Soul Beasts

Suddenly!

Di Tian's body jolted violently, as though struck by an invisible bolt of lightning. His golden dragon eyes, which seemed capable of freezing time itself, abruptly contracted to pinpoints. The hand that had always been as steady as a mountain shot up and pressed hard against his chest beneath his black robe! There, worn close to his body, was an exquisitely crafted ice-blue hexagonal snowflake insignia—the token and promise left behind by the one who had ascended to the Divine Realm ten thousand years ago. At this moment, the insignia, which had lain dormant for a full ten thousand years and shown no abnormality beyond its eternal chill, suddenly grew hot without warning! A faint aura fluctuation, so weak it seemed ready to dissipate at any moment yet so familiar it made the core of his soul tremble, brushed lightly across the insignia like a breeze crossing endless time and space—and slammed fiercely into his senses!

"This is...!" A deeply suppressed roar burst from Di Tian's throat. For the first time, violent emotions bordering on loss of control appeared on his stern, majestic face: shock, disbelief, surging memories, and a trace of stirring that even he had not expected, buried beneath the long years and boundless fury.

Almost at the very same millisecond that Di Tian's aura changed dramatically, several immense, violent, or gloomy spiritual senses throughout the core region stirred like disturbed venomous dragons, tearing apart the silence of space as they swept viciously toward the island at the lake's center from every direction!

"Di Tian! What happened?!" Bear Lord's spiritual roar was the first to explode, like countless bolts of thunder crushing through clouds, filled with the violence and impatience pent up by years of confinement. "What insect dares spy on the core region?! Is this some new trick from those Spirit Pagoda bastards?! I'll go tear them apart!" As he roared, a terrifying surge of power erupted from Bear Lord's distant territory. The phantom of a Darkgolden Terrorclaw flashed past, and vast stretches of ancient trees swayed without wind, revealing their master's restless and irritable nature.

Immediately afterward, a soft and ethereal spiritual sense, cold and clinging like a venomous snake, wound its way over. It was Myriad Demon King. "Oh? What a peculiar fluctuation... Not soul power, nor ordinary spiritual power. It carries a... displeasing sense of 'order' and 'coldness.' There are also faint ripples in space... Di Tian, that old object on your chest seems quite 'excited,' doesn't it?" Myriad Demon King's tone was full of curiosity and innate suspicion. He was more adept at detecting details and the essence of energy.

"Uncle Di Tian, Aunt Bi Ji, what happened? I felt a very distant, very... sorrowful call?" A clear but somewhat timid girl's voice rang out. It belonged to Demon Spirit, who had cultivated for many years and possessed a relatively pure heart. She was more sensitive to emotional fluctuations.

A deep roar came from another direction, filled with power and battle intent. "An enemy? Then fight!" This was Crimson King, the Three-Headed Scarlet Demon Mastiff, who preferred to solve every problem through battle.

Even Zi Ji, the Hell Demon Dragon King, who was usually the calmest and watched over the young beasts, sent over a wary spiritual sense. For a moment, several spiritual senses representing the highest surviving combat power and will of the Star Dou Great Forest crisscrossed above the Lake of Life. Suspicion, fury, vigilance, and curiosity filled the air. The tranquil lake began to churn without wind, as though unable to withstand the pressure of those invisible auras.

Bi Ji had already gone pale as well. She clearly saw Di Tian's hand pressed to his chest, as well as the faint, nearly invisible ice-blue glow flowing around the edge of the snowflake insignia whose profound significance she also understood. "Could it... really be... that person from ten thousand years ago... Huo Yuhao?" Her voice trembled with disbelief as she looked at Di Tian.

Di Tian closed his eyes, seemingly deaf to the surging questions from the outside spiritual senses. His entire mind was immersed in the unique fluctuation coming from the insignia. Yes, without a doubt! Though it was countless times weaker, like a candle flame in the wind, that distinctive spiritual essence—a fusion of the pure, piercing chill of Ultimate Ice and the vast, all-embracing yet unfathomably profound nature unique to the God of Emotions—was him! The human who had made an oath with him while only a Soul Saint, then later ascended to the Divine Realm—Ice Douluo, Huo Yuhao!

