Soul Beasts

Suddenly!

Di Tian's body jolted as if struck by invisible lightning. His golden dragon eyes, which seemed capable of freezing time itself, shrank abruptly to pinpoints. The hand that had always been as steady as a rock shot up and pressed tightly against his chest beneath his black robe! There, worn close to his body, was an exquisite ice-blue hexagonal snowflake badge—the token and promise left behind by that person who had ascended to the Divine Realm ten thousand years ago. At this moment, this badge, which had lain silent for a full ten thousand years and had shown no anomaly beyond its eternal chill, suddenly grew hot without warning! A faint aura fluctuation, so weak it seemed ready to disperse at any moment yet so familiar that it made the core of his soul tremble, drifted over the badge like a breeze crossing endless space and time—and crashed violently into his senses!

"This is...!" A deeply suppressed growl burst from Di Tian's throat. For the first time, his stern, majestic face showed violent emotion on the verge of losing control: shock, disbelief, surging memories, and a flicker of agitation buried beneath long years and boundless fury, one even he had never expected.

Almost at the exact millisecond Di Tian's aura changed drastically, several immense, savage, or sinister spiritual senses throughout the core region stirred like venomous dragons awakened from slumber. They tore through the stillness of space and swept fiercely toward the island at the lake's center from every direction!

"Di Tian! What's going on?!" Bear Lord's spiritual roar exploded first, like countless bolts of thunder crushing the clouds. It was filled with the violence and impatience built up from years of confinement. "What insect dares spy on the core region?! Is this another trick from those Spirit Pagoda bastards?! I'll tear them apart!" As he roared, terrifying power surged skyward from Bear Lord's distant territory. The phantom of a Dark Gold terror claw flashed and vanished, while great stretches of ancient trees swayed without wind, revealing their master's restless and irritable temperament.

Immediately afterward, a soft, ethereal spiritual sense coiled over them, cold and clammy as a venomous snake. It belonged to the Myriad Demon King. "Oh? What an unusual fluctuation... Not Soul Power, nor ordinary spiritual power. It carries a... most unpleasant sense of 'order' and 'coldness.' There are even faint ripples in space... Di Tian, your old object seems rather 'excited,' doesn't it?" The Myriad Demon King's tone brimmed with curiosity and innate suspicion. He excelled at noticing details and discerning the nature of energy.

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

A deep roar came from another direction, filled with power and fighting spirit. "An enemy? Then fight!" This was Scarlet 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 most devoted to guarding young beasts, sent over a wary spiritual sense. For a time, several spiritual senses representing the greatest remaining strength and will of the Star Dou Great Forest crisscrossed above the Lake of Life. Suspicion, anger, vigilance, and curiosity filled the air. The tranquil lake began to churn without wind, as though it could no longer bear the crushing pressure of those invisible auras.

Bi Ji had long since turned pale as well. She clearly saw Di Tian's hand pressed to his chest, as well as the faint ice-blue glow flowing along the edge of the snowflake badge whose grave 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 outside. All his focus was immersed in the unique fluctuation coming from the badge. Yes, without a doubt! Though it was countless times weaker, like a candle flame in the wind, that distinctive spiritual essence—combining the pure, piercing cold of Ultimate Ice with the vast, inclusive, and indescribably profound nature unique to the God of Emotions—was unmistakably his! The human who had made a vow with him while possessing the cultivation of a Soul Saint, then later ascended to the Divine Realm—Ice Douluo, Huo Yuhao!

Was he angry? As the lord of all Soul Beasts, he had personally witnessed and endured the Spirit Pagoda's descent from the "bridge of reconciliation" promised in that old covenant into the "tower of greed" and "cold wall" that now imprisoned the Soul Beast race and drained its foundations. The fury in his heart had burned for ten thousand years, enough to incinerate the stars themselves! That fury was directed at every human who had betrayed the covenant and indulged in greed, 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, who had lived through Dragon God's Twilight, the rise of humanity, and the decline of Soul Beasts. He possessed wisdom, foresight, and a weighty sense of responsibility beyond that of ordinary fierce beasts. He understood very clearly that the Spirit Pagoda's corruption was the inevitable result of swelling human ambition, the tides of the era, and the pursuit of profit. It had no direct connection to Huo Yuhao himself, who had long departed this world, dwelled high in the Divine Realm, and might not even have been able to observe the specific changes in the lower realm due to the barrier of space and time. When Huo Yuhao had left behind the badge and made his promise, he had said, "Should a major upheaval threaten the very survival of Soul Beasts, you may use this object to attempt to call upon me." That alone was a grave kindness and responsibility transcending race. For ten thousand years, no matter how difficult the Soul Beasts' circumstances became, Di Tian had never used it, because such a summons involved the Divine Realm and might bring unpredictable consequences.

Yet now, the call had come on its own! And it was so weak... What did that mean? It meant Huo Yuhao's condition might be terrible. His divine power might have been damaged, or perhaps... he had not come from the lofty, unharmed Divine Realm at all, but had suffered some calamity and fallen into this world?!

