"I'm willing to take Bi Ji out with me. I'm just afraid that powerful humans might see through her identity."
Yu Mingxiao weighed his words for a moment before voicing his concern.
He had no objection to keeping Bi Ji by his side, but unlike Na'er, she could not conceal her aura. If a powerful human detected her, the consequences would be unthinkable.
If these Soul Beasts had overlooked that, he felt he should remind them.
Di Tian said calmly, "You needn't worry. Bi Ji carries a Reverse Scale bestowed by our lord. It conceals her aura, so no one outside will see through her true identity."
"That's good. Can you find my other companion? He probably hasn't left the Star Dou Great Forest. Sorry for the trouble, but could you look for him?"
Yu Mingxiao had suddenly remembered Dugu Bo, who had come to the Star Dou Great Forest with him.
Judging by Dugu Bo's predicament, Yu Mingxiao figured that after seeing him captured, Dugu Bo would be searching everywhere in the forest.
After all, if Dugu Bo dared return to the clan, Yu Yuanzhen would all but flay him alive. And with his son still at the clan, he could hardly flee to escape punishment. Most likely, he had stayed in the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Your companion? Do you mean that human dressed head to toe in green?" Di Tian asked, recalling the scene that day.
"That's him." Yu Mingxiao nodded. "Sorry for the trouble, but please find him."
"Wait a moment," Di Tian said. "I'll speak to the King of Ten Thousand Demons. If your companion is still in the Star Dou Great Forest, he can locate him instantly."
"All right. Be quick."
Di Tian plunged into the lake and entered the small space where the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was imprisoned.
The Ferocious Beasts had gathered around the plump Ice Silkworm, absorbing the Soul Power spilling from him to improve their cultivation.
Di Tian's arrival immediately drew their attention.
Xiong Jun said, "Di Tian, weren't you receiving that human our lord values? Are you finished?"
"That human is about to leave," Di Tian said. "He'll be taking Bi Ji with him."
"What?!" The Ferocious Beasts stared in disbelief.
Xiong Jun frowned and was about to ask something, but Di Tian glanced at him and said gravely, "This is our lord's plan."
Hearing that, they swallowed their questions. Even with ten times their courage, they would not dare question a true God.
Di Tian turned to a middle-aged man with striking, uncanny features. "King of Ten Thousand Demons, find the man in green who was with our lord's avatar that day."
"Is that our lord's request too?" the King of Ten Thousand Demons asked.
"No. It's that human's request."
Di Tian shook his head. "But our lord ordered us to build a good relationship with him. That responsibility doesn't fall on me alone, so don't make a halfhearted effort."
"Very well." The King of Ten Thousand Demons sighed, closed his eyes, and received the messages carried to him by every plant in the Star Dou Great Forest.
A moment later, he found Dugu Bo.
"Found him. I'll send you his location. Go tell that human." Using an ability much like Spiritual Sharing, the King of Ten Thousand Demons passed the location to Di Tian.
"I'll be back shortly." With that, Di Tian vanished from the small space in the blink of an eye.
The plump Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, surrounded by Soul Beasts, stared at the spot where Di Tian had disappeared. His face fell as he muttered to himself:
I've had enough of this miserable captivity. These Soul Beasts are actually making friends with a human. Maybe... that human is my chance to escape. Even living in a human's Sea of Spirit would be a thousand times better than this place...
Elsewhere, the story took a different turn.
Ever since he had seen Yu Mingxiao snatched away by a gigantic dragon claw, Dugu Bo had been frantic.
He was almost certain a Soul Beast had abducted Yu Mingxiao.
With no way out, Dugu Bo could only grit his teeth and search for Yu Mingxiao in the danger-ridden Star Dou Great Forest. He had even been injured along the way.
Having just escaped a pursuing Soul Beast, he panted and muttered, "That beast seemed to tear open space to seize the Young Sect Master. Its strength was terrifying. It probably lives in the most dangerous Core Zone. Should I venture in and find out?"
Dugu Bo dreaded the Core Zone. Everyone knew how dangerous it was.
He did not even dare enter the Core Zone of the Sunset Forest, much less that of the far more fearsome Star Dou Great Forest.
Suddenly, a man and a woman emerged from the grass ahead.
"Young Sect Master?!" Dugu Bo sprang up, utterly flustered. "You—you're all right?"
Yu Mingxiao's face darkened. "Dugu Bo, were you hoping I wasn't?"
"No, that's not what I meant." Dugu Bo hurried to explain. "I was so excited to see you appear out of nowhere that I lost my words."
Of course he was excited. As long as Yu Mingxiao was safe, he could return to the clan and report back without worrying about punishment from Yu Yuanzhen.
Yu Mingxiao let out a breath and sighed. "Come on. It's time we left the Star Dou Great Forest."
"Good. I've wanted to leave this place for a while."
Dugu Bo nodded, then looked at Bi Ji beside Yu Mingxiao. "By the way, where's Na'er? Why isn't she here? And who is this lady?"
"This is Bi Ji. I happened to meet her in the Star Dou Great Forest. She wants to join the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, so I brought her along. As for Na'er... a Black Dragon took her away."
Yu Mingxiao made it up on the spot, grabbing a flimsy excuse for Na'er's absence.
"Young Sect Master, what... what happened to you?" Dugu Bo could not help asking.
"A Black Dragon captured Na'er and me," Yu Mingxiao said. "After he took Na'er away, he left me alone. I don't know why."
Beside him, Bi Ji held back a laugh. The corners of her mouth twitched, but she did not dare make a sound.
Though Dugu Bo was full of questions, he asked no more. He led the way, and the three of them left the Star Dou Great Forest.
Three of them had come, and three of them were leaving. Yet Bi Ji had taken Na'er's place, leaving Yu Mingxiao with a tangle of emotions.
Once they stepped out of the Star Dou Great Forest, Yu Mingxiao suddenly wanted to try flying back to the clan with his External Soul Bone. On second thought, he decided against it.
He was only a Soul King. Even with an Ultimate Martial Soul, his Soul Power was hardly abundant.
The energy of a hundred-thousand-year External Soul Bone was not something he could easily bear, and using it consumed a tremendous amount of Soul Power. He would need to form a Soul Core to replenish his Soul Power continuously, or break through to Soul Saint...
The skills of his External Soul Bone were impressive, with both passive and active abilities.
Sacred Radiance Heavenly Body: While using the External Wing Bone, all attributes increased by 200%, and his light attribute increased by 300%.
Light Feather Divine Movement: Granted flight and increased flight speed by an additional 400%.
Flying Dragon Perception: Danger prediction, allowing him to evade threats in advance; spatial perception, allowing him to judge distances precisely and anticipate surprise attacks from spatial skills.
Sacred Light Rejuvenation: Accelerated wound healing.
Beyond those, it had two active skills.
Void-Breaking Flash: Short-range spatial Teleportation that could be used in rapid succession.
Light Feather Heavenly Punishment: Both wings fired countless arrows of light in a wide-area piercing attack. He could also condense the wings' source power into one powerful strike.
Compared with ordinary Spirit Bones, the advantage of an External Soul Bone was that it offered not only active skills but many passive ones. It could keep growing, with boundless potential.
That was why Tang San had considered his External Soul Bone one of his trump cards early on.
After several days by carriage, the three finally returned to the familiar Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
A helpless smile tugged at Yu Mingxiao's lips. That Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring won't be easy to explain. I'm afraid Father's in for a shock...
Before you continue