneously, its six blood-red eyes filled with capital letters of confusion and shock.

Snow Maiden? Ice Jade Empress Scorpion?

How could these two little human girls possess the power of the two great rulers of the Far North?!

And that supporting human boy, what exactly was his martial spirit? To be able to raise a buff to such a terrifying degree!

Now, they absolutely could not be allowed to live!

The killing intent in Chi Wang's heart reached its peak.

If these three humans were allowed to leave the Star Dou Forest alive today, it wouldn't be long before the entire soul beast world faced a catastrophe!

It suddenly roared at the sky, the flames all over its body surging to the extreme, its two-hundred-and-sixty-thousand-year cultivation erupting without reservation.

In the distant Far North.

On a wasteland covered in ice and snow all year round.

This was the former residence of the Snow Empress, where the aura of the vessel had briefly appeared.

A youth wearing a gray robe stood at the peak of an iceberg, gazing at the distant horizon.

There was no expression on his face, and his pair of black eyes were as deep as an abyss.

Suddenly, he turned his head sharply, looking toward the south, and said coldly:

"The master's vessel..."

"I have finally found you."

His figure flashed, vanishing into the void, and he flickered away in the direction of the Star Dou Forest.