"It smells so good! Are you selling your grilled fish?"
The two who appeared were naturally Tang Ya and Beibei, who had likewise been drawn by the aroma of Little Huo Grilled Fish in the original story. Familiar as if they had known him for ages, Tang Ya showed no sense of distance toward strangers. She leaned close to Huo Yuhao and blinked her big eyes as she asked.
"I-If you want some, I can treat you!"
How could Huo Yuhao, still so young, withstand such a test? His little face flushed as he answered.
"Haha, little brother, are you getting shy?"
After several grilled fish had gone into their stomachs, the group quickly became acquainted.
"My name is Tang Ya, and his name is Beibei."
"Huo Yuhao." "Lu Yuan."
Before long, through the efforts of the four youths, over a dozen grilled fish and some dry rations brought out by Lu Yuan and Beibei were swiftly wiped out. After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Huo Yuhao was the first to suggest leaving. Lu Yuan then also bid Tang Ya and Beibei farewell.
"Are they both heading to the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt soul beasts?"
Having eaten her fill, Tang Ya lazily leaned against Beibei's chest and asked casually.
"Mhm," Beibei answered gently, affectionately smoothing the messy hair by Tang Ya's forehead. "According to my senses, they should both be Soul Masters. Little Brother Huo should be a Soul Scholar, while Little Brother Lu—"
At this point, a sharp glint flashed through his eyes. "He's very likely already a Soul Elder!"
"A Soul Elder?!" Tang Ya cried out. She shot upright from Beibei's embrace. "Do you think they'd agree if we invited them to join the Tang Sect?"
"Little Brother Huo might, but Little Brother Lu is probably a long shot! So young, yet already a Soul Elder. And he carries himself without being either servile or arrogant. This Little Brother Lu is no simple person—"
Lu Yuan, who had already left, had no idea Tang Ya and Beibei were discussing him behind his back. His mind was entirely focused on Huo Yuhao.
To avoid being discovered, he quietly trailed far behind Huo Yuhao.
It's coming! It's coming!
After witnessing Huo Yuhao's iconic solo battle against the God-Slaying Wind Baboon, Lu Yuan focused completely, holding his breath as he stared in Huo Yuhao's direction.
Eh? Has my luck finally turned around? I finally ran into a human with a spiritual attribute?
What a pity, though. This human with a spiritual attribute has rather poor talent. But it doesn't matter. I'm not picky. I'll carry you!
Ahead of Huo Yuhao, a large white-jade silkworm covered in ten golden bands burrowed out of the ground.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm!
Very soon, just like in the original plot, the two began to fuse.
The instant Sky Dream Ice Silkworm poured himself into Huo Yuhao's body, an invisible spiritual ripple spread outward from him. That terrifying spiritual power almost instantly covered every corner within a hundred li.
The surging spiritual fluctuations left Lu Yuan dazed for a moment. Fortunately, protected by the Great Tortoise Shell Technique, he quickly regained his senses.
At that moment, the sky, which had been perfectly clear only moments ago, suddenly darkened. A thunderous roar boomed from high above, and in that instant, the sun's light was completely obscured by darkness. An immense pressure descended from the heavens, suffocating in its intensity.
A blurry figure appeared in the sky. An aged voice filled with indescribable majesty rang out. "With sun and moon in hand, I pluck the stars; in this world, none are like me. I never thought that a trace of this old man's remnant soul could still remain."
Under that pressure, Lu Yuan nearly collapsed to the ground. Yet he bit down hard on the tip of his tongue, and the pain barely preserved the last trace of clarity in his mind as he silently recited—
"One word reveals the path to divinity!!!"
Immediately afterward, a golden tortoise shell appeared in the air, while a black-and-white Taiji Diagram began slowly revolving around it.
An invisible domain instantly unfolded. Lu Yuan, who had been sprawled helplessly on the ground, suddenly rose as though someone had yanked him upright and performed a forced gaze salute toward the tortoise shell in the sky.
Not "Death," not "Death," not "Death"!
As he watched the spinning tortoise shell, Lu Yuan screamed soundlessly in his heart. He had used the Great Tortoise Shell Technique only to attract Electrolux, so as long as he did not roll the word "Death," any result would be acceptable to him.
