The First Task

Miao took Xiao Yu away from the Orphanage. With Martial Soul Possession, a pair of butterfly wings grew from his back, and flying at tremendous speed, they soon arrived at the woodland cabin where he usually lived in seclusion.

"Young Master, please rest here for the next few days. Once your Martial Soul awakens, this subordinate will accompany you to hunt for a Soul Ring."

Xiao Yu nodded. "Thank you for your hard work!"

As the sun rose, its warm rays spread across the earth.

Sitting cross-legged and circulating the Soul Power converted from the Cosmo gathered throughout his body, Xiao Yu sensed something and abruptly opened his eyes. He muttered, "It's here!"

The next instant, Xiao Yu's body seemed to glow, bathed from head to toe in a pale golden radiance. The power that had seemed restrained by shackles burst forth at that moment, coursing through every meridian in his body. His limbs and bones were filled with an indescribable sense of comfort.

A pair of black wings appeared first behind Xiao Yu's back, followed by a suit of pitch-black armor that perfectly covered his body. His eyes emitted a pale green glow, and a black longsword radiating a terrifying aura appeared in his right hand.

"Ding. It has been detected that the host's Martial Soul has awakened: Underworld Apostle. Innate Full Soul Power."

"Ding. As the host's Soul Power has reached Level 10, the following tasks are now issued:"

"1. Gold-level Task: Obtain a thousand-year Soul Ring alone, without relying on external assistance."

"2. Red-level Task: Absorb a thousand-year Soul Ring with the aid of others."

"3. Black-level Task: Obtain a hundred-year Soul Ring alone, without relying on external assistance."

"4. Purple-level Task: Absorb a hundred-year Soul Ring with the aid of others."

"5. Yellow-level Task: Obtain a ten-year Soul Ring alone, without relying on external assistance."

"6. White-level Task: Absorb a ten-year Soul Ring with the aid of others."

"So it's a multiple-choice question!"

Looking at the six tasks before him—which were less six separate tasks than one task divided into tiers by difficulty—Xiao Yu pondered inwardly. I can rule out the Yellow-level and White-level tasks immediately. I'm a transmigrator with a golden finger and Innate Full Soul Power. If I went after a ten-year Soul Ring, even I'd find it pathetic.

The Red-level and Gold-level tasks both require absorbing a thousand-year Soul Ring beyond my level. The Gold-level task isn't even worth considering. Although my Martial Soul is undoubtedly among the top-tier Martial Souls, challenging a thousand-year Soul Beast without even a single Soul Ring would be no different from courting death. As for the Red-level task...

Xiao Yu frowned in thought. "Absorbing a Soul Ring beyond one's level may look impressive, but the risks are immense. If I can't withstand the power of a thousand-year Soul Ring, I'll explode and die. Once someone dies, they have nothing left."

Although Tang San had absorbed Soul Rings beyond his level several times in the original work, it had never been easy. Especially later on, he had the support of the Eight Spider Lances and Immortal Herbs. Xiao Yu, meanwhile, was currently starting from nothing and truly did not dare take such a risk.

"So the real choice is between Purple-level and Black-level. The 'others' mentioned here should refer to Miao."

Xiao Yu considered it. "I'll decide between those two tasks based on the situation. If I can handle a hundred-year Soul Beast on my own, that would naturally be best. If the opponent is truly troublesome, I'll have Miao restrain it. Before that, I can test myself in a real battle and see what my Martial Soul can do."

After making some simple preparations, Xiao Yu and Miao set off. Their destination was the Star Dou Great Forest, the famous Soul Beast habitat of Douluo Continent.

Xiao Yu had his own reasons for not going to the Soul Hunting Forest. The first was that the Soul Hunting Forest was mostly controlled by Spirit Hall, and entry required a Spirit Hall token.

And clearly, Xiao Yu was not Yu Xiaogang. He had no Bibi Dong to live off, so naturally he did not possess a Spirit Hall token—let alone one that could be used for life.

Of course, Xiao Yu could also apply to Spirit Hall for a one-time permit. He remembered that the original work had said the process was not complicated: one only needed Spirit Hall's approval, proof that one had indeed reached the peak of a certain stage and required a Soul Ring to advance, and guarantees from at least three nobles.

With Miao's Soul Sage-level strength, finding nobles from a few small cities to act as guarantors would not be difficult. What Xiao Yu truly worried about was himself. Once he registered with Spirit Hall, given his age, even blind Douluo Su Yuntao should be able to guess that he possessed Innate Full Soul Power. As before, Xiao Yu, whose wings had not yet fully grown and whose strength was still insufficient, did not want to expose himself before Spirit Hall.

Although it was possible that these remote Martial Soul Branch Halls might fail to report him upward—after all, Tang San and Xiao Wu had spent so many years in Notting City without drawing any attention from Spirit Hall, and Oscar, with his Innate Full Soul Power sausage Martial Soul, had freely attended Shrek Academy—Xiao Yu, ever cautious by nature, still did not want to take that risk. What if he encountered someone discerning and overly serious?

Secondly, Xiao Yu believed that these captive Soul Beasts were far inferior in both quality and quantity to the wild Soul Beasts of a pristine forest like the Star Dou Great Forest. His Underworld Apostle Martial Soul might not yet rival a divinely bestowed Martial Soul like the Six-Winged Angel, but it was certainly a top-tier Martial Soul comparable to the Clear Sky Hammer and Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda. His requirements for the quality of the Soul Beast corresponding to his Soul Ring were quite high.

With a Soul Sage-level expert like Miao accompanying him, the two traveled extremely quickly. The Sylvia Kingdom was over a thousand li from the Star Dou Great Forest, yet under Miao's lead in flight, they reached the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest in only a few short days.

The Star Dou Great Forest was one of the three most famous Soul Beast habitats on Douluo Continent. Its terrain was complex, containing wetlands, swamps, and more. It was so vast that its area was almost equal to the entire territory of the Balak Kingdom, stretching across the borders of the Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire.

Although the original work had long described the immense scale and vast expanse of the Star Dou Great Forest, when Xiao Yu arrived for the first time, he still could not help marveling at the enormity of this primeval forest and sincerely praising the greatness of nature.

After reaching the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, Miao asked Xiao Yu, "Young Master, what are your thoughts regarding your first Soul Ring?"

Xiao Yu had been considering this question all along the way and immediately replied, "The Underworld Apostle is a strong attack-type Martial Soul, and its attribute leans toward darkness. Therefore, the Soul Beast I need should also align with that aspect. A Soul Beast with powerful offensive abilities and a dark attribute would be the ideal choice."

Miao nodded. His thoughts matched Xiao Yu's exactly.

"Miao, I need to ask you for something."

Xiao Yu said, "When you find a suitable Soul Beast, don't make a move yet. I want to first test my current control over my Martial Soul and my use of Soul Power."