Star Dou Great Forest

Ding! A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast has been detected! Coordinates: core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, Lake of Life!

Soul Beasts: Sky Azure Bull Python (Hundred-Thousand-Year), Titan Giant Ape (Hundred-Thousand-Year)!

Hidden quest triggered: Trial of the Forest King!

Quest objective: Travel to the Lake of Life and challenge the Sky Azure Bull Python and Titan Giant Ape head-on, using absolute power to make them submit (do not kill)!

Quest hint: The Ice Hell Dragon Emperor is the pinnacle of Dragon-type Spirits and possesses a natural rank suppression over the Sky Azure Bull Python (which contains Azure Dragon bloodline)!

The Titan Giant Ape's strength is perfect for tempering the host's Extreme Power! Defeat it or make it submit to trigger the follow-up "Guardian Contract" option!

Quest rewards: 1. Massive Summoning Points based on combat performance (10,000–30,000).

2. The Forest King's friendship (or submission)!

3. Unlock the "Star Dou Guardian" title (gain control over certain areas of the Star Dou Great Forest and deterrence over Soul Beasts).

4. Sky Azure Bull Python/Titan Giant Ape Soul Ring/Soul Bone compatibility guidance (available after a contract is formed).

Failure penalty: Be driven away or severely injured by the two Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts.

Ling Han's eyes flashed brilliantly as he was about to nod when the system's icy prompt suddenly rang out!

"Star Dou Great Forest?! Sky Azure Bull Python! Titan Giant Ape!"

Ling Han's heart jolted, and an irrepressible surge of excitement and battle intent instantly swept away any thought of running!

This was the real stage! This was the best whetstone to test his current strength and influence!

The Ice Hell Dragon Emperor's rank suppression over the Sky Azure Bull Python? Using the Titan Giant Ape to temper his Extreme Power? And he might even be able to subdue these two Forest Kings as bodyguards?!

A wild, uninhibited grin spread across Ling Han's face, while blazing flames burned in his eyes!

He suddenly swung his arm, his voice booming like thunder, filled with unquestionable dominance and desire:

"Not yet! Sister Xue, Uncle Long! Change course!"

He pointed toward the center of the continent, that primordial land which had birthed countless legends and concealed true kings. His voice pierced through the frigid winds of the Extreme North, carrying the resolve to sever everything and boundless heroic spirit:

"Destination—the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, Lake of Life!"

"Let's meet these legendary Forest Kings! We'll see whether their claws are tougher, or our fists are!"

Understanding and absolute trust flickered through Xue Qinglan's Ice Flame. She gave a slight nod. "As you command, Young Master."

An even more condensed and terrifying Eternal Frost Domain instantly expanded, enveloping the three of them and shutting out all external disturbances.

Long Chen burst into laughter. Crimson-gold flames erupted around him, his battle intent soaring to the heavens. "Hahaha! Good! The Star Dou Great Forest! Sky Azure Bull Python, Titan Giant Ape! Long here has long wanted to weigh the strength of these so-called 'Forest Kings'! Let's see whether their brute force is stronger, or the flames of my Blazing Sacred Dragon burn fiercer!"

Several days later.

The biting winds of the Extreme North had been thoroughly left behind, replaced by the increasingly rich warm, humid air of the continent's center, scented with earth and vegetation.

High in the sky, three streaks of light tore through the clouds at terrifying speeds beyond the sound barrier, racing toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

At the very front was a crimson-gold flaming meteor!

Long Chen stood with his arms folded across his chest, blazing Sacred Dragon flames burning around him. His crimson-gold flame domain formed a gigantic arrowhead, violently cleaving through the air resistance ahead and unleashing deafening sonic booms!

Wherever he passed, the clouds were scorched with long crimson trails, as though a burning wound had been slashed across the sky.

Whenever some foolish high-altitude avian Soul Beast sensed that aura capable of incinerating all things from afar, it fled in panic, screeching miserably.

"Hahaha! Now this is more like it! This speed has some kick!" Long Chen's hearty laughter was scattered by the gale, but his exhilarated battle intent remained crystal clear.

"You little Soul Beasts of the Star Dou Great Forest, are you ready to receive the baptism of flames? Grandpa Long is coming to loosen your bones!"

Following close behind was an entirely different streak of icy-blue light.

It was not human-shaped, but a massive, elegant, incomparably majestic Frost Phoenix!

Its wingspan exceeded ten meters, its entire body formed from the purest ice crystals. Faint golden phoenix-origin patterns flowed along the edges of its wings, and every graceful flap scattered countless tiny ice crystals sparkling like stars.

Wherever it flew, the damp, cold currents in the sky instantly condensed into fine ice particles, refracting sunlight like a dazzling river of diamond stars trailing behind it.

The utmost chill was contained within the phoenix's true form, yet it gave the surrounding space a clear, frozen quality.

This was Xue Qinglan's Martial Soul Avatar—after perfectly fusing with the Hundred-Thousand-Year Ice Phoenix Left Arm Bone, her Frost Phoenix had evolved to a level nearly comparable to a divine beast!

And at this moment, on the back of that noble, icy Frost Phoenix, which seemed untouched by worldly affairs...