Perhaps his prayer had been heard. An ancient-looking die fell from the tortoise shell—
Fortune!
It was the Incomplete Tortoise Shell Technique!!!
The moment he saw the Great Tortoise Shell Technique, fragmented memories within his soul were gradually awakened: the Incomplete Tortoise Shell Technique, the ambush and assassination, and all his past experiences with Flo. For a moment, Electrolux was overcome by countless emotions.
I never obtained the Incomplete Tortoise Shell Technique in life despite seeking it desperately, yet after death, I have encountered it again on this continent through such a twist of fate. It seems it has found its true master!
Electrolux in the sky was more than five meters away from Lu Yuan, so he was not affected by the forced gaze salute. Moreover, knowing the Great Tortoise Shell Technique's mechanics, he did not dare forcibly enter its domain at such a time.
When he saw the die engraved with "Fortune" fall, he no longer hesitated. Transforming into a gray bead, he shot into the back of Lu Yuan's head with a swoosh and vanished.
"What was that?!"
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, who was truly fusing with Huo Yuhao with all his strength, was startled by the pressure accompanying Electrolux's arrival. However, it seemed the luck of the "Fortune" die had taken effect. A minor problem happened to arise during his fusion with Huo Yuhao. By the time he resolved it and extended his consciousness from Huo Yuhao's Spirit Sea, Electrolux had long since merged into the back of Lu Yuan's head. It was as though everything just now had merely been Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's own paranoia, and nothing had actually happened.
"Strange..." Sky Dream Ice Silkworm muttered to himself. "Could my perception have been wrong?" His tiny golden eyes were filled with enormous confusion.
However, he did not dwell on the matter and continued focusing wholeheartedly on fusing with Huo Yuhao.
Meanwhile, after obtaining his opportunity, Lu Yuan had already turned this way and that, wandering who knew where. He found a secluded clearing devoid of human traces and rested there.
"Child, I am Electrolux. May I know your name?"
An aged voice sounded within Lu Yuan's Spirit Sea.
Electrolux's weak remnant soul should have immediately fallen into slumber after entering Lu Yuan's Spirit Sea. However, the presence of the Great Tortoise Shell Technique in Lu Yuan's Spirit Sea allowed him to force himself to stay conscious. After Lu Yuan stopped traveling, he began speaking with him.
"Senior, my name is Lu Yuan."
Within the Spirit Sea, Lu Yuan suppressed the wild joy in his heart and respectfully introduced himself to Electrolux.
"Child, I originally should not belong to this world. I only remember that I seemed to be about to die at the time, but perhaps because my soul power was too strong, I tore through space at the moment of death, leaving behind this wisp of Divine Sense, and thus arrived in your world. You happened to be using this Incomplete Tortoise Shell Technique then, which awakened some related memories in my remnant soul and drew me here. So, this wisp of my Divine Sense has taken up residence in your Spirit Sea. Do not worry, I bear you no ill will. I fear I may be unable to leave this place in the future."
"Senior, this Great Tortoise Shell Technique has been in my Spirit Sea ever since I could remember. Do you know anything about it?" Lu Yuan asked after listening to Electrolux.
"So the Incomplete Tortoise Shell Technique's full name is the Great Tortoise Shell Technique?" Electrolux murmured. Then he slowly began to speak. His frail remnant soul found even maintaining consciousness extremely difficult at the moment, but in order to earn Lu Yuan's trust, he still spoke of what he knew about the Great Tortoise Shell Technique.
"Child, I do not know much more about the Great Tortoise Shell Technique than you do. I have only a wisp of Divine Sense left, and it is extremely weak. I need time to gradually recover before all my memories can slowly return. I only remember that the Great Tortoise Shell Technique's effects are absolute. It distinguishes neither friend nor foe and cannot be predicted. If the caster rolls three 'Death' dice in succession, however, he will die on the spot irreversibly! Therefore, do not use it lightly unless absolutely necessary. Remember this, remember this!"
After saying that, Electrolux's voice fell silent, and he sank into complete slumber.
Before you continue