Soul Beast

Biodata

Background / History

Soul Beasts once included numerous divine beasts under the Dragon God, who led a failed rebellion against the God Realm. Following that conflict, the Dragon God was divided into the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King; the God Realm subsequently barred Soul Beasts from becoming gods, leaving Gu Yuena as the only remaining Beast God 150.

In the current era, human Soul Masters gain strength by killing Soul Beasts for Soul Rings and Soul Bones. Electrolux concludes that Martial Souls and this system may have been designed by the God Realm specifically to suppress the Soul Beast race toward extinction 61.

Soul Beast territory has steadily contracted as human civilization and Soul Tool technology advance. Even regions protected by powerful Fierce Beasts, including the Star Dou Great Forest and Far North, are becoming smaller 110. Di Tian and Dai Yuhao's Spirit Pagoda was originally meant to ease human–Soul Beast relations, but later became an organization that harmed Soul Beasts 2 23.

Morax and Electrolux introduce the Contract Master system as an alternative to Soul Master cultivation. Under this system, humans and Soul Beasts form mutual contracts, grow together, and are intended to hold equal status rather than a hunter-and-prey relationship 99 103.

Characteristics

• Soul Beasts possess cultivations measured in years; a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast is exceptionally rare and may be an emperor-level figure within its race 110.
• Fierce Beasts are generally Soul Beasts with more than 200,000 years of cultivation 111.
• Many powerful Soul Beasts face Heavenly Tribulation, which they may fail to survive 106.
• Soul Beast society is strongly governed by bloodline hierarchy 106.
• Some Soul Beasts can assume human form, including the Auspicious Beast and Gu Yuena 7.
• The Emperor Auspicious Beast carries the fortune of all Soul Beasts and is treated as their sovereign; Fierce Beasts serve as her guards or caretakers 2 156.

Contract Master System

Mutual Contracts

The Contract Master system was devised by Electrolux to replace Soul Ring hunting with a cooperative bond between a human and a Soul Beast 99 100.

• A contracted human and Soul Beast grow stronger together rather than treating the Soul Beast as a consumable resource 99 103.
• Either party may resist if the other attempts to violate the contract 99 100.
• The process uses a special magic formation that links the human and Soul Beast's minds 111.
• Contracted partners can enter each other's bodies 100 111.

Soul Rings and Tribulation

A single contracted Soul Beast can provide the energy for all nine of a human's Soul Rings as it continues to grow 99 103.

• A Soul Beast's increasing cultivation can raise the quality of its partner's Soul Rings, potentially reaching Hundred-Thousand-Year or Fierce Beast-level rings 104 111.
• A contracted Soul Beast can avoid Heavenly Tribulation by entering its human partner's body at the critical moment 100 111.
• The system is intended to reduce indiscriminate hunting and secure living space for the Soul Beast race 103 104.

Known Soul Beasts

• Gu Yuena — The Silver Dragon King, former half of the Dragon God, and current leader of the Soul Beasts 150.
• Di Tian — Beast God, foremost of the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts, and a leading defender of Soul Beast survival 2 110.
• Ten Thousand Demon King — One of the Ten Great Ferocious Beasts; skilled at detecting subtle spiritual abnormalities 2.
• Auspicious Beast — An emperor among Soul Beasts who carries the race's fortune; later studies Soul Tool technology 2 154 156.
• Ice Empress and Snow Empress — Major Soul Beast leaders of the Far North 24 106.
• Ice Dragon King and Fire Dragon King — Ancient dragon souls residing at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well; they support resistance against the God Realm despite their weakened state 63.
• Ice Serpent — A Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast that contracts with Meng Hongchen 110 111.
• Black Tortoise Beast — A Hundred-Thousand-Year defensive Soul Beast that contracts with Xiao Hongchen 109 111.

Role in the Story

Soul Beasts are central to the conflict over the Soul Master cultivation system, whose reliance on hunting them places their race at risk of eventual extinction 6 61. Gu Yuena, Di Tian, Morax, and their allies seek a new path through Contract Masters, Soul Tool development, and eventual opposition to the God Realm 99 110 150.

In the projected finale, Soul Beasts and humans abandon their racial divide to unite against the God Realm. Gu Yuena also pursues Battle Armor technology to strengthen Soul Beast combat power 153.