The Ice Silkworm Chooses a Master, Drawing Forth a Lingering Soul

"Elemental Tide, Fire Form, Glaring Azure Nether Flame."

Su Qing hovered in mid-air, surrounded by clusters of ghostly blue flames. After circling him once, the flames shot out in all directions, encircling the entire area. The surrounding temperature rose sharply, the scorching heat making the pack of Wind Baboon even more frantic. Just before they could launch their attack, another cluster of flames, half a person's height, manifested where Su Qing stood. The moment the flames stopped flickering, the fire that had previously surrounded the area erupted.

Following this, it spread toward the center as if Taotie Douluo had spotted a chicken leg. The incoming heatwave turned everything in its path into a sea of fire. The moment these Wind Baboon touched even a spark, they were instantly consumed. Soon, only Su Qing and dozens of white spirit rings remained in the fire-ravaged field.

"No wonder they were so fierce; it turns out they were all on par with the Godslayer."

After a muttered complaint, Su Qing shifted his focus, and the sea of fire vanished in an instant. He looked around; the view was now incredibly wide, as the sea of fire had scorched everything to the ground. Fortunately, to conserve his spirit power, he hadn't expanded the range too far, and given the regenerative capacity of the Star Dou Great Forest, this minor damage was negligible.

"Ah!!!"

Just as Su Qing was wondering where Huo Yuhao was, a scream pointed him in the right direction.

"Oh, it seems our Lord Godslayer has found his prey."

He muttered to himself while flying in that direction. Before long, he saw a Wind Baboon chasing after a scrawny little fellow.

"Good lad, to run this fast with legs as thin as dry firewood!"

Seeing Huo Yuhao's speed, Su Qing couldn't help but marvel. However, knowing the plot, he knew that once this guy couldn't run anymore, he would start showing off his White Tiger Dagger. Considering that such an act was rather unsightly, Su Qing decided to lend a helping hand.

He locked his gaze on the Wind Baboon, summoned the Silver Dragon Spear into his hand, and tossed it casually. A moment later, the Wind Baboon was pinned to a tree.

With nowhere left to run, Huo Yuhao turned back and saw this terrifying scene, collapsing to the ground in fright—though it was also possible he was just exhausted from running.

"Who saved me?"

This thought immediately surfaced in his mind. He scanned his surroundings, looking for clues. Soon, he noticed a white-haired, purple-eyed youth walking toward him from not far away, though the youth's clothes looked tattered, with some parts even patched with colorful animal hides.

"Could this be... a native? Why is he looking at me? He isn't going to take me back to eat, is he?"

Meeting Su Qing's deep, profound eyes, Huo Yuhao tried his best to discern something from the other's gaze, but he couldn't; those eyes revealed no emotion whatsoever.

"Hello, my name is Huo Yuhao. Thank you for saving me."

After thinking it over, he decided to be polite, stating his name and offering thanks first. That way, the other party couldn't just kill him for no reason. Even if he wanted to kill him, seeing such a sincere expression, he would surely feel some guilt, right? Surely?!

"I just saw an injustice and lent a hand. My name is Su Qing. It's a pleasure to meet you."

As it turned out, Su Qing didn't make things difficult for him and even expressed kindness. This left Huo Yuhao feeling deeply ashamed; the other party was so kind, yet he had harbored malicious suspicions, especially since the man had just saved his life.

"Huo Yuhao, oh Huo Yuhao, you really can't recognize a good heart!"

He couldn't help but mock himself internally. This was the first time—no, the second time—in his life he had received kindness from others, and he had almost chilled someone's heart with his malicious speculation.

Seeing Huo Yuhao standing there with his head bowed, lost in thought, Su Qing was baffled. What was wrong with this guy? Why did he stop talking after introducing himself? By all logic, shouldn't he be thanking him and then talking about the pain of his original family?

However, before Su Qing could speak, a massive wave of spiritual power surged from the ground beneath Huo Yuhao, instantly covering a radius of ten thousand meters. Tang Ya and Bei Bei, who had rushed over upon hearing the scream, were stunned unconscious before they could even react.

"Finally, finally I have found a spiritual-type human! It's a pity I cannot shed tears, otherwise, I would be weeping right now!"

As the spiritual fluctuations ceased, the earth beneath Huo Yuhao's feet began to tremble. Soon, the ground cracked open, and a pale golden light surged out. A snow-white giant silkworm emerged from the surface, its two bright, gleaming eyes locked firmly onto Huo Yuhao.

"You... what are you!"

Huo Yuhao had never seen such a scene and scrambled behind Su Qing in terror. Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was about to explain when he realized there was another human standing there.

"Hm? Why didn't you pass out?"

It was a pity the ice silkworm had no facial expressions, otherwise, he would surely be full of confusion. This human could actually withstand his million-year-level spiritual power?

"Oh right, I should have passed out."

With that, Su Qing tilted his body and lay down on the ground, resting his head on one hand while keeping the other behind his back.

"Cough, cough. Although there was a small slip-up, I don't have time, little guy. It might hurt a bit later, just bear with it..."

Sky Dream Ice Silkworm ignored Su Qing, who was pretending to faint right in front of him, and turned his attention back to Huo Yuhao. He had intended to explain, but Su Qing's appearance had interrupted his train of thought. To prevent his aura from being exposed and being captured by fierce beasts, he had to act quickly and become Huo Yuhao's spirit ring first.

"Hey, don't come over here! Ah!!"

Watching the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm wriggling toward him without a word, Huo Yuhao felt a surge of panic. So the Star Dou Great Forest was this dangerous!!! If he could do it all over again, he definitely wouldn't have chosen this path!

With a flash of white light, Huo Yuhao lost consciousness.

"It's starting the fusion already?"

When the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm went still, Su Qing opened his eyes and looked curiously at Huo Yuhao, who was beginning to manifest a white spirit ring beneath him. This guy didn't play by the rules; shouldn't he have put on a grand show first and then coaxed Huo Yuhao into accepting him? Why be so brutal? He'd scared the kid so badly his voice cracked. Heaven knows how much he wanted to cover his ears when Huo Yuhao screamed just now.

But since the two of them had begun their fusion, the thing Su Qing was waiting for should be arriving soon. Just as he expected, as the human and the silkworm began their fusion, a flash of cyan lightning streaked across the sky. Immediately after, the clouds condensed into a vortex, and a gray bead flew out from within.

"Holding the sun, moon, and stars in my hand, there is no one in this world like me! To think that this old man still has a wisp of soul left to survive. Since that is the case, allow this old man to find a place to stay."