Star Dou Great Forest, the Great Ferocious Land.
All the Ferocious Beasts sensed an unmistakably familiar aura at the same time, ancient and overbearing.
"It's our sovereign! Our sovereign has awakened!"
Moments later, several figures appeared before the Lake of Life.
Di Tian, Bi Ji, Zi JI, the Myriad Demon King, Xiong Jun, and the Scarlet King.
All the Ferocious Beasts had gathered.
Xiong Jun was the first to lose patience:
"Di Tian, our sovereign has emerged from seclusion, yet you're taking it remarkably calmly."
"If our sovereign has emerged, she must have important business. We need only obey her commands."
Xiong Jun snorted:
"Obey? Since when were you so obedient, Di Tian? That certainly wasn't your attitude before our sovereign went into slumber."
Di Tian turned, fixing his golden, slit-pupiled eyes on Xiong Jun:
"Xiong Jun, what are you implying?"
"Nothing. I just think that you've managed everything in Star Dou Great Forest throughout our sovereign's long slumber. Now that she's awake, shouldn't you hand over those responsibilities?"
All three of the Scarlet King's heads turned at once:
"Xiong Jun, you make it sound as though you'd do such a fine job yourself."
"Shut your dog mouths, Scarlet King!"
Xiong Jun slapped the Scarlet King's shoulder, sending him staggering:
Di Tian took a step forward:
"Xiong Jun, our sovereign hasn't even appeared yet, and you're already scrambling for power?"
"Who's scrambling for power? I'm looking out for our sovereign! Your word has been law in Star Dou Great Forest for so many years, Di Tian. Who knows whether you still acknowledge her as your sovereign?"
Di Tian's expression grew steadily colder, and black clouds began gathering overhead.
Just then, the surface of the Lake of Life burst open.
A silver figure shot up from the depths into the sky.
Silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, and purple eyes shone like stars.
She hovered in midair, looking down upon the Ferocious Beasts below without a trace of warmth in her eyes.
Xiong Jun was instantly too frightened to utter another word.
Seeing the Silver Dragon King, Di Tian immediately dropped to one knee:
"Greetings, Sovereign!"
The other Ferocious Beasts knelt in turn.
Xiong Jun knelt too, faster than anyone else.
The Silver Dragon King slowly descended, coming to stand on the shore of the Lake of Life.
Her gaze, commanding without anger, swept over the Ferocious Beasts before her before finally settling on Xiong Jun:
"Xiong Jun, I heard everything you just said."
Xiong Jun shuddered all over, pressing his enormous bear head against the ground.
"Sovereign, I... I just spoke without thinking..."
"Rise."
Xiong Jun froze for a moment, then raised his head.
The Silver Dragon King had already withdrawn her gaze.
"All of you, rise."
The Ferocious Beasts stood, hardly daring to breathe.
Di Tian stepped forward and stood with his head bowed.
"Your emergence is a blessing to us all, Sovereign. What commands do you have for us on this occasion?"
The Silver Dragon King nodded:
"Within two days, gather every Soul Beast in Star Dou Great Forest over ten thousand years old here."
"Over ten thousand years old... every one of them?"
"Yes, every one. Those who fail to come shall be killed!"
That single word, "killed," frightened Di Tian and the others into dropping to one knee again:
"Your command will be obeyed!"
The Silver Dragon King's gaze turned to Bi Ji and Zi JI:
"Bi Ji, Zi JI, remain here. I have another important task for you."
Di Tian raised his head to glance at the Silver Dragon King, then turned to the other Ferocious Beasts:
"Everyone else, depart immediately."
"Yes!"
Di Tian left with Xiong Jun, the Scarlet King, and the Myriad Demon King.
Only after they had gone a considerable distance did Xiong Jun dare look back, lowering his voice as he spoke to the Scarlet King:
"Our sovereign seems even more terrifying than before she went into slumber."
All three of the Scarlet King's heads shrank back, their mouths opening and tongues flicking out:
"You idiot, you've only just realized?"
Only the Silver Dragon King, Bi Ji, and Zi JI remained in the clearing beside the lake.
Bi Ji asked gently:
"Sovereign, what instructions do you have for the two of us?"
The Silver Dragon King fell silent for a moment, then pointed in a direction:
"Go to Star Lake."
Bi Ji paused in surprise.
"Star Lake? Sovereign, only the Sky Azure Bull Python and the Titan Giant Ape live there. Are you planning to name them Ferocious Beasts?..."
The Silver Dragon King shook her head. "No. I'm sending you there for a person."
"A person?"
Bi Ji was even more puzzled.
Not the Sky Azure Bull Python or the Titan Giant Ape, but a person?
Their sovereign had only just awakened from her slumber. How could she know a human?
"His name is Shi Meng."
Zi JI frowned:
"Sovereign, are you certain he's a human?"
The Silver Dragon King glanced at Zi JI:
"He's different."
Those two simple words made the Silver Dragon King's stance clear.
Since her sovereign had said so, Zi JI should ask no more questions and carry out her orders.
Bi Ji did not press further either, merely bowing slightly:
"I understand. We'll find him."
"Find him, then follow him secretly until I arrive."
After Bi Ji and Zi JI accepted their orders and departed.
The Silver Dragon King was left alone in the clearing.
She slowly closed her eyes, and her immense spiritual power swept beyond Star Dou Great Forest, settling upon a small border city.
That was where she would first meet him in the future.
Luoxing City.
This was where I first met him.
Back then, I crouched before a stall selling flatbread, my stomach aching with hunger. But I dared not buy any, because I had neither money nor power.
I wore tattered clothes then, with no idea who I was, where I had come from, or where I should go. All I could do was wander alone through this small human city.
Then he appeared, like an angel sent down from heaven.
He bought a whole flatbread, broke it in two, and offered me half.
I looked at the bread in his hand, sorely tempted, but pulled my hand back.
I didn't dare eat it, but he didn't rush me. He simply set the bread before me, then turned and left.
I stared blankly at his retreating figure. Only after a long while did I pick up that half of the bread and chase after him.
He had gone a long way. I followed him barefoot, the soles of my feet rubbed bloody, not daring to stop.
He turned and asked who I was and where I had come from, but I couldn't answer any of his questions.
"You can stay with me for now, then."
"Me?"
"Yes. As for a name..."
He glanced at me and thought for a moment before saying, "Then I'll call you Na'er."
Na'er.
That was my first name.
"My name is Shi Meng. I'm a traveler roaming the four corners of the world. If you come with me, you'll have to dine in the wind and sleep beneath the open sky, walk a long way, and face all sorts of dangers. Aren't you afraid?"
"Na'er isn't afraid."
My gaze was resolute. Dining in the wind and sleeping beneath the open sky was better than wandering alone. At least I would have something to eat.
"All right, then. Come with me."
And so I followed him across mountains and rivers, through towns and villages...
Following him, I encountered so many people and so many things.
When he bandaged the wounds of an injured Soul Beast beside the road, I crouched nearby and watched, not understanding why he would do such a thing.
When he stood up for commoners oppressed by nobles, I stood outside the crowd, likewise unable to understand why he would do such a thing.
But the more I saw, the more I gradually understood.
"Human Soul Masters slaughter whole swathes of Soul Beasts for a single Soul Ring, while Soul Beasts attack villages and devour commoners for food..."
"Hatred grows like a snowball, rolling ever larger, yet the two great empires and the major sects watch coldly from the sidelines, doing nothing."
"Behind vermilion gates, wine and meat rot; by the roadside lie the bones of those frozen to death."
"That's just how wretched this world is."
Before you continue