At this critical moment.
Little Silver, who had been silent all along, suddenly opened its eyes.
Silver light glittered like stars in its glassy eyes, and an enigmatic spatial fluctuation spread out from it!
"First Soul Skill—Space Jump!"
Silver light flared!
Wrapped in the silver glow, Yu Tianlong, Little Gold, and Little Silver blurred and twisted like reflections in water, then vanished without a trace just before Yu Yuanzhen's palm came down.
"Boom—!!!"
Yu Yuanzhen's palm struck empty space. The violent force of lightning blasted a crater several yards across into the ground, sending rocks and dirt flying everywhere!
But the bottom of the crater was empty.
There was no blood, no bodies, not even the faintest trace of their auras.
Yu Yuanzhen stood frozen, staring at the empty crater before him. His expression shifted from shock to disbelief, then to boundless rage!
"A spatial Soul Ring... so that's it..."
He finally understood.
Why Yu Tianlong had suddenly asked to absorb a spatial Soul Beast at such a life-or-death moment.
Why he had chosen to let that silver Luo San Pao absorb the Space Rabbit's Soul Ring. Why he had seemed so calm from the very beginning, as if he had been prepared all along...
He had been preparing to escape from the start!
"Fine... well done, Yu Tianlong..." Yu Yuanzhen gritted his teeth, his voice seeping through them with a chilling edge. "Let's see how far you can get!"
He spun around, snatched up the still-dazed Yu Xiaogang, and shot off like lightning in pursuit, heading for the edge of the Star Dou Forest.
But the Star Dou Forest was vast and boundless, and Yu Tianlong could use Space Jump. Finding him would be like fishing for a needle in the ocean.
A thousand meters away, inside a secluded mountain cave, silver light flashed. Yu Tianlong stumbled out, holding Little Gold and Little Silver.
His face was pale, his forehead slick with cold sweat, and his Soul Power was almost completely drained.
Although Space Jump was powerful, it consumed an enormous amount of energy. With his current cultivation, taking Little Gold and Little Silver along on a long-distance jump had cost far too much.
"We're safe... for now..." He leaned against the damp cave wall, gasping for breath, his chest heaving violently.
Little Gold and Little Silver were also exhausted. They lay beside him, their auras weak, but their eyes held the relief of having survived a catastrophe.
However, Yu Yuanzhen would soon catch up.
The night wind howled through the trees of the Star Dou Forest, carrying the scents of blood and soil.
After catching his breath for a brief moment in the cave, Yu Tianlong hugged Little Gold and Little Silver and gritted his teeth as he got back to his feet.
"I can't stop... if I stop, I die."
He drew a deep breath, feeling the scant Soul Power left in his body, then looked at Little Silver, whose aura was just as weak.
The first Soul Skill, Space Jump, could move them through space by up to a thousand meters, but it consumed a tremendous amount of energy.
In his current state, he could use it at most four more times before his Soul Power was completely exhausted.
And four Space Jumps could take them at most four thousand meters.
To a Titled Douluo, four thousand meters was only a few breaths away.
"Little Silver, can you hold on?" Yu Tianlong asked, looking down.
Little Silver raised its head. Though weariness showed in its glassy eyes, it still nodded firmly.
It drew on the spatial power left behind by the Space Rabbit it had just absorbed. Silver-white light flowed over its body, linking up with Yu Tianlong's Soul Power.
With this extra spatial power reinforcing it, the next jump would cost half as much.
"Good! Let's go!"
Silver light flashed again, and the man and two beasts vanished from the spot.
Five hundred meters away, they had barely appeared before Yu Yuanzhen's murderous aura locked onto them again from several miles behind.
"How long do you think you can keep running?" Yu Yuanzhen's roar echoed through the night sky, carrying the pressure of a Titled Douluo and making the surrounding trees tremble. "Your Soul Power will run out sooner or later! Stop now, and I might spare your life!"
Yu Tianlong ignored him, clenched his teeth, and activated Space Jump again.
The second time.
The third time.
The fourth time.
Each jump drained his Soul Power and life force. His face grew paler and paler, all color drained from his lips, and his vision began to double.
Little Gold and Little Silver were in no better shape. The silver light around Little Silver had grown very dim, and the spatial power left by the Space Rabbit was nearly exhausted.
Meanwhile, Yu Yuanzhen pursued them like a parasite clinging to their bones, steadily closing the distance.
"One last time..." Yu Tianlong panted. His vision had begun to blur, but he stared hard ahead, holding himself upright with sheer, unyielding will.
He had no idea where he was now. He only knew that the trees were growing taller, the Soul Power in the air was growing denser, and an ancient, mighty presence seemed to lie dormant somewhere in the depths.
He had no choice. Stopping meant death. If he pressed on, there might still be a sliver of hope.
"Little Silver... this is the last time." He used the last of his strength to pour all the Soul Power remaining in his body into Little Silver.
Little Silver let out a mournful cry. Silver-white light flared once more, enveloping them.
The fifth Space Jump.
When they appeared again, Yu Tianlong's legs buckled, and he fell straight to his knees.
His Soul Power was completely spent. He didn't even have the strength to move a finger.
Little Silver collapsed beside him, its silver-white fur dull and lifeless, its eyes unable to open. Little Gold struggled to stay upright and stood in front of Yu Tianlong, letting out a feeble growl toward the direction they had come from.
Yu Tianlong struggled to raise his head. Through his blurred vision, he saw that the surrounding trees were unusually tall and thick, each one broad enough for dozens of people to wrap their arms around. Their crowns blotted out the sky, completely blocking the moonlight.
An ancient, incredibly dense aura filled the air—the kind of pressure that could only come from a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
The Star Dou Forest Core Area.
By sheer luck, he had actually escaped here.
In the distance, Yu Yuanzhen appeared at the edge of the forest, but he did not pursue them immediately.
For the first time, hesitation and apprehension showed on his face.
"Damn it... how did that brat end up here..." Yu Yuanzhen gritted his teeth, his expression shifting as he stared at the shadowy woods ahead.
As a Titled Douluo, he knew better than anyone how terrifying the Star Dou Forest Core Area was.
Several Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts lived here, and rumors even spoke of beings that had surpassed a hundred thousand years. Even he would be courting death if he charged in recklessly.
He hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and prepared to risk pursuing them.
Just then!
"Roar—!!!!!"
A beast's roar, loud enough to shake heaven and earth, suddenly rang out from deep within the core area!
It was as if the sound didn't reach their ears, but exploded directly in the depths of every living creature's soul!
Terrifying pressure swept over them like a tangible force. The surrounding trees shuddered beneath it, and countless bird Soul Beasts roosting in the treetops took flight in terror, blotting out the sky!
Yu Yuanzhen's face turned deathly pale. He felt his Martial Soul trembling—the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul's instinctive fear in the face of a higher existence!
"W-what kind of Soul Beast is that...?" His voice shook, and he stepped backward without meaning to.
That aura was simply too terrifying. He had no doubt that if he took another step forward, he would die.
"Yu Tianlong... you're as good as dead." He cast one last glance toward the core area, unwillingness and apprehension flashing in his eyes. Then he turned, grabbed the equally pale Yu Xiaogang, and fled toward the forest's edge without looking back.
He was certain that in his utterly depleted state, Yu Tianlong would not survive the night in a place like this.