Leaving

The soul-guided train traveled steadily along the tracks, while the scenery outside the window flew backward—fields, villages, and the occasional soul-guided billboard forming a flowing painting.

Demon Spirit sat by the window, gazing outside somewhat absentmindedly. Five years of human life had accustomed her to bustling streets and the smoky warmth of grilled fish shops, but whenever she traveled for long periods and saw these vast natural landscapes untouched by cities, the part of her soul that belonged to a forest elf would always grow especially quiet and sensitive.

"Brother Yuhao." She suddenly spoke, her voice soft and carrying a rare trace of confusion. "Has my lady... really abandoned us?"

Huo Yuhao sat across from her. Hearing this, he lifted his head from an old book about Aolai City. He looked at Xiaoling and saw not a child's ignorance in her eyes, but deep concern born from the ties of her race. Five years had passed. The Silver Dragon King, Gu Yuena, had vanished without a trace or any news. Even when they returned to the forest each month, Di Tian remained evasive about it, brushing the matter aside with nothing more than, "My lady has her own arrangements." This had undoubtedly planted seeds of unease among the soul beasts' core circle, especially for an elf like Xiaoling, born from collective will and hope.

He closed the book and carefully chose his words. "No, Xiaoling, I... don't know the answer to that either," he said honestly. "Five years without news is indeed unusual. But perhaps 'abandoned' is too harsh a word. The Silver Dragon King is the sovereign of soul beasts. Her considerations may be far more profound and complicated than we can imagine."

Xiaoling turned to look at him with violet eyes, waiting for him to continue.

Huo Yuhao folded his arms over his chest and leaned back slightly, a thoughtful expression appearing on his face. "Still, I do have a guess. The Golden Dragon King and the Silver Dragon King were split from the same origin. One inherited the Dragon God's power and savagery, while the other inherited wisdom and control over the elements. That was already the case ten thousand years ago. But in this Divine Realm War, what the Golden Dragon King displayed was not merely terrifying growth in power. There was also a kind of... cunning and capacity for learning that surpassed instinct. That is highly unusual."

He paused and looked at Xiaoling. "Power and wisdom should have been balanced. If one side suddenly broke that balance, becoming abnormally powerful and 'intelligent'... then could the other side have paid some sort of price, or... encountered some problem of its own, causing this imbalance?" He did not make it any clearer, but the meaning had already been conveyed—the Silver Dragon King's silence might be related to the Golden Dragon King's abnormal strengthening, perhaps even a consequence caused by the latter.

Xiaoling was clearly startled by the possibility, her eyes widening slightly. "Oh, my heavens... Brother Yuhao, but, but they're both my lords!" She furrowed her delicate brows in distress. The question seemed far too complicated for her simple nature. "If... if they fight someday, who, who should I help?"

Seeing her earnestly conflicted expression, Huo Yuhao could not help but laugh. His previously heavy mood lightened somewhat as well. In many ways, Xiaoling's heart still retained the purity of a forest elf. "What about you, Xiaoling?" he asked with a smile. "Who do you want to help?"

Demon Spirit really did prop her chin on her hand and think very seriously for a moment before answering solemnly, "Whoever Uncle Di Tian helps, I'll help!"

"Hahaha..." This time, Huo Yuhao laughed wholeheartedly, drawing the attention of the scattered passengers in the carriage. He shook his head, his tone teasing. "Then you'd better work hard and protect your 'Uncle Di Tian.'" He knew that in Xiaoling's heart, Di Tian was an irreplaceable figure, like both a father and a leader—the yardstick by which she measured the complicated world.

As his laughter gradually faded, a trace of emotion passed through Huo Yuhao's heart. The Star Dou Great Forest's core circle was indeed vastly different from what it had been five years ago. As the shielding modules he had left behind were continuously optimized and expanded by Myriad Demon King and Bi Ji, their coverage and security improved. Along with the subtle influence of the knowledge he brought every month, Di Tian's strategy had changed as well. Holding fast to an isolated stronghold was not a long-term plan. Understanding the enemy, learning from the enemy's strengths, and even blending in to seek opportunities had become the new approach.

Now, most of the powerful soul beasts from the core region were no longer in the forest. With their rapid grasp of human knowledge—their long lifespans and powerful spiritual strength were themselves enormous advantages—and the "legal" identity channels Huo Yuhao provided, using some of the soul beasts' hidden human bloodlines from years ago and his own ability to alter information, they had taken on various identities and scattered into the human world for "further study."

Bi Ji and Zi Ji had advanced rapidly in the field of soul guidance devices through their precise control over life force and energy. Bear Lord and Crimson King, meanwhile, had unexpectedly displayed astonishing talent in forging. With boundless strength and an instinctive sense for the texture of metal, they had now reached the level of Saint Craftsmen.

They each studied, observed, and accumulated resources and connections. Naturally, every powerful soul beast who "went out" possessed at least the strength of a Two-Word Battle Armor Master and an Advanced Mecha Master, giving them formidable self-defense capabilities. Unless they insisted on entering dangerous places like the War God Hall, Shrek Inner Court, or the core region of Spirit Pagoda headquarters, their safety was assured. The forest still retained sufficient strength for rotating garrison duty.

As for why he had chosen to take the most ordinary and relatively slow soul-guided train to Aolai City rather than pilot the Realm Patrol or use a faster method, Huo Yuhao had two considerations. First, the mysterious powerful aura he had sensed that night had never appeared again after that fleeting encounter, as though it had truly been nothing more than an accidental long-distance probe, or as though the other party had completely withdrawn. Rushing there recklessly at high speed might instead alert the enemy. Second, and more practically, his soul power rank had undergone a slow but continuous "regression" over the past half year. It had now fallen from the Soul King level to the Soul Elder realm.

This was not the worsening of an injury, but the result of his own choice. As his research into the sphere within his body that sealed the Golden Dragon King's God Core Fragment deepened, he began attempting an extraordinarily cautious "reverse analysis."

He needed to understand the essence of the Golden Dragon King's power in order to better guard against and deal with the hidden danger inside Wulin. This process required him to actively draw out a thread of the sealed, exceedingly faint Golden Dragon King aura and observe it while it remained suppressed by the Sword of Life and the Undead Seal. Even though this aura was only a trace, its inherently overbearing and savage nature imposed a continuous, heavy burden and suppression upon his not-yet-recovered body, directly manifesting as a "decline" in his soul power rank. The benefit was that he had gained a more direct understanding of the Golden Dragon King's characteristics. The downside was that he truly could no longer withstand an intense battle of attrition. For long journeys, choosing a safer method that conserved more of his soul power was necessary.