Looking at the Star Dou Great Forest ahead, Huo Yuhao took a dagger from his bundle and gripped it.
This dagger was the keepsake his mother had left him, the White Tiger Dagger.
He knew that with his cultivation, every step through the Star Dou Great Forest would be a struggle, with the danger of death hanging over him at any moment.
But he had no way to retreat.
The thought of revenge burned in his heart like a raging flame.
He had to grow stronger and make everyone in the White Tiger Duke's Mansion who had bullied his mother pay!
Then Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and circulated his Soul Power. A faint silver light appeared around his eyes.
Just like that, Huo Yuhao walked deeper into the great forest, constantly scanning the surrounding bushes and undergrowth with his eyes, wary of every lurking danger.
At that moment, the Body Sect Titled Douluo following Huo Yuhao was looking anxiously at the voice-transmission soul tool in his hand.
"What's going on? Why isn't the Holy Son replying to my messages?"
While he was still wondering why the Holy Son had not replied, Yun Luo had already appeared silently behind him.
"So this is where you are."
Hearing the voice behind him, the Body Sect elder jumped in fright.
But he quickly reacted, putting away the voice-transmission soul tool in his hand as his gaze instantly sharpened.
He circulated his Soul Power and released his Martial Soul, preparing to attack in the direction of the voice.
But after Elder Wang turned around to attack, he got a clear look at the figure behind him.
It was Yun Luo, who had defeated Long Aotian and become their current Holy Son.
"Uh... Elder Wang, what are you trying to do?"
Looking at Elder Wang, who was about to attack him, Yun Luo asked in some confusion.
Just now, thanks to the Ice Emperor's reminder, he had discovered a Titled Douluo following a short distance behind Huo Yuhao.
Once Yun Luo saw him, he headed toward him.
Yet when he drew close, saw him standing there in a daze, and stepped forward to say something, the elder had reacted so strongly.
Just as Yun Luo was at a loss for words, Elder Wang spoke.
"Greetings, Holy Son. I thought someone was trying to ambush me just now. I never expected it to be you. Please punish me, Holy Son."
As he spoke, he dropped to one knee before Yun Luo.
Seeing this, Yun Luo hurried forward and helped him up.
"Elder Wang, you aren't to blame for this. I forgot to deactivate my soul skill, which caused this little farce."
The reason Elder Wang had not noticed him was that Yun Luo had used his spiritual power to conceal his presence with the Ice Emperor's help.
"Elder Wang, I came to tell you to head back first. Just leave the rest to me. If the sect master punishes you, tell him I told you to do it."
After hearing Yun Luo's dismissal, Elder Wang recalled what Du Busi had said through voice transmission.
"You must make sure Yun Luo returns safely. Otherwise..."
Even with Yun Luo's assurance, Elder Wang did not dare return. If anything really happened, the sect master would definitely kill him.
At that thought, Elder Wang broke out in a cold sweat.
"Holy Son, that is absolutely out of the question. If I return alone, the sect master will take my life."
Thinking this, Elder Wang could not help trembling.
"Well... in that case, follow Huo Yuhao with me."
As he spoke, Yun Luo rose and ran swiftly in the direction Huo Yuhao had taken.
Seeing this, Elder Wang sighed and followed Yun Luo toward Huo Yuhao.
After about two hours of walking, the forest grew increasingly deep and secluded. Even sunlight could not penetrate it, and a damp, rank smell of vegetation hung in the air.
Elder Wang looked at Yun Luo, who was following behind Huo Yuhao not far away, his eyes filled with puzzlement.
He truly did not understand what the Holy Son was trying to do.
If he wanted Huo Yuhao to join the Body Sect directly, he could simply show himself and tell him.
And if he refused? If he refused, just sling him over a shoulder and carry him back.
If he wanted to kill Huo Yuhao, he could simply do it now.
Meanwhile, Yun Luo was following a short distance behind Huo Yuhao because he did not know what Huo Yuhao was doing.
For a full two hours, Huo Yuhao had been searching the outskirts for a suitable soul beast with the White Tiger Dagger in hand, yet he had encountered nothing.
Seeing this, Yun Luo planned to provoke the planar Heavenly Dao of the Douluo Continent a little and see who would come to Huo Yuhao's aid if he encountered danger.
White light flashed through Yun Luo's eyes. Through his spiritual probing, he discovered a thousand-year Datura Snake ten kilometers away from Huo Yuhao.
Yun Luo then arrived beside the Datura Snake, and the fourth Soul Ring beneath his feet lit up.
Spiritual Control.
It briefly controlled soul beasts and soul masters whose Soul Power and spiritual power were lower than his own. If the target's spiritual power was only slightly lower than his, he could control them for only one second. If their spiritual power was equal to his, it could only leave them momentarily dazed.
Looking at the soul beast under his control, Yun Luo ordered it to charge toward Huo Yuhao.
Within moments, the Datura Snake was already nearing Huo Yuhao.
Elsewhere, after walking for two hours and constantly watching his surroundings with his nerves stretched taut, Huo Yuhao was somewhat exhausted, so he prepared to rest for a while before hunting soul beasts again.
But just as he leaned against a tree, a huge pink serpentine shadow suddenly shot out of the bushes beside him!
Its triangular head reared high, and its dark golden eyes fixed on the boy before it. With a hiss, it lunged for his neck.
Sensing the power of the soul beast before him, Huo Yuhao's hand trembled around the White Tiger Dagger, his face pale.
In an instant, his mind went completely blank.
"How is this possible? How could such a powerful soul beast appear on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest?"
"Am I going to die here today, unable to avenge Mom?"
Overcome by despair, Huo Yuhao once again had tears slipping unwittingly from the corners of his eyes.
Seeing that no one had intervened, Yun Luo's gaze held some confusion.
After all, Huo Yuhao was the Son of Destiny. How could he be so easily killed here? Was no one being sent to protect him?
"Wait, could it really have worked this easily?"
Just as Yun Luo thought no one would come to protect him, streaks of blue-violet lightning suddenly tore through the air, roaring toward them like countless electric snakes and smashing viciously into the thousand-year Datura Snake.
"Thunderous Fury!"
Boom...
A terrifying explosion rang out, blasting the Datura Snake away and onto the ground, where it hissed in agony.
Then two figures, a young man and a young woman, emerged from the bushes nearby.
Both wore well-fitted combat attire. The young man's short violet-blue hair, paired with his blue eyes, made him look very elegant.
The girl had black hair and jet-black eyes, with delicate, lively features and a restless air about her.
"Good thing we made it in time. Otherwise, Yuhao would probably have been in grave danger."
Looking at the Datura Snake that had been blasted away and the startled Huo Yuhao, the young man wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead and slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
The young woman nodded as well. Just as she was about to go over to Huo Yuhao, she caught sight of the soul beast that had been blasted away, and her eyes lit up.
"Bei Bei, it's a thousand-year Datura Snake! I want it for my Soul Ring."