Dai Mubai's Letter

Star Luo City and Heaven Dou City lay far apart, almost half of Douluo Continent between them.

After leaving Star Luo City, Dai Mubai and Huo An did not pause to catch their breath. Nor did they dare let down their guard.

They left the main road, choosing only remote paths and dense woods. The ground was uneven and slick with mud that had yet to dry, each step sinking to a different depth. Thorny bushes scraped their robes with soft ripping sounds that rang out in the silent night.

Dai Mubai kept telling himself this was not treason. He was going to the Heaven Dou Empire to build his strength, so he could return one day and compete from a stronger position. He had even left a letter for his father, Star Luo Emperor Dai Tianfeng, explaining his reasons and his resolve.

But no prince in the history of the Star Luo Empire had ever fled.

"Your Highness, stay close." Huo An's low voice cut through Dai Mubai's thoughts.

The Soul Emperor guard moved like a leopard at full alert. He kept his presence hidden, but his sharp eyes swept the darkness around them. The slightest rustle made his muscles tense.

Dai Mubai pressed his lips together, forced down the metallic sweetness rising in his throat from their frantic pace, and quickened his steps without a word.

He was afraid.

Afraid his father, Dai Tianfeng, would read the letter and see not his desperate reasoning, but a challenge to imperial rules and a betrayal. Afraid that, in his fury, his father would send the elite Royal Knights after him—or worse, the Shadow Guards.

If they dragged him back, what would await him?

Dai Mubai did not know. He did not dare imagine it.

Fear of pursuers he could not