"I never expected Sky Dream Ice Silkworm to come to me and fuse with me without me having to look for it. But that's fine—it saved me quite a bit of trouble."
"Even Electrolux has fallen into my hands. Unfortunately, Electrolux is only a wisp of a remnant soul right now, and his condition is terrible. It looks like Living Gold will have to be added to the plan as well."
Originally, Jiang Yue had planned to see whether he could take Sky Dream Ice Silkworm for himself when the story began, but before the story began, there had been no way to determine where Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was.
If Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had been placed before Jiang Yue and Huo Yuhao and forced to choose, as long as it had a functioning brain, it would have chosen Jiang Yue. Compared to Huo Yuhao, who possessed only first-level Innate Soul Power and had only just reached Soul Power Level ten at the age of eleven, Jiang Yue's talent completely crushed his.
But plans could not keep up with change. Jiang Yue had never expected that, while heading to the Star Dou Forest to hunt for his second Soul Ring, he would encounter Sky Dream Ice Silkworm in the Mixed Zone and claim the greatest opportunity of the Unrivaled Tang Sect era before the story even began.
Aside from obtaining Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and raising the age of his first Soul Ring to the thousand-year level, the greatest gain from this soul hunt had been Electrolux.
As a powerful existence from the Holy Magic Continent of the neighboring Throne of Seal, Electrolux possessed powers and knowledge that the Douluo Continent could not compare with.
The problem now was that Electrolux was only a wisp of a remnant soul. His consciousness was not even awake, and he could only attempt to restore himself within Jiang Yue's Sea of Spirit. Never mind how long it would take for him to awaken—Jiang Yue would already be thanking heaven and earth as long as the remnant soul did not disperse and his condition did not worsen.
In the original work, after Electrolux arrived on the Douluo Continent and entered Huo Yuhao's Sea of Spirit, only a year passed before he encountered the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife, purified it, and restored it to the Living Blade.
But there were still several years before the story began. Jiang Yue truly could not guarantee that something would not happen to Electrolux during that time.
As for finding Living Gold to help Electrolux recover? That was simply not something Jiang Yue could accomplish right now.
Only three pieces of Living Gold appeared in all of Unrivaled Tang Sect. Whether it was the massive piece beneath the Lake of Life in the Star Dou Forest or the piece inside the belly of the hundred-thousand-year Golden Tortoise, neither was something Jiang Yue could obtain at present.
The easiest one to acquire, the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife, most likely had not yet reached the Starlight Auction House at this point in time. Not to mention, buying it required one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
Although the old man had left Jiang Yue ten thousand Gold Soul Coins before departing, and he barely needed to spend money on food, clothing, or lodging at Maple Leaf City Junior Soul Master Academy, that did not mean Jiang Yue had no other expenses.
Jiang Yue did not have a single Gold Soul Coin coming in right now. Forget one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins—even taking out one thousand would hurt him to death.
A single penny could stump a hero. Jiang Yue felt that he needed to find a way to earn some Gold Soul Coins in the future. Otherwise, if he could only watch the Spirit Devouring Carving Knife slip away before his eyes because he lacked money, he would probably wake up in the middle of the night and slap himself twice.
Aside from the matters of Living Gold and Electrolux, there were still several other things Jiang Yue needed to consider.
Jiang Yue definitely had no use for the blank ice martial soul provided by Sky Dream Ice Silkworm. The best approach was to use its Ice Attribute origin to help himself condense the Unfeeling Ice Heart faster, allowing him to unleash the true power of the Unfeeling Sword earlier in the future.
The Soul Rings needed by the Unfeeling Sword were simple. Aside from exceedingly rare soul beasts related to time and space, with the boost from its defense-ignoring ability, only attack power suited it best. It merely needed to absorb Soul Rings from soul beasts with powerful offensive abilities. Ice Empress and Snow Empress were both such soul beasts, as were Bear Lord and Di Tian within the Star Dou Forest. All of them were exceptionally suitable Soul Rings for the Unfeeling Sword.
Ice Empress and Snow Empress ranked among the strongest on the entire continent in terms of attack power, so they were naturally perfect Soul Rings for the Unfeeling Sword. Snow Empress in particular, as the continent's third-ranked ferocious beast, was the best choice for the Unfeeling Sword's seventh Soul Ring on the Douluo Continent aside from Di Tian, with her seven-hundred-thousand-year cultivation.
