The Shocking Appearance of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion

Upon hearing this, the joy in Huo Yuhao's eyes nearly overflowed. A 1,300-year-old Nightmare Beast—its age was exactly at the upper limit of what he could withstand, and its soul skill was an extremely rare mental-type attack. This was nothing short of a gift from the heavens.

"Senior, then I..."

"Go," Jiang Che said. "Lock onto it with the mental power of your Spirit Eye. Leave the rest to me."

Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and pushed his Spirit Eye martial soul to its limit. A milky-white soul ring rose from beneath his feet, and his mental power, like invisible tentacles, slowly spread toward the Nightmare Beast by the stream.

The Nightmare Beast's perception was incredibly keen. The moment Huo Yuhao's mental power touched it, those tightly closed eyes snapped open, revealing a pair of deep purple vertical pupils. Within them, mist seemed to churn, exuding a hallucinogenic and dangerous aura.

It raised its head, its gaze passing over Huo Yuhao and landing on Jiang Che behind him.

With just one look, the Nightmare Beast's snow-white fur stood on end. Its long tail stiffened, and the ripples it had been creating at the water's edge shattered instantly.

It felt that terrifying, unfathomable aura like an abyss; it was the absolute suppression of strength, the pressure of a Title Douluo.

The Nightmare Beast pushed off with all four limbs, transforming into a white blur as it fled frantically toward the upper reaches of the stream.

Unfortunately, while it was fast, Jiang Che was faster!

No one even saw how he moved. With a casual wave of his right hand, a silver-blue ice crystal shot from his fingertips, moving so fast that the air didn't even have time to whistle.

The ice crystal struck the Nightmare Beast's hind leg with precision. It didn't pierce through; instead, there was a crisp "crack," and the beast's leg snapped. Its entire body tumbled through the air several times before crashing heavily onto the gravel bank by the stream, splashing water and debris everywhere.

It struggled to stand, but the excruciating pain in its hind leg made it impossible to support its body. It could only lie on the gravel, its deep purple vertical pupils filled with terror and despair, emitting low whimpers that sounded like pleas or mournful cries.

Huo Yuhao stared at the scene, his mouth slightly agape. He didn't know what to say, and for a moment, he even forgot to step forward.

That was a thousand-year-level soul beast, yet in front of his senior, it hadn't even lasted a second. It hadn't even had the chance to escape before being crippled by a casual strike.

"What are you still standing there for?" Jiang Che's voice came from behind, carrying a tone of frustration at his lack of resolve. "Go finish it off. You have to obtain the soul ring yourself for it to count."

"Oh, right!" Huo Yuhao snapped back to reality and hurried toward the Nightmare Beast.

Seeing Huo Yuhao approach, the terror in the Nightmare Beast's eyes intensified. It desperately clawed at the gravel with its front paws, trying to retreat, but the injury to its hind leg made it impossible to move even an inch.

Huo Yuhao stood before it, looking into those deep purple vertical pupils. He felt a moment of hesitation, but he suppressed it instantly.

This was the rule of the soul master world: hunt soul beasts, obtain soul rings. It had been this way since ancient times. If he were soft-hearted now, how could he become strong in the future? How could he return to the White Tiger Duke Mansion to seek justice?

"I'm sorry," Huo Yuhao whispered. He pulled out the dagger his mother had given him when he left the mansion and thrust it into the Nightmare Beast's forehead.

The Nightmare Beast's body stiffened, its deep purple pupils slowly losing their luster until they turned a deathly gray. With a flash of white light, it breathed its last.

A moment later, a purple soul ring slowly condensed above the beast's corpse. The purple light swirled, carrying the depth and weight characteristic of a thousand-year soul ring.

Huo Yuhao sat cross-legged and channeled his soul power, guiding the purple ring toward himself.

The moment the soul ring touched his body, a vast and pure surge of mental power flooded into his Sea of Consciousness like a tidal wave, slowly merging with the origin power of his Spirit Eye martial soul.

There was no pain, no rejection. The Nightmare Beast's lingering resentment had been completely shattered by Jiang Che's strike, leaving only the purest origin power to blend docilely into Huo Yuhao's martial soul.

The entire process lasted less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, far smoother than Huo Yuhao had anticipated.

When the last wisp of purple light faded into his body, Huo Yuhao opened his eyes. A flash of deep purple light flickered in his gaze before returning to the original clarity of his Spirit Eye.

He stood up, feeling the power brought by his newly acquired second soul ring, his heart filled with excitement and joy.

His second soul skill was "Nightmare," capable of invading a target's Sea of Consciousness to create the most terrifying dreams, causing enemies to lose their combat effectiveness or even die in their sleep.

The power of this soul skill far exceeded his expectations.

"How does it feel?" Jiang Che asked.

"Great!" Huo Yuhao nodded vigorously, unable to hide the smile on his face. "Senior, thank you!"

Jiang Che waved his hand, signaling that there was no need for thanks.

Ice Empress walked over from behind. She hadn't had to do anything along the way, but she took this moment to warn Huo Yuhao: "The Nightmare Beast's soul skill is a good match for your Spirit Eye, but don't rely on it too much. If you encounter an opponent with stronger mental power than yours, the backlash won't be a laughing matter."

Huo Yuhao felt a jolt in his heart and nodded quickly: "Thank you for the reminder, Sister Bing, I will be careful."

Jiang Che glanced at the sky; the sun was already setting, and the light in the forest was much dimmer than at noon.

"Let's go, it's time to head back," Jiang Che said. "We need to leave the Star Dou Great Forest before dark and return to the academy tomorrow morning."

The three of them walked back along the path they had come, passing through the dense broad-leaved forest, crossing the clear stream, and walking through the grove of ten-year-old bamboo.

The light in the forest grew increasingly dim. The canopy overhead blocked out the sky, and the surroundings fell into a dark silence, broken only by the rustling of their footsteps on fallen leaves and the occasional distant roar of a soul beast.

As they reached a sparsely wooded area, Jiang Che suddenly stopped.

Ice Empress stopped as well, her yellow diamond-like eyes narrowing slightly as she looked toward a direction deep in the forest.

"What is it, Senior?" Huo Yuhao sensed their change in demeanor and asked in a low voice.

Jiang Che did not answer. In that instant, his mental power had sensed a peculiar aura. It wasn't powerful, but it was exceptionally pure, carrying an indescribable, ancient nobility.

"There is something over there." Jiang Che's gaze turned toward the southeast, his brows furrowing slightly.

Ice Empress had sensed it too. Her expression was even more solemn than Jiang Che's, and a flash of surprise and vigilance crossed her yellow eyes: "That is... the aura of the Emperor Auspicious Beast."

"Emperor Auspicious Beast? What is that?" Huo Yuhao asked, looking bewildered. He had no idea what the Emperor Auspicious Beast was; it was far beyond his scope of knowledge.

"What should we do?" Ice Empress didn't answer Huo Yuhao's confusion, instead turning to ask Jiang Che.

Jiang Che thought to himself that this was troublesome. He clearly hadn't expected to encounter the Three-Eyed Golden Lion on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Before Jiang Che could answer, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion seemed to have sensed something and began running directly toward the direction of Jiang Che and his group.