The outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion Di Tian and Zi Ji had been searching for was perched on Liu Erlong's shoulder, inspecting her own body.
Her golden fur had been stained by Venom.
She was pitch-black from head to toe. If not for the distinctive aura of the Imperial Auspicious Beast still radiating from her,
she would have looked just like a little dark beast from Hell.
She flicked her tail and muttered,
"This sticky feeling is so uncomfortable."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion raised a paw in disgust, and the latex stretched from her claws into a glistening black thread.
Liu Erlong, Ye Yingling, and Tang Yuehua all turned to look at her, their expressions a little peculiar.
They exchanged glances—
Could the teacher really be going after a Soul Beast that hadn't even taken human form yet?
The thought had barely formed when several whips surged out of the Black Latex Suit on all three women. Three sharp cracks rang out, and each of them took a smack on the buttocks.
All three cried out and jumped back, clutching their behinds.
Startled by the commotion, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion quickly turned her curious gaze to the black tentacles emerging from their suits. Her three eyes sparkled.
"You'll get used to it if you give it a little time."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion suddenly felt that the sticky suit covering her was no longer merely uncomfortable.
A flood of information poured into her mind. Countless skills, attributes, and abilities unfolded before her like a scroll.
At the same time,
a powerful boost surged through the Symbiotic Link.
Her strength, speed, defense, Mental Power, Power of Destiny, and everything else had all been enhanced fivefold.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's three eyes widened.
"Looks like my Power of Destiny was right. You really can make me stronger!"
She couldn't suppress the excitement in her voice.
She could clearly sense that, boosted fivefold, her Power of Destiny had spread farther than ever before. She could even faintly detect the movements of Soul Beasts in the distant Core Area.
The combat skills Jiang Ce had shared with her left her dazzled.
"Not so sticky anymore?"
Jiang Ce's voice carried a hint of teasing.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion flicked her tail.
"I don't mind it anymore. Let me stay a little longer, and remember to tell me a story."
The three women looked at the Imperial Auspicious Beast, who had been complaining about the sticky suit just moments ago and was now refusing to leave. The corners of their mouths twitched in unison.
Liu Erlong folded her arms and looked down at the Golden Little Beast on her shoulder, who had already begun figuring out how to grab branches with the tentacles. She muttered under her breath,
"Another one's fallen aboard the pirate ship."
Jiang Ce was grinning to himself, too.
Now he had copied all the Imperial Auspicious Beast's abilities—
He was now essentially an Imperial Auspicious Beast himself. He could increase the cultivation speed of Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest and improve their chances of breaking through,
and he had even fully copied the trace of Golden Dragon King Bloodline she possessed.
"All right, wait a moment. We have visitors."
Jiang Ce had sensed their approach in advance because he had earlier left a drop of split-off Venom stuck to Zi Ji's shoe.
He had devoured quite a few Soul Beasts with abilities to conceal their auras and disguise themselves, and his camouflage had improved again. If he fully concealed his aura, even Di Tian couldn't sense him.
What's more, Di Tian had first been drawn to the newly awakened Dragon King Bloodline,
then flown into a rage over the Imperial Auspicious Beast being led away, leaving him even less able to detect the aura Jiang Ce had deliberately hidden.
The three women halted at the same time.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion stopped playing with the tentacles, too. She lifted her head toward the depths of the Star Dou Great Forest, the vertical eye on her brow quivering slightly.
"It's Di Tian."
Her voice suddenly turned a little guilty.
"And Zi Ji. Di Tian came himself."
As soon as she finished speaking, an overwhelming Dragon Might descended from above.
The treetops ahead were cleaved apart by an invisible force, and two figures slowly descended through the opening.
A man in a black robe, with golden eyes blazing like torches, landed first.
A purple-haired woman with dragon wings followed close behind, alighting soundlessly half a step behind him.
Di Tian and Zi Ji.
Di Tian stepped forward. His golden dragon eyes passed over the three women without pausing,
then fixed on the black figure of the Golden Little Beast perched on Liu Erlong's shoulder.
The Auspicious Beast was wrapped from head to toe in an unknown black substance,
perched on a human woman's shoulder and playing with a tentacle that extended from the Black Latex Suit.
The air throughout the forest froze beneath Di Tian's Dragon Might. Even the wind fell silent.
Soundless fury kindled in Di Tian's golden eyes, and his low voice rang out slowly.
"Human, what have you done to her?"
"I haven't done anything."
Liu Erlong raised her head to meet Di Tian's gaze. Though his Dragon Might bore down on them like a mountain,
weighing heavily on her body, she showed not a trace of fear.
"She followed us because she was curious."
Di Tian turned to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, his voice stern.
"Auspicious Beast, come here."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion stood on Liu Erlong's shoulder and flicked the sticky threads of latex from her tail, but she didn't jump down.
She looked up at Di Tian. A flicker of guilt passed through her three eyes, but she soon puffed out her chest.
"No. There are so many fun things in that Black Slime. It's way more fun than the Star Dou Great Forest.
"And he can make me stronger, too. Just feel it—my Power of Destiny is five times stronger than before!"
As she spoke, she raised a paw, and a ball of golden light gathered at its tip. Her Power of Destiny was indeed much denser than before.
Di Tian fell silent.
Of course he could feel it.
The moment he landed, he had sensed that the Auspicious Beast's aura had grown stronger,
and not just by a little. It had increased severalfold at the very least.
The black substance emanated a kind of power he had never encountered,
and it was strengthening the Auspicious Beast in a way he couldn't understand.
But that couldn't quell his anger.
"Auspicious Beast, do you know what it means to leave the Core Area?
"Your fortune is connected to the entire forest. If you leave, every Soul Beast in the Star Dou Great Forest will be affected."
"I know."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion lowered her eyes.
"But I don't want to spend my whole life cooped up in the Core Area. Di Tian, I want to see the world outside."
Di Tian's golden eyes narrowed slightly as he turned to Liu Erlong, his Dragon Might rising again.
"No matter what method you used to bewitch the Auspicious Beast, she's coming back with me today."
"Bewitch? And what exactly do you mean by that?"
Before Liu Erlong could reply, a tentacle sprouted from the Imperial Auspicious Beast's head.
A man's voice emerged from the tentacle, addressing Di Tian without deference or fear.
"She followed me because she was curious. Besides, she wants to see a world that's more vibrant—
unlike a fool like you, who stays in the forest and clings to the same old ways."
"What did you just call me, you lump of Black Slime?!"
Before Di Tian could respond, Zi Ji had already lost her temper.
As the leader of the Hell Demon Dragon Clan, she was born with the pride of a Dragon Clan member and a fiery temper.
How could she tolerate being mocked as a "fool" by a lump of Black Slime wrapped around the Imperial Auspicious Beast?
A terrifying aura burst from her and pressed down on the three women.
"Wait, Zi Ji! What are you doing?!"
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion sprang forward, raising her head to block Zi Ji.
"You're not allowed to hurt them!"
Veins bulged on Zi Ji's forehead. Gritting her teeth, she glared at the tentacle swaying leisurely from the Imperial Auspicious Beast's brow.
She was the darling of the Star Dou Great Forest, the treasure all the Ferocious Beasts held dear.
And now, after being led away for only a little while, she was already taking the outsiders' side.
"What on earth are you? How dare you bewitch the Imperial Auspicious Beast—get off her this instant!"
"Oh? If I get off her, how about I stick to you instead?"
A voice suddenly spoke beside Zi Ji's ear, making her hair stand on end.
"Who?!"
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