The Strange Black Egg and Another Encounter with Tang San

"Who are you?!"

Lu Mingzi went on guard. He instinctively held his breath and scanned both sides.

The deep woods were oppressively dark and frighteningly quiet, steeped in an eerie air. A bone-piercing chill hung in the air.

"Stop hiding and come out!"

He shouted, his body taut to the limit. Soul Power surged outward like a flood bursting through a dam, sweeping across every inch of the forest.

He couldn't detect a trace of anyone's presence!

If I can't even find where the voice is coming from, then it's either a Soul Beast or Soul Master skilled at concealment, or someone stronger than a Soul Emperor. Whichever it is, I can't handle them.

Lu Mingzi clenched his fists, cold sweat pouring down his forehead. Three Soul Rings slowly appeared around him: one yellow and two purple.

"You're still too weak... too weak. You can't even compare to this world's Six-Winged Angel. How are you supposed to join with her and obtain the power of yang?"

The strange voice sounded again. Dizziness seized Lu Mingzi, followed by pain so sharp his head felt ready to burst.

That voice... was it inside my head?

He immediately sat cross-legged, circulated the Soul Power within him, and examined his Spiritual Sea.

His Spiritual Sea stretched vast and boundless, like an ocean without end. Waves beat against its borders, and an oval object floated at its center.

"This... looks like an egg?"

Lu Mingzi drew closer. The oval object was a black egg.

The voice he had heard came from inside it.

"Who are you? Why are you in my Consciousness Sea?"

Lu Mingzi stood before the black egg, his expression grave.

But the egg gave no answer. It was as if it had fallen asleep, without the slightest movement.

Is it dead?

No. It's probably sleeping.

If it can speak, there must be something alive inside. It's likely still hatching.

He paced around the black egg, studying it closely.

Its surface was perfectly smooth, without a single flaw. He could even see his reflection in the shell.

He placed a hand on it. The instant his fingers touched the shell, pain stabbed through his palm, and he snatched his hand back.

What is this thing? It's been lying dormant in my Spiritual Sea all this time. No matter what I do, it stays asleep. I should leave for now. I won't find a way to talk to it anytime soon. I'll have to ask Senior Qian Daoliu.

Lu Mingzi tried to make the egg speak, but whatever he did, it remained silent.

Boom!

Without warning, the egg shuddered. Black gas seeped from its shell, spread rapidly, and invaded his Spiritual Sea.

Fuck, what is this?!

Lu Mingzi felt his skin burning. He dared not stay another moment and left his Spiritual Sea with a thought.

Black Demonic Qi poured steadily from his pores, and strange flames appeared on both his arms.

The flames spread across his body, mingling with the Demonic Qi. The searing pain was almost unbearable.

"What the hell is this thing?!"

Lu Mingzi gritted his teeth and circulated his Soul Power to suppress the flames and Demonic Qi.

His Soul Power flowed through his body like a clear stream. The flames and Demonic Qi slowly faded.

But strange black markings remained on his arms. He tried several methods, yet none could remove them completely.

This Demonic Qi is fiercely potent. At my level as a Soul Elder, I can't suppress these flames or the Demonic Qi.

Maybe my level is too low to suppress the black markings. I need to find someone to help me.

I remember there's a Spirit Hall Branch in Suotuo City. Its master must be at least a Soul Emperor. With the rank of my token, getting his help shouldn't be hard.

Lu Mingzi changed course and headed for the exit of the Star Dou Great Forest.

He rushed into Suotuo City, charging straight through the streets. The sight of flames rising from his body sent passersby into a panic.

Lu Mingzi paid them no mind and headed straight for Spirit Hall. The fire on his body was growing stronger. He had to find a way to suppress it.

"What is that?"

Two young guards stood before Spirit Hall's golden gates. One looked up and saw a burning figure charging toward them.

The guards' eyes widened. They raised their weapons with trembling hands, but when they saw the token in Lu Mingzi's hand, they immediately stepped aside.

"Who dares cause trouble in my Spirit Hall?"

A figure flew out of Spirit Hall and landed at the gates in an instant, blocking his path.

"What... are you?"

The man was the master of the Spirit Hall Branch, a Soul Emperor. Disbelief filled his face at the sight before him.

A humanoid figure stood before him, black flames engulfing its entire body.

He couldn't even see its face.

"Senior, I need you to help me suppress these flames."

Lu Mingzi wasted no words. He showed his token and made his request.

"All right."

The branch master nodded solemnly. Without wasting time, he told Lu Mingzi to sit down where he was.

Lu Mingzi sat cross-legged in the center of the square. The branch master sat behind him and worked to suppress the flames.

Using every means at his disposal, the branch master forcibly subdued the black flames on Lu Mingzi's body.

Only then could he see the burning figure's face. It belonged to a young man with sword-like brows and bright eyes.

"Senior, can you suppress these too?"

Lu Mingzi turned and showed him both arms, covered in black markings.

"I just tried. It didn't work."

The branch master shook his head.

"Sorry for the trouble, Senior. I live in Suotuo City, so perhaps we could take this chance to get acquainted."

Grateful, Lu Mingzi gave his name, but nothing more.

"Haha, no need to be so formal. The rank of your token is astonishingly high, young Brother Lu. My name is Huang Feng. Just call me Uncle Feng."

Huang Feng replied warmly, stroking his beard.

"All right, Uncle Feng. I need you to send a letter for me. It's addressed to Prince Xue Qinghe of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family."

Lu Mingzi's expression turned grave. His condition was unstable, and he needed Qian Renxue's help.

Qian Daoliu was probably the only person who knew how to deal with these black markings, but he was not someone just anyone could meet.

Only by contacting Qian Renxue first could Lu Mingzi reach Qian Daoliu.

He could go directly to Douluo Hall, but that would be too discourteous.

Besides, Qian Renxue was his master. He needed to tell her about the black markings.

"No problem, young Brother Lu. I'll have someone deliver the letter right away."

The branch master nodded and promptly sent someone to the imperial family with the letter.

That should do it.

Lu Mingzi lowered his head and looked at the strange black markings on his arms. Though they had been suppressed,

Demonic Qi still seeped from them.

The Demonic Qi seemed capable of eroding a person's mind, making them violently irritable and driving them into a frenzy of slaughter.

It was also highly aggressive, able to double the force of every attack its wielder made. It was a double-edged sword.

But Lu Mingzi had no intention of using it. He was only a Soul Elder and could not suppress the Demonic Qi.

If he lost control and fell to its influence, he didn't know whether anyone could bring him back.

The Demonic Qi came from that black egg. Maybe only Senior Qian Daoliu can tell me what it is.

Lu Mingzi bade the branch master farewell and left Spirit Hall, still worrying about the black markings as he walked.

He noticed passersby glancing back at him. Only then did he realize

that his clothes were in tatters and his long black hair spilled down like a waterfall. At a glance, he looked like a beggar from the street.

Ahead, a young man and woman approached, chatting at ease until they spotted the beggar-like Lu Mingzi.

The three met one another's eyes. The young man glared at Lu Mingzi with open hostility.

"It's you! The one who injured my teacher six years ago?"

The speaker was a young man in blue with short black hair. He was Tang San, the protagonist of the original story!