Chapter 3: Tianmeng Ice Silk Worm

Huo Yuhao, after all, was still young. After a brief moment of surprise and tension, his emotions quickly turned to excitement. After so many days of travel, he had finally reached his destination. Just the thought of possibly obtaining a soul ring and truly becoming a Soul Master made him feel his blood boil. For the arrival of this day, although he was only eleven years old, he had already trained diligently for over five years.

In his excited state, Huo Yuhao subconsciously quickened his pace, almost unable to contain his eagerness.

As he was moving forward, a strange sensation suddenly appeared in his mind. Huo Yuhao felt a slight stinging in his eyes and instinctively channeled his soul power into his Spirit Eyes.

A faint airflow swirled around his eyes, and Huo Yuhao seemed to see a black shadow flash by on the left side of the road ahead.

As an extremely rare mental-type变异武魂, the Spirit Eyes had a strong warning ability. The sense of danger made Huo Yuhao's reactions become sharp, and his body quickly moved to the left, falling to the ground. At the same time, he swiftly drew the White Tiger Dagger from behind his waist.

A black figure flashed past the spot where he had been, landing on the ground beside him. Up close, Huo Yuhao immediately saw its appearance.

It was a baboon about one meter tall, covered in brownish-yellow fur, with brown eyes, abnormally long arms, sharp claws, and exposed canine teeth. Its eyes glowed with a fierce light. After its initial attack missed, it let out a low roar and, with a powerful leap from its hind legs, pounced at Huo Yuhao again.

Although Huo Yuhao's Spirit Eyes had not yet been attached to a soul ring, their basic function was still quite effective. With the infusion of soul power, the baboon's movements appeared much slower to him. Huo Yuhao, who had already fallen to the ground, quickly rolled to the left, sprang up, and retreated a few steps while raising the White Tiger Dagger in front of his chest.

His heartbeat was loud and clear, and his breathing became noticeably rapid. This was the first time in his life he faced an enemy, no, a soul beast. His palms, gripping the White Tiger Dagger, were already drenched in sweat, and he was somewhat at a loss as to how to deal with the situation.

The baboon, having missed its attacks twice in a row, seemed to be enraged. It raised its upper body, pounded its chest with both fists, and let out a roar. Then, it suddenly opened its mouth wide, and a ball of white light shot out from its mouth, heading straight for Huo Yuhao.

At this moment, even if Huo Yuhao had no experience, he could tell that he was facing a soul beast. The place was still some distance from the Star Dou Great Forest, and he had no preparation. As the white light was about to hit him, with his current cultivation, being hit would likely mean certain death.

Huo Yuhao's mind was blank, and the white light seemed to move slowly, but in reality, it reached him in an instant.

At the same time the white light was emitted, the baboon pounced at Huo Yuhao, its eyes glowing fiercely.

The white light was right in front of him, and in his tension, Huo Yuhao, driven by instinct, raised the White Tiger Dagger in his right hand, which was hit by the white light.

A strange scene unfolded at that moment. As the white light hit the White Tiger Dagger, the baboon pounced, its long arms stretching out, and its clawed hands grabbed Huo Yuhao's shoulders.

At this point in the battle, it seemed that Huo Yuhao's fate was sealed. Was he really going to be killed by this soul beast?

The baboon, grabbing Huo Yuhao's shoulders, used its strong body to flip in the air, intending to slam him to the ground.

At the same time, a white light flashed beneath the baboon as it threw Huo Yuhao. The baboon's body seemed to stiffen, and instead of being slammed to the ground, Huo Yuhao was thrown into the air. The baboon itself rolled on the ground and then lay still.

"Bang—" Huo Yuhao's body collided with a tree trunk nearby. He felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and the intense pain made him lose his ability to breathe.

At this moment, Huo Yuhao looked truly pitiful. His shoulders were marked with long, bloody scratches, and his shirt was almost torn to shreds.

However, the intense pain also brought him back to his senses. His eyes instinctively turned to the baboon lying motionless on the ground.

A faint white light appeared on the baboon's body, gradually forming a white ring above it. The ring was not clear, and the light flickered, but it still made Huo Yuhao stare in amazement.

A soul ring, this is a soul ring? Huo Yuhao's body trembled with excitement, and the pain from his wounds seemed to lessen.

In the Duke's mansion, he had only learned the most basic meditation techniques, but he had heard a lot about soul beasts and soul rings. This was the first time he had seen one with his own eyes.

Is it dead? Huo Yuhao thought in a daze. Only when a soul beast dies does it release a soul ring. But how did it die?

The function of the Spirit Eyes became evident at this moment, and memories flooded his mind.

The moment the white light from the baboon hit the White Tiger Dagger, the dagger suddenly emitted a bright light, absorbing all the white light. This was the most critical moment that changed the entire battle.

According to the baboon's combat instincts, after hitting Huo Yuhao with its life skill, he would lose his fighting ability and be slammed to the ground, likely losing half his life. However, it never expected that its life skill would be subconsciously neutralized by Huo Yuhao's White Tiger Dagger. When it grabbed Huo Yuhao and flipped to throw him, Huo Yuhao, driven by instinct, swung his arms upward, and the White Tiger Dagger naturally slashed upward.

