Jin Yue’s excitement lasted exactly until Qianjun began explaining the rules.
“First rule,” the Titled Douluo said.
“Never separate from the group.”
The five children stood in front of him.
Behind Qianjun stretched an immense wall of trees.
The Great Star Dou Forest.
Longyu had read about it countless times.
He remembered it from his previous life.
He had studied maps, expedition records, Soul Beast reports, and testimonies from Soul Masters who had entered its depths.
None of that compared to seeing it with his own eyes.
The trees seemed endless.
Some trunks were so wide that several adults would have struggled to wrap their arms around them.
Massive roots tore across the ground and vanished beneath thick undergrowth, while dense vegetation concealed much of the earth.
Even from outside, he could hear animals.
Insects.
Birds.
And other things he couldn’t identify.
Soul Beasts.
Longyu felt a mixture of fascination and caution.
He was finally here.
The place where countless Soul Masters had obtained their Soul Rings.
And where many others had died trying.
Jiangmo stepped beside his brother.
“Second rule.
If you see something interesting, don’t touch it.”
Jin Yue raised an eyebrow.
“Even if it’s a Soul Beast?”
“Especially if it’s a Soul Beast.”
“That’s obvious.”
Jiangmo smiled.
“Perfect.
Then you can explain the first rule for surviving inside a Soul Beast forest.”
Jin Yue thought for two seconds.
“Be stronger than the beasts.”
Jiangmo immediately nodded.
“I like it.”
“She’s wrong,” Qianjun said.
Jiangmo stopped nodding.
“I also like your answer.”
Longyu had to suppress a smile.
Qianjun ignored his brother.
“The first rule is to assume there is something stronger than you.”
Jin Yue frowned.
“Even for you?”
“Especially if you ever reach our level.”
That made Jin Yue fall silent.
Qianjun looked at all five of them.
“Arrogance kills more Soul Masters than many Soul Beasts do.”
His gaze paused briefly on Longyu.
“And so does curiosity.”
Longyu decided not to ask why he was looking specifically at him.
He already knew the answer.
The group entering the forest was considerably smaller than Longyu had expected.
Qianjun.
Jiangmo.
Mu Qinghe.
The five children.
Several Spirit Hall Soul Masters remained outside the main region, but Qianjun had decided they did not need a small army following them.
Longyu understood why.
Too many people created too much noise.
And with two Titled Douluo present, increasing the number of fighters would hardly improve their safety.
Mu Qinghe was there for a different reason.
The absorption.
If they found a suitable Soul Beast, he would be the one to evaluate Longyu’s condition before allowing the attempt.
Qianjun looked at the five children one last time.
“Inside the forest, you are not young masters of the Worship Hall.”
Renxue lifted her chin slightly.
“Then what are we?”
“Five six-year-old children who can die if you do something stupid.”
Jiangmo raised a finger.
“A surprisingly accurate description.”
Qianjun continued.
“We will be here.
If something appears that you truly cannot handle, we will intervene.”
Jin Yue smiled.
“So we can fight.”
“If we give permission.”
Her smile faded.
“But I want you to learn how to behave as if we were not here.”
Qianjun pointed toward the forest.
“Do not make unnecessary noise.
Do not chase Soul Beasts you haven’t identified.
Do not eat fruit you don’t recognize.
Do not drink water simply because it looks clean.
Do not enter caves without checking the surroundings first.
Do not approach fresh corpses until you know what killed them.”
Luoyue listened with particular attention.
Lingyu did as well.
“Do not underestimate small Soul Beasts,” Qianjun continued.
“Poison, parasites, and pack attacks can kill someone capable of defeating a much larger beast.”
Longyu memorized every word.
“And never completely trust an age estimate.”
That immediately caught his attention.
Qianjun noticed.
“The methods we use to estimate a Soul Beast’s age are exactly that: estimates.
Size, physical development, the growth of certain body parts, Soul Power intensity, behavior…
all of them can help us.
None of them are perfect.”
Longyu slowly nodded.
That directly affected his own evaluation system.
550–600 years could not be treated as an exact number either.
“One last thing,” Qianjun said.
“If the forest suddenly becomes silent…”
Jin Yue waited.
“You stop.”
“Why?”
This time Luoyue answered.
“Because the animals may have detected a predator.”
Qianjun looked at her.
“Correct.”
Jiangmo smiled.
“One out of five.”
Jin Yue looked at Luoyue.
“This wasn’t a competition.”
“It is now,” Renxue replied.
Longyu sighed.
It had taken them less than five minutes.
They entered the Great Star Dou Forest.
It took Longyu approximately twenty minutes to pull out his notebook.
