"Er Ming, someone should be coming to find me in a little while. You mustn't get angry or be rude, understand?"
Xiao Wu thought of Lin Xiao.
Unless something unexpected happened, Lin Xiao would come looking for her.
Her only worry now was that Er Ming would become so furious upon seeing him that he would kill him.
Er Ming also had a deep aversion to humans.
It was etched into the genes of soul beasts.
Even a Forest King like Er Ming had faced many dangers in his youth.
Quite a few of those dangers had come from human soul masters.
Every powerful soul beast that survived to maturity had fought soul masters to some extent.
Some had even fought battles to the death.
"Why?"
Er Ming scratched his head.
A human was coming, yet Sister Xiao Wu wouldn't let him attack?
Was Sister Xiao Wu planning to leave with a human again?
Xiao Wu stood up, planted her hands on her hips, and said solemnly, "This person is special. I can't explain all the details to you at once."
"But you need to know that he isn't our enemy. He's a very good person!"
Hearing this, Er Ming began to wonder whether Sister Xiao Wu was ill.
How could she say something like that?
"Human soul masters are the enemies of soul beasts!"
"They have to hunt soul beasts to grow stronger, so they're our enemies."
Er Ming's stance was clear.
If they had to hunt soul beasts for soul rings, how could they be good people?
"That's why I said he's special. He doesn't need to hunt soul beasts to obtain soul rings."
"He has Heaven-Bestowed Soul Rings. All his soul rings are gifts from Heaven."
Heaven-Bestowed Soul Rings?
He had never heard of them!
But since Xiao Wu said so, Er Ming chose to believe her.
He had always trusted Sister Xiao Wu's words and rarely questioned them.
"And he knows so, so many things. You'll understand later."
"Hmm... he's here."
Xiao Wu looked up.
Dawn had already arrived.
A figure was approaching at tremendous speed from the distant horizon.
Although she had never seen Lin Xiao use the Wind-Thunder Twin Wings, she could still sense that it was his aura.
Sure enough, she confirmed it when he came into view.
Lin Xiao stopped in midair, more or less at eye level with Er Ming.
"So this is your younger brother, Er Ming? He certainly looks sturdy."
Lin Xiao acted as though they were already acquainted.
Xiao Wu nodded, while Er Ming remained full of doubts.
"You've told him a few things about me, haven't you?"
One look at Er Ming's attitude told Lin Xiao that Xiao Wu must have said something.
Otherwise, with Er Ming's fiery temper, he would surely have thrown a punch straight at him.
"A few things, like the Heaven-Bestowed Soul Rings."
"I haven't told him the rest yet. It's complicated to explain."
Xiao Wu seemed a little more mature now.
After all, seeing the World Memory Fragment and learning so much had forced her to mature quickly.
Those images still lingered in her mind.
Every time she recalled them, her hair stood on end.
"Excellent. Then let me explain."
Lin Xiao had no intention of hiding these things from Er Ming.
Telling Er Ming the truth would instead earn him the friendship of a hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
Da Ming and Er Ming's friendship was still very important in this era.
Simply telling them the truth could spare them their tragic future.
Living hundred-thousand-year soul beasts would be an enormous help to him.
Lin Xiao explained everything then and there.
He once again said that he had come from the future, then took out the World Memory Fragments.
He brought out both Ah Yin's and Xiao Wu's World Memory Fragments.
Er Ming's head was already buzzing as he listened to the explanation.
He was rather simple-minded and truly struggled to understand these things.
But after watching the images in the World Memory Fragments, he immediately flew into a rage.
"Tang San! I'll beat him to death!"
From what the images showed, Sister Xiao Wu had been schemed against by Tang San.
A damned human had actually plotted against his Sister Xiao Wu?
Then he would kill the human first and eliminate that hidden danger.
Lin Xiao shook his head slightly and said, "We can't kill him yet. He still has some use."
"Killing Tang San could cause unnecessary trouble."
"And the threat of the Clear Sky Sect is still there!"
This explanation calmed Er Ming down a little.
Indeed, the Clear Sky Sect was a major problem.
And there was Tang Hao, too.
He was powerful and already possessed a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring.
If they truly fought, Er Ming might not be his match.
Even Da Ming might not be able to overpower him.
"Then what should we do now?"
Er Ming felt deflated.
Could he only watch helplessly, unable to change anything?
Or would he have to hide at the Lake of Life and never come out again?
For him, the Forest King, that would be unbearable, no different from torture.
"Don't worry. Of course I have a way."
"I'm from the future. I know every opportunity Tang San will encounter."
"As long as I snatch those opportunities before he can, Tang San won't be able to grow strong, and he won't be a threat to you."
Lin Xiao's stance was clear.
Snatch Tang San's opportunities first!
Hundred Thousand Year Soul Rings and soul bones, immortal herbs, the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud, and so on.
All of them were crucial opportunities that belonged to Tang San.
Tang San's later growth was inextricably tied to these things.
As long as Lin Xiao seized them first, even if Tang San was the protagonist, he could only fade into the crowd.
Er Ming stared at Lin Xiao for a long while.
Even if a rank-thirty human soul master came from the future, he might not have the ability to change fate, right?
After all, there were still the powerful Clear Sky Sect and the Clear Sky Douluo.
Lin Xiao didn't want to explain too much.
His immediate priority was to increase his strength.
It was time to arrange for his Third Soul Ring!
"Xiao Wu, Er Ming, guard me. My Heaven-Bestowed Soul Ring is coming."
As his words fell, golden light flashed in the sky.
A golden beam descended, enveloping Lin Xiao's body with the radiant majesty of Heaven.
"This thing... a Heaven-Bestowed Soul Ring?"
Er Ming tilted his head, curious about the beam of light.
He extended a finger to poke it.
"Don't..."
Xiao Wu called out, but it was already too late. Er Ming's finger had touched the beam.
Boom!!!
With a thunderous crash, Er Ming's massive body suddenly went flying, hurled away by the power within the beam.
He flew a full hundred meters before coming to a stop, landing on his backside and crushing quite a few trees.
Still dazed after being flung away, Er Ming looked left and right, lingering fear in his heart.
Xiao Wu sighed and said, "The beam of a Heaven-Bestowed Soul Ring can't be touched or destroyed."
"Even the strongest Titled Douluo couldn't break it. They'd only be hurt by the backlash."
"Sister Xiao Wu, why didn't you say so sooner..."
Er Ming felt terribly wronged.
He had only been curious.
Still, the Heaven-Bestowed Soul Ring before him now proved what Lin Xiao had said earlier.
He truly didn't need to hunt soul beasts for his soul rings.
Once he reached the required rank, Heaven would naturally grant him a soul ring.
Thus, Lin Xiao could become friends with the Soul Beast Clan-or at least become his friend.
Lin Xiao had already begun absorbing his third soul ring.
His Third Soul Ring was at the thirty-thousand-year level.
Absorbing it would take a little time.
But there would be no pain at all.
About five minutes later, Lin Xiao opened his eyes, and his Third Soul Ring had already risen beneath his feet.