Star Forest

Yinglong Martial Soul had also brought Mu Qian considerable Spiritual Power, and he could sense that there were fewer people outside the gate.

Perhaps they had left of their own accord to search for a chance to survive elsewhere.

Or perhaps they had resorted to some unsavory means to scrape together the cost of entering the city.

Who knew? Mu Qian didn't care.

With a somewhat grating creak, the guards slowly shut the city gate.

At the same time, the last glimmer of light on the horizon faded away, and the area outside the gate was completely swallowed by silence and darkness.

Mu Qian's gaze sharpened as he saw a scene of indescribable horror...

The instant night fell, a terrifying energy surged into the packed crowd.

It had appeared without warning or sound, yet through the essence of Yinglong Martial Soul, Mu Qian sensed its intense greed and malice.

It felt like a gathering of boundless evil.

At last, Mu Qian understood why he had never encountered danger. A faint ripple of Yinglong's power surfaced within him, completely dispelling the influence of that evil energy.

No evil in the world could break through the seal of Yinglong Martial Soul's holy essence and affect him.

For some reason, however, the energy halted the instant it touched the city wall. After lingering briefly, it surged back like the tide receding into the sea.

Just as silently as it had come.

"What... is..."

Mu Qian hurriedly looked down at the crowd, his pupils contracting violently.

Of the several hundred people, more than half had already stopped breathing.

Their life force seemed to have been completely stripped away by that evil energy.

And that wasn't all.

On Douluo Continent, even when someone died, a trace of their Remnant Soul remained, and a faint Spiritual Power could still be sensed.

But the people who had died...

Mu Qian couldn't detect the slightest spiritual fluctuation. It seemed their very souls had been taken from them.

Some lucky survivors seemed to realize they had escaped with their lives, and their faces lit up with relief.

More and more survivors began cheering. As they accidentally touched the dead, those bodies began to gradually vanish, just as the older man had said.

"This method... why does it seem so much like... an Evil Soul Master..."

Mu Qian murmured to himself, still reeling from what had just happened.

Evil Soul Masters existed on the continent even now.

A Martial Soul being evil didn't automatically make its wielder an Evil Soul Master. Rather, some special Martial Souls allowed their users to cultivate by hunting humans and absorbing their emotions and souls. Spirit Masters like these were known as Evil Soul Masters.

"But if it really is an Evil Soul Master... why hasn't Star Luo sent anyone to deal with it, after all this time?"

He didn't believe the Star Luo Imperial Family hadn't received word. The Sophie Kingdom would certainly have reported something like this.

Nor did he believe they would really ignore the city and leave its people to fend for themselves.

Or perhaps the message had never made it out of Guja City...

Mu Qian recalled what had just happened. The moment that evil energy touched the city wall, it had stopped advancing.

And the wall before him...

It was built from ordinary marble and had no defensive properties at all.

When he also considered the steep price of five Gold Soul Coins to enter the city, he felt he had found the answer.

Standing atop the wall, Mu Qian gazed toward the tall, imposing structure in the heart of the city.

That should be the City Lord's Mansion...

"It looks like this matter runs pretty deep. Never mind the city lord's strength; someone who can serve as a city lord can't possibly be weak."

"The evil energy covers such a wide area. Even if it isn't a domain-type Soul Skill that only a Titled Douluo can obtain, that Evil Soul Master is still beyond what I can stand against right now."

"And it's hard to say whether the city lord has someone above him..."

Mu Qian clenched his fists and shook his head. In the end, he gave up and decided not to get involved.

It wasn't that Mu Qian was heartless. This matter ran too deep and had already exceeded what he could handle.

If it had been within his power, he wouldn't have minded ridding the people of this menace.

But his own life mattered more.

With that thought, Mu Qian sighed helplessly and leaped down from the wall.

The Mist shrouding Guja City was far too dense. He planned to buy some food and other supplies, then leave first thing in the morning.

Mu Qian looked north. "Snow Maiden said she had other things to take care of. I wonder how she's doing now."

Two months later.

Star Luo Empire, Star Forest.

Night fell. Countless stars shimmered together in the sky, and the forest's dreamlike glowing plants wove them into a fairytale scene.

Mu Qian hurried through the woods with Little Flower. From time to time, the roars and low calls of Spirit Beasts echoed in the distance.

Star Forest was named for the stars. It was famous not only for its breathtaking night sky, but also as the largest gathering place for Spirit Beasts in Star Luo Empire, apart from the Star Luo Royal Forest.

Unlike the Soul Hunting Forests where the imperial family and Spirit Hall raised Spirit Beasts, this was a natural habitat—and one of the cruelest battlegrounds around.

If someone let the beautiful scenery lull them into lowering their guard, a moment's carelessness could cost them their life.

Mu Qian didn't dare be careless either. A Spirit Beast habitat like this was different from the Far North Ice Plains. There was no one here to back him up, so he naturally couldn't act recklessly.

Over the past two months, he had scoured all the major Soul Hunting Forests and natural habitats, but still hadn't found a Spirit Beast suited to him.

Without a Spirit Ring, the Soul Power he gained from cultivating could only accumulate. If he couldn't find a suitable one here, he would have to enter Star Dou Forest.

As for the Star Luo Imperial Forest, it had already been designated as an exclusive hunting ground for the imperial family. It wasn't a place he could enter just by paying.

Mu Qian carefully felt his way forward, doing his best to distinguish the Spirit Beasts around him.

He had almost reached the outskirts of Star Forest's Core Circle. If he couldn't find what he needed here, he would have to leave.

He knew his own strength and wasn't so arrogant as to charge into the Core Circle.

No one knew what dangers lurked in there. Even if there were no Ferocious Beasts, he couldn't handle any Spirit Beast older than twenty thousand years in his current state.

When all was said and done, he had too few Soul Skills.

He could still take a chance on a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, but only because he had a First Soul Skill that could be called heaven-defying.

Mu Qian found a relatively safe spot and took a few pieces of cold roast meat from his spatial ring.

In a Spirit Beast habitat, at night, lighting a campfire...

Mu Qian wanted to live a few more years. There were still plenty of girls in this world waiting for him to conquer... no, save.

He ate a quick bite and continued searching.

An hour passed quickly. Half the night was gone, and Mu Qian sighed softly, preparing to head back.

He had encountered Spirit Beasts along the way. He took care of the weaker ones as he went, avoided the stronger ones whenever he could, and didn't want to attract others by making too much noise.