Seeing that Ning Yuhao had recovered, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion spoke in a clear female voice that still sounded somewhat young: "I came following the guidance of fate. You are a variable within eternity."
Ning Yuhao had already been released from control. The corners of his mouth rose slightly as he said calmly, "The guidance of fate... Eternity truly is magnificent. Has even a variable like me been woven into its canvas? How very interesting."
"I came here only to break your shackles. I hope to receive my due reward someday."
Ning Yuhao pondered for a moment, took out a Gold Soul Coin, and tossed it over. Once it was caught, he said, "The contract is sealed. This Gold Soul Coin shall bear witness."
After catching the Gold Soul Coin, the black-robed man looked at the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, then at Ning Yuhao, his lips pressed tightly together. He seemed unable to understand what this human and beast were talking about.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion nodded in a humanlike manner. Without saying anything more, she stepped through the spatial rift.
Before leaving, the black-robed man gave the ground beneath Ning Yuhao's feet another curious look, then reminded him, "Once this shield loses the support of my Soul Power, it will disappear soon. Just wait a little while."
On the other side of the rift, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion shook her head vigorously, as though she had just woken up.
The black-robed man said, "You paid too high a price this time. You'll need to rest and recover properly."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion spoke somewhat weakly: "He is a variable, after all. If it truly brings rewards in the future, then it will have been worth it."
Then the black-robed man brought up what they had just said and asked what it all meant.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion shook her head. "I don't know either. To prevent my own will from interfering, I handed myself over entirely to instinct just now."
Seeing this, the black-robed man said no more. The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was the Emperor Auspicious Beast and controlled the power of fate. Naturally, she was beyond his understanding.
"I sensed something underground there just now. Are we simply letting it leave? A lot of Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts are relying on it to cultivate," the black-robed man asked.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion shook her head. "Forget it. It hasn't been easy for him to live this long. Besides, since I didn't say to take it away just now, let it go. This should be part of the variable too."
Inside the purplish-black shield, Ning Yuhao checked himself over and found that he had suffered no harm. Recalling his conversation with the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, he couldn't help feeling as though he had met a kindred spirit.
"Ah, chatting with her was pretty interesting. If she runs into any trouble in the future, I'll lend her a hand. I, the great Tyrant's Eye Wielder, value contracts above all."
While Ning Yuhao waited for the shield to disappear, a voice rang out in his mind without warning: "I've finally met a human with the Mental Attribute! It wasn't easy! Too bad I can't cry, or tears would be streaming down my face!"
Ning Yuhao's eyebrow twitched. "Again?"
The ground began to crack apart. Golden-white light began to shine, and an icy chill seeped out through the cracks as the surrounding temperature began to drop noticeably.
At last, the fissure became a pit, and the source of the golden-white light finally revealed its true appearance.
It was a round, plump-looking head over a meter in diameter. It wriggled as it slowly crawled out, its body well over seven meters long. This was a Soul Beast that looked like a silkworm.
When Ning Yuhao saw the Soul Beast in its entirety, even the smile at the corners of his mouth began to falter. It was difficult to maintain his earlier cool, detached demeanor.
This silkworm Soul Beast was white as jade all over, translucent and lustrous, with halos of light flowing beneath its skin and a pair of tiny golden eyes on its head. Most astonishingly, starting half a meter behind his head, a golden band encircled his body at regular intervals. From head to tail, there were ten golden bands in all.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm! The name surfaced in Ning Yuhao's mind.
"Huh?! You little fellow aren't scared at all." The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's voice rang out directly in Ning Yuhao's mind.
Ning Yuhao did his best to control his expression and pointed at the purplish-black shield that had yet to dissipate. "Compared with the Soul Beasts I just encountered, you at least look much more harmless."
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm also recalled the presence he had sensed earlier and couldn't help shivering. Forcing himself to sound imposing, he said, "As expected of someone the Auspicious Beast has taken a fancy to. You really do have something exceptional about you."
Then he glanced nervously at the purplish-black shield. "There's no time to explain. This shield is about to fail. Long story short, I'm going to become your Soul Ring-the first Wisdom Soul Ring in the history of the Douluo Continent! Sing my praises!"
With that, without even waiting for Ning Yuhao to agree, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm released a burst of extreme cold that rushed toward Ning Yuhao, who immediately lost consciousness.
At the very last moment, all he saw was the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm charging toward him, while leaving one more sentence in his mind: "Don't worry. I'll be gentle. I won't hurt you too much."
Ning Yuhao tried to hold on long enough to say, "No, Brother Sky Dream!" But before he could get the words out, he passed out.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's ten golden rings of light rapidly enveloped Ning Yuhao's body, while his own body transformed into streams of white light that poured continuously into Ning Yuhao.
An invisible wave of mental fluctuations spread outward from Ning Yuhao, but the purplish-black shield blocked all of it, preventing any from leaking out.
The dense white light grew increasingly solid. As though racing against every second, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm roughly poured his power into Ning Yuhao's body. Fortunately, Ning Yuhao had a decent constitution and had always lived well, with plenty of good food and drink. Under the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's deliberate control, no problems arose.
The Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's body grew smaller and smaller until it vanished completely. A lustrous white ring of light appeared, then faded and merged into Ning Yuhao's body. At the same time, a faint layer of icy blue appeared beneath Ning Yuhao's skin before disappearing again.
A thin white membrane tinged with pale gold silently rose from the ground, swiftly condensed into a ball, and burrowed into Ning Yuhao's chest, disappearing.
"Huh? This Martial Soul is extraordinary. I think I can get inside."
Only after a long time did Ning Yuhao regain consciousness. Looking at the ground where the great pit had returned to its original state, and at the shield that had already disappeared, he couldn't help wondering whether he had merely fallen asleep and dreamed it all.
Ning Yuhao focused his mind, sinking his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness. It had already become a pale golden ocean, with ten enormous milky-white spheres of light suspended above it.
Ning Yuhao looked around but saw no other presence. Unable to help himself, he called out, "Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, are you there?"