"Whoa! Sister Xue! Faster! Faster! This view is incredible!" an excited young voice, slightly out of tune, rang out.

Ling Han was sitting sideways on the Frost Phoenix's broad, mirror-smooth back in an utterly relaxed—one could even say shameless—posture.

His legs dangled outside and swung in the air, while one arm tightly wrapped around the slender waist before him, a waist that could be grasped in one hand yet contained terrifying power—it belonged to Xue Qinglan herself, who remained in human form even while using her Martial Soul Avatar.

Xue Qinglan stood behind the phoenix's head, her long icy-blue hair utterly unmoved by the gale generated by their high-speed flight, like a frozen waterfall.

Her exquisitely beautiful profile remained cool and aloof, as though sculpted from Myriad Year Profound Ice.

Yet on closer inspection, one could see that her crystal-clear earlobes seemed to be tinged with an exceedingly faint, almost imperceptible pink.

The warmth from Ling Han's hand around her waist formed a strange contrast with the ultimate cold of the Martial Soul Avatar beneath them, causing the state of mind of this newly advanced Rank 97 Peak Douluo to ripple slightly for once.

"Young Master, please sit securely. The air currents ahead are complicated." Xue Qinglan's voice was as cool as ever, betraying no emotion, but she made no attempt to break free.

She even slightly adjusted the range of the Eternal Frost Domain, protecting the "Young Master" behind her more thoroughly and blocking all the violent air currents that could have torn an ordinary person apart.

"I'm secure! Very secure!" Ling Han replied with a grin. Not only did he not let go, he held her even tighter, then rested his chin on Xue Qinglan's shoulder and blew lightly against her crystal-clear ear.

"With such a comfortable and stylish mount as Sister Xue, and Uncle Long clearing the way ahead, this trip is pure imperial treatment! It's ten thousand times more comfortable than any carriage! Sister Xue, I'll be relying on you whenever I travel far in the future!"

Xue Qinglan: "..." She said nothing. The Frost Phoenix beneath them simply seemed to fly a little more steadily, while the cold aura around it inexplicably softened by a trace.

Long Chen glanced back and happened to see his Young Master clinging to Xue Qinglan, as well as Xue Qinglan's seemingly cold yet tacitly consenting attitude.

"Young Master, is holding Elder Xue comfortable?"

"Of course it is, Uncle Long! You just don't understand!" Ling Han shouted back, his voice drifting in the high-speed winds.

"Sister Xue's Martial Soul Avatar is fast, stable, safe, and even comes with air conditioning. It'd be a waste not to ride it! Besides, hugging a beauty like Sister Xue is pleasing to the eye and keeps me alert. I don't even get tired from traveling! This is called strategic recharging! Understand?"

Long Chen smiled without saying anything. He continued controlling his flame domain to burn away a thick storm cloud blocking their path. Lightning flashed and thunder roared as the cloud was burned open with a huge hole, allowing sunlight to pour directly down.

Ling Han smugly shook his head, then leaned close to Xue Qinglan's ear again. "Sister Xue? You smell so nice!"

Xue Qinglan: "..." She remained silent, but several particularly gorgeous ice-crystal tail feathers on the Frost Phoenix's true form trembled ever so slightly.

The earth rushed past beneath them. Mountains, rivers, and towns gradually gave way to an endless, increasingly dense primeval forest.

The Star Dou Great Forest's unique scent—moisture, humus, and the wild pressure of countless powerful Soul Beasts mingled together—spread through the air like an invisible tide, growing denser and heavier.

"We're almost at the mixed zone." Long Chen's voice grew more serious. The flames around him subsided somewhat, but the range of his domain's detection widened. "The big fellows in this forest have very sharp noses."

"Mm." Xue Qinglan nodded slightly as well. The Frost Phoenix's true form rose a little higher, while the Eternal Frost Domain silently expanded to its maximum range, like an invisible icy-blue radar scanning the vast sea of forest below.

Her gaze returned to absolute calmness and vigilance.

Ling Han also put away his playful grin, though the arm around Xue Qinglan's waist became steadier.

Feeling the oppressive force rising from the forest below, like that of a slumbering giant beast, there was not a trace of fear in his eyes. Instead, blazing excitement ignited within them.

"We're finally here..." he murmured. The aura of the Ice Hell Dragon Emperor faintly circulated within him, carrying an eager hint of anticipation.

"Forest Kings... I wonder if your thrones are hard enough to withstand the 'great gift' I've carefully prepared!"

Just then, Xue Qinglan, who had remained silent, suddenly turned her head slightly. Her cool voice carried a barely perceptible warmth as it clearly reached Ling Han's ears. "Young Master, sit securely. We're... landing."

The Frost Phoenix's true form let out a clear phoenix cry. Its enormous crystal wings folded gracefully, like a gliding spirit.

Carrying biting cold, it dove toward the depths of the mixed zone below, a region shrouded by towering ancient trees, dimly lit, and filled with the most ferocious aura!

Long Chen's flame domain contracted and condensed ahead of them, like a crimson-gold mountain-cleaving axe that smashed into the forest first, opening a safe landing path for the Frost Phoenix!