Golden Earth Dragon

The next day.

Yu Yuanzhen picked up Yu Mingxiao and set off for the Star Dou Great Forest.

He did not choose to fly, opting to travel on foot instead. The high-altitude winds were too fierce, and he also intended to broaden Yu Mingxiao's horizons and let him take in the scenery of Douluo Continent along the way.

It took them five or six full days to reach the borders of the Star Dou Great Forest.

The moment they stood at the entrance to the Star Dou Great Forest, the rich fragrance of grass and trees rushed toward them, refreshing their spirits.

Yu Yuanzhen said solemnly, "The Star Dou Great Forest is one of the three most famous soul beast habitats on Douluo Continent, and also the largest. Its area is nearly equivalent to that of an entire kingdom, spanning the border between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire."

"There are countless soul beasts within it, and danger lurks everywhere. The closer one gets to the heart of the forest, the stronger the soul beasts become."

"If you want to become strong and hunt soul rings, the Star Dou Great Forest is practically unavoidable. Once we enter this forest, make sure you stay close to me."

"I understand." Yu Mingxiao nodded slightly. "Father, then let's go in."

"Let's go." Yu Yuanzhen took the lead into the forest, with Yu Mingxiao following close behind.

The moment they stepped into the primeval forest, a dense aura of life instantly enveloped them.

Towering ancient trees blotted out the sky, while thick vines intertwined and coiled around one another.

They were currently in the outer region of the Star Dou Great Forest. Seeing that it was still early, Yu Yuanzhen did not rush to find a suitable soul beast for Yu Mingxiao. Instead, he personally taught Yu Mingxiao how to identify soul beasts.

No matter how lifelike the illustrations in a soul beast guide might be, they could never compare to seeing living soul beasts with one's own eyes.

"Mingxiao, there is a ten-year Lone Bamboo ahead. Its defining trait is toughness. It is also a soul beast, a plant-type soul beast. Its attack power is not strong, but its defense is decent."

"This is a ten-year Great Strength Gorilla. Its defining trait is strength. If it had a higher cultivation, it would be quite suitable for the Clear Sky Hammer, but it is not suited to our Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon."

"This is a hundred-year Soft Bone Rabbit. Its defining traits are flexibility and speed. Do not be fooled by how docile it looks—this is an offensive soul beast."

Yu Yuanzhen walked forward at an unhurried pace, introducing Yu Mingxiao to the various soul beasts they encountered along the way.

Their goal was clear: hunt a light-attribute draconic soul beast. However, such soul beasts were not something one could find everywhere in the Star Dou Great Forest, especially in its outer region, where the chances of encountering one were even slimmer.

They continued deeper into the forest, yet still failed to find a soul beast that met their requirements.

Yu Yuanzhen showed no impatience whatsoever. He said calmly, "In the Star Dou Great Forest, finding a soul beast that meets one's requirements is not an easy task. It is perfectly normal for some soul masters to search here for days and nights."

"Mingxiao, if your martial soul were the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, I happen to remember the locations of several lightning-attribute draconic soul beast clans. I could take you to hunt one right now."

"Unfortunately, you awakened the Radiant Sacred Dragon. We can only search slowly."

"Mhm." Yu Mingxiao responded.

Seeing that he seemed somewhat tired, Yu Yuanzhen stopped walking and shook the Soft Bone Rabbit in his hand as he said,

"We have already walked for half a day. There is an open area ahead. Let's gather some dry branches, build a fire there, roast this Soft Bone Rabbit, and rest before continuing our search."

"Alright." Naturally, Yu Mingxiao had no objections.

The two gathered some dry branches and quickly built a fire in the clearing carpeted with fallen leaves. They cleaned the Soft Bone Rabbit, skewered it, and slowly roasted it over the flames.

As Yu Yuanzhen turned the meat over the fire, he warned, "Mingxiao, unless you have sufficient strength, it is best not to roast meat in the forest. Soul beasts have extremely keen senses of smell. They can catch the scent of roasting meat from a hundred miles away and may be drawn here."

"So Father only dared to make a fire and roast meat in the Star Dou Great Forest because you are powerful enough?" Yu Mingxiao asked with a teasing smile in his eyes.

Yu Yuanzhen burst into laughter. "Hahaha! This is only the edge of the Mixed Zone. Powerful soul beasts usually do not appear here. If we were at the very center, I would not dare roast meat either."

As they spoke, the Soft Bone Rabbit was already cooked.

This Soft Bone Rabbit weighed a good five or six pounds. Having spent all year leaping through the forest, its body was all lean meat.

Yu Yuanzhen tore off half the roasted rabbit and handed it to Yu Mingxiao.

Father and son happily began eating the Soft Bone Rabbit.

"Rustle, rustle, rustle..."

Just then, a sudden rustling came from the surrounding grass.

Yu Yuanzhen said, "Listen. A soul beast is approaching. It was probably attracted by the roasted meat. Let's go see what kind of soul beast it is."

As he spoke, he casually took Yu Mingxiao by the hand and headed toward the source of the sound.

A moment later, the two came face-to-face with a massive golden dragon.

"This... it is actually a Golden Earth Dragon?"

Yu Yuanzhen examined the soul beast before them and said, "This Golden Earth Dragon is an excellent match for you, but its cultivation is likely already over seven hundred years."

"On top of that, soul rings produced by dragon-type soul beasts contain extremely violent energy. Mingxiao, are you confident you can absorb its soul ring?"

A Golden Earth Dragon?

Yu Mingxiao's eyes lit up as he hurriedly said, "Father, this is the one. I feel that it is fated to be with me."

"We searched for soul beasts for so long just now and did not encounter one that met the requirements."

"Yet in less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, a suitable soul beast came right to us."

The Golden Earth Dragon possessed a pure yet diluted bloodline of the Radiant Dragon Clan. Once this soul beast reached ten thousand years of cultivation, it could be called a Golden Earth Dragon King!

For the Radiant Sacred Dragon martial soul to absorb the soul ring of such a soul beast was undoubtedly a match made in heaven. Nothing could have been more suitable.

Yu Yuanzhen fell silent for a moment. Remembering that Yu Mingxiao had consumed Whale Rubber the night before and undergone a complete transformation, he figured Yu Mingxiao should be able to withstand this soul ring. He no longer hesitated.

"Stay here. I'll catch it for you."

While Yu Yuanzhen was sizing up the Golden Earth Dragon, it was also warily observing the two of them.

Now that Yu Yuanzhen suddenly closed in and it sensed his powerful aura, the Golden Earth Dragon knew it was no match for him. It swiftly turned around, intending to flee.

But Yu Yuanzhen was a Title Douluo. How could he possibly let it escape?

Not everyone was as useless as Dragon Duke and Snake Granny.

He grabbed its thick tail and gave it a powerful swing.

With a booming crash, the Golden Earth Dragon slammed into the ground. Its scales shattered and flew in all directions as it was severely wounded in an instant, collapsing limply onto the ground.

Yu Yuanzhen lifted it by the tail with one hand, returned to Yu Mingxiao's side, and set the Golden Earth Dragon down.

"Mingxiao, this dagger was forged from Purple Lightning Iron. It is incomparably sharp. Give it the final blow."

Yu Yuanzhen took out a dagger that gleamed with cold light and casually handed it to Yu Mingxiao.

"Alright!" Yu Mingxiao raised the dagger and viciously plunged it into the Golden Earth Dragon. Blood sprayed out, and the earth dragon convulsed several times before gradually breathing its last.

A yellow soul ring slowly rose from the corpse.