Of course, being suitable was one thing. Never mind that Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had already fallen asleep—even if he remained awake, Jiang Yue had no intention of going to the Extreme North at level thirty.
The Extreme North was one of the largest Soul Beast Gathering Grounds in the world and a true forbidden zone for humans. Even Titled Douluo faced grave danger upon entering; one misstep could cost them their lives. The mere freezing temperatures there would be enough for Jiang Yue to endure.
Going to the core region of the Extreme North at level thirty was basically no different from charging into the Lake of Life at level thirty. Both were suicide.
And who knew when or where a Ninth-Level Soul Engineer might suddenly spawn in the core region of the Extreme North, as though waiting for a rabbit to run into a tree stump.
Jiang Yue was not afraid of death, but that did not mean he would go looking for it. Placing all hope of success on that unreliable fellow Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was far too nerve-racking. He simply could not rest easy.
Those ferocious beasts only responded to force, not persuasion. Rather than hoping Sky Dream Ice Silkworm could convince them, he might as well place his hopes on the future Electrolux.
In any case, he did not need to fill the blank ice martial soul like Huo Yuhao did, adding another martial soul and completely changing his fate against the heavens. Jiang Yue could wait for a more suitable opportunity before going. Ice Empress would remain in the Extreme North; she would not go anywhere else.
Ice Empress was no more capable of escaping than the Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Cavern beneath the Dragon City Earth Dragon Gate. Since opportunities would not run away, there was no need to rush so desperately. One bite would not make a person fat.
Judging by the current situation, it would be impossible to intercept the Snow Empress Embryo the moment it appeared at the Starlight Auction House. Under normal circumstances, he only needed to obtain Ice Empress before the Body Sect went to Mingde Hall to seize the Snow Empress Embryo.
Plans for the future could only be rough outlines. There were simply too many variables, and Jiang Yue did not believe that he, this butterfly, would fail to influence the development of this world.
The most obvious change would be Huo Yuhao's fate. The greatest opportunity of the Unrivaled Tang Sect era, the starting point from which Huo Yuhao defied fate with his first-level Innate Soul Power, no longer existed. His destiny would certainly change.
Perhaps Huo Yuhao, the Child of Destiny, would still encounter a decent soul beast for his first Soul Ring. Perhaps he would still meet Bei Bei and Tang Ya, join the Tang Sect, and enter Shrek Academy.
Or perhaps he would encounter someone from the Body Sect and directly enter the Body Sect to study its secret body techniques, replenishing the body that had been weakened by long-term malnutrition. Who could ensure how the future would unfold?
The only person Jiang Yue was truly worried about now was the one in the heavens.
When Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was evading predators in his youth, he fell into the Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Cavern and gained unrestricted access to Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice Marrow. A soul beast from the very bottom of the food chain had actually grown all the way to one million years, and no heavenly tribulation had ever descended. This abnormal opportunity itself constantly proved Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's heaven-defying Fortune.
To some extent, perhaps even the Fortune on the Emperor Auspicious Beast Three-Eyed Golden Lion was not as outrageous as Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's.
It was difficult to judge whether Huo Yuhao or Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was the true Child of Fortune, but one thing was certain: Sea God Tang San could not possibly have failed to notice Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, who had grown to a million-year cultivation within the Douluo Continent he regarded as his backyard.
Perhaps God King Tang would not initially pay attention to Jiang Yue, who was merely talented. After all, Tang San had shielded the Douluo Plane now; saying he covered the sky with one hand would not be an exaggeration.
But after fusing with Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, perhaps Tang San had already noticed Jiang Yue as well? Who knew?
It would not be long before Huo Yun'er's death at this point. In the original work, Tang San took Huo Yun'er's soul away very early on. This series of events also indirectly showed that Tang San had long been able to determine that Huo Yuhao was the Child of Destiny of the Douluo Plane, so his attention would naturally be focused on Huo Yuhao.
If he noticed Jiang Yue, it was most likely because of Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, that million-year soul beast.
Even if he had noticed, it did not matter. Jiang Yue had no weakness, and he was not afraid of death. But everything had only just begun—how could he flip the table now?
For now, whether Tang San had noticed Jiang Yue or not, Jiang Yue felt that he had to go to Shrek Academy for a while. According to what the old man had said before, Shrek Academy should also possess the Distraction Control Technique Jiang Yue needed, along with the most comprehensive Soul Master-related knowledge on the continent.