“Put it away.”
He stopped.
Qianjun had not even turned around.
“I need to record some observations.”
“Do it when we stop.”
“I can walk and write.”
Qianjun finally looked back.
“If you walk while staring at that notebook, the next thing you record will be the species of Soul Beast that ate you.”
Longyu closed the notebook.
Jiangmo laughed.
“Your grandfather is right.”
“That happens frequently,” Qianjun replied.
“Let’s not exaggerate.”
They continued forward.
The difference between reading about the forest and actually walking through it became obvious very quickly.
The ground was uneven.
Hidden roots.
Mud.
Branches.
Plants that constantly forced them to change direction.
The sounds also made it difficult to concentrate.
Every movement in the bushes could be nothing more than a small animal.
Or it could be something else.
Longyu began to understand why Qianjun had emphasized environmental awareness so strongly.
A sound came from his left.
Jin Yue immediately turned.
“There.”
Something small emerged from a bush.
It resembled a squirrel, except it had two tails and a green line running along its back.
Jin Yue took a step forward.
Qianjun placed a hand on her shoulder.
“What are you doing?”
“Looking at it.”
“You’re already looking at it.”
“Closer.”
“Do you know what it is?”
Jin Yue fell silent.
Luoyue answered.
“Two-Tailed Green Squirrel.
Probably less than thirty years old.”
Qianjun looked toward her.
“Dangerous?”
“Not usually.
It eats fruit and insects.
It avoids humans.”
Jin Yue pointed at the animal.
“Then I was right.”
“No,” Qianjun said.
“You were lucky.”
The small Soul Beast disappeared into the vegetation.
“You didn’t know what it was when you stepped forward.
That is what matters.”
Jin Yue frowned, but nodded.
Longyu mentally recorded the lesson.
A correct outcome does not mean the decision was correct.
That applied to research as well.
It was Luoyue who began to surprise him.
Longyu knew she was interested in Soul Beasts.
He had not understood how much.
“Something large passed through here,” she said.
She had stopped beside a bush.
Longyu looked at the ground.
He saw nothing particularly unusual.
“How do you know?”
Luoyue pointed at several branches.
“They’re broken in the same direction.”
Then she indicated a mark in the mud.
Longyu crouched down.
A footprint.
“Four legs,” Luoyue continued.
“Heavy.
But it doesn’t look like it was running.”
Longyu examined the print.
“Can you identify it?”
“No.”
The answer came immediately.
Longyu looked at her.
Luoyue gave a slight shrug.
“I don’t have enough information.”
Longyu smiled.
Excellent answer.
They continued.
Later, when they stopped to rest, Longyu finally pulled out his notebook.
Luoyue did the same.
Longyu glanced at hers.
“What are you writing?”
“What we saw.”
“So am I.”
They exchanged notebooks.
It took Longyu only a few seconds to notice the difference.
His own notes focused on things like:
Species.
Approximate age.
Attribute.
Potential compatibility with Martial Souls.
Luoyue’s were different.
Habitat.
Behavior.
Diet.
Tracks.
Territorial signs.
Response to humans.
Nearby vegetation.
Longyu looked up.
“The Worship Hall records should include this.”
Luoyue blinked.
“They don’t?”
“Some do.”
Longyu remembered the documents he had reviewed.
“That’s the problem.
Some record habitat.
Others abilities.
Others only describe the Soul Ring that was obtained.
Two reports on the same species can contain completely different information.”
Luoyue thought for a moment.
“Then they should use the same format.”
Longyu froze.
Species.
Region.
Habitat.
Estimated age.
Method used to estimate it.
Diet.
Behavior.
Attributes.
Dangers.
Useful materials.
Observed compatibility.
Soul Skills obtained from known absorptions.
Even regional variations.
It was…
“You’re making that face again,” Luoyue said.
Longyu snapped out of his thoughts.
Lingyu started laughing.
“I told you we all know it now.”
Longyu took his notebook back.
At the bottom of the page, he wrote only:
Standardize Soul Beast records.
He did not need to solve it now.
But he did not want to forget it.
They found a place to camp before nightfall.
Or, more accurately, Qianjun found the place.
Then he made the children explain why it was suitable.
“Relatively dry ground,” Renxue said.
“Good visibility,” Luoyue added.
Lingyu looked around.
“I don’t see any poisonous plants nearby.”
Jin Yue looked upward.
“There are trees.”
Everyone looked at her.
“What?”
Jiangmo nodded solemnly.
“An indispensable contribution.”
“I meant we can use them as cover.”
“Too late.”
Longyu studied the terrain.
“We’re away from a water source.”
