The Auspicious Beast's Identity Revealed—She Came Only for Him

Early the next morning, news arrived that soul beasts were stirring outside Shrek City.

At first, it was only patrol disciples from the outer court discovering a few low-level soul beasts approaching the city walls. Such things were not unusual—Shrek's surroundings were rich in spiritual energy, and soul beasts occasionally lost their way and wandered in. The patrols could usually drive them off quickly. But today was different.

By the time Huo Yuhao reached the outskirts of the city and spread out his spiritual detection, his expression had already darkened.

"They aren't lost."

Wang Dong'er stood beside him. "How many?"

"At least thirty. Their levels aren't high, but they're all moving in the same direction." Huo Yuhao paused. "It's like they're searching for something."

Wang Qiu'er stood on his other side, looking toward the distant woods. She said nothing, but Huo Yuhao noticed her fingers tightening around the Golden Dragon Spear. When Dong'er had seen Qiu'er that morning, her expression had still been unpleasant. Qiu'er, meanwhile, had remained as calm as usual, except she looked at Huo Yuhao longer than she had yesterday. Dong'er had noticed those glances too.

"They're here," Wang Qiu'er suddenly said. Several dark figures shot out of the woods. At the front was a Windshadow Wolf of around three thousand years, its eyes filled with abnormal agitation. It did not immediately attack the patrol disciples. Instead, it bypassed the crowd and charged straight toward Wang Qiu'er.

Dong'er frowned. "It's coming for you?"

Qiu'er watched the Windshadow Wolf, her gaze turning cold. "Not for me."

The next moment, several more soul beasts burst out behind the Windshadow Wolf. Their levels and species differed, yet all seemed drawn by some kind of aura as they frantically closed in on the three of them. Huo Yuhao's spiritual detection rapidly expanded. Soon, he caught a thread of extremely faint black soul power—an aura that did not belong to the soul beasts themselves.

Someone was driving them.

"The Holy Spirit Cult?" Huo Yuhao's eyes turned cold.

He was no stranger to that chilly, foul soul power reeking of death. Though far weaker than a truly powerful evil soul master, it was enough to provoke low-level soul beasts into losing control. The patrol disciples' formation faltered slightly. More than ten soul beasts rushed out behind the Windshadow Wolf, varied in level and species, yet all seemed tethered to the same string as they madly pounced toward the area where the three stood. Huo Yuhao's spiritual detection covered the entire battlefield, while Ultimate Ice spread over the ground and froze the paws of the foremost soul beasts. Dong'er's Light Wings followed close behind, its radiance precisely cutting through the left flank and splitting the beast horde into smaller groups. Qiu'er guarded the right flank, and every strike of her Golden Dragon Spear was clean and decisive, without a single wasted movement.

Qiu'er needed few instructions. The instant the spiritual sharing touched her consciousness, she seemed to instinctively know where to reinforce. This slightly changed Huo Yuhao's opinion of her, and he began to regard her as a companion fighting at his side.

Huo Yuhao immediately said, "Don't charge too far ahead."

Dong'er nodded instinctively, then could not help shooting Wang Qiu'er a glance. Wang Qiu'er did not object to Huo Yuhao's arrangement. She merely asked, "Why?"

"They were lured here. The city walls may not be their real target." Huo Yuhao said gravely, "It could very well be you."

Qiu'er looked at him. "You're worried about me?"

Huo Yuhao replied with some helplessness, "...I'm assessing the battle situation."

"Then you are worried." As the words fell, she had already rushed out. Golden soul power erupted from her body like a beam of light shining from the depths of the forest. Within the net of spiritual detection, that thread of black soul power suddenly circled around behind Wang Qiu'er. Huo Yuhao shifted his steps, and a spiritual shock instantly stabbed forth. The dark figure hidden among the trees let out a muffled groan, its soul power fluctuations suddenly thrown into chaos—and all the driven soul beasts fell into momentary confusion.

"Found you." Huo Yuhao raised his hand, and Ultimate Ice spread along the ground, completely freezing several of the foremost soul beasts in place. Before the patrol disciples could react, the soul beasts assaulting the city outskirts had already been divided, suppressed, and driven away.

"So strong," someone murmured in amazement.

"The three of them work together as if they've trained for years."