The length of the White Tiger Dagger was not enough to reach the baboon, which was already airborne, but at that moment, the dagger suddenly released a foot-long blade of light, slicing through the baboon. It seemed to have transformed the absorbed white light into a sharp edge. Although Huo Yuhao's mind was blank at the time and he couldn't remember where he hit, it was certain that the blade of light had struck the baboon.

Did I actually win? Huo Yuhao looked at the white soul ring, and his excitement gradually faded.

A soul ring is essential for a Soul Master to advance. However, not all soul rings are suitable for absorption. Only soul rings that are highly compatible with one's soul power can be better absorbed.

A good soul ring can provide a Soul Master with more powerful skills. The strength of a soul ring is determined by the soul beast's cultivation age.

Among them, a white soul ring represents a soul beast that has cultivated for ten years. All soul beasts that have cultivated between ten and one hundred years will release a white soul ring upon death. Clearly, the baboon that Huo Yuhao had killed by luck was a ten-year soul beast, and the ten-year soul ring was clearly visible before him. Unfortunately, this was not a soul ring he could absorb.

Although Huo Yuhao had no experience in hunting soul beasts and could not determine the baboon's attributes, he was certain that the baboon was not a mental-type soul beast. Its soul ring was not suitable for him.

Huo Yuhao wanted to check the baboon's condition, but as he tried to stand, his body felt weak. The extreme tension had left him with no strength, and the pain in his shoulders made him groan, almost fainting.

He was only eleven years old! After experiencing such a significant event, his determination wavered. Mental-type soul beasts were extremely rare, and this was the first soul beast he had encountered, a ten-year soul beast, which had almost killed him. What if he encountered a hundred-year soul beast? He would have no chance of survival, and luck couldn't always be on his side. The White Tiger Dagger's brief display of power could not make up for his weakness.

What should I do? Huo Yuhao struggled to sit up, leaning against the tree he had hit, gasping for breath.

I can't die. I must succeed. I have to avenge my mother; I can't give up. Huo Yuhao clenched his teeth, reinforcing his resolve in his mind. However, the scenes of his brief battle with the baboon kept reminding him of his overestimation of his abilities.

Just as Huo Yuhao was filled with confusion and helplessness, a voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

"Finally, I've met a human with mental attributes. If I could cry, I would be in tears!"

Huo Yuhao was startled. He couldn't understand why a voice would suddenly appear in his mind. At that moment, the ground beneath him began to tremble unexpectedly. Two meters in front of him, cracks began to form on the ground, gradually widening and becoming fissures. Faint golden-white light could be seen shining from the fissures.

What is this? Another soul beast?

Huo Yuhao instinctively gripped the White Tiger Dagger, watching the expanding fissures with tension. If his body wasn't so weak, he might have already run away.

A cold chill began to emanate from the ground's fissures, and the temperature around him started to drop. The area of the fissures grew larger, eventually reaching a diameter of over five meters. The golden-white light finally revealed its true form.

It was a round, fleshy head, about a meter in diameter, which slowly wriggled out, with a body over seven meters long.

As it appeared, Huo Yuhao's breath began to form ice fog, and the cold made him shiver uncontrollably.

This creature, undoubtedly a soul beast, looked like a giant silkworm. However, it was much larger than an ordinary silkworm.

Its body was a translucent white jade color, smooth and shiny, with no dirt despite emerging from the soil. Light rippled beneath its skin, and on its head were two glittering golden eyes. Most peculiarly, from a meter above its head, there were golden rings spaced at intervals, totaling ten rings from head to tail.

Seeing its massive body, Huo Yuhao's face turned pale with despair. With such a large body and the ability to change the temperature, this must be at least a hundred-year soul beast. It's over, everything is over.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. I won't hurt you." The voice from earlier echoed in Huo Yuhao's mind again. The giant silkworm nodded its head, lowering its massive head to stop about a meter away from Huo Yuhao, emitting a faint, sweet fragrance.

Huo Yuhao, surprised, asked, "Are you talking to me?"

The giant silkworm nodded, and the voice echoed in his mind again, "Of course, it's me. Aren't you captivated by my beautiful figure?"

Feeling no malice from the giant silkworm, Huo Yuhao's tense nerves relaxed slightly.

"What do you want?"

The silkworm said, "Let me introduce myself. I am the embodiment of heroism and chivalry, the soul beast king of wisdom and beauty, a supreme being who has cultivated for a million years, setting the record for the longest lifespan on the Douluo Continent. You can call me Tianmeng."

Huo Yuhao's eyes widened, "A million-year soul beast?" This was ten thousand times more powerful than his initial judgment. Moreover, did such a being as a million-year soul beast even exist in the world? The most powerful soul beast on the Douluo Continent should be a hundred-thousand-year soul beast!

Tianmeng, the Ice Silk Worm, said proudly, "Surprised? Excited? You are the first human to see my true form."

Huo Yuhao, dazed, asked, "What do you want?"

Tianmeng's voice suddenly became solemn, "I want to become your soul ring, the first intelligent soul ring in the history of the Douluo Continent."

"Ah?" Huo Yuhao stared at the Tianmeng