Qianjun nodded.
“Good or bad?”
“Both.”
Longyu thought before continuing.
“We need water, but Soul Beasts do too.
Camping directly beside a water source would increase the chance of encounters.”
Qianjun showed a faint smile.
“Correct.”
Setting up camp turned out to be less enjoyable than Jin Yue had expected.
Qianjun and Jiangmo could have done it quickly.
They did not.
The children had to learn.
Where to place their sleeping gear.
How to store food.
How to reduce odors.
How to check the surroundings.
How to determine a retreat route.
Longyu watched everything carefully.
None of this had anything to do with becoming stronger.
And that was exactly why it mattered.
After finishing her meal, Jin Yue settled down.
“I’m going to sleep.”
“Who takes first watch?” Qianjun asked.
Jin Yue opened her eyes.
“Watch?”
“Yes.”
“But you’re here.”
“So is the forest.”
Jiangmo added:
“Soul Beasts don’t respect bedtime.”
Jin Yue sat back up.
“Then Longyu goes first.”
Longyu looked at her.
“Why me?”
“Because you want data.”
“That doesn’t—”
“I accept,” Longyu said.
Jin Yue smiled.
Longyu continued.
“If you take second watch.”
Her smile disappeared.
“That was unnecessary.”
Qianjun did not allow any of them to keep watch alone.
It was an exercise, not stupidity.
Longyu took the first shift with him.
The forest at night was completely different.
Visibility dropped.
The sounds seemed to multiply.
Longyu sat silently when he heard something among the trees.
Crack.
He turned his head.
Qianjun did not react.
Longyu waited.
Another sound.
Closer.
Crack.
His hand moved slightly.
“What are you doing?” Qianjun asked quietly.
“Listening.”
“Good.”
Longyu remained still.
He did not summon his Martial Soul.
He did not move forward.
He waited.
After nearly a minute, a small figure crossed between the trees.
Nothing happened.
Qianjun spoke.
“Better.”
Longyu understood.
Not every sound required a reaction.
Something different happened during the second watch.
Jin Yue was awake.
So was Renxue, who had refused to keep sleeping after hearing a noise.
Something struck a bush outside the perimeter.
Jin Yue stood up.
Her Golden Crocodile appeared behind her.
“Wait,” Renxue whispered.
Another sound.
Farther away.
Jin Yue took a step.
Longyu, who had not yet fully fallen asleep, opened his eyes.
He saw her moving forward.
“Jin Yue.”
“There’s something there.”
“Then let it come to us.”
“What if it escapes?”
Longyu sat up.
“We’re not hunting that.”
Another sound.
Jin Yue advanced two more steps.
Then a hand landed on her head.
Jiangmo stood behind her.
“Dead.”
Jin Yue nearly jumped.
“What?!”
Jiangmo smiled.
“You just left the perimeter to chase a sound you hadn’t identified.”
“But it was you!”
“This time.”
Jin Yue glared at him.
Luoyue spoke from her bedroll.
“I didn’t hear footsteps moving away.”
Everyone looked at her.
She was still lying down.
“The sound moved,” she continued, “but there were no footsteps.”
Jiangmo pointed at her.
“One out of five.”
Jin Yue clenched her fists.
“That was cheating!”
Jiangmo smiled.
“A Soul Beast trying to eat you is allowed to cheat too.”
Even Renxue had to laugh.
The next morning, the real search began.
Their initial target was the Ironbone Tyrant Lizard.
Spirit Hall had relatively recent reports of specimens in that region, including one estimated to be between five hundred and six hundred years old.
That did not mean it was still there.
But it was a starting point.
Luoyue helped search for signs.
Qianjun corrected her mistakes.
Longyu mentally compared each discovery with the records.
Several hours passed.
They found tracks.
Then droppings.
Finally, claw marks on several trees.
Luoyue crouched down.
“It could be one.”
Qianjun neither confirmed nor denied it.
Longyu understood that he wanted them to reach the conclusion themselves.
The footprint was heavy.
The pattern matched.
The claw marks on the trees matched as well.
They continued.
The trail became clearer.
Until it stopped being clear.
Luoyue halted.
“Strange.”
“What?” Lingyu asked.
Luoyue walked several meters back.
Then forward again.
“The tracks change direction.”
Longyu looked.
She was right.
The beast had been moving north.
Then, apparently for no reason, it had turned west.
“Maybe it found food,” Jin Yue said.
Luoyue slowly shook her head.
“I don’t think so.”
Longyu examined the prints.
The spacing between them had changed.
“It started moving faster.”
Qianjun finally spoke.
“Good.”
Longyu looked up.