Perhaps Shrek Academy truly was not much in terms of martial soul research, but it had been the holy land in the hearts of Soul Masters for ten thousand years and a gathering place for genius Soul Masters. The materials it had accumulated were countless.
Most importantly, it was the main stage of Unrivaled Tang Sect. Jiang Yue possessed the advantage of foreknowledge, and only on a familiar stage could he bring that advantage to its fullest extent.
He could not possibly go somewhere completely new, could he? If God King Tang was truly watching Sky Dream Ice Silkworm and then came up with all sorts of tricks that had never existed in the original work, what then?
Known dangers could still be guarded against. Unknown dangers were the deadliest.
Even if Shrek Academy was a dragon's pool and tiger's den, Jiang Yue had to go and see what was really going on.
The next day, with the Maple Leaf City Lord moving at incredible speed, he quickly brought Jiang Yue back to Maple Leaf City Junior Soul Master Academy. Before returning to the City Lord's Mansion, he did not forget to tell Jiang Yue that if he had any questions regarding cultivation, he could come ask him anytime. He was always available.
He especially reminded Jiang Yue to inform him once he broke through level thirty, promising that he would definitely choose a suitable soul beast for him then. After that, he left the Academy.
After returning to his dormitory and locking the door, Jiang Yue summoned the Joy Sword and Anger Sword. The two swords floated behind him like guards.
Using his Mental Power to control one of them individually was easy for Jiang Yue, but controlling both at the same time while also fighting left him somewhat stretched thin.
What Jiang Yue wanted to know now was what would happen if an enemy were struck by both swords at the same time. Would they feel joy or anger? Or would joy and anger mingle until their emotions finally collapsed?
He would need to slowly explore all of that in the future. He had gained the Joy Sword from his first Soul Ring and the Anger Sword from his second. Jiang Yue felt that every Soul Ring he absorbed afterward might grant him a sword formed from emotion.
The issue was that Jiang Yue still did not know which seven emotions his Seven Emotions were.
Were they the philosophical joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hatred, and desire? Or the traditional medical joy, anger, worry, contemplation, grief, fear, and shock? Of course, they might also be the Douluo universe's joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, love, loathing, and hatred.
He would only know for certain once he reached his third or even fourth Soul Ring. Jiang Yue certainly did not want it to be the last set. Even now, he had not figured out the difference between joy and happiness.
Mastering similar or even identical powers was not what Jiang Yue wanted.
Spring passed into autumn, cold gave way to heat. At a soul-hunting town over a hundred li away from the Star Dou Forest, a transfer station had gradually formed to provide supplies for Soul Masters who hunted soul beasts.
There were not only shops with a complete range of goods, but also many inns and all kinds of soul-hunting teams.
However, the place was a chaotic mix of people, and one had to be careful in all matters. The only things that needed guarding against were not soul beasts, but also the humans nearby. Otherwise, one careless mistake could leave a person forever in the Star Dou Forest.
A thin, small figure entered the soul-hunting town, his frail body standing out starkly from the people around him.
The youth looked incredibly weak, clearly malnourished. He wore simple gray cloth garments and carried a small bundle on his back. Perhaps it was hereditary, but he was still quite handsome. Yet because of his physique, few people paid attention to such a frail boy.
The only thing that made him different was his pair of deep blue eyes. At that moment, those eyes were filled with vigilance and a touch of helpless confusion.
He looked at the price of information concerning Mental Attribute soul beasts. The moment he saw the Gold Soul Coins required, he immediately turned and left. The little money he had was not enough to buy information about soul beasts, much less hire a soul-hunting team. For a moment, he felt rather defeated.
But in the end, he still decided to enter the Star Dou Forest himself and try his luck.
In the Outer Zone of the enormous primeval forest in the distance, a rabbit half the size of an adult sensed the danger behind it. Its body flashed, and it instantly vanished from where it stood, reappearing five meters away.
A sword mark was exceptionally conspicuous where it had just been standing. The soil around the mark showed no sign of being disturbed, as though the opening had not been cut into the ground but that patch of earth had simply vanished on its own.
Just as the Soft Bone Rabbit panicked and prepared to use its Instant Teleportation skill again to flee, its eyes suddenly turned scarlet. It lowered its body, panting heavily as it stared toward a patch of grass, looking completely overcome by rage.