Was he angry? As the sovereign of soul beasts, he had witnessed and personally endured the Spirit Pagoda's descent from the "bridge of reconciliation" promised in the oath of old into today's "tower of greed" and "cold wall," imprisoning the soul beast race and draining its very foundation. The fury in his heart had burned for ten thousand years, enough to scorch the stars from the heavens! That rage was directed at every insatiably greedy human who had betrayed the oath, especially the Spirit Pagoda.

But Di Tian was not merely the embodiment of rage. He was the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King with eight hundred thousand years of cultivation, one who had lived through Dragon God's Twilight, the rise of humanity, and the decline of soul beasts. He possessed wisdom, foresight, and a heavy sense of responsibility beyond that of ordinary ferocious beasts. He understood all too clearly that the Spirit Pagoda's corruption was the inevitable result of swelling human ambition, the tides of the age, and the drive for profit. It had no direct connection to Huo Yuhao himself, who had long departed this world, resided high in the Divine Realm, and perhaps could not even perceive the specific changes in the lower realm through the barriers of time and space. The insignia Huo Yuhao had left behind, and the promise he had made, were this: "Should any major event threaten the fundamental survival of soul beasts, this item may be used to attempt a summons." This in itself was a weighty kindness and responsibility that transcended race. Over the past ten thousand years, no matter how dire the soul beasts' circumstances had become, Di Tian had never used it, because the summons involved the Divine Realm and could bring unforeseeable consequences.

Yet now, the summons had come on its own! And it was so weak... What did that mean? It meant Huo Yuhao might be in terrible condition, his divine power perhaps damaged, or even... perhaps he had not come from the lofty, untouched Divine Realm at all, but had encountered some calamity and fallen into this world?!

In an instant, countless thoughts, calculations of gain and loss, and past memories collided and were analyzed in Di Tian's mind faster than lightning. A trap? Given what he knew of Huo Yuhao's character, wisdom, and the weight of that promise, the possibility was extremely low. If humans—especially the Spirit Pagoda—had the ability to imitate such a fundamental spiritual aura, they would have long used it for more direct attacks or deception. Why use it here? An opportunity? For ten thousand years, the soul beast race had been continuously compressed, confined, and stripped of its destiny. Though they fought to the death and refused to yield, the road ahead was dark. This sudden signal from an "old acquaintance," no matter what changes in the Divine Realm it represented, might... might truly be an opportunity to break this suffocating deadlock? At the very least, it was an "unknown variable" that had to be understood!

He abruptly opened his eyes. Brilliant light blazed in his golden dragon pupils like two suns tearing through the gloom. The violent emotions that had flashed through him earlier had already been suppressed, replaced by the absolute majesty and decisiveness of the Beast God. His icy gaze swept across the void as if meeting each powerful spiritual sense in turn. His resolute voice rang through the core region, drowning out Bear Lord's growl and Myriad Demon King's whispers.

"Silence!"

Just two words, yet they carried supreme dragon might and a power like frozen space, instantly calming the churning lake and bringing every clamorous spiritual sense to a halt.

"It is him." Di Tian's voice was clear and heavy, like a pronouncement. "Ice Douluo, Huo Yuhao. The one who made the oath ten thousand years ago. The God of Emotions of the Divine Realm."

"What?! Huo Yuhao?! He still dares to come?!" Bear Lord's spiritual sense exploded first, terrifying killing intent erupting like a volcano. "The Spirit Pagoda is that damned thing he created! If he hadn't come up with soul spirits and that tower, how could humans have caged us so easily?! Is he here to laugh at us, or to speak for the Spirit Pagoda?! Di Tian, let me out! I'll crush that hypocritical human god with one claw!" Ancient trees throughout his territory shattered one after another under the invisible force of his aura.

