Divine Realm,
In a place where clouds billowed and rosy light shimmered, a grand palace stood atop the clouds.
Inside the palace, a handsome man in a blue-and-gold robe, holding a golden dung fork, observed everything happening on Douluo Continent from an immeasurable distance.
"Xiao Qi's asleep, Brother. You look like something's on your mind." Xiao Wu walked up behind him in a pink dress, her hair tied in a scorpion braid. She took Tang San's arm and asked with concern.
"It's still about Douluo Continent. I'd originally planned to stay there a little longer, but I had to return to the Divine Realm early to take charge because of the bet between the Gods of Goodness and Evil..."
"Twenty years in the Divine Realm, ten thousand years of change on Douluo Continent, and the Tang Sect has already fallen into decline. Though I'm a God King, all I can do is watch helplessly as the Tang Sect falls further and further."
"Brother, don't be sad. The Tang Sect's decline came with the changing times."
Tang San nodded. "You're right, but the Tang Sect was something I built with my own hands. How could I just watch it disappear? As the God Realm Enforcer, I can't interfere with the lower realm. But a new star has emerged on Douluo Continent, and he'll have countless ties to my Tang Sect..."
Suddenly, Tang San's expression froze, and his eyes widened slightly. "...A new star... has disappeared?!"
"The hope of the Tang Sect's revival... is gone just like that? How is that possible? What happened?"
Tang San reached out with his large hand and swept aside the layers of clouds before him. In an instant, the winds rose and clouds churned, revealing every detail of the planet Douluo Continent.
"Brother..." Xiao Wu watched Tang San's actions, her gaze bewildered.
He'd just said that, as an enforcer, he couldn't interfere in the affairs of Douluo Continent. Yet now, for the sake of a new star, he was willing to inspect the entire continent.
His words and actions contradicted each other. He really said one thing and did another.
At the same time, in the clouds not far away, a girl of eleven or twelve who looked about seventy percent like Tang San blinked her bright eyes and curiously watched the planet her father was manipulating.
"So this is Douluo Continent, the place Dad and Mom are always describing."
The girl plunged into the clouds and vanished from sight.
"Take it slow, little brother Huo."
"Thank you for the meal, Brother Chuan. I really appreciate it."
"Don't mention it. You're in such a hurry—are you traveling somewhere?"
The boy stopped eating and set down the chicken leg he'd gnawed down to the bone. He gave an awkward smile. "Yeah, I left in such a hurry, so..."
"So when you smelled the meat, you couldn't help coming over," Qin Chuan said with a hearty laugh.
Huo Yuhao patted his stuffed belly and nodded, embarrassed.
Qin Chuan looked up at the clear sky. The sun hung high overhead, its bright, warm light falling on them both. When he looked down again, Huo Yuhao was already fast asleep.
"What a greenhorn. I drugged him and knocked him out without any trouble." Qin Chuan dragged Huo Yuhao beneath a tree, then crouched down to study him closely.
"You're eleven and only at level ten Soul Power. Killing you wouldn't earn me much Snow Hatred Value. You're in luck, kid. I plan to fatten you up before killing you, just like Tang San in Parallel Time and Space."
"Here, a little gift for our first meeting."
Qin Chuan flipped his wrist, and a piece of dark Sky-Covering Cloud Jade appeared in his hand. Without another word, he threaded a cord through it and hung it around Huo Yuhao's neck.
Sky-Covering Cloud Jade could shield its wearer from detection by the Divine Realm and also slightly improve a Soul Master's cultivation.
Before leaving, Qin Chuan left some Gold Soul Coins and a letter, then set off toward the Star Dou Great Forest.
Before this, he'd spent several days lying in wait at the White Tiger Duke's Mansion for Huo Yuhao. Only then had he found his chance.
Current Snow Hatred Value: 410200
"Huo Yuhao, your greatest advantages in this life are the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and Electrolux. I'm really curious where you'll end up once I've recovered both of them."
As the sun set, Huo Yuhao vaguely heard the voices of a man and a woman.
"Why did this little brother fall asleep? He seems fine... Look, he's about to wake up."
Huo Yuhao slowly opened his eyes. Seeing a man and woman who had suddenly appeared before him, he asked instinctively, "How strange. Why did I suddenly fall asleep? And who are you? Where's Brother Chuan?"
Bei Bei and Tang Ya exchanged glances, thinking the boy had slept himself silly.
Bei Bei was tall and refined. He smiled and said, "Little brother, we were just passing by. We saw you collapsed beneath this tree, so we waited here until now. Who's the Brother Chuan you mentioned?"
"He's someone who's been very kind to me." Huo Yuhao rose unsteadily. He looked at the campfire, now long extinguished, and saw that dusk had settled over the surrounding landscape. Only then did he realize he'd slept through the entire afternoon.
Tang Ya, a slender girl who looked fifteen or sixteen, picked up a bag of Gold Soul Coins and a letter and handed them to Huo Yuhao. "Little brother, when we found you, this letter and bag of Gold Soul Coins were right beside you. They must have been left by the Brother Chuan you mentioned."
Huo Yuhao eagerly took the letter and the heavy bag of Gold Soul Coins and lowered his head to read.
"Little brother Huo, it was my honor to meet you. You're a Soul Master too, aren't you? Please take this bag of Gold Soul Coins as a small gift from me. I hope you'll become a true powerhouse someday. And the jade hanging around your neck was passed down through my family. It's called Sky-Covering Cloud Jade. It helps with Soul Power cultivation and can greatly increase a Soul Master's cultivation speed. From the first moment I met you, I could tell you had a story to tell. I hope you can leave the gloom in your heart behind and truly walk the path of a powerhouse. Take these as the last embers I can leave you, since I don't have much time left. We'll meet again somewhere, someday. Your big brother is off."
Huo Yuhao instinctively touched his chest, clutching the Sky-Covering Cloud Jade tightly through his clothes. Hot tears spilled from his eyes. Then, under Bei Bei and Tang Ya's astonished gaze, he buried his head and sobbed.
Huo Yuhao had never had an easy life. This was the first time anyone had treated him with genuine kindness.
Holding the heavy bag of Gold Soul Coins, he silently vowed to cultivate hard and become a powerful Soul Master whom everyone admired. One day, he'd make that man kneel before his mother's grave and kowtow in apology.
Tang Ya's gaze softened. She offered him a handkerchief and asked gently, "Little brother, men shouldn't cry so easily. Here, take this."
"Thank you, big sister." Huo Yuhao wiped away his tears with the handkerchief.
Tang Ya beamed. The boy's calling her big sister put her in such a good mood that she promptly asked, "Little brother, may I ask if you're traveling alone?"
Though Huo Yuhao didn't understand why Tang Ya had asked so abruptly, he honestly nodded.
"That's wonderful!"
Tang Ya was delighted. She hurriedly asked, "Then would you be interested in joining the Tang Sect?"
"The Tang Sect!"
A few days later...
"Star Dou Great Forest begins fifty meters ahead. Soul Beasts have been spotted in the area. Proceed with caution."
Qin Chuan looked at the warning sign by the roadside, then at the Star Dou Great Forest stretching beyond sight ahead. He stepped into it without hesitation.
The forest was deep and quiet, with towering trees everywhere.
This was Qin Chuan's first time entering the Star Dou Great Forest, and his first time leaving the Sun Moon Empire on his own to travel to Douluo Continent.
Unlike the Douluo I Era, the Star Dou Great Forest's overall strength was terrifying in this era, ten thousand years later. Even without counting the Silver Dragon King, who was recuperating in a deep slumber, the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King Di Tian alone ranked as the strongest on the continent. What's more, he had five Ferocious Beasts under his command.
"Rustle, rustle..."
Just then, leaves rustled in the forest. A figure darted forward like the wind and lunged at Qin Chuan with lightning speed.
Qin Chuan's eyes narrowed. Four Soul Rings—one yellow, one purple, and two black—lit up beneath his feet. The second Soul Ring suddenly blazed with light.
"Second Soul Skill, Spider Web Senluo Prison."
Qin Chuan casually tossed out a ball of dark purple light. The moment it made contact, it became a dark purple web that completely ensnared its target.
Thud—
A heavy impact rang out, mixed with a heart-rending shriek. The Death Spider Emperor's potent poison invaded the Wind Baboon's body in an instant.
By the time Qin Chuan reached it, the Ten-Year Soul Beast, the Wind Baboon, had been corroded by the poison until not even a scrap remained.
Qin Chuan had recently broken through to Soul Ancestor. The fourth Soul Ring he'd exchanged for in the system shop was twenty-five thousand years old and perfectly suited to the Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul. As a result, the poison in the Second Soul Skill, Spider Web Senluo Prison, was terrifyingly potent.
The fourth Soul Skill, Bloodsucking Spider Thorn, was an area-of-effect skill. There was no need to make such a fuss over a Ten-Year Wind Baboon.
"Oh, my! Look what I've found! A little fellow with a hundred-year first Soul Ring, a thousand-year second Soul Ring, and third and fourth Soul Rings that are both ten-thousand-year! It's not a rare Mental Attribute, but it's still quite unusual."
The sudden voice didn't startle Qin Chuan. The corner of his mouth lifted almost imperceptibly.
Qin Chuan felt the ground tremble beneath him. Without warning, a crack split open in the earth, and a plump, snowy-white thing burrowed out. A chill spread from it, and the temperature around them dropped sharply.
Before him was a seven-meter-long silkworm. Its body was as white as jade and crystal clear, and what drew the eye most was the ten golden rings running from its head to its tail.
The first million-year Soul Beast in Douluo Continent's history: the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.
"Don't be afraid, young man. I won't hurt you."
As the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm watched in surprise, Qin Chuan stepped forward and stroked its cold body.
"You seem pretty weak."
"Those are painful memories... Let's not talk about that. Young man, I'm going to give you a gift. We have to do it now, or it'll be too late."
Qin Chuan smiled calmly and met the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's beady black eyes. "Are you about to sacrifice yourself to me, so you can carry out a great god-making plan?"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm: "...How did you know?!"
"System, begin recovery," Qin Chuan silently said in his mind.
"Ding! Detected a million-year Soul Beast, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, on the verge of death. Beginning recovery."
A strange suction force appeared in Qin Chuan's palm. The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm tried to escape, but it was already too late.
Its plump body was sucked out of shape, stretched into a long, icy-white strip, and vanished from the spot, leaving behind nothing but a lone shed skin to prove it had ever existed.
"Ding! Successfully recovered the million-year Sky Dream Ice Silkworm."
"Current Snow Hatred Value: 1410200"
A full million Snow Hatred Value! Qin Chuan had intercepted the first step in Huo Yuhao becoming Huo Gua. He'd waited five whole years for this moment.
"I don't want to be toyed with by a silkworm like you." Qin Chuan put away the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's shed skin. This thing had even managed to trap the Ice Empress, making it a genuine treasure.
At the same time, the system's cold notification sounded again.
"Ding! Detected that Electrolux's remnant soul is wandering aimlessly and is about to collide with the host. Devour it?"
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