The Ironbone Tyrant Lizard had not simply changed direction.
It had wanted to get away from something.
Jin Yue understood as well.
“What scares a six-hundred-year Soul Beast?”
Jiangmo smiled.
“Excellent question.”
“I don’t like the way you said that.”
They did not immediately head north.
First, they examined the surrounding area.
Qianjun insisted.
The fact that a Soul Beast avoided an area did not mean they should run directly into it.
After nearly half an hour, they found a corpse.
It was a quadrupedal Soul Beast approximately two meters long.
It did not appear to have been dead for very long.
Jin Yue approached.
This time, she stopped before getting too close.
She looked at Qianjun.
He nodded.
Only then did they move forward.
Longyu crouched down.
There were deep wounds along its side.
“Ironbone Tyrant Lizard?” Lingyu asked.
Luoyue examined the injuries.
“No.”
Longyu looked at her.
Luoyue pointed.
“Four.”
There were four deep claw marks.
“The Ironbone Tyrant Lizard has five claws on its forelimbs,” she continued.
Longyu remembered the illustration.
Correct.
Luoyue examined the ground.
“And it didn’t die here.”
“How do you know?” Jin Yue asked.
“There isn’t enough blood.”
Qianjun smiled faintly.
Longyu noticed something else.
The wounds did not look like ordinary cuts.
The edges were strangely darkened.
“Grandfather.”
Qianjun was already studying them.
Longyu brought a small branch closer.
He did not touch the corpse directly.
“This looks like…”
He stopped.
He did not want to jump to conclusions.
Jiangmo crouched down.
His usual amusement faded from his expression.
“The energy around the wounds has been altered.”
Longyu felt a slight chill.
“Poison?”
Lingyu shook her head before anyone else answered.
“It doesn’t smell like any poison I know.”
Mu Qinghe looked at her approvingly.
Qianjun stood.
“We’ll follow the marks.”
This time no one protested.
The terrain began to change.
Fewer trees.
The vegetation remained thick, but large rock formations began appearing between it.
Luoyue found another mark.
Then another.
Claws.
Four.
Longyu felt there was something familiar about it.
Not the marks themselves.
The combination.
Four claws.
Enough strength to carry prey of that size.
Strange damage around the wounds.
A territory avoided by other Soul Beasts.
But he could not quite remember.
They continued.
Until they found the first scale.
Luoyue spotted it.
“Here.”
Longyu approached.
It was black.
Longer than his finger.
It looked thick and resilient.
Jiangmo picked it up before any of the children could.
He examined it.
“Draconic.”
Qianjun took the scale.
His expression changed slightly.
“Yes.”
Longyu felt something in his mind beginning to connect.
“What species?”
Qianjun did not answer immediately.
“I’m not sure.”
That worried Longyu more than anything else he had heard during the trip.
His grandfather had hunted Soul Beasts for decades.
If even he wasn’t sure…
Luoyue stepped closer.
“Can I see it?”
Qianjun showed it to her.
Light passed partially through its surface.
And then Longyu saw it.
Purple.
An extremely faint reflection ran along the black edge.
Longyu froze.
He had seen that before.
Not here.
On paper.
An old illustration.
One of the records he had reviewed when he still had twelve candidates.
No.
Before he had twelve.
He had discarded the species before beginning the final selection.
Because searching for it would have been pointless.
“It can’t be…”
Qianjun looked at him.
“What?”
Longyu held out his hand.
“Let me see it.”
Qianjun handed it over.
Longyu turned the scale.
Black.
Elongated shape.
Irregular edge.
Purple reflection at certain angles.
He remembered the page.
Ruinclaw Dragon Lizard.
An ancient draconic Soul Beast species.
Extraordinary physical strength.
Claws specialized in penetrating defenses.
A considerable draconic bloodline.
And one characteristic that the old records had never properly explained.
Its attacks appeared to weaken defenses created from Soul Power.
Not through poison.
Not through conventional corrosion.
They simply…
Weakened them.
Longyu had marked the species when he found it.
Power.
Dragon.
Breaking.
And possibly something more.
Then he had reached the final section of the report.
Status: Presumed Extinct.
The last confirmed sighting had been more than three centuries ago.
Longyu had closed the record and continued searching.
There was no point designing his first Soul Ring around a creature that probably no longer existed.
Until now.
“Ruinclaw Dragon Lizard,” he said.
Luoyue immediately turned toward him.
Qianjun frowned.
Jiangmo lost his smile.
“Are you sure?” Qianjun asked.
Longyu shook his head.
“No.”
He looked at the scale again.
“But it matches the description.”
Jin Yue stepped closer.
