The system's prompt broke the warmth and tranquility of Paradise.
Li Hao leaned against the doorframe, feeling the Soul Power surging inside him, yet blocked by an invisible barrier.
A long-forgotten sense of urgency welled up in his heart.
He couldn't keep lazing around anymore.
At least, not before he had the power to protect himself absolutely.
He took a deep breath and turned back toward the little wooden cabin.
He looked at his family—one planning out the land, the other playing with a fawn—and spoke.
"I need to go out for a while."
The moment he said it, the cheerful atmosphere in Paradise froze.
Xiao Wu stopped chasing butterflies and whipped around.
Her big eyes instantly filled with worry.
Cailin, who had been surveying the terrain on the hillside, flashed into view before Li Hao without a sound.
Her golden, slit-pupiled eyes held a hint of scrutiny.
"Dad, where are you going?"
Xiao Wu ran over and hugged his leg again, tipping up her little face as if afraid he might disappear.
"To get my third Soul Ring."
Li Hao answered honestly.
He pointed at himself.
"I'm stuck at level twenty-nine. I can't advance."
"I'm going with you!" Xiao Wu blurted out. "I'm really strong now. I can protect you, Dad!"
"I'll go too."
Cailin's response was even more concise, but carried an unmistakable air of finality.
"The human world is far more dangerous than you imagine."
Li Hao felt his head start to throb.
They were coming with him?
Was this some kind of joke?
He looked at the two peerless beauties before him, one large and one small, and felt his head grow twice as big.
One was a doll-like little girl, so adorable it was almost against the rules, but in truth a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
The other was a stunning, mature beauty, cold and noble, with an extraordinary bearing and an aura that warned everyone to keep their distance.
If this group walked down the street, they'd draw three hundred percent of the eyes.
That wouldn't be going to hunt for a Soul Ring.
That'd be like carrying a ten-thousand-watt searchlight and shouting to the whole world, "Come look! We've got treasures over here! Come and take them!"
"No."
Li Hao refused without hesitation, leaving no room for discussion.
It was the first time he had spoken to them in such a serious tone.
Xiao Wu's mouth drooped, and her eyes reddened at once.
Cailin's golden eyes narrowed slightly, and the air around them seemed to drop several degrees.
"Why?" Xiao Wu asked, hurt.
"You'd attract too much attention."
Li Hao crouched down and patiently explained.
"Xiao Wu, do you remember that bad guy from before? He was from Spirit Hall, the most powerful organization in this world. They're definitely still searching for us."
"You and Sister Cailin are both too special."
"If they find us, none of us will get away."
Xiao Wu nodded as if she understood, but she still looked worried.
Cailin fell silent.
Of course she understood.
She just didn't want Li Hao to go alone.
Her master had only level twenty-nine Soul Power and almost no combat experience. Letting him enter the perilous Soul Hunting Forest alone was no different from sending him to his death.
"You're in even more danger alone," Cailin said bluntly.
"I have my own ways."
Li Hao stood up, his voice carrying a confidence he had never shown before.
"Trust me. I'm better at staying alive than you think."
After all, keeping his head down was his life's creed.
Cailin watched Li Hao's unyielding expression in silence for a long while, then finally gave in.
She knew that this man might seem easygoing and lazy, but once he made up his mind, no one could change it.
"Fine."
She uttered a single word and turned to walk into the cabin.
Xiao Wu looked from Li Hao to Cailin's retreating figure, then finally decided to listen.
"Then... Dad, make sure you come back soon."
"I promise." Li Hao smiled and ruffled her hair.
The night passed without incident.
The next morning, just as Li Hao was preparing to leave, Cailin came to find him.
She handed him several small jade bottles of different colors.
"These contain three kinds of deadly poison refined from my own venom. They can kill with a single drop of blood. Anyone below the rank of Titled Douluo will die on contact."
She took out several more bottles.
"These are the corresponding antidotes, along with some pills that can cure any poison. Remember, don't use them unless absolutely necessary."
