Rebirth

In the quiet forest, lush vegetation obscured the distant view. In the stillness, the chirping of insects sounded from time to time. The animals that had been by the pool during the day were gone, and the stars filled the sky just as they did every day, as quiet as ever. But today, a girl knelt by the pool. The cool moonlight fell on her head, and her long white hair hung down her back. When the breeze passed, it swirled like snow from the Far North. Her skin was as white as snow. She had a pair of unforgettable eyes, their blue irises seeming to hold the stars. But now, those beautiful eyes had lost their former radiance.

Everything she had seen before closing her eyes remained vivid before her. She couldn't tell whether it had been "his" illusion or whether her present self was also an illusion, but she would never forget the sight of her mother before she faded away. Her mother's final, loving expression had broken her heart. "Mom, Mom..." she murmured as tears slid from her eyes and finally fell into the water, sending ripples across its surface. Just as "he" had at the age of ten, she had lost her mother once again. She had once again experienced that heart-wrenching sorrow beyond words. She knew that she was real now, and that everything that had come before was real too. She had survived.

She lowered her head and looked at the water. By the moonlight, she could make out her current appearance: long white hair, fair and delicate skin, eyes like stars, and a face seven parts similar to her mother's. She touched her face, looking at features that differed from before. She didn't know how she had survived, nor how her current body had changed from a man's into a woman's, but none of that mattered to her anymore. She had to live on. Those were her mother's final words.

Huo Yuhao calmed herself. She knew this wasn't the time to wallow in self-pity. Huo Yuhao wanted to enter the Sea of Consciousness to see how Brother Sky Dream and the others were doing, but she found that she couldn't get in. "Brother Sky Dream? Snow Empress? Ice Empress..." When Brother Sky Dream and the others didn't respond, Huo Yuhao couldn't help worrying. She tried to activate her Spirit Eyes Martial Soul, but there was still no response. Only then did she take a careful look at her current body. She was completely naked and only a meter tall, looking especially small and weak in the forest. Huo Yuhao looked at her tender hands and felt her bone age. "So my body's only developed to the level of a five-year-old? No wonder I can't activate my Martial Soul."

Since she couldn't use her Martial Soul, Huo Yuhao wondered whether she could use Necromancy. She then recited a spell, but failed because she lacked spiritual power. Seeing that she couldn't use her former abilities or contact Brother Sky Dream, Huo Yuhao had no choice but to face the situation alone.

The forest was quiet and still at night, but danger lurked within it. Huo Yuhao surveyed her surroundings. Even with the moonlight, she couldn't see to the end of the dark forest. She didn't dare travel through it in her current state, so she could only climb a tree and spend the night there. After all, many creatures were active at night, and staying on the ground was far too dangerous.

The night passed without incident. The first rays of morning sunlight fell on Huo Yuhao's face, and she opened her eyes. Even up in the tree, she hadn't dared fall fully asleep all night. She gazed into the distance, hoping to find a way out of the forest. To the west, she saw a plain. After spotting a way out, she checked the area below the tree for danger before climbing down. Huo Yuhao went to the pool and washed her face. Looking at herself without a stitch of clothing, she could only make a grass skirt from whatever she could find nearby to cover herself. Looking at her reflection, Huo Yuhao couldn't help sighing. She hadn't expected to end up in a situation like this, and could only lament life's unpredictable twists and turns.

Huo Yuhao gathered some wild fruit nearby to fill her stomach. As she ate, she considered her current situation. She didn't know where she was. Many of the plants in the surrounding woods were the same as those she remembered from Douluo Continent, which made her think it was very likely she was there. After assessing the situation, she saw that she had many problems of her own: she couldn't enter the Sea of Consciousness, her Martial Soul hadn't awakened, she couldn't use Necromancy, she couldn't sense Brother Sky Dream and the others, and even the Soul Bones she had once possessed no longer responded. If she hadn't been able to control her body freely and without any sense of separation, confirming that it was her own, she would have suspected that she had possessed someone else's body.

After eating the wild fruit, Huo Yuhao decided to leave the forest first and find a place where people lived. She found a wooden stick for protection and set off. In the daytime, the forest offered better visibility, but more dangers also appeared. Huo Yuhao proceeded cautiously. In her current state, she wouldn't be able to handle even an ordinary wild beast.

All along the way, Huo Yuhao remained alert to her surroundings, hiding whenever anything stirred. This slowed her down, but for her, safety was the most important thing. As she walked and stopped, noon arrived. The fatigue from concentrating was far greater than the tiredness in her body. Huo Yuhao had been keeping her mind focused the entire time. Unable to use spiritual power or Brother Sky Dream's Spiritual Detection, she could only rely on sight and hearing to determine whether danger was nearby in this unfamiliar terrain. Staying so focused for a long time was exhausting for her in her current state.

After observing her surroundings, looking up at the sun, and feeling the state of her body, Huo Yuhao decided to rest for a while.

Huo Yuhao sat on the ground with her back against a large tree, eating the wild fruit she had gathered that morning in its shade. She took the opportunity to recover. The midday sunlight streamed down, and though Huo Yuhao rested beneath the tree, she didn't dare let down her guard. The cicadas in the trees called out, accentuating the forest's quiet. In the past, Huo Yuhao would have appreciated the fine weather, but now she never let go of the wooden stick in her hand. Letting down her guard was far too dangerous for her in this forest.

Huo Yuhao was still resting when the cicadas suddenly fell silent in the distance. She immediately climbed the large tree behind her and hid among its dense branches, watching for danger. A few breaths later, she heard running footsteps. She tightened her grip on the wooden stick. Then she saw a black wolf dart out from the bushes. "A Gale Wolf?" Huo Yuhao thought of the name as soon as she saw it. The wolf stopped to rest beneath a tree in front of her. Huo Yuhao saw bloodstains behind it and noted how battered it looked. Clearly, another creature had chased it here. The wolf licked its wounds. There was nothing Huo Yuhao could do but wait in the tree for it to leave.

The wolf didn't rest for long before a tiger burst from the woods. It ran at great speed and, without giving the wolf a chance to react, bit through its neck. The tiger then began devouring the wolf's corpse.

Huo Yuhao watched the whole thing from the tree. All she could do was hide her presence. When she saw a white ring of light rise from the dead wolf, she recognized at a glance that it was a ten-year Soul Ring. Huo Yuhao was certain that she was in Douluo Continent. The wolf was a Gale Wolf, and the tiger was a Shadow Demon Tiger.