Star Dou Great Forest.
Mixed Zone.
Lin Qian's home.
An invisible ripple swept across the entire forest. Terrifying spiritual power instantly spread for a hundred li in every direction, the formless waves almost condensing into substance.
Even a Titled Douluo powerhouse like Ghost Douluo fell into a brief stupor the moment the spiritual power washed over him.
Spiritual Shock would not cause much destruction, but it could briefly rob living creatures of the ability to think.
At that moment, the entire northern part of Star Dou Great Forest was frighteningly silent.
Only when the phenomenon vanished completely did Ghost Douluo and the others come to their senses and wipe the cold sweat from their foreheads.
"Such powerful spiritual power. Could it be a deity?"
Looking toward the north of Star Dou Great Forest, Ghost Douluo's gaze grew deep, and he naturally thought of their monstrously talented Holy Son.
"Ghost Elder, should we go take a look?"
The gap in their cultivation was too great, and Hu Liena was affected the most. It took her a long while to recover. As soon as she could move again, she sought out Ghost Douluo and proposed her idea.
Without her realizing it, Lin Qian had already occupied part of her thoughts, and he would only grow more important as time passed.
After hearing her suggestion, Ghost Douluo was initially tempted too, but after gauging the distance between the cottage and the site of the incident, he shook his head and rejected it.
"No. The two places are too far apart, and we're close to the Core Area of Star Dou Great Forest. It's far too dangerous!"
"But could Lin Qian be in danger?"
Hu Liena clenched her small hands, her face filled with worry.
In the end, his Soul Power was still his stumbling block. If he had the strength of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao, wouldn't he be able to swagger through the forest without a care? Why would he fear a mere hundred-thousand-year soul beast?
So, despite knowing Lin Qian might be in danger, Ghost Douluo still put the bigger picture first and did not go over. It would be a joke if he failed to save anyone and served himself up on a platter instead.
A dignified Titled Douluo taking a disciple out Soul Hunting, only for the entire party to perish in the forest-he would become a laughingstock if word got out.
Besides, given his boss Bibi Dong's personality, if the worst happened, even if he had crumbled into a handful of dirt, she would still scatter him to the winds!
Ghost Douluo said, "Nana, since His Highness the Holy Son dared to go out alone, he must have prepared beforehand. Honestly, even with my strength, I might not be able to beat him if he went all out.
"So, for your safety and his peace of mind, let's stay right here and wait for him to return, all right?"
His feeble reassurance failed to ease Hu Liena's mind. She gazed north, pressed her palms together, and prayed devoutly.
Please, be safe!
Time turned back a quarter of an hour-fifteen minutes.
After Lin Qian and the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm agreed on a price, they began crossing swords... no, they sprang into action.
As he left the mental space, the ground beneath his feet suddenly trembled without warning. Cracks appeared in the earth two meters ahead, eventually widening into fissures, and golden-white light began shining through them.
The fissure gradually widened, and the air temperature dropped. When the fissure reached its widest, the golden-white light also reached its brightest.
Buzzz-
After a momentary daze, an enormous worm crawled out of the fissure. The way it wriggled made it look just like a maggot-no offense intended, purely a description.
Only now had the two truly met face-to-face.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's true body looked plump and fleshy, measuring one meter wide and a staggering seven meters long!
When he emerged completely, the surrounding temperature dropped to freezing. Even their breaths produced white mist, as though it were winter.
"Hi, little Qian-Qian~"
Seeing daylight again put the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm in an excellent mood, and he took the initiative to greet him.
Lin Qian urged, "If you keep dragging this out, the Silver Dragon King and the others will come looking. Then they'll lock you up, and you'll never see the Ice Empress again!"
Hearing this, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm twisted his enormous head around to glance behind him, his face full of wariness.
Then he turned back and said to Lin Qian, "I'm starting, then. Don't worry, I'll be very gentle. I won't hurt you too much."
Even with the composure of an old dog at the Nascent Soul stage, Lin Qian could barely stand it. He felt insulted.
Who are you looking down on? Whip it out, and let's see whose is bigger!
So he crooked a finger provocatively. "Come and try~"
Buzz!
The moment he finished speaking, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm stretched his head forward and pressed it against Lin Qian's forehead. Ten golden rings flew up in response, descended from above, and slipped around Lin Qian one after another. Then the golden markings vanished, turning into waves of energy that surged into his body.
"Incredible, incredible! This is the first time I've ever seen someone so talented. Are you really only twelve?"
As the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm spoke, he loosened his restraints faster, pouring vast amounts of Soul Power into Lin Qian like a surging tide.
Time trickled by. Soul Power, accompanied by spiritual power, continued pouring into Lin Qian, and the overflowing aftershocks spread outward. These were precisely the tremors Hu Liena and the others had felt.
"Tian Meng... my dear brother... do you want to listen to what you're saying? You're a million-year soul beast, and you're so big! How is a mere Soul Douluo like me supposed to take this?"
Others might not know, but Lin Qian knew perfectly well. In the original story, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm had once found a spiritual-type Titled Douluo to become his ninth Soul Ring. However, the energy in his true body was far too immense, and it was his first sacrifice. One slip in control had swollen that Douluo until his body exploded, leaving him without an intact corpse.
Only because of that Titled Douluo's cautionary example had Tian Meng learned to be more careful during his second sacrifice to Huo Yuhao, cautiously sealing away most of his energy before finally succeeding in the fusion.
Judging by the way he was holding nothing back now, he was clearly treating Lin Qian as that Titled Douluo!
The world was so beautiful, and Lin Qian did not want to die young yet. Clinging to his last breath, he called out, "Seal it, seal it! I can't hold on much longer!"
"Hm?"
Only then did the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, who was rampaging through Lin Qian's body, finally look up. The moment he opened his eyes, his soul nearly fled in fright.
Blood was streaming from Lin Qian's seven orifices. The vast energy battering him left him barely able to stand, swaying on the verge of collapse.
"No! I finally found a human compatible with me! I won't let you kick the bucket!"
Grumbling, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm sped up again. Intense, condensed white light rushed into Lin Qian's body, while his true body gradually became transparent and shrank at the same time.
"Hahahaha! I'm finally free! You bastards who treated me as food, thirty years east of the river, thirty years west-the tides will turn! I'll be back!"
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm let out a triumphant peal of wild laughter, and his previously immense spiritual power contracted at an astonishing speed until it vanished.
With the Soul Ring fully absorbed, the wounds on Lin Qian's body also healed at a terrifying speed. Once the dust of the fusion settled, his vision suddenly went black, and he toppled over stiffly.
The Core Area of Star Dou Great Forest.
The Lake of Life.
When that constant influx of energy disappeared, the enormous beast slumbering at the bottom of the lake finally awoke.
She opened those breathtaking eyes and raised her head slightly, a hint of confusion mingling with her shock-
"Who was it?"