A youth of eleven or twelve stepped out from behind the grass. He stood tall and straight, holding a silver longsword in one hand. Most striking of all were his mismatched eyes, one silver and one blue. Three Soul Rings—one yellow and two purple—floated around him alongside three swords colored red, green, and brown.
More than three years had passed. Jiang Yue was now eleven years old, and his Soul Power Level had reached thirty-six, making him a Soul Elder. This time, he had left Maple Leaf City to report to Shrek Academy.
But Jiang Yue naturally would not report there so early. What if he got assigned to Class One? According to the order, the later he reported, the lower the chance that he would be assigned to Class One.
Moreover, during the previous years, Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had fed quite a few high-level Soul Masters to death. After those Soul Masters died in the Star Dou Forest, the items on their bodies naturally became ownerless.
There were also quite a few good things within the Star Dou Forest. Heavenly Treasures were rare, but herbs and such could still be found.
The thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit before him was naturally Jiang Yue's meal for the day. As for why a Soft Bone Rabbit dared bare its teeth at Jiang Yue, whose level was so much higher than its own, that was naturally because of the Anger Sword behind him.
In Jiang Yue's eyes, the Soft Bone Rabbit had indeed evaded his attack using Instant Teleportation. However, he had added a trace of emotional power to that slash. The Soft Bone Rabbit had inevitably been tainted by some of it, which was why it was so enraged.
If one looked carefully, one would discover waves of deep green Mental Power still rippling across the Passionate Sword. It was clearly the power of the Anger Sword.
If it were a high-level soul beast, casually enraging it would obviously be an unwise choice. But the one before him was merely a thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit.
A thousand-year Soft Bone Rabbit could not possess much intelligence, and its resistance to Mental Power was nearly zero.
Even rabbits bit when desperate. With its mind completely consumed by fury, the Soft Bone Rabbit kicked off with both hind legs. Instant Teleportation activated once more, and its sharp front teeth aimed for Jiang Yue's throat as it lunged down to bite.
Crack!
Its intent to attack was far too obvious. Jiang Yue did not even need to dodge. He simply raised his sword beside his neck and blocked the Soft Bone Rabbit's teeth. As the blade met its incisors, the rabbit's teeth snapped instantly.
There was not even the slightest resistance. A flash of sword light pierced through the Soft Bone Rabbit's body and split it in two. Its corpse fell to the ground as blood suddenly burst forth. The flesh still retained vitality and twitched continuously, while its two eyeballs kept rolling, though all they could see was the soil stained red by its own blood.
Yet there was not a single trace of blood on the Passionate Sword. It still gleamed with icy cold light.
Jiang Yue picked up the Soft Bone Rabbit that had been cut in half and headed toward the temporary camp he had set up. This was the Outer Zone; as long as he remained cautious, there would be no danger for him.
"Hmm? What is this?"
The moment he returned to camp, Jiang Yue noticed traces in the grass where some long object had crushed it. His tent had also been knocked flat, making it obvious that an uninvited guest had come here.
He set down the Soft Bone Rabbit in his hand and immediately summoned the Passionate Sword and three Emotion Swords, remaining alert for danger that could attack at any moment.
Rustle—
An incredibly faint sound of leaves rubbing together, carrying a trace of killing intent, was caught by Jiang Yue's Mental Power. The Joy Sword and the brown Sorrow Sword behind him suddenly shot out, stabbing toward the uninvited guest.
The Sorrow Sword was the Emotion Sword Jiang Yue had condensed after absorbing his third Soul Ring. While it increased Jiang Yue's combat power, it also made him understand which seven emotions he would likely master in the future.
The other party had not expected to be discovered despite making no sound at all. Faced with the sudden attack, it immediately twisted its body to evade, but no matter how fast it was, it could not possibly be faster than flying swords.
Seeing that it could not shake off the flying swords and that the sense of impending death still lingered, it immediately swung its body. Relying on the defense of its scales, it knocked away the Joy Sword closest to it, but it could not evade the Sorrow Sword.
"Hiss!"
A pained snake hiss rang out. At the same time, a section of pale pink snake tail, still writhing and carrying a faint sweet fragrance, fell from the tree.
"A Datura Snake. Judging by its color, it isn't even two thousand years old. Spicy strips delivered right to my door!"
Before you continue