"Bei Bei, hurry! Just ahead!"
"Xiaoya, slow down. That surge of spiritual power was very unusual. We should be cautious."
A handsome boy and a pretty girl hurried through the woods.
The boy had a gentle disposition and refined features, and wore dark blue clothes; the girl was lively and cute, dressed in pink with her hair in a ponytail.
Coming back to his senses, Chen Mo turned toward the voices.
He recognized the two at a glance.
They were none other than Bei Bei and Tang Ya, the ill-fated lovebirds of the declining Tang Sect.
Still, their bitter fate had little to do with him.
Just as Chen Mo was about to beat a hasty retreat and find somewhere deserted to collect his rewards...
Bei Bei and Tang Ya appeared behind him.
"Sorry to bother you, young friend."
"Do you know what caused that disturbance just now?"
Bei Bei asked gently, but his eyes remained fixed on Chen Mo, scrutinizing him with deep wariness.
A moment earlier, he had been helping Tang Ya search for a soul beast suitable for her soul ring.
Then he had suddenly sensed a terrifying fluctuation of power.
They had hurried over immediately.
Chen Mo wanted little to do with them. Pointing at Huo Yuhao, who was still sprawled motionless nearby, he said, "I sensed that fluctuation too and came here to investigate. Perhaps you could ask him."
Bei Bei and Tang Ya looked in the direction Chen Mo indicated.
"That's... little Yuhao!" Tang Ya immediately recognized the person lying on the ground nearby as Huo Yuhao, who had treated them to grilled fish not long ago.
She hurried over and lifted Huo Yuhao into her arms. Seeing blood flowing from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth, Tang Ya shot Chen Mo a hostile look. "Were you the one who hurt little Yuhao like this?"
"It had nothing to do with me. He was already lying there when I arrived."
"If there's nothing else, I'll be going."
With that, Chen Mo turned to leave.
Bei Bei darted in front of Chen Mo, blocking his path, and said with a smile, "If this has nothing to do with you, young friend, why leave in such a hurry? Besides, the Star Dou Great Forest is fraught with danger, and you're alone. Encountering a soul beast on the way could be very dangerous. Since fate brought us together, why not wait until our young friend Yuhao wakes up, then travel with us?"
"Oh?"
"So you've decided I'm the one who injured that kid?"
Chen Mo laid bare the meaning behind Bei Bei's words.
Fate brought us together?
Fate, my ass!
He certainly made it sound nice.
In truth, he clearly wanted to keep Chen Mo here until Huo Yuhao woke up and could explain what had happened.
"You said that yourself, young friend. I implied no such thing."
"I was merely concerned for your safety, which is why I sincerely invited you to travel with us. Of course, if you refuse my goodwill, I'll have no choice but to insist."
Even after Chen Mo saw through his little scheme, Bei Bei showed no embarrassment. He still smiled, though his smile now carried a hint of hostility, and the right hand behind his back was ready to strike at any moment.
"I'm rather curious how you intend to stop me." Chen Mo's gaze sharpened.
Wasn't he just a level-30 Soul Grandmaster, with a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul that possessed a trace of the Radiant Sacred Dragon?
Then let's fight. Who's afraid of whom!
Just as the two stood with swords drawn and bows taut, ready to clash, Huo Yuhao finished listening to the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's round of bragging in his Sea of Consciousness and was kicked out.
Opening his eyes, he saw the familiar Tang Ya, as well as Bei Bei confronting an unfamiliar boy nearby. "Sister Xiaoya, Brother Bei Bei, what are you doing here?"
"Little Yuhao! You're finally awake!"
"You scared me half to death! How are you feeling? How are your injuries?"
"Did this person hurt you? Tell me, and I'll have Bei Bei stand up for you!" Tang Ya showered Huo Yuhao with concern the moment he woke.
Huo Yuhao quickly shook his head and explained that his injuries had come from fighting a Wind Baboon.
"A Wind Baboon?" Bei Bei and Tang Ya glanced at the Wind Baboon's corpse nearby, matching looks of embarrassment appearing on their faces.
They had been so focused on the source of that terrifying power, then jumped to conclusions upon seeing the boy before them and the unconscious Huo Yuhao...
That they had overlooked the Wind Baboon's corpse.
But the meticulous Bei Bei had not forgotten that terrifying fluctuation of power.
He asked Huo Yuhao, "Then, Yuhao, do you know what caused that disturbance just now?"
Seeing how kindly Bei Bei and Tang Ya treated him, and how concerned they were despite having only recently met him...
Huo Yuhao was deeply moved.
He was about to reveal the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's secret on the spot.
Faced with such brainless stupidity, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was speechless and hurriedly warned him, "Idiot! Don't tell anyone about me!"
Huo Yuhao shook his head. "Uh... I'm not really sure either. After killing the Wind Baboon, I passed out."
Hearing that Huo Yuhao knew nothing either, Bei Bei sank into thought.
Tang Ya said, "Enough, Bei Bei. Stop seeing ghosts in every shadow. This is the Star Dou Great Forest. Maybe some high-level soul beast caused that disturbance."
Seeing that neither of them grew suspicious, Huo Yuhao breathed a sigh of relief.
Before he could relax, however, he suddenly sensed someone watching him.
Turning his head, he found it was the boy who had been confronting Bei Bei.
Looking into Chen Mo's eyes, Huo Yuhao felt a surge of panic, as though all his secrets had been laid bare.
At the same time, for some reason, the sight of him filled Huo Yuhao with simmering anger.
As though something had been stolen from him.
Tang Ya looked at Chen Mo, her voice apologetic. "Sorry, we misunderstood just now..."
"Goodbye."
Chen Mo replied coldly and darted away.
"What a cold-hearted guy. Does being handsome make him so special? I hadn't even finished apologizing, and he just left." Tang Ya folded her arms across her chest and huffed.
She had planned to invite Chen Mo to travel with them after apologizing.
And see whether she could sweet-talk him into joining the Tang Sect along the way.
The entire sect had only her and Bei Bei left.
They urgently needed fresh blood to join their ranks.
So they could restore the Tang Sect to the glory it had enjoyed ten thousand years ago.
Suddenly, she glanced at Huo Yuhao and smiled slyly. "Little Yuhao, would you like to join our sect?"
With Tang Ya's coaxing, the Tang Sect Secret Arts, and the entrance-exam exemption Shrek Academy granted the Tang Sect each year...
Huo Yuhao, who was searching for the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's shed husk, chose to join without a second thought after Tang Ya's sales pitch, sweetened by the Tang Sect Secret Arts and the Shrek admission slot.
Afterward, he told the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm that he had not found the husk.
Sky Dream Ice Silkworm: ???
It was all over!
Without the husk, what was he supposed to do about his later plans?
Elsewhere.
"System, begin calculating the rewards!"
Having reached a secluded spot, Chen Mo eagerly began collecting his rewards.
[Calculating mission rewards...] [Rewards issued: physique +10%, spiritual power +15%, special item: the unique Prism Ball!] [Item: the unique Prism Ball] [Quality: ???] [Effect: guarantees a 100% success rate in forming a contract with any soul beast, with no side effects. Comes with a status panel and a healing attribute (the contracted soul beast can recover no matter how severe its injuries!)]
In an instant...
A warm current spread from the crown of his head through every limb and bone, and his mind grew much clearer.
"Ah!"
Chen Mo let out a muffled groan of pleasure.
Although the stat boosts were not particularly large, they were very useful.
Before you continue