"Bear Lord, shut up!" Bi Ji could not help speaking out, her voice carrying rare severity and urgency. "This is nowhere near that simple! Huo Yuhao's original intent in making the oath was reconciliation! It was later humans who betrayed it! Besides, this signal... is so abnormally weak. He must have suffered some tremendous upheaval! How can you judge without knowing right from wrong?!"

Myriad Demon King's sinister voice sounded. "Bi Ji's words are not without reason. The signal is weak, yet it directly stirred the token of the old oath... Interesting. Di Tian, what do you think? Is it misfortune or fortune? Should we bring him in? If we do, will we be inviting a wolf into our home? The Spirit Pagoda's surveillance network is no decoration."

Demon Spirit said timidly, "I... I feel that within the fluctuation, aside from the old 'coldness,' there's also so much 'pain' and 'weariness'... It doesn't feel like he came to fight..."

Crimson King growled, "Troublesome! Just say what he came for!"

Zi Ji's spiritual sense conveyed only cautious silence as she waited for Di Tian's decision.

Di Tian listened to their arguments, his face as cold as ice. He understood the divisions within them very clearly. Bear Lord represented the most direct and violent faction seeking revenge; Myriad Demon King was the cautious, suspicious faction that calculated every possibility; Bi Ji and Demon Spirit were more inclined to sense emotions and retain goodwill. And he had to make the choice that was most beneficial and relatively controllable in risk for the entire soul beast race.

"Enough!" Di Tian spoke again. His voice was not loud, but it carried the meaning of a final judgment. "It is him. There is no need for further debate. As for whether the Spirit Pagoda's debt is directly connected to its founder, we will naturally be able to tell once we meet him. But—"

His tone shifted. His golden eyes were sharp as blades, seeming to pierce through layers of forest and towering walls. "In ten thousand years, this is the first voice of an 'old acquaintance' to come from beyond the wall, not an enemy's soul cannon shell, surveillance wave, or capture squad. The signal is extraordinarily weak, proving that his condition is worrying. This cannot be faked. This is an unknown variable—perhaps a crisis, perhaps... a sliver of opportunity. The soul beast race has been trapped here, struggling to survive in desperate circumstances. Any unknown variable must be grasped personally, not rejected beyond the door or left outside the wall to be discovered and controlled by the Spirit Pagoda!"

He looked at Bi Ji. "Bi Ji, come with me to bring him in. Your life power may be of use."

Then, his majestic spiritual sense swept toward the other ferocious beasts. "Bear Lord, Myriad Demon King, Crimson King, Zi Ji, Demon Spirit, each of you hold your positions and guard the core region and outer barrier with all your strength! Without my explicit command, none of you may make any move, and not the slightest spatial fluctuation from here may leak out! If this truly is a Spirit Pagoda scheme... then we will ensure they come but never return!"

The order was given, beyond question. Bear Lord let out an unwilling, muffled growl, but did not openly object again. Myriad Demon King's spiritual sense slowly withdrew in contemplation. The other ferocious beasts also accepted the order and went on guard.

Di Tian did not delay any longer. Time was urgent. The space before him suddenly let out a groan as though overwhelmed, violently twisting. He raised his right hand, fingers curled into a claw. Black light coiled around it, gathering absolute power capable of tearing space apart, and he ripped savagely at the center of the distortion!

"Screech—!!!"

A deafening sound, enough to set one's teeth on edge, as though the world's barrier had been forcibly torn open, was firmly confined by Di Tian's immense power to a tiny area within the core region. A narrow spatial rift was forcibly born beneath his hand, its edges constantly spitting tiny arcs of black lightning while light and shadows churned madly within. The scene on the other side was blurred and unstable, but one could vaguely make out a densely wooded area somewhere in the outer reaches of the Star Dou Great Forest, matching the direction of the source sensed by the insignia.

"Go!" Di Tian barked. His black robe swept around him as he wrapped Bi Ji within it, transforming into a streak of light and plunging without hesitation into that dangerous, unstable spatial rift. The rift immediately shook violently and closed, as though it had never existed.