Star Dou Forest

The Star Dou Forest lay at the center of the Douluo Continent, straddling the border between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire. It was one of the three great habitats for wild Soul Beasts on the Douluo Continent.

The outskirts of the Star Dou Forest were home to tens of thousands of varieties of low-age Soul Beasts, enough to meet the Soul Ring needs of any kind of Martial Soul.

The Mirror Shadow Prism-Eye Sparrow was a bird-shaped Soul Beast with plumage that shifted from dark silver to ink blue. It was slightly larger than an ordinary sparrow, and its eyes were a pair of crystalline vertical pupils that could contract and expand.

It excelled at hiding and keeping watch, and possessed an exceptionally keen ability to lock onto targets and sense them even when they were still. Its vision could pierce thin obstacles and track moving targets, making it a born "hunting marksman."

Because of this trait, its Soul Ring had an extremely high chance of granting the Martial Soul the "Auto-Aim" Soul Ring skill.

As a result, the Mirror Shadow Prism-Eye Sparrow was the favorite Soul Beast of ranged-attack Soul Masters, bar none.

Ever since Zhang Yang awakened his Martial Soul, Zhang Lingyue had been planning the best combination of Soul Ring skills for him.

After gathering a wealth of intelligence through Spirit Hall's internal channels, Zhang Lingyue had finally decided to choose the Mirror Shadow Prism-Eye Sparrow's "Auto-Aim" as Zhang Yang's First Soul Ring skill.

Then, through Spirit Hall's internal channels, Zhang Lingyue confirmed reports of Mirror Shadow Prism-Eye Sparrows appearing in the outskirts of the Star Dou Forest within the past year.

And so, they had come.

Their carriage set out from Heding City in the Silves Kingdom, crossed the Vicksrock Plain, entered the territory of the Haagen-Dazs Kingdom, and finally arrived at its capital, Haagen-Dazs City.

After resting for two days in Haagen-Dazs City, Zhang Yang's family set out by carriage from the city's south gate. They crossed the winding mountain roads over the Star Dou Mountain Range and finally reached the last stop before entering the Star Dou Forest.

It was a small town twice the size of Heding City Academy, with shops lining the streets and every sort of store imaginable.

Zhang Yang looked around carefully. Every shop in town dealt in some way with Soul Masters.

There were shops selling weapons, armor, all sorts of medicines, and all kinds of adventure clothing, with a focus on waterproof, quick-drying, storage-friendly, warm, and other such features.

One particularly outrageous garment even had more than a dozen pockets, designed to hold all sorts of odds and ends.

"It's getting late. We'll rest for a day and officially enter the Star Dou Forest tomorrow," Zhang Lingyue said.

Zhang Yang and Zhu Ranqing had no objections. The family found a decent-looking hotel, ate something, rented a room, and went upstairs to rest.

After a whole day of bouncing around in the carriage, Zhang Yang was already exhausted. Once he'd showered, he eagerly burrowed into bed and soon fell asleep.

The long journey had worn him out so much that Zhang Yang even began to snore.

At the table, Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing were discussing their shopping list. Seeing him, they couldn't help smiling.

"Haha, he's so tired he's snoring," Zhu Ranqing said with a laugh, charmed by her son's cuteness.

"I really didn't expect this," Zhang Lingyue said, shaking his head helplessly. "Yangyang is so young, yet he's already come with us to the Star Dou Forest. I thought he'd be eleven or twelve."

Zhang Lingyue's words were still an expression of amazement at Zhang Yang's near-defying-the-heavens cultivation talent.

Once the two had finished discussing the shopping list, a server brought clean hot water for the tub in their room. Zhang Lingyue took the list and went out to shop, while Zhu Ranqing enjoyed a leisurely bath.

By the time Zhang Lingyue returned with the purchases, Zhu Ranqing was nearly finished with her hot bath.

Seeing that his son was fast asleep and his beloved wife was still in the tub, Zhang Lingyue shamelessly took off his jacket and went into the bathroom.

The next day.

After a good rest, Zhang Yang was full of energy. Led by Zhu Ranqing, who looked radiant, and Zhang Lingyue, who seemed a little tired, he left the supply town and headed for the Star Dou Forest.

