Sky Dream Ice Silkworm quickly grasped the true wonder of the Soul Spirit Contract. It stuck its short forelimbs on its hips in a thoroughly showy pose. "It can even do that! Hahaha, just watch what I can do!"
The Spiritual Origin Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had accumulated was compressed and released once more. Ten golden clusters of Spiritual Origin transformed into a golden torrent, flowing gently into Huo Yuhao's Spirit Eye Martial Soul.
In later generations, especially during the eras of Tang Wulin and Lan Xuanyu, the Soul Spirits of Ferocious Beasts could provide more than one Soul Ring. Though Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, a Million-Year Soul Beast, was no match in combat for a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, it was an absolute powerhouse when it came to spirit and soul. Even with its lack of offensive abilities, it could still provide two Million-Year Soul Rings.
In just a moment, two enormous Golden Soul Rings, each over three meters in diameter, appeared beside Huo Yuhao. Their brilliant golden light shone like a pair of rising suns, illuminating the forest in dazzling splendor. But the light soon dimmed, and the rings changed color, becoming two purple Thousand-Year Soul Rings.
Little Yuhao's Soul Power, which had been stuck at level twenty, surged rapidly: level 21, 22, 23... It kept soaring until it stopped at level 28.
Over the past two years, little Yuhao had practiced the Spirit Ice Art without interruption. It included a method for compressing Soul Power, and as his Soul Power constantly nourished his own blood and energy, his blood and energy in turn replenished his Soul Power. On the surface, he had only gained eight levels, but in terms of total Soul Power, little Huo Yuhao was in no way inferior to an ordinary level-39 Power Attack System Soul Elder.
Baili Du had told little Huo Yuhao that in this messed-up place called Douluo Continent, levels were just for other people to see. First, Xuan Zi at level 98 couldn't handle a level-50 Death Messenger. Then, Lan Xuanyu at level 69 fought a level-99 Limit Douluo to a draw...
What truly mattered was always your own strength.
"Heh heh... I knew I picked the right host!"
Tian Meng smugly wiped his nose. Looks like his luck still hadn't let him down since back then!
Watching little Huo Yuhao, who had completed his fusion with Tian Meng and was now meditating as he advanced, Baili Du thought for a moment, casually raised a defensive barrier around him, then turned and headed deeper into the Star Dou Great Forest.
He'd come all this way. It would be a real shame not to go have a look.
Have a look at her...
As he walked, he muttered, "Just one look. I'll take one look, that's all."
To him, a few hundred miles were only a few steps away. Before long, he had reached the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest.
The Emotion God King, who had once feared almost nothing under heaven, now moved stiffly like an innocent young man hoping for a date with the girl he loved. He didn't dare face her...
He touched his forehead. The nearly shattered Super Divine Artifact, the Eye of Eternity, was slowly radiating a gentle golden light of destiny, as if excitedly resonating at the prospect of meeting its true master.
Dragging his stiff legs along, he finally saw her, no matter how afraid he was.
She was an extremely unusual Soul Beast, over three meters long and eight feet tall at the shoulder, her entire body covered in golden fur.
Her body seemed to be made of translucent crystal, giving her a strange, distinct texture. Her general shape resembled a lion, but her four paws were like a dragon's, each stepping on a clump of golden flame. Her snout was longer than that of an ordinary lion-like Soul Beast, and beneath her fur seemed to be fine golden scales. In addition to her normal pair of eyes, she had a third one: a vertical pupil.
Her two regular eyes were a slightly eerie red, while her vertical pupil gave off a golden glow, almost identical to the Eye of Eternity on his forehead.
She seemed to be hunting. After pausing briefly, she fixed her gaze on the northwest.
She was the Emperor Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, who should have been the Beast of Luck destined to join hands with the Child of the Plane and change the hostile relationship between humans and Soul Beasts.
"!!!"
Baili Du felt a sudden rush of dizziness, and swayed as if he could hardly stand. His vision blurred behind a veil of mist...
Though it wasn't a nice thing to say, after marrying Tang Wutong, he had only grown more nostalgic for the days he had faced hardship alongside Wang Qiu'er.
