Fortune Blinds the Eyes

Just as he reached the forest exit, several black shadows leaped out.

With clear division of roles, they charged straight at Dugu Feng.

A sinister smile curled across Dugu Feng's lips. With his current strength, how could he possibly have failed to notice the people lurking nearby?

"Poison Breathing!"

Before the four black shadows could get close, they collapsed in agony.

"Ah! My meridians... they're burning!"

Listening to the four men's miserable screams,

Dugu Feng's eyes held not the slightest trace of pity.

These people had struck without hesitation. They had not shown mercy merely because he was a child.

Who knew how much innocent blood stained their hands?

The screams did not last long before they completely lost the ability to resist. The poison invaded their hearts and, following their bloodstreams, corroded their internal organs.

Their bodies began to rot little by little from the inside, until they would eventually turn into nothing more than a pool of blood.

The strongest among them was merely a Soul Elder, while the other three were all Soul Grandmasters.

Not to mention Soul Elders—even Soul Kings would have no choice but to wait for death when faced with Dugu Feng's current poison.

Dugu Feng continued forward and walked out of the Star Dou Great Forest.

The moment he arrived outside the Star Dou Great Forest, he saw Dugu Bo, who had been waiting for quite some time. Dugu Bo had long since noticed those people lying in ambush at the exit.

His purpose had been to temper Dugu Feng's character and let him see the evil in human nature.

Yet Dugu Feng's performance had exceeded his expectations. He had thought that a child not even ten years old would be unable to harden his heart enough to kill.

"Xiaofeng, you did very well."

"I have always kept Grandpa's words in mind. For example, showing kindness to enemies is cruelty toward oneself."

"When I see Soul Masters with sins as grave as theirs, I'll kill every one of them."

"Good. I like those words."

Dugu Bo felt that this round of training was more or less enough. It was time to take Dugu Feng back to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

"No, Grandpa. This training has only just begun. I intend to return to Heaven Dou City alone and experience the sights and customs along the way."

"I can never grow if I remain beneath your wings forever."

After hearing Dugu Feng's words, Dugu Bo thought for a moment before speaking.

"How about this? I'll handle the procedures for you to enter Heaven Dou Academy. You can go whenever you wish."

Dugu Feng nodded.

"Grandpa, I hope you won't accompany me on the road ahead, nor secretly protect me. Though I am not yet ten years old, my strength far surpasses that of an ordinary Soul King. I even have methods to poison a Soul Emperor to death."

"So please rest assured and let me walk the rest of the road alone."

"Alright. From this moment on, I will no longer interfere with you. But remember this: if you encounter a powerful opponent, run away in time. Especially people from Spirit Hall—you must be extra vigilant."

"I'm on bad terms with Spirit Hall. I'm afraid those bastards will resort to underhanded methods. If they can't deal with me, they may target you instead."

Dugu Feng nodded.

Only after Dugu Bo's figure had disappeared did Dugu Feng set off toward the nearest town by the Star Dou Great Forest.

After walking for a full day, Dugu Feng arrived at a small town.

Quite a few soul-hunting teams were resting in the town.

Soul-hunting teams also accepted soul-hunting commissions through the town.

A so-called soul-hunting team was a group that helped Soul Masters in need of Soul Rings enter the Star Dou Great Forest and hunt the Soul Rings they required.

Of course, Soul Masters could also form teams among themselves, but temporary teams were extremely unreliable.

With one careless mistake, they might not die at the hands of soul beasts, but at the hands of their temporary companions instead.

Scenes like this played out in the Star Dou Great Forest countless times every day.

Dugu Feng had personally witnessed it several times.

The Star Dou Great Forest was a lawless place. When Soul Masters died inside, who could tell whether they had been killed by soul beasts or other Soul Masters? Before long, their corpses would be carried away by soul beasts anyway.

To soul beasts, the corpses of Soul Masters were great nourishment.

Soul Masters killed soul beasts to obtain Soul Rings, while soul beasts killed Soul Masters to grow stronger. That was the law of nature.

Dugu Feng soon arrived at an inn. Just as he was about to check in, he suddenly remembered that Dugu Bo had filled his Wishful Hundred Treasure Pouch entirely with Gold Soul Coins.

One Gold Soul Coin was equivalent to an ordinary family's yearly expenses.

Taking one out in a place like this would undoubtedly draw attention.

But after hesitating for only a second, he still took out a Gold Soul Coin and slapped it onto the innkeeper's counter.

"Give me one of your best rooms. I'll be staying here for a month. This Gold Soul Coin should be enough, right?"

The innkeeper looked at Dugu Feng.

Although Dugu Feng appeared to be only twelve or thirteen years old, his emerald-green eyes gave people the feeling of facing a venomous snake.

After meeting his gaze for only a second, the innkeeper realized that the youth before him was anything but ordinary.

He had run this inn for many years and seen all kinds of Soul Masters.

Yet Dugu Feng gave him a sense of deadly danger.

He immediately put away certain thoughts he had been harboring.

"A-Gou, quickly take this guest to a first-class room."

Soon, a youth named A-Gou came out. He appeared to be only sixteen or seventeen years old.

"Please follow me, guest."

Dugu Feng followed behind A-Gou. As they climbed the stairs, he glanced at the many Soul Masters below, among whom quite a few looked at him with greed in their eyes.

Dugu Feng quietly took it all in, a mischievous smile appearing at the corners of his mouth.

After Dugu Feng went upstairs, some of the Soul Masters soon began whispering among themselves.

Around noon, someone knocked on the door.

Dugu Feng opened it, and the youth named A-Gou stood outside with food in his hands.

"Guest, the noodles at our inn are quite good."

After entering the room, A-Gou placed the noodles on the table. Then he turned to look at Dugu Feng. After hesitating for a moment, he finally spoke.

"Guest, you seem even younger than I am. I wonder whether your family ever told you that you shouldn't flaunt your wealth."

"You openly took out that Gold Soul Coin today. You've already brought a deadly disaster upon yourself. I advise you to hire a soul-hunting team and leave this place as soon as possible."

A-Gou offered the warning out of kindness.

Dugu Feng glanced at him before replying.

"Thank you for your kind reminder, but I'm waiting for someone here. I won't leave until they arrive."

Seeing this, A-Gou did not try to persuade him further. He shook his head and walked straight out of the room.

Dugu Feng looked at the noodles on the table, picked up his chopsticks, and began eating.

After finishing the noodles, Dugu Feng began cultivating with Toad Style.

The breathing method of Toad Style suited his cultivation better than meditation.

His chest expanded and contracted like a toad's.

With every breath in and out, he drew all the surrounding Soul Power into his body.