Although the supply town was practically right next to the Star Dou Forest, Zhang Yang's family still walked more than fifty kilometers after leaving town before they truly reached the forest's edge.

No one could say how many years the Star Dou Forest had existed. Even from far away, Zhang Yang could smell the forest's fresh plant fragrance and the damp scent of soil.

At last, they reached the edge of the Star Dou Forest. What Zhang Yang saw was an endless expanse of green.

The towering trees stood at least twenty meters tall, with trunks so thick that two people together couldn't wrap their arms around them—and this was only the very outskirts of the Star Dou Forest.

The forest was so dense that there were no paths at all. Trees crowded the view, severely limiting their vision.

As they neared the forest, the air grew even more pleasant, as if the temperature had dropped by several degrees.

The refreshing air carried the fragrance of damp earth, continually stirring Zhang Yang's sense of smell.

At the last moment before entering the forest, Zhang Lingyue stopped and turned to Zhang Yang, his expression grave. "Son, from now on, we're within the boundaries of the Star Dou Forest."

"It's extremely dangerous in there. At any moment, you could face an attack from a thousand-year or even ten-thousand-year Soul Beast."

"So once we're inside, you absolutely must not stray more than twenty meters from your mother and me. Do you understand?"

Zhang Yang nodded earnestly. "I understand, Dad."

"Good. Let's rest and get our strength back, then we'll set off."

The family found a relatively flat spot and sat down. Zhang Lingyue took a waterskin and a packet of sweets from his Storage Soul Tool.

Sweets were essential for keeping up their energy. Zhang Lingyue had prepared a great many exquisite treats back in Heding City to keep the family supplied in the Star Dou Forest.

After eating the pastries, drinking some water, and resting for an hour, the family stood up and took their first step into the Star Dou Forest.

The terrain inside the Star Dou Forest was extremely complicated, with no paths through the woods. Naturally, the task of clearing a way fell to Zhang Lingyue.

A battle axe appeared in Zhang Lingyue's right hand. He swung it, chopping away every obstacle in their path without slowing their progress in the slightest.

To protect Zhang Yang, Zhu Ranqing summoned her Martial Soul as well.

"Martial Soul Possession!"

Soul Power surged. Zhu Ranqing's eyes changed color, her left eye turning ink green and her right eye deep blue. A long, ink-colored tail swayed lightly behind her, and ten sharp, claw-like points emerged from her slender fingertips.

At her feet, two yellow and two purple Soul Rings pulsed in a steady rhythm.

Zhang Yang's eyebrows lifted. His mother's Martial Soul Possession had stirred something in his nerves for some reason.

Her surname was Zhu, she had a feline Beast Martial Soul, and her maternal grandfather's family, which was "too far away" for them to have ever visited...

Knowing this wasn't the time to ask about it, Zhang Yang kept quiet. He raised Lord M14 as well, aiming at every direction that seemed suspicious.

The Star Dou Forest truly lived up to its reputation as one of the most dangerous Soul Beast forests in the world. Before long, Zhang Lingyue stopped, his voice low. "Careful. It's a group of Soul Beasts."

Zhang Yang halted. Zhu Ranqing took a sidestep and immediately shielded him. "Lingyue, what's going on?"

"It's a group of Ten-Year Soul Beasts. They've already spotted us." Zhang Lingyue narrowed his eyes. "But they shouldn't be the kind that attack unprovoked. Let's go around them."

Zhang Lingyue slowly backed away, then led Zhang Yang and Zhu Ranqing off in another direction.

Taking advantage of the unexpected encounter, Zhang Lingyue also taught Zhang Yang a lesson. "Soul Beast resources are limited, so don't kill them indiscriminately unless it's necessary."

Zhang Yang nodded.

Don't kill unless necessary. Zhang Yang had already learned that at the academy.

It was also an idea that Spirit Hall had always advocated.

Otherwise, when Soul Masters went to hunt Soul Beasts in the enclosed Soul Hunting Forest, why would they need to apply to Spirit Hall for a token?

"For the sake of future generations," Zhang Lingyue said.