"Qiu'er... Qiu'er..."
He bit his lip hard, his hands clenching unconsciously until his nails dug deep into his flesh. Resentment and fury battered his reason, making him want to charge into the Divine Realm right then and fight Tang San to the death.
For no other reason than to avenge Qiu'er!
He couldn't stop himself from remembering the things Tang San had lied to him about.
[That Wang Qiu'er was actually a sliver of Wutong's divine consciousness, which I placed on the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. Otherwise, even as a Divine Beast of Destiny, she couldn't possibly have possessed such great intelligence. So you don't need to feel sad about Wang Qiu'er anymore. She was part of Wutong all along. Only after Wang Qiu'er sacrificed herself for you did that part of her divine consciousness return to Wutong, allowing Wang Dong'er to fully become Wutong.]
Bullshit! Tang San was talking out of his ass!!!
A Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast could already understand human speech, while a hundred-thousand-year one possessed intelligence no less than a human's. The Emperor Auspicious Beast had been blessed with innate intelligence from the moment it was born. How could it have gained wisdom only because of the divine consciousness of a little girl born in the Divine Realm?!
Even if you took ten thousand steps back, no matter how gifted Princess Tang was, what wisdom could a little girl of just a few years have?
Besides, judging by how she acted in the original timeline, and by Baili Du's own observations over several decades, to be honest, Princess Tang really couldn't be called "smart."
Well... at least she hadn't inherited her father Tang San's astonishing wisdom. That much deserved praise.
After taking several deep breaths, and with Snow Empress and Liya persuading him in his sea of divine consciousness, Baili Du finally calmed down. He slowly opened his clenched hands.
Then, terribly nervous, he walked step by step toward the Emperor Auspicious Beast.
For some reason, the Emperor Auspicious Beast, who had been about to chase the fleeing Radiant Demon Tiger, suddenly shuddered and turned to look toward where Baili Du stood.
From her perspective, there was nothing but empty ground. Yet, for some reason, her gaze was still drawn there against her will.
Mysteriously, she felt as if someone had gently wrapped their arms around her neck. Something like a drop of water fell on the nape of her neck.
Warmth... pain... guilt... and, above all, deep love...
These complicated emotions gently enveloped her, leaving her at a loss.
A tear traced a line down her red eyes.
Was she crying? Why was she crying?
A voice sounded in her ear. It seemed like a hallucination, or perhaps a dream, yet it was so gentle that it made her want to cry.
[I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Soul Beasts... I don't even have the power to get you justice now. All I can do is make this small amends...]
[Qiu'er... Qiu'er...]
A slight pain pricked her forehead, then a warm current flowed from the Eye of Destiny through her entire body.
It was an energy so pure it was beyond compare, pouring without reservation into every corner of her body. It felt so comfortable that she couldn't help closing her eyes.
Her body absorbed this power with incredible ease. Her cultivation soared as if she'd been strapped to a rocket, without the slightest discomfort.
Fifteen thousand years... twenty thousand years... thirty thousand years... fifty thousand years... a hundred thousand years!
In the blink of an eye, she had suddenly become a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast!
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion truly was a beast blessed by destiny. Ordinarily, when a Soul Beast advanced to a hundred thousand years, a heavenly tribulation would strike to stop it. But when it came to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, no tribulation appeared. There was only an increasingly dense flow of heaven and earth energy around her, and multicolored clouds of nine hues in the sky.
A little over ten minutes later, her cultivation soared by another fifty thousand years!
A full hundred and fifty thousand years of cultivation! Her lifespan had now increased tenfold!
Even at just fifteen thousand years of age, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion could match a hundred-thousand-year Soul Beast. No one knew how powerful she would be now, with a hundred and fifty thousand years of cultivation.
No one knew how long it took, but at last her soaring cultivation came to a halt.
Yet the Three-Eyed Golden Lion wasn't happy. Instead, her heart felt hollow, and she couldn't shake the feeling for a long, long time.
Who... had that been?
Before you continue