The Embryonic Form of Ten Thousand Beasts Paying Homage

That grand tolling of a bell did not come from the outside world.

Instead, it exploded directly within the deepest recesses of his soul!

Li Hao froze completely.

This sensation was entirely different from the electronic prompts of previous system upgrades.

It was ancient, solemn, and filled with the rhythm of the world.

[Congratulations, Host.]

The system's voice arrived, no longer the slightly playful synthesized tone from before, but solemn and magnificent, every word carrying a wondrous resonance.

[Soul Beast Paradise has been initially established, the laws of space are stabilized, the life cycle is self-contained, and it has reached the standard of a Blessed Land.]

[System permissions, officially upgraded!]

As the words fell, Li Hao felt his connection to the entire paradise deepen a thousandfold in an instant.

If he had been the master of this space before, then now, he was the... god of this world.

He could clearly perceive the pulse of every inch of soil, the breathing of every leaf, and the flow of every drop of lake water.

He even developed an illusion.

As long as he wished, he could make the flowers here bloom across the hillsides in an instant.

He could also make the rushing rivers roll back to the mountain peaks.

"This..."

Li Hao reached out his hand and looked at his palm.

An unprecedented sense of control made even a social anxiety sufferer like him unable to suppress the surging emotions in his heart.

[New permission unlocked: Time flow fine-tuning.]

[Current paradise time flow can be adjusted by 1.1 times.]

1.1 times?

Li Hao focused his mind, concentrating his attention on the newborn Phantom Dream Sapling not far away.

Activate!

In his perception, the growth rate of the sapling seemed to have truly accelerated by a fraction.

Although it was minuscule, this power to alter the rules of the world still left him feeling incredibly shocked.

This golden finger of his seemed to be getting more and more outrageous.

[Core function upgrade: Paradise Summoning.]

The system's voice rang out again, and this time, the content left Li Hao completely stunned.

[The upgraded Soul Beast Paradise, with its pure life aura and absolute safety laws, will be able to penetrate the spatial barrier and be weakly perceived by Soul Beast within a certain range of the outside world that possess pure souls and are on the verge of death.]

[They will view this place as their final destination and paradise.]

[They will follow the guidance of their instincts to seek the gateway to this place.]

"This..."

"Isn't this just passive monster luring?"

And it was twenty-four-hour, automatic monster luring at that!

Li Hao's brain buzzed.

He could already envision the scene of his small paradise being crowded with all sorts of strange and bizarre Soul Beast in the future.

His social anxiety DNA began to tremble violently once again.

Just as he was lost in his wild thoughts.

In the distant, unseen Star Dou Forest.

In a dark corner, a thousand-year Wind-Seeking Bird with most of its fur scorched was dragging its broken wing, struggling to crawl along the ground.

Behind it, several Soul Master wearing hunting team uniforms were closing in with sinister grins.

Despair shrouded its heart.

But just then, it raised its head in confusion.

In its perception, from a place so distant it was unimaginable, came a faint, ethereal call.

It was a world filled with life, peace, and tranquility.

There was no slaughter, no fear.

It was heaven.

It was home.

The Wind-Seeking Bird did not know what it was, but the instinct to survive drove it to use its last ounce of strength to charge fiercely toward the direction where the sensation was strongest.

Under the astonished gaze of the hunting squad, the soul beast that should have been within their grasp slammed headlong into a seemingly ordinary patch of air.

The next second, its figure vanished into thin air.

The space merely rippled with an imperceptible tremor.

Soul Beast Paradise.

Li Hao stood on the mountain peak, feeling the power he had newly acquired.

Suddenly, the space before him rippled.

A charred, massive bird, covered in wounds and gasping for breath, tumbled out from the ripples and crashed onto the grass in a sorry state.

Xiao Wu was startled and hid behind Li Hao.

Medusa, meanwhile, immediately stepped in front of him, a flicker of vigilance flashing in her snake-like eyes.

The Wind-Seeking Bird struggled to lift its head. It saw Li Hao, and it saw the terrifying soul beast aura radiating from Medusa, so it closed its eyes in despair.

Escaped the tiger's den, only to fall into a wolf's lair.

However, the expected attack did not come.

A warm and pure aura of life enveloped it.

Under the nourishment of this aura, the wounds on its body actually began to heal slowly.

It opened its eyes cautiously.

It saw the clear sky, the rolling green mountains in the distance, and heard the crisp chirping of birds and the babbling of flowing water.

The air was filled with the fragrance of grass and trees, making its very soul feel at ease.

This place was truly paradise.

The Wind-Seeking Bird stood up tremblingly and let out a clear, joyful cry toward Li Hao on the mountain peak.

It spread its newly healed wings, circled the mountain peak, and finally landed respectfully on a large tree not far away.

It had voluntarily become the first immigrant of this world.

Li Hao watched this scene, not yet having the chance to make a snide remark.

Not far away, another spatial ripple appeared.

A thousand-year Wind-Speed Deer, covered in slash wounds, stumbled in.

Following that came the third, the fourth...

A five-thousand-year Ghost Vine eroded by toxins.

A litter of Velvet Fire Rabbit, with only three cubs left after being hunted by natural predators.

A hundred-year Water Python with most of its scales shed.

In the short half-hour that followed, more than a dozen dying soul beasts arrived one after another, smuggling themselves into the Soul Beast Paradise in this manner.

They had all been on the verge of death, filled with fear and vigilance toward everything in the outside world.

But here, they felt an unprecedented peace and tranquility.

After the initial panic, they quickly found places suitable for themselves.

The Wind-Speed Deer ran toward the grasslands.

The Ghost Vine took root in the shadows of the valley.

The Velvet Fire Rabbit family was happily scooped up by Xiao Wu and brought to the side of her little nest.

Li Hao watched all of this in a daze.

He watched these soul beasts of various shapes and sizes, all carrying the joy of surviving a catastrophe, finding new life in this brand-new world.

They ran, played, drank water, and foraged for food.

The entire paradise became more vivid and full of the breath of life because of their arrival.

An absurd yet magnificent thought emerged uncontrollably from the bottom of his heart.

He seemed to be building a...

A kingdom that belonged only to soul beasts.

A final pure land that could keep them away from human hunting.

He was no longer passively accepting everything the system gave him.

Something called responsibility took root and sprouted in his heart for the first time.

He would turn this place into the final destination for all kind-hearted soul beasts.

He looked at the mountains and rivers beneath his feet that he had created with his own hands, and at those lives that had regained their vitality, his heart filled with an unprecedented sense of accomplishment.

Perhaps, being a king wasn't so hard to accept after all?

Just as Li Hao's heart surged with emotion, nearly moving himself to tears.

[Ding!]

The system's voice, now solemn and grand, rang out once more, yet carried an unprecedented note of urgency.

[Emergency mission triggered!]

[Mission Rank: Extremely Rare (Gold)]

[Detected: Multiple noble souls are rapidly perishing deep within the Star Dou Forest, including a member of the Hell Spirit Cat Royal Family...]

[Will you proceed to investigate?]