A pang of bitterness rose in Dong'er's heart. The seamless cooperation between her and Huo Yuhao had been built over years. What right did Wang Qiu'er have to fit in so naturally on her first time?

Just then, the dark figure in the woods suddenly let out a shrill scream. All the soul beasts froze, then turned toward Wang Qiu'er in unison. Huo Yuhao's expression changed. "Qiu'er, be careful!"

Wang Qiu'er stood amid the soul beast horde. The next instant, brilliant golden light burst from her body. It was not ordinary soul power, but an aura noble and ancient, one that seemed capable of making soul beasts submit by instinct. The instant the golden light spread, every low-level soul beast seemed to have its spine pressed down, its movements abruptly stiffening. The Windshadow Wolf whimpered and actually lowered its head.

In Huo Yuhao's spiritual sea, Tianmeng Ice Silkworm sucked in a cold breath. "She's the Emperor Auspicious Beast!"

The Ice Empress continued, "The Three-Eyed Golden Lion. The most noble million-year soul beast of the Star Dou Great Forest. No wonder your Spirit Eyes formed a spiritual resonance with her."

The dark figure in the woods clearly had not expected Wang Qiu'er to suddenly release such an aura. Its shrill cry carried several traces of fear as it turned and fled.

Huo Yuhao's eyes were stern. "Trying to leave?"

His spiritual detection locked on, and spiritual shock erupted. Immediately afterward, Wang Dong'er charged out under the spiritual support, her soul power cleaving through the shadows of the woods. The dark figure screamed, and the black mist around it scattered, revealing a strange, twisted face—an evil soul master. Its level was not high, but it was enough to prove that someone had already set their sights on Wang Qiu'er.

Huo Yuhao did not pursue too far. Instead, he returned to Wang Qiu'er's side. The golden glow around her was fading, and her face was paler than before.

"How are you? Are you hurt?"

Wang Qiu'er shook her head. "No."

Huo Yuhao frowned. "Then why do you look so pale?"

"It's only because I shouldn't have exposed my aura outside the Star Dou Great Forest."

Dong'er walked over, her tone hesitant and complicated. "So you're a soul beast?"

"I am Wang Qiu'er."

"That's not what I asked."

"But that's the only name I want him to remember."

Something seemed to lightly strike Huo Yuhao's heart.

In the distance, Xuan Lao and several inner court teachers rushed over. Seeing the lingering golden aura on the battlefield, the smile vanished completely from Xuan Lao's face. "Girl, you won't be able to hide this identity of yours anymore."

Qiu'er said nothing, but Huo Yuhao stepped half a pace forward and stood in front of her. Dong'er saw that gesture, and bitterness filled her heart, yet she did not expose it. Because when Wang Qiu'er had been surrounded by soul beasts, she had not looked like an invader. She looked more like someone being chased by fate.

Xuan Lao looked at Huo Yuhao. "You know her identity now?"

Huo Yuhao nodded.

"And you're still protecting her?"

Huo Yuhao said quietly, "She didn't come to harm Shrek."

Xuan Lao narrowed his eyes with a smile. "You're that sure?"

Huo Yuhao looked back at Qiu'er. She was looking at him too, and in those eyes identical to Dong'er's was an utterly undisguised trust.

"Because she came for me. Besides, evil soul masters are using her aura as bait—the more important question than who she is is who is manipulating this beast tide from behind the scenes."

Xuan Lao fell silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed. "You brat do make a lot of sense."

Huo Yuhao did not respond to the teasing. He lowered his head and looked at the black residual fluctuations on the soul tool recording device—the aura frequency left behind by that evil soul master was the same as the rune pattern in the corridor last night.

"Xuan Lao, I found evil soul master rune patterns near my residence last night. Today, a low-level evil soul master outside the city drove soul beasts toward her." He handed over the recording device. "This isn't a coincidence. Someone is testing her—and testing me as well."

Xuan Lao took the recording device, and his expression finally darkened. "What do you mean?"

"They knew she would come. At the very least, they knew before we did."

As those words fell, the air went silent for a moment. Dong'er stood beside him, watching him, bitterness flickering through her heart. She did not know whether Huo Yuhao would develop other feelings during his time with Qiu'er, but at least for now... she did not want to think about it any further.