“Is it good?”
Longyu looked at her.
“I discarded it from my candidates.”
Jin Yue looked disappointed.
“Then no.”
“I discarded it because it was believed to be extinct.”
Silence.
Renxue looked at the scale.
“Seems like the records are wrong.”
Longyu held the scale between his fingers.
“Maybe.”
Luoyue looked toward the claw marks continuing through the rocks.
“Or maybe it isn’t that species.”
Longyu nodded.
“That too.”
Renxue looked at him.
“Then we need to see it.”
Longyu smiled faintly.
“Exactly.”
They found the entrance shortly afterward.
From a distance, it did not look like a cave.
A rocky wall was almost completely covered by roots and vegetation.
But behind them was an opening.
Large.
Far too large for a simple burrow.
Qianjun raised a hand.
Everyone stopped.
Even Jiangmo was serious now.
Longyu examined the ground.
There were bones.
Some recent.
Others so old they nearly blended into the earth.
There were also marks on the walls.
Not four small lines.
These were enormous.
Some had been eroded by time.
Longyu moved closer, only as far as Qianjun allowed.
“Those don’t belong to the creature we’re following.”
“No,” Qianjun replied.
He moved a hand near one of the ancient marks.
“They’re too large.”
Luoyue looked toward the entrance.
“Another Soul Beast?”
Jiangmo shook his head.
“Another era.”
Longyu looked at him.
Jiangmo pointed at the marks.
“This is old.
Very old.”
Qianjun closed his eyes for several seconds.
“There is still a faint draconic presence.”
Longyu felt his heart speed up.
An ancient den.
Possibly used by draconic Soul Beasts for generations.
Suddenly, one of the questions from his research returned to him.
To what extent can environment alter the development of a Soul Beast?
If a small population had remained isolated there…
If the cave had conditions favorable to draconic species…
If the specimens had simply stopped leaving the region where humans could encounter them…
Extinct did not necessarily mean extinct.
It could mean:
Unobserved.
Longyu suddenly wanted to pull out his notebook.
He looked at Qianjun.
He decided it could wait.
They entered.
Qianjun first.
The five children in the middle.
Mu Qinghe behind them.
Jiangmo closing the formation.
No one spoke.
The outside light gradually disappeared.
A small source of Soul Power illumination allowed them to continue.
Longyu studied the walls.
Minerals.
Marks.
Fragments of scales.
Luoyue looked as though she wanted to stop every three steps.
Lingyu was also examining several small plants growing from the cracks.
But none of them broke formation.
They had learned.
Then the forest disappeared behind them.
Only the cave remained.
And silence.
Scrrrrch.
Everyone stopped.
Jin Yue did not move forward.
Longyu noticed that.
She had learned.
Scrrrrch.
Claws against stone.
Farther ahead.
Qianjun raised a hand.
His presence changed.
For the first time since leaving Spirit City, Longyu was no longer looking at his grandfather.
He was looking at Qianjun Douluo.
Jiangmo also stopped seeming relaxed.
Not because they were afraid.
But because they were no longer teaching a lesson.
There was truly something there.
Longyu felt a strange sensation in his right hand.
Warmth.
He looked down.
He had not summoned his Martial Soul.
And yet…
Black and violet light appeared.
The Destruction Coiling Dragon Staff slowly materialized between his fingers.
Longyu’s eyes widened slightly.
“What…?”
The small dragon coiled around the staff moved.
Until now, Longyu had felt that creature as part of his Martial Soul.
A presence.
An essence.
Something he still did not understand.
But this time, something different happened.
The dragon lifted its head.
Opened its eyes.
And did not look at Longyu.
It looked into the darkness.
Qianjun saw it as well.
“Interesting…”
Then something answered.
A low growl traveled through the cave.
It was not particularly loud.
It did not need to be.
Longyu felt the vibration pass through the stone beneath his feet.
Lingyu stepped back half a pace.
Renxue instinctively manifested a faint golden glow.
Jin Yue clenched her fists.
Luoyue did not take her eyes off the darkness.
Two points appeared in the distance.
Violet.
Eyes.
A low silhouette slowly began to take shape.
Four claws scraped against stone.
Longyu stopped breathing for an instant.
He had studied dozens of species.
He had selected twelve candidates.
He had reduced the list to three.
He had spent days trying to determine which Soul Beast could offer him the best first piece for the future of his Martial Soul.
And now, standing before him, might be a species he had never even allowed onto that list.
Not because it was incompatible.
Not because it was too weak.
Not because it failed to fit the path he had chosen.
Quite the opposite.
He had discarded it for a single reason.
According to every available record…
it should no longer exist.