Her expression was still cool, but the concern in her words was impossible to hide.
Li Hao solemnly accepted these lifesaving trump cards, feeling warmth in his heart.
"Thank you."
Just then, Xiao Wu ran over too.
In her hands was a bracelet she had hurriedly woven overnight, a little rough around the edges.
It was made from her own softest pink rabbit fur, and still carried a faint grassy scent.
She rose onto her tiptoes and clumsily slipped the bracelet onto Li Hao's wrist.
"Dad, with this, I'll always be able to feel where you are. And you'll be able to feel that I'm with you, too!"
Li Hao gazed at the soft pink around his wrist and felt something deep inside him fill completely.
This was family.
These were the bonds he wanted to protect, no matter what.
After saying his final goodbyes, Li Hao went alone to the edge of Paradise.
He looked at the empty space before him and took out the unremarkable Karma Rod.
"System, what would happen if I used it to fish for something about myself?"
[In theory, the host can fish up any causal concept related to himself, including but not limited to: fortune, inspiration, or some opportunity in the future... But he may also fish up a future disaster.]
[Would you like to cast the line?]
"Since I'm here, I might as well give it a try."
Li Hao steeled himself.
"Target: my good luck for the next three hours!"
He pointed the fishing rod at himself and gave it a symbolic cast.
The line sank into his body, bringing with it a curious sensation.
A moment later, he gave it a sharp tug.
[Ding!]
[Successfully fished up a sliver of your future good luck. For the next three hours, "accidents" are more likely to work in your favor.]
It worked!
Li Hao felt his whole body lighten, as if some invisible blessing had settled over him.
He didn't linger. He changed into the plainest hunter's outfit he'd found in the dead Soul Saint's Storage Soul Tool, suppressing his Soul Power until it was almost impossible to detect.
Then he opened a tiny crack in Paradise's barrier and stepped through.
The world spun around him.
The next moment, he had appeared in a thick forest on the outskirts of Star Dou Forest.
The long-missed air, rich with a jumble of scents, flowed into his nostrils.
Following the direction he remembered, he headed toward the nearest human town.
Half a day later, a bustling little town appeared on the horizon.
The streets were full of people and traffic.
Vendors cried out their wares, children laughed and played, and Soul Masters spoke loudly among themselves. Their voices blended into a lively chorus full of the bustle of everyday life.
Li Hao's social-anxiety radar went off at once.
He instinctively tugged his hat lower, wishing he could curl himself into a ball.
So many people.
Why were there so many people?
Didn't they have jobs to go to?
He just wanted to hurry through, get what he needed done, and go straight home—to the quiet Paradise where it was just them.
He quickened his pace, almost fleeing through town, and reached his destination.
Soul Hunting Forest.
Three large, vigorous characters were carved into the enormous archway. Spirit Hall guards stood at the entrance, checking people as they came and went.
A large number of Soul Masters had gathered at the forest entrance.
Some were in groups of three or five, apparently teamed up on the spot.
Others, like him, were lone wolves with a fierce air about them.
Li Hao paid the ten Gold Soul Coin entrance fee and was about to blend into the crowd and enter the forest quietly.
Just then—
"Stop! Don't run!"
"Damn it, catch that kid! He dared to steal from our Flying Divine Pig Group!"
A commotion and a flurry of curses suddenly came from deep in the forest.
The crowd broke into an uproar, scattering to either side.
Li Hao instinctively stopped too.
A figure in a wretched state came tumbling out along a path in the woods, moving at astonishing speed.
He was a boy of about fourteen or fifteen, dressed in rags, his face full of terror.
Yet in his hand, he clutched something tightly...
A sausage that was still steaming?
The boy seemed to have reached his limit. His knees buckled, he lost his balance, and he pitched straight toward Li Hao.
"Help! They're killing me!"
His shrill scream rang across the entire entrance to Soul Hunting Forest.
Before you continue