Sunset Forest

Huo Yuhao quietly listened to Electrolux's story, just as Electrolux had quietly listened to him earlier.

Electrolux's story continued. "I locked myself away and didn't let the undead wage war again. I had lost my parents, friendship, and love; everything I had worked for had come to nothing. After that, I became immersed in knowledge to help me forget it all. Throughout those long years, the only one I could speak to was the Goddess of Light. She alone was willing to listen to the voice of a sinner like me. Then I fell into a deep sleep. I hoped someone would pass on my legacy. This knowledge was the only thing I could give that world. After who knows how long, a young woman came before me carrying a young man on her back. Both of them were covered in wounds, and the young man's heart had even been crushed. Later, they passed my test. I brought the young man back to life and passed my power on to them. You could say they were your senior brother and sister, though neither of them was willing to accept my necromancy. Afterward, I ended my own life. The undead disappeared from the outside world, but the Demon Race arrived. Humanity huddled in a corner of the continent and endured one war after another. I bore some responsibility for all of it."

Electrolux looked seriously at Huo Yuhao and said, "In a sense, you could say I accomplished nothing."

"Teacher, I..."

Electrolux raised a hand to stop Huo Yuhao. "Don't comfort me. Only when people truly recognize right and wrong can they prevent mistakes from happening again. Before that, they must admit their mistakes. A mistake is a mistake. There's no need to make excuses or comfort me. You're luckier than I was; you've been given the chance to start over. So don't make that kind of mistake again. Also, just call me Elder Yi."

"Yes, Elder Yi. I understand," Huo Yuhao said earnestly.

"Go on out. After listening to me ramble for so long, your friends outside must be worried. I also need to take a look at the Gold of Life in your body. Its state is very strange."

After bidding farewell to Elder Yi, Huo Yuhao left the Sea of Consciousness. Before then, everyone outside had watched him remain motionless, at a loss about what to do. Tian Meng had wanted to ask what was wrong with Huo Yuhao, but Evil Lord stopped him.

"Don't worry, everyone. He's probably catching up with an old friend." As he spoke, Evil Lord found a place to sit down and told everyone else to find somewhere to sit and rest, too.

When Huo Yuhao opened his eyes, this was the scene he saw: Raven and Wolf King were eating some fruit they had picked somewhere; Li Ya was teaching A Ling to sing; A-Tai was arm-wrestling Xiao Bai; Ice Empress and Snow Empress sat together chatting and laughing; Brother Sky Dream had found a shady spot beneath a tree to sleep; and Evil Lord sat on the ground, gazing at the sky.

"I'm back, everyone," Huo Yuhao said with a smile.

"Is it over?" Evil Lord asked as he looked at Huo Yuhao. At the same time, he couldn't help thinking that more and more people were returning now.

Huo Yuhao nodded. Evil Lord stood up and said, "Then everyone, get ready to set out."

Raven ate the rest of the fruit in one bite. Ice Empress punched Tian Meng on the head to wake him up.

Only then did Evil Lord think to turn and ask Huo Yuhao, "By the way, where are we going next?"

"To Sunset Forest. We're going to the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to pick up Octagonal," Huo Yuhao said firmly.

After sensing that the spiritual fluctuation had vanished, Di Tian let out a sigh of relief as he lay in his residence. This time, it's finally really over, right? he thought. With Evil Lord and the others arriving over the past few days, Di Tian felt like he was about to die of exhaustion.

Sunset Forest, the second-largest Soul Beast forest within the Heaven Dou Empire, lay near Heaven Dou City. It was an important Soul Ring hunting ground for the empire's capital and the surrounding provinces. The terrain there was complex and uneven. The warm, humid climate made the trees grow exceptionally tall, and people could easily lose their way among them.

Huo Yuhao and the others flew above Sunset Forest. Along the way, they had relied on Evil Lord's powerful spiritual power to conceal themselves, avoiding detection by some high-ranking Soul Masters.

Drawing on his memories, Huo Yuhao led everyone through the air toward the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

Everyone stopped in front of the Poison Miasma surrounding the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. Huo Yuhao turned and said to them, "Wait here for a while. I'll go scout ahead. After all, I'm human, so if I run into Dugu Bo, I can at least explain things to him. If Dugu Bo sees all of you and then runs away, we might be exposed directly to human society. Of course, if Dugu Bo really attacks and I can't handle him, then come out and help me."

"Why be afraid of that Dugu Bo? Why not just go in and beat him up?" Ice Empress asked, puzzled.

Huo Yuhao explained, "The main thing is, if so many of us go in and Dugu Bo sees us, he might realize things look bad and sneak away. Besides, I'd rather avoid fighting if I can. Right now, everyone's presence is concealed by Evil Lord. High-ranking Soul Masters could still detect us if they got close. Then you wouldn't be able to move around like this anymore, and you'd have to worry every day that a large number of Soul Masters might come attack us."

Evil Lord said, "All right, go by yourself. If you really run into danger, everyone will step in." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Good. I'll go in first." After speaking, Huo Yuhao put on the Ice Extreme God of War Armor, then activated his Snow Maiden Martial Soul to suppress the Poison Miasma ahead as he entered the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well.

After passing through the Poison Miasma, a familiar scene came into view. The plants were flourishing, with all kinds of rare vegetation growing there, including some Immortal Herbs. A spring lay in the middle, its extremely cold and intensely hot waters giving off a hazy mist. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the air was intoxicating.

Huo Yuhao walked slowly, observing his surroundings. Dugu Bo was nowhere to be seen, and Huo Yuhao gradually let down his guard. Looking at everything here, he couldn't help feeling that things had changed while the people who had once been there were gone. Seeing the Aromatic Silk Beauty on the ground, he remembered that he had once come here too, but some people were no longer around. Huo Yuhao gently touched the Aromatic Silk Beauty's petals, but there was no response.

"Youyou, have you not gained sentience either? Is Octagonal the same?" Huo Yuhao murmured to himself.

He walked toward the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass growing beside the extremely cold spring. Huo Yuhao, with his Snow Maiden Martial Soul activated, wasn't afraid of the cold. As he crouched beside it and reached out to touch the Octagonal Mysterious Ice Grass, the aura of a Titled Douluo came flying from afar, moving very fast.

In the space of two breaths, the Titled Douluo had flown right in front of Huo Yuhao. Dugu Bo was enduring the poison's corrosive effects on his body. The intense pain left him emotionally unstable. When he discovered a stranger in his medicinal garden, his unstable emotions instinctively found an outlet. Dugu Bo, tormented by the poison, only wanted to beat this outsider to death and vent his suffering.

Dugu Bo, his hair a deep shade of green, stood before Huo Yuhao with an angry expression. Huo Yuhao had just started to stand up and explain when he heard Dugu Bo's furious voice. "Little girl, you dare come in here and steal things at such a young age? I'll make sure you die without a burial place today!" As he spoke, Dugu Bo's poisonous miasma swept toward Huo Yuhao.