In an instant, countless thoughts, calculations of gain and loss, and memories of the past collided and were analyzed in Di Tian's mind faster than lightning. A trap? Given his understanding of Huo Yuhao's character, wisdom, and the weight of that promise, the possibility was extremely low. If humans—especially the Spirit Pagoda—possessed the ability to imitate such a fundamental spiritual aura, they would have used it in a more direct attack or deception long ago. Why use it here? An opportunity? For ten thousand years, the Soul Beast race had been continuously compressed, imprisoned, and stripped of its fortune. Though they fought to the death and refused to yield, the road ahead was bleak. This sudden signal from an "old acquaintance," regardless of what change in the Divine Realm lay behind it, might... might truly be an opportunity to break this suffocating deadlock. At the very least, it was a variable that had to be understood!

He suddenly opened his eyes. Light blazed in his golden dragon pupils like two suns tearing through the gloom. The intense emotion that had flashed across his face moments ago had already been suppressed, replaced by the absolute authority and decisiveness of the Beast God. His icy gaze swept through the Void, as if meeting each of those powerful spiritual senses in turn. His resolute voice rang through the core region, drowning out Bear Lord's growls and the Myriad Demon King's whispers.

"Quiet!"

Just two words, yet they carried supreme dragon might and a power that seemed to freeze space itself. The churning lake instantly calmed, and every noisy spiritual sense came to an abrupt halt.

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

"What?! Huo Yuhao?! He still dares come here?!" Bear Lord's spiritual sense erupted first. Terrifying killing intent surged like an erupting volcano. "The Spirit Pagoda is that damned thing he created! If he hadn't made those Soul Spirits and that tower, how could humans have trapped us so easily?! Has he come to laugh at us now, or to act as the Spirit Pagoda's spokesman?! Di Tian, let me out. I'll crush that hypocritical human god with one claw!" Ancient trees in his territory shattered one after another beneath his invisible aura.

"Bear Lord, shut up!" Bi Ji could not help speaking out. Her voice held rare severity and urgency. "Things are far from that simple! Huo Yuhao's original intent in making the covenant was reconciliation! Later humans were the ones who betrayed it! Besides, this signal... it is so weak and abnormal. Something terrible must have happened to him! How can you judge without knowing the truth?!"

The 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 covenant... Interesting. Di Tian, what do you think? Is it disaster 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 think that fluctuation carries not only the same 'coldness' as before, but also so much 'pain' and 'weariness'... It doesn't feel like he came to fight..."

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

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

Di Tian listened to their arguments with an expression as cold as ice. He knew the divisions among them very well. Bear Lord represented the most direct and violent faction seeking revenge. The Myriad Demon King represented the calculating faction, cautious and suspicious. Bi Ji and Demon Spirit were more inclined to sense emotions and preserve goodwill. And he had to make the most beneficial choice for the entire Soul Beast race, one whose risks remained relatively controllable.

"Enough!" Di Tian spoke again. His voice was not loud, but it carried the weight of a final verdict. "It is him. There is no need to argue further. As for whether the Spirit Pagoda's debt is directly related to its founder, we will naturally be able to judge when we see him. But—"

His tone shifted. His golden eyes turned 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 walls, not an enemy's soul-guided cannon shell, surveillance wave, or capture squad. The signal is abnormally weak, showing that his condition is dire. This cannot be faked. This is a variable—perhaps a crisis, perhaps... a chance. The Soul Beast race has been trapped here, struggling to survive in desperate circumstances. Any variable must be grasped personally, not shut out—or allowed to be discovered and controlled by the Spirit Pagoda beyond the walls!"

He looked at Bi Ji. "Bi Ji, come with me and bring him in. Your life power may be useful."

Then his authoritative spiritual sense swept over the other fierce beasts. "Bear Lord, Myriad Demon King, Scarlet King, Zi Ji, Demon Spirit, each of you hold your positions. Guard the core region and the outer barrier with all your strength! Without my explicit order, no one is to make any movement, nor allow the slightest spatial fluctuation here to leak out! If this truly is a Spirit Pagoda scheme... then we will ensure they never return!"

The order was given, beyond question. Bear Lord let out an unwilling, muffled growl, but did not openly object again. The Myriad Demon King's spiritual sense slowly withdrew in contemplation. The other fierce beasts accepted their orders and went on alert as well.

Di Tian wasted no more time. Time was urgent. The space before him suddenly groaned as though unable to bear the strain, then twisted violently. He raised his right hand, his five fingers curling into a claw. Black light coiled around it, gathering absolute power capable of tearing space apart. He clawed fiercely at the core of the distortion!

Riiip—!!!

A deafening sound that made one's teeth ache, as though the barrier of the world itself had been forcibly torn open, was tightly contained by Di Tian's immense power within a tiny area of the core region. A narrow spatial rift was forcibly born beneath his claw, its edges constantly spitting fine black sparks while light and shadows churned madly within. The scene beyond the rift was blurry and unstable, but it was faintly visible: a densely wooded area somewhere on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, matching the direction from which the badge sensed its source.

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