Entering the Star Dou Great Forest

Luo Shang looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

"Your physical fitness has already surpassed that of an ordinary Soul Ancestor."

Luo Yun blinked. "Really?"

"Mm. Your Soul Power has also grown purer after a month of training." Luo Shang paused. "As for your spiritual power..."

He glanced at Luo Yun, and for once, a hint of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

"You're worthy of being my son."

Luo Yun grinned, but quickly wiped the smile from his face. He knew that whenever his father looked like this, a "but" was usually close behind.

Sure enough.

"But," Luo Shang said.

Luo Yun: "..."

"Your Sun Corona Sword has life and heat attributes. There are almost no Soul Beasts with those attributes in the Northern Territory of the Heaven Dou Empire." Luo Shang put away the wooden sword and turned his back to him. "So we're going to the Star Dou Great Forest."

Luo Yun was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up.

"The Star Dou Great Forest? The largest Soul Beast forest on the continent, the one from the legends?"

Luo Shang turned to look at him. "You're excited?"

"I've never left Frost Ridge City!" For once, Luo Yun's voice carried the excitement of a six-year-old boy. But he quickly realized he'd overreacted, cleared his throat, and put on a solemn little face. "...I mean, well, it's been a long time since I went out."

Luo Shang's mouth twitched, but he didn't call him out.

Three days later.

Early morning, at the gates of Frost Ridge City.

Shen Yinshuang crouched down and carefully tied Luo Yun's cloak, then tucked in his collar to make sure not a trace of wind could get inside.

"When you reach the Star Dou Great Forest, don't go running off. Stay close to your father."

"Got it."

"Don't be reckless. If you can't beat something, run."

"Got it."

"Don't..."

"Mother." Luo Yun interrupted her. "That's the eighth time you've said that."

Shen Yinshuang glared at him, but her eyes had already reddened.

She stood and turned to Luo Shang, lowering her voice. "If he comes back missing even one hair, don't come back at all."

Luo Shang nodded and gently reassured his wife.

"All right, don't you trust my strength? How could I let our son get hurt even a little?"

With that, he swung himself onto the horse, leaned down, and pulled Luo Yun up in front of him.

"Let's go!"

Sitting on the horse, Luo Yun looked back at the city where he'd lived for six years: the white walls, the snow swirling overhead, and his mother standing at the gate, waving to him.

Suddenly, his nose began to sting.

"Mother, I'll be back soon!"

Shen Yinshuang smiled and nodded. At last, she couldn't hold back her tears, and they slipped down her cheeks.

Luo Shang tightened the reins and gave a soft cry.

The horse's hooves shattered the snow as father and son disappeared into the blizzard.

Frost Ridge City grew smaller behind them, until it became a tiny gray speck in the vast white world.

Seated in front of his father, Luo Yun looked out at the endless white wilderness, his heart pounding.

This was the first time he'd left Frost Ridge City.

And the first time he'd set out toward the real world.

One week later.

The outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

Luo Yun looked up at the towering tree before him, his mouth forming an O.

It was absurdly huge, its trunk as thick as Frost Ridge City's gate tower, its crown blotting out the sky.

The air was heavy with the damp scents of soil and plants, a world apart from the dry, freezing snowfields of the Northern Territory.

"Father, this tree... it must be over a thousand years old, right?"

"More than that." Luo Shang tied the horse to the tree and dusted off his hands.

Luo Yun looked up again, his neck nearly snapping from the strain.

"Stop staring. Once we're inside, stay close to me." Luo Shang checked the rations he carried, made sure everything was in order, then headed deeper into the forest. "Don't fall even one step behind."

"I know, I know." Luo Yun hurried after him, his cloak billowing behind him.

As soon as they entered the forest, the light dimmed.

Towering trees sealed off the sky. Only a few shafts of sunlight slipped through gaps in the leaves now and then, scattering dappled shadows across the ground.

Luo Shang didn't walk quickly. His gaze swept constantly over their surroundings, and his ears twitched as he listened for every faint sound in the dense woods.

"Father, why are you nervous? Aren't you a Titled Douluo?" Luo Yun followed behind him, looking around at everything with unrestrained curiosity.

"Even a Titled Douluo can step in shit." Luo Shang didn't look back.

Luo Yun paused, then thought it over. The words were crude, but they seemed to make sense.

"The Star Dou Great Forest is divided into the outskirts, the middle region, and the Core Circle." Luo Shang spoke as he walked. His voice was quiet, but carried clearly through the tranquil forest. "The outskirts are mostly home to ten-, hundred-, and thousand-year Soul Beasts. There are occasionally a few ten-thousand-year ones, but not many. The middle region is the territory of ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts, and the Core Circle..."

"The territory of Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts," Luo Yun finished. "I read about it in a book."

Luo Shang tilted his head slightly to look at him. "At least you didn't read that book for nothing."

Luo Yun grinned and puffed out his little chest.

"But what's written in books isn't the same as reality." Luo Shang pushed aside a drooping vine and gestured for Luo Yun to come closer. "Look at these tracks on the ground."

Luo Yun looked down. A huge hoofprint marked the fallen leaves, larger than his head, with fresh soil along its edges.

"These are the tracks of a Dragon Horn Rhino, at least eight hundred years old." Luo Shang crouched and measured the depth of the hoofprint with his finger. "It's this deep, so the beast passed by recently and weighs a lot. Dragon Horn Rhinos are quick-tempered. If you encounter one, don't fight it head-on. Its weak spots are its eyes and belly."

Luo Yun nodded seriously, committing his words to memory.

Along the way, Luo Shang was like a walking encyclopedia of Soul Beasts. He explained everything they encountered.

Poisonous mushrooms, vines that could camouflage themselves, beehives hidden in tree hollows, which Soul Beasts had left the droppings on the ground, and how fresh they were—he explained it all to Luo Yun.

Luo Yun listened with keen interest, asking a question now and then, and Luo Shang answered each one patiently.

After walking for about two hours, the forest grew darker and darker. Luo Shang stopped, took two pieces of dry rations from his pack, and handed one to Luo Yun.

"Let's eat something and rest for the time it takes an incense stick to burn."

Luo Yun took the ration, bit into it, and chewed with a blank expression.

"Father."

"Mm?"

"When will Mother's rations finally have some flavor?"

Luo Shang glanced at him. "When you can't get them anymore."

Luo Yun sighed and secretly stuffed half the rock-hard ration into his pocket.

After resting, the two continued deeper into the forest.

The vegetation grew denser, and the path beneath their feet became harder to navigate.

Luo Yun followed the footprints Luo Shang had made, keeping close step by step, though his eyes never stopped scanning their surroundings.

Suddenly, he stopped.

"Father."

Luo Shang stopped almost at the same time.

"What is it?"

Luo Yun didn't answer. His brows furrowed slightly, as though he were sensing something.