Is This Fate?

This soul beast possessed an extraordinary bearing based on its appearance alone. Its golden fur resembled translucent crystal, carrying a peculiar texture. It had the form of a lion, dragon-like claws, and golden flames beneath its feet. Fine golden scales densely covered the fur beneath.

Besides its normal pair of golden eyes, it actually had a vertical eye on its brow, radiating an eerie crimson light.

"Three-Eyed Golden Lion!?"

Liu Yuan's pupils suddenly contracted as he recognized the soul beast.

But the question was,

Why was the Emperor Auspicious Beast here?

In an instant, Liu Yuan's heart rose to his throat.

Because if the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was here, Scarlet King had to be nearby.

Yet forget Scarlet King—even if the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was determined to kill them, they would be no match for her.

Meanwhile, in Huo Yuhao's Spirit Sea.

"It's over, it's over! Why is Brother Sky Dream so unlucky?!"

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm rolled his plump white body around, the entire bug overcome by the dreadful sensation that the sky had fallen.

"I just escaped, and a beast has already come after me!"

Huo Yuhao froze when he heard the wailing in his mind. He immediately sank his consciousness into it. "Brother Sky Dream, are you saying this soul beast came for you?"

"Of course!"

The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm used his tiny feelers to clutch his head as best he could. "If she didn't come for me, did she come for you people? It's over! We're probably done for here. Brother Sky Dream isn't willing to accept this!" He was so agitated that the whole bug was already crying his eyes out!

Seeing the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm like this, Huo Yuhao became frantic as well. "Brother Sky Dream, how old is this soul beast?"

"Over ten thousand years..."

Only a little over ten thousand years?

Huo Yuhao instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although he did not know Liu Yuan's true limits, he knew that they still had a chance to escape from a soul beast that was only a little over ten thousand years old.

But the moment that thought surfaced, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm sensed it and utterly shattered Huo Yuhao's relief.

"Yuhao, do you think this is some ordinary Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast? This is the Emperor Auspicious Beast! She may only be a little over ten thousand years old, but her strength is absolutely no less than that of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast!"

In an instant, Huo Yuhao's face turned deathly pale.

As the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm explained, he silently activated his First Soul Skill and connected to the mind of Liu Yuan, who was tense with nerves and considering a response.

"Brother, let me stay behind."

"What!?"

Liu Yuan frowned.

Before he could speak, Huo Yuhao roughly explained what the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had told him about the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

"...Brother Sky Dream says the Three-Eyed Golden Lion probably came for him. So as long as I stay behind, everything should be fine."

By then, Liu Yuan's brows had twisted into a knot.

She came for the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm?

Perhaps it was because of the butterfly effect caused by him. It was not impossible.

But leaving Huo Yuhao behind...

Suddenly, Liu Yuan's gaze sharpened.

Because the Three-Eyed Golden Lion moved.

She extended a dragon claw and lightly tapped a flower petal.

Crack—

One petal silently shattered and fell to the ground.

Then she spoke in human language. "Humans, do you think you can stop me with this?" Her clear, pleasant female voice seemed to carry a hint of teasing, revealing her interest.

"She... she spoke!"

Tang Ya instantly began to stammer.

Bei Bei's expression was filled with deep despair as well.

Speaking human language

was the mark of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast!

With three Soul Elders and one Soul Master like them,

what could they do now?

He clenched his teeth.

He decisively stepped forward and shielded Tang Ya, Liu Yuan, and Huo Yuhao behind him. He cupped his hands and bowed toward the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. "Senior, I am the great-grandson of Mu En, the Dragon God Douluo and current Sea God Pavilion Master. Could you show us mercy and let us leave?"

Behind them,

Scarlet King, who protected the Auspicious Beast, pricked up all six ears.

The great-grandson of the Sea God Pavilion Master and Dragon God Douluo?

He had not expected one of these humans to have such considerable backing. Hopefully, the Auspicious Beast would not take things too far.

With that in mind, Scarlet King continued to fold his paws and watch the show.

After all, so what if he was the great-grandson of the Sea God Pavilion Master and Dragon God Douluo? Such identities were useless before the Auspicious Beast.

Senior?

A human actually called me senior.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion immediately became somewhat interested.

However...

"Sea God Pavilion Master? Dragon God Douluo? Great-grandson?" She tilted her head, and all three of her eyes revealed a pure, bewildered confusion. "What are those things you're talking about?"

Clearly, Bei Bei's identity did not shock her.

But what Bei Bei failed to notice was that his words had instead provoked Tang Ya behind him.

What kind of look was that?

Shock, disappointment, loneliness, ridicule...

All kinds of emotions mingled together in a complicated mess.

But at the moment, no one had the time to pay attention to her.

"I..."

For a moment, Bei Bei was speechless.

His background did not work. What should he do now?

At that moment, Liu Yuan stepped forward.

"What would it take for you to let us leave?"

"Simple." The crisp female voice rang out again as the Three-Eyed Golden Lion took a step forward, golden flames burning around her four claws.

Crack—crack—

In an instant, the flower petals filling the sky all shattered. Nothing now blocked their view.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion looked Liu Yuan up and down. A streak of golden light flashed through the crimson vertical eye on her brow, while realization and surprise appeared in her golden eyes. As expected, she had not sensed wrongly.

She had come here because fate had guided her. And the person before her was the target of that guidance.

"What is your name?"

Seeing that the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was pointing at him, Liu Yuan frowned. From her strange actions, he suddenly realized that perhaps she had not come for the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, nor was this a coincidence, but rather...

Because of him!?

That possibility

made Liu Yuan's heart jolt in shock.

"I asked you, what is your name?"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion asked again.

Liu Yuan had no time to think further. "My name is Liu Yuan."

"Then come with me."

What!?

Before he could recover from his shock, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion had already transformed into a streak of golden light and lunged at him!

Almost instinctively, Liu Yuan brought his hands together, and the three Soul Rings around him lit up!

"First Soul Skill—Rooting!"

"Second Soul Skill—Absorb!"

"Third Soul Skill—Myriad Transformation!"

Amid his low shout, the ground beneath his feet shook violently, and an enormous Wood Dragon burst from the earth!

Ancient woody patterns covered its body. Its savage dragon head raised proudly toward the sky in a silent roar, radiating powerful forces of restraint and absorption.

"Self-Created Soul Skill—Wood Dragon!"

The moment the enormous Wood Dragon appeared, its thick body was controlled to rapidly coil around the Three-Eyed Golden Lion!

But the next second, whoosh— blazing flames rapidly ignited around the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's body!