Su Yan first checked the surroundings to make sure no Soul Beasts would suddenly appear. He tied his Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass, to the tree trunks as a warning.
If a Soul Beast passed by and snapped the grass, he would sense it immediately.
Tang Chi went to gather a good amount of firewood and added it to the fire.
Out in the wild, fire was one of the most important things. Ordinary Soul Beasts would think twice when they saw one.
Zhu Zhuqing ran to the river, brought back some water, and picked a few wild fruits that looked familiar while she was at it.
Once everything was ready, there was still plenty of time before sunset. The four of them sat around the fire and chatted.
"Ah Ke, what's your Martial Soul?" Tang Chi asked.
Xue Ke lowered her head, somewhat embarrassed. "My Martial Soul is terrible. My father, mother, and older brothers and sisters all dislike it."
Su Yan rubbed his chin, then nudged Zhu Zhuqing with his elbow. "Do you know what Martial Soul the Heaven Dou Royal Family has?"
"I do." Zhu Zhuqing curled her lip. "It's the useless White Swan Martial Soul—no beauty, no strength. I don't know how the Heaven Dou Empire's royal family has managed to survive."
At that, Xue Ke lowered her head even further.
Zhu Zhuqing wasn't wrong. The Heaven Dou Royal Family's Martial Soul was the White Swan, an utterly ordinary swan.
"The White Swan doesn't seem very strong," Tang Chi murmured. But the Soul Hunting Forest was quiet in the evening, and the crackling of the fire couldn't drown out his voice.
Xue Ke blushed with embarrassment.
Zhu Zhuqing's cold eyes remained fixed on Xue Ke. She belonged to the family of a prince consort in the Star Luo Empire, while Xue Ke was a daughter of the Heaven Dou Empire's legitimate royal line.
The two of them, who should only ever have met as enemies on the battlefield, had both ended up far from home, warming themselves by the same fire.
She edged closer to Xue Ke and said softly, "I'm sorry."
Night fell. The moon hung high overhead, its silvery light spreading across the earth and lending the forest a chill.
Su Yan stretched. "It's getting late. You should all get some rest. I'll keep watch tonight."
The three of them lay down on the ground, using the layer of dead leaves as a bed, and drifted into a light sleep.
Bored, Su Yan poked at the firewood with a branch.
Before long, a breeze swept past, and a delicate wooden wheelchair and two wooden boxes suddenly appeared on the ground.
The boxes contained Golden Wound Ointment.
Su Yan took some out and rubbed it onto his arm. The burning pain of the wound immediately eased.
His master really was protecting them from the shadows.
It looked like she expected them to take Xue Ke along and survive in the wilderness together.
That was far too difficult.
The three of them could barely handle some ten-year Soul Beasts. Now they also had to protect someone else.
They would have to be even more careful.
"Awooo!"
At night, the Soul Hunting Forest became a hunting ground for Soul Beasts.
The gloomy forest was full of mist, as if some mysterious force were devouring people's will.
Though he knew his master was protecting them from the shadows, Su Yan still stayed tense throughout their first night without her.
At night, it wasn't just howls and cries that put him on edge—even the slightest rustle of wind and grass made him instantly alert.
Time dragged on, but at last the first night passed without incident.
The sun had only just peeked over the mountaintop when it spread a golden blanket over everyone.
Su Yan picked some wild vegetables nearby and made a pot of vegetable soup. They ate it with the reheated roast meat, and that was breakfast taken care of.
"Princess Xue Ke, we really don't have a map back, so you'll be safer if you travel with us." Su Yan took a brand-new wheelchair from his belt and pushed it toward her. "I found one in the belt my master gave me. You can have it."
Su Yan could see how happy Xue Ke was.
He wasn't sure whether she was happy to have a brand-new wheelchair or to be able to wander through the forest with the three of them.
Either way, she was very, very happy.
She didn't seem to care about the dangers of the Soul Hunting Forest at all.
The three of them lifted Xue Ke into the wheelchair, giving her back a little mobility.
Tang Chi asked, "Where are we going now? Are we just going to stay here and wait for the Saintess Instructor to come get us?"
"We don't need to wait for Master. We have to complete our training objectives." Su Yan took a sheepskin scroll from the ground and pointed to a cross marked on it. "This is the place Master gave us a year to reach."
"That's so far away!" Tang Chi exclaimed. "Can we really make it?"
"We still have plenty of time. Let's spend a while getting used to things here first." Su Yan stood and brushed the dust off himself. "It's time to hunt. Bring Xue Ke along. Let's go."
At the Main Martial Soul Hall's training ground, Holy Dragon Douluo Yu Xiaogang looked at the three children before him. "Have you all been keeping up with your training lately?"
"Of course, Master!" said the little girl in a red robe. "I'm almost level fifteen!"
To her left, a boy in a blue outfit with a Clear Sky Sect badge wore his black hair tied up and spoke coldly. "I'm already level sixteen."
To her right, a boy in a black outfit said, "I'm level sixteen too!"
"Very good, very good. You're all doing well," Yu Xiaogang said. "I have some news. Saintess Bibi Dong will lead a team to challenge us. The match is scheduled for the Martial Soul Hall Junior Soul Master Competition in six years."
The boy in black turned pale and started trembling violently, as if he'd remembered something terrible.
The boy in blue showed some interest. "Are they Saintess Bibi Dong's disciples?"
Yu Xiaogang nodded.
The boy in blue curled his lip disdainfully. "There's no suspense at all. Let's talk when they manage to make it through the qualifiers and reach the Main Hall for the competition."
"Tang San, the overconfident are bound to fail. Bibi Dong's team has a few promising talents, so be careful you don't get caught out." Yu Xiaogang turned to the boy in black. "Xie Yue, the best way to overcome fear is to face it. Tomorrow, I'll take you to the Ant Nest. We'll do our best to help you get over it as soon as possible."
"Yes, Master." Xie Yue took a deep breath and clenched his fists, still trembling.
The little girl thought it sounded fun and asked, "Master, do we need seven people to enter the team competition too?"
"Exactly. We'll also be holding tryouts at the Main Martial Soul Hall soon. If you have friends who'd make a good fit, you can recommend them."
"Master, Master, I have someone!" The little girl grinned. "Would Xiao Wu work? She's a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who took human form, and her talent is super strong!"
"If you can convince her to join, of course," Yu Xiaogang replied with a gentle smile, warm as a spring breeze.
Just then, a richly dressed woman whose clothes shimmered with gold walked in through the doorway. "Master, my father would like you to come see him."
"All right, I'll be right there." Yu Xiaogang agreed, then gave them one last reminder. "Don't underestimate them. I have a feeling the team led by Bibi Dong will become your archenemy."
With that, he hurried off with the woman.
The three children were left alone on the training ground.
"Hmph. Archenemy." Tang San snorted, his expression haughty, and left without looking back.
"Third Brother, where are you going? Let's go together!"
The little girl skipped after the boy in blue, but Xie Yue stopped her. "Hu Liena, come back."
"Brother, why won't you let me go find Third Brother?"
"Tang San has exceptional talent. He's the third person in history to possess Twin Martial Souls. If you want to play with him, you'll have to spend more time training."
"Oh, you're so annoying."
Before you continue