Two years later.
Early in the morning in Bluestone Village, a boy was throwing punches in the old village chief's courtyard.
"Bang!"
The boy slammed a powerful punch into a boulder the size of a millstone in the courtyard.
A series of sharp cracks rang out, and the boulder shattered, blasted into a heap of rubble.
"Whew!" Luo Chen withdrew his fist and let out a long breath of stale air, his sharp gaze fixed on his rough hands.
"Over these past two years, I practiced the Scorpion Emperor Body Tempering Technique during the day and Twin Emperor Soul Guidance at night, while constantly honing my Soul Power. I finally cultivated my Soul Power to rank 20, and successfully broke through to the introductory stage of the Scorpion Emperor Body Tempering Technique!"
By now, he had not only honed his Nine Poison Scorpion Hook Sword to the point of pure mastery, but his breakthrough to the introductory stage of the Scorpion Emperor Body Tempering Technique had also tripled his reaction speed and strength. He could lift boulders with his bare hands, and even his muscles and skin had become as hard as iron. Ordinary blades could not harm him in the slightest.
At that moment, beneath the rising sun, all the skin on Luo Chen's body shone with a faint, inky sheen, while traces of cold flowed along the contours of his muscles.
This was the mark of the Scorpion Emperor Body Tempering Technique's introductory stage-the initial success of tempering the body with potent poison.
If his skin had previously only carried a faint layer of toxins that caused mild numbness upon contact, the toxins on his body had now become poison in the truest sense.
If Luo Chen did not detoxify someone who touched him in time, their bodily functions would begin weakening within three days, until they finally suffered multiple organ failure throughout their body and died a horrible death.
Just then, the old village chief's voice came from inside the house. "Luo Chen, stop throwing punches and come in for breakfast!"
"Got it!" After answering, Luo Chen put on the gloves lying on the ground, bent down, and went inside.
At the dining table, the old village chief's sharp eyes stared fixedly at Luo Chen.
Startled by this, Luo Chen carefully checked his posture as he ate.
I'm not crossing my legs, and I'm not smacking my lips... Luo Chen silently lowered his head. Why is this old man looking at me like that?
"Luo Chen!" The old village chief took a sip of porridge and said evenly, "How much longer are you planning to stay at home?"
"I remember you broke through to rank 20 several months ago. Have you decided where to hunt Soul Beasts?"
"Uh..." Luo Chen said evenly, "I'll probably go hunt Soul Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest."
"As long as you have your own plans," the old village chief said. "Tomorrow's an auspicious day. Take the opportunity and set out!"
"Isn't that a little rushed?"
"Rushed?" Before the old village chief had even finished speaking, the feather duster in his hand was already swinging at Luo Chen. "Old Wang next door is already a great-grandfather! If you don't want to cultivate, go on a blind date and give me a grandson to hold!"
"Then I'd better leave tomorrow!" With that, Luo Chen turned and went into his room to pack his belongings.
Late that night, candlelight flickered in the old village chief's room.
Luo Chen sat beside the bed, quietly watching the hunched old man smoke his pipe.
"Old man," Luo Chen said softly.
"If you have something to say, say it. Don't act like some little girl."
"I'm leaving Bluestone Village." Luo Chen took a pouch of Gold Soul Coins from inside his clothes and placed it on the table. "These Gold Soul Coins are the monthly stipends I've received since becoming a Soul Master. Take them, and stop working in the fields."
The old village chief froze for a moment at those words, then waved his hand. "I'm just an old man. There isn't much to spend money on in the countryside."
"You're heading out to hunt Soul Beasts now. Asking people for help, eating, drinking, and relieving yourself all cost money. Keep it yourself!"
Hearing this, Luo Chen knew no amount of persuasion would help.
Over these past two years, every time he tried to give the old man money, the old man had refused with one excuse or another.
At the same time, Luo Chen knew perfectly well that the old man refused to use his Gold Soul Coins because he feared Luo Chen would not have enough to eat or warm enough clothes to wear.
Now, the old man's health was getting worse and worse. Luo Chen feared that no sooner would he leave than the old man would pass away.
For that reason, Luo Chen intended to split these Gold Soul Coins in two, giving half to the old man and the other half to the villagers so they would help look after him.
Having thought this through, Luo Chen stood up and walked toward the door as he said, "All right, let's stop arguing. I have to set out early tomorrow morning. I'm going to bed."
Watching Luo Chen's departing back gradually recede, the old village chief sighed and murmured to himself, "Little Luo, why don't you understand all the care I've put into this?"
"You're still growing. How could you spend all your money on these old bones?"
"With money on you, at least you can buy whatever you want and eat whatever you want when you're out there, without having to be so constrained."
Unfortunately, no one could answer the old village chief.
The night was deep and quiet.
Luo Chen gently pushed open the door and tiptoed into the village chief's room.
He had just made arrangements with the villagers: if they took good care of the old village chief, he would donate one Gold Soul Coin to the village every month for the whole village's use.
Of course, to prevent the villagers from breaking their word, Luo Chen had taken the opportunity to poison them and told them about it.
He was not afraid of the villagers' anger. Instead, he threatened them. "Take good care of the old village chief, and when I return, I'll naturally remove the poison for you. But if you don't take good care of him, our fields happen to be short of carrots."
Seeing the old man's peaceful sleeping face, Luo Chen smiled and placed the other half of the Gold Soul Coins beside him.
"Old man... take care," he whispered. "Wait for me to come back!"
The night was as black as ink, the moonlight like water. Carrying a small bundle on his back, Luo Chen stood at the entrance to Bluestone Village and looked back at the village that had taken him in.
"Just wait. I'll make this village proud of me!"
With that thought, the scorpion tail behind him slowly extended and hooked onto a roadside branch. Using it to launch himself into the air, he vanished into the night like a bolt of black lightning.
The journey from Bluestone Village to the Star Dou Great Forest was long. Even with a carriage traveling day and night, an ordinary Soul Master would need at least two months-but who was Luo Chen?
Using his scorpion tail as a hook and his mental perception as a guide, he leaped and flew swiftly through the woods.
He traveled day and night, picking wild fruit to fill his stomach when hungry, finding a large tree to rest in when tired, and taking a detour whenever he encountered a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
Finally, after a month, he successfully reached the Star Dou Great Forest.
The Star Dou Great Forest was the largest Soul Beast forest on the Douluo Continent, spanning the border between the Star Luo Empire and the Star Dou Empire.
The entire forest was divided into four regions: the outer region, the inner region, the core region, and the forbidden grounds within the core region.
The outer region was home to Soul Beasts ranging from a hundred to 3,000 years old and was relatively safe for Soul Masters. The inner region was inhabited by Soul Beasts between 3,000 and 6,000 years old, and the danger was considerably greater.
As for the core region and the forbidden core region, the map offered little introduction, only a simple notice:
"Remember, when entering the core region, you must remain quiet and bring dried dung from a Soul Beast at least 50,000 years old."
At that moment, Luo Chen stood at the outermost edge of the Star Dou Great Forest. One more step, and he would truly enter it.
Looking at the forest before him, where ancient trees towered into the sky and blotted out the sun, allowing sunlight to spill down only through gaps in the branches and leaves, Luo Chen shouted excitedly, "Star Dou Great Forest, here I come!"