Within the Sea of Consciousness, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had now successfully merged into it and immediately molded a spiritual body for himself.
The entire Sea of Consciousness was not particularly large. A brief sweep of his senses revealed its full extent.
First was this gray cloud, which had fallen silent immediately after entering, without the slightest movement.
"Hmph, big sis will settle the score with you later! Now, let me see-"
Then the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm discovered that a man and a woman were also sizing him up.
"Xiao Zi, is this...?"
"He seems to be one of the Soul Spirits from back then. I was wondering about that. So this must have been when that child gained help, then went on to grow step by step."
"That gray cloud seems to be a fragment of Divine Sense. And I can sense that its owner was extremely powerful in life."
The Goddess of Life tried probing it with her Divine Sense and discovered both light and undead attributes. Moreover, the system of power contained within it seemed different from the one here.
"It seems our earlier guess was right. With such opportunities, together with that faint aura of destiny about him, little Yuhao may well be the child of this continental plane."
But logically, as the child of the plane, why would he later come to the Divine Realm to serve as the God of Emotion?
Watching the two of them look at him while muttering about who knew what, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm could no longer hold back and spoke first.
"Hey, you two, what turf are you from?"
The God of Destruction stared blankly at the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm before him. Even the Sea God would never speak to him in that tone. This little worm...
The God of Destruction said nothing, merely releasing a trace of his divine essence.
At once, a wave of destructive pressure rushed straight at the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm.
"Ah, my divine lord, I'm sorry! I had eyes but failed to recognize a god!"
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm recognized the aura of a deity. It was precisely the person who had ascended to godhood ten thousand years ago who had given him the idea of nurturing a god.
And now, this aura seemed even more terrifying than that one from ten thousand years ago!
If this was not a god, what was?
Why hadn't this child told him beforehand that these two were inside him?
"Xiao Zi, withdraw your power. Look how badly you've frightened this child."
"Hmph."
Seeing this, the God of Destruction withdrew his aura.
"M-my divine lords, why have you chosen this child?"
"This is Huo Yuhao. We intend to choose him as our successor. We were asleep before, but then you and that gray cloud barged in."
"We never expected you to contain such immense spiritual power. While you were merging with that child, we took the opportunity to recover somewhat as well."
The God of Destruction paused, then continued, "Though we won't remain awake for long, we'll leave these things with you. Once my disciple has grown a little more, pass them on to him for us. Don't disappoint us."
With that, a ball of light appeared in the hands of the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life, and they sent it into Tian Meng's body.
"Finally... one more thing. Nurture Huo Yuhao properly... and his values, too..."
With that, the two vanished again.
Looking at the empty space before him, Tian Meng said solemnly, "Rest assured. I, Tian Meng, will not fail this mission!"
The Sea of Consciousness grew peaceful again. Tian Meng took only a second to process the information before popping the champagne.
"Wonderful! It's in the bag! To think I, Tian Meng, would see this day! With trump cards like these, won't going to discuss things with Bingbing be as easy as turning my hand? Hehehe... Right, I also need to nurture his values. Speaking of which, what are human values like...?"
His consciousness seemed submerged beneath icy water, drifting in a haze for a long time. Huo Yuhao's fingertips first trembled slightly, and sluggish sensation slowly returned through his limbs.
The first thing to reach his ears was the soft rustle of the evening breeze passing through the forest's branches and leaves, along with a few low beast cries in the distance, reminding him that he was still in the Star Dou Great Forest.
The setting sun sank at the edge of the sea of trees, and the clouds filling the sky melted into a thick orange-red.
"Right, that Soul Beast."
"Don't call me a Soul Beast. I have a name, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm! From now on, just call me Sister Tian Meng."
A voice came from his Sea of Consciousness. Huo Yuhao closed his eyes to sense it and discovered that the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had already appeared within his Sea of Consciousness.
"Soul... Sister Tian Meng? Since you're a Million-Year Soul Beast, why did you choose me?"
"Of course it was because I recognized your extraordinary spirit and talent. Besides, you have a Spirit System Martial Soul, which makes you a perfect match for me."
"The fellow I chose before seemed to be what you humans call a Titled Douluo. He was quite strong, too, but what a useless fool. I burst him apart in an instant. He never even saw my true body. He couldn't withstand so much as the impact of my spiritual power."
"Also, try showing your First Soul Ring."
I have a Soul Ring now?
Full of questions, Huo Yuhao merely willed it, and a purple Soul Ring instantly appeared beside him.
"A thousand years?"
"Hehe, that's what makes big sis so amazing. Though your Soul Ring is currently a thousand-year one, that only means that, right now, the most you can withstand is absorbing a Thousand-Year Soul Ring. As your strength improves later, this Soul Ring will keep evolving along with it."
"Not only that, the power I have within you can also evolve every Soul Ring you absorb later into a hundred-thousand-year one!"
"Wow, you're amazing, Sister Tian Meng!"
"You haven't seen anything yet. Listen carefully. Not only that, my First Soul Ring will grant you four Soul Skills! And as a Wisdom Soul Ring, although I have no Soul Bone to give you, I've added a new Martial Soul for you."
"A Martial Soul?"
"That's right. The Martial Soul I've granted you is ice, but at present, it only has an attribute, not a form. Only when you absorb your first ice-attribute Soul Ring will this Martial Soul take shape."
"Moreover, whatever Soul Beast you absorb that Soul Ring from will become your Second Martial Soul. In other words, your Second Martial Soul will definitely be a Beast Martial Soul. There's no need to worry about that. I've already worked it out for you."
"I see."
Although Huo Yuhao did not quite understand, he still nodded thoughtfully.
"Also, your master woke up just now and gave me two things. Once you've grown, I'll pass them straight on to you."
"Master?!"
He had never expected his master and his master's wife to have awakened as well. Unfortunately, he had been unconscious and had not seen them.
It was all right. His mother had taught him that no one could ascend to heaven in a single step. Only by leaving one solid footprint after another, relying on his own diligence and effort, would he have a chance to rise above others.
He, Huo Yuhao, would definitely succeed!
Huo Yuhao settled down to meditate and discovered that his spiritual power was many times stronger than before, though he did not know by how much. His physique was stronger than before as well.
The Azure Ruins Eye lit up, and Huo Yuhao began using his right eye to stabilize himself.
In the distance, a white figure stood on a tree branch. Though the color was conspicuous, the figure seemed impossible to detect.
That person was watching the meditating Huo Yuhao with a thoughtful expression.
"It feels like the aura of the